Dragonball M, Chapter 4: Kidnapping! Invasion! A new Threat Strikes First!

[Cthulhu_of_R'lyeh]

Lampton smiles.

“Cleos, former Guardian and Queen of Amonra.”

"Two birds, one stone." Inanna clicked her tongue. "Nice."

Well, she supposed that was that. "S'pose I'll leave you to it then, Lampton. Things to do, people to stalk." She turned toward the 'living construct' and Parsley. "Good to go?"

[Sub-Zero MKA]

"Two birds, one stone." Inanna clicked her tongue. "Nice."

Well, she supposed that was that. "S'pose I'll leave you to it then, Lampton. Things to do, people to stalk." She turned toward the 'living construct' and Parsley. "Good to go?"

Parsley turned her attention from the drab surroundings and gave Inanna a nod. "Yes. We should head back to Reshlan to inform the others of what we've learned. With Koorimaru dead and Remnant's amulet in my possession, we can cross this off our list."

[KingofPie]

"Two birds, one stone." Inanna clicked her tongue. "Nice."

Well, she supposed that was that. "S'pose I'll leave you to it then, Lampton. Things to do, people to stalk." She turned toward the 'living construct' and Parsley. "Good to go?"

Parsley turned her attention from the drab surroundings and gave Inanna a nod. "Yes. We should head back to Reshlan to inform the others of what we've learned. With Koorimaru dead and Remnant's amulet in my possession, we can cross this off our list."

Sasheem awoke not too long after In an a , a snot bubble popping from his nostrils as he did so. " Huh, what happened? Fell asleep after Lumpkin over here began to talk for too long," the Majin snickered. "So we ready to vamoose?"

[Cthulhu_of_R'lyeh]

Parsley turned her attention from the drab surroundings and gave Inanna a nod. "Yes. We should head back to Reshlan to inform the others of what we've learned. With Koorimaru dead and Remnant's amulet in my possession, we can cross this off our list."

"Ah right, something about keeping your eyeballs in their sockets."

Sasheem awoke not too long after In an a , a snot bubble popping from his nostrils as he did so. " Huh, what happened? Fell asleep after Lumpkin over here began to talk for too long," the Majin snickered. "So we ready to vamoose?"

Inanna cackled. "That's why I like you Sasheem, don't ask too many questions."

With a wiggle of her fingers to say goodbye, Inanna then shifted the trio back to Reshlan.

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

Many hours ago:



On a comet, anchors sinking deep into the frozen surface, a cloaked man stands. The gun, Final Verdict, rises and he calmly takes a stance.

“Third, awaiting Judgement. Final Verdict is locked and Whistle’s Boon is active, over.”


A crackle over the radio, and an unfamiliar male voice speaks back.

“Two targets, aye. Sending the info now. Good hunting, Third.”

The Judge grunts as the image of two people pops into his electronic eyes. His eyes flash as they analyze position, telemetry, and temporal quadrants.

“Acquired. Firing in three, two, one......”


Final Verdict barks twice in the silence of space, one heading towards Reshlan that’s black as space itself, the other a planet known as Namek, this shot crimson red like blood.

After a moment, he decouples the nano-anchors and starts to float.

“Requesting pickup.”


A portal appears and quickly engulfs the Judge.



——————

Elder Nail of planet Namek dies silently and swiftly, his people caught completely off guard as a single shot burns through his forehead while he slept in his home.

A moment later, their dragonballs all go inert.

——————


On Reshlan, to those with acute energy senses, a single flare of warning is all you get as a bolt of black energy comes down from on high and and strikes with pinpoint accuracy.

Held Dabon, Nevadian Warrior and navigator is struck through the heart from behind, a cowardly act. The black energy courses through him, negating his jump start and healing like a poison. His body spasms, but before the body goes completely dead, Hilda appears and slams a bead of Preservation into his heart, his body acting quickly to stabilize.

He is neither dead or living, his body persevered but his soul gone onto the afterlife. She carefully cradles his body and pats his head, closing the open eyes and whispering.

“Do not fear, my love. You’ll be back soon, and stronger than ever.”

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

An unfamiliar voice entered her head. It was warm and friendly, one that put her at ease. Before the woman introduced herself, she already knew it was Eva. 'A pleasure to meet you, Eva. Sarada has spoken very highly of you.' She noticed the butterfly that hadn't been there a moment ago. 'If she's still there with you, can you let her know I'm alright. I know she has an important battle ahead of her and I don't want her worrying about me.'

