Zach and Kami training 2

[Zach]

Continuing to circle around the pillar with the monster on the other side, Zach noted, unhappily so, that Kami wasn’t moving. ‘Well, when stuff starts falling out of the ceiling we’ll see how long hw wants to stay there and watch.’ the boy thought to himself and turned his full attention back to the flying lizard. The beast had apparently jumped from the outer wall of the magma chamber to the pillar it’s self and was trying to encircle the top of the structure with it’s tail. This would make things more complicated as he’d expected the dragon to stick to the out wall.

It was then that the beast started trying to fan debris and of all things, lava at him, forcing Zach to cover up as best he could to avoid being burned. This encounter was already out of hand simply with the element of the molten rock bellow so the boy saw no reason to hold anything back, especially when a sizable blob of rock splattered across his bracers and chest piece. Thankfully he’d had the foresight to use the protective barriers and the lava dripped off harmlessly, not that his skin would have scarred from something as petty as a splattering of semi-liquid rock.

Still keeping himself covered, Zach tensed up ever muscle in his body and growled as he forced himself to ascend into his transformed state. He’d try to avoid killing the monster if it was possible, but if the beast tried anything he was going to make it pay for it. At the teen’s crimson aura billowed out around him, Zach accelerated around the side of the pillar, intending to overtake the lizard and lose a punch into it’s side with enough force to make it think twice about messing with him. He may not be bigger, but he was going to show this beastie who the alpha was.

[Geurin]

Kami watched as Zach ascended into his transformed state. It wasnt uncommon for him to rush things, but in this case it might play to his favor. The dragon didnt have any sort of transformation, or power up, and so it would be left defenseless to zachs now superior speed in strength.

His fist made an impact into the dragon so hard that a loud snap could be heard throughout the chamber, followed by the beast falling from the pedestal, unfortunately taking the pillar with him. The punch had been made with such force that the pillar snapped, and the dragon ball, as well as the dragon went falling towards the lava below. While the dragon had been known to live in and around the lava, and was even seen coming out, the dragon ball would fair the same, sinking deep into the murky mantle of the earth, and becoming unobtainable to even the most skilled warrior, as the elements would tare them apart if they even tried,

Zach would have to act quickly, as the ball was already so close to the lava that grabbing it could burn the skin, any further and zach would have to bring himself into the depths of what could only be described as hell in order to get the ball.

Kami watched all the while, Zach had taken the hits of minor debris very well, his armor absorbing much of the blast, and zach's sheer adrenaline taking care of the rest. Now Kami would see how quickly Zach could think on his feet.

[Zach]

Landing his punch uncontested, Zach was surprised to see the beast fall away, he’d not intended to hit it so hard as to seriously injure it, just give it something to think about. Instead the monster was decidedly frailer then it looked and tumbled towards the bubbling lava bellow. Worse still the stone pillar it’d been clinging to, fractured under the sheer load of the beast’s shifting weight and was also plummeting towards the lava and with it, the dragon ball.

“Aw crap crap crap…” the teen repeated the obscenity over and over as he knew what he had to do and quickly dove after the drag and the ball. He couldn’t very well let the monster get fried after Kami had asked him not to kill it and certainly couldn’t let the ball fall into the lava. Pouring on all the speed he could, Zach managed to outrun the relatively slow, thirty two feet per second downward acceleration of the ball, very nearly ending up plunging into the lava himself. As the ball fell within reach, along with it several hundred tons of rock, Zach swung his leg in a soccer style kick, sending the ball and a good gallon or two of liquid rock arcing back into the stifling air and towards the ledge Kami was viewing the encounter from. Thankfully his body armor covered his legs completely else he would have lost his right one on the dangerous maneuver.

Zach didn’t have any time to waste though, the winged lizard beast was still falling towards the lava and it was only thanks to it’s greater surface area that it hadn’t arrived at the same time as the ball. ‘Ok, let’s hope yours doesn’t come off like other lizards.’ The blonde thought to himself as his aura exploded beneath him and he propelled himself upwards, passing much of the lizard’s bulk before making a grab for it’s tail. The appendage though was so thick and the beast so massive that he couldn’t simply grab it with his hands, if he attempted to do so he’d either not get a hold of it at all, or end up ripping out two fist sized chunks of it’s flesh a half second before it plunged into the lava. Instead Zach intentionally crashed into the tail, wrapping his arms around it and squeezing it’s tightly against his chest while still applying his full ability to fly. He’d never carried such a load while flying before and wasn’t sure how cooperative the dragon would be, nor did he know if Kami would be able to catch the ball he’d sent flying over the ledge so Zach was highly motivated to dump his cargo as quickly as possible. That in mind, the teen ascended as fast as he could for the ceiling of the chamber and toward a wall with the beast might be able to grab a hold.

