Dragon Ball : Alternate AF

Getting Started:
20 years have passed since Shenlong left the Earth with Goku, Future Trunks returned from his age to inform the Z-Warriors about the inevitable appearence of two new Androids: No. 27 and No. 28. After he was informed that Goku left Earth, Gohan and Vegeta were the main hope. Together with the other fighters they now has to face an even more powerful enemy: two cyborg brothers, eternal rivals but both share the same need to conquer the world.

Future Trunks comented to everyone that the new Androids will come to this timeline in one year, during this time the Earth's strongest defenders, the Z-Warriors, shall train their skills even further, they shall become stronger than Goku. For some strange reason Future Trunks never gave more details stating that: "doing so would be dangerous". After Bulma managed to build a new gravity chamber, one with enough space for every combatant, Gohan started training along Vegeta and Future Trunks, hoping to be able to reach Super Saiyan 3. After six long months of hard training, ability-sharpening tests and hardcore sparring, something unexpected happened.

They Came From Nowhere... :
A shining flash in the skies was the signal of her arrive, a misterious figure took shape and, followed by a loud explosion sound, the team contempled the introduction of another time-traveler: a female warrior that looked like a woman version of Goku. After landing she quickly introduced herself to everybody in a so casual way that anyone would think she already knew the whole gang. Her name was Pauline and her long monkey tail revealed her origin: a Saiyan. But another Saiyan had survived? is she from the future or from past? Without answers and hoping for an explanation, yet another person emerged from the high sky. He was Goku! but his expression was different, extremely serious and solid, no, this warrior was not the legendary hero.

-"Tomeiiro, what are you doing here!?"- asked Pauline.

-"I have come to improve this training, if you don't care".

Surprised to death by this mysterious events, Gohan said to himself: -"why this people look like dad? what's happening?"-. Maybe Future Trunks has an explanation.

Suddenly, the two strange warriors started to argue and discuss, just like a little mischievous sister and her prematurely matured teen brother.

-"I thought i have told you this is my mission, you seem to have mistaken the coordinates, you hard-headed moron!!!"- Pauline loudly spoke.

-"If you have not noticed yet, you are the one with the wrong coordinates. You were supposed to arrive six months ago"- Replied Tomeiiro with his deep, passive voice.

-"Enough childish tantrums, if both of you don't answer any question your gonna get a blast in your faces!!!"- Screamed angrily Vegeta. With the roar of Vegeta's threat the mysterious pair stopped.

After getting some steps closer to the "odd couple" Gohan started a quick interrogation, with an uneasy feeling floating around inside his mind; why Trunks didn't said anything earlier? This had to be resolved, and fast. Trying to be polite to the time-travelers, Gohan started: -"You shall excuse Vegeta, he gets upset very easily, if you don't mind, could you tell us who you are, how do you happen to be Saiyans and what's that mission you were talking about earlier?". After Pauline flashed a quick glance to Tomeiiro, they decided to speak, but firstly the two stepped back a little and started whispering. A few annoying seconds passed while Gohan, Vegeta, Trunks and the others discussed their own thoughts too and finally the first words came from Pauline: -"Okay, i guess all of you deserve to know the truth but first, i have to warn you, this is not the place to speak about it, here i can only tell you a few things"- she said.

-"Why's that?"- asked Gohan.

-"That's one of the things we cannot tell you here"- said Tomeiiro focusing his eyes on Trunks.

-"You better do what they say, it's for your own good"- spoke Trunks.

Pauline started walking in circles around Tomeiiro as if thinking many complex thinks at the same time, with her arms crossed in front of her and her wild tail whiggling from right to left, from left to right. Her indecision was obvious and her worries seemed to grow and increase, all while Tomeiiro standed still in the same place, without movement and with an orbiting girl spinning around and around. At last, just as Pauline cleared the last drop of sweat from her face, her mouth started to solve the mystery:-"Well, well, well, where shall i start?"- she exclamed, and then continued -"We are not exactly Time-travelers, everyone in here weren't clever enough to notice we didn't come in a time-machine nor a spaceship, and we're definetily not Saiyans-" she replyed.

