Regal looked on as her friends and allies emptied their rooms of the personal belongings and resources they would be taking to their respective ships. Dragon, the dashing and capable stranger, whisked away her rival to a ship belonging to her sworn enemies while lending his own ship so that the constant and reliable Silico siblings could go off on their own. Soon, it was just her, alone in her duty.
This arrangement was suggested by Regal herself; not simply their going in three teams, which meant she would not join Puttee and Gaita so that each team would have two fighters, but also her being the odd one out. She assured everyone that she would be fine with the solitude, and that the teams which formed in this plan were ideal. She even told the team that she was looking forward to it, with nothing to distract her from her training.
Bringing the Rainbow Stocking into the air, Regal had it turned in the direction of a ball located a month away from Cretaceous. Puttee assured her that the ship’s autopilot was reliable enough to get her there, so Regal took a jug of water into the gravity chamber, ready to put herself to work. The only time Regal had actually been alone before was when she left Kami Okome to continue training on her own. It was a somewhat rash decision on her part, and the experience was unusual. She was not aware before how much she relied upon the presence of others, since she had based her whole life around being in close proximity to the Grand Elder. That time alone allowed her to expand upon what she had learned was her greatest joy in Kamiland.
This time, it was different. Though the looming doom of Dr. Munster’s plot gave her a serious reason to work, the entire experience felt prepared and safe, with everyone involved properly equipped, if still challenged greatly. At this moment, she had no idea whether or not she would be strong enough to face the next challenge, or if she would even get to the next challenge. A Demon Clan ship carrying Malacol could arrive the next day and slaughter her so she doesn’t interfere in the ball hunt. Even mechanical failure could spell death, since she was no mechanic.
Regal turned the gravity up to 100G and pushed these thoughts from her mind. No matter what could happen, she was certain that she could get stronger if she put in the work, and that doing so would help her avoid defeat at the hands of more powerful enemies she was certain were lurking. Though Malacol appeared in her imagination as an invincible devil, she had to believe that Malacol was just a Namekian like her. She had to believe.
For the next few weeks, Regal worked at 100G. She expected to increase the gravity after a while, but found her growth slowed noticeably without the Devil’s Tincture. Beyond that, it was a large milestone to even get to 100G, and she found there was a lot more waiting for her at that level.
A little over three weeks in, and Regal took a more extended break than usual. She learned she needed to force herself to stop sometimes to avoid injury. Going up to the cockpit, she looked at the navigation monitor and found that her course was changed from when she started out. Alarmed, she checked the logs. Apparently, two weeks after she left, the ball she was locked onto was removed from its location, and the Rainbow Stocking simply changed direction to follow the enemy ship without notifying her. The enemy ship was now stopped on a nearby planet, where Regal would land within a few hours. Incredibly angry with the sudden shock, Regal spent those hours meditating, hoping her body would relax and rest enough from her training by then, besides her need to work out her frustration with the unknown detour. She focused her mind on her goals and what it would mean for the Earth and herself to be able to revive those killed by Conch.
A few hours later, she arrived at the designated planet. She looked down over the surface as the ship came to a landing. It was beginning to develop life, and had a lush coat of freshly-evolved flora on the surface, but lacked any intelligent life. The only signs of civilization were the clashing chis Regal felt near where the computer said the Dragon Ball was. She set out, ready to test her progress.
Once she got there, she found a field strewn with the bodies of Demon Clan soldiers and Saiyan warriors. A few more stood and watched as their commanders fought with one another. The Namekian had the edge in the fight, and both had far greater chi than Super Saiyan Hedarrow.
“Look!” one of the Saiyan soldiers shouted, spotting Regal. Everyone else turned to note her.
“Ah, the Grand Elder’s toy soldier,” the Demon Clan commander sneered. “Attack, soldier!”
“Kill that intruder!” concurred the Saiyan commander.
Soon, Regal was swarmed with presumed cannon fodder. At first, it appeared that these soldiers were a bit more than average, as they possessed more complex teamwork than most groups. However, Regal was left unimpressed with the Demon Clan’s inability to coordinate themselves around the strategies of the Saiyans, and vice versa. Her initial appraisal of the two groups was accurate, after all. One by one, Regal tore through the lot until she was the only one left standing.
Just as she had finished, she saw the Demon Clan commander slam the Saiyan commander into the ground. She then fired a massive energy wave, drilling a hole into the bedrock. Deep in that hole, a charred Saiyan body could be seen. She turned to Regal and sighed. “You know, good help is so hard to come by,” she said. “Those soldiers were better trained than most. Well, I’m Mantle, and the ball we’re fighting over is in the Saiyan ship, as you likely know. I’ll kill you personally and claim it. I’m more than enough for you, and I have…reliable backup en route. You alone are not enough to topple Malacol’s empire.” Mantle charged in, starting out the fight at full power. Regal had trouble keeping pace, unsure even what she was capable of after training alone for so long. Mantle’s assault was intense and overwhelming, keeping Regal entirely on the defensive. She managed to keep up, but it was difficult.
A flash of thought went through Regal’s mind, an image of Torta looking at her struggle with disappointment in his eyes. It was a trick she used to keep herself on track while training alone the first time, and it helped here, as well. Marshalling her senses, she found an opening and took the offensive. With this initiative, Regal was able to push Mantle back and even deal some real damage. Mantle cursed this unexpected power. For a moment, Regal felt some confidence, that perhaps her training had paid off, and could continue to pay off. After knocking away Mantle’s arms, Regal cried, “Uriel!” and burned away one of Mantle’s eyes with eye beams.