[Geurin]

Zach's efforts were not in vein, although his aim was off in such a fast movement, the ball did fly towards Kami, and as it did, Kami would outstretch his Namekian arm to grab it from several meters away. However the game of catch did not appear to be over as the large dragon made its way up to the ledge. Kami knowing that he would need to help with this one as well stretched his second arm out.Grasping the dragons right wing he was able to lighten the load that Zach was carrying, however it was not enough to complete the process.

Kami began to focus, the strain on his arm getting heavier, and right before Zach's eyes, the Namekian's arms began to grow much larger, first doubling in size, and the tripling, until finally the massive dragon was being pulled up by Kami's outstretched hand.

Pulling the now very docile dragon over the ledge and next to him, Kami found his arm retracting, and dropping considerably in size. That technique always did take a lot out of him. Grasping his staff in order to keep himself standing, and holding the shining orange orb in the other hand Kami couldnt help but smile, and even laugh. So much trouble over this small gem.

[Zach]

With a face full of dragon’s tail, Zach couldn’t see if Kami managed to catch the ball or anything else the Namekian might be up to. After a few moments of hauling the beast’s mass up by himself, Zach felt the load lighten fractionally and after another moment, managed to get the beast onto a ledge where it could take hold. Surprisingly the monster didn’t try to wriggle it way out of Zach’s grip, whether it was by understanding that he’d just saved it from the lava or a simple instinctual reaction to being picked up by the tail, the boy didn’t care, it had cooperated and now he was going to get Kami and himself as well as that ball out of dodge.

Letting go of the beast’s tail, Zach pulled away quickly and turned back towards the ledge they’d entered from and caught sight of potentially one of the most bizarre imaged the boy had ever witnessed. Kami’s arms were stretched out like giant rubber bands and in the process of retracting to their normal length. One held the dragon ball and the other quickly grasped the green man’s cane. Zach’s mentor looked like a wreck and the boy didn’t want to leave him here any longer, the heat alone would eventually kill them. Zach had been granted some additional tolerance to the stifling warmth of the volcanic cavern by his ascended state but he even he was still sweating profusely and starting to feel a little light headed.

Descending quickly to the ledge, Zach wanted simply to scoop the green man up in his arms and carry him out quickly, but felt he’d likely protest. Instead the teen put his arm under one of Kami’s and helped tame some of his weight. “Here, let me help you.” Zach offered and started towards the cave opening. He hoped Kami wouldn’t resist his assistance and even more strongly so, hoped the beast would leave them alone as they left. On the chance that it didn’t though, Zach remained alert and ascended, ready to turn back in a flash and hammer the monster again if it made a move for them.

[Geurin]

Zach's quick maneuvering impressed Kami yet again. It was clear that Zach had grown much from his beginnings as a student of the victory school. No it was more than that, Zach had mastered the human Ascension. He was able to turn it on and off as he pleased, and that was an ability that did not come easily. Zach had mastered something that often took warriors their entire life to do. This came as no surprise to Kami, he knew zach to be the strongest of his race by far, this was just another step towards the inevitable strength that would come to him.

"No thank you, I will handle myself from here"

He said subsiding his earlier laughter as the boy offered him some assistance. Kami jumped onto the massive dragon beast that they had beaten only moments ago, he had no fear of the creature, and even more strange the dragon didnt appear upset at all by his sudden decision to mount him.

"Come now, lets get out of her. On the double no time to waste"

At first it may have seemed as though Kami was speaking to zach, but that would quickly be proven false as the large dragon, whom had now regained his breath from being punched so hard in the side, sat up straight, and with a loud growl pushed both wings to the ground as hard as it could, propelling Kami and the dragon into the sky, even higher than zach initially.

But Kami would bring their altitude to a similar height once they were away from the volcano. Kami needed to speak once more with zach before they continued, so that he could further explain his job in the GSF.

"Hop on, he wont bite...this time"

Kami said, patting the dragons backside as if to suggest that Zach have a seat on the beast. The dragon appeared to be listening well to Kami's commands, and showed no signs of hostility, save the occasional growl. Kami held out his hand to take zach's, and in his other, held the orange dragon ball tightly.

[Zach]

Standing back when Kami rejected his offer of assistance, Zach frowned slightly as anyone would but didn’t take it personally, he knew well the value of doing things by one’s self and wouldn’t deny Kami that unless the green man were in danger of injury. He was though needless to say, surprised, nay astonished when the Namekian not only approached the beast but mounted the infernal monster and proceeded to not only talk to it, but ride the thing up into air and out of the opening that led to the volcano’s caldera. It took the boy a few moments to process the sheer absurdity of what he’d just seen, the frail, old man riding on the back of a beast that moments ago was trying to kill them both.

Zach could only conclude that the green man had been in communication with the beast the whole time and that this was some sort of outlandish test of his devotion, or now that the beast had been subdued, he was able to exert some form of control over the creature, again probably through his telepathy. Although Zach seriously doubted even that Royd fellow could exert such control over the monster so it was far more likely that Kami has not only known about the beast for some time, but that the things was a trained pet, trained to scare the hell out of anyone who comes into the cave and then serve as a flying transport.

