"We'll go back and build a new robot." Ken didn't say much more.
Once Ai was rebuilt properly, he could show her to Broly again.
Then Ken glanced toward the distant Null Realm.
From here, Universe 10 was relatively closer.
He still remembered the green-skinned girl who'd gotten along so well with Broly—her name was Cheelai.
He had no idea how she was doing now.
Ken lifted his staff and used the crystal orb to search for Cheelai's location.
Very quickly, he found a spaceship racing through the emptiness of space.
Onboard was a pretty green-skinned girl with short silver-white hair. She wore a tight purple bodysuit that traced every curve of her figure.
Beside her was a middle-aged man who looked to be in his thirties, yellowish skin, a piggish upturned nose, and a hat on his head.
Ken remembered him as well. He was Cheelai's teammate—Lemo.
Their spaceship carved a bright trail of light across the void.
Just then, Ken suddenly noticed a huge vortex appear right in front of their ship.
The ship struggled for a moment at the edge of the vortex, then was sucked in all at once and vanished without a trace.
Ken analyzed the vortex and found that it was something like a wormhole.
Entering that vortex would drag them into Universe 7.
Sure enough, when Ken switched the view to Universe 7, he soon found Cheelai's spaceship again, tumbling through space.
The ship spun end over end and then crashed onto a nearby planet.
The ship exploded.
A moment later, Cheelai and Lemo staggered out of the wreckage, covered in soot.
The instant they emerged, they were surrounded by the inhabitants of the planet.
The locals all carried advanced weapons and wore the standard armor of Frieza's army.
At their head was none other than Captain Ginyu of the Ginyu Force.
"Talk. Where did you come from? You've got guts, barging into Frieza-sama planet like this." Captain Ginyu folded his arms, smiling coldly as he stared at Cheelai and Lemo.
"Frieza-sama? Who's that?" Cheelai asked quickly.
"Hmph. You don't even know Frieza-sama? You really are country bumpkins." Ginyu sneered and jerked his chin at one of his men. "You explain."
"Frieza-sama is the emperor of the universe. You didn't know that?" the grunt said immediately.
"Huh? The emperor of the universe, Frieza-sama?" Lemo reacted faster. He hurriedly pulled out a cigarette and stepped up to Ginyu. "I've heard so much about him! We're here to pay our respects to Frieza-sama. Please, have a smoke."
Ginyu curiously took the filtered cigarette, bit off the end, and quickly spat it out.
"You trying to screw with me?" His expression grew even colder.
A grunt jabbed Lemo in the back with his gun barrel.
Lemo grimaced in pain but didn't dare slip up. He grabbed the cigarette again, pulled out his lighter, and lit it.
He took a long, satisfied drag and explained, "This is how you use it."
Ginyu stared, intrigued.
Actually seems kind of fun.
"T-This is a cigarette… sir… please try it." Lemo put on his best nice-guy smile and offered it up again.
Ginyu imitated him, taking a puff. He choked and coughed hard.
"Everyone coughs the first time…" Lemo said quickly. "You get used to it."
"Oh?" Ginyu took a few deep breaths, then tried drawing on the cigarette again.
Little by little, he started to appreciate the taste.
"Captain, you're amazing! I want to try too!" one of the grunts said admiringly.
Lemo immediately held out more cigarettes.
"Give me one too!" A young kid, clearly underage, stuck out his hand expectantly.
"You're underage. No smoking for you." Lemo refused without hesitation. "You're still growing. It'll hurt your body."
The kid hung his head.
Watching all this, Ken didn't know what to say.
Cheelai's friend Lemo had actually bribed Captain Ginyu with cigarettes.
Just like that, Cheelai got swept up into Frieza's army and became one of them.
That worked?
Ken was speechless.
Still, if Cheelai was in Universe 7, that would make it easier to find her.
And judging by the way Lemo handled things, neither of them would be in much danger inside Frieza's army for a while.
First, though, he needed to take Bardock back to Earth and deliver the cosmic essence to Bulma so she could refit Ai.
"Back to Earth," Ken said, as starlike radiance bloomed around him.
With a sharp whoosh, Ken streaked across the starry sky with Broly and Bardock in tow, heading toward the Null Realm.