‘I will do so. She and Parsley speak highly of you as well. We shall have to meet sometime soon.’

[bruceleegreyhulk]

Many hours ago:



On a comet, anchors sinking deep into the frozen surface, a cloaked man stands. The gun, Final Verdict, rises and he calmly takes a stance.

“Third, awaiting Judgement. Final Verdict is locked and Whistle’s Boon is active, over.”


A crackle over the radio, and an unfamiliar male voice speaks back.

“Two targets, aye. Sending the info now. Good hunting, Third.”

The Judge grunts as the image of two people pops into his electronic eyes. His eyes flash as they analyze position, telemetry, and temporal quadrants.

“Acquired. Firing in three, two, one......”


Final Verdict barks twice in the silence of space, one heading towards Reshlan that’s black as space itself, the other a planet known as Namek, this shot crimson red like blood.

After a moment, he decouples the nano-anchors and starts to float.

“Requesting pickup.”


A portal appears and quickly engulfs the Judge.



——————

Elder Nail of planet Namek dies silently and swiftly, his people caught completely off guard as a single shot burns through his forehead while he slept in his home.

A moment later, their dragonballs all go inert.

——————


On Reshlan, to those with acute energy senses, a single flare of warning is all you get as a bolt of black energy comes down from on high and and strikes with pinpoint accuracy.

Held Dabon, Nevadian Warrior and navigator is struck through the heart from behind, a cowardly act. The black energy courses through him, negating his jump start and healing like a poison. His body spasms, but before the body goes completely dead, Hilda appears and slams a bead of Preservation into his heart, his body acting quickly to stabilize.

He is neither dead or living, his body persevered but his soul gone onto the afterlife. She carefully cradles his body and pats his head, closing the open eyes and whispering.

“Do not fear, my love. You’ll be back soon, and stronger than ever.”

"If you love him, then why in the hell did you attack him? Why, why would you do this to someone you love?" Praxat said, enraged as her skin turn a deep red and her eyes begin to flick blue with bioelectricity with her power level fluctuating.

[Cthulhu_of_R'lyeh]

On Reshlan, to those with acute energy senses, a single flare of warning is all you get as a bolt of black energy comes down from on high and and strikes with pinpoint accuracy.

Held Dabon, Nevadian Warrior and navigator is struck through the heart from behind, a cowardly act. The black energy courses through him, negating his jump start and healing like a poison. His body spasms, but before the body goes completely dead, Hilda appears and slams a bead of Preservation into his heart, his body acting quickly to stabilize.

He is neither dead or living, his body persevered but his soul gone onto the afterlife. She carefully cradles his body and pats his head, closing the open eyes and whispering.

“Do not fear, my love. You’ll be back soon, and stronger than ever.”

It was there, a split second and then nothing, as Inanna materialized on the living side of Otherworld. It doesn't take long before she realizes that Held, he of the all-seeing-eye, and interesting choice of mate; was no longer with them. With what they'd learned in recent moments still rattling about in her head, the woman's eyes narrowed.

"Parsley... they're already one the move."

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

"If you love him, then why in the hell did you attack him? Why, why would you do this to someone you love?" Praxat said, enraged as her skin turn a deep red and her eyes begin to flick blue with bioelectricity with her power level fluctuating.

Hilda calmly shakes her head.

“It was not I that struck him down. I lack the power. No, ‘‘twas an assassin from afar.”

[Sub-Zero MKA]

"Ah right, something about keeping your eyeballs in their sockets."

Inanna cackled. "That's why I like you Sasheem, don't ask too many questions."

With a wiggle of her fingers to say goodbye, Inanna then shifted the trio back to Reshlan.

"Yes. We can handle that after we bring the others up to speed."

Parsley breathed out. She was close to finally having the specter of her deal with Night off her shoulders for good. As soon as she handed him his amulet, she was going to forget she ever met him. If she never returned to Universe 18, it would be far too soon for her tastes.

They shifted back into the realm of the living, a feeling she didn't think she would ever get used to, and stepped foot back on Reshlan. She immediately sensed that Ochazuke and those that went with him returned. More importantly, she sensed Maiz. From the feel from this distance, she wasn't hurt. With that, her obligation to Sarada had been completed. A small smile touched her lips - the wider grin she felt compelled to flash successfully restrained - as she floated upward and quickly flew to where she sensed her.

