10-21-2017, 10:21 PM
Life had gotten decidedly better.
Having found a shimmering portal framed by two bowed palm trees, Koola wasted no time in stepping through what he first took to be a mirage. As he sheared through the boundaries between the white void and the next world, a blast of balmy salt air brushed his face. He flinched at first, expecting it to be the vanguard of the true scorching heat that Hell was so famous for, but it never came. Opening his wary eyes, he took in a sprawling beachscape punctuated by a large city. The blazing sun spun warm light fervently and generously, with not a skerrick of cloud to mar the clear sky.
This wasn't Hell, surely. Koola had no particular attachment to cool sea breezes and oceanic vistas, so yanking away this illusion wouldn't rend his heart in twain. Nor did he hate such tropical getaways, especially not to the point that it would be agony for him to live in one for all eternity.
Ignoring the looming city in the distance, Koola launched into the air and surveyed the area. Dotted all over the endless seas were islands, many so small and distant that he couldn't make out anything about them. They stretched all the way to the horizon, where the deep glassy blue of the sea rested beneath the pale blue of the sky.
The changeling prince touched down on the beach as the gentle tides washed over his toes. He breathed deeply at the caress of the cold water, groping for answers but seeing none. He had a definite memory of his own destruction, so how could he be alive, and with his original body? Had a celestial mistake been made, and he had been accidentally delivered to Heaven? If so, he wasn't about to rat himself out. The error would be discovered sooner or later, whether by a clerk or by Koola's own antisocial actions.
As he watched the sun's rays glisten like liquid silver in the crests of the waves, the foggy memory coalesced. He squinted at the white reflection in the water, as if that sight solidified his thoughts. Only moments before he was deposited in the blank realm, there was a brief split in time where he floated before a glimmering pearlescent child. From what followed, it seemed to be some sort of god, though he did not resemble the kais that he had been told about.
The fanciful words of a child filled his ears, as if he owned some magical playset and Koola was one of its many pieces. The idea of being some creature's toy, no matter how powerful, rankled Koola. Granted, being plucked from his universe at the precise moment of his death wasn't undesirable, not at all. He may have been waking up in the worse plane of existence instead of raking his toes through the damp sand. Also the mention of immortality brought a grin to the changeling prince's purple lips. Frieza had ironically died trying to obtain eternal life, and all Koola had to do to earn it was to perish.
The mention of omnilium stuck out during the speech. The specifics were vague; something about focusing and believing and other faux-inspirational claptrap that he often heard when weak bands of resistance fighters rallied - and subsequently died - against him. He could figure out what all of that meant another time.
Yet this bald, infantile being held him prisoner. What sort of intentions did he have? Was he as almighty as he appeared, stealing people at random and dropping them into his play world? Was there even a way to contact this Omni again, or was the brief and disorienting introduction all he got?
"Huh. Sure would be good to have some henchmen right about now," Koola mused out loud.
The changeling prince strode away from the shoreline and towards a row of leafy coconut trees further into the dunes. He stepped his way through fragments of crustacean shells that lay like a ribbon of stars across the sands, his feet splashing in small rock pools where fish caught by the low tide swam uselessly in circles. A smoothed rock nestled beneath the shade of the palm trees and Koola hopped atop its cool surface and sat down, his tail flopping over the other side. A trio of seagulls soared overhead, squawking as they passed.
As Koola pondered his options, the back of his skull itched. He raised fingers to scratch it, but instead found a cold, rectangular object glued there. Startled, he grabbed it, broke it free and examined it.
A grey computer chip. One that looked awfully like ... the brain of the Big Gete Star.
"How long have you been there?" Koola asked. No response came.
Koola's fingers twitched. If he balled his fist, the chip would sputter and fizzle out, never to lead him to become a monstrous parasitic robot again. He may have been grateful for the extension of his life in his previous life, but in this new dimension, he wanted to be himself. The loss of sensation, the constant need to excavate and consume planet cores just to continue existing ... why would he want to put himself back through that? There was no joy in that life.
And yet the only time he held his own against the new Super Saiyan strength was when his image was constructed in self-healing robotic technology. Was the empire his father built worth anything if they could be bested by such scum? Was technological augmentation the only way to secure the family legacy?
But what sort of legacy rested on such confected power? If he could do it, what's stopping anyone else from building a war machine and challenging him? And yet if that happened, wouldn't it be wiser to augment himself in preparation for such a day?
No. Just as he found his transformed state, he would get stronger by himself. Standing, Koola drew his arm back and hurled the computer chip towards the sea. The silver chip glinted in the sun light before plopping into the water.
Koola cracked his knuckles. "There. Decision made. Whatever I become in this new realm, it won't be dictated by a pile of electricity and steel. Only myself."
