|
|
|
This article, Planet Earth Saga: Ascending to Higher Grounds, is the co-property of both KingJupiter and Narianos. |
Aftermath[]
There was nothing but a cold silence. Since the recent encounter with planet earth's surprise newcomers, the halls of Mishima remained scarcely quiet. About an hour had passed since the departure of Mishima's chief executive officer was scheduled to meet with the President to discuss these urgent matters. From the group of saiyans -- Articho was the only one that had remained. She insisted on making things right with the humans, showcasing her respectable patience and politeness toward others despite the difference among the hierarchy of noble races between humans and saiyans. The deafening silence was suddenly interrupted by the banging of opening doors. In walked the dark haired woman, with her briefcase held closely she made her way to inside her office before shutting the door behind her. To Jun's surprise, her private quarters of work was currently filled with the group she had left. No one made an attempt to ask the results of the meeting.
"They're staying." She came out suddenly, as if the conclusion possessed no internal thought to have been drawn.
"What do you mean?" Seika began, almost sounding discontent with her decision.
"Whether we like it or not, they are now apart of us. We're going to need them just as much as they currently need us."
"Oh yay! I'm so glad!" Emilie voiced, standing from her sitting position with a delighted leap. "That means I get to see Tarry more often! Let's go inform him!" She continued, tugging on Alisa's arm
"That won't be necessary. We don't want them to be triggered by your appearance. Madam President will be the one to inform them of everything we discussed." Jun said, halting Emilie's starstruck advances. "We shall call it a day. Keep away from them for now, we need to let things simmer down before interacting with them again." The woman would turn her attention to Articho. "You may rejoin them if you'd like, Articho. Our peace has been made."
"I think I'll wait. From what I'm sensing, they're training and it's not the best decision to try and get in between a Saiyan's training, even if you yourself are a Saiyan. Besides, it's more peaceful here than around Xeleri when he's in one of his moods. So I'd rather be here than disrupt their training." Articho replies. Sitting down at one of the chairs, Articho looks down at the table in front of her. "If King Mato shows up, we all need to be ready. Not just us Saiyans, but everyone. Because he doesn't care for anyone who isn't a full blooded Saiyan, so if he shows up, we need to be ready to protect the people on this planet. And for that, we need to become stronger. Much stronger."
"Well, if it takes as long as you all claim it will for him to arrive, then we'll have plenty of time to build in strength." Alisa reassures Articho, placing her hand on the Saiyan's shoulder. "Now that you're guys are here with us, we've got you covered; just as long as we can hope for the same in return." She said with a kind smile. It wasn't long before Emilie chimed in, agreeing with her sister wholeheartedly. Or perhaps the girl's mind was too focused in Tarragon to disagree. "It appears as though you need some time away. Your bodily language signals an awful amount to stress. Come with us, let your troubles go for a while." Just as the young woman would finish, a small grumbling was heard from Articho. "Looks as if someone's hunnnngreeeeee......OH NO!" Alisa suddenly jump from her seat with a bright red face. Confusion had suddenly stuck the group as Alisa bolted for the exits.
"What has gotten into her?" Jun asked, raising an eyebrow.
"She probably burned the casserole." Seika said, his discontent being very evident in a low almost growling moan.
"You should join us, Archy." Emilie continuing where sister left off. "We're having pizza tonight."
"AND IT BETTER BE CHEESE." Seika shouted loudly on his way out.
"Pizza? Can't say I've ever heard of such a thing. But to be fair, the only thing we ever grow back home are fruits and vegetables and our diets are dominantly vegan with little meat intake. About the only time we'd ever eat meat is when we're off planet and nothing else is available. We're never really exposed to new types of food. We're never gone long enough to try a planet's cuisine, so it never really mattered to us what we eat, as long as it was something to keep us going." Articho explains, questioned by mention of such an unknown food.
"Well, simply put, it isn't the most healthy; if you would even consider it healthy cuisine at all for the matter. But, it is quite delicious." Emilie explained through a polite smile. "My dear Articho, I will be you guide into getting you accustomed to life on Earth!" Continued on through what was now excited squeals. Tugging on the young woman's arm ever so lightly, Emilie sought to make a speedy departure home. Despite whatever ill feels that may have been presented during the earlier encounter, Emilie was nonetheless still ecstatic about becoming acquainted with these newcomers. She had always been a person of a welcoming nature, possessing a personality that practically drew others to her. It was this trait that allowed her to climb to the top of social media platforms. The two appeared outside, joining the others in a massive aircraft.
Before long, the vehicle started to take flight into the skies. "You're going to adore our abode. It's quite roomy."
"Stop pestering her." Seika suddenly interrupted, his voiced hinting a slight annoyance.
"Oh be quiet. I'm sure if I we're bugging her she'd be more than willing to tell me, isn't that right Articho?
"I'm not much of a person to find petty things bothersome, to be honest. If you let negative thoughts weigh you down, all it does it pull it with you." Articho replies. Stepping into the plane, Articho found her a seat and adjusts it to her comfort. She had never been in a plane before. A ship, yes, but never a plane that was only meant to be flown from one location to another on one planet. But given her comfort in a space ship, it did not take long for her to be comfortable in the plane as she waited for everyone else. No doubt it's the comfort of the seats that drew her in, as she sinks into the leather padding. The foam of the seat adjusting to her posture as she rests her head on the headrest. Given everything Articho has been through, it was nice to be able to relax for once. Not worrying about whether she was going to be moving to one planet or another. Being able to get to point A to point B in absolute comfort was all she needed to take the stress off of her mind.
