Post by Taro on Nov 8, 2016 5:13:17 GMT
With the war over, and saiyans returning to planet vegeta, it was now a time where the empire paused and took stock. Perhaps peace would follow. She hoped so.
It also meant her superiors had a lot of catching up to do, which meant she needed to explain why she and a low-class were nearly beaten to a pulp after dealing with opportunistic pirates that didn't have a combined power level above 200. To make matters worse, it was her first patrol where she was put in command of a few brash low-class warriors.
Funny story, that.
Taro flew into Cacumber Capital, one of the few large cities on this otherwise scorched, war-wrought planet. She took a moment to stand in the middle of a high-rising bridge and appreciate the setting sun. it slowly lowered over the craters and fissures which cracked the wrinkled planet surface. Conflict has been with saiyans so long, Taro thought, that even the planet has scars. She idly wondered about the stories from Earth, a place rife with life of all shapes and sizes. A place where the grass grew the color of emerald gems, the moon shone with flawless argent and the sky as blue the burning sapphire tail of a comet. Of all the legends she'd heard about that place, she found that one the hardest to believe.
She navigated the streets easily. Born a saiyan elite, she was familiar with the twists, turns, and people in the upper-echelons of the capital. Before finding her destination, she wondered if she should change apparel, but decided her armor was acceptable enough. She idly ran a hand through her single strip of long hair, a nervous habit. Her hand paused over her left ear where a purple scouter once was. It was gone. Another thing to explain.
Quickly shuttled through the turns and corridors until she found her destination. Taro entered the small, cylindrical room. Seated at the very end, sat a Saiyan noble she hadn't met before. Her old mentor must have perished in the failed invasion of Earth. This one looked gruff. A wide shouldered saiyan with dark hair twinged with a slight red. He sported and impressive, lengthy beard which grew down to his belly.
"Lets get this over with" He spoke in a gruff, no-nonsense voice, "Explain how one of the most promising elites manages to nearly get herself and her squad killed on such a simple task."
"Well," Taro began, "Funny story, that. . . ."
. . . Taro stood across the field from one of the low-borns under her command, Onian, that was his name. He was the brash and now troublesome sort.
"You let them go!" He accused, contempt laced in his voice.
"The pirates fled!" Taro gestured with one arm to the carnage behind her. One pirate ship lay in a smoldering wreck behind her, surrounded by a score of fallen bodies of it's former crew. At her display of power, the remaining raiders quickly boarded their ship and fled and rocketed up into the pale yellow sky. Taro stared down the reckless underling. She clicked her scouter on and smiled. As she suspected, his power level was a comfortable several hundred below hers. Typical low-class, all talk and no real strength to back it up.
"You held back!" Onian roared indigently, proudly, "What kind of saiyan are you if you can't prove your power against a few feeble scum like that."
"I don't need to prove anything against pitiful power levels." Taro sneered. She wasn't referring only to the pirates.
That was all the prodding Onian needed. In a fit of rage and a shreiking roar, he rushed across the pink needles of grass to deliver several punishing blows. Caught off guard, Taro gasped for air after a lightning-fast fist connected with her solar plexus. Blow after blow rained down from Onian's machine-gun fist. Her scouter sounded a shrill alarm. Onian's power-level had somehow risen outside of her pre-set opposition warning limits. Impossible!
The barrage relented, and Taro staggered forward just in time to receive a roundhouse kick to the temple. Her pink scouter shattered in front of her eye, and the ear-sheath exploded into hundreds of jagged fragments. The kick launched Taro far across the air. The yellow sky spun, then switched places with the pink ground and crimson sea below. Her head kept spinning for a few seconds after she slammed into the ground.
Grimacing, Taro slowly worked herself to one knee. She wiped the dirt off her face. Instead, she felt a warm liquid on the back of her palm. She looked down.
Blood.
The blow had cut the left side of her face deeply, and blood poured out from the wound. The icy tendrils of fear and doubt started to grip Taro. Onian had delivered such a strike with one blow! She underestimated him. How could a low-class saiyan suddenly become so powerful? Had she simply let her guard down? Now, with her scouter gone, she had no idea what her opponent was capable of!
But she did know what she was capable of, and that was enough. Taro slowly stood up. Winded, she spit some blood out of her mouth. She could do this.
"Nice try!" She taunted confidently. She point one finger at her opponent. "Onian! If you want to prove your saiyan might, you're free to try against an elite. I could have you killed for insubordination, but I think we should settle this the old fashioned way. One blow. Max power. No holding back. "
"Haha!" Onian laughed, "How foolish of you! After your defeat, they'll promote me for sure." He settled into a stance, his front knee raised, back foot firmly planted on the ground. The backs of both his hands were pressed together and reached directly behind. The smoldering wreckage bellowed thick black smoke behind him, an illustration of Onian's sinister intent. His fingers curled as he started to collect energy--an ancient but nevertheless effective energy attack. In a past moment of curiosity, Taro had read somewhere that that specific technique predated the original destruction of planet Vegeta itself.
