Dragonball M, Chapter 2: Lighthouse! Across the Shores of Shattered Time!

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

"..."

For a long moment, Nevanlinna said nothing. Officially, she had just settled here because she had nowhere else to go. But... it was nice here. The climate was nice and varied, the food was adequate, and the inhabitants were... tolerable. If this planet fell under the dominion of the Threshling Empire, she would have to leave.

"In an unofficial capacity, yes. I like it here--it's not home, of course, but I have nowhere else to go, and if this world falls under the dominion of the Empire, I'll have to find someplace else to live. And that sounds like such a bother." Her motives certainly weren't heroic, by any means, but they were what they were. Plus, in the past year, she'd arrived at the conclusion that forcefully conquering and converting worlds was wrong, no matter what the reason. For now, she left that little tidbit out.

"You'd best not underestimate this world's defenders, Luop. Individually, they pale in comparison to you, but they have a habit of overcoming the odds, in my experience."

“I see. A pity we are on different sides, my lady. I have changed over the last few years, my arrogance cooled and my attitude adjusted. I see your point of view more than you might think. Change is coming, Lady Nevalinna. Your mother handpicked me to come here. It was the greatest of honors. I shall endevour to keep damaging you to a minimum, in her honor. She spoke to me of her regret in exiling you.”

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

"......"

Luop would feel something....not a PL, just general feeling of something. Nothing with the intent to kill, but enough to raise the hair on ones back....assuming there was hair to be raised.

".....Hello Visitor...."

Cthyllas seductive but offputting voice came from behind the threshling warrior, Neva and Seri would see the Voidling step out of the air as if walking out from behind a curtain.

"......I heard your call.....and welcome you. Your purpose here interests me...and I wish to observe."

To his credit, he does not flinch.

“Hmm...a voidling. My kind know you of old, creature. Observe as you will. Interfere, and my blade you’ll taste.”

[Tami]

"Thank you. I have felt welcome. Meagan has been most hospitable during our stay."

Asha'rah paused, her next words carrying greater weight.

"To what extent are you aware of the aftermath of the War in the Heavens?"

"The Heavenly War, it is not something that I have personal knowledge of. My people were, or are if they have survived, old enough to have some shared memory of the event, though I doubt any of my ancestors bore witness to it. There was talk among Guardians about it, though how much was true and how much was rumor I can not say. The times when I have interacted with those in Heaven, while I was alive and now as a spirit, they chose not to talk about it with me. However, I am aware that it happened and that it created a major upheaval that affected all levels of reality.""

[MrSandman]

To his credit, he does not flinch.

“Hmm...a voidling. My kind know you of old, creature. Observe as you will. Interfere, and my blade you’ll taste.”

"Then our pact is sealed....weither I choose to interfere or not will soon be seen, and I'll nothing less then your entire being in return." Cthyllas casually steps past the threshing to approach Neva and Seri, turning her attention to the little one. ".....strange.....are you here to defend your world, youngling?"

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

"Then our pact is sealed....weither I choose to interfere or not will soon be seen, and I'll nothing less then your entire being in return." Cthyllas casually steps past the threshing to approach Neva and Seri, turning her attention to the little one. ".....strange.....are you here to defend your world, youngling?"

Luop simply grunts in reply.

[Monstrous Bird of Qin, Ou Ki]

“I see. A pity we are on different sides, my lady. I have changed over the last few years, my arrogance cooled and my attitude adjusted. I see your point of view more than you might think. Change is coming, Lady Nevalinna. Your mother handpicked me to come here. It was the greatest of honors. I shall endevour to keep damaging you to a minimum, in her honor. She spoke to me of her regret in exiling you.”

Hm, so her mother regretted exiling her. It was good to know that, in some way, her mother did truly care for her, but that did not change the fact that she'd have to abide by the terms of her exile before she could return. The law was the law, and as the Queen, she was duty-bound to uphold that law.

"Indeed, quite a pity. I do, however, have an... offer for you," said Nevanlinna. "Should the defenders of this planet prevail and your life be preserved, would you be willing to become my servant? Truly, it would be a shame to consign one of your potential to the grave."