A silence soon engulfed the group shortly after, bringing Seika to slightly peek behind him, stealing a few discreet glances at Articho in her relaxed state. There was something different around her. The way she presented herself to others, keep her pride, while remaining humble; something he'd go on to quietly appreciate. "She'll be easier to get along with." He though to himself. It was then that Seika had caught himself borderline staring that the saiyan woman. It was by sheer luck that neither if them noticed or at it least it appeared that way. He was especially happy that Emilie had not noticed--given that she was probably far off into her phone to notice anyway, otherwise he'd never hear the end of it.
Within minutes, the craft began it's descent. Appearing on the top of a rather moderately luxurious abode. Unfastening his safety, Seika headed toward the exit. Emilie soon followed in suit, nearly reaching the exit before being called upon suddenly. "Emilie dear, could you make sure Articho gets comfortable, Takebu and I will return later tonight." Jun asked. The girl replied with a simple nod before leading Articho onto the roof of the house.
Maybe it was the dimness of the starry night sky that gave Articho a sense of inferiority in the grand scheme of things. The lights of the planet seemingly dimming out the stars that were once beautifully visible on her home planet thanks to the lack of lighting, in part of them not developing a cultured use of electricity as vast as this planet's. But all the same, she could feel the vastness of the stars in her hands as though they were part of her. Articho finds the night sky both intimidating and poetic. The immense size of the universe means the intimidation is not being able to visit all the stars in one lifetime, but that inherits the beauty of it all, that the universe is not meant to be discovered intentionally, but by mere mistake and lucky, or unlucky, happenstance. But she always felt that the edge of the universe wasn't the end. She believed there were other universes out there, just waiting to be discovered.
"When I was little, I always looked up at the stars with my mother. Wise woman, she always knew the right things to say to make you question everything you thought you once knew. We Saiyans were always taught that this was the only universe in existence, but my mother, she knew better. She was an astrologist. She was always watching the nighttime sky with that telescope of hers, and she was able to see six distinct explosions, explosions so big, she theorized they were the end of six universes, all of them going out in a massive explosion that seemed to nearly engulf parts of the night sky. She knew the explosions weren't happening in this universe. They dwarfed even the explosions from the biggest stars of our universe, so they had to come from beyond that. Though her theory was dismissed by the Saiyan High Council of Astrology, she never let go of that theory, and to this day, she still believes that we aren't alone." Articho finally breaking the silence of the city sounds down below, she rests her arms against the balcony railings of the roof.
Though majority of her life Emilie had never held an interest to what could be beyond the stars. It was, for a time, that she was oblivious to the possibility of life existing outside the planet Earth. But it wasn't until recently that she was given a rude awakening. To think that humans were the only living creatures in this vast universe was a foolish ideology in of itself. From her near death experience, Emilie had since then pondered on what else could be out there. "To think," Emilie began, finally speaking up after a few moments of peaceful silence. "That not even a two years ago, I considered the thought of other life forms living with our known universe to be outlandish." Taking seat on the railing beside Articho, Emilie faced the young saiyan woman offering warm smile. "In the recent hours, my view on otherworlders has changed somewhat. I had not considered that beings from beyond this place were capable of such benevolence. Though some may be quite....questionable. I have come to realize the actions of a few should not weigh in on how you view others." Emilie redirected her sights the the skies. "I want to apologise for our rash conclusions. Hopefully we can put it behind up and start anew."
"You were just doing what anyone else in your position would have done. We were strangers, outsiders, aliens. You didn't know if we were going to come in peace, or coming with the intentions to wage a war. And with the way Xeleri acted, I'm pretty sure it made for a pretty bad first impression. Any other planet would have done worse, given the way we presented ourselves. There are a lot of planets out there, filled with people who would rather annihilate any outsiders that step on their planet than try to talk to them. I've been on many planets like that. The moment we landed, we were under attack. It would often take hours of retaliation before we could come to an agreement. But I made sure never to kill. That's my one rule. I don't kill unless it's absolutely necessary. Tarragon would be reluctant to kill if he saw no need to, but I know Xeleri wouldn't hesitate. All in all, you were doing what was best for your people." Articho replies, happily putting the events that transpired before behind her.
With the young women settling what was left of the tension, Emilie hopped lightly from the railing, waving her hand to gain Articho's attention. "Shall we go inside? I'm eager to show you the quarters you'll be sleeping in." Almost exclaiming in a squeal, the fiery red head raced to the door. "Perhaps tomorrow we could go shopping! I'm imagining this one particular outfit that I'm dying to get you in." With the two finally entering the house, Emilie lead Articho from the rooftop. "I don't think I've ever been excited about giving a house tour."
"I'd love that. I want to see what this planet has in store for me, to try and get a sense of its splendor. I feel it has so much to offer and a change of pace will help do me good, I believe." Maybe this was the kind of thing Articho needed to get her mind off of the events that transpired over the past few days. She needed some much needed stress relief to help calm her nerves, and a day just relaxing and having fun ought to do just that for her.
"It's good to take a breather every now and then, ya know?" Emilie added, leading Articho down to the lower levels of the house. The two trailed down a case of sprial steps, soon standing before a long corridor that branched off into several rooms. Turning her attention back to Articho, Emilie offered a look of heavy thought. "I'm trying to figure out which rooms are actually guest bedrooms." As the two passed by a few doors--Emilie would peek through-- scoping out a the perfect room for Articho. "It looks like you'll be staying across from Seika." Twisting the knob, the young women walked into a Articho's new living space, complete with all the essentials. "Well, here you are! What do you think?"
