Chapter 41: Contrition

Author: Rocket (a.k.a. Roketto/RyunoOhi); Editors: Elbadj, Devilman337, & Renalto

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"People of Earth...those of you who are left...I hope you can hear me..."

The voice entered Bob's head and he looked around in shock. "That…that sounds like Videl!" he said. Nearby his companion Doug was also looking around in surprise, wondering where the voice was coming from. They were among the rubble of a city that had been destroyed when an enormous earthquake hit. Bob had been trying to phone his family down south, while picking his way through the ruins, but all of the phone lines were out of commission. Now this voice, which seemed to be the voice of Videl, had entered his head.

"You are all aware of the terrible threat of Majin Buu and the damage he has done to the planet..." the disembodied voice continued.

"You can say that again," Doug muttered, glancing around at the devastation. "Hey man, do you think this is gonna be like that Babidi thing? Is it gonna crowdsource us to do its dirty work and find an enemy? I mean, I know it sounds like the Champ's daughter, but maybe it's a trick."

Bob furrowed his brow with new suspicion. "Yeah... Yeah you're right... We can't help but listen, but don't say anything to it."

Chi-chi let out a hiss of pain as she tried to shift her body up, Yamcha helping her as much as he could. Mr. Popo was still stationed with Dende, the Namekian still woozy from the concussion.

"That's Videl," she gasped, "She's speaking to us..."

"From the way she's talking it sounds like she's speaking to everyone," Yamcha added.

"As I speak, my friends and I are engaged in a desperate battle with Majin Buu. I'm not going to lie to you, the situation is bleak."

Cherry started wailing. Her mother, Asami, held her tight, also trying to fight back the tears. Their village, up in the mountains, had been relatively untouched. But they'd seen the horizon light up. They'd felt the shockwaves. And then, they had seen the huge rush of water, a wall over five hundred meters high, that had slammed into the coast, wiping away the cities they could see below and completely obliterating them. They'd watched in terror, praying to any deity they could think of to save them, and had been relieved when the wave lost momentum and dipped enough that it only splashed up the side of the mountain, but didn't cover it. Thinking of the relief she felt after seeing the land annihilated made Asami feel guilty.

Then they heard the voice of Videl in their heads. Then she'd delivered those horrifying words.

'The situation is bleak.'

That was when Cherry started crying. That was when Asami wanted to join her, but held it together as much as she could. Another horrifying thought gripped her. 'Maybe Mr. Satan is dead? Maybe that's why it's Videl talking to us?' She pushed the thought away, focused on the other interpretation, that Videl was speaking because Mr. Satan was battling Buu, believing it with everything she could because the other thought was too terrible. If she had that one in mind she'd definitely start wailing.

"But there is hope!"

Cherry stopped crying, her wails tailing away to sobs. Asami looked up, as if expecting to see Videl, and if she tried hard she thought she could in her mind's eye. Like looking through a frosted window in a dream she caught an image of the young woman, fierce and defiant, while some battle with rippling explosions and lights happened behind her.

That word: hope. Spoken with such strength and conviction.

Mother and daughter sat, quietly, to listen.

Goten heaved the body from the ruins. The man was out cold and it was no wonder. Both of his legs were smashed, blood dribbling through ripped jeans. Nearby Trunks was helping two people out of the same ruin, both of them hacking and wheezing from the smoke and small bits of stone that filled their lungs when the city came apart. While both boys worked, they were listening to Videl's speech.

"For many years my father fought to keep Earth safe. So have I. So have many others who you don't know, all these years. When the Demon King Piccolo attacked. When the Saiyans came. When the Androids wreaked havoc. When Broly descended. And many others that you don't know. Buu surpasses them all. We can't do this alone. Not this time." She paused. "But we're not alone. Because we have you."

Goten and Trunks smiled at one another. The two people Trunks was helping looked up at the sky, in surprise that was quickly morphing into determination.

Videl took a deep breath and then raised up her hands. "People of Earth! Please, in this most desperate hour, raise your hands to the sky! We can collect your energy and together, with that power, we can defeat Buu!"

Goku looked down at her, astonished, as did Shin and Kibito. There was no denying it, she was gifted at this.

And then Goku felt it. A tingle in the space above his hands. He gasped, a tiny hopeful smile flirting across his face.

The energy was gathering.

Chi-chi, Yamcha, and Mr. Popo pushed their hands up to the sky, Mr. Popo lifting one of Dende's hands when the young Namekian faltered. "Easy, Dende," the genie said calmly, "You don't need to overdo it; preserve your energy so that you can help others." He patted the god's other hand reassuringly.

"I know, but..." Dende slurred, bleary-eyed but determined, "If they don't win...I'll be useless t' everyone...anyway..."

Yamcha narrowed his eyes. "Hey, don't think like that. We're gonna pull through. Goku and the others are gonna beat Buu. With the whole Earth's energy behind him, there's no way he can't win."

Chiaotzu, in the ruined, hellish landscape of the burnt-out hemisphere raised up both his hands. "Ten..." he whispered solemnly, "...Goku will destroy that monster. We will bring you back. Everything will be okay again. It has to be!"

Goten and Trunks put up their hands, as did the two people who Trunks was helping. The man Goten helped pull out cracked open an eye and, straining with effort, raised a shaking hand upwards. "Easy mister," Goten cautioned, steadying his arm, "but thank you. You're gonna help my Dad win!"

Bob and Doug saw others among the rubble put up both of their hands. "...Do you think we ought to too?" Bob asked.

"I mean...it doesn't look like it's hurting 'em," Doug muttered, "Maybe... Maybe this isn't like Babidi. Maybe this really is one of Mr. Satan's team's strategies. I don't know martial arts, dude; I studied as a pilot, same as you." Reluctantly, he put his hand up too. "Huh," he stared at his hand, "feels tingly."

Together, Cherry and Asami put up their hands, looking up at the sky. Asami smiled, looking hopeful.

"Get that monster, Miss Videl!" Cherry shouted.

All around the world, the surviving Earthlings put up their hands, and the energy collected in the atmosphere, becoming visible, before streaking towards Goku in the Otherworld.

"Argh—! Is it ready yet?!" Frieza yelled, his tail lashing nervously as yet another hit from Buu threatened to debilitate him entirely. 'It's like the Androids, all over again,' Frieza thought, 'Mindless monsters that don't get tired!' Still, there was one tiny advantage here: he and Vegeta had correctly deduced, through tentative impromptu experimentation mid-battle, that this thing was dumb, in the truest sense. It either could not understand language fully, or was not able to break from its berserker tendencies to act upon anything it heard. "Flank him, and I'll keep him busy!" the Arcosian shouted, concentrating a flurry of Death Beams on the Majin. Just as predicted, the pink monster continued to sneer and answer his attacks with careless deflections, before charging up another planet-killing blast.

"No you don't!" Vegeta roared, slamming a Big Bang into Buu's blind spot, successfully dissolving the deadly attack & vaporizing Buu's top half. Panting, the Saiyan took up a position across from Frieza. "Hey Kakarot, I'm just as invested in our harebrained plan working as anyone else, but how much longer are you going to take?!"

"Sorry guys, I'm tryin' my hardest, but even with all of Earth chipping in, I don't think it's gonna be enough!" Goku said in a strained voice.

"What?!" Vegeta screamed, "We're risking our necks and getting tenderized so you can sit there and gather this energy, and now you tell us it's not enough?!"

"I knew we couldn't depend on those weaklings," Frieza agreed, "Even if we drained every last living human of all their ki, it still wouldn't be enough to even put a dent in Buu." Speaking of, the malevolent djinn had reformed, and looked positively gleeful as he stalked towards them yet again. "Ugh...figure something out, monkey, and quickly!" He dove at the monster, disappearing at the last moment before Buu swung his fist, and reappeared behind him. Flexing his fingers and psychic powers, the Arcosian caught Buu in his Imprisonment Ball.

"Hah. That trick? Like that's going to do anything more than piss him off," Vegeta snorted, "Even Kakarot at his lowest level can outrun the blast on that one."

"Oh shut up," Frieza growled, "that's only if it hits something, or I detonate it, which I don't plan to do. I'm just going to put the little monster in a cage where he can't pulverize me for a few seconds. Meanwhile, maybe you can do something useful and charge another of your flashy attacks."

Vegeta growled, but settled back on his heels, deepening his stance to more quickly draw in energy. "Get ready to get out of the way once this is done. Otherwise, you'll be dust and I'll have to deal with Buu without your oh-so-helpful orders."

Frieza focused all his effort into maintaining the ball as Buu struggled inside of it. Golden light flickered and crackled around Vegeta's hands as he drew in his energy. Veins bulged on Frieza's body as he fought to keep Buu contained, the small djinn's body moving slightly within the Imprisonment Ball. The scarlet ball of ki made a noise like tinkling glass, as hairline cracks formed across the glowing surface. "Anytime today, Vegeta!" Frieza shouted.

"Final Flash!" Vegeta roared, slamming his palms together and unleashing the streak of golden energy.

Frieza leapt out of the way as the golden beam struck the Imprisonment Ball, detonating it on impact. The force of the explosion smacked into Frieza and sent him spinning slightly through the air before he could right himself. The waves of the blast blew through to Videl, who planted her feet and just managed to stop herself from being blown backwards, alongside Shin and Kibito.

"Did they get him?!" Videl shouted, in hope.

Frieza stared down into the smoke, straining his eyes to peer through it. 'Was that enough? I know he has infernal regeneration abilities, but if he was hit by the combined blast—'

"Frieza! Watch out!" Piccolo shouted.

Frieza whipped his head around, as the smoke bulged and then burst—

"Ta-daaaahh!" Buu shrieked, before slamming a leg across Frieza's chest, hurtling the Arcosian to the ground. He skipped up and then slammed back down, and dug a furrow that halted just in front of Videl. Buu giggled and then paused. He looked past his current victims and saw Son Goku with the Genki Dama for the first time. A primal part of his body reacted to it and his eyes widened in something approaching shock and fear. "Kaaahh!" Buu screamed and started forward, before ducking quickly as Gohan slashed at his head, spinning around to deliver a punch that smacked Gohan aside, as Piccolo swept in to join the fray.

"Damn that monster!" Vegeta snarled, "He's spotted the Genki Dama! Whatever you're going to do Kakarot, do it quickly!" He started to fly up to join the fray, but thought better of it, instead planting himself solidly between Buu and Kakarot. "Much as I hate to refrain from punching that bastard's face in, you're too vulnerable, now that he's spotted you," he growled accusingly, "Can't you charge it any faster?!"

"I can't; it's not that simple! If there isn't enough energy then throwing this at Buu won't do any good, and I can't force anyone to gimme their ki!" Goku shouted, frustrated at his inability to help in the fight or summon more energy.

Frieza wheezed and hissed, and finally heaved himself out of the ground, his face a mass of bloody scratches.

"People of Earth!" Videl shouted, desperately, "Please, if there are any of you that can, please, we need more energy!"

((More?)) a disembodied voice shouted, Videl flinching at the frustrated man, who seemed to be right in her ear.

((But I've given as much as I can!)) a young woman complained.

((Is there anyone who hasn't raised their hands yet?)) an older man shouted accusingly, seemingly talking to a group.

"No..." Videl whispered, "There's just not enough people..." She whirled around to Shin. "What about the Otherworld? This place? Can people send their energy here?"

"I'm afraid they already have," King Kai came in, voice low, "I took the liberty of sending your message around to the heavens as well."

"No…then that's really all that can be gained?" She looked up at the Genki Dama, willing it to increase in size. "There must be something we can do!"

Frieza looked up at the ki ball, then at Videl, then back at the battle, and then down at the ground. He swallowed. "There...there is one thing we can do," he said.

"Huh? What?" Videl looked at him.

"I can talk to the whole galaxy," he said, "I believe this King Kai said he could do that. Though I can't guarantee that anyone will listen or respond. Although my name is known, my reputation wasn't...isn't the best," he added bitterly.

Videl looked over at Shin, who nodded. "Well, I guess we don't have any other options," Videl said, "Floor's yours."

Frieza raised his head skywards. "Hey, Kai, can you transmit my voice to the galaxy?" he asked.

"Yes, that will be simple," King Kai replied, though he bristled at the lack of honorific, before adding more jovially, "Though I can't guarantee you'll get a good reception."

"Well, hopefully their desire to live will outweigh any dislike of me," he said, with a soft chuckle.