-"You should not speak about not being clever, specially with your punctuality"- said Tomeiiro with an almost imperceptible grin on his lips.

-"Could you stop teasing me?!!! i mean, c'mon, six months is not THAT much!!!"-

The group was shocked to the souls, this could not be right, something seemed to be very wrong in their tale and Vegeta, a pure-blooded Saiyan was not disposed to fall in any random, obviously-ridiculous, beginer trick, or at least, not without saying some words first: -"Who do you think you are talking to? you're definetily Saiyans, i can clearly see your tail!!!"- he screamed. Suddenly, Trunks grabbed him by the shoulder and stopped him, trying to make him listen. -"You shall hear them dad, this time raw power won't be enough, i can ensure they're telling the thruth"- said Trunks with a definitive tone. -"Yeah Daaad, listen to him or should i call you Gramps perhaps?"- mocked Pauline. -"Enough of this, i won't take such insults any longer!!!"- said Vegeta, rabid. -"Father, please stop, this is not the right time for this"- insisted Trunks. -"You should stop calling him father, Trunks, after all, you are not the same Trunks they think you are". After Pauline's words, a choir of "whats" was heard. -"Finally, seems i got your attention Grampy".

Solving Mysteries:
-"Wha-what do you mean, he's not Trunks? how can that be plausible?"- Replied Gohan, more confused than ever. Everybody stared to Trunks, esceptics to believe what they where hearing.

-"If you REALLY want to know, you're gonna have to come with us to a place you wouldn't believe. That if it's okay with Cranky Dad"- responded Pauline.

-"There will be just one condition: you shall not speak of anything regarded to that place while on the Earth-" Added Tomeiiro, more serious than before.

Everybody was nervous and confused. Should they trust two mysterious strangers that manifestated from thin air? was it safe to follow them to an unknown, possibly, unexistent place? what about those Androids? wasn't a better option to stay on Earth to defend it?. Hundred, posible million question could be asked but none of them woud put an end to this unusual experience. The desicion was taken trusting more on instinct than inteligence, they had to go, there was something in those visitants that ignited a burning, deep feeling in Gohan, not only that, Vegeta could not resist the tempation of a new challenge, after all, it was since a long time they had some good action. Since those days, his back started to ache but now it was tickling with curiosity.

-"Good, we'll go-" said Gohan.

-"By the way, you all seem to have had better days. Tomeiiro, do you think they need to eat one?"- Said Pauline, refering to an unknow subject.

-"Yes, definitely, one or two will be very useful but we need to ask permition first or it will be dangerous for them to interact with those...". affirmed Tomeiiro, feeding the mystery.

-" Alright everybody, come closer, you will have to stay close during the travel. Tomeiiro, open it !"-

-"As you wish"-

In that very moment a monstrous energy focused in Tomeiiro's hands just as he raised them, a monumental and invisible force that made the air feel dense, warm and heavy, it didn't feel like ki, nothing at all. A crackling sound was hear, a disturbing sound resembling a chorus followed it and, ultimatedly, a circular shape formed in front of the group. The brilliant, blinding light begun to fluctuate, going from pure white to the whole rainbow spectrum. Just in the middle of the chaos a door solidified, one aparently builded with wood and green leaves. It was a passageway to somewhere, to nowhere, to all places or to the very core of the unknown? Nobody knew the truth.

-"Better than a fireworks show, eh?"- said Pauline -"one last advice, brace yourselves because this will be one heck of a ride, we're gonna see the source of whole life. Ready? here we go !!!"- she yelled happly just as the vortex in the skies swalloed the group, taking them to...where?

Finally, Answers:
As Gohan opened his eyes and recovered from the flashing light, he found himself floating on an aparently endless pit. A bottomless, pitch-black gate was in the distance and the walls of the tunnel were reminisent to the lights he previously saw: rainbow-colored, rapidly shifting in random sucessions, a majestic caleidoscope of ever changing shapes and hypnotic colors. He was so amused with the enviroment that he got lost in his own thinking.

-"Don't be distracted, you're gonna get hit!"- screamed Pauline.