As Articho walks into the room, she looks down at the bed. Seeing the strange shape compared to the stone layout of her old bed, she placed her hand on the mattress. Feeling its softness, she falls face forward onto the bed, feeling its softness. It was like being embraced by a cloud. She had never felt comfort like this before in her life. With her face down on the pillow, she lets out a comforting sigh. "This is amazing." She speaks out, her voice muffled by the pillow.
"I'm glad you like it." Emilie said, smiling to herself and taking a seat on the bed next to Articho. "Dinner should be here soon you. You can join us if you'd like or you could eat later, the choice is yours really." The young women stood up, straightening her dress before walking toward the exit. "I'll leave you alone for now though. If you need any, feel like to bother Seika. He doesn't look it, but he can be a big teddy bear." Emilie exited the room, leaving Articho to herself.
Getting up from the bed, Articho departs from her room to explore the house. The size of the house left her in awe, easily outsizing her house by a factor of twenty. On top of that, the architecture was very unique, a farcry of the simple, Romanized architecture of the homes on Articho's planet. As she walks around, she takes note of the fireplace, lit brightly. Curious by such an addition to the house, she walks towards it, sitting down in front of it. "Such an interesting touch. The fire helps keep this area warm, and the smoke is chambered upwards, keeping the room untouched." Articho thinks to herself.
"I see you decided to join us." Emilie said from across the room to Articho. "If you're hungry, follow me." Leading Articho to the dining room, the two be greeted by several large cardboard boxes with the words "JoJo's Pizza" written across them. Following suit not too longer after, Seika walked in behind them, taking an entire box for himself. Emilie eyed the greedy boy as he walked to the other side of the dining room table. "How do you know we didn't want any of that?" She sassed, throwing a packet of parmesan cheese at him. "Feel free to dig in however you please." She turned towards Articho, handing the young saiyan a glass plate.
Looking at the pizza, she was perplexed by its shape, but the aroma seemed to pull her in. As she grabs a slice, she takes a close look at it, taking note of the crust, sauce, and cheese especially. As a budding cook, she always inspected foods she had never seen before on the off chance she wanted to make her own. As she finishes looking at the pizza, she takes a bite, chewing slowly to take in its taste. Taken away by the sensation of such a delicious combination of flavors all put into a single piece of food, she felt herself taken away by the taste of the pizza. Finishing that first bite, she continues to enjoy the rest of the pizza until nothing was left on her plate. "That was delicious. I never had Earth food before, but the complex combination of cheese, sauces, and crust all complemented each other perfectly. It's rare to find complementary ingredients used in such a unique manner, even on my planet. I'm one of the foremost experts of culinary arts on my planet, and this would definitely get my approval." Articho speaks up, cleaning the sauce off her mouth with a napkin.
"See? I told you that she'd enjoy it." Emilie giggled as she continued to devour her slice of pizza. Finishing it down to the crust, poked Articho to gain her attention. "Watch this." She said in a snickering manner, throwing the thin crust at an unsuspecting Seika. With near instant reflexes, Seika turned his head, catching the bread with his mouth. "That's a good boy!" The young woman cooed, clapping her hands while in a fit of laughter. Shrugging Emilie's antics off, Seika brought his attention toward Articho. "I want to show you something." He said to her directly, leaving the dining room assuming that she'd follow.
"Oh, okay, then. One sec." Articho replies, finishing the last of her pizza. As she finishes up what was left, she gets up from the table, following behind Seika. The hallway was long, with many different portraits adorning the wall. It seemed the house had a long history of past owners, with the dates of ownership of each previous owner and the date it was passed to the next owner. Back in the dining room, a door could be heard being opened. Another individual steps into the house, his attire ripped and armor banged up, several scratches adorning his body from his training, his once spiked hair having grown long from the days of not keeping it cut. He was the Saiyan prince Tarragon, having decided to check up on Articho, given she was the only friend he really had left from his old legion, and he would want to make sure she was safe. From the hallway, Articho felt Tarragon's presence. "It would seem Tarragon is here to check up on me. Always looked after me like I was a sister. I hope you don't mind him being here, he's not prone to unprovoked attacks like his brother is." Articho speaks up, breaking the silence.
"Those portraits are my mother's ancestors. This house came from a long line of hard workers. I think it's kinda funny that I am the only one with "alien" DNA. Considering that most my family still find it hard to believe that there are people from beyond be this world. Despite the countless amounts of evidence, including me. I actually find it pretty amazing that there's a species of such similarity to mankind." Seika paused upon feeling a familiar energy enter the house. "You should go meet him, I'll wait right here for you." Back in the dining room, Emilie was ecstatic to see Tarragon once again. "Oh my goodness, Tarry!" She squealed, wrapping her arms around his tattered and scarred body. Alisa gagged in response to Emilie's flaunting. "I didn't let him in so you could harass him. He came to see Articho!" Alisa fought, attempting to get her sister to release Tarragon. "Let him breathe!"
With a slight chuckle and wry smile from Tarragon's face, Articho walks up to him. "Gotta say, I haven't seen you smile in years. I think Earth's starting to rub off on you, Tarragon." Articho speaks up, raising her fist up. Tarragon responds back by bumping her fist with his. "So how did the training go?" She asks, taking note of his tattered clothing and broken armor.