A moment passed. "Uh...that was supposed to be a joke to lighten the mood, you know, 'reception'?" A sigh. "Nevermind..." There was a pause, then a sound as if a dial somewhere had been tuned. Frieza felt it click onto him. "Speak," King Kai said, "The whole galaxy can hear."

Frieza nodded and took a moment to compose himself.

"People of the galaxy," he began, tempering his tone, trying to regain the dignified voice he recalled using for his subordinates, "For those of you who have never heard my voice, I am Lord Frieza." A rush of startled gasps greeted him, but instead he heard, like a ghost from the past, a flash of memory. "Remember to state your titles, son, otherwise the ignorant rabble won't respect what you are, what you represent to them." He gritted his teeth, suppressing a shudder. "...I am...one who was formerly known as the Emperor of the known universe, and as part of that position, I have a certain vested interest in keeping peace in my former territories." He heard a few whispers, susurrus mumbling and clamoring in his ear, but pointedly ignored them, continuing. "At this moment, a dire threat exists, one that even I have no way of subjugating on my own. I'm sure all of you have heard tell of what I am capable of, and a number among you may have even witnessed the lower limits of my power."

'Keh, clever wording there Frieza; of course you wouldn't leave anyone alive who saw your power in your higher forms,' Vegeta mused. Still, he had to admit, unlike the Saiyans, who through a combination of culture and outside propaganda never found favor in the universe, Frieza and his ilk were different. They had succeeded in cultivating a cult of personality, and it was possible, if not probable, that holdouts still existed. 'Impressionable fools, the lot of them, but if they can scrape together enough energy to kill Buu...' He watched the Arcosian, calm and serene-looking despite his bruised, bloodstained face, and suddenly remembered why he had held such sway. It wasn't merely his power. Any warlord or planetary despot could rule through brute force. The PTO with Frieza at its head represented a monolithic entity, an authority that was never questioned, because it simply was. Part of it was Frieza himself— his demeanor, his detachment, the sense that he was, if not untouchable, unknowable in some godlike way. 'I always resented you Frieza, for how callously you disregarded everyone beneath you, but that indifference has always been like a flame to the many moths you caught, keeping them vying for your attention, your approval, your mere notice.' He chuckled to himself. Maybe that was why Frieza had always been so brutally lackadaisical with him. He didn't rise to Vegeta's bait, because he saw that it was set with spite, not admiration or fear. On Namek, when he'd finally, finally managed to get a rise out of him, it had felt like a victory, just for a moment. In the context of what he knew now about Frieza, it all made some sort of twisted sense, and now, at the end of the world, they were depending on the same twisted worship, that same sick infatuation with power that was rampant in the PTO, that same insane need for affirmation that he had once been wholly driven by. 'I hope that there are a lot more poor bastards like my old self, just waiting to jump at the chance to impress Lord Frieza,' he thought.

Vegeta snapped out of his thoughts as he saw Gohan and Piccolo being smashed away to the ground, Piccolo missing his lower body and left arm. Neither was managing to get up, and Buu let out a ferocious scream.

"Damn it!" Vegeta roared, shooting forward to confront Buu as the last obstacle before he could reach Goku.

"For a threat to rise to my attention is not only rare, it holds consequences for us all," Frieza said, taking on an appropriately grave tone, "Some of you may think — may hope— that this situation is above you, that it will never reach you, nor affect your tiny corner of the universe." He paused for effect. "That is a false hope."

((What's he saying?!)) an alien voice, shrill and strident, said.

((Are we being invaded? Why?!)) another cried.

((If Lord Frieza can't defeat it, who can? We're all as good as dead!)) an arrogant voice declared.

((Why's he contacting us? Recruitment? Man, screw that. I barely survived basic training before I got kicked out; no way I'm volunteering to go in a meat grinder...)) another drawled with incredulity.

((I thought he was dead,)) put in another voice.

"All of you, be silent!" Frieza shouted. The multitude of voices stopped obediently. "Now, far be it for me to suggest that any of you individually are an asset to my cause, but I am, for once, after quantity, not quality. Whatever your misgivings, I have already established that if you do not heed this call, you will die. Not by my hand, and not for any conceivable violation of any law established in a civilized galaxy. No, you will be slaughtered by virtue of your mere existence. The monster that I am fighting now cares not for money, territory, political leverage, or any number of rational wants. It exists to extinguish life, for no reason other than to sate its own amusement. It is death itself. You cannot beg or bargain, pay or plead for it to leave you and your families, your worlds in peace. It is implacable, and it will not stop. It will thoroughly root you out, and kill you and everyone you love. That is the monster I am fighting, and I cannot defeat it alone. The only way to kill it is to bombard it with so much energy, it cannot heal itself to regenerate. The logistics of how it came to be such a threat are too unbelievable to explain, but suffice it to say, I need your energy. As much as you can spare, as fast as you can send it. To do this, all you need to do is raise your hands, and consciously allow me to siphon ki from you. It does not hurt, and even if you are not a fighter, you can contribute and help me to—"

((What a load of shit!)) someone cursed.

((Ugh, honestly, it just sounds like Frieza's finally met his match. Sounds just like him, huh?)) another laughed.

((Even if I die, I'd never help that tyrant ever again...)) an older voice muttered.

((We're just pawns no matter what, so maybe if we refuse to help, they'll kill each other and leave us alone,)) a voice opined haughtily.

((Serves him right, asking us for help after what he did! I think I'd rather die,)) growled another.

The whispering, shouting, clamoring mob of voices, once audible, were impossible to shout down. Frieza tried and failed to regain control, before helplessly looking over at Shin, teeth and fists clenched. "They won't listen," he hissed, "stupid fools, even if it's to save themselves, they would rather see the possibility of me dead than their own salvation."

The Supreme Kai nodded sadly. "It is an unfortunate feature of you mortals, that brand of obliterating spite. Lord North Kai, cut the connection, please."

"I'm sorry," King Kai said, all humor gone from his voice, "They can't be forced, and I'm afraid there's nobody else who can, or will, speak on behalf of your cause."

That sensation of a dial being turned away, tuning Frieza out again, resonated in his mind. The Arcosian shook with anger and frustration, his tail lowered and twitching behind him. "It's over, isn't it?" he asked no-one in particular, "that was our last chance, and I failed. This is all because of me!"

((Wait,)) a familiar voice suddenly said.

Frieza looked around, as if hoping to see the voice's owner. "It can't be..."

((Well, this just shows I can't take my eyes off you for a second, Frieza. What exactly did you do, in order to endanger our entire universe?))

"Cut the crap, brother," Frieza growled, "I refuse to take sole responsibility for this fiasco."

((As opposed to taking responsibility at all?)) Kooler needled him, ((Really, you haven't changed in the slightest, and you still have zero tact when it comes to winning hearts and minds.))

"Pah, as if you could do better..." the younger Arcosian grumbled, "Like it or not, they paint you with the same broad brush."

((Is that so? Here I was, thinking my extensive network of genuinely loyal allies proved otherwise,)) Kooler sarcastically responded.

"If you have a point, get to it, otherwise leave me to die in peace, because without any extra energy, that's about all that awaits me." Frieza tapped his fingers on his crossed arms in annoyance, a sour look upon his face.

((Touchy, touchy,)) Kooler laughed, ((From what I gather, you've got a way to talk to the entire universe?))

"Indeed, though it seems you've hijacked it, at least to be able to speak to us like this," Frieza sighed, "Alright, change of plans." He turned to the Supreme Kai. "Tell your subordinate to broadcast my brother's voice. If he thinks he can succeed where I've failed, I'm willing to make this our last-ditch effort. Assuming he succeeds, of course." This last bit he said with a sarcastic upward flick of his tail, picturing his brother's face at the verbal jab.

((Not that I need to remind you, little brother, but our scoresheet, so to speak, hasn't been pitched in your favor in a long time. There is no assuming; I'm not going to flat-out fail like you just did, and well...that's grounds for a victory to me.)) Kooler's disembodied laugh made Frieza's blood boil, as he ground his teeth at the implication that he'd been eclipsed for good.

((People of the galaxy, please hear my voice,)) Kooler began, ((My brother has already spoken to you on this urgent matter. I now wish to add my own plea to his. For many years now, our galaxy has been beset by insurrectionist forces. Majin Cultists we know them as, bearing the symbol of an "M" on their person. Many of you have likely heard of or seen them, possibly encountered them. My soldiers have fought them, but were never able to stamp them out. They were devotees of the old legends of Majin Buu, seeking his resurrection. Now I know many of you will laugh at that, the monster under the bed, used to frighten children the galaxy over. I laughed at it as well. But if what my brother is saying is true…)) A solemn, pregnant pause followed, during which a multitude of quiet whispers began to rise, as the universe collectively assessed their knowledge of the truth.

((Then I'm afraid it would appear that Majin Buu is real after all.))

A gasping silence flooded the shared link.

((You know the stories. You know what you've heard. Imagine that happening in reality, in your life. Imagine what destruction such a monster could wreak? I want you to hold that image, to know that image; to see what could happen to you, your family, your friends, your planet if this threat is not contained.))

Frieza curled his lip in annoyance. Not only was Kooler not failing, he hadn't been cut off yet by the angry mob. "I suppose obscurity gives him some measure of leniency with the rabble," he told himself sourly, "Not having the limelight certainly makes him a more ambiguous figure to paint favorably..."

Heedless of his comments, Kooler's voice continued on. ((But we have been offered hope. All of us. If we just raise up our hands, together, as one, we can channel the energy to defeat this threat. We can end this nightmare before it can even begin.))

Vegeta screamed in pain, as Buu savagely twisted his arm behind his back. Gohan roared, bodily tackling the pink menace off the older fighter. Once free, the Saiyan prince joined Gohan in circling around the monster, lobbing buzzing balls of energy. "Keep him busy, and far away from Kakarot!" Vegeta shouted. Gohan nodded sharply at him, teeth gritted.

((I have no right to ask this of you. I know that for many of you the Planet Trade Organization is an object of fear and resentment,)) Kooler continued, ((I work and will continue to work tirelessly to correct those errors of the past and regain, or finally earn, your trust. But now, I urge you, I beg you, please, join me in raising your hands, to channel our energies and together we can defeat this monster and save our families, our friends, our children, our galaxy.))

Frieza's eye twitched. 'Silver-tongued bastard...'

Nothing appeared to happen.

And then Son Goku felt it. An increasing weight and pressure on his hands. The Genki Dama was growing in power, rapidly expanding and increasing its strength. "It worked!" he laughed, the others turning to him in surprise. "I can feel the energy arriving!"

((He makes a strong argument,)) an alien voice opined.

((Well I'd hate to die if there was something I could've done, right? You agree too, huh?)) a different voice said, with cautious optimism.

((He seemed a lot more reasonable and nice than Frieza,)) a female voice mused, ((maybe he's different.))

((I heard that Lord Kooler helped free a bunch of rim planets from those Majin cultists, actually)) another voice chimed in, ((Guess that rumor was true!))

All across the galaxy planets lit up. Great globs of white ki formed together and then shot upwards into space before disappearing as they went to the heavenly realm.

Buu's fist cracked into Vegeta's jaw. Before the Saiyan prince could even react to the fact that he'd been punched another blow hammered into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. A further blow struck his temple and he desperately flung up his arms to block the blows that slammed into him from every angle. His Super Saiyan aura disappeared, and the final blow smashed him into the ground. He groaned and tried to heave himself up, blinking blood out of his eyes.

"Vegeta, get out of the way!" Kakarot screamed from somewhere behind him.

He heard the shout and twisted his head. His eyes widened in shock. The Genki Dama was enormous. The sheer pressure of the contained power pushed down on his senses like increased hydrostatic pressure. He could see that Goku was straining under the sheer weight of it, trying to keep it contained. "Throw it you idiot!" he shouted.

"Kaaahhh!" Buu screamed behind him, his voice for the first time inflected with fear. Buu launched an energy blast at Goku, with the Saiyan quickly disappearing and reappearing, juggling the Genki Dama precariously. Buu snarled and was about to attack again, when part of his head blew out as Videl fired a concentrated kiai wave at him.

"Throw the damn thing!" Vegeta shouted again.

"But you're in the way, it'll get you too!" the fool answered, daring to sound concerned.

'How shameful,' Vegeta thought, realizing that Buu's blitz assault had shocked his body so badly that he couldn't rise. He didn't know what was more pathetic, Kakarot's mercy or his own state. "Nrrrgh...you blithering idiot, don't you dare throw away our only chance! Throw it!"