It was a simple offer. She was planning to return and oppose her brother, and she needed all the support she could get for that. Assuming, of course, that he had not been dealt with already, which was... entirely possible, actually. Regardless, one such as Luop would prove to be an effective training partner for her and Seri, if nothing else.

"Then our pact is sealed....weither I choose to interfere or not will soon be seen, and I'll nothing less then your entire being in return." Cthyllas casually steps past the threshing to approach Neva and Seri, turning her attention to the little one. ".....strange.....are you here to defend your world, youngling?"

Seri cocked her head at the voidling. "Um, well, my world's gone, but I do want to make sure this world and its people and its food don't get hurt, yeah!" Leave it to a Saiyan to have 'defending food' be a reason for fighting.

"I remember seeing you on that... floaty platform thing when we went to visit Nev-Nev's friends. My name is Seri. What's yours? And why do you... feel so weird? The fur on my tail is all standy."

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

Hm, so her mother regretted exiling her. It was good to know that, in some way, her mother did truly care for her, but that did not change the fact that she'd have to abide by the terms of her exile before she could return. The law was the law, and as the Queen, she was duty-bound to uphold that law.

"Indeed, quite a pity. I do, however, have an... offer for you," said Nevanlinna. "Should the defenders of this planet prevail and your life be preserved, would you be willing to become my servant? Truly, it would be a shame to consign one of your potential to the grave."

It was a simple offer. She was planning to return and oppose her brother, and she needed all the support she could get for that. Assuming, of course, that he had not been dealt with already, which was... entirely possible, actually. Regardless, one such as Luop would prove to be an effective training partner for her and Seri, if nothing else.



Seri cocked her head at the voidling. "Um, well, my world's gone, but I do want to make sure this world and its people and its food don't get hurt, yeah!" Leave it to a Saiyan to have 'defending food' be a reason for fighting.

"I remember seeing you on that... floaty platform thing when we went to visit Nev-Nev's friends. My name is Seri. What's yours? And why do you... feel so weird? The fur on my tail is all standy."

Luop nods.

“I would be honored, my Lady. If I am defeated and spared, I shall serve you as best I can.”

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

Jinzi grumbles as he snags the fourth dragonball from the mouth of a large dinosaur, Evangeline distracting it.

Soon they’d have all seven.

[KingofPie]

GP Earth HQ

"And that's twenty-one. Blackjack. Dealer wins another round! Which is to say, I win," Blizzar chuckled as he began to re-shuffle the cards. "You lot aren't picking this up as quickly as you'd hoped are you?" The lieutenant asked his colleagues sitting at the table before him. These colleagues bein the Elite Katchin Squadron.

"Hmph. The only reason I lost is because the planets I used to patrol just happened to have a ban on gambling. That's all," P-Cee huffed, looking away from the the able and out the able he window.

"Heh. Lame excuse..." X-Bo noted, dryly.

"You're a lame excuse..." P-Cee muttered.

"What's that?!" X-Bo x-claimed, leaping out of his chair to grimace at P-Cee, the two siblings now staring daggers at eachother.

"I don't get it..." N-Ten frowned. "I two ought twohoughthe ace was a one, not eleven."

"It's both. Depending on the circumstance, of course. Do I need to give another refresher course. This game is rather simple," Blizzar asked the Squadron as N-Ten finally decided to sit her other two siblings back down. "Honestly, I'm almost beginning to feel bad for you all..."

"No!" P-Cee noted. "The Elite Katchin Squadron never surrenders until we achieve victory!"

"Very well..." Blizzar shrugged. He didn't feel THAT bad. The way they spent their money was their choice....even if they were rather frugal.

"Hey, lieutenant..." N-Ten began.

"Yes?" Blizzar asked as he began to deal everyone their cards.

"You must feel really conflicted about the Saiyans' situation, huh?" N-Ten inquired.

"...What do you mean?" The frost demon passed for a moment, giving a glance at N-Ten, that didn't betray any of his thoughts.

