The Z-sword (Hard)

Now transported into the Z-sword that lay sealed within a cave close to where the Elder Kai lived on the Sacred Planet of the Kais, the human warrior now faced a dangerous waterfall. Yamcha hovered in front of a massive waterfall, meditating and focusing his energy all around him. He would mold his energy in various ways, then spread it throughout his body, then manifest it again, then release it. Much like kneading dough, energy molding was vastly similar, and it came to the same ends....it made the energy far more pliable and easier to manipulate. If one wanted to be at their peak, rather than building the amount of raw energy that had at their disposal, it was far better for them if they just learned how to master what they had. At least, that's what he had been taught so many centuries ago, and the method hadn't failed him yet.

As he meditated, he could feel a shifting in the flow of energy around him, meaning there was someone relatively nearby. Not near enough to throw a stick at, but close enough that they could detect his presence, as well as probably his power level. Yamcha may not have been able to detect their power level -- which was odd, because he could do that with most -- but he could tell they were there, somewhere, because the flow of energy through his general vicinity was altered only moments ago by something about the same size as a humanoid.

Not wanting to make waves with whomever was there; Yamcha merely resumed his meditation, although he extended his heightened senses around him so that he could tell if someone was approaching. Even if they approached at supersonic speed, he would have enough warning to get out of the way if need be, or turn to address them if the case were such where he could.

And so the waiting game began...Yamcha anticipating an encounter while meditating.

As the presence came closer and closer, Yamcha became increasingly perturbed. Whomever it was had decided to take their time in arriving where he was, which was in turn starting to cause Yamcha no little degree of irritation.

Uncrossing his legs and unfolding his arms, Yamcha rose in the air, high above the trees, until he was above their tops, and could see unhindered all around himself, both in the sky, as well as above the trees. As he hovered there, he saw a small spec soaring in the sky towards him.

"Hmm..." he thought aloud to himself, scratching his chin. "It seems familiar, and yet..."

The spec became a blot in the sky, and then became a tanned humanoid soaring towards him, until the Saiyan-Jin Valla became clear in his view. Even though the saiyan was a good kilometer away, Yamcha's unnatural eyes could see him clearly, even from this far away.

"So! It is you...” He said under his breath, thrusting one arm forward and soaring towards Valla's approaching form. As he got closer, he slowed his flight until he was hovering in mid-air once more, arms folded over his chest as he examined the being hovering in front of him.

"Valla, hmm? Long time no see. What kept you? Did you forget the way?” He said with a smirk. Deep down, he was happy to see her again.

Valla then spoke to him. “I am a shadow of the past, I have something to tell you, a history that Spade Fox your follower may or may not have told you…

Valla then cleared her throat and began to speak “Long ago, in the Realm of Adelphia, existed a place known as Hell. Not the Hell the Christians believed in, but a dimension that in nearly every way rivaled the historical depictions of the fire 'n' brimstone hellfire sinners were said to go if they didn't relinquish their evil ways, and trust their souls into the almighty and capable hands of the one True God. Despite its many similarities, it became evident that this Hell was different, because those within it didn't burn in the wake of Eternal Damnation...”

Valla then raised her right hand and ran her right fingers through her hair and then continued to speak “...rather, it was a refuge for Demons and all kinds of twisted nether folk who couldn't find their place on the surface of the Planet, and who had manifested their anger, malice and hatred into a dimension that was far, far away from the tribulations and pains of what most considered the "real world". Vampires and Demons alike found their home here, although it was clearly run by the Demons, the leaders of which were known first and foremost as the legendary Dream walker Clan, headed by the Demon Lord himself, who got replaced by rites of passage.”

Yamcha frowned, “That’s where I would have gone had it not been for Goku and Bulma. God bless them.” He said with a sigh. Valla then looked at Yamcha. “You became good, I stayed evil and dark because I was empty, and you couldn’t save me. Now back to what I was saying…”

She then coughed and spoke once more. “Dwelling in this Hell meant catering to the whims of the Dream walker Clan, and there was no getting around that. Many came upon this Hell hoping to find their own refuges, only to end up with their heads impaled at the darkened gates, and their Immortal Souls feasted upon by the menacing types who controlled the fates of all who entered this place.”