She landed a moment later. "You're okay," she stated.

If Maiz was surprised to see Parsley there so quickly after arriving completely out of nowhere, she didn't show it. "I am. The Frost Demon boy, Koorimaru, didn't do me much harm." She frowned and rubbed her neck idly. "At least I don't think he did." Before she could speak again, Parsley interjected.

"He's dead," she said while scrolling through her PDD. "Shot through the head from millions of miles away." The image of The Judge popped up in midair. "This was his killer. His name is The Judge, a cybernetic being capable of sniping targets from two solar systems away."

"...what?"

She nodded slowly. "The logistics of such a feat are astounding." She debated telling Maiz about what she knew of the Ulthan, but decided against it for right then. She could always inform her later. "Regardless, the threat of Remnant has been, perhaps unintentionally, neutralized. With his host dead and the amulet right here," she held up the capsule in which the amulet was contained, "his plan has come apart at the seams."

"Yeah, about that." When Parsley raised an eyebrow, Maiz sighed. "Koorimaru wasn't dead on Cortis II, where I was kept. He managed to jump into the body of one of his subordinates. Him dying apparently triggered the conditions for Remnant, allowing him to take over." She sighed again. "We barely escaped. Worse, we still have no idea where Asha'rah was, since the boy was the only one who knows where she is. He's... probably done for and I doubt Remnant will say a word, not while he still needs her to fully free himself."

Parsley considered what Maiz told her with wide eyes. They had failed. She thought that saving Maiz and getting to Koorimaru at the same time would be all they needed to do to stop Remnant's release before it had a chance to get off the ground. She thought, when they found his corpse, that Koorimaru's death killed any and all chance of his release. All that, all the Judge, managed to do was speed up the process. Maiz had been in his possession for days, so there was little doubt they had done whatever they needed to do to her to trigger her part of the prophecy.

Two of the three had been fulfilled. All that was left was Asha'rah. They had no idea where she was, and they had no idea how to even begin to....

The Majin. That was how they were going to find her. "All hope isn't lost just yet. I think I know how to find Asha'rah. In Universe 16, there's a place called The Rookery that houses a group of Majin proficient in scrying. They did work for Auroc before he was killed. They can find people even in other universes. They should be able to find Asha'rah, regardless of where she's being kept."

Maiz's face blanked at the mention of another universe. She was sure she had mentioned it before, but apparently not. "O...kay."

"I'm supposed to head back there at some point, so I'll take care of that then."

Parsley looked for and found Ochazuke. "Did Koorimaru say anything of any importance before Remnant took over?" she asked him. "Was he aware of his killer's identity?"

[Sub-Zero MKA]

It was there, a split second and then nothing, as Inanna materialized on the living side of Otherworld. It doesn't take long before she realizes that Held, he of the all-seeing-eye, and interesting choice of mate; was no longer with them. With what they'd learned in recent moments still rattling about in her head, the woman's eyes narrowed.

"Parsley... they're already one the move."

Parsley feared Inanna was right. There were very few people on Reshlan capable of killing Held, or willing to for that matter. "I want to confirm before I jump to conclusions." With that, she sniffed the air to catch Held's scent, then made her way over there.

She found Held's motionless corpse being cradled by Hilda, with Praxat nearby. "What happened?" she asked Hilda.

[grampagen]

“I think Korrimaru mentioned, when he went after Eva, that only he knew where Asha’rah was. Eva seemed to think he’d taken her.” Dash says, happy to be back on solid ground once more.

Zaofan rubbed his temples. Already it was far too early in the day to process much of this, but already there was quite a lot to absorb.

"I'd been wondering why she hadn't showed up," he said, "She'd said she wanted to correct the imbalance years ago."

Ochazuke folded his arms. "Then the matter is further along than we think, for the Remnant possesses Koorimaru's mind now, and with it the sum of all his knowledge." Even in another body, they'd seen him use his techniques in conjunction with a Destroyer's power. "If he hadn't claimed what he wanted from her already, he's sure to do so soon."

What Dash relayed, however, revealed perhaps a lateral angle of approach to this matter.