"I don't mean any offense, but..." N-Ten mumbled, before speaking up once more. You had to do horrible things working undercover with one of your own people. Someone who ended up orchestrating such terrible atrocities against the Saiyans...Oh and uh, hit me."

"Not to mention that your race and the Saiyans aren't exactly on the best of terms. Even if it was the right thing to help out the Saiyans, it couldn't have been easy for you," X-Bo chimed in, pondering the cards before him. "Hit me."

"Many races are not on the best of terms with the Saiyans. And for good reason. I act as a mole against Blizz because it is my job. It's as simple as that," Blizzar explained. And he acts as a mole FOR Blizz because he likes money. Also a simple concept.

"Yes, but from my research the hatred between Arcosian's and Saiyans seemed deeply personal. Not to mention Arcosian's are tied to old, storied, rich families that encourage the prolonging of blood feuds such as that with the Saiyans," P-Cee expounded. "Hit me. Wait, WAIT. DAMMIT!"

"Heh heh...Guess we've finally found the one thing your big noggin can't comprehend..." X-Bo mocked, poking P-Cee's forehead.

P-Cee punched him in the eye.

"Oooh! Are you rich, Liuetanant?!" N-Ten asked excitedly as her siblings began to brawl in the he background. "Hit me!"

"No..." Blizzar replied with a sigh, he and N-Ten ignoring the commotion behind them as X-Bo punted P-Cee, causing her to ricochet across the room.

"Is that how you were able the he hematology afford such a nice base for us? You come from a rich family?" N-Ten asked, believing Blizzar to be acting modest as P-Cee, despite her small stature, managed to get X-Bo in a chokehold. "I'm gonna stand, by the way!"

"No," Blizzar replied curtly. At this point, X-Bo had deleted a chop to P-Cee's head, temporarily dizzying her.

"Are you sure? But what about..." N-Ten started.

At this point, Blizzar leaned over the table and answered with a mildly menacing, "No." It was a tone harsh enough that P-Cee and X-Bo ceased their petty fight and turned to look and their lieutenant in concern.

"N-Ten..." P-Cee began to chide her sister.

"I-I'm sorry sir! I didn't mean to offend you!" N-Ten bowed her head apologetically.

Blizzar sat back down and sighed. "No...Forgive me, for my outburst," he spoke in a much calmer tone. "I grew up in quite a different environment than that of my fellow Arcosians. My first memories were that of hunger. My parents teaching me how to steal from unsuspecting nobility. I always hated it. It was beneath me," Petty thievery that is. "I was never very good at it anyway." At least when it came to pickpocketing.

"We...we had no idea, lieutenant," X-Bo stated, sympathetically.

"You must've had a rough time growing up," P-Cee noted with understanding.

"I didn't begin to make most of my fortune until I learned how skilled I was with these," Blizzar stated, raising up a fist. "From an early ages the task of defending my parents and myself from guards that sought to...punish us fatally for our crimes of theft. I only realized my potential when my family and I had fled our homeworld."

"Only then did I seek tutelage in the fine art of pugilism," Blizzar continued. "And it was in that art that I began to make my fortune."

"That's right...you were a pretty famous boxer back in the day!" X-Bo remembere with a nod. "Boxing definitely makes you a ton of bank. Oh! And I'm gonna stand."

"Indeed," Blizzar noted. As did betting on yourself under several aliases. "Eventually my family and I no longer knew the bitter feeling of poverty. And then I eventually decoded to hang up my gloves and devote my fists to a greater cause..."

"The cause of justice!" N-Ten noted, as he siblings excitedly pumped their fist in the air and struck a fighting pose, inspired by their lieutenant's tale.

"Correct. To protect the galaxy. A noble pursuit if there ever was one," Blizzar stated sagely. Of course, if one thought they knew Blizzar, they would think this was another half-truth. Something he didn't believe in. But was it? Blizzar knew the truth behind the unjust world's he grew up in. The unjust worlds he's dealt in. Their course was steered by those with money and power. And thus it stood to reason that the course of the galaxy could be changed by one with money and power.
The methods one took to reach this goal didn't matter. After all, it's been shown time and time again. All that mattered is what one would do once he climbed to the top. Once he steered the course of the galaxy towards his vision of justice.