Then an unexpected chi blast knocked Regal over. She looked to her side and found another Demon Clan ship arrived, and from it came another officer. Regal noted right away the red shirt she wore under her gi, a departure from other officers’ uniforms. Mantle turned to this officer and said, “Well, hello there, Scallop! I’m really glad to see you! This dumb slug is proving far too annoying, so I could use some help ending this quickly. We have a schedule to keep, after all.” Mantle turned to Regal and smirked. “Malacol always wins!”
Seeing this pair of formidable enemies and their matching upturned antennae, Regal lost all the confidence she had begun to feel. Victory over Mantle already felt a questionable prospect, so adding on Scallop made victory an impossible dream. All those years by the Grand Elder’s side, training to overcome these enemies, felt wasted; she didn’t even truly know how strong they were, until now.
Scallop looked down her nose at Regal, a look of utter contempt. Mantle composed herself. “Come on, Scallop,” Mantle invited. “Let’s kill this whelp together!”
“Sure thing,” Scallop agreed, charging up an energy blast in her hand. She fired this blast at Mantle, an opening volley in a ferocious attack on her compatriot.
Mantle was baffled and pushed back. “What are you thinking?!” she demanded.
“I will no longer be a servant to Malacol’s will!” Scallop said. “She’s a despot who will drive the universe to ruin!”
Regal was shellshocked. The battle raged on in the skies above her. She simply couldn’t believe it was happening at all. It had never occurred to her that a member of the Demon Clan could rebel against Malacol. It was enough to shake her worldview to its foundations. She just kept looking up at the antennae of the two fighters, proof that it was a fight between children of Malacol.
Scallop had a good showing at the beginning of the fight, having made the most of her surprise attack. However, that surprise was far from enough to carry her to victory. Scallop knew it was always going to be a hard battle, from the moment Mantle radioed for backup, but she still thought she would fare better. She wasn’t even able to wound Mantle in her opening strikes. Soon enough, Mantle had gotten Scallop in a chokehold, squeezing so tight that Scallop worried her head would pop off. Mantle laughed. “Malacol is going to get a kick out of this!” she said. “And me so quickly and loyally killing a traitor will help me rise in the ranks! And to sweeten the pot, I’ll kill Regal in a few seconds, too!”
Scallop felt herself fall to the ground, the pressure on her neck vanished. She looked up to see Regal, back on her feet and looking far more imposing and commanding than before, engaging in an even fight with Mantle. Though she could swear it was safe to count Regal out just moments before, she now looked like the contender to bet on.
Having seen this unusual turn of events, Regal’s hope burned brighter than it ever had. Life had endless possibilities, and nothing was guaranteed, even the undying loyalty of the Demon Queen’s own children to their parent. Regal let go of her doubts once more and felt the full force of her spirit in her fists, pounding Mantle into her proper place below her as an inferior warrior. Mantle was knocked high into the sky, indignant at this outrage. She charged up a massive energy bomb. “I’ll destroy this entire planet right here and now!” she announced. “I’ll sift through the rubble for the Dragon Ball!”
Regal furrowed her brow, impressed with the size of the blast, and Scallop cowered in fear. As Mantle released this bomb, Regal confidently held her fist out at her side, calling out, “Jophiel!” and firing a massive energy wave. The wave hit the bomb and, with its narrower tip, pierced into it, tunneling through Mantle’s planet destroyer. It came out the other side and burned a hole through Mantle’s torso, causing her bomb to dissipate like so much smoke.
With Mantle’s body hitting the ground, Scallop was left speechless, unable to process both her gratitude and indignation. Regal landed beside her and looked down upon her with suspicion. Scallop quickly rose to her feet and attacked Regal. “I’d rather die than give into the wicked words of the false Grand Elder’s follower!” she said.
Regal sighed, deciding to entertain this charade for a moment. Having seen her abilities up close, Regal considered Scallop close to Spats, in rough terms, far from the strength needed to get through the fights ahead, let alone this fight she lost. Her guts to jump into the fight anyway made Regal chuckle in delight. “I’ll get all the Dragon Balls for myself!” Scallop insisted as she fought, Regal defending effortlessly. “I’ll take Malacol’s place and rule the universe benevolently! The Grand Elder refused, and that’s why Malacol rose to power! You must be similarly weak in conviction!”
With a single arm lock, Regal held Scallop in place. She leaned into Scallop’s ear. “No matter what you want, I’m going to take you on my ship and use you as a training partner,” she said. “We’re both being chased by the Demon Clan now, so we can be chased together. If you refuse to cooperate, and thus refuse to get strong enough to win a fight for a change, I’ll happily use you as a punching bag. Understand?”
“Fine, fine!” agreed Scallop, calming down. “But me rebelling against Malacol is my own choice! It doesn’t make me your ally!”
Regal rolled her eyes as she dragged Scallop back to the Rainbow Stocking. A smile creeped across her face as she did so. Though Malacol remained beyond her reach, she somehow saw this defector as a source of real hope that Namek could return to the way it once was.
All original story, all original characters! Check out Dragon Ball ‘Redux’!
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Life in the Gutters 