"Hectic, to say the least. We took turns swapping equipment, between a music player and fifty ton gloves. Pretty sure we both picked up something new that we didn't know about ourselves." Tarragon replies. As he looks over to Emilie, he clears his throat. "Um, you wouldn't happen to have somewhere I could clean myself off, would you? I'd rather not be in someone else's home and look this way." Tarragon speaks up, looking down at his tattered clothes.
Without so much as a second thought, Emilie because to tug on Tarragon's arms, somewhat anxious to get him out of that filthy armor. "Why of course Tarry-kun." She said in the sweetest yet creepy voice. Alisa had seen quite enough at this point, her sister needed to be stopped at least for an hour. "Emilie, enter stasis." Alisa said nervously, causing Emilie's grip on Tarragon to loosen until she no longer held him. There was a brief moment of silence, as Emilie stood there quietly, seemingly inactive. "Seika, could you please take Emilie to her room."
"Did you have to put her in stasis again?" Seika chuckled, picking Emilie up and placing her over his shoulder. "You know she's not going to be happy, right?"
"I know just take her! I can't have her making visitors uncomfortable. It was a reaction." Alisa looked over to Tarragon and Articho. "Sorry about that you guys. Tarragon, I'll be more than willing to aid you. In a non-stalkerish way of course."
"Um, thank you. Though I don't think the stasis was entirely necessary, all things considered. I'm sure she just wanted what was best. I do hope she won't be too mad when she is brought out of her stasis." Tarragon replied, following Alisa. As they make their way through the house, Tarragon eyes the architecture with great intrigue to its design until they stop at a single door. Waving to Alisa as a sign of thanks, he enters the bathroom and locks the door. Walking up to the shower, he turns on the water, looking for the perfect mix of hot and cold until he finds it. Removing his armor, he sets it next to the sink, while he removes his undergarment and folds it, placing it over the toilet lid. Stepping into the shower, he lets himself relax in the warm water. In the living room, Articho lets out a small smile, seeing things normal for once being almost foreign to her, all things considered. As she recomposes herself, she returns to the dining room, waiting for Seika to return to show her what he wanted to show her.
Heading back on their original path, Seika accomplished Articho down a long corridor that eventually lead to the lower levels of the house; the basement. "You caught my attention earlier when you spoken of wanting to get stronger." Seika spoke up suddenly, confessing his reasons for bringing her down here. He stop just short of large door, looking back toward Articho, Seika pushed open the door slowly unveiled what hid behind in a blinding light. On the other side, there was nothing but a room with gigantic white walls. "While this is normal used for gaming, I used this to train with my Dad from time to time. And I've always wondered what it would be like to train with another saiyan around my age."
Back up stairs, Alisa lightly knocked on the bathroom door before entering. "Tarragon, I've brought you some new attire as well as undergarments. I do hope that they are to your liking. As for you old clothes, I'd wish to cleanse them so that they may be returned to you fresh." Picking up the Saiyan's clothing, Alisa placed the fresh on the toilet stool before exiting. "Call if you need anything."
Hearing the sound of Alisa, Tarragon hears the door shut. With his shower finished, he turns off the water before stepping out of the shower. Grabbing a towel next to him, he dries himself off before wrapping it around him. Upon the toilet stool was the outfit Alisa placed there; A white changshan. The attire seemed to speak to him almost like a calling. Grabbing the shirt, he stares at it intently, noting its unique design. As he finishes drying off, he begins putting the attire on, finishing at the shirt, then places the used towel in the dirty clothes basket before departing from the bathroom. On the other side of the house, Articho stood in awe of the room around her, she found herself surprised at the spheres that surrounded the room. It was an interesting sight to be sure, something she had never seen before. Looking at the spheres, she sees what looks like a set of headgear that obscured the eyes. Inspecting them, she sees a screen within the headgear, and notices an array of wires surrounding the seat within the sphere.
"Such an interesting contraption, it reminds me of the simulation gear we had in our Saiyan pods during long trips to keep us in peak condition for the tasks ahead." Articho speaks up before placing the headgear back onto the seat. Not too long while Articho was inspecting the spheres, Tarragon made his way to the room as well, having noticed the brightness emanating from afar. Articho sees Tarragon, letting out a smirk of impression at his choice of attire. "It suits you, Tarragon. I never took you for an armor guy, anyway." Tarragon smiles back, letting out a slight chuckle, but she was right. He hated wearing armor, as its elasticity actually made moving more difficult, as it put too much restraint in his movements. In the changshan that was given to him, he had more freedom of movement, more flexibility and ease to move around than he ever did in his armor.
Having anticipated his next course of action, Alisa.l have already made her way down towards the room Seika and Articho were. "I had a feeling you'd head this way." Alisa called out, flagging the Saiyan prince down. She stood inside I small room, appeared to be some sort of observation chamber. Seika chuckled lightly as he too fiddled with the headgear. "This version is for sole video games purposes." He said, stepping on a single red tile. Suddenly, the gear that was in front of them began to sink unto the floor, exchanging them for what seemed like three white body suits accompanied by much smaller helmet like headpieces. "These are what my dad and I used to train. They are a one size fits all sort of deal." Taking two suit from the rack Seika handed one to Articho and the other to Tarragon. "I figured you'd want to tag along." Soon putting on his own suit Seika comment what they probably where thinking, "While they may be uncomfortable at first, once the program is up and running, you'll no longer feel them."
Once they all were settled, Seika signaled for Alisa to seal off the room. Once the simulator began powering on, the direction behind the them shammed shutabs wiring noises echoed throughout the room. The helmets suddenly locked down on they're heads, covering them completely causing everything to go black. As if this all happened in an instant, the group had spontaneously appeared in a large grass field. "You may feel a little dizzy at first, it'll go away soon."