-"Wha-what, who...?"- Gohan was so lost in himself that didn't noticed a giant piece of rock flying at meteor speed. Quickly Trunks reacted and protected his former master with a Masenko that destroyed the rock, reducing it to mere rubble.

-"You are so naive as your father, you bring me memories back"- spoke Vegeta.

When they crossed the black portal, they experiensed strange sensations on their bodies, everybody felt as if something weakened them, as if the ki inside their bodies was running out. A tremble in the surroundings was the arrival signal and, finally, answers were coming. They were standing on a rock plataform floating in the middle of nothingness, just an empty sky, an empty abyss and an empty horizon, plus endless minor rocks crashing and breaking each other.

-"This is it, the place we came from!"- affirmed Pauline.

-"Where are we? what was the thing we just crossed? answer!"- exiged Vegeta.

-"Wait a moment, he will give you answers"- said Tomeiiro, fresh and relaxed, as if nothing had happened yet.

Suddenly a tiny man appeared from nowhere, a small old man wearing a chinese robe and rubbing his long beard.

-"Seems like we have visitors, do you mind sharing a cup of tea with me?"- said the old man.

Gohan felt something familiar coming from the little man, the same feeling he felt with Tomeiiro and Pauline, a sense of familiarity emanating from that person that connected him in an unusual manner. He got closer and saluted with a respectful inclination, eager to finally understand what was happening.

-"S-sorry to come so abruptly but we don't even know what's happening. Who are all of you? what is this place? are you a Supreme Kai?"- asked him.

-"So you are not here for some tea? that is very sad, yes, so very sad. You say you want to know who am i? well i am not a Supreme Kai, they take care of minor things, i take care of the Daikaiju, the tree that gave birth to the life, this realm is where we, the Jikan Hogo-sha, the time guardians, watch over the creation, by the way, you can refer to me as Jikanou, i will always be happy to have some tea with you"- said the guardian with his raspy, slow and monotone voice. Now some things started to come to surface, but this wasn't enought, everyone desired to know more, what was all this about?

-"You really want to know?"- said Jikanou, before continuing -"this is going to be a long story so do not fall asleep, it would be more entertainig if i had some tea but well, let us get started"- finally replied.

Long Ago:
-"This is a story that starts before Kais existed, before life existed, before anything because it started everything. In the emptyness that every corner of hollowness maintained, there, in the heart of that pulsating chaos, a seed sprouted, a mystic entity full of power, a magical being that experiensed life for the very first time. A lonely plant started to grow and as it growed and maturated, it gained conciousness, it developed mind and soul. It was happy. Its monumental roots filled the void, its branches, strong enough to hold the cosmos, developed leaves. Beautiful emerald leaves shined with so impressive blazes that the darkness ran away. Those leaves, as immortal suns burning greenly in eternity, were soon accompained with fruits, fruits of time and fruits of space. So was it, for a long time, until the tree felt lonely. Desperate, it decided to spread life, it wanted to experiense more joy to forget the loneliness, so it created one bigger fruit, a massive orb containing many spirits, that is how it was created. It was your world. Since that moment, the tree gave itself a name, it was: Daikaiju"-.

-"But one terrible day a rotten fruit appeared in the tree, a black monstruosity that had its own counciousness, a shadow fruit that desired to destroy the Daikaiju's creation, that fruit was the tree's loneliness, purged after the tree experimented the happiness of life. That fruit started to poison its father with its malevolent precense. The fruit broke free from the tree and started to grow in size, matching it. In an attempt to erradicate the tree, the now-monster creature attacked it, damaging it in great manner, but the tree stood in its place. Once again desperate, Daikaiju focused all of its energy and attacked back, sealing the monster for eons. But the cost of that victory was high, so weak was the tree that it entered a dormant state and before completely falling asleep, the tree sent its last fruits to the world it created, smaller fruits full of life, and pieces of its own branches, broke during the attack, to make sure that new desendants would stop the monster the day it free itself. However, some of the remaining life energy from the tree, gave us, the Jikan Hogo-sha, a life. Since those times we have been observing the sealed fruit, the tree and your world"-.