Taro crouched low, and extended her right hand, palm facing inwards. The air around her seemed to waver, and she focused her ki into her palm. The energy crackled and hummed. The sphere grew brighter and larger as she desperately forced as much power as she could manage into her vice-grip. With a crack-fizz, the sphere of hot energy stabilized in her palm.
She didn't notice her own yelling as she pushed her might to the very limit. She didn't notice when her one attack was now well beyond her power level. She didn't notice the many stones and pebbles around her rise slowly into the air. Each rock floated in the surge of nearby power, as if suspended by many invisible puppet strings. She didn't notice her vision darken as the violet light from her attack blazed ever brighter. She didn't notice the half-visible, flickering field of ki which surged outwards and flattened the rose meadow. The saiyan blood-lust gripped her. All she noticed was how much she wanted her foe to die.
Intuition told her it was time. Any more and she risked the losing control, and the projectile imploding. She dragged her right hand back, readying the attack.
"Breaker!" Taro yelled at the top of her lungs. Onian readied his attack at a similar intensity and volume.
"SHELL!" Taro thrust her right hand forward and launched the violent shell forward. It shot towards Onian with a high-pitched zip-fwiiing.
"GUN!" Onian shouted. A purple beam raced across the clearing.
The two attacks met with devastating crash. A shock-wave which knocked Taro backwards a few paces. For a moment, shell's progress halted, but then overwhelmed Onian's attack and connected home. The explosion reverberated outwards. Taro had miscalculated! She wasn't far enough away! At the last moment, Taro raised her guard. The maelstrom of energy cascaded through her bones.
When the torrent of energy subsided, Taro stood on the edge of a crater. Below her, Onian lay in a collapsed heap on the ground. Exhausted and relieved that her opponent was defeated, Taro collapsed, leaned against the crater wall, and rested.
"Then what?" The gruff warrior pressed Taro for answers and the conclusion of her story.
Taro leaned back in her chair and explained simply, "Not much more to explain. The other novices under my command returned, stuck me and Onian in the medical tank, and with our mission accomplished, we flew back here." She paused and ran a hand over the scar on her cheek. The scar from Onian's kick. She remarked, "If you ask me, they need to get another one of those things. I think medical tanks are supposed to prevent scars."
The bearded noble shook his head, "I see. Well, what you do with those under your command is your business, Taro. But I don't want anything to do with you, even if this is one flaw in your otherwise impressive record."
"Is that all?" Taro asked, wondering if she could leave.
"Yeah. Go now. Find some other weak-hearted saiyan to train you." He said with a slight sneer, "Maybe that new scar of yours will serve as a reminder not to be so merciful."
Taro frowned, annoyed at both herself and the saiyan's remark, but she didn't talk back. Instead, she got up, politely bowed, and left, in search of another saiyan on Vegeta that would train her.
It also meant her superiors had a lot of catching up to do, which meant she needed to explain why she and a low-class were nearly beaten to a pulp after dealing with opportunistic pirates that didn't have a combined power level above 200. To make matters worse, it was her first patrol where she was put in command of a few brash low-class warriors.
Funny story, that.
Taro flew into Cacumber Capital, one of the few large cities on this otherwise scorched, war-wrought planet. She took a moment to stand in the middle of a high-rising bridge and appreciate the setting sun. it slowly lowered over the craters and fissures which cracked the wrinkled planet surface. Conflict has been with saiyans so long, Taro thought, that even the planet has scars. She idly wondered about the stories from Earth, a place rife with life of all shapes and sizes. A place where the grass grew the color of emerald gems, the moon shone with flawless argent and the sky as blue the burning sapphire tail of a comet. Of all the legends she'd heard about that place, she found that one the hardest to believe.
She navigated the streets easily. Born a saiyan elite, she was familiar with the twists, turns, and people in the upper-echelons of the capital. Before finding her destination, she wondered if she should change apparel, but decided her armor was acceptable enough. She idly ran a hand through her single strip of long hair, a nervous habit. Her hand paused over her left ear where a purple scouter once was. It was gone. Another thing to explain.
Quickly shuttled through the turns and corridors until she found her destination. Taro entered the small, cylindrical room. Seated at the very end, sat a Saiyan noble she hadn't met before. Her old mentor must have perished in the failed invasion of Earth. This one looked gruff. A wide shouldered saiyan with dark hair twinged with a slight red. He sported and impressive, lengthy beard which grew down to his belly.
"Lets get this over with" He spoke in a gruff, no-nonsense voice, "Explain how one of the most promising elites manages to nearly get herself and her squad killed on such a simple task."
"Well," Taro began, "Funny story, that. . . ."
. . . Taro stood across the field from one of the low-borns under her command, Onian, that was his name. He was the brash and now troublesome sort.
"You let them go!" He accused, contempt laced in his voice.
"The pirates fled!" Taro gestured with one arm to the carnage behind her. One pirate ship lay in a smoldering wreck behind her, surrounded by a score of fallen bodies of it's former crew. At her display of power, the remaining raiders quickly boarded their ship and fled and rocketed up into the pale yellow sky. Taro stared down the reckless underling. She clicked her scouter on and smiled. As she suspected, his power level was a comfortable several hundred below hers. Typical low-class, all talk and no real strength to back it up.