As the two readjust themselves to the change in scenery, they observe their surroundings, a large grass field that seems to stretch out forever. Amazed by the capabilities of such a machine, they get their bearings by moving around a bit. Tarragon notes the movement here feels as natural as real world movement, and notes the freedom of movement he has in his changshan compared to his old armor, it felt natural, comfortable, like he could actually do something in this outfit. It was in his mind, the first step of breaking free from the chains he had felt wrapped around him all his life, a step towards something greater. Articho likewise was amazed by the freedom of movement, feeling like she's actually moving in the real world, as if the suits they were wearing weighed nothing. Tarragon throws a straight jab, testing out the flexibility of the suit, and performs a scorpion flex with his lead foot on the ground and his following foot lifted up against his back, like a scorpion's tail, before pulling his leg back and performing a high kick with the following foot.
"I've always wanted to do that, but the weight and restrictive elastic of my armor prevented me from moving naturally. The armor is deceptively heavy, weighing a solid twenty tons, despite its elasticity. This is in part due to densely compacted elastic. The elastic starts out massive, then is compacted down into a suit of armor. Due the to the laws of physics, the elastic weighs the same, but it's compressed into a smaller area. It really limited what I could and couldn't do, but it was also incredibly protective. Though, given my skills in defense, I rarely had to use it to its full potential." Tarragon speaks out, letting out some warmup stretches to prepare.
"It may take your suites a while to disappear, your bodies structures are foreign to the system." Seika noted, showing as his suit had already disappeared. "The suit ans helmet act as a link to this virtual world. Like placing us in an alternate reality. They connect and become a part of you as long as the program is running. Everything feeling and nerve." Seika continued on,, digging his nail deep enough into his skin to draw blood. "Whether pain or pleasure. To us, this place is as real as the outside...The only difference is, I get to control it." In an instant, the atmosphere shifted, changing from the once grassy fields, into sea of molten rock with the group hovering just above it.
After a few short moments, the suits they were wearing disappear, showing only the clothing they wore underneath it, having finally been recognized by the system. Taking note of their surroundings, Tarragon found some familiarity with the molten rock burning below them.
"Reminds me of that time we were sent to scout Eridanus II. Perhaps one of the hottest moons I had ever been on. Was mostly just a sea of molten rock, and we had to fly high just to keep us from bursting into flames. Somehow, there were inhabitants on the moon, who built structures that resisted the flames, and kept them in a temperate climate that was like nothing else I had seen before. It was incredible." Tarragon speaks up, noting the familiar heat emanating off of the molten rock below them.
From their initial encounter, Seika found himself pondering on about the Saiyans. From their attire to the abilities that possessed. It was as if his own Saiyan biology called out to a heart pounding battle with them. Seika could help me smile at the thought. And it was with a motionless breath, the once black haired Seika now donned a golden transformation that was nothing short of grandiose. He had quickly ready himself, staring intensely into Articho's general direction. Using his ki as the sole instigator, Seika would attempt to compel the saiyan woman into the molten rock below. With his innate speed heightened by this golden haired state, Seika had appeared to move in an almost instantaneous bound: redirecting himself in front of the Saiyan Prince. Using his attack on Articho as meaning to hopefully lower Tarragon's guard, Seika sought out this opportunity to recoil and then proceed with an open palmed strike aimed solely to test his opponents reflexes
It didn't take long for both of them to feel a drastic shift in power, and Tarragon was already formulating a plan. Once again in his mindscape, he takes note of his surroundings, eyeing Seika especially.
"He's gone Super Saiyan. Going full strength means he wants to take stock in our abilities. Articho's got a better hang of this transformation than I do, so knowing her, she will attempt to block his attack using her heightened speed boost and reveal an opening for me to use. Now, I wait to see what Articho does with her time." Tarragon thinks to himself. Articho, feeling the burst of energy from Seika, likewise transforms into a Super Saiyan. Unlike a normal Super Saiyan who gains a boost to both strength and power, Articho is all speed, meaning while she won't have the strength advantage Seika has, he won't have the speed she does. Using this to her advantage, she ducks down and grabs Seika by the midsection. As she grabs hold, she flips behind him, putting him into a full nelson. Tarragon, seeing his opportunity, lets out a loud yell, transforming into the golden warrior much like the two before him, and rushes towards Seika, planning on using the aggression training he performed inprior to his visit.
"What the...." Seika thought to himself, thoroughly surprised by Articho's exceptional speed in her super saiyan state. With it, much to Seika's dismay, she was able to quickly cease his advances a Nelson hold, allowing Tarragon in turn to began his assault. "You're a quick one." Seika chuckled. From the fruits of his training, Seika would be surprisingly flexible possessed as would then wrap his leg around Articho whilst using his overflowing strength to pull his arms from her grip. Expressing his ki outside of his bring once more --performed a frontward flip-- lightening his grip, throwing Articho toward the rushing Tarragon.
Seeing Articho being thrown through the air, Tarragon stretches his hands outward. Articho, seeing this, readjusts herself by performing a backflip, landing her feet against Tarragon's hands. Tucking her knees in, she pushes off of Tarragon's hands, once again using her superior speed to blindside Seika. Moving in front of Seika blocks his view from Tarragon, who uses this to his advantage by moving towards the blindside on Seika's left flank, throwing a sharp jab aimed towards his liver.