“Back in those days, Spade Fox was convinced that this was the kind of place he would find his home at. Having failed to find welcome or peace on Earth or even in the underground Vampiric Communities, he had stooped so low as to try and make his home in this new Hell.”

Yamcha replied. “Spade told me about his time in this place, I remember the events he told me up to this day, although it was as if it were yesterday in my mind...



"What manner of place is this?" Spade asked nobody in particular, making his way through the twisted nethers that called this place home. "It smells heavily of sulfur, the temperature is unbearable, and I'm certain that were I of Pure Vampiric Blood, the heat would've immolated me by now....so what gives?"

There was a shuffling in the far reaches of the cavern he now traversed, and a dark-clad woman emerged from the nethers, her eyes set upon the ebony form of Spade Fox

"What manner of place is this? Was it not you who chose deep down within himself to traverse this place, yet you know not where you walk? Either you're a courageous man indeed, or you're the dumbest of the dumb, walking where you have no idea of where you're at."

Spade Fox stared at the pale woman in silence for a few moments, then sighed loudly, clasping his hands behind his back as he walked up to the woman, carefully assessing her with those divine yellow-gold eyes of his. If any mere mortal could grasp Omniscience at a mere glance of something or someone, The Shin Follower of Yamcha could with those unnatural eyes of his.

"I know not where I walk, but I do know the nature of where I've come to be. With so many portals leading here from the Surface, I would think that visitors were welcome. Do you mean to tell me otherwise?"

The dark-clad woman seemed to think for a moment before replying.

"My name is Kabal. Yes, like the autumnal season on the Surface. I am daughter of Cylix Dream walker, King of New Hell. What manner of being are you?"

The Shin Follower chuckled, circling the woman curiously as he examined her. She was demonic by heritage, he could tell. While it seemed as if she possessed no soul, it was as if her body and her soul had become one....how curious.

"My name is Spade Fox, Patriarch of the Spade Clan, nomads and wanderers of the various Realms and Dimensions. I've come here to explore one of the many portals on the Surface that lead here. I've not come alone, but I travelled down this particular route alone, although that is definitely no deterrent."

The woman stared at him again, as if wondering what he referred to, but her unspoken question was soon answered without her having to utter even a word.

"My grammar is unique, I know. I speak the way I wish to speak, and the way I was brought up speaking. Perhaps the ancient tongue of Babylonia has been lost to me in the past millennium, but do not think for a moment that I've lost my wits merely because I speak differently than you may be used to. While I have no desire to toot my own horn -- as some may say -- it is no secret that I still have full use of my mental abilities."

He could read from her expression that she thought very little of him at that point. Arrogant, full of himself, and highly presumptuous, the shin follower had elicited similar reactions from other beings, both within this Realm and others, for merely being who he was. He wasn't about to change anytime soon, but he had come to recognize that facial expression that served as a reaction most people had when interacting with him.

And then, when he was about to say something yet again, she started speaking, which Spade Fox reacted to by stuffing his hands in his pockets and listening.

"Spade, eh? I've heard a lot about you."

She let her voice trail off, which perplexed Spade Fox, but left him nonetheless alert.

"If I had a golden coin for every time someone has said that they have heard of me, I would be richer than any being alive. I assure you, of the many rumors there are circulating in the universe about me, only about a fifth of it is true."

She quirked an eyebrow at him, but he only continued, with no visible acknowledgement of her having opened her mouth to speak.

"I hate to seem abrupt, but would you be willing to do me the favor of introducing me to this Lord Cylix individual? There is much I must speak with him of, on topics I'm sure will soon become the highest of his priorities."

***
Yamcha then looked at Valla with sad eyes. “As much as I’d like to hold you right now, I know you’re not real. I know you’re being used by someone who read my memories and made you the guide. Now I’m here to claim the Z-sword not go under a history lesson but one question: Why tell me of this realm.”

Valla replied, “Because the demon realm here has a certain place located there and that\s where the portal to ‘Master’ lies, in a pocket dimension sealed in the realm of hell that I just told you about. But remember”. Oddly enough, Valla looked like Ava but was in royal saiyan armor and a tough black combat skin. “Well you can start by fighting me…but be warned, I’m more powerful then I was when you sparred me last.” She then unsuppressed her power, the ground lifting up under her. Yamcha had a feeling that this was going to take some power. Her base form was stronger, and she hadn’t transformed yet.