Lifting off after Kami and his new ride, Zach accelerated after them and pulled up along side the green man, matching the beast’s speed and for the moment, remaining in his transformed that. “If you don’t mind Kami, I would rather fly by myself. Not that I don’t trust a monster that was trying to kill me two minutes ago, but I don’t trust anything that tries to kill me.” the boy replied and continued to cruise along within earshot of the Namekian.

[Geurin]

"Ha ha ha"

A hearty laugh as Zach commented about not wanting to ride the dragon. His logic was infallible, and completely reasonable, so Kami knew the only way to fix this was to explain the purpose of this exercise.

"Zach, as Kami I can relate with and understand all creatures on this Earth. I happen to have been there when this little guy was born from his egg, I have a fancy for dragons. And so when the Dragon Ball was located, he was nice enough to alert me, and keep it safe. You see this dragon like many other creatures is a product of this planet, and has a love for it. The reason I wouldnt move in the cave was that I was perfectly hidden from view, if the Dragon knew I was there he would have simply allowed us to take the Dragon Ball, but I know that you have been wanting more training, and rightfully so."

Kami had hoped that this would quell zach's apprehension, as he patted the dragons back once more to invite him on. The shouting had become a strain and although Kami could keep it up, he preferred not to do so.

However even if Zach refused again Kami would continue, not wanting to waste any more time.

"Zach as you saw when the dragon was raised, there were seven balls all with a number of stars, this is the first, the 1 star dragon ball. If you can gather all 7 of these, then yes, I can promise you, that the Dragon is more than capable of bringing everyone you once knew back to life."

Kami would let that sink in a bit before continueing, He was certain that Zach would still have his doubts, but Kami knew the dragons limitations, and reviving the murdered was something that he excelled at. If anything it was one of the main reasons he created the dragon as he knew the upcoming years would be deadly.

Kami Continued

"Zach Touketsuki Knows about the dragon balls. I am unaware of if he knows that they are here on earth, but he knows of their existance, and we cannot give him the opportunity to find them, He will do terrible things with them. Zach I want to make you the person in charge of locating all seven. If you can do this, then once we defeat Suki you can use them to grant your wish, You will have earned it!"

Kami stopped, he had dropped a lot on zach at this time, and was putting a lot of faith and trust into the boy. Now all that he could do was to wait and see if the teen would rise to the occasion.

[Zach]

Flying along side the dragon and making sure to stay clear of it’s beating wings, Zach listed to what Kami was half telling and half yelling to him. True he would be close enough under normal circumstances to hear the green man just fine, but between the rushing air of their forward flight and the rhythmic beating of the beast’s wings, the Namekian was being forced to shout his response to the teen. He listened at the man explained that the encounter had been a test, confirming his earlier suspicion and then continued on to explain that a few things that suddenly made very little sense.

“I don’t understand.” Zach started and he closed in and placed a hand on Kami’s shoulder, but still didn’t land, just getting close enough so they wouldn’t have to yell at each other. “What do you mean ‘he?’ Before in the cave you called it a ‘she.’ Also, you were in full view of the thing the whole time, it tried to squash you remember?” the teen responded, hoping the man wasn’t going batty on him.

That till didn’t believe the dragon balls had the power to bring back an entire town but as Kami explained that Suki was very likely going to be looking for them as well, he couldn’t resist the urge to put a monkey wrench into that monster’s plans. He was also happy to hear the man was finally charging him with some responsibility, although whether or not it was just busy work to get him out of the way, Zach did not know. It didn’t matter much though, he could always keep up his personal training regiment and then search for the balls in the afternoons after his training. The question now was how would he find them?

“Kami, I have anther question… How exactly am I supposed to find the other six? I doubt they all landed in the lairs of your pet dragons and the world is a big place.” the blonde asked as he continued to glide alongside the green man.

[Geurin]

Kami was still entertained by the entire conversation. Zach had picked up on a few things that Kami simply hadnt thought he would ever have to explain, and yet he did.

"Dragon's are interesting creatures, and in this case they produce A-sexually, meaning that there is a single gender, I simply pick and choose the one that best suites me, and that is how I decide. The suffix really isnt that important. And as for the dragon well think back, did you notice it never directly attacked you?"

Flashback to the battle would show that the Dragons attack was very ambiguous and simply threw out a large amount of wind as opposed to much else. The dragon never directly looked at Zach, tried to dodge him, or counter after being hit.

"This dragon zach, is blind"

This little bombshell may have been a shock, but it was true, the dragon was indeed blind. It couldnt see a thing. It used its senses of slight, and touch to tell it where to go and what to do. Smell wasnt an option as zach -not to say he smelt bad but...- did smell more strongly than Kami. So long as Kami stood in the breezeway, his smell would be swept through the tunnel in the opposite direction, and the dragon would have no clue of his presence.

Zach however had monopolized the dragons attention, causing it to fight back as much as it could, but being unable to see him meant that once he had run around the entire room, and was no longer on the ground