Goku grit his teeth and hurled the Genki Dama. Vegeta closed his eyes, bracing for the white-hot pain he'd felt, many years ago. 'Something tells me a blast of this size isn't just going to muss my hair and scald me a bit,' he thought with chagrin.

Then, he felt something wrap around his wrist and yank him off the ground. He opened his eyes and looked up to see Frieza flying them away, his tail wrapped around his arm. "You owe me one!" the Arcosian said.

"...is it too late for you to drop me?" Vegeta asked sarcastically, "Think I'd rather die than be in your debt."

Frieza chuckled, forced as it was coming from his bruised body, and shrugged as they raced through the air. "Fine then. You just owe me a drink in that case. Sound fair?"

Vegeta grumbled something noncommittal, the words lost to the wind.

The Genki Dama blazed forward, ripping chunks out of the ground and obliterating them as it came on. Buu desperately hurled an energy blast at it, but the beam dissolved on contact. The Genki Dama came closer, too close for him to get away. Buu shoved out his hands and halted the Genki Dama's movement, holding it in place. He was pushed back slightly, but the massive orb of energy wasn't eating away at him. Buu halted his slide and began to push back.

Goku pumped more power into it, trying to force it down on Buu, but the strength of the Genki Dama was hard to control and the strength of the djinn was still enormous. "D-damn it!" Goku growled, "He's bringing it under control! How can he even do that?! He's pure evil!"

Shin looked up from where he'd been blown back by the pressure, Videl and Kibito holding on beside him. "No!" Shin said, frustration growing, "Goku's lost too much energy, he can't control it!"

"What?!" Videl shouted, "You mean we did all this for nothing?!"

Kibito assessed the situation grimly. "Buu's pushing back against it...he might be able to push it away or back onto Goku."

From their more distant position, Vegeta and Frieza, both wounded and exhausted, looked over. "Come on Kakarot..." Vegeta snarled, "What are you playing at?"

"Keh..." Frieza grit his teeth, "We might have overdone it with the amount of energy he's being tasked to control..."

((I'm sure I had absolutely nothing to do with that,)) Kooler chimed in smugly.

"Unless you can help from where you are, just shut up!" Frieza snapped, feeling a throbbing stress headache forming behind his eyes.

"We could attack from above, throw some distracting shots, just enough to make his concentration slip," Vegeta reasoned, only to narrow his eyes as Frieza let out a sharp, scoffing laugh.

"Yes, and I could try to slash him to bits with my faishin, but either action at this point would be suicide. Can't you feel energy?" the Arcosian rolled his eyes, "It would be foolish to even try."

"But—! Agh..." Vegeta started, before wincing in pain, clutching his ribs.

"None of us are in fighting shape, and none of us can even get close enough to Buu now," Piccolo said, limping to stand beside the two battered warriors, "the Genki Dama would kill us too with the power it's putting out. Goku!" he yelled, "you have to push harder, overwhelm him!"

"I'm...tryin'..." Goku grunted, sweat pouring down his face as he dipped deeper into his ki reserves. It felt like he was a hovercar running on fumes. 'There's just nothin' left in me!' he realized with mounting trepidation.

A smile slowly peeled across Buu's face as he brought the Genki Dama's ferocious energy into his grasp. He took another step, then another, pushing it closer and closer back towards Goku.

The Saiyan strained, trying to dredge up more energy from somewhere, anywhere within him. "Come on...come on!" he pleaded, eyes squeezed shut. Suddenly, he felt the pressure ease slightly.

Buu's advance halted, and the Majin couldn't push forward anymore, his eyes bugging as the pressure pushed back on him again.

Goku opened his eyes. Gohan, badly bruised, was beside him, one hand extended, lending his power to control the Genki Dama. "Gohan!" Goku said, delighted.

"Come on Dad, let's finish this," Gohan said with force, "For all our friends and family, and for the whole universe, we can't let him win!"

"Right!" Goku smiled. Together, father and son let out a roar and pressed all their might onto the Genki Dama. The orb of energy smashed past Buu's hands and struck the creature. Buu's scream was lost as he was pulled into the tormented, swirling energies inside the Genki Dama, the power of the galaxy assaulting him, tearing his body apart and obliterating it. Soon every scrap of his body, of his being, was peeled away, torn, annihilated, and atomized until it was like he'd never existed.

A huge detonation of white light blew from the spot. They shielded themselves, but the light didn't harm them, merely bathed them in warm energy that slowly dissipated away. As it cleared, they beheld a landscape devoid of any scrap of Buu. Immediately, everyone put their minds to sensing if there was any trace of Buu left. "If anyone sees anything pink, destroy it!" Vegeta called, as he searched the area with his eyes. But there was nothing.

"It's over..." Piccolo breathed, slumping back to the ground.

"We won!" Videl yelled, leaping up and punching the air, before slapping her hands over her ears as the cacophony of a galaxy celebrating slammed into her.

Goku and Gohan dropped out of the sky and slammed onto the ground, both breathing hard through the pain. Relief washed over them and they started to laugh.

Shin dropped to his knees and heaved out a breath that came from the depths of his soul. At long last, the nightmare that had haunted him for over three million years was gone. His eyes glistened, and he bowed his head.

Kibito cleared his throat as he strategically placed his body to block Shin from view of the others. "It's finally over...our comrades can finally be at peace, and the mortal realm no longer hangs under the terror of Bibidi's ambition and spite," he said neutrally.

"I only regret that we Kai were rendered as helpless by Buu as we were in the past," the Kaioushin said sadly, "In the end, the mortals saved not only their own world, but our realm as well. They really are remarkable..."

Kibito nodded sternly, watching Videl and Gohan cheering and embracing, Goku leaning heavily on Gohan's shoulder, and Piccolo, Vegeta, and Frieza standing awkwardly apart from the rest.

The Namekian Dragonballs shot up into the sky, and then split and fired across the planet.

Shin bowed his head to Moori. "Thank you for allowing us to use your Dragonballs to restore the Earth," he said.

"Please, Supreme Kai," Moori said, waving him away and bowing in turn, "It is no trouble at all. I can only offer my thanks to you and to Goku, again, for saving us all. Restoring the planet and its people is a minor thing in comparison." He leaned back up. "Though I do have to ask, why didn't you just use the Earth's Dragonballs?"

Shin blinked. "Ah. Well, we would have no way of finding them, and with half of the planet destroyed, it's likely that some would have been broken." Shin paused and suddenly a deep fear twisted his stomach. "Uh...when people are restored...do they appear exactly where they died?" he asked hurriedly, remembering that significant numbers of people had been raised into the air by Buu before their demise.

Moori smiled, immediately understanding the concern. "I specified for people to be revived safely," he explained.

Shin breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you. I would have hated to have to return and ask for you to redo something."

Moori laughed, and then waved goodbye as Shin and Kibito disappeared.

"Mom? Mom!"

Trunks flew out of the sky, ran along the concourse, and leapt into Bulma's arms. Tears spilled down his face as his mother hugged him tight, laughing. "I'm so glad you're okay!" he said.

"Me too...me too…" Bulma replied, kissing her son gently on the head. She looked up to see that Vegeta had dropped down behind them, and was walking by with his arms crossed. "No hug for me Vegeta?" she asked.

"Keh..." Vegeta replied.

"Dad was amazing!" Trunks blurted, "After you died he even teamed up with Uncle Frieza to get revenge for you!"

Bulma's eyes widened. "What? Really?"

Vegeta turned his head away quickly, but couldn't quite hide the blush that crept to his cheeks. "...I disliked him hurting someone I—" he broke off.

Bulma quirked an eyebrow. "That you what? Care about?"

Vegeta was silent. "I'm glad you're back," he said, in the most grudging tone he could summon. He carried on walking as Bulma laughed with delight.

Seagul and Krane made their way back through the city. It was now restored, its shining brilliance again what they remembered existing before the chaos. They both had vague memories of an intense heat and the world lighting up around them, and then...they'd been on a bridge? As clouds? And they'd heard the voice of Videl ringing in their...souls? Followed by another, strange voice they didn't recognize. And then another one. And then they learned that Buu had been stopped. And then they were…

Suddenly back in the city. Both perfectly fine, with the city perfectly fine.

Like nothing had ever happened.

They'd dropped the child off with his sobbing parents, and now they were making their way to the palace. All around them people were meeting up and hugging and crying, celebrating and reuniting. Or treating others with suspicion and demanding they get lost.

'Probably the poor saps that had those tattoos,' Seagul thought, as they saw one man receiving a particularly vicious kick up the backside, ears ringing with insults and the phrase 'we're through!' It was interesting that nobody seemed to have those weird "M" tattoos on their heads anymore though... "Do you think..." Seagul began. He paused. "Do you think he'll be back as well?"

"It'd be odd if he wasn't…" Krane said, "but we'll find out."

They opened the doors of the palace and ducked as a body flew over their heads. Rudin smashed to the ground outside, rolled a few times and then halted, unconscious. Seagul and Krane looked at his body and then turned their gaze back.

Mr. Satan, unharmed, was slapping his hands together as if rubbing off dirt. "Sorry about that boys!" he called, "Was trying to use that door as a stop, wasn't expecting anyone to come through."

"Mr. Satan!" Seagul exclaimed, delighted, "You're alive!"

"Well, I am now. I, uh, wasn't for a while," the champ admitted.

"Mr. Satan...your daughter saved the world," Krane said, feeling he had to say it.

Mr. Satan smiled. "Yes, I heard. But thank you for saying it." He looked around at the other unconscious bodies on the floor. "Now, how would you boys like to assist me in transporting these people to the jail?"

"Yes sir!" they said together.

Frieza let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, tracing his fingertips over the smooth keratin of his forehead. It was gone. The Majin mark, the symbol of his weakness and betrayal, had dissolved like dust in the wake of the faraway Namekian dragon's will. 'If only a wish could make the world forget this whole nightmare,' he thought, 'Including my involvement,' he added mentally. He heard, rather than felt, the person landing behind him. Even without being able to sense ki, he knew he wouldn't have been able to do so with this person. He turned. "Tenshinhan," he greeted, "Good to see you alive again." As the human smiled, Frieza almost wanted to add, "and thoroughly inedible," but quickly quashed the morbid attempt at a joke.

"Good to see you back to your senses and in control," Tenshinhan nodded, "Chiaotzu is a little ways out. He managed to survive Buu's planet-killing attack, somehow, but in the chaos he got knocked almost a continent over. I'm sure he's fine but..." he shrugged. The silence hung awkwardly between the two, alien and android staring at each other.

Frieza blinked first. "...I want to apologize," he started, forcing the words out before he could second-guess them, "None of you would have had to go through all the suffering you did if I could be trusted to..." To what? Behave? Follow orders? Not behave like a crazed lunatic? He couldn't find the words to convey the rising heat he felt in his face, the way it almost hurt to look at Tenshinhan, as he remembered his death as Buu ate him alive.

"You don't have to say anything," Tenshinhan calmly said, "I can tell that this really affected you strongly. Strong enough to undo all of my hard work in reforming you, sure, but also strong enough for you to return to the correct path on your own."

"What? It wasn't on my own; you had to beat sense into me!" Frieza burst, "If you hadn't been strong enough to match me, then I would have..." He choked on that feeling of horrible anger, the memory of that sensation, like a fire eating him up from the inside, and it was all he could do to feed the flames and hope it didn't burn him to ash. He'd fed that flame of madness with blood, but it never abated. Never died down. 'Would I have remained as Babidi's thrall?' he wondered with horror, a cold sensation twisting through his gut, mirrored in his tail as it curled under him in unease, 'Would I have become a slave to that feeling forever?' It felt like his life before Earth, only moreso. He flinched at the hand on his shoulder, looking up at Tenshinhan's worried face.

"Everyone has weaknesses, Frieza," the martial artist said, softly, "All of us have our demons to face, and just the act of acknowledging that you acted on your weaknesses this time, rather than your strengths, takes courage to admit. To be honest with you...I did not come here with the expectation that you would apologize." Frieza goggled at him, before his face began to take on its familiar annoyed expression. "What I mean is," he cut him off before he could react further, "I expected regret, maybe even remorse over my death. I expected you to be angry at Babidi for controlling you, Vegeta for goading you earlier, and at Goku for not reading the situation better. I did not expect that you would direct this much anger or blame at yourself." He paused, letting out his breath in a sigh. "Genuine contrition from you? That's more than progress— that's a promise. A promise that your darker nature won't overcome you again. I don't need your apology. More often than not, my experience has been that words are empty, cheap. Actions mean much more. If you want to truly apologize, you'll hold this feeling in your heart, and think of it whenever you doubt yourself."