Yamcha then gripped himself and roared out loud as he concentrated his desert wolf spiritual energy as he unsuppressed himself with the Ki Control technique from five percent, an emerald green aura flowing about his body. He kept releasing his power, his power level rising from the well of strength that Yamcha had. He suddenly kept steady at seventy percent of his full power.

Valla’s scouter beeped as it picked up and reported Yamcha’s battle fighting power to be at roughly one hundred and seventeen thousand. The human warrior, now at a suitable level would quickly shot down towards her really fast with his right foot out in an attempt to score a rushing kick upon Valla who just crossed her arms and blocked. The entire forest type dimension shook from the impact of the kick. As Yamcha tried to flip away, Valla grabbed his leg and attempted to throw him into a nearby mountain face.

Yamcha was spinning from the throw and touched the mountain feet first then repelled off the mountain face with his two feet, in an attempt to perform another flying jump kick once more.

As Yamcha got close to Valla, she used the afterimage technique to vanish from view; the human warrior’s attack going through a false image. Yamcha skidded across the ground on his boots, forcing himself to stop. Upon stopping he began to sense Valla’s energy. Soon he picked up her energy as well as felt the vibrations in the air above himself and shot backwards, using his Jin as Valla shot down from above in an attempt to do a spinning palm strike upon Yamcha’s forehead.

As Valla touched ground when Yamcha moved back, she gripped her right wrist with her left hand and thrusts her right palm at Yamcha, firing a very familiar and powerful Ki orb at point blank range.

Yamcha the Human Warrior not surprised by the tactic she used at all, just crossed his arms against his chest as the energy attack hit and by raising his defense a wee bit, he went and deflected the attack into a nearby tree by stretching his arms.

Valla smirked. “Not bad, you have improved somewhat. But even with your current skills, you were no match for Cell. Your strongest attack didn’t even finish him.”

Yamcha, angered by Valla’s words shot forward; gathering energy into his right fist as he jetted towards the saiyan woman’s chest. As he got close, he thrusts his right fist towards the center of Valla’s chest which was covered with Capsule Corps Armor and launched the punch. As the punch landed, an explosion of energy was felt with it upon connecting, pushing Valla into a tree from the mere force of the explosion.

Valla growled and gathered an aura about her body which was ocean blue in color and shot towards Yamcha who gathered an aura which was emerald green in color and shot towards Valla.

Both warriors shot forward and clashed with each other. Yamcha threw a right jab which Valla blocked with her left wrist. She then returned fire with a left kick to the stomach of Yamcha which he slapped away with his right hand. The human warrior launched a right knee which Valla blocked with her left elbow and Valla then preformed a head butt which Yamcha got hit by as he launched an ultra punch to the center of her chest.

Both fighters were pushed back from the force of their last hits by four feet and stood hard looking at each other. “Valla, you may be a shadow of your former self, but you are strong…are you ready to continue.” The human warrior stated grabbing his head to stop the ringing sensation.

Valla replied. “Yeah, I’m ready. Here’s something I took out of your book! Try this technique! Drunken Fist!”

Now with both fighters fighting on the ground close to the river where the waterfall was, Valla began to act a bit drunk, she started to stagger and sway with each step. Yamcha smirked shooting forward. “Drunken Fist won’t save you!” But as he got close, he got a swift boot to the chin which sent him flying on a diagonal towards the top of a tree.

He growled as impact was made. Damn it, I forgot that agility rises with drunken fist… He shot down from the tree, forming his physical to that of a flying right Thai Knee towards Valla. The saiyan woman then punched the Thai knee with her right hand, negating the attack completely.

Yamcha then flipped to the ground then upon landing, rushed forward for a low attack towards Valla’s legs. As he got close, Valla launched a sweeping kick that nailed him in his left cheek, as well as a punch that hit him on the top of his skull.

Yamcha used afterimage to evade the second hit and came from behind Valla, gathering energy into his left palm then launching a low level energy wave towards her back. The drunken saiyan then spun her legs around counterclockwise and with her left leg, she deflected the Ki wave into another tree.

