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

[Sub-Zero MKA]

With Ochazuke lighting the way, the Soul Meister’s location was easily found.

Sihn nods and places a hand on your shoulder.

“Lead the way.”

Ochazuke glanced at the glyphs below, it was clear whatever spellcraft this thing was attempting had been halted for a time. It being magical in nature, it was not anything he recognized, but these strange characters written by the phantom were not of Vermillion, nor Persephone's Avalon, nor the words of Auroc's script where it had corrupted his ruinous Threshling spells.

Muttering something under his breath, he plopped Kevi onto one of the office chairs and hit her in the back of the head with the Dragon's Kiss.

Whether Sakin or this creature, you've done quite enough today.

"Would that it have been the other way around," Ochazuke said, unamused. "Best that we contain this before the enemies we've put down get ambitious enough to attack beyond the grave as well."

Standing near Parsley, the threads of Ochazuke's meditation field wove through the firmament of the Afterlife's strange terra firma, a layered web that spread for miles.

"The spell the Soul Meister put on Kevi has marked him. Do you sense the fire there, far off part the horizon? His agglutinated compact of souls bound to him is fodder for it."

Parsley made a silent note to examine the glyphs the pathetic creature had been carving during their conversation when they returned from dealing with the Soul Meister. Likely, it was some sort of teleportation spell or something of that nature. Whatever it was, it had been foiled, so she felt not compulsion to see about it right then.

"Of course. Like blood in the water." Ochazuke's fire shone in the eternal darkness of the sea of souls that was the Afterlife like a lighthouse. She focused on it, narrowing her focus until it was the only signature in her mind. She placed two fingers to her forehead and placed her other hand on his shoulder.

Kevi slumps, unconscious.

Sihn nods, the glowing light in his hand shifting as it reaches out and touches the three of you, sending a chilled sensation of winter’s first clean and pure breeze through your bodies. It’s oddly refreshing.

“Protection against soul manipulation. Just in case. Sheki will see to Kevi.”

She nodded. "This shouldn't take long," she said to the Death Goddess.

Perfect Mockery - Instant Transmission

The three disappeared, then instantly reappeared near wherever the Soul Meister had been hiding all that time.

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

Parsley made a silent note to examine the glyphs the pathetic creature had been carving during their conversation when they returned from dealing with the Soul Meister. Likely, it was some sort of teleportation spell or something of that nature. Whatever it was, it had been foiled, so she felt not compulsion to see about it right then.

"Of course. Like blood in the water." Ochazuke's fire shone in the eternal darkness of the sea of souls that was the Afterlife like a lighthouse. She focused on it, narrowing her focus until it was the only signature in her mind. She placed two fingers to her forehead and placed her other hand on his shoulder.



She nodded. "This shouldn't take long," she said to the Death Goddess.

Perfect Mockery - Instant Transmission

The three disappeared, then instantly reappeared near wherever the Soul Meister had been hiding all that time.

The three appear in.......a cave?

A...purple cave?

The strange purple rock that surrounds them is odd, but the cross-legged figure in the room, sitting in front of a strange pink fire, is perhaps more curious.



The figure seems to be meditating.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

The three appear in.......a cave?

A...purple cave?

The strange purple rock that surrounds them is odd, but the cross-legged figure in the room, sitting in front of a strange pink fire, is perhaps more curious.



The figure seems to be meditating.

It wasn't Sakin, that much was sure. It was some sort of alien creature, more akin to what some believed a demon to look like than the two Angels she had ever laid eyes on. Then again, if Caliban was the normal for all celestial beings, it could have been a form he shifted into to hide his true identity.

The cave they found themselves in was curious. Purple rock glistens all around them, giving the cave an ethereal aura. The creature meditated in front of a fire, pink in color, so Parsley took that chance to get a better grip of the situation.

Her gaze, sharpened by Observational Focus, shifted from one thing to another. She also used Toki Yo Tomare to check if there was any magical energies in their area.