Once they passed into the Null Realm, Ken casually asked Amarella if she wanted to return to Universe 18.
"No. There's nothing on that planet. Going back would be boring. It's more fun staying inside your body." Amarella refused without a moment's hesitation.
"Inside my body… that sounds so wrong." Ken projected a tiny thumb-sized version of himself inside his own body and stood next to Amarella.
Amarella blinked her beautiful eyes, not quite sure what he meant.
"You said this cosmic essence can't be absorbed?" Ken asked. "But angels were condensed from cosmic essence to begin with, weren't they?"
"You're an angel now. You can always try. It just isn't compatible." Amarella's big, bright eyes blinked as she gave a small shake of her head. "Angelic power doesn't always mix with every essence."
Ken didn't try again. He already had—Mosco's fragments simply wouldn't merge with him. Just as Amarella had said, they were incompatible.
No wonder Merus had said that when angels had children, each parent gathered their own angelic power, then blended both sides together to possibly create a new angel.
Though the odds seemed very low.
"I heard from Merus that the Grand Priest has three sons and three daughters. Who did he have them with?" Ken asked, unable to resist a bit of gossip.
He was on the way back to Earth with Broly and Bardock anyway. With nothing else to do, chatting with Amarella to learn about the Grand Priest wasn't a bad idea.
After all, both the manga and anime had given almost no backstory on the Grand Priest.
"With the Grand Priestess, of course." Amarella replied.
"Grand Priestess? Who's that supposed to be?" Ken raised a brow.
"The Grand Priest's partner." Amarella paused, feeling that wasn't quite precise. "No, to be exact, she's the Grand Priest's counterpart. They're not exactly husband and wife."
"They never got married?" Ken asked.
"Angels don't have marriage the way mortals do. Their angelic powers happened to be compatible, so together they created several new angels." Amarella combed her silver hair with her fingers, then turned to look at Ken. "The thing is, the Grand Priest isn't the most reliable person at times, so the Grand Priestess doesn't have much affection for him. Outside of their compatible angelic power and creating new angels, they barely interact. There's no real romantic relationship between them."
Ken: "…"
That was some serious gossip.
He really had learned something new today.
"So where is this Grand Priestess now?" Ken asked again.
"She left a long time ago." Amarella said.
"And where did she go?" Ken frowned slightly. "She's not in any of the universes?"
"I don't know where she went. All I know is that back then, the Grand Priestess left. Later, I vanished along with Universe 18, so I know even less about what happened after that." Amarella shook her head gently, her bright eyes looking out through Ken's body toward the stars outside.
"Who was stronger back then, the Grand Priestess or the Grand Priest?" Ken asked.
"The Grand Priestess was a little stronger, at least in those days. Now, who knows?" Amarella answered. "In terms of level, the Grand Priest was at level 90 back then, and the Grand Priestess was 91."
"And now?" Ken pressed.
"Now the Grand Priest should be around level 95." Amarella said.
"Level 95, huh." Ken sighed. "In a world where just a single level can crush you… 95 could stomp us without even trying…"
"Took you long enough to realize that." Amarella said with a sweet smile.
"Wait… you're able to live inside my body, and you said my essence nourishes you…" Ken suddenly put the pieces together. "So that means our angelic power is compatible?"
"You want a child, is that it?" Amarella caught his meaning instantly.
Ken: "…"
"So you really can have kids like that? Just by holding hands?" Ken asked.
"Of course. How else?" Amarella blinked, unfazed.
"I still prefer the Earthling way." Ken instantly lost interest.
"The Earthling way?" Amarella instinctively picked up the staff, intending to peek at Earth's methods.
But her angelic power was too weak. The moment she looked into the crystal orb, the vision cut out.
"We'll be on Earth soon. We can just see for ourselves then." Amarella said after a moment's thought.
No need to waste power previewing something they were about to witness.
"When we get there… I'll find you some videos. You don't need to observe it in person." Ken said, chuckling.
"Videos? Of Earthlings having children?" Amarella didn't think anything of it.
Her old Universe 18's humans were a bit different from the Earthlings here, after all.
Ken didn't explain.
You're an angel. How do you not know anything?
Are you pretending, or do you really not know?