Yamcha was starting to grin. “Now this is a fight!” Now He braces himself, adopting a position to begin powering up. As he places his focus on raising his strength, Yamcha would begin to glow slightly light pinkish, his already powerful Jin begins to get a powerful boost as the steam that came from placing more power into his muscles would flow off his skin. His skin would now glow with a bright pinkish hue as his power would rise, using a form of Jin Manipulation to call upon his muscles for power with the strength from within.

After performing this technique, he then shot forward yelling. “Try this on for size shadow of Valla! WOLF FANG FIST!!” Now Yamcha used this illusionary technique to turn himself into a wolf which was charging at Valla and was just about to pounce on her, As it pounced on her, she started to throw punches at the claws that were jabbing at her which was really Yamcha kicking at her torso. The wolf’s head then dove for a head butt to her chin which really Yamcha was going for an uppercut. Valla leaned back, narrowly dodging the uppercut. Suddenly a wolf’s head bit at her neck which she sidestepped while in her drunken state. Soon the blue wolf jumped up and his hind legs kicked Valla in her chest which was really Yamcha, kicking Valla’s chest with his two feet to get some distance.

The mule kick landed and Valla flew seven feet back sobered right the fuck up from the hit. She was on one knee. Yamcha then cupped his hands to his right hip as she spoke. “Didn’t you love me once?” Valla said as she spoke to Yamcha. The human warrior spoke with conviction. “Love is nothing without Trust, Valor and Pride and you have none of those characters so good day to you!” With those final words, He then thrusts his two arms forward, his palms flat and facing Valla as he launched a Super Style Kamehameha towards her.

The blue massive energy wave was heading towards Valla but a portal formed on her right side which she punched into. Another portal opened and punched the fully charged super kamehameha wave into another tree, blowing it to splinters. Yamcha then sat down. Valla was sweating bullets and leaned against a tree. “So, a break from battle. Do you believe you can best someone who you beat due to the limits of gravity when there is no strain in my muscles? Due to the area we’re in, I’m as strong as you…your not fighting with your full power…are you toying with me Yamcha?!? “The female royal saiyan warrior shot forward as Yamcha sensed the spike of energy. He suddenly bathed himself in white flames and shot forward towards the saiyan woman of the royal guard. Both warriors launched a hard jab to the face with enough force to send its recipient flying backwards.


Both warriors landed their blows and were both sent flying back eleven feet into a tree which broke upon colliding with the bark and base. Yamcha spoke to Valla in her mind as he was in pain on the ground on his face, ”How did you know that attack, oh wait. The kick in the pants is you look like the girl I liked but this is the path she would have walked if she chose no man and was all in it with hard work and saiyan pride.” Valla the saiyan warrior woman of the royal guard replied to Yamcha. “You’ve pasted the first phase…now lets see you fight your worst nightmare…A holy demon!! You get restored by the power of the Z-sword so it’s okay. I’m not as tough as you Yamcha. As it stands now, I’m mortally wounded and you’re just really tired so you won, just follow the child with a mirror. .

Yamcha suddenly feels his power return and got to his feet after using his hands to grip the ground and pushed himself up with his arms. Yamcha looked around and saw a child walking on water, heading into the waterfall.

Yamcha followed the child through the waterfall and appeared in a cave with no passages. Yamcha then spotted a hole in the ground and looked deep down into the hole to just finding darkness below. But he knew, for the intent of this quest, he would have to go deeper. And so he begins his descent, quickly at first, but the water seems to get murkier and heavier the deeper he goes. Soon he is finding it hard to see, hard to hear, his head is throbbing from the immense pressure crushing in from all sides, from both the gravity and the mass of 'sacred water' that was strangely breathable.

He could imagine the changeling race that Sairai was born from living under such conditions, yes, the immense pressure would explain the hardened bodies... but... no, he doubted that any normal world, hell, any realistic -dimension- could house such heavy properties (except for, perhaps, a liquid world the size of a supernova... not very likely). This was one of the things transcribed, but the human warrior was unsure if it was translated correctly - if it was, then 'by the nine divines', these beings were surely immense themselves.

Deeper still did the human warrior go, so deep he started to wonder if he would ever be able to get out. Their was no light now, nothing. Something felt different, though - the water was now hot, and yet it was sending shivers through his body. He had the urge to vomit and defecate at the same time. He was close. He must be close. It was hard to remember this was a simulation, how difficult it must have been for the technicians to replicate this sensation. He felt something that seemed to be travelling slowly through his body, from his feet up, what felt like tendrils of ice amidst what was now a burning heat, soon to be scalding.