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

It wasn't Sakin, that much was sure. It was some sort of alien creature, more akin to what some believed a demon to look like than the two Angels she had ever laid eyes on. Then again, if Caliban was the normal for all celestial beings, it could have been a form he shifted into to hide his true identity.

The cave they found themselves in was curious. Purple rock glistens all around them, giving the cave an ethereal aura. The creature meditated in front of a fire, pink in color, so Parsley took that chance to get a better grip of the situation.

Her gaze, sharpened by Observational Focus, shifted from one thing to another. She also used Toki Yo Tomare to check if there was any magical energies in their area.

The strange pink fire, the smoke it emits, seems to cast a haze against your techniques. You cannot get a good bead on anything here.

[grampagen]

The three appear in.......a cave?

A...purple cave?

The strange purple rock that surrounds them is odd, but the cross-legged figure in the room, sitting in front of a strange pink fire, is perhaps more curious.



The figure seems to be meditating.

The moment Parsley moved them into this section of the realm, Ochazuke narrowed his eyes and surveyed the environs. Wherever the fire he had cast burned, it had brought them to this place, which may have been, by all appearances, a realm apart.

Setting his meditational field into the genius loci of this place, he turned his head to Sihn.

"How did this get past your watch?"

It wasn't Sakin, that much was sure. It was some sort of alien creature, more akin to what some believed a demon to look like than the two Angels she had ever laid eyes on. Then again, if Caliban was the normal for all celestial beings, it could have been a form he shifted into to hide his true identity.

The cave they found themselves in was curious. Purple rock glistens all around them, giving the cave an ethereal aura. The creature meditated in front of a fire, pink in color, so Parsley took that chance to get a better grip of the situation.

Her gaze, sharpened by Observational Focus, shifted from one thing to another. She also used Toki Yo Tomare to check if there was any magical energies in their area.

The strange pink fire, the smoke it emits, seems to cast a haze against your techniques. You cannot get a good bead on anything here.

It was a long and strange road, from pursuing the transmigration of souls to and from the afterlife, to the trail leading from Kevi to Sakin, to this...creature. Whatever the hell you are, you've had a hand in this, haven't you?

Whatever the case, they were here, now, and they had a job to do.

The pink fire in front of the Soul Meister seemed to be an impediment. Through his possessed agent he had some distance, but now he had nowhere to hide. Once again Ochazuke would test the flame of Garuda, Karura no Kaen against it.

It had traced the path here, and now the flame of the soul spread to consume the presence of their target and burn away the extrasensory haze that obstructed their perception.

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

The moment Parsley moved them into this section of the realm, Ochazuke narrowed his eyes and surveyed the environs. Wherever the fire he had cast burned, it had brought them to this place, which may have been, by all appearances, a realm apart.

Setting his meditational field into the genius loci of this place, he turned his head to Sihn.

"How did this get past your watch?"





It was a long and strange road, from pursuing the transmigration of souls to and from the afterlife, to the trail leading from Kevi to Sakin, to this...creature. Whatever the hell you are, you've had a hand in this, haven't you?

Whatever the case, they were here, now, and they had a job to do.

The pink fire in front of the Soul Meister seemed to be an impediment. Through his possessed agent he had some distance, but now he had nowhere to hide. Once again Ochazuke would test the flame of Garuda, Karura no Kaen against it.

It had traced the path here, and now the flame of the soul spread to consume the presence of their target and burn away the extrasensory haze that obstructed their perception.

Ochazuke’s attempt to snuff the flame is met by an equal force, repelling his attempt.

Sihn meanwhile spits on the ground, grits his teeth, the light in his hand writhing as it travels up his arm.

“Because I can’t be everywhere in six universes and HFIL, which we are still in, is vaster than multiple planets, Ochazuke. I’m not a god like Sheki’hinah, just a poor mortal trying his best. Trust me, I’ll beat myself up over this later.”