"Their teamwork is impeccable. They are completely in sync, almost as good as Alisa and Emilie." Seika commended, preparing himself for their next maneuver. Watching as Articho resumes the forefront, Seika quietly assumes a stance in preparation for the oncoming assault. With Articho's excellent speed, blitzing Seika would not be too difficult for her; however, Tarragon, who would be around the same speed as Seika, despite Articho's cover, was completely sensible. Intercepting Tarragon's have with an open palmed, Seika couldn't help me smile. "That was a close one."
"Smart plan. Not an individual alive, Saiyan or otherwise, has continued fighting after a solid blow to the liver against me. Had you not blocked the attack, it would have been a decisive end to this battle. The liver cannot withstand blunt force trauma. The capsule that surrounds the liver contains a multitude of nerve fibers, which link it directly to the autonomic nervous system. This is the part of the nervous system that controls involuntary actions such as heartbeat, the widening or narrowing of blood vessels and breathing. This system also reacts in “fight or flight” situations and regulates the internal organs including stomach, intestines, kidneys, bladder, lungs, pupils, heart, glands and the liver." Tarragon explains. As he readjusts himself, he eyes Seika once more.
"When there is a sudden impact to the liver itself the organ stretches, which causes a pressure change. The events that follow are operated through the autonomic nervous system, meaning that they are involuntary and thus unstoppable. One; Nerves signal a sudden dilation of blood vessels all over the body, with the exception of the brain. Two; Heart rate drops suddenly. And three; Blood pressure dramatically plummets. When blood pressure is decreasing the body tries to take control. It is the combination of the open blood vessels and decreased heart rate that causes the drop. When the two issues cannot be resolved, emergency actions are taken and the body fights to maintain flow to the brain by putting the body in a flat or recumbent position. This survival tactic is the reason for the collapse."
"That would be some lethal jab. Your fighting is definitely something to be reckoned with. You have my respect, Tarragon." Seika chuckled as the volcanic area suddenly reverted back to the fields of green. "I must openly commend your teamwork. You two were really in sync." Releasing Tarragon's fist Seika, descended toward the grounds, his hair still flowing with gold. "You didn't seemed surprised at all with my Super Saiyan state. Though I fully expected the likes of you would have obtained this state already, glad I wasn't disappointed."
"Well, you'd be surprised that combat isn't even Tarragon's specialty. He's a good fighter and all, but it's not what he's exceptionally keen at." Articho giggles, looking towards Tarragon, who lets out a slight smirk at the statement. She was right; Every Saiyan on their planet was trained how to fight until it's second nature to them, and some Saiyans use this to their advantage to learn something new without having to worry about it affecting their ability to train."
"If you must know what it is, it's musical theory. I'm intrigued by all forms of music, and I've learned how to apply it to my combat. I think of a particular song, then match it to my adversary's rhythm. All I do after that is follow the rhythm and counterattack." Tarragon replies, placing his hands behind his back as he lands upon the grassy field that surrounds them.
"That's interesting. I don't think I would've taken you as a music lover at first glance." Seika teased, nudging Tarragon playfully. "It's good to know that you two are just as human as I am. I guess you could say I'm glad things worked over well with my mother, she'd be thrilled to see this." Sighing, Seika calmed his overflowing energy to a still, relieving his body of the golden aura yet his hair retain the hue. "I look forward to growing alongside you."
There then came a sudden shift in the simulator and materializing before them stood the red haired lass, carrying a small smile as she greeted the group. "Hello Articho, Seika and oh Tarry, you're especially pleasing on the eyes." She giggled before turning toward Seika. "It was really rude to not invite to this training session." She pouted, tossing her arms into a fold below her chest. "I would've at least wanted to give you guys an obstacle to overcome." Smiling in q smug manner, Emilie tossing her hair over the shoulders. "So, shall we?"
"Someone's cocky." Seika said, somewhat annoyed with her already.
"Honestly, would it be me if I weren't just a bit cocky?"
Once again, Tarragon's habit of instinctual analysis has him observing Emilie's body language, trying to determine just what type of fighter she is. His father always called it a curse, while his mother touted it as a blessing that he had such an astute comprehension of the things and people around him. Whatever the case may be for either, Tarragon's first step is always analyzing those around him to see what they're capable of.
"Overall physique suggests someone with a background in acrobatic capabilities, perhaps gymnastics? Very lithe frame suggests an elite level of this particular background. Maybe even something she took pride in. Her android frame means increased impact while servomotors increase overall speed and effectiveness in combat. Combined with her acrobatic capabilities, it means being capable of a wide variety of different attacks few might not see coming. Must plan accordingly." Tarragon thinks to himself. Finishing his observations, he looks over at Articho. As the two nod, they both assuke a combat stance.
"Now that's more like it!" Emilie cheered on as her eyes wandered over to Seika. "Do you care to join us in this marvelous event?" To which Seika responded in a scoff, bringing himself to a stance. Without any subtle warning of her intentions; Emilie grasped hold of Seika's arm, surprising even him with her dirty action. With her vice grip latched onto his arm, she lazily sent him flying into the ground just before the Saiyan duo. Using the dust as cover and the fact the her energy could not be detected, the female cyborg took her chance to engage. Quickly repositioning her over to Tarragon in a single bound, Emile offered up a spleen scattering kick to the saiyan's midsection.