He stops. Something tells him this was deep enough, whether it's his deep-rooted instinct or the programming parameters he doesn't care. He stops, wait.

Hears a great churning below, as if massive displacement of rock and water was occurring far into the bowels of the ocean; he feels a rush of bubbles searing past his face and causing a light burn on his cheek. Yamcha shivers despite the heat. He was feeling positively ill, now, and not just in the gut. His head hurt and his thoughts were disjointed and oft incomprehensible. Darkness Falls to Light, From the Light comes the Dark.’ That phrase begins to repeat itself, and he finds his lips moving in unison with the thought. Those weren't his words, though, and he did not know the language... but he knew, knew the meaning.

He was here to fight this Sacred Being in the dimension of the Z-sword

The darkness below begins to shatter, a hideous dull green illumination. Yamcha can see the city, unknown elements crumbling in sunken desolation. The architecture was frightening, the buildings built acutely but appearing to be obtuse. But where was the light RADIATING from?

His body stiffening, he twists around. The view is hideous.

The first thing you'd notice is the dead... no, lignified stare. Yamcha feels his lunch erupt from his mouth in a nice, warm stream. He writhes and twists, but is unable to move his head from the sight. The eyes are cold and grey, but seem to be glowing with an intangible intelligence, so far above that of Yamcha's sentience but so primal, instinctive, like two opposites occurring simultaneously within the same mind. His stare is living chaos, but at the same time the epitome of knowledge.

His skin is a mass of what looks like an amalgamation of fungus and scales, hideous house-sized boils seeming to erupt out of his hide at random intervals. Each boil is accompanied by a gangly, fleshy tentacle with claws the size of reaping scythes at each end. A slice from that and Yamcha would be in two. His mouth opens, and Yamcha witnesses his teeth were the same, except for that they were already covered in some form of gore; a whale, perhaps?

His body is indeed gargantuan; the human warrior cannot see the whole of it. He hears a flapping vibration in the water and realizes that the beast has wings, massive bat-like appendages. And if he were flapping-! The water shifts and Yamcha has to hold himself in place as the mass begins to move and rise up. Around his mouth are many octopus-like tentacles and they seemed to beckon to the human warrior:

Come to me, hero of ants, your body and mind will be a fine snack
.
This voice resonates in his mind, seems to scream in his ears, deafening his own thoughts.

Yamcha shakes his head with a grimace, his body paralyzed with fear. His mind tells him to run, but he refuses. "No," the human warrior hisses, bubbles exploding from his mouth. He is angry; now, angry at this being who thought it had the right to call him an ant. Even as this monster rises to meet up, Yamcha manages to overcome his fear, for the moment, replacing it with the type of righteous anger he had only ever felt at Okori. He had a right to exist, as a sentient being and not as an ant, or any lesser being than this 'Deep One' elemental.

The being's entire body was alight with that sickly glow, and it was moving towards Yamcha much faster than anything of that size should be able to, even if it were under a 'normal' gravitation pull. Yamcha growls. The sacred spirit roars, and the sound causes a trickle of blood to run from the human warrior's ears. The two are meters apart now, a king against a living mountain. If it were a real fight, well, it'd have been a fight to remember - the planet they clashed on would have shaken with each blow and the victor's name would be remembered forever, for good or ill.

Yamcha lashes forwards as the two collide, his right fist colliding into the hideous flesh. The skin, despite appearing hard, gives way to a bubbling, oozy mess. Yamcha begins to work his way along the being's arm, perforating it with as the creature screeches unintelligible, hollering sounds that eons ago would have been the language of the species, if the Great Old One's could ever have been collectively defined as such. If they did once exist, or did still, Yamcha mused, then perhaps they would find out in due time - the human believed, however, that instead of a species they were a collective of 'outer demons', perhaps from an outside hidden realm, that existed in such fleshy forms as the being he was currently fighting only within this one.

Yamcha cries out; his hand is bubbling with an acidic, slimy mess. The dark being was leaking, true, but the saiyan hadn't expected its blood to be acidic. His aura blasts up and the fluid disperses, revealing a red and raw limb, but one still usable.