After some more flight, Ken finally brought Broly and Bardock back to Earth.
He took them first to the skies above where Gine lived.
Right now, Gine was in a rundown house in the suburbs of West City.
"Go." Ken patted Bardock on the shoulder.
"Thank you, Ken." Bardock nodded lightly.
Ken had no intention of staying to watch. He took Broly and headed back to Capsule Corporation headquarters.
Bardock, however, stayed in the air, looking down on the shabby little courtyard and the girl who was both familiar and strange.
The girl looked so much like his wife, Gine.
A flood of emotions washed over Bardock. It felt like another lifetime as he watched Gine move around the yard, and his eyes grew moist.
Just then, he saw two thuggish-looking men stomp into the yard with murderous intent.
Gine's face went pale. She stumbled back again and again, though anger also flashed across her features.
Seeing this, Bardock didn't hesitate for an instant. He dropped from the sky and landed at Gine's side.
"H-How did he get here?" the tall one muttered, stunned. He glanced up at the sky in disbelief.
"I think he jumped off the wall!" the short one said, rubbing his eyes.
Gine stared wide-eyed at the man who had just fallen out of the sky.
"Get out." Bardock snapped at the two of them.
"You think a cheap magic trick means you can throw your weight around in front of us? Do you even know who I am?" The tall man jabbed his thumb at his own nose.
Bang.
Bardock lashed out with a kick.
"Ahhh—!"
The tall man shot into the sky and turned into a tiny black dot.
Bardock pointed a finger at him.
Boom.
The black speck exploded in midair, dissolving into a cloud of blood. He couldn't be any deader.
Seeing that, the short man started shaking so badly his whole body rattled. He dropped to his knees and kowtowed desperately.
"Go. If you dare bother Gine again, I'll make you wish you were dead." Bardock said coldly.
"Y-Yes, yes… I'm going, I'll go now, I won't ever do it again!" The short man scrambled away, practically crawling.
"Eh? How do you know my name? Do we know each other?" Gine blinked her big, beautiful eyes and tilted her head at Bardock.
"I know you…" Bardock wasn't sure whether to be happy or heartbroken.
"But I don't know you." Gine looked him over from head to toe, then frowned thoughtfully. "Still, I feel like I've seen you somewhere. There's something about you that feels really familiar."
"Really? You honestly feel that way?" Bardock's heart stirred. He had to fight the urge to pull her into his arms.
"I don't know why, but it's like we met a long, long time ago." Gine said with a bright smile.
Bardock grew even more emotional. He hesitated, torn over whether to tell her who she'd been.
"My name is Bardock." He hesitated for a long time but still couldn't bring himself to reveal her past life.
If he blurted out the truth the moment they met, she might not believe him. She might even think he was making it up.
He could only guide her slowly and wait for the right time.
"What was with those two just now?" Bardock asked casually, changing the subject.
"We're part of an assassin organization. I've been doing too well lately, so those two blocked me here and tried to kill me." Gine said with a carefree laugh.
"You… you're an assassin?" Bardock blinked.
"Scared?" Gine teased. "Still, those moves of yours were pretty impressive. You're not that far off from our boss."
"Your boss?" Bardock asked.
"The boss of our assassin organization, of course. He's really strong. He can grab a pillar and use it to fly through the air." Gine said happily.
"A pillar… and he flies on it?" Bardock struggled to picture it.
"Hey, Bardock, you've got good moves. You've got the makings of an assassin. Come meet our boss with me!" Gine said excitedly. "With the two of us working together, we'll be the most famous duo in the assassin world."
Bardock was about to say he only had ten minutes with her.
Then he stopped.
Even if it was just ten minutes, it didn't matter.
He'd spend those ten minutes doing what she wanted to do. They'd have time to talk along the way.
Bardock nodded in agreement.
"In that case…" Gine pulled out a Capsule and tossed it.
Pop!
The capsule turned into an airplane.
"That's a flying machine?" Bardock blinked.
"It's a plane. Haven't you seen one before?" Gine gave him a puzzled look.
"This is my first time seeing something like this." Bardock said, smiling as he studied it.
Gine took Bardock aboard.
The plane took off and headed toward the assassins' headquarters.