-"The smaller fruits sent to your universe landed on planet Kaishin and sprouted to form the normal Kaiju trees from where the Kais are born, they were the ones that created the rest of the life and other minor deitys. Many other things were created from the branches, from the water inside the branches and from the respiratory gases inside them, you may ask me whatever you wish, i will be more than pleased to answer anything, as long as Pauline brings me some tea to refresh my dry throat"- ended Jikanou, hopeing for a drink.

Start of a Mission:
-"Hey, i'm not your servant!"- refused Pauline.

-"I will give you candies"- said Jikanou.

Just after hearing the word candies, Pauline flied away at incredible speed, with the biggest smile someone can posible imagine. By now many of the mysteries were finally unfolding, the group was surprised but a sense of security started to build, now all was more clear, not completly, but considerably more. That little man looked like an incredibly wise person so the questions were not going to stop there.

-"So, that's how our universe was created, whoa, that's amazing, but what happened to the branches?"- asked Gohan.

-"You want to know it, mmmm, well. Those fragments fell on Earth, many were lost but, if my memory is correct, i think one splinter was used to create some kind of stretching pole or something like that, it was owned by a cat-like thingy that liked to collect strange objects"-

-"Really!?"- said Gohan, astonished -"so the Power Pole was a part from that tree! that cat-like thingy surely was master Korin!"-

-"Korin? what a funny name, if he found that splinter maybe he found its internal components"- said Jikanou, watching the horizon and waiting for Pauline's return.

-"Now that you say it, perhaps the Ultra Divine Water and the Flying Nimbus were the internal water and respiratory gases"- concluded Gohan.

-"It was fun to hear fairy tales but now I have some questions"- interrumped Vegeta.

-"I would prefer to wait for my tea"- said Jikano

-"If you don't want to cooperate then I will convince you!"- screamed the Saiyan prince aiming with his prideful hand at the old sage.

-"Shoot if that is what you want"- spoke Jikanou, full of confidence.

Vegeta focused on the elderly man and charged his ki. Trunks and Gohan tried to stop him in time but neither one was fast enought to make it, as Vegeta stared at Jikanou, it was obvious that nothing happened. Why? amazed, Vegeta tried and tried again and again, no ki blast emerged, in fact, he didn't sence any precense. His body felt numb, not ready for combat, not even fly. Then he remebered the moment when they crossed the portal, their bodies started to feel strange since that moment.

-"What have you done to us?!"- screamed scared Vegeta.

-"No ki can be used here. It is imediatly absorbed by the Daikaiju, who is trying to reanimate. You may jump very high and far however, due to the extremely reduced gravity"-.

In that moment, Pauline returned, not by flying, as everybody had just learned, bringing with her a chinese teapot and a cup. Jikanou drinked the tea slowly, enjoying every single drop that his tongue degusted. Suddenly, a gigantic energy made the rock plataform tremble, as an earthquake cracking the ground.

-"This is the energy we cultivate in here, the Qigong"- replied Jikanou -"i am the master in this place and if you do not want to feel uncomfortable, you better listen to what i have to say: i have selected you to achieve certain mission"- emphatized him.

Look At This... :
More and more truths were slowly revealing but one thing was crystal-clear: the old man was far more powerful than he looked. An invitation was thrown to the air, waiting for a reply, a hard desicion to be made but at this point everyone desired to see the whole situation, there was something still missing.

-"It is enterely up to you"- said Jikanou, serving himself another cup of tea.

-"If we accept, what will we have to do?"- asked Gohan.

-"First give me a proper answer"- abruptly spoke Jikanou.

So many mysteries, so many possibilities, a single answer, how something so simple was that hard? With a so narrow path to take, the final choice was "Yes, we accept. Please tell us more". A shadowly grin appeared in Jikanou's face, as he welcomed the team with an akward but respectful inclination.

-"Good, that is what i wanted to hear. Here are your candies Pauline, thanks for the tea"- said the sage, handing the sweets to his helper -"now, do not be scared. This will take just a few momments"-.