Frieza looked stunned, his tail unfurling from its nervous position around his feet. "I... Thank you... I'll do my utmost to honor your request. I just hope that I'm done doubting myself."

The android smiled. "In my experience? Not a chance. Self-doubt is a part of life. That doesn't mean you have to get hung up on it, like I did for so long. Regrets can lay the foundations for a hopeful future, if you learn from them, then let them go."

"Pah. That sounds far too sentimental, coming from you," Frieza chuckled.

"Mmm, maybe so," Tenshinhan said distractedly, eying the sky behind Frieza. He waved. "Hey Chiaotzu! Good to see you're okay!"

"Ten! I'm glad you're both okay..." the jianshi trailed off as he hovered around to face Frieza, "I was really worried about you both, but you especially."

"Who, me?" Frieza said in mock surprise, "I just got tenderized by Babidi's pet monster; at least I didn't get eaten by him." At Tenshinhan's perturbed look, he said, "Had to get that out, otherwise the mental image would've driven me mad. Was it as bad as it looked?"

"Yeah. It was," Tenshinhan said, jaw set. Then, a cheeky smile. "I hope I gave him indigestion. If he'd gotten you instead, no doubt he would have gotten sick."

"What's that supposed to imply?" Frieza laughed.

"Maybe that you're overly sour, bitter...or maybe salty?" Chiaotzu offered, deadpan.

Frieza's smile dropped, replaced by an icy smirk. "You two conspired against me with that little joke," he pointed an accusing finger at them, "I just know it. Very funny, but somehow I doubt you'd make it as a comedy troupe," he said dismissively.

"Well of course not, a troupe needs more than two people— you'd have to join us for the tour," Chiaotzu grinned.

"I have no desire. I'd rather be in the audience, throwing things," Frieza airily said as he waved off the comment, "I know a good clown in orange garb who'd be the perfect addition to your act, though."

The three were silent for a moment, the only sound the wind blowing. Then, unable to hold it in, they burst out laughing.

The firework rocketed up and splattered red across the sky.

Bulma stood back to light the next one as Trunks and Goten 'ooed' at the sight. The group had gathered on the Lookout to celebrate. Everyone was there, even Master Roshi and Mr. Satan, joining in with the camaraderie. Vegeta and Frieza were both keeping to themselves, as everyone else enjoyed the food, the drink, and the celebrations.

"It's amazing to me that we all survived this. Man, I really thought that this was going to be the one that finished us," Yamcha laughed, "I don't know how you managed to pull it off."

"A team effort with the whole galaxy it seems," Videl said, "We certainly got very lucky that we had all the abilities to do that."

"Yeah, but I still feel annoyed that I couldn't do it myself," Goku said, "Next time a threat like that turns up, I want to be able to beat it on my own!"

Everyone groaned good-naturedly.

"You never stop, do you," Krillin said, "You say the same thing after you get beat by anyone."

"It works out though! Tenshinhan, Piccolo, Vegeta, Frieza...they all came around," the spiky-haired Saiyan said sheepishly.

"Heh, heh...yeah..." Krillin glanced over his shoulder. The Arcosian's gaze drifted over to him and then hurriedly twitched away. Krillin looked back with an audible gulp.

"You should go speak to him," Tenshinhan said quietly, remembering their earlier conversation, "I think he regrets it."

"Yeah, I get that but..." Krillin shrugged. "It's all right. Magic is its own force, and he wouldn't have done it without that."

"Well, if we have to fight a new threat, I hope it has the decency to stay dead when you hit it rather than coming back all the time," Gohan said.

"And I hope it stays away long enough for you to complete your studies," Chi-chi said, to laughter.

"And make a Gohan Jr.," Krillin put in while elbowing him, which earned him a punch in the arm from a blushing Videl.

Mr. Satan shook his head with mirth and stood up, walking back towards the palace.

"Oh, Dad, where are you going?" Videl asked, catching up to him.

"Hmm? Oh, I'm just going for a look around," he said, with a smile, "It's not everyday you get to go to God's own house!" he laughed, "Can't blame me for being a little curious!"

"Want me to come with you?" Videl offered.

"No, no, you don't need to hang out with an old fart like me." He put a hand out and touched Videl's shoulder. "I just want you to know that I'm real proud of you. You did great. A true hero."

Videl smiled. "Thanks Dad. That means a lot, coming from you."

"Now go on back to the party," he said, giving her a gentle shove back towards the others, "It is for you after all!"

"Dad, seriously?" Videl chided, "Well, maybe mostly," she amended with a grin, and ran back to the others.

Mr. Satan continued on his way, frowning slightly as the sounds of the party faded away. He made it to a balcony looking out over the sky, and crossed his arms and leaned on it, looking at the bulbous contours of the clouds, just visible under the moonlight. 'Buu...' he thought, 'I'm sorry it had to end the way it did... Maybe if I'd managed to not get killed...'

"You seem a little troubled."

Mr. Satan looked over his shoulder. Master Roshi had followed him. "Oh, hi! You're the Turtle Master, right?" Mr Satan said, offering a bow that Roshi waved away.

"You can just call me Roshi, there's no need for formality between masters," the significantly older man waved him off.

"Heh, well I wouldn't call myself a master. Showboater maybe..." Mr. Satan said.

Roshi joined Mr. Satan at the balcony. "So, what's bothering you?" he asked.

"Well...I don't know. I know it sounds strange, but I can't really feel happy about Buu being killed. I know, he did awful things, destroyed and killed loads of people, but...well, he was just a kid at heart. He wasn't a bad person, he was just surrounded by evil people who sent him in the wrong direction." He looked up. "I just can't really celebrate it, you know? If things had gone another way, somehow, maybe he would be here with us instead?"

Roshi was silent for a moment. "You know Goku is an alien."

"Huh? Oh yeah, a Saiyan or something I think," the man said, scratching his mustache thoughtfully.

Roshi nodded. "Yes. Strangely, he was sent to this planet as a child to destroy it."

"No kiddin'?"

"Part of, I believe, Frieza's property empire schemes. In any case, he arrived and was found by a student of mine, a Son Gohan, the person your future son-in-law is named after." He winked at Mr. Satan. "Goku was unruly, constantly trying to fight. Then, one day, he had the misfortune, or good luck, of falling off a cliff and banging his head. After that he was much more docile." He paused. "It's funny, isn't it? To imagine that the difference between the Earth's destroyer and its greatest defender was one slip off a cliffside."

Mr. Satan nodded at his words. "That is a mighty strange thought. I have seen the same though, kids whose whole lives seem to pivot on seemingly insignificant moments."

Muten Roshi nodded. "We can feel sorry for it, and acknowledge that it happened the way it did, but we can only deal with the consequences as we find them. That's the sad truth. Maybe somewhere out there, there's a reality where it worked out and Buu was good, just as there's one out there where Goku didn't slip and became evil. The contingency of life isn't something we can really control, only something we can react to." Roshi looked at a now-sullen Mr. Satan. "But you're a wise person for noticing it, and a brave man for trying to avert it."

Mr. Satan ducked his head slightly, not wanting to show how the words had affected him. "T-thanks," he said after a moment, "Coming from someone like you, that means a lot." The two stood and silently watched the clouds scud by.

Frieza peeled himself away from the column he'd been leaning back on, having finished the drink that Vegeta had unceremoniously thrust under his nose earlier. When Frieza pointed out that it hadn't been bought, per se, the Saiyan had stomped away, fuming. 'Oh well,' he thought, 'An attempt was made, & if I'm lucky, he didn't even spit in it.' He spotted Krillin moving away from the group, and made his way over towards him, his tail flicking behind him in anxiety. The short human seemed to sense something and looked over. He paused, then froze when he saw Frieza approach. "Krillin," Frieza started, "I...uh..."

The diminutive human looked at him, cocking his head.

Frieza bowed his head. "I am sorry for killing you," he said, "I... Babidi took over my spirit, and I allowed myself to be pulled into it. I apologize for that weakness."

Krillin smiled. "Well that's about the strangest apology I've ever received," he said with a small laugh.

Frieza's tail flicked in annoyance. "Don't mock me, I'm trying to—"

"I accept your apology," he said, warding the Arcosian's temper off, "But, you know, I was already taking it as a good sign that you needed an evil wizard poking around in your head to get you to kill me, rather than it just being spite like last time!"

"I just...I don't want you to think that I'm the same as I was," Frieza replied.

"The fact that you even thought to apologize is proof that you're not." Frieza looked up. Krillin smiled. "Stop beating yourself up. The rest of us stopped thinking about it a while ago. Like Vegeta, you're part of the crew now, whether you like it or not, and he's never apologized for pulverizing me when he first came to Earth. Come to think of it, I've never apologized for almost skewering him...huh..." he trailed off.

Frieza stared at him, a raft of confusing and competing emotions flooding his brain.

"Uh...now I hope you don't mind but I need to run...I've... got to go to the toilet," Krillin said, allowing his body to fidget.

"What? Oh, yes, of course!" Frieza said hurriedly, as Krillin took off.

He turned away and walked towards the edge of the Lookout, brooding. 'Part of...the "crew?" Does he really mean that?' he pondered, 'Goku yes, irritatingly, and Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu, but do the others think that way of me?' He paused and looked up at the night sky. 'And what about me? Do I think I'm part of them?' The now-familiar shapes of the arrangements of stars shone through the clouds. It had been a long time since he thought about going anywhere else, that was true. There was a chime, and he raised up his cyborg arm, detaching a comm from it. He grimaced, cursing Bulma's latest little "upgrade." Only one person would be calling him on this thing, one that was specifically asked to never call. He sighed and put it to his ear. "Hello brother," he said.

[[Frieza,]] Kooler replied, and Frieza could hear the grin in his voice, [[You sound reluctant to pick up. Whatever odd connection we had during the battle was cut soon after, but from the sound of all the cheering, I'd hazard a guess that we won. Well, that and the fact that we're not all dead, of course.]]

"I'm not in a mood for talking," Frieza grumbled.

[[It sounds like there's a party going on,]] Kooler noted.

"One I'm not taking part in," Frieza deflected.

[[I see. Well, it's been a few days and as you haven't congratulated me for saving the galaxy I thought I'd check in,]] Kooler said. In the background, there were a few muffled snickers.

Frieza grit his teeth. 'He's got me on speaker, with his whole crew listening. Damn that smug bastard!'

[[You'll be pleased to know,]] Kooler continued, [[that our approval ratings are up across the board, and we seem to be being seen in a new light. The cultists have disappeared, pretty much as one. Overall, in addition to the obvious benefits of saving the galaxy, it's been a PR triumph.]]

"And so once again I do all the hard work and you sweep in to claim the spoils," Frieza said acidly, attempting to turn the tables.

[[Exactly, it's a great partnership!]] Kooler laughed and then quieted. [[I did make sure that your role was known,]] he admitted.

"How magnanimous," Frieza said flatly, trying to hide his genuine surprise, "You don't have to pity me."

A sigh sounded through the connection. [[You don't need to respond so aggressively all the time,]] he said, [[Teasing aside, you laid the groundwork for what I did, and have been doing since.]]

"It's been... a difficult time. There's much you don't know about the situation." Frieza stared out at the sky, watching a cirrus cloud overhead creep by, "I don't know, I've had to—"

"Hey Frieza!" Yamcha called, "Stop being gloomy on your own, come join us!"

Frieza looked up and shot a glare at him, and Yamcha, to laughter, quickly hid behind Goku.

[[Seems like your friends are calling you Frieza,]] Kooler teased.

"They're irritating like that," Frieza replied.

A few voices murmured in the background as Kooler spoke. [[So you don't object?]]

He could practically picture his brother's intrigued brow raise. "Object to what?"

[[Calling them friends?]]

Frieza was silent a moment, his cheeks coloring. "It's...it's just a word! Like I'd use it in the same context as you and your mangy crew! Go bask in your newfound celebrity status with all your misfits," he snarled, closing the comm just as Kooler started to laugh, his crew joining in raucously.

Frieza crossed his arms and walked towards the controlled chaos that passed for a 'celebration;' Yamcha and Gohan held multiple-shot fireworks in both hands, and were attempting to aim the explosive bursts of sparks at each other as Videl, Chi-chi, and Bulma yelled at them to act their age. As Frieza approached the scene, calmly sidestepping a shower of errant sparks, something of a genuine smile crept over him. No, he didn't object to calling them friends at all.