He taps the glowing arm against the wall, and a reverberation shakes the cave. The purple color fades, the smoke seems to almost curl back on itself, and slowly the person opens their eyes as Ochazuke can feel Sihn’s power mingle with his own flame.

“Do it again. One more push should be enough.”

[grampagen]

Ochazuke’s attempt to snuff the flame is met by an equal force, repelling his attempt.

Sihn meanwhile spits on the ground, grits his teeth, the light in his hand writhing as it travels up his arm.

“Because I can’t be everywhere in six universes and HFIL, which we are still in, is vaster than multiple planets, Ochazuke. I’m not a god like Sheki’hinah, just a poor mortal trying his best. Trust me, I’ll beat myself up over this later.”

He taps the glowing arm against the wall, and a reverberation shakes the cave. The purple color fades, the smoke seems to almost curl back on itself, and slowly the person opens their eyes as Ochazuke can feel Sihn’s power mingle with his own flame.

“Do it again. One more push should be enough.”

"A rather dire matter to keep concealed."

Of course, plundering wreckage and remnants for a hint of order just seemed to be the way of things. The higher they aspired, the longer and more barren the plateau seemed to be.

Drawing in a steep breath to stoke the Dragon's Fire from within, guided by the Soul Splicer in his hand Ochazuke more precisely targetted the matter of the infernal denizen seated there, and concentrated.

Applying Kei'i-Ken to amplify their collective focus, Sihn's own efforts as well as Parsley's next would be amplified.

Absorbing Sihn's power with Houyokusen, the Phoenix and Dragon harmonized to hasten with winged flames of the Garuda, focused entirely on destroying the Soul Meister's control over energy and perception.

Thereby giving Parsley an opening to attack.

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

"A rather dire matter to keep concealed."

Of course, plundering wreckage and remnants for a hint of order just seemed to be the way of things. The higher they aspired, the longer and more barren the plateau seemed to be.

Drawing in a steep breath to stoke the Dragon's Fire from within, guided by the Soul Splicer in his hand Ochazuke more precisely targetted the matter of the infernal denizen seated there, and concentrated.

Applying Kei'i-Ken to amplify their collective focus, Sihn's own efforts as well as Parsley's next would be amplified.

Absorbing Sihn's power with Houyokusen, the Phoenix and Dragon harmonized to hasten with winged flames of the Garuda, focused entirely on destroying the Soul Meister's control over energy and perception.

Thereby giving Parsley an opening to attack.

The smoke and fire peel back, then vanish like a match in the wind. The creature stands, but the ability to sense energy and control energy is back in working order.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

"A rather dire matter to keep concealed."

Of course, plundering wreckage and remnants for a hint of order just seemed to be the way of things. The higher they aspired, the longer and more barren the plateau seemed to be.

Drawing in a steep breath to stoke the Dragon's Fire from within, guided by the Soul Splicer in his hand Ochazuke more precisely targetted the matter of the infernal denizen seated there, and concentrated.

Applying Kei'i-Ken to amplify their collective focus, Sihn's own efforts as well as Parsley's next would be amplified.

Absorbing Sihn's power with Houyokusen, the Phoenix and Dragon harmonized to hasten with winged flames of the Garuda, focused entirely on destroying the Soul Meister's control over energy and perception.

Thereby giving Parsley an opening to attack.

The smoke and fire peel back, then vanish like a match in the wind. The creature stands, but the ability to sense energy and control energy is back in working order.

Ochazuke did his part to snuff out the flame, thus stripping that place of its veiled that kept its secrets hidden from her senses. As the creature stood, she tried her opening move again. Observational Focus and Toki Yo Tomare to gain the full breadth of what the purple rock cavern and the creature had to offer.