"You held back!" Onian roared indigently, proudly, "What kind of saiyan are you if you can't prove your power against a few feeble scum like that."
"I don't need to prove anything against pitiful power levels." Taro sneered. She wasn't referring only to the pirates.
That was all the prodding Onian needed. In a fit of rage and a shreiking roar, he rushed across the pink needles of grass to deliver several punishing blows. Caught off guard, Taro gasped for air after a lightning-fast fist connected with her solar plexus. Blow after blow rained down from Onian's machine-gun fist. Her scouter sounded a shrill alarm. Onian's power-level had somehow risen outside of her pre-set opposition warning limits. Impossible!
The barrage relented, and Taro staggered forward just in time to receive a roundhouse kick to the temple. Her pink scouter shattered in front of her eye, and the ear-sheath exploded into hundreds of jagged fragments. The kick launched Taro far across the air. The yellow sky spun, then switched places with the pink ground and crimson sea below. Her head kept spinning for a few seconds after she slammed into the ground.
Grimacing, Taro slowly worked herself to one knee. She wiped the dirt off her face. Instead, she felt a warm liquid on the back of her palm. She looked down.
Blood.
The blow had cut the left side of her face deeply, and blood poured out from the wound. The icy tendrils of fear and doubt started to grip Taro. Onian had delivered such a strike with one blow! She underestimated him. How could a low-class saiyan suddenly become so powerful? Had she simply let her guard down? Now, with her scouter gone, she had no idea what her opponent was capable of!
But she did know what she was capable of, and that was enough. Taro slowly stood up. Winded, she spit some blood out of her mouth. She could do this.
"Nice try!" She taunted confidently. She point one finger at her opponent. "Onian! If you want to prove your saiyan might, you're free to try against an elite. I could have you killed for insubordination, but I think we should settle this the old fashioned way. One blow. Max power. No holding back. "
"Haha!" Onian laughed, "How foolish of you! After your defeat, they'll promote me for sure." He settled into a stance, his front knee raised, back foot firmly planted on the ground. The backs of both his hands were pressed together and reached directly behind. The smoldering wreckage bellowed thick black smoke behind him, an illustration of Onian's sinister intent. His fingers curled as he started to collect energy--an ancient but nevertheless effective energy attack. In a past moment of curiosity, Taro had read somewhere that that specific technique predated the original destruction of planet Vegeta itself.
Taro crouched low, and extended her right hand, palm facing inwards. The air around her seemed to waver, and she focused her ki into her palm. The energy crackled and hummed. The sphere grew brighter and larger as she desperately forced as much power as she could manage into her vice-grip. With a crack-fizz, the sphere of hot energy stabilized in her palm.
She didn't notice her own yelling as she pushed her might to the very limit. She didn't notice when her one attack was now well beyond her power level. She didn't notice the many stones and pebbles around her rise slowly into the air. Each rock floated in the surge of nearby power, as if suspended by many invisible puppet strings. She didn't notice her vision darken as the violet light from her attack blazed ever brighter. She didn't notice the half-visible, flickering field of ki which surged outwards and flattened the rose meadow. The saiyan blood-lust gripped her. All she noticed was how much she wanted her foe to die.
Intuition told her it was time. Any more and she risked the losing control, and the projectile imploding. She dragged her right hand back, readying the attack.
"Breaker!" Taro yelled at the top of her lungs. Onian readied his attack at a similar intensity and volume.
"SHELL!" Taro thrust her right hand forward and launched the violent shell forward. It shot towards Onian with a high-pitched zip-fwiiing.
"GUN!" Onian shouted. A purple beam raced across the clearing.
The two attacks met with devastating crash. A shock-wave which knocked Taro backwards a few paces. For a moment, shell's progress halted, but then overwhelmed Onian's attack and connected home. The explosion reverberated outwards. Taro had miscalculated! She wasn't far enough away! At the last moment, Taro raised her guard. The maelstrom of energy cascaded through her bones.
When the torrent of energy subsided, Taro stood on the edge of a crater. Below her, Onian lay in a collapsed heap on the ground. Exhausted and relieved that her opponent was defeated, Taro collapsed, leaned against the crater wall, and rested.
"Then what?" The gruff warrior pressed Taro for answers and the conclusion of her story.
Taro leaned back in her chair and explained simply, "Not much more to explain. The other novices under my command returned, stuck me and Onian in the medical tank, and with our mission accomplished, we flew back here." She paused and ran a hand over the scar on her cheek. The scar from Onian's kick. She remarked, "If you ask me, they need to get another one of those things. I think medical tanks are supposed to prevent scars."
The bearded noble shook his head, "I see. Well, what you do with those under your command is your business, Taro. But I don't want anything to do with you, even if this is one flaw in your otherwise impressive record."
"Is that all?" Taro asked, wondering if she could leave.
"Yeah. Go now. Find some other weak-hearted saiyan to train you." He said with a slight sneer, "Maybe that new scar of yours will serve as a reminder not to be so merciful."
Taro frowned, annoyed at both herself and the saiyan's remark, but she didn't talk back. Instead, she got up, politely bowed, and left, in search of another saiyan on Vegeta that would train her.