With a slow breath, Tarragon notes the dust's direction being changed by Emilie's movements, Tarragon recalls a particular assassin he once had to fight who could mask their energy. He was able to detect the assassin's movements by the changes in air pressure caused by the movements. Noting a sudden change in pressure towards his right side, Tarragon lifts up his leg, checking Emilie's kick with the shin of his leg. The pain was sharp, but Tarragon was used to high impact battles. Using the sudden drop in speed to his advantage, Tarragon throws a counter strike aimed towards Emilie's nose, but stops just before the moment of impact.
"She may be an android, but I have no plans of hurting her." Tarragon thinks to himself. As the two reset stances, Tarragon remains firm, his stance calm and at ease. The durability Tarragon gained through years of broken bones, countless wounds, and constant battling has hardened his body incredibly. Regardless, Tarragon takes note of the checked kick, taking note of how strong her strength is, and prepares himself to adjust for another attack.
With her sudden drop in momentum, Emilie concluded Tarragon successfully guarded himself against her assault. Though her automatic response was to engage in a counter assault to his punch, she halted herself as he withdrew his strike. She couldn't repress the smile that loomed itself across her visage, bringing her to giggle slightly at him. "Oh Tarry," she began in a coo, rubbing her redden cheeks in with another soft giggle. "You can't pull punches while we..-" Emilie was sudden cut on off by a devastating kick she somehow managed to block. Despite this, she was pushed back quite a bit.
"Listen Tarragon, we shouldn't hold back against her. Regardless of what appears to be, behind that cute face and annoying giggle, she's a fighting machine." Seika said quickly, regaining his stance beside. "Articho, we may need you to take the lead in this, your speed advantage would allow us to get in, think you can do it?"
"Yeah, I'll buy you two some time." Charging her energy, Articho rushes towards Emilie, using her incredible speed to close the distance to her to buy Seika and Tarragon the time to formulate a plan.
"As much as I wouldn't want to hurt her, I guess I have no choice but to put all my strength behind the attacks. Articho's incredibly fast, and her speed should be enough to overload her targeting sensors. If my knowledge on cybernetics is still up to par, if an adversary moves fast enough, their targeting system will undergo an emergency shutdown to preserve power. We can use that to strike. Whatever attack you have planned, you go first, and I'll attack via an exposed flank." Adjusting his stance, Tarragon waits for the moment to strike.
"The plan was to overwhelm her sensors, using Articho as the anchor for the attack, though if I'm being honest I'm not one hundred percent sure this'll work." Seika confessed with a light chuckle. "But get ready, I'm about to go in."
Smiling lightly as the Saiyan worked out the formation of attack, Emilie prepare to engage once more. "Sending Articho in, are we?" She whispered. From what Emilie noticed up until now, Articho's speed appeared to be her greatest asset as she was much faster than the average super saiyan. "Her power level isn't much higher than Seika or Tarragon's, but she exerts a greater speed than them both." In a silence blastoff, Emilie sped toward Articho exerting her own quick moment. Patiently awaiting his moment, Seika soon joined the fray as soon as the two women begin to trade blows. Forcing himself upon her seemingly blind right flank, Seika unveiled an open palmed strike toward her. To which she responded with a simple backward sway that forced his attack to whiff. And as if he couldn't get anymore unlucky; because her sudden disengage from battling with Articho, Seika in turn would suffer a devastating blow to the jaw.
Tarragon was starting to feel the pressure. Not just from this battle, but from the training he had with his brother. With a sharp exhale of air, he rushes towards Emilie with whatever leftover strength he could muster. But as he closes the distance to Emilie to throw an attack against her left side, his power drops substantially, his body returning to its base state. In his exhaustion, Tarragon crashes to the ground. As he struggles to get up, he feels the weight of his body resisting against him, and he has no strength to pull himself back up, and he collapses once again.
"Dammit. I thought I had more left. But I guess staying in Super Saiyan drained more of my energy than I thought. I'm still not used to that transformation yet, it's like I'm wearing four suits of my armor just trying to pull myself up." Tarragon thinks to himself, breathing heavily as his body begins succumbing to the exhaustion of overexerting his body. Everything he did throughout the day has pushed his body beyond its natural limits, breaking his body more than it had been broken before.
The battle turns to a sudden halt upon the collapse of Tarragon, grabbing the attention of the others. As the group made their way over to him, Emilie mentally notes his hair had reverted back to its black base. "He's exhausted." She stated, kneeling down to accompany him in standing on his feet. "Whatever training he did prior to this must've been intense. He's completely tuckered out." She said with a coo, rubbing circles around his back. Seika sighed with a bit of relief, remember back to his days of first achieving super saiyan. "With your body not being fully use to that state, it will burn up a lot and energy." He said.
"I'd suggest you rest up a bit, it would do you any good to continue at this rating." Emilie said after helping Tarragon to his feet. "You two can continue from here, I'll go make sure this one gets all rested up." Soon beaming herself and Tarragon out of the virtual world.
"That's Tarragon for you; He never stops until his body gives up. And even when it tries to give up, he still keeps going until he can't move. It's why he was the leader of the most powerful army on Xeleri." Articho speaks up, proud of her commander and old friend. As Emilie takes Tarragon elsewhere to rest and heal up, Articho slowly breathes, letting her energy flow more smoothly. "I guess it's back to the old plan then, huh? I would like to try and add some strength to what speed I've got." Articho speaks up. Meanwhile, Tarragon begins limping towards where Emilie leads him, using her shoulder to prop him up. He was exhausted, but still had some left in him to keep himself conscious. They make their way towards a medical wing for Tarragon to recover from his wounds more quickly. Sitting down on the bed, Tarragon looks down at his hands before clenching them into fists.