[KingofPie]

Sasheem was deep in concentration in the heart of Coral Canyon. The training grounds of the Snake School had not been fully refurbished but it was better than the ruined state Sasheem had once left in so many years ago. One day, students would flood these halls once more, trained by Sasheem to become perfect assassins. Sure as **** will show up all those other jabronis like Ochazuke and Zaofan. Let's see either of those two numbskulls become true masters in their own right!

But Sasheem wasn't worried about them, or the other M-Fighters, or anyone else right now. He was too busy deep in contemplative thought, beneath the cavern's waterfall.

"ZZZzzzzzzzz....."

Real deep ****, you wouldn't even begin to understand it. The new recruits would be pouring in after the select ads he put in secretive select places, Secret places once known to only the criminal underworld. But then, suddenly...his ear....square...hole things perked up at the sound of footsteps. Two pairs. ...Two?! Not the number he was hoping for, but a start was a start. He couldn't sense anything from them...perhaps they were concealing their ki? That was promising for a couple of new recruits.

"Finally! Welcome to the grand re-opening of the....Snake..." Sasheem began, skidding down the corner to greet the new potential students. It was....some lady and a kid. Her kid? Who cared, really? "...what."

Sasheem stood frozen in his welcoming pose, blinking in confusion as the woman explained, "You don't remember us?"

"Did Sasheem kill you once? IS that it? Figure out where he is and want revenge?" he asked, still in the pose, wondering what to make of this awkward situation.

"Kill?! No, you saved us!" the woman corrected.

Sasheem blinked. Saved? Saved... "Hmm, yeah. Sounds about right!" He stated, finally shifting his stance to a more self-assured one, nodding and scratching his chin in recognition. "Sasheem is a big hero 'round these parts these days, so it only makes sense you humans eventually show some gratitude. But really, you two gotta go. This place is for serious students."

"But that's just it, I didn't come all the way up here to thank you! I want to be a student!"

"..." Sasheem would've almost thought it was funny, but had the only people been able to find his secret posting some mom and her kid?! "So you know this is a secret assassin school, right? Matter of fact, Sasheem should kill you both right now to maintain secrecy!"

"I know! I need to learn these techniques to better protect my son!" the mom answered back.

"Assassination techniques..."

"Yes..."

"....There are uh...well not to promote Sasheem's competition or nothin' but there are other schools you can learn to fith at right?" Sasheem grumbled.

"But I don't want to do it in a flashy way! I want to learn to strike form the shadows!" the mom snapped back.

"Yeah, like a ninja!" the kid responded.

"Then train at a ninja academy!" Sasheem roared, his cranium growing to the size of a boulder to emphasize his indignation at this situation. "How the hell did you even find this place anyway?!" he ran over to the woman, grabbing her by the collar.

"The old man in the space suit tipped me off, now let me go!" the woman kicked at Sasheem who only continued to frown.

"Old man in a space suit?" he asked raising a brow. This....this was strange. Beyond strange. "What old man?! What'd he look like?!"

"Something like this..." another voice called Sasheem. The Majin's ki immediately began to flare up. This one actually concealed his presence. Setting the woman down he turned towards the direction of the voice. It certainly was an old man in a space suit. But not just any space suit. This one was emblazoned with the GP emblem.

"Just what the hell is this about..." the Majin asked, his brow furrowing.

"Majin Sasheem....the Earth, your adopted planet....needs your help," the Old Man smiled.

[Monstrous Bird of Qin, Ou Ki]

Rutaba's newfound power blazed like a newly sparked wildfire. Her aura ebbed and flowed chaotically. It was a struggle to get herself under control.

"Raaaaaaaaah!" she yelled as she exploded forward to meet him head on. She was a ball of fury as she launched her wild volley on Totoma.

Vocado watched the two spar with a passive expression. Once Rutaba calmed down, getting her to master Super Saiyan would be fairly simple. That, of course, wouldn't be the end, and he would be able to help her maximize Super Saiyan's power. Totoma, on the other hand, would take some doing to get him to realize that learning SSJ3 - while perhaps necessary - wasn't any better than fully master his base form and first level.

