Chương 9: Chapter Nine
Excusing yourself you made your way to the little secluded area where the hitman usually hangs out. What he does all day, you have no idea but every now and then he seems to be blinking in and out of existence.
As you approach him he opens his eyes and speaks up. "Every time I turn my back, you seem to grow stronger."
"Is that a problem?" You ask him.
"No. Not at all. So what's with all the commotion?"
"Not much. Gods of Destruction arguing with each other. Want a burger?" He takes the wrapped little sandwich but doesn't open it.
"You're... not gonna eat that?"
"I'm not hungry."
"O-kay... Anyway, Champa says he got an assignment for you. Apparently some schmucks from Universe 9 are playing hookie.
He wants you to hunt them down."
"Dead or alive?"
"He said:either or."
"And what about payment?"
"The usual."
"I see... Strange. People hopping from one universe to another is rare. And you almost never see groups doing it because you get caught easier. Either they are desperate or very foolish."
"Did you meet them during the tournament?"
"Can't say I have. They weren't particularly note worthy and dropped out first. Apparently they also have the lowest mortal level out of all the universes."
"With gods like this... Can't say I'm surprised."
"So you noticed it too. Their God of Destruction is way too lenient. Spare the rod, spoil the child. Meanwhile their supreme Kai is cruel and maniacal who creates only harsh worlds and seeds it with even worse lifeforms."
"So... Should I tell Champa you accept?"
"Yes... Would you be interested in joining me?
It'd be an excellent learning opportunity for you."
"Sounds like a plan!"
"Good... Then follow me."
Doing as you're told you board Hits weird, transparent cube ship. As you take off you start questioning him about your destination.
"So... do you know where we're going? I mean the universe is a pretty big place..."
"No. I can only guess. These beings are from universe 9, a notoriously harsh place where the only way to survive is through extreme savagery or cunning. Based on that we can safely rule out any uninhabited planets, since it's doubtful they can sustain themselves.
So if I were them I'd look for someplace on the peripheries where I can hide and the indigenous people are weak enough for me to steal from them. That already narrows it down a decent amount. There's only a handful of planets which are advanced enough for their needs but weak enough to not cause much trouble."
"So... that's how they survive in that universe?"
"Yes. That's the only way to survive.
What little there is you must take it by force."
"Then they must be pretty tough."
"No... Not exactly. A hostile environment can indeed foster power but universe 9 does not promote strength. It promotes treachery, deceit and doing whatever it takes to come out on top. Not necessarily power. Out of their entire team I'd say only three of them are somewhat dangerous. I'll handle those guys so don't worry. The entire rest however... I wouldn't be surprised if they are the only ones they could scrape off the bottom of the barrel."
"So... a rag tag group of whoever they could get on a short notice. But I assume they are still somewhat tough."
Hit nods. "So don't put your guard down."
"Okay... so how do I know who to look for?"
"Sit down. I'll give you their description."
Hit then proceeded to give you a pretty detailed description of every one of Universe 9's fighters. "Sadly that's all I have. They dropped out so fast I couldn't get a good read on their powers."
"Holy crap! You managed to memorize all that? Just by glancing at them?!"
"It's part of the job. Creating psychological profiles of the targets and being able to memorize their unique details are both necessary for assassination. Speaking of which..." Hit then stands up as you arrive on a small and seemingly desolate planet.
"We're here. If I was in their place this is where I would hide. Planet Arcosia."
"Looks a bit... cold."
"The arcosians are mainly craftsmen.
They can't put up much of a resistance. Not against trained fighters at least. Since they rely on weaponry and armor to fight."
"Huh... sounds familiar. So they are pretty weak?"
"Yes. But they tolerate extreme temperatures well, neither heat nor cold affects them much.
So they mainly construct their homes underground and use the planets geothermal energy to craft highly durable armor. They mainly rely on selling their products to the Sadala Force. Also their backs are covered in thick scales so you should aim for their stomach if you want to kill them."
"Waaaay too much information there Hit."
"Hmmm... I see. In any case, you'll have to know what you are about to get into. That is... if you want to split up."
"You want to go separately?"
"We can cover more ground that way. And I work better alone."
You land on the planet and as soon as you step out the confines of the ship you feel the cold air of the planet bite deep into your body. Shivering you start rubbing your exposed arms as you look at Hit. "Y-Y-Y-You could've warned me we were coming to an ice planet!
How are your nuts not frozen?!"
"Hmmm... watch closely." Pocketing his hands the assassin closes his eyes and begins to focus. You see his body vibrating more and more intensely.
Nodding you attempt to mimic him and vibrate your body using the power of your mind. Heat slowly begins to build up in your body, keeping the cold air of the planet from sapping the life out of you. "Phew.... Much better!"
"Keep that up at all times. And don't think about putting up a barrier for insulation."
"Why?"
"How would you solve exhaling? Or inhaling?"
"Huh... okay. So... we split up now?"
Hit nods and points to the right. "Judging by the tracks there is an Arcosian settlement in that direction. I suggest you look that way. I'll explore the mountains ahead for any caves they might hide in."
Following through with the assassins instructions you start following the tracks and stay on the lookout for anything out the ordinary that might give you a clue about where your targets are. A part of you hopes that you find these people before Hit does. Maybe that way they'll have a chance to live through this. Then again, maybe the assassin has his way of taking someone out non-lethally.
Walking on the snow covered roads you eventually stop when you spot something that blends into the surrounding area yet still manages to stick out like a sore thumb. A large amount of icy spikes stand out of the ground. Even without knowing how your enemies look, such a thing would still be odd seeing how there were no signs of ice in this place, only snow. Focusing on the thing you confirm that there is indeed a consciousness behind that pile of icicles.
Smiling to yourself you start pondering on how to handle this.