With a snap of his fingers, the rock plataform vanished as nothing, the group started to fall into the black, deep abyss. They tried, instinctively, to fly, but their energy wasn't enough. That shadow realm was absolute and no light existed in the endless precipice. A journey to the fangs of the death, an eternal fall into despair, a world with no color, a blind's land, that was it. The only ones relaxed were the Jikan Hogo-sha but in that darkness nobody was able to see. Blinded and feeling no precenses at all, the worries of the still falling warriors grew greatly, did they make the wrong descition? But at the end of that shadowly space, a crimson flash shinned, bringing hope to the fighters. They were reaching the nucleous of life, they were going to become heros once again.

Jikanou landed firmly, just as Tomeiiro and Pauline, on a soft, pulsating surface, the rest however, virtually kissed the grounds, with the only exception of Trunks, who clearly was more experiensed. Just as the group recovered from the fall, a majestic sight unfold in front of their eyes.

-"I am sorry if the light is a little too bright but if you look down, you will see it..."- said Jikano.

As Gohan noticed that they were standing on a circular, ring-like plataform, he glanced down. There it was, the Daikaiju. The god-tree emanated red light from its leaves, a blood-colored blaze iluminated the surrounding area and the branches extended up to the infinity. In this place everybody fell even weaker, with no force, not even to stand on their feet. When Vegeta looked up, he saw the tree was holding the dark realm between its branches.

-"It is sick"- saddly replied Tomeiiro - "and they are killing it"-

-"We need you to stop them, otherwise he will be back"- said Pauline.

-"Is in this moment when you shall return to your older selves, if you are interested of course. Would you like to be young again?"- Said Jikanou, surprising the group.

Chrono Beans:
The most tempting proposal made to them, an offer to be strong and young again, to recover their lost glories, to once again be the unstoppable warriors that, with their own blood and sweat, guarded the Earth from chaos. To be the son of Goku, to be the prince of the Saiyans. But how? what in this bizarre world would work the miracle? Two words were the answer.

-"Chrono Beans, you definetly need some"- suggested Jikanou. Eating her delicious candies was her when she remembered it. -"I almost forgot about them!"- yelled ashamed Pauline, almost choking with her sweets. Jikanou turned back, rubbing his long beard again and took away the candies from the girl. -"No fair! it was't my mistake, you carried away with your story, plus Tomeiiro didn't tell you either!"-

-"What are those Chrono Beans? can they return me to a young Saiyan?"- asked Vegeta, whose spirit felt the spark of a new ambition, he desired his return, the rise of the inmortal phoenix, he had survived the destruction of his homeplanet, he fought side by side with the most powerful warrior in the universe, no way would be the time the one who finally defeats him. And that oportunity was there, in front of him, waiting to be discovered.

-"That's what we were refering to on Earth, the seeds that lies inside the Daikaju's fruits"- answered Tomeiiro. Gohan was curious, that name was so familiar, was it possible? the Sensu Beans were desendants of the tree?

-"You happen to know the Sensu Beans?"- asked Jikanou, getting akwardly close to Gohan.

-"Y-yes. Master Korin cultivetes them. Are they related to these, somehow?-"

-"Yes indeed. Sensu Beans are weaker forms of the Chrono Beans. That because they landed on Earth and got spoiled. The gravity is such a horrible thing, you know"-

-"But what's the difference?- asked Gohan.

Jikanou then started to eat Pauline's candies, watching something near the tree.

-"Well, you do not know how the Sensu Beans work eh? They come from the original fruits of the tree, the fruits of time. A Chrono Bean can alter the flow of time in a determinated space, reverting or advancing it. A Sensu Bean can do exactly the same but on a minor degree, it can not advance time however but, it returns the body to a previous state, healing injuries and restoring energy. Since they are spoiled they do not do it completely, that is why previous wounds do not heal"- explained the old man, finaly giving some space to the poor Gohan.

A new door opened, new hopes were coming but until this moment, nobody knew what were they against to. Two unknow Androids were the only image in their minds, two ghostly figures that remained hidden in the veil of darkness.

Suddendly, Jikano jumped to the tree, he had seen something, something that souldn't be there, in the middle of the fiery leaves. Someone or something lurking, as a hunter, as an assasin feeding on ancient grudges.