Sadly, Vocado didn't realize that until after he mastered SSJ3. If he had, then he would have never bothered with it. It had its uses, but it was mostly unnecessary.

Hehe, how exciting! Rutaba's super saiyan power was pretty intense. Was it as intense as his or Vocado's? No, but what it represented was intense. With time, Rutaba would become even stronger... which would help drive her peers to get stronger, themselves. And that could only be a good thing... unless the saiyan race went bad again.

But to be honest, with so many good influences among the saiyans these days, that possibility seemed remote.

As Totoma fended off the raging ball of energy that was Rutaba, a part of his mind drifted to the next few months. It had taken about a month to get Rutaba up to speed and complete her transformation. The next month would... probably just be more training and getting her conditioned to the form. That was fine, and he knew what methods his mother had been planning to use to do that, so... shouldn't take that long. Rutaba might not enjoy them--Saiyans, besides his mother, rarely enjoyed meditating, himself included--but it would definitely do the trick.

His own training would probably mirror Rutaba's, except he'd be getting used to Super Saiyan 2. That would probably be a bit more difficult, since the energy drain was higher and the sense of agitation and emotional turmoil was a bit... more intense. But, eh... two months tops. And after that... Super Saiyan 3! Haha, he couldn't wait.

~~End of Month 1~~

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

The strange creature is revealed, Parsley sensing a conglomeration of soul energy within the blue fire that surrounds the creature. She also senses a strange power that seems far to like Night for Parsley’s taste.

The cave is just a unique HFIL that naturally dampens sensations, the smoke and fire having added to that.

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

The creature looks at them, soul fire in its eyes. It takes a step back when it realizes it cannot manipulate you thanks to Sihn’s protection. Upon that realization, the creature seems to wreath itself in soul blue flames.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

The strange creature is revealed, Parsley sensing a conglomeration of soul energy within the blue fire that surrounds the creature. She also senses a strange power that seems far to like Night for Parsley’s taste.

The cave is just a unique HFIL that naturally dampens sensations, the smoke and fire having added to that.

The creature looks at them, soul fire in its eyes. It takes a step back when it realizes it cannot manipulate you thanks to Sihn’s protection. Upon that realization, the creature seems to wreath itself in soul blue flames.

An assortment of souls, possibly absorbed throughout its time in HFIL. It was an indictment on how flimsy the entire structure of Otherworld was that a creature like this was able to hide in secret for that long. Changes were in order, that was for certain.

Parsley's ax appeared in her hand as she transformed into Super Saiyan. "Well, you're a lot uglier than I thought you'd be," she remarked.

It seems to be similar to Night, she realized a moment later. Sihn's protection worked, so a repeat of her moments with Night on his world wouldn't come to pass.

"I told you whatever plan you have would end in your death. Seems the timetable has been moved up a great deal." The runes on her ax become aglow as she channeled her ki through the blade.

The blue fire held its souls in place. Snuffing that out should have released them.

Blood poured out of her pores and coalesced into a smal ball in her hand.

[Monstrous Bird of Qin, Ou Ki]

It had been a few hours since the battle with her boy... or rather, Battersea in her boy's body. She'd gotten dinner and then returned to Vaikuntha to... well, explore. And, perhaps, get to know this 'Nevanlinna' a bit better. When she returned, she was greeted by the presence of a young saiyaness she'd seen hovering around the threshling, as well as Rutaba and Pinach... ah, what was her name? Seri... yes, that was it.

A remarkable talent, she had to admit... even without being a Super Saiyan, she was as strong as one already albeit one that had only just ascended. Still, very few could claim that. And to think she had reached that point with just half-assed training, play-fighting, and one or two 'real' battles. The girl, excitedly, had begun talking to her... mostly about random things as Tasure smiled (...okay, grinned) and nodded. However, eventually she brought up something... interesting...