"By the way" Blizzar began to inform the Katchin Squadron, a bemused expression on his face as he glanced over all the cards they left on the table. "The House, as it were, wins again."

"No way!" N-Ten noted.

"....Crap," X-Bo.

"Not again...you didn't chest somehow, did you Lieutenant?" P-Cee asked, in a rare jokimg tone from her.

Blizzar smirked.

[Tami]

After the time skip:

A lone ship bypasses Earth’s new defensive grid as the magic tunes carved on it make it invisible to them.

It lands surprisingly gently in the North continent, and Sir Luop steps out.

Leaving the shop after hiding it, he taps a magi-tech device that will broadcast his next words to the entire world.

“Attention Earthlings, my name is Sir Luop Nosredna, Knight of the Bronze, servant of the Threshling Empire. I have come to this planet for two purposes: 1) the Priestess Anula will be given to me for execution. 2) I challenge your strongest fighters for the right to this planet. The Threshling Empire expands, in the name of our Queen, and we seek to convert your world. Come forth to accept my challenge and bring me the traitor Anula. My coordinates are as follows.”

A mental location is broadcast to the world along with these words.

Having just returned to the Lookout from another quest, Dash hears the summons. Deciding to check it, she quickly prepares, then flies off towards the Coordinates.

[MrSandman]

Hm, so her mother regretted exiling her. It was good to know that, in some way, her mother did truly care for her, but that did not change the fact that she'd have to abide by the terms of her exile before she could return. The law was the law, and as the Queen, she was duty-bound to uphold that law.

"Indeed, quite a pity. I do, however, have an... offer for you," said Nevanlinna. "Should the defenders of this planet prevail and your life be preserved, would you be willing to become my servant? Truly, it would be a shame to consign one of your potential to the grave."

It was a simple offer. She was planning to return and oppose her brother, and she needed all the support she could get for that. Assuming, of course, that he had not been dealt with already, which was... entirely possible, actually. Regardless, one such as Luop would prove to be an effective training partner for her and Seri, if nothing else.

"I concur with this agreement, additional souls will increase the value of your contribution to my efforts...." Cthylla nodded. "However......this is only if his strength proves sufficient to survive with his existence intact."

Seri cocked her head at the voidling. "Um, well, my world's gone, but I do want to make sure this world and its people and its food don't get hurt, yeah!" Leave it to a Saiyan to have 'defending food' be a reason for fighting.

"Yes...I too, do not wish the food on this world to go to waste." Cthylla answered, offering her hand for a pat on the head. "The food here is very good."

"I remember seeing you on that... floaty platform thing when we went to visit Nev-Nev's friends. My name is Seri. What's yours? And why do you... feel so weird? The fur on my tail is all standy."

"I am Cthylla. Perhaps you are merely not used to the presence of an outsider....it will pass it time, as it has for the others." The voidling attempted a smile, and after much practice it was close enough to not be taken as a weird face spasm.

[Tami]

Edited Out .

[KingofPie]

After the time skip:

A lone ship bypasses Earth’s new defensive grid as the magic tunes carved on it make it invisible to them.

It lands surprisingly gently in the North continent, and Sir Luop steps out.

Leaving the shop after hiding it, he taps a magi-tech device that will broadcast his next words to the entire world.

“Attention Earthlings, my name is Sir Luop Nosredna, Knight of the Bronze, servant of the Threshling Empire. I have come to this planet for two purposes: 1) the Priestess Anula will be given to me for execution. 2) I challenge your strongest fighters for the right to this planet. The Threshling Empire expands, in the name of our Queen, and we seek to convert your world. Come forth to accept my challenge and bring me the traitor Anula. My coordinates are as follows.”

A mental location is broadcast to the world along with these words.

GP HQ

The game of Blackjack was interrupted by an alert suddenly broadcast on the Lieutenant and Patrol Officers data pads. It relayed Luop's message to the people of Earth.