-"What? they are here already?!"- screamed Pauline, getting ready for combat

First Combat:
Jikanou had disappeared in the middle of the leaves letting behind the group, searching for something hidden in that jungle of lights. The Z-Warriors tried to stand up but so weak were they that even moving their feet was a hard feat. Pauline was the first one to hurry up and leave to help Jikanou but she was stopped by Tomeiiro who grabbed her tail and pulled her back.

-"No, this is not what Jikanou wants, he wants the Saiyans to see them, i'm almost sure"- said Tomeiiro.

-"Shoot, i'm still not used to have this tail !"- angrily replied the girl.

Gohan crawled to the border of the plataform to see what exactly were "they", as he got closer to the tree he heard a strange sound coming from the abyss, something similar to a wicked singing, suddenly a glowing entity passed in front of him almost cutting his hair. The shinning being had no form, it was mere light changing shapes in an odd way, it flied freely in the heights as if it was inmune to the tree's absortion ability. Right behind the living light was Jikanou, following it by jumping from floating rock to floating rock, trying to lure the creature closer to the ring plataform. It was a deadly waltz in which the one who lose the rythm was the one who lose the life. The creature continued flying, dodging the old man's continuous jumping towards it.

-" What is that thing? is it alive?"- asked Vegeta.

-"Yes, it's alive. They're know as Deva-Ourers, the servants of the..."- was the only answer gave by Tomeiiro.

A horrid screech was heard and, as a sinister surprise hold by the destiny, the creature started to morph, the past undefined body turned into a whitish humanoid shape with very long limbs, no face was on its head. Jikanou abruptly stopped, clearly a bad omen, coming from a wise man. The Deva-Ourer slowly hovered in the empty space, getting close to Jikanou, singing a strange high-pitched nonsense. It was preparing to attack. Jikanou's Qigong made the air feel dense, as a purple orb of focused energy appeared in his hands.

-"Annoying things like you are not allowed here"- said the old man, before attacking.

The shot was impressive, a high-powered energy blast that roared as a thunder from heavens, erasing rock after rock on its way, lightening the profound darkness in the heights and surpassing the tree's shine. After the tremendous blast the creature was nowhere to be seen. Jikanou turned back, making a peace sign with his fingers.

-" Good style, you old mummy!"- cheered Pauline.

-"It, it had no chance"- said Gohan -"what was that?"- asked, confused.

Just as Jikanou was jumping back, the bizarre singing returned, the creature was right behind the old mummy, rising its arm, slashing, attacking!

-"What?! the core didn't take any damage?! watch out geezer!"- screamed Pauline, despairing.

-"What's the core?!"- asked Gohan, still lying on the floor.

-"Its the Deva-Ourer's energy source, they are inmortals unless the core its destroyed"- coldly answered Tomeiiro.

Jikanou was hit and smashed through a pair of floating rocks, finally lying stuck on the biggest stone in the area. The Deva-Ourer moved fast as lighting, approaching to the old man in a blink of an eye. Pauline jumped towards the monster and when she was about to strike it, a bright light flashed from the Deva-Ourer's chest, blinding her and making her miss.

-"This is not good, now she won't see the core"- spoke Tomeiiro.

-"But where's the core?! do something!"- yelled Gohan.

-"It's in the center of their chest but it's almost impossible to see in the middle of all that light"- replied the calm warrior.

Suddendly, the Deva-Ourer turned at the Z-Warriors, approaching slowly, hovering and singing. Tomeiiro took a fighting stance but so fast was the creature's movement that in less than a second, it was right in front of him. Tomeiiro recieved a direct impact to the stomach, making him to fall on his knees, the Deva-Ourer grabbed him by his hair and catapulted him to Jikanou so the two collide. The monster rised its hand and a spark of energy started to flicker on it, an attack, a finishing move. Just before the energy was shooted a blast coming from an unknow direction vaporized the Deva-Ourer's core. The creature began to convulse, shrieking and flashing until finally, it expoded in a shower of small sparkling shards. But who saved the group?

Vegeta was panting and sweating, with his arm rised, barely on his feet.

-"No tree can take my power!"- screamed him, before fainting.