"There are some, perhaps less than a dozen, who also might know where he is. The Arcosian Acolytes. If they, too, are marked with the same signature as his kinsman that bore the Remnant's Mask, it might be possible to find them-"

On Reshlan, to those with acute energy senses, a single flare of warning is all you get as a bolt of black energy comes down from on high and and strikes with pinpoint accuracy.

Held Dabon, Nevadian Warrior and navigator is struck through the heart from behind, a cowardly act. The black energy courses through him, negating his jump start and healing like a poison. His body spasms, but before the body goes completely dead, Hilda appears and slams a bead of Preservation into his heart, his body acting quickly to stabilize.

He is neither dead or living, his body persevered but his soul gone onto the afterlife. She carefully cradles his body and pats his head, closing the open eyes and whispering.

“Do not fear, my love. You’ll be back soon, and stronger than ever.”

It came so swiftly that by the time what happened had registered, they found themselves dumbstruck until Zaofan saw the Nevadian fall.

"H-HELD!"

In an instant the martial chef blurred out of sight, reappearing by his fallen comrade's side and stopped in utter disbelief, and then dead silence as he looked around and saw Ochazuke did not follow.

Using the Wolf's Prowl to amplify his speed, Ochazuke had scanned the horizon once, then pressed off as he pursued the angle of the shot. The black energy registered only for an instant, but tracing its trajectory with his Meditation Field, the residuals resolved a strange path that seemed to angle upward...and perhaps recklessly he flew higher than any Crane or Man was meant to as he chased its path into the atmosphere, locking into the signature and reaching after its energies in a dogged pursuit.

[bruceleegreyhulk]

Hilda calmly shakes her head.

“It was not I that struck him down. I lack the power. No, ‘‘twas an assassin from afar.”

Praxat calms down after hearing this. Her eyes turn back to normal, and her power level stops fluctuating and reverts to normal" So it was an assassin who did this to Held. Sorry for suspecting you," Praxat said.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

‘I will do so. She and Parsley speak highly of you as well. We shall have to meet sometime soon.’

'Yes, we will. I'll boil a pot of tea and we can have a nice chat about things. Maybe I can get some pointers from a veteran Guardian.'

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

Zaofan rubbed his temples. Already it was far too early in the day to process much of this, but already there was quite a lot to absorb.

"I'd been wondering why she hadn't showed up," he said, "She'd said she wanted to correct the imbalance years ago."

Ochazuke folded his arms. "Then the matter is further along than we think, for the Remnant possesses Koorimaru's mind now, and with it the sum of all his knowledge." Even in another body, they'd seen him use his techniques in conjunction with a Destroyer's power. "If he hadn't claimed what he wanted from her already, he's sure to do so soon."

What Dash relayed, however, revealed perhaps a lateral angle of approach to this matter.

"There are some, perhaps less than a dozen, who also might know where he is. The Arcosian Acolytes. If they, too, are marked with the same signature as his kinsman that bore the Remnant's Mask, it might be possible to find them-"



It came so swiftly that by the time what happened had registered, they found themselves dumbstruck until Zaofan saw the Nevadian fall.

"H-HELD!"

In an instant the martial chef blurred out of sight, reappearing by his fallen comrade's side and stopped in utter disbelief, and then dead silence as he looked around and saw Ochazuke did not follow.

Using the Wolf's Prowl to amplify his speed, Ochazuke had scanned the horizon once, then pressed off as he pursued the angle of the shot. The black energy registered only for an instant, but tracing its trajectory with his Meditation Field, the residuals resolved a strange path that seemed to angle upward...and perhaps recklessly he flew higher than any Crane or Man was meant to as he chased its path into the atmosphere, locking into the signature and reaching after its energies in a dogged pursuit.

His senses track far into the atmosphere, far away passed Reshlan’s orbit and out into the wide expanse of space. Far and further still, until even his senses strain.

The single bolt left a slight rippling trail, however, and his senses go deep and track it going for light years away. A stray comet was its origin. Two shots fired, one at Held, another.....Namek.

Hilda, meanwhile, concentrates on Held’s body.

“He is only technically dead. The shot housed some sort of poison in it to stop his Jump Start. I can remove it after careful study. My preservation bead will keep his body in stasis. When the time comes, I believe he’ll be able to come back. However, for the moment the vessel is empty, the soul departed to Otherworld.”