"A Threshling," Blizzar noted soberly. "He must've bypassed the defense grid with some sort of unknown magic. The drones must update to accommodate for this..."

"What do we do, lieutenant?" P-Cee asked.

"We monitor the situation for now," Blizzar answered. "If Earth's defenders need assistance we shall provide it."

Evangline's Lookout

"The Serpent's song...The Hidden Mysteries of the Viper...All bullshit!" Sasheem noted, tossing two books aside in a large pile of books he had created in the library. Works of fiction. Guesses and outright fabrications on the lost arts of the Snake School. Half of the lies written in these tomes, Sasheem could correct from sheer experience. If he had the patience, he'd write a book of his own but...

As the Majin was deep in his thoughts, a message came in loud and clear. A presence, a great threat had made itself known to the denizens of Earth. Sasheem stood up and cracked his neck. Whoever this guy was, Sasheem would be glad to punch him in the face. The whole snake scholarship ordeal had him riled up anyway.

And with that, the Majin sped towards the location of this bastard. Whoever he was, he wouldn't know what hit him.

[Monstrous Bird of Qin, Ou Ki]

Luop nods.

“I would be honored, my Lady. If I am defeated and spared, I shall serve you as best I can.”

Luop seemed to have been truthful about his demeanor improving since they'd last met. While she had been disparaging in the past towards him--never to his face--in truth, she'd thought that he'd been punished far too harshly for his mistake. To be sure, a punishment was warranted, but relegating one of his talent to being Jagam's handler was... a waste, really. And he was indeed rather talented--achieving the renown and power required to become a knight--even a Bronze--was no mean feat at his young age. Really, as she saw it, Luop's only flaws as a warrior was his youthful arrogance and hot-headedness. He claimed to have remedied those issues, and if he spoke the truth, then he would prove to be a most formidable foe indeed.

"Excellent. Now, we need only wait for the others, some of which are beginning to arrive," said Neva, motioning to Dash and the voidling.

"I concur with this agreement, additional souls will increase the value of your contribution to my efforts...." Cthylla nodded. "However......this is only if his strength proves sufficient to survive with his existence intact."




"Yes...I too, do not wish the food on this world to go to waste." Cthylla answered, offering her hand for a pat on the head. "The food here is very good."



"I am Cthylla. Perhaps you are merely not used to the presence of an outsider....it will pass it time, as it has for the others." The voidling attempted a smile, and after much practice it was close enough to not be taken as a weird face spasm.

Something about this... person? unnerved Seri. A lot. She said that it was because she was an outsider--whatever that was. Oh well, she seemed nice enough, even if she was a bit of a weirdo. Seri returned the smile. "Hehe, so you like food too? Well, duh, everyone likes food, except those... green alien guys. What's your favorite? I like... ummm..." The girl paused and her brow furrowed in thought. "...everything! But I really like Dino roasts! And sweet potatoes! And cake!"

[Yun Lao]

After the time skip:

A lone ship bypasses Earth’s new defensive grid as the magic tunes carved on it make it invisible to them.

It lands surprisingly gently in the North continent, and Sir Luop steps out.

Leaving the shop after hiding it, he taps a magi-tech device that will broadcast his next words to the entire world.

“Attention Earthlings, my name is Sir Luop Nosredna, Knight of the Bronze, servant of the Threshling Empire. I have come to this planet for two purposes: 1) the Priestess Anula will be given to me for execution. 2) I challenge your strongest fighters for the right to this planet. The Threshling Empire expands, in the name of our Queen, and we seek to convert your world. Come forth to accept my challenge and bring me the traitor Anula. My coordinates are as follows.”

A mental location is broadcast to the world along with these words.

"So killing what's-his-face didn't end this?"

A shrug was given before he took the air and made his way towards the coordinates beamed into his mind from the invader himself. As he flew, Charco pondered over the significance this Luop's title had. Did the Threshlings have a similar system of precious metals? If so, then should they be prepared for a Knight of the Silver and Gold later on? What about platinum? In the end, it didn't matter.

He'd fight them all if needed.