Hello my loyal SoD readers! As the world goes crazy in 2020, the SoD Team just keeps pluggin' along, bringing you quality alien existential crises & flashy explosions. There's a name-pun tribute in this chapter to a historic event that occurred while I was writing this chapter (so, in the last two months)— can you find it? A hint: I'm from Florida, so this was a Very Big Deal in my hometown! With the Buu Saga out of the way, we can now move on into... dun dun duuuuun! Uncharted territory outside of canon! I'm really excited, & I know my team is too. You guys will never see what's coming. Nope. No way. (•̀ᴗ•́) On to the Q&A!

Q: I really liked mr satan here

A: He's getting to be a real likeable dude, huh?

Q: I get the feeling Mr Satan's more terrified than both of you. He's just hiding it and trying to stay calm, or at least not let his fear paralyze him. Wait, IS ki a type of tea as well? Yeah, I called it. He's (quite naturally) scared out of his wits. It IS possible that the sword is naturally made of a very dense metal, and considering that it holds a soul in it, that might add extra weight. And if combined with the Kaioshinkai's gravity being ten times that of Earth's? I fully believe that it's very hard to so much as lift. That's right, Gohan DID have a sword. Though I imagine that if he were to go up against a proper swordsman in terms of pure skill, he'd likely lose since I doubt Piccolo is a master swordsman either. Swordsnamek? Whatever. "You and your friends are kinda crazy." You have NO idea. Yeah, Goku and Vegeta are terrible at teamwork. Frieza, isn't really much better. Even Piccolo ships it. Glad to see Shin being humble/smart enough to know when he owes someone an apology. I was going to point out the difference between a martial artist and a street brawler for Videl's ki, but then you beat me to it. See, with Shin being smart like this, he's not leaving me with a lot to say other than "Yes, I agree with what you're saying." Yamcha is never living down being killed by a Saibaman, is he? Well damn. That's, actually a good reason to not fear Vegeta. If he dies, he knows he's going to Heaven and can be brought back, and if they ALL die, well, Vegeta's going to go to Hell. He might be better than in the Saiyan Saga, but I wouldn't consider him a 'good person' until Super rolls around. ... Wow. Go Yamcha. I'm really glad you're giving the humans a chance to shine on their own. Not even just in combat, but with moments like this. Mr Satan's best stat is Charisma. He's a very convincing actor. Krane saw through it. But, Babidi didn't because he's kind of an arrogant jackass. Come to think of it, a LOT of Wizards are arrogant. Yeah, I'd rather deal with Buu than Babidi. Buu isn't exactly difficult to fool. Babidi, is another story. Buu has incredible physical stats, but rock bottom mental ones. Fat Buu is a child. He doesn't understand that he's hurting others because he himself has likely never felt pain, so the very concept of it is alien to him. I wonder what the extent of Buu's healing is? Besides healing injuries like Dende can, but probably better since he likely has more magic, he can cure blindness, so presumably similar afflictions, but could he theoretically restore a whole limb or restore someone's energy? Could he be a nigh immortal Cleric if he tried/was convinced to be? Seeing Goku being a Dad is something the world doesn't have enough of. Beating up death itself, eh Goten? I kinda want to see him try. And seeing Goku and Chi-Chi be a married couple is also great. Apparently her usual My Beloved Smother and Hair Trigger Temper aren't as bad in the manga, it was just exaggerated in the anime since they didn't have any other ideas of what to do with her. Mr Satan's got a good plan. Babidi is a formidable Wizard, certainly, but like a LOT of wizards, he's physically squishy. After years upon years of derision and abuse from Frieza, having a kid who unironically looks up to him and idolizes him, and that's HIS flesh and blood, that's gotta be an incomparable sensation. It's just that due to the way Vegeta is, he can't properly process it, much less react 'correctly'. ... DAMN Goku. That's, harsh. Sadly accurate, but still. I see Goku's appetite is unaffected. "Kill him." You say that like it's going to be so easy. That said, glad to see Mr Satan being unwilling to even consider letting the kid die. He let himself get beat up to give the kid a chance to escape. Well played indeed. He no sold Babidi's spell! DAMN that's some willpower! And some self awareness! I don't think I've ever genuinely wanted Mr Satan to win more than right now. He exploded his heart. Well, that, is a TERRIFYING spell. Super Buu is here to play. And he seems nettled. And Buu has now gone full Chaotic Evil. This is why you should never bully a dragon. Vegeta smiling? Can someone check on how Hell's doing? I think it may have frozen over. Goku's emblem and Piccolo's emblem. Perfect. I wonder though, what are the limits of the Clothes Beam? He can make clothes and a sword out of nowhere so, does it just ignore physics? I wouldn't be shocked. Yeah, that's what I figured. The Z-Sword can negate Buu's regeneration. Oh. So, Buu has now absorbed Goku, Vegeta, Frieza, Gohan, and Videl. Oh, holy shit that is very bad.

A: Ki is not a type of tea that I am aware of. Puer & Oolong are, though. ;^P People always forget about Gohan's sword prior to the Saiyan Saga. I kinda wonder what happened to it, myself. I love little glimpses of how bonkers the Z Senshi's lives are, & Videl is wonderful for being the Everyman here because she's not too polite to comment on it. I think at this point in his life, Yamcha has made peace with his past mistakes, & ever since Kid Goku knocked him down a peg, he's never been as arrogant as his first appearance. If Mr. Satan had a stat sheet, he'd have Charisma almost maxed out, & a tiny little sliver in Strength. That's it, that's his whole schtick. Buu as a Cleric is an interesting thought that I haven't seen anyone bring up in any fanon. That's a cool thought! I'm super-bad at writing relationships & anything domestic, so all credit for Goku, Chi-chi, & Goten being heartwarming goes to my team. You can't write what you don't know... Goku being genuinely stressed & doubting himself is something that brings him back to being a relatable character, & he's not perfect; he's selfish, flawed, & makes the wrong decisions just like everyone else. Everyone tends to ignore all that even in-universe because his triumphs outbalance that, but he's well aware of his shortcomings even if they aren't. It's not so much that Mr. Satan pulled a No Sell on Babidi's Majin curse, because all he was trying to do was invade his mind. He doesn't even consider Mr. Satan worthy of wasting that spell on. Instead, he shook off Babidi's attempt to break his spirit, which is just as impressive. Hell was getting a little chilly the moment Goku, Vegeta, & Frieza joined forces. Now, I think you could skate on the Blood Pond. We have yet to see the limit of the infamous Clothes Beam, but my theory is that it transmutes existing materials by default— changing Gohan's Kai outfit to a gi— but if there is nothing to transmute, it might leech ki from the user to summon things like fabric & metal from raw environmental elements (e.g. when Piccolo made clothing & a sword for Gohan after he transformed back from an Oozaru).

Q: Somewhere in a hidden base, Gero is watching the events pan out and just going 'See, this is why I don't meddle with magical bullshit... that said, I should really figure out a way to ensure that my Cell project can't do this before I deploy it.'

A: Lol, yep. With Gero still alive to consciously tinker away at Cell in conjunction with his computer, you can bet he's going to make adjustments that we didn't see in canon.

Q: And thus we have the tale of Earth's Champion, Mr. Satan giving his life in an effort to save one child, and teach another a valuable lesson, it's easy to mock the man as a showboating attention seeking idiot, but the fact of the matter is while I never thought I would say this, at least in this one case he actually lived up to his legend and was the hero the world sees him as, nicely done Roketto, nicely done indeed. Also love Supreme Kai helping to refine Videl's technique and the concept of why it was needed, I can completely see Gohan being so used to being an overpowered hybrid that he never needed to learn that kind of precise control and efficiency to even be aware of them much less able to teach them. Overall an excellent chapter...but that cliffhanger was just cruel

A: Well, he is an attention-loving Glory Hound. It's just that under all the bravado, he does have a heart, & some semblance of morals. Otherwise I seriously doubt Videl would've turned out the way she did, even in canon. You can tell from her first appearance in canon that she has a very strong sense of justice, & isn't just in it for the accolades. I think she wanted to distance herself from her father's fame & forge her own path, but still help & inspire people.

Q: Okay. First off, I do like this story. It's not strictly speaking an original concept, Freeza surviving post-landing on Earth, but the execution is fairly original. Your characters are intriguing, their interplay is entertaining, and the expanding of canonical concepts in this "what-if" style AU is, for me at least, quite enjoyable to read. Your writing style itself is eloquent, but rarely superfluous. Furthermore, I think this is a very good chapter. I find Mr. Satan's (and Videl's) more integrated role(s) with the main cast to be refreshing, and like seeing Hercule's character more fleshed out and less one-dimensional. I also enjoyed Yamcha's conversation with Vegeta. It did come off a little preachy at the end (which I can't help but imagine would've drawn a more immediate and antagonistic response from Vegeta), but it wasn't too hammy. And Hercule Satan's defiance and self-sacrifice was very well done; I caught myself smiling and nodding along as he gave his final speech listing his flaws and petty failures, yet ending with a note of pride and dying a free man with a subtle smile still on his face. Well done. That being said, there was one jarring moment that brought this read to a halt and, truthfully, almost saw me close the story in disgust. "I'm a woman on Earth: believe me when I say that being underestimated and dismissed is more or less a daily reality." Okay. One of two distinct possibilities, here. Either you're projecting your own insecurities, or you're virtue-signaling because that kind of nonsense is trendy these days. I'm going to be charitable and assume the former. Speak for yourself, sister. If your peer group is in the habit of making you feel this way, you're hanging out with the wrong crowd. Get some better friends. And if it's co-workers or employers treating you this way; good. Hopefully they'll still be underestimating and dismissing you right up until the point you take their job and leave them with a stupid look on their faces. Underestimating somebody based off of ANYTHING superficial is a mark of stupidity, and it isn't confined to any one race, sex, creed, or denomination. Superiority is a state of being earned by oneself, not some entitlement granted by fiat of any kind. A person is as great or small as they choose to be, regardless of popular opinion. "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." It was true when Eleanor Roosevelt said it, and it's still true today. This single line from your story, so casually accepting inferred mediocrity, not only goes against my own personal beliefs (which I am aware means nothing, really), but also flies in the face of the established lore and characters of the story you're drawing from. Bulma Briefs is the single most important character in all of Dragon Ball. She invented the Dragon Radar, and it was her quest to find the balls that started this whole thing. And Videl Satan would likely want to beat the living crap out of somebody for treating like she didn't matter, or dismissing her out of hand (and in all likelihood, she could do it). The world of Dragon Ball (and our own, for that matter) is full of strong, intelligent, and massively important women. I really hope this kind of deprecation doesn't become a trend for this story. It would be a terrible pity, and would pretty effectively end my interest in following.

A: Thank you; I think I've mentioned before that I started this story because I wanted to read one like it, but none existed that truly fit the bill. I try to give characters much more personality & depth of character where possible, & readers seem to appreciate my characterizations, so I guess I'm doing okay. The line from Videl is actually one that one of my editors added in — I am neither insecure nor do I condone virtue signaling. However, we were in a bit of a time crunch to release on time, so I shrugged & left it in, rather than come up with something different for that point in the conversation. Regardless, I'll concede that the line is a little OOC, & this mistake will not be repeated.

Q: Awesome chapter as usual! Mr. Satan's last stand was heroic and noble, though I really didn't expect it to be his *last* stand... ah well. I am a little confused on one thing- is it Evil Buu(the grey one) or Super Buu they're fighting at the end there? Seems more like Super Buu, though I can't help but wonder why he transformed in that particular way. Interesting fight at the end too, though I'm not sure Buu losing bits of himself actually matters much- though I could be wrong. I know Vegeto proved his can be fatigued and this does effect his regeneration, though I imagine it's going to take a lot for that to happen. And a scarily effective cliffhanger too. Great chapter as always, and I'll see you next review.

A: I am known for murdering perfectly good, relatable characters, keep in mind. (•̀ ᴗ •́) To clarify, in this universe Buu skipped straight past Evil Buu & went straight to Super Buu. His description in the next chapter should help with the visualization. Buu is inherently unstable in any of his forms, so that's why his transformation occurred in a very different way than in canon.