"And you say that Parsley is going to train you to become a Super Saiyan?"

"Mmhm. She's super-busy right now, but she more or less promised. I can't wait!" The excitement in Seri's voice was almost contagious. She reminded Tasure of herself when she was young. Before she'd had the optimism crushed out of her, for a time, by... various circumstances. Growing up in the meat market tended to do that. Thankfully, with how Saiyan society was changing, Seri's optimism would probably only be tempered by reality, instead of extinguished.

Good. That meant she'd progress much faster. It had taken her years, decades even to overcome the self-limiting mental blocks her early life had beaten into her, and then work her way out of the lingering stagnation those blocks had caused. To be sure, she cared more about skill and techniques than raw power, but still...

While she had been contemplating snatching Seri up as a student, hearing that Parsley would eventually take her under her wing made Tasure reconsider. They hadn't spoken much, if at all, in... ever, but she highly respected Parsley's capabilities, both in terms of ki and... sigh... magic, which was something that was exceedingly rare among saiyans. Even among those with the potential to use it, it was hard to overcome that cultural disdain for magic. To her knowledge, the younger saiyaness had never trained anyone before, but doing so could prove to be an... enlightening experience. One often learned quite a bit through teaching. It would likely lead to better growth for the both of them.

...that, and she could tell that Seri was pretty much a fangirl of Parsley. To be sure, she could tell that she was a fangirl of her, as well... and also Sarada... and Pinach... and Rutaba... and Totoma, but she really looked up to Parsley. The only individual that compared in that respect was the Threshling Princess, who, it seems, had saved her life years ago.

From the timeline, that would have been back when the Threshling Princess carried an open disdain for Saiyans. Hm, interesting.

"Hm... she'll be a good teacher for you, when the time comes," said Tasure. "However, don't simply rest on your laurels until she can train you... after all, she would be disappointed if you hadn't gotten any stronger since that promise. Understand?"

"Of course! I've been training super-hard since then. I'm lots stronger."

Tasure had no reason to doubt this. However, she was kind of getting distracted from her initial purpose here, so she turned her attention to Nevanlinna, who'd been sitting nearby listening to Seri talk up a storm.

"You, Nevanlinna. You've given me permission to train in this realm, am I correct?"

"Correct. Your... our entire group has. Given the nature of my realm, there are very few places better suited for intense, extended training, I'm sure you would agree."

"Tch. I've got some catching up to do, and I have someone--well, multiple someones--in mind to help me do that. Mind giving them permission, too?"

"Oh? Well, I do not believe you'd allow anyone... uncouth or dangerous in here, so I will agree, on one condition."

A condition. Great. Probably nothing major... and this was her realm, after all. "Fine. What is it?"

"I want to join your training with... whoever you plan to bring here. I got some training in with Sarada and Parsley, earlier, but I... shall we say, got rather involved in a meditation session and missed out on most of that opportunity."

Ah, so she wanted training. Made sense. "Deal. Now, here's who I want to bring in..."

Tasure informed the princess of the identities of those she wished to drag into training, the Princess granted them permission, and then Tasure exited Vaikuntha to pop in on them to tell them the good news. Putting her fingers to her forehead, she homed in on the energy signature of the closest individual--who was thankfully still on this Earth--and then Instant Transmissioned to them, her form blurring and in that same moment reappearing next to that individual...

That individual opened their eyes, having been stirred from meditation by the arrival of Tasure's familiar-yet-not-quite energy. He regarded her with a cool, unreadable expression.

"...I see you overcome Daroga and Letchee. As expected. We should have no more business, so what do you want... mother?" He was certainly different from the Totoma she knew--more direct, more serious--but he was strong and knew more about Super Saiyan and its evolutions than she did... for now, so there wasn't anyone else she could think of to help her push to and past her limits.

"Grab onto your ass, because I'm about to make you an offer you won't be able to refuse."

E Bekon sighed. "...I'm listening."