"I hope you're just taking a nap there!
'Cause if you were planning on ambushing me we're gonna have some problems."
The ground rumbles under you as the pile of ice begins to move. This walking blue mound towers over you as it speaks up with a deep, booming voice. "You... saw me?"
"Not really. But it's really not that hard to figure out something's up when suddenly there's a big block of ice in the middle of nowhere.
Kudos for trying though..."
He looks closely at you and cracks begin to form on his icy body that look like a frown.
"Grrrrr... Blonde hair! SAIYAN!" The big thing raises its fist and prepares to smash you.
Feeling his intent you dodge to the right and watch as he harmlessly strikes the ground.
"Hey hey hey! What's your problem man?
What did I ever do to you?!"
"Your kind killed me and my entire universe!
I was just gonna rob you! But now I'm gonna kill you!"
You frown at this. Seems like he has some beef with the Saiyans. Not good.
The abominable snowman charges you and goes on a rampage, smashing everything that gets in his way. Luckily for you he is not exactly what you'd call fast so you can easily speed blitz him using your TK movement.
Realizing that he can't hit you he stretches out his arm and begins shooting innumerable amounts of small pellets that freeze anything upon impact.
As a few drops hit your skin you figure out his plan. He wants to slowly encase you bit by bit in ice. Well you have something to say about that. Flexing your muscles you pump up the vibrations in your body, causing the frozen droplets to melt. "Heh... not a bad move.
But unfortunately home field advantage won't be enough!"
"STOP BUZZING AROUND!" He screams at you as he begins to increase his power output, shooting out more freezing beams at you.
"No. And by the way, I don't know if you know or if you care but I'm not Saiyan!" Flying around the place you continue to avoid most of Hyssops attacks. "But even if I were... I'd like you to know something! Your universe, the home which you left by the way, got resurrected! Alongside every other universe, including mine!" You then appear before him and stare him in the eye. The intensity of your stare is enough to give him a pause. "And just so you know... I experienced annihilation twice. So spare me your sob story! You are not special!"
"Y-You... You arrogant bastard!" He mutters.
"You talk like you know everything! WELL YOU DON'T!" And in that moment you witnessed something you never thought would see, water spouting from a rock. "The others... may have left because they were sick of our universe! But I didn't! I had no choice!
I left behind my home, my family! Because I was a threat to them!"
"Wh-what?"
"How do you think people took it? That we lost? That we failed them?!" Hyssop continues to sob. "They hate me because I lost! They want to hurt me because I killed them! And if I didn't leave, they'd hurt my family too!" *sob sob*
The giant falls to his knees and his tears turn into snow as they fall on the ground as he keeps sobbing. Meanwhile you stand above him just staring at this broken mess. You don't feel any ill intent from him, just pure melancholy.
"But... why would you leaving them stop your universe from killing your family?"
He looks up, his eyes still swollen from his recent breakdown. "It didn't... But I know one thing. That those wish granting balls are here, in this universe. If I gather them... I could save my family!"
Unfortunately for him AND you, this isn't really relevant to your current job. Only in the way that he's perfectly exposed for a killing blow right now.
You kneel down next to him and place a hand on his shoulder. "Look... I see you're genuine so I'll be honest with you. I'm here on behalf of not one but TWO gods of destruction."
He visibly reels back upon hearing that but you quickly calm him down. "But you're lucky you bumped into me, because my partner probably wouldn't care much about your story.
I can't promise much because... it's the gods of destruction! But I can promise to try and help you!"
"Truly?"
"Yeah... Yeah sure. But listen... You'll need to come with me peacefully for that to happen.
If you resist the other guy will just take your heads. Now come with me. I got some food back at the ship. You can munch on some while we discuss things further."
You help up the massive iceberg and lead him back to Hits funny little cube ship. Along the way you try to make some small talk with your new "friend". "So... about that whole family deal. I just want you to know that... they are probably in a better place. I've been dead once you know."
"Really?"
You nod. "My world got destroyed once.
But it was wished back by those things you are looking for. And I can tell you from experience that it's pleasant on the other side."
Hyssop then stops in his tracks and looks down on the ground. "I... thank you for your kind words Not-Saiyan. Knowing my family is not suffering makes me glad..."
"Hey, no problem. But... can we get going?
I am working through the cold but it's still not a pleasant experience."
"No..."
"Excuse you?"
"You say you have food on that ship, correct?
How much?"
"How much you need?"
The cracks on Hyssops face form a frown as he furrows his brows. "Then... come with me.
If you truly want to help. If your promise is not just empty words... I'll take you to the others.
At least... to the ones I know."
Following the big guy into the forest covered in a blanket of snow you find the entrance to what appears to be an old mine of sorts, complete with rails on which the mine carts could move around. He generates a glowing ball of raw ki in his hand and gestures for you to follow him.
Keeping your distance you allow him to lead you deep into the shaft while making sure you aren't walking right into a trap. The cold wind blowing through the tunnels combined with the dripping water caused by the thermal vents underground result in quite a damp and unpleasant environment in here. You shudder to think how desperate they must be that they holed up in here.
Eventually Hyssop enters into a larger chamber and raises his voice. "Hop! Sorrel!
I'm back!"
You hear some let out a loud sneeze before you see two figures appear from the shadows. "Uuuuugh... Hyssop? Did you find any food?"
"No, but I-"
The two girls however don't wait for their friend to finish as they spot you suspiciously following him from afar. "A SAIYAN!"
The girl that looks like a walking rabbit shouts. "HYSSOP GET DOWN!" And she fires a ball of energy right at you.
"Oh for fucks sake!" You raise your barrier and take the ki blast as it explodes in your face.
Grinning under the smoke you speak up.
"Well so much for diplomacy I guess!"
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