Q: The avian military support guys and Mr. Satan make for an interesting group. I like this take on "someone rationalizing away Mr. Satan's actions" because it mixes truth with the facade, at least to some degree, and of course because he actually warned them in advance that he might seem to act differently. Just like using the dead Shin, using the dead Piccolo is similarly perfect. And I love Shin's approach to training with Videl. Teaching her the gods' methods of controlling ki in a far more efficient manner is a good way to give her a power boost without basically just making it a deus ex machina, especially considering that his decently high strength has no canon explanation - if they aren't just born extremely strong compared to most mortals, but are strong through sheer mastery of ki, it makes them a lot more interesting. It's sort of similar to the "god ki" idea from Super, only, y'know... sensible, rather than "unlocked by deus ex machina group power up". Yamcha's really matured in these years, hasn't he? Not that long ago he was still extremely bitter about Vegeta, but it looks like he's left that behind. Probably has something to do with the way he doesn't seem to consider himself an active fighter anymore - he's stopped working so hard to try to prove himself equal to people he just can't catch up to. Mr. Satan's talk with Buu about pain is quite good. I can't remember for sure, but I don't think his talk with Buu was quite so potent in any version of canon. Of course Buu has nearly no concept of pain. And that extra touch about emotional pain, possibly hinting at the fate of Videl's mother... excellent. Goten and Chi-chi interacting with Goku is something canon desperately needed. But nah, just say that Goku has never kissed his wife, LOL. (Goku's character assassination in Super is just so disappointing.) Even TFS Goku has done better than that. Mr. Satan's plan to take Babidi out, if he gets a chance, is fairly solid, and if he had gotten that chance he would have actually been the complete hero this time. Ironic that Videl is in Otherworld believing she can't depend on her father for help there. Of course, not only is Babidi aware that he's lying (finally showing a hint of real competence), he doesn't get that chance because he's forced to step up and defend that child. And damn, does he get his moment of badassery. No split between two Buus, huh? That makes some kind of sense. It's never quite clear what exactly the Grand Kai does to make his absorption sacrifice affect Buu's mind the way it did, rendering him childlike and playful when none of the absorptions in Z affected his personality anywhere near as much, but it isn't surprising that a moment of unbearable rage manages to finally overcome that and draw Buu's true strength and murderous attitude to the surface. And, of course, there's no split, because Buu isn't trying to fight it to protect the people around him - he gives into it entirely. The plan to cut and blast Buu to pieces, wearing down his regeneration, is quite solid. Too bad it gets Frieza a poke in the eyes. Nice to see that Gohan and Videl joining the fray tips the scales - Buu goes from being able to fend off three fighters at once to barely being able to fend off five. It helps that the Z Sword seems to cause extra damage. And Videl's improved ki focus certainly seems to be extremely effective here. Too bad the paralysis couldn't hold - for Buu to panic must mean that he seriously fears the Z Sword. This matchup seems very possible in canon, too - Buu losing when he's getting too swarmed by multiple SS2-level powers to effectively fight back while also having to deal with the Z Sword's bonus damage AND someone firing highly efficient ki attacks from a safe distance. And then a mass absorption! Way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat there, Buu. That leaves almost no one left alive and free - it's just Trunks, Goten, Kibito, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu now, none of whom are going to be able to pull it off. And the Z Sword is most likely being absorbed along with Gohan, so there isn't even an Old Kai boost waiting to happen for anyone. My guess is that one or more of the five being absorbed will either be able to escape or be able to keep conscious and free inside Buu's body... that, or, with no other options, Gero will have to emerge from hiding and try his hand at saving Earth from destruction with his newest android creation. Maybe that's it? Maybe you're building up to Dr. Gero as the savior of humanity? I guess we'll see in another couple months... You mentioned that you've had some feedback from people upset that SS3 isn't looking to appear any time soon. Honestly, I think that's the right call. So many aspects of the Buu Saga - SS3, the Fusion Dance, Potara Fusion, the Mystic boost - were just unnecessary bloat. And none of them mattered in the end, because Buu was defeated by a Spirit Bomb being pushed by a Super Saiyan 2. It's not just that it narratively makes sense to cut down the bloat (allowing you to save it for later if you so wish), and it's not just that it canonically makes sense for a not-dead Goku to not discover all the same things he only discovered in the afterlife, but literally every single one of those concepts could be removed from DBZ and have no effect on the ending anyway, so why introduce them now? Gero is still out there, Ratsura is still out there, and it's implied Baby is out there somewhere too. There are plenty of major villains left to raise the stakes with over time. Why go overboard with unnecessary power boosts now?

A: Mr. Satan is an interesting character, & you have to wonder why in canon, nobody questioned his sometimes obvious lies. I think we've managed to establish a plausible way to paint him as a guy who's created a cult of personality around himself, which is the most likely explanation. Interesting that you make a parallel between Kaioushin in SoD & Super's "God Ki" concept...& I agree, I like ours much better. Fewer ridiculous plotholes. Yamcha is one of those characters who showed frustratingly little development in canon, so we took the liberty of letting him grow & mature. The nature of pain, & its different facets, is an important concept, made all the more poignant in this universe, where you actually have characters who can take ridiculous amounts of damage, or who seem to have very different ways of feeling, both mentally & physically. Poor Goku suffers from a lot of bad or just flat characterization, as most writers only think he's good at punching things. Like every other character, he's still a person with faults, flaws, strengths, & triumphs that have shaped him. Same goes for Mr. Satan, & you're right, he is, at his heart, a heroic character under a very shiny, scummy showman's facade. Videl dismisses him as being useful merely because she's surrounded by superhumans — reasoning that he can't possibly have an impact unrelated to fighting. The final fight of this chapter was a blast to write from a coordination standpoint — I love doing melee battles with multiple opponents, each with different fighting styles & modes of attack. As for the Z Sword...what makes you think Buu would want to absorb something that can hurt him? ಠ‿↼ Gero becoming the reluctant savior of humanity is a fun idea, but alas, he won't touch anything magic with a ten-foot pole, so don't expect him to step up any time soon. People upset over SSJ3 are just fans clinging to canon, & I respect that. I try to keep to canon in many aspects, but SSJ3 just won't work in SoD because I'm all about realistic limitations. Also, you're right, there are many villainous forces still lurking in the SoD universe, & Goku may have to raise the stakes when they finally raise their ugly heads.

Q: I LOVE the Mr. Satan shenanigans, they really got to me lol. But also, holy moly, you just ended the chapter by getting rid of ALL of the viable heroes, it feels like the story just accidentally got the bad ending. I'll have a good time coming up with theories as to how they could possibly do much at this point.

A: Everybody loves Mr. Satan in SoD, haha. I swear, he's quickly becoming a dark horse favorite. Yep, all the heroes have had their tickets punched...or have they?

Q: Yamcha gave a badass speech, I must admit XD But his speech couldn't even live up to the absolute madness of Mr. Satan here. Because honestly, that was awesome. That was the most awesome he's ever been in his entire life. I had to cheer for that blowhard because he was a literal hero here (even if his death meant the transformation to Super Buu, who is giving our heroes a tough time) There were many other amazing moments here, from Vegeta giving Trunks a smile (which, in the true fashion of the show, was quite the impact for quite the minimal sentence/showing) to the power trio reuniting (no matter how dark and depressing the reunion was) to Piccolo giving Gohan encouragement and Videl being wonderful (and getting training from the Kai, I love it!) to their big moment returning to help in the battle...but still, the part I remember most was Mr. Satan giving his 'you suck' speech to Babidi, going hand to hand with the human fighters, and not cowering at all at his inevitable death even though he's usually quite scared- by the end, I was channeling Seagul a bit in being impressed. That's what I love so much about this story- it takes characters I either disliked (like Mr. Satan, though granted it was only mild dislike) to those I find forgettable (like Pansy or Yamcha) and making them have depth and impact and complexities. Kudos to you, as always

A: Mr. Satan is a true Mad Lad in this story, between this & standing up to Broly. I do believe he may have actually grown a spine. Vegeta & Trunks were pretty poignant in canon, so I had a lot to live up to writing that scene. I'm glad it had the same impact. I'm all about letting every character shine, no matter how minor or overlooked they were in canon. Thank you for all the compliments; I'll strive to continue deserving them.

Q: Oh well,Buu's character development is always inspiring...but always fatally falls to his ambiguous nature and the plot direction...if I didn't knew the core plot this could be the end of the fanfic...with another zenbuu...kkk...will fat buu be stronger duo to the bigger influence Mr Satan had on him

A: Well I mean...Frieza doesn't have to be the main character. ò‿ó That said, Mr. Satan influenced Fat Buu enough to affect his transformation. He skipped Evil Buu & went straight to Super Buu.

Q: Sorry for the month-late review, but I just wanna say that I absolutely LOVE your portrayal of Mr. Satan and how you kept his whole arc where he was teaching the childish tool about morality and the concept of pain. It really works with your overarching theme of being more than fate made them out to be. In any case, I hope you're doing well.

A: Shoot, is it too late to change this to a Mr. Satan redemption story? Y'all love him. xD

Q: ...well shit, I just binged this in like 5 days and it is easily the best DBZ fanfic I've read in a very long while. I love that you can take so many things that were throw away details or super under utilized and make them actually good. While I definitely think the expansion on Frieza and his family is easily the highlight given it's kinda the whole point the characterization of Mrs. Briefs and the villains are also stellar! Only real thing I'm wondering besides the big important stuff is if Ginyu is ever gonna factor in, or Launch?

A: Huzzah & welcome, new reader! So glad to have you, & I hope you'll continue to review with each coming chapter. Ginyu is pretty content being a big frog in a little pond, & without anyone taking interest in the weird dancing amphibian, his days of being plot-relevant are pretty much done. Launch is just kinda...robbin' banks & doin' her own thing. Probably taking advantage of the chaos right now with Buu to line her pockets.

Q: Good luck with the virus. Stay safe.

A: Lol, everyone freaking out right now, & I'm a very happy introvert. I don't have to commute to work, I don't have to wear shoes all day, I don't have to make polite small-talk with coworkers...I'm happier than a Namek in a tank of filtered springwater right now. (≛ヮ≛)

Q: MR. SATAN NOOOOOOO! D8 Buu feels WAY more terrifying here than he ever was in the source material. I'm really liking this since I believed the conflict with Super Buu kind of dragged itself out in the original. Here, we're thrown into the fray. Also, Buu's got our heroes... well shit. 8) Can't wait to see what happens next!

A: If Buu is terrifying to readers, I'm doing my job right. No matter how you slice it, he's a magical Eldritch Abomination, & that's scary even without the childlike personality & faux innocuous mannerisms.

Q: Frieza was an mvp here. Getting them out of Buu and shielding them with psychokinesis from the extinction bomb, what a team player!

A: Frieza would probably argue that he's always been pretty valuable, but yeah, he's really getting into the team spirit isn't he? I wonder if that's telling...

Q: Glad to see a new chapter, and glad to see you're doing well given the circumstances! I admit I felt sort of the same way. Anyway, this chapter felt... really fast, but given the situation it makes sense. Some nice development for Frieza, the severity of the situation finally pushing him to do some ki sensing, and it's very interesting he can just pick out Goku's ki from the "Oh gods stay the hell away" feeling it gives him. Vegeta cutting fat Buu free reminded me of how it went in canon- much the same, though it feels faster... of course, the anime had dramatic cuts and pauses I think? I dunno. And Kid Buu's instinctual combat finesse reminds me a lot of Ultra Instinct from Super- he just has the same sort of innate knack for battle Goku or the like has, turned up to even crazier degrees. Having Kibito help from the sidelines is a nice way of showing how they can keep up, and maybe throw out some more flashy attacks instead of trying to conserve power to just last longer. And having Videl tell everyone to help is an interesting deviation... though I fear after what happened to the planet the Genki Dama may have issues for different reasons... also, I recall it beat Android 13 earlier, didn't it? I'm unsure if that warranted a mention or not here, but I noticed it's absence at least. Anyway, all in all it was a very good chapter as always, and I'll see you next review.

A: Quarantine is great when you're an awkward introvert hermit. I only go out when I've got my handmade Plague Doctor masque, because of course I'm gonna use this as an excuse to finally make one. Check my DeviantArt for that, haha. I'm getting SO MUCH done on my cosplay & fanfiction projects! ＼(〇ᗨ〇)/ Yeah, this was a bit of a fast chapter, but it's Buu Saga, which canonically happened over the course of, like, a day. Frieza is a champion at using trauma & his own fear as a tool. Or a blunt weapon. Kid Buu fights the same way a wild animal fights — it's all instinctual. That's a double-edged sword. Kibito may have a divine stick up his rear, but he's a good guy, really. Videl seemed a natural choice, being Mr. Satan's daughter, for the big rousing speech. I think it's more realistic that, out of everyone, she would actually have public speaking experience. As for what killed Android 13...that, my friend, was an Ikari Dama. It's essentially Goku's accidental version of a Death Ball.