Having found a shimmering portal framed by two bowed palm trees, Koola wasted no time in stepping through what he first took to be a mirage. As he sheared through the boundaries between the white void and the next world, a blast of balmy salt air brushed his face. He flinched at first, expecting it to be the vanguard of the true scorching heat that Hell was so famous for, but it never came. Opening his wary eyes, he took in a sprawling beachscape punctuated by a large city. The blazing sun spun warm light fervently and generously, with not a skerrick of cloud to mar the clear sky.
This wasn't Hell, surely. Koola had no particular attachment to cool sea breezes and oceanic vistas, so yanking away this illusion wouldn't rend his heart in twain. Nor did he hate such tropical getaways, especially not to the point that it would be agony for him to live in one for all eternity.
Ignoring the looming city in the distance, Koola launched into the air and surveyed the area. Dotted all over the endless seas were islands, many so small and distant that he couldn't make out anything about them. They stretched all the way to the horizon, where the deep glassy blue of the sea rested beneath the pale blue of the sky.
The changeling prince touched down on the beach as the gentle tides washed over his toes. He breathed deeply at the caress of the cold water, groping for answers but seeing none. He had a definite memory of his own destruction, so how could he be alive, and with his original body? Had a celestial mistake been made, and he had been accidentally delivered to Heaven? If so, he wasn't about to rat himself out. The error would be discovered sooner or later, whether by a clerk or by Koola's own antisocial actions.
As he watched the sun's rays glisten like liquid silver in the crests of the waves, the foggy memory coalesced. He squinted at the white reflection in the water, as if that sight solidified his thoughts. Only moments before he was deposited in the blank realm, there was a brief split in time where he floated before a glimmering pearlescent child. From what followed, it seemed to be some sort of god, though he did not resemble the kais that he had been told about.
The fanciful words of a child filled his ears, as if he owned some magical playset and Koola was one of its many pieces. The idea of being some creature's toy, no matter how powerful, rankled Koola. Granted, being plucked from his universe at the precise moment of his death wasn't undesirable, not at all. He may have been waking up in the worse plane of existence instead of raking his toes through the damp sand. Also the mention of immortality brought a grin to the changeling prince's purple lips. Frieza had ironically died trying to obtain eternal life, and all Koola had to do to earn it was to perish.
The mention of omnilium stuck out during the speech. The specifics were vague; something about focusing and believing and other faux-inspirational claptrap that he often heard when weak bands of resistance fighters rallied - and subsequently died - against him. He could figure out what all of that meant another time.
Yet this bald, infantile being held him prisoner. What sort of intentions did he have? Was he as almighty as he appeared, stealing people at random and dropping them into his play world? Was there even a way to contact this Omni again, or was the brief and disorienting introduction all he got?
"Huh. Sure would be good to have some henchmen right about now," Koola mused out loud.
The changeling prince strode away from the shoreline and towards a row of leafy coconut trees further into the dunes. He stepped his way through fragments of crustacean shells that lay like a ribbon of stars across the sands, his feet splashing in small rock pools where fish caught by the low tide swam uselessly in circles. A smoothed rock nestled beneath the shade of the palm trees and Koola hopped atop its cool surface and sat down, his tail flopping over the other side. A trio of seagulls soared overhead, squawking as they passed.
As Koola pondered his options, the back of his skull itched. He raised fingers to scratch it, but instead found a cold, rectangular object glued there. Startled, he grabbed it, broke it free and examined it.
A grey computer chip. One that looked awfully like ... the brain of the Big Gete Star.
"How long have you been there?" Koola asked. No response came.
Koola's fingers twitched. If he balled his fist, the chip would sputter and fizzle out, never to lead him to become a monstrous parasitic robot again. He may have been grateful for the extension of his life in his previous life, but in this new dimension, he wanted to be himself. The loss of sensation, the constant need to excavate and consume planet cores just to continue existing ... why would he want to put himself back through that? There was no joy in that life.
And yet the only time he held his own against the new Super Saiyan strength was when his image was constructed in self-healing robotic technology. Was the empire his father built worth anything if they could be bested by such scum? Was technological augmentation the only way to secure the family legacy?
But what sort of legacy rested on such confected power? If he could do it, what's stopping anyone else from building a war machine and challenging him? And yet if that happened, wouldn't it be wiser to augment himself in preparation for such a day?
No. Just as he found his transformed state, he would get stronger by himself. Standing, Koola drew his arm back and hurled the computer chip towards the sea. The silver chip glinted in the sun light before plopping into the water.
Koola cracked his knuckles. "There. Decision made. Whatever I become in this new realm, it won't be dictated by a pile of electricity and steel. Only myself."