"I need to get stronger; If I want to stand a chance to defend this place from whatever comes its way, I must become stronger. But I have to overcome the drain Super Saiyan puts on the body. It's like lighting a candle on both ends; It burns brighter, but it burns out much faster." Tarragon speaks up, explaining the power drain behind Super Saiyan. "I've spent my entire life trying to be stronger, to protect those around me, and to gain some sense of peace within myself. My uncle always told me there is much conflict within my soul, some deep anger that I've kept buried within. And he's right. I've never resorted to anger, out of fear of becoming like my father. He was a brutish man, who thrived on the anger in his heart to get his way. I didn't want to turn out like that, so I kept my anger welled up deep within me. I don't know if it's done me any harm or benefit, but either way, I wouldn't want my anger to control me."
As she helped Tarragon onto the bed, Emilie could not help the smile that settled across her face once more. "You are a very admirable Warrior, Tarry." She said, helping him out of his ruffled shirt. "However, the feats you wish to achieve do take a considerable amount of time to accomplish. There is no doubt in my mind that you could become even stronger. We'll need that strength of yours, but for now you'll rest. Take this time to relax and allow your body to heal from your training." The young woman added, somewhat forcing him to lay back on the bed. "Anger is a natural emotion. It's bound to be relinquished sooner or later. The more you shelter and keep it held in, the more likely it is to control you when it eventually goes toppling over." Placing her hand atop his, she took a breath, standing up before him bearing a heartfelt smile. "Now no more talking, just relax and her some sleep, I'll be waiting for you upon your wake." Turning around, Emilie quietly went to exit the room.
Back within the simulator, Seika laughed at Articho's statement. "Yeah, I guess I could help you with that." He said rubbing his jaw. "The lunch of yours was surprisingly bearable. I'll most definitely be able to get you some power behind those strikes; Question is, are you ready for it?"
"I faced up against the man who killed a God of Destruction, I'm sure I can handle myself." Articho replied, assuming a combat stance. "I was the first of my legion to achieve the power of Super Saiyan, but because I achieved it through peaceful methods, it lacks the power of a transformation achieved out of strong emotions, but it has more finesse in its speed. But that speed means nothing if it doesn't have the power to make it worthwhile. So I need to work up my strength to even out the speed I get out of it. I do that, and I may be able to achieve the full state."
"I like that attitude." Seika said entering a straighten posture. "I have a few methods for acquiring your strength." With a flick of his weight, Seika summoned several weights in front of him and Articho. "We'll hold off on the combat training for a bit, time to get your muscle up." Placing over to Articho, the young man applied on weighted wristbands and anklets. "Don't worry, I'll be putting myself through the same exercises. These things weight about 5 tons each, just to start you off." Seika said, applying weight instruments into himself.
"Weighted clothing? My attire is a bit weighted itself, but it's barely been noticeable at this rate. But five tons is definitely not something I've tried before." Articho speaks up, donning on the weighted clothing. She could feel its weight pull her down, as if she was being pulled down to the ground. Slowly, she begins lifting up her arms, but it was a challenge, but she knew it was a challenge she will have to overcome, no matter what. As she lifts her arms up, she feels her weight shifting back due to the change in momentum, causing her back to arch over. Thanks to her flexibility, it helped make the experience weightless and uses the momentum of the weight to swing the bracers around. For the legs, she used the momentum of her arms to turn her hips to throw her kicks with. While she did get the hang of the shift in weight, she knew that she would have to adjust to the weight before she could use them properly.
Seika watched in amusement at Articho slowly, began to adjust to her new weighted garments. "Our ki is the Gateway to us becoming stronger, to master our super saiyan state, we must first learn to master our ki. I've had some progress in this through stance training and with that under my belt, I'm able to constantly remained transformed for a little over three hours." Seika said while assuming a stance. Spreading his feet shoulder width apart, the young man applied some pressure on his left foot carefully balancing it on the front half causing a slight upward lift and light flexing of his left calf. With his right foot placed parallel to his left heel, planted firmly in position. He tucked toward his open palmed right hand just before his stomach with is remaining limb outstretched slightly in a closed fist. "Join me. I'll just the rundown of the stance."
Watching the stance Seika assumes, Articho adjusts herself, gaining some sense of the weight of the garments she was wearing. Slowly, she assumes the stance Seika does. Slowly breathing, Articho begins harnessing her ki, letting it slowly build up within her. Meanwhile, back at the medical wing, Tarragon begins writing in a journal he always kept with him. In it were many musical notes and cultivation ideas, including the one he was currently working on. It was a type of food so chock full of nutrients, it could keep someone full for days, but he lacked the genetic material to create such a foodstuff, so he writes down all the potential types of food that could be spliced to create this super-food that could make an excellent ration for long journeys where finding food could be unlikely for some time. All he was missing was one key nutrient; Potassium. There plenty foods high in potassium, bananas included, but there's just not enough there to perfectly blend with the other vitamins and nutrients, so he continues racking his brain over what he could use as a solid potassium supplement.
Seika watched as Articho mimicked his stance, adjusting herself to remain in likeness of him. Slowly he extended his fist to her, insisting on connecting them. "This is where the training begins, it may be a little difficult at first but, you'll get the hang of it." Focusing energy into the palm of his hand, Seika took the sphere of energy within himself. Slowly, with an utmost concentration; Seika began to circle that single sphere through his body, leaving no corner untouched, he then brought the energy toward his fist. "I'm going to pass this I've to you and the goal is to guide it through your body with adding to or subtracting. Then gave it back to me."