Q: If Gero is adapting his "Cell project" to the current events with Buu... just how damn broken will this Cell be? Will he have Buu DNA, Android 21 style? You're saving certain features like Fusion or Super Saiyan 3 for the inevitable Cell arc (or something beyond if you decide to follow that path). Smooth play in keeping Old Kai sealed in the sword so far, who's the only one who would know about the Fusion properties of their earrings. Removes that element entirely without having to come up with any justification for it or having to kill characters off. By not having any of the heroes dead you also removed the knowledge of Fusion Dance. And obviously none of them broke the barrier to level 3 (or indeed, don't even know it exists) while alive (not that I buy into the theory that it's impossible to achieve the form while alive, but having an Otherworld body would absolutely make it much easier). Kibito's suggestion on contacting Kooler isn't exactly a bad one right now. Only you would know how strong he is now compared to Frieza and the saiyans, but adding him to the battle would be wise to buy Goku more time. I also like that, with Satan dead, Videl is the one who will be performing his role. Are there enough people left alive on Earth to power the Spirit Bomb, though? With Vegeta busy fighting, will anyone else think of using either Namek or Earth's Dragon Balls to do the same stuff that was done in canon? I have a feeling you're going for a twist here and not finish it with the Spirit Bomb. Vegeta did mention to go beyond Earth if he can, so maybe that's just how it will go. Also, what about fat Buu? I can't help but notice that once they left Buu's body, no one cared about him at all, nor was he mentioned again (that I noticed). Is he still unconscious on Earth? Was he teleported along? Questions for the next chapter to answer I guess!

A: Cell's gonna be really freakin' scary, let's just say. 〣 _ However, I can confirm that whatever Gero is, he's no magician. Hence no Buu elements. Keeping the Old Kai sealed, a purposeful, plot-driven choice? S-suuuure... Side note: swords are cool & we got robbed in canon that Gohan never got to use one. It'd be nice to have Kooler somehow involved in this fight, wouldn't it? Fat Buu, in this universe, was never truly removed from Buu's body. He was disconnected, but the same chain of events didn't occur, so he didn't poof back to full-size.

Q: Oh brilliant, Frieza's inside Buu. And Goku and friends didn't put up a barrier. Well. This is bad. Leave it to Piccolo to figure it out. It's interesting to see how different Buu's thought process is now that he's got the mental capacity of an adult rather than a child. And the memories of absorbing so many good people is starting to mess with him. Not enough to stop him, but enough to trip him up. Did, he vaporize Goku or just the cocoon holding him? She actually broke his nose. I'm, honestly not surprised. Videl's strong and Gohan hasn't had time to fully process what's going on, much less put up a ki barrier. OK, good, Goku's not dead. So much for Super-Super Buu. I don't have a clever name for him. Still, he's done less damage than the original Super Buu did, no Human Extinction Attack. But now there's Kid Buu to deal with. May not have as much raw power as Super Buu, but he's no mind, meaning no limitations. Pure Chaotic Evil. Fun times! And Shin's figured it out. "What is he now?" Chaotic Evil. And no mind to hold him back. A blast so powerful it could probably be seen from space and looks like sunrise to the other half of the planet. I think that's absolutely goddamn terrifying. And there goes Korin's Tower and the Lookout. REALLY glad they have Dragon Balls. "Half of the world was on fire". What else is new? And Frieza's in a lot of pain. And naturally, Buu's not dead. I'm not shocked, if an entire planet blowing up and him self destructing wasn't enough to kill him, that wouldn't do it either. Wow. Score 1 to Shin for pragmatism. Seems the Z-Sword isn't affecting Kid Buu as much. Oh dear Dende, Chi-Chi's spine is broken. I really hope Dende or Popo can fix that. Well, better back to 100% energy than nothing at all. Frieza, much like Saiyans, tends to pull even more power out of his ass when he's backed into a corner. The Spirit Bomb. Vegeta, you are a VERY clever man. So, how can King Kai communicate with an entire planet or galaxy, and not Shin? Then again, Goku has Instant Transmission, Beerus doesn't, so, different skills, I guess. I think that's the first time Vegeta's ever genuinely thanked someone. I've been mostly enjoying quarantine, bar college being, well, college, and often giving me stupid assignments. And by stupid, I mean "wanting me to do a scene/song on infidelity during the apocalypse." Yes really.

A: Yup, for once Frieza's paranoia serves him extremely well. Gohan's nose wasn't broken, but if it were anyone else taking Videl's elbow to the face, it would've been. Kid Buu may be a horribly flat character, but he's a great force-of-nature villain, & what screams force of nature more than triggering planet-wide earthquakes, tsunamis, & other mayhem? Yeah, world on fire, just another Tuesday for the Z Senshi, amiright? Dende can fix spinal injuries no problem...he just needs to recombobulate himself first. Frieza's power, ironically, exactly powers that of a Saiyans: when he's on the ropes, all that adrenaline actually does something. I'm not sure why King Kai can talk to the galaxy but Supreme Kai can't, but I suspect it has to do with a celestial division of powers to check & balance things cosmically. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Man, I'm glad I'm no longer in college during all this mess. Unfortunately, I gotta go back to teaching in the fall, & that's nooooot gonna be fun...

Q: Another wonderful addition to this saga- the buu arc here is just so excellently intimidating and full of character depth for everyone despite all the action. I concur with all the review/replies discussing how Mr. Satan has become the dark horse of SOD. Even when he's not in the chapter, he's still leaving a positive mark (through making Super Buu's lack of concrete memory on the catalyst for his transformation absolutely fascinating and letting Videl be the one to reach out to the people of Earth) Speaking of both those bits, Super Buu here may have only been around for a chapter, but he was actually very interesting to watch. His maturity level seems as small as the other Buu's, but confusion over his memories and his brutality made his childish behavior (impatience, egocentricism) all quite frightening to watch. Small role, big impact indeed. Also the narrative when they're trapped inside Buu was fittingly disgusting, kudos. The big fight begins! And what a set up it has! King Kai's sense of humor is ever-present, even when no one has time/wants to hear it. Goten and Trunks have grown up so fast. It's great to see them here growing, rather than just remaining kind of static like they did in the shows. Thanks for another great chapter!

A: I know I keep saying this, but I'm so glad people like my Buu Saga — I'm just so indifferent to Buu I can't tell if I'm writing it right, but I guess it's passable, so yay! My favorite theory for Buu actually has him as a physical representation of Freud's Id, Ego, & Superego in his different forms, so I played with that a bit here. I do aim to please when it comes to gratuitous innard adventures & gross alien/majin anatomy. One of the biggest beefs I had with the Buu Saga was Trunks & Goten. They were kids, yeah, but even kids in that situation would've acted more mature than canon had them. Gotenks was just the culmination of that ridiculous gap in logic/human behavior, & one of the reasons I hate that character.

Q: A wonderful chapter all around. I know you're likely sick of me bringing up Cell for the future but... Well, when it comes to raw power, Gero is never going to be able to make Cell be at original Buu's level. Not saying that Cell isn't going to be strong or doesn't have highly powerful regeneration, but he doesn't have Buu's level of that. So Cell's threat is likely going to be because of his intelligence rather then just raw power and his various stolen techniques.

A: I get it, a lot of you are Cell fans, just like I'm a rabid Frieza fangirl. Don't worry, when Bugman arrives, it'll be worth the wait. As for his intellect being the real threat...well, you're not wrong.

Q: Hi Rocketto! Even if this is not your best saga, your fanfic is recovering its usual level (the best tied with Bringer of Death). About your future sagas, we know that Cell will have AND from Bu, but what intrigues me:

- What kind of cyborg will be A21. She had majin genes in her 'canon', but yours can be different. And her relationship with Gero (I know the one they had in canon, but again can be different).

- Ratsura, Baby, etc. I suspect that you'll mix sagas, but no idea about which ones.

- Kooler is cool. He will appear again, at least vs Ratsura. And his appear will worth.

- You love arcosians, so I bet that your Ratsura saga will be comparable to your best arcs. You seemed to have put an effort to develop A21 too.

About possible suggestions:

- Kuriza still can exist. Bulma is not necessarily the only Freezer's affair apart his old girlfriend. Perhaps the best soccer player in Dragon Ball should fit in your story.

- Bills appearing. I know that you hate DBS, but fanfics allow you to change whatever you dislike. For example, I do really hate DBGT, but some of its characters and planets were very useful for me to develop Pui Pui and my OOC Turles Jr. And, Captain Space hates DBGT too, and his DBS/GT saga is the best of his great Break Through The Limits.

- You can avoid Golden Freezer easily for 'DBS'. You can use DBM transformations, or invent a completely new one (I did it for Kuriza in my fanfic), or just give Freezer divine ki without any apparent transformation, or whatever.

Anyway, whatever you do it will be a great story. The most important. I'm glad that you are healthy, and resisting the isolation quite well despite stopping kung fu. Fortunately you'll have it available soon. In my personal case, what I miss the most, after share beers with my friends at the bar, is martial arts. :( At least the isolation is starting to being relaxed in Spain. And the last one. Do you know the manga Teppu? It's a deconstruction of a MMA story with a great Villain Protagonist, great characters, great drama, and great fights. Almost unknown, but a top manga. My best wishes. Tserleg.

A: I really can't believe anyone ranks me anywhere near BoD. That one always shocks & humbles me. Cell's not gonna have any Buu cells, because Gero is strictly a bioengineer, not a Magitek genius. That's one reason I don't really like Android 21, myself. You're on the money for me mixing future sagas, & Ratsura being a key player. I've dropped tiny hints about Kuriza before, & it should surprise no-one that I love the little chestnut lizard...but I can't say any more, because I want to keep his role in SoD a surprise. I like a lot of GT's saga ideas & character designs, but I like a lot less of Super's. It got super-generic at times, which was disappointing. I'll still cannibalize what I like & frankenstein it into something passable for this universe though, even if it's as a cameo. Oh, I'm definitely avoiding Golden Turd Frieza. DBM did a better job, but in the design department, I like my Fifth Form better. Have never actually heard of Teppu, but it sounds like an interesting niche story.

Q: Hi. Great story; I do have one question, in relation to Buu. What the hell is the difference between Evil Buu and Kid Buu...? I mean, aren't they both the Buu utterly split from Fat Buu? It ... confuses me.

A: To be honest? I have no clue. ┐(￣ヮ￣)┌ Evil Buu never made a lot of sense to me. The only thing I can think is that the Daikaioushin's influence was so diffused throughout Buu that it took him "separating" his evil, then eating the remainder, in order to reconsolidate that physical form within himself. So Evil Buu, ironically, wasn't a product of Buu in total absence of evil, he was just kind of what Buu in that moment conceptualized as evil.

Q: I hope that Fat Buu will survive at the end and that maybe Master Roshi and Satan will help him at be good

A: Ooh... Sorry buddy, got some bad news for ya this chapter... ŏ‸ŏᶸ

Q: Wow. We're at Kid Buu already? That was fast. I really like Buu's character in this. It makes him feel... more rounded in a way.

A: Yeah, some parts of the Buu Saga dragged in canon, so I fast-tracked the action a bit. I'm sure Buu can be any shape he wants, but round is a nice lazy nature's default, like a soap bubble. Although now I'm imagining Buu making himself into abstract, eldritch shapes...