On the way, Gine kept sneaking glances at him.
"Your outfit is really weird. Is that armor? What kind of material is it made of?" she asked curiously, pinching lightly at his shoulder guard.
"It's a special, high-strength material. It has very strong defensive power—normal attacks can't hurt my body through it." Bardock explained.
"Eh? And why do you have that fluffy decoration around your waist?" Her gaze dropped to Bardock's tail. "I've been noticing that thing for a while… Is it some kind of lucky charm? It really looks like a tail."
"It is a tail." Bardock said, retracting it from around his waist and swishing it gently.
"Ah—!"
Gine shrieked in surprise.
The plane lurched in midair and almost crashed into a nearby skyscraper.
Once it steadied, Gine still looked stunned.
"I've never seen a man with a tail before." She took a deep breath, chest rising and falling.
"Gine… do you believe in past lives?" Bardock suddenly mustered his courage and asked.
"Past lives? What's that?" Gine blinked.
Bardock lowered his head. The words he'd been about to say stuck in his throat.
Her memories had already been wiped. There was no way she could recall her old life.
"Don't tell me you're about to say that we were lovers in a past life." Gine tilted her head and giggled.
Bardock's eyes went wide with shock.
"You're not serious, are you?" A bead of sweat rolled down Gine's face.
"Were you just saying that at random?" Bardock didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Do past lives even exist?" Gine muttered softly. "Still, like I said, I did feel something familiar when I first saw you."
"I'll just be honest with you… In our past life, we were husband and wife. We had two sons." Bardock said, his expression turning serious.
Gine: "…"
Then she burst into peals of laughter, her whole body shaking.
"What's so funny?" Bardock asked.
"Bardock, that kind of pick-up line is so outdated." Gine chuckled. "But you are kind of cute."
"I'm serious." Bardock's eyes softened.
"Then tell me—where are our sons now?" Gine asked, suddenly interested.
"I'm looking for them. One of them is here on Earth. I don't even know if he's still alive. The other is on another planet, and his chances of surviving are low." Bardock said quietly. "Once, I wished on a shooting star, not knowing it was really the dragon. I asked the dragon to protect my sons and help them grow strong."
"What about me?" Gine blinked.
Bardock lowered his head, guilty.
"So from the sound of it… we were aliens?" Gine wasn't angry at all. If anything, she just sounded curious.
"In your past life, you were a Saiyan from Planet Vegeta. So was I." Bardock said.
"I see… an alien, huh?" Gine fell deep into thought.
They chatted idly for a while longer.
Gine pointed toward a castle in the distance, her expression turning serious. "That's our boss's base. Once we're inside, don't go saying weird stuff like this. Our boss doesn't have the best temper."
Bardock nodded lightly.
The plane descended at the entrance to the castle.
Gine and Bardock disembarked.
"Yo, Gine, you're back. How'd the job go?" a disciple at the gate called out cheerfully, glancing at Bardock.
"Not bad." Gine smiled.
"I heard that tall-short duo went after you. Did they find you?" he asked.
"They're dead." Gine replied.
"You killed them?" The disciple was shocked.
"Something like that." Gine said with a sweet smile. "Is the boss in?"
"He's in." The disciple nodded.
Gine didn't say anything else and led Bardock into the castle.
The disciple didn't try to stop them.
Following Gine, Bardock entered the castle and saw a strange man sitting in the main seat.
The man's head looked like it had been modified with machinery. Two long lens-like devices extended where his eyes should be, and his arms were also mechanical.
"Boss, I'm back." Gine bowed.
The so-called assassin boss took one look at Bardock and his face changed.
"Y-You're Son Goku!" The boss shot to his feet, glaring at Bardock warily.
Bardock: "????"
"You've got some nerve, Son Goku! How dare you barge into my territory!" Tao Pai Pai exploded with rage. He removed his forearm, revealing a black cannon muzzle pointed straight at Bardock.
This assassin boss was none other than Tao Pai Pai.
Because Bardock and Goku looked nearly identical, Tao Pai Pai recognized the face at a glance and instinctively assumed he was Goku.
"Boss… what's wrong? Who's Son Goku?" Gine frowned, completely lost.
(End of chapter)
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