Chapter 31: Comprehending Real Power!

Arlic was in immense pain. The most he had been in since his arrival in this reality. Gritting his teeth through bloodstained lips, he used the last of his strength to pull a [Sensu Bean] from his [Storage Ring]. Afterwards, through the agony and fatigue, perhaps through naught but sheer force of will, he managed to get the bean to his lips. That was as far as he got however, as just before he could swallow the [Sensu Bean], a swift and powerful kick sent him flying into a nearby planetoid. The bean knocked from his mouth in the process. Left with no way to recuperate, he could only activate his armors advanced defense shield in the small hope that it would keep him alive long a little longer.

The result was him being kicked around by Commander Nezi and the chrome/blue armored Bizu. Although, for the time being, his shield was holding. That did not mean he was out of danger however, as it would not be until all his enemies where nonfunctional that he would feel safe. From what he could tell, based off the scattered mechanical pieces floating about, Ribet and Natt had been destroyed by his blast. Those simplified matters, though, none of it meant anything if he remained unable to move. He kept trying with all his will, but he could not even muster the energy to blink, let alone move. He was doing his best not to become dispirited, but his situation was not looking good.

Arlic was becoming certain that he might die… again. He knew that his own forces would lack the strength to help him against these enemies and all the technology and magic he possessed would either kill him as well or would be useless against machines lifeforms. It was a harsh wakeup call, one that made him realize that he had been moving too quickly. Looking back, he knew that he had rushed things. That with the knowledge and resources he possessed, he should have had no problem with any enemy he faced. Arlic recognized that he had become overconfident, and his current plight was the result of his own folly. "Dammit!", he screamed out in frustration, inwardly cursing his impatience. Rolling his eyes up towards the approaching Bizu, who was posed to rain down another series of blows, Arlic noticed a change overtake their battlefield.

A massive [Ki] signature was approaching fast. It was so powerful that it nearly took his breath away and better still, he recognized it. Along with that thought a brilliant sphere of dark green energy shot towards the nearby Bizu. Although Bizu attempted to block the sphere, it blew one of its arms off. Losing a limb, Bizu quickly retreated, rapidly reaching Nezi's side. By Arlic's own side, appeared a young man with long black hair and a stern facial expression. Instantly recognizing the young man, Arlic reached out with his mind. "Not that I am complaining, but… why are you here, Broly? Better yet, how did you even get here?" They were not friends and could barely be called acquaintances. Sure, Arlic had saved Broly and Paragus from [Planet Vampa] but that was hardly reason enough for Broly to appear here in order to save him.

Broly's response to his questions was a shrug, remembering who he was conversing with, Arlic could only laugh bitterly. Sighing to himself, Arlic took a good look at Broly. He now stood a head taller than Arlic, in addition, his body was now much broader than it had been. He was covered in a dense aura of green energy that seemed to expand and contract with his breathing. Most notably, even though Broly's energy was continuously rising, he showed no signs of losing control. That brought a smile to Arlic's face, it meant that upon preliminary observation, the pod had done its job. Coming back to the matter at hand, Arlic brought out another [Sensu Bean]. "Broly. I apologize for my weakened state, but I need you to feed this bean to me, then I need you to..." Speaking telepathically, Arlic detailed for Broly exactly what needed to happen in order to resolve his current situation.

He made certain to extract an [Anti-Parasitic Shield] for Broly to use, which after equipping, he fed Arlic the long awaited [Sensu Bean]. As the energy flowed into Arlics body, he flexed his stiff muscles. Cracking his neck, he turned to face Broly. Nodding his head in thanks, Arlic vanished from sight, leaving behind only a single warning for Broly, "Don't hold back." It did not need saying however, as after Arlic vanished, Broly simply outstretched his hand and sent numerous energy balls scattering about. Though the two remaining [Machine Mutant]s attempted to evade, they were rendered into dust by the energy balls exploding. Broly barely exerted any effort. All that Arlic, who had appeared at one of the ships hatches could do was stare with his mouth agape. His eye twitching, Arlic turned his attention to the ship that was now within arm's reach.

Infiltrating the bowels of the ship should not take long, minutes even, as by utilizing magic, his body became incorporeal and within moments had reached his goal. Before him lay a large tank, similar in design to his [Gene Reconstruction Pods]. Within it was a small silverish lifeform that he recognized as Baby from the series. Baby happened to sense his presence and open its eyes, which upon seeing his tail were filled with hate. Not that it mattered to Arlic. Throwing out a small metallic orb, Arlic captured Baby, tank and all inside it, like a Pokémon. Secure inside the [Capture and Containment Sphere] or [C.C.S.] for short, Arlic stowed Baby away inside his [Storage Ring]. Walking up to a nearby panel, he began hacking into the ships onboard systems, bringing it to a halt in deep space. He was not about to waste resources he could use.

Opening a communications channel, Arlic contacted the [Sanctuary], instructing them to pick up the vessel in question. Making use of the same magical technique he used to enter, the [Ghost Walk], he slowly made his way towards Broly. He would have used [Instant Transmission], but having seen Broly's power firsthand, Arlic thought it best not to startle him. Making it to Broly's side, Arlic scanned the area with both his own senses and his [Holo-Scanner]. He wanted to be certain all threats were gone before moving on. After a full minute he instructed Broly to grab his arm and used [Instant Transmission] to head back to his new home. He had much to do, and this incident made him realizes that he needed real power to accomplish it. He was mistaken in assuming he already had it, but he allowed himself to forget what kind of place this Universe was. Here… numbers were meaningless in the face of individual strength. Here… one could literally rival the gods.

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Author's Note: Okay folks! This is the end for Arc 1 of DBS:C. As promised, I intend to go back and heavily edit(maybe rewrite a little bit) my last 10 chapters. It might take a while to get to it though. Please be patient. Arc 2 of DBS:C will be scheduled for release sometime within the next six months. Again, please be patient. I have other things I would like to work on, including my new Harry Potter fan-fic. I also have a MCU fan-fic in the works amongst many others. I want to start getting them down on paper, so to speak. Then I will decide what I want to focus on. As always, thanks for reading!