Reviews from Previous Chapters:

Q: Another few chapters, and time for another review! There is something I didn't think of until recently, however, and it's that there's a bit of a plot hole when it comes to the legends of Majin Buu. In the flashback to Buu's creation, it ends with North Kai being killed, then his spirit form in Otherworld being destroyed while he's in the middle of warning the other Kaioushin about Buu, West being killed AND her spirit destroyed, and then East killing Bibidi before he can leave. There is a mention of something nonspecific happening to planets in the time between North's death and his appearance in front of the others, and I could even buy that Kid Buu was distorting Bibidi's warp spell or something, causing the destruction of several planets before Bibidi was able to successfully teleport them to Otherworld, and that North was too ashamed/guilty/shocked to immediately run to the others, but neither of those should have taken more than a minute or so - certainly not enough time to kick off a legendary rampage across the galaxy that leaves detailed legends about Buu's name and abilities. At best, a few scattered survivors might have had enough time to see a flash of magic, the color pink, and an explosion of energy. Shin also says when talking about Buu to the main crew that he killed Bibidi "here" (on Earth). Dunno if it's really my place to make suggestions, but if that's something to fix - maybe North Kai only ever tells Bibidi about the four directional Supreme Kai, fails to mention Grand, and Bibidi mistakenly thinks that since Buu has killed or absorbed four Kaioushin, he's gotten them all. He warps out with Buu, leaving East there, hidden behind a rock, barely clinging to consciousness. East spends whatever amount of time watching, waiting, hoping for any kind of chance to interfere, and finally gets it when Bibidi seals up Buu for goofing off and disobeying too much. Then, there's also a plot hole in 41/36: Recusant. When Goku explains that the Dragonballs can be used to revive his corrupted allies, he mentions that with Piccolo's death, they'll have to travel to Namek and use their Dragonballs instead, even though Dende is the current Guardian, not Kami. I'm not sure if that's intentional - Goku either forgetting that they're no longer linked to Piccolo or deliberately lying because he's not sure how much Babidi knows/cares, for example. Also, you mention in your last response that Gohan's transformation into Super Saiyan 2 after Videl was turned to stone has little buildup compared to other first time transformations because he first went SSJ2 against Broly - that seems unusual. That was his first transformation (for a whole half-second) into any form of Super Saiyan at all, and there weren't any signs of sparks or electricity in his flickering aura.

A: I attribute any & all Buu-related plotholes to the unreliable aspect of legends; they're a game of culturally-transmitted Telephone, so details get garbled or changed the more the story is told. Even in canon we get different versions of events after Buu is first released. The plothole you mentioned in Ch. 36 is in fact, Goku trying to be sly, not mentioning Dende because he's already seen what happens when a villain (Slug) catches wind of his existence & targets him. Gohan's transformation, I'll admit, was only to regular SSJ against Broly, so I misspoke. However, my headcanon is that once you break through to SSJ, going to the second level is only difficult if you're getting in your own way. With Goku alive to train Gohan without guilt or fear that he'd lose control, SSJ2 was easier to achieve for Gohan, so he reached it offscreen in the interim leading up to the tournament.

Q: -42- Surprisingly, Frieza manages to resist obedience even more strongly than Vegeta, who himself was already a notable anomaly, yet Piccolo kills himself because he feels he can't fight off the spell for long. I would have expected his fusions with good-hearted Namekians to help him in that regard, but I guess his fused nature actually hinders him here, and Babidi's magic is able to reach back to the part of him that is nothing but an incarnation of evil, bringing it up to dominate over the rest of his personality, whereas Vegeta and Frieza were always whole people from the start. Ah, poor Krillin. Still, despite the cruelty of this scene, I just can't help but picture a hypothetical TFS version of this: Krillin being slightly surprised by the way they appeared on Namek, but happily and obliviously babbling away to Frieza for a time before going "oh man, and you know, being here reminds me of that time I cut your tail off. I still can't believe I managed that, hahaha! Seriously, everybody else just dodges it. You were the only one dumb enough to ever actually take any real damage from it. Hoo, boy, you were SUPER nettled back then. Good times, right?" I don't know what it is about that scene that makes my mind immediately jump there, but it does. Ah, Videl. Good on you for trying to rush the final boss and speedrun this saga, but you definitely have too much of your dad in you to just grab Babidi's head from behind and give it a sharp twist. Shoulda picked up that Silent Attack skill so you didn't flub the sneak attack bonus damage. Sadly, none of the rest of the gang, even the few who do know it, ever really use that skill, either, so you never had a chance to see how useful it could be. Still, at least you managed to convince Babidi that if a lone teenager was able to sneak in, he'd be better off... completely out in the open and away from all his guards...? I guess your dad at least taught you how to max out your Luck skill. Speaking of Babidi, you can definitely tell he got the majority of his power and skill as a result of Bibidi's dying inheritance spell. He certainly acts with all the tact and intelligence of a spoiled trust fund baby believing that they're better than the rest of the world thanks to inheriting the benefits of their parents' work. No wards around his personal chamber? No wards on his own self? No personal guard on hand at all times, in this critical hour? Failing to block Videl's ki signature when he imprisoned her? Poor, stupid Babidi. One of these days his luck is going to run out, and life is just going to grab him by the throat and blow his mind.

A: Yep, Frieza taught Vegeta everything he knows about all-consuming pride. Of course he wouldn't just let Babidi use him as a mindless goon. Haha, if I do an SoD!Abridged chapter up to this point, I'm definitely including your suggested scene. Poor Frieza had no ki sense nor common sense in the face of the Kienzan, lol. Mr. Satan's Luck stat definitely got passed to his kid, haha. She'd be well-suited for being the Hero of Another Story in a universe void of Saiyan-level threats. Also, yes, that is EXACTLY the vibe I want readers to get from Babidi! He does little to none of his own work, is much less clever than he thinks, & treats his underlings like garbage because he's on a 24/7 power trip. Spoiled brat is practically a compliment.

Q: -43- Good job on Ten's part, recognizing that Frieza broke character and realizing what it meant. A risky move, especially if Babidi had been watching closely and could have poured more energy into the mental suppression, but it sure paid off. It also sounds like Ten's made a lot of good progress filling in the gaps in his memory in the years since his last resurrection. As for Frieza, it seems like killing Krillin disturbs him a lot more than most would have expected. I know he's more or less discarded his old sadism, now that he's finally able to get some measure of real contentment rather than just fleeting, empty satisfaction by abusing his power over others, but it seems like he's even recovered a glimmer of morality, too. Videl baiting Buu into taking a dual Kamehameha is awesome, and I just love the imagery of her standing by Gohan's side. It says a lot about how determined she is, that she works so hard to make a significant contribution to his power that it actually burns the flesh from her fingers. That's a level of commitment that really doesn't ever appear in Dragonball, but would make perfect sense as a consequence of pushing yourself too far past your limits. Makes sense that it wouldn't appear on any other occasion, though - in most other fights, no one can risk sacrificing the use of their hands, but Videl knows she's just barely above useless in any other capacity due to the power gap. Videl being taken along to the sacred world of the Supreme Kai makes too much sense. Even when referring to canon DBZ I often say that it should have happened at least after her death - why build her up as such an important (if not powerful) character only to cut her out of the entire rest of the plot? Especially with the later power boost from the Old Kai; it would have been trivial to add in the idea of linking her power level with Gohan's (and would have fit the rampant theme of fusion), justifying not doing so with Goku by saying that it also links life energy (so the dead Goku can't be part of it) or saying that it wouldn't work as well if the two power levels were close together. So the Goku and Vegeta fight ends sooner than in canon - not much of a surprise considering how much extra energy was being pumped out. And it has the benefit of keeping both of them conscious and alive following the loss to Buu. Beautiful way of keeping Roshi involved in the plot, there. And it's absolutely perfectly fitting for the character. His familial tie to magic, his experience dealing with cruel masters manipulating their pupils (not to mention his experience at turning those manipulated pupils back to the side of good), and even an attempt at the Mafuba. It's SO perfect I have no idea why it never went that way in of course Babidi is too stupid to outmaneuver him. Once again, you can really tell he has no real experience in... anything, really. He plays right into Roshi's hands despite killing him with a gesture. Shin being dead and yet still a part of the plot is perfect as well. I mean, why have such a crucial location set in Otherworld and basically never really make use of the fact that the dead can be present in it? And Vegeta overcomes the curse... probably impossible if he wasn't in another dimension, otherwise Babidi would surely be able to feel it and just make another headsplosion.

A: Hey, at this point, Tenshinhan knows Frieza better than anybody, even Goku to some extent. Yeah, Frieza has managed to grow a conscience in his time on Earth, & he's learning the hard way why he threw it away before — guilt friggin' hurts. Writing Videl as being much more ingrained in the plot & involved with Gohan's inner circle is so cathartic, compared to her canon treatment. Roshi is also a character who got shafted by canon a lot, & if nothing else, I'd have hoped that he & Baba would have a role to play against Buu...but it didn't happen. Boooooo. So in SoD, he gets to play a crucial role, nudging Buu that much closer to rebellion.

Q: -43- Interesting that Goku believes he's just about hit his body's limit for strength. But it makes sense, given your prior commentary about how Frieza's Fifth Form is the final one he can reach without his ki destroying his own body - any more Saiyan transformations and that gap would be truly insurmountable. Plus, it makes sense - SS2 is not only really about where the series peaked when it came to consistency with general power levels, with later transformations or nonsensical training power ups just making a mockery of the idea of power in DB entirely, but it's the level that actually managed to end DBZ, despite all the fusion and SS3 and Ultimate power ups. And, of course, if there isn't some kind of near-insurmountable limit, it seriously breaks suspension of disbelief that someone so comparatively weak as Namek saga Frieza could actually rule any part of the galaxy. A mob going after Capsule Corp makes too much sense, unfortunately. Desperately trying to save themselves by offering up the sacrifice of the people Babidi is after. And Frieza recognizes the manipulation and control, too. It's a little surprising that he doesn't draw the conclusion to his own relationship with his father, but I guess it isn't surprising that he's come across other beings being manipulated or forced to fight on the behalf of others to try (and fail) to challenge him. Setting them free of their leash and pointing them back at their master was probably much more amusing for him than just batting them aside with a Death Beam. The horrifying idea of the Candy Beam triggering nearly-forgotten childhood fears, forcing Frieza to flee with his tail between his legs, is... powerful. It really does a lot to sell the half-baked (in canon) idea of Majin Buu being a threatening legend told amongst older, more established races in the galaxy. And that's even before getting to the point of using it on an entire city's population at once - holy crap. Not the first time an entire city (or more) has been destroyed in DB, but this is honestly one of the first times it's ever actually been written with a real impact to it. Kibito really doesn't like the idea of Videl trying to free the Z Sword, does he? Is he going to be the next Zamasu? Hah. Nah, I think that would be a massive break from his established character, and not in a good way, so I doubt that's what you're up to - but this really foreshadows Zamasu's attitude towards humanity to some degree, even if you have no intention of ever using him. It's a very nice, subtle touch of worldbuilding. Though it speaks volumes as to Kibito's (the Kais'?) unfair prejudice - ki usage may be mostly rare knowledge on Earth, and Earth may be isolated from the rest of the galaxy, but if you look at what DBZ's human cast is capable of, they're the fourth strongest known species in the galaxy, and that's including Super (or fused) Namekians and mutation-based transformed Arcosians, both of which are arguably cheating. And of course Videl makes him absolutely eat his words. Gloat away, Videl, you definitely earned it. Trunks confronting Vegeta is, once again, something I can't believe wasn't included in canon. To be fair, I guess there wasn't really time for it - I mean, it could have been written a bit differently to make time, but Vegeta going straight to the sacrificial explosion was a strong enough moment that it wasn't really necessary. I guess that's my way of saying that this is a very fitting alternate take on the consequences that I could 100% see happening in canon if it weren't for that sacrifice.

A: I'm really not a fan of Power Creep as a trope, & DBZ is the worst offender by far. I say that with love, of course. Regardless, we don't need a zillion transformations to show the strength of characters, or the threat of an enemy. I realize that many fans aren't a fan of it, but the Garlic Junior Saga did a fairly good job at making the Black Water Mist a credible & terrifying threat that had little to do with power levels. I really wish we saw more like that in canon. Writing the mob attacking Capsule Corp. was a really harrowing deal, because I live in Florida, so I've seen first-hand how crazy large groups of panicked people can be during Hurricane Season. Frieza does subtly make the connection between himself & Buu, but it's not stated outright. It's probably at the back of his head in any interaction with an obviously abusive authority figure & their puppet(s). I can't be the only one who thinks Buu's Candy Beam is the most terrifying attack in DBZ, right? Depending on whether you're still conscious after being turned, which Vegetto proved is possible in canon, that's got to be the most horrifying way to die — unable to fight back or even scream, eaten alive. Kibito's subtle bigotry is to be expected — the Kaioushin don't interact with humans, & only observe the silly little mortals from a distance. Of course he'd be a little offended that one is not only on his sacred home planet, but acting like an equal to him. This is pretty much a textbook realistic portrayal of anyone who has only vague conceptions of a people/culture & hasn't experienced it for themselves or talked to an actual individual.

Q: Chapter 1: Revenants: From: Jennifer (Guest) Jennifer:Just discovered this work. It's amazing (in or the best fanfics I've read- period). Thank you so much for writing this and making it available for everyone to read ;;

A: Thank you for your kind words; I always love when a new reader discovers SoD! I'm excited to see what you think of the other chapters, so I hope you review more!