The human warrior grimaces in a mixture of fear, pain and anger. He looks back to the inter-dimensional beast, just in time to see the massive form of what could only be called a 'fist' slam straight into his body. His bones shake and the air in his body explodes from his parted lips and nose, as well as a stream of blood which hangs in the water as a trail as the saiyan shoots backwards, directly into a crumbling pillar of an ancient Shin. It succeeds in halting his movement, but shatters from the impact, coursing into the abyss below in thunderous tumult.

Yamcha groans, wiping a trickle of blood from his nose and coughing up some more of what appeared to be his innards. What wonderful valor, he humors himself darkly. If beings such as these were truly real, then he would have to prepare much harder than he was for Oroki the Death God.

So, what course of action could he take with this being? He had surely weakened it with his punches, but it would by no means fall to the fist. He would have to try something Ki-wise. He had the perfect idea what to do, for a follow-up to his previous melee assault. He hadn't practiced the technique before... but what the hell, there was a first time for anything and surely this training was as good a time as any.

He gathered the power from within himself and pulled his arms back, a red aura coming about his body. As he thrusts his arms forward towards the giant beast, the red Ki Rings rushed forward towards the giant sacred god of the Z-sword.

The Rings hit and blood started spewing everywhere from his open wounds. Not wanting to get hit by the blood, he shoots up into the air on a backwards diagonal.

The beast roared and opened its mouth, gathering energy in his throat first fairly quickly and discharged an eraser gun towards Yamcha.

Yamcha knew that at his current power, this attack would vaporize him, so he put his two hands to his right hip and began to transform. His black hair now turning chalk white, his body still the same as it was normally but more toned and his digits were claws. He cupped the blue sphere of energy in his two palms by his right hip, charging his own energy into it so it would get stronger while shooting backwards from the eraser gun.

Soon he was ready and thrusts his two arms forward with his palms flat, facing the eraser gun. The attacks touch each other and both were battling for ultimate control. Soon a massive explosion was heard and both blasts got canceled out.

The monster spoke. “You think you’ve won by canceling out my attack? Take this! Suddenly the giant monster that looked like a giant ozzaru sized demon with wings gathered energy in his eyes and fired a laser that curved the sky as he attempted to hit the moving target which was the human warrior. Yamcha body was engulfed with white flames and a white aura about his body as he began to out maneuver the eye lasers that were launched by the sacred demon which was monstrous looking. After some close calls, he then used another technique called speed burst to disappear from view and reappear from another location.

As the human warrior reappears on a higher aerial angle that was facing the demon but out of his sight, Yamcha braces himself; adopting a position to begin powering up. As he places his focus on raising his strength, Yamcha would begin to glow slightly light pinkish, his already powerful Jin begins to get a powerful boost as the steam that came from placing more power into his muscles would flow off his skin. His skin would now glow with a bright pinkish hue as his power would rise, using a form of Jin Manipulation to call upon his muscles for power with the strength from within.

He then roared with his white hair down his back, white lighting going about his white icy aura as he readied his left fist, his shenron tattoo glowing. “Well, here goes. If I can’t avenge the fallen heroes who will!?”
Yamcha then thrusts his left fist forward yelling. “Ryu Ken!” Suddenly a Golden Shenron goes from the light of his left fist and ripped through the giant creature. It then wraps around him completely, squeezing the life out of him and crushing him at the same time.

As the creature is dying his final words were. “…The Z-sword…is…yours…now…” Soon the monster explodes and Yamcha is back in the cave with the Elder Kai.

The Human warrior then gathers his bearings and realizes he’s back in the cave where the Z-sword is sealed on the Sacred Planet of the Kais. As he looked at the Z-sword, the seals around it are broken completely now. The Elder Kai then smiles. “So you beat the trials, go ahead Yamcha it’s yours now. I honestly though a Shin would do it, but a remarkable fighter such as yourself doing the impossible…how could I foreseen this.”

With that, Yamcha walked up towards the Z-sword and took it out of the stone. Now smiling that the Z-sword is his, He began to smile and cheer for himself. He then bowed to the Elder Kai who said. “For your hard work, I’m going to feed you a four course meal!” Yamcha smiled and walked with the Elder Kai out of the cave with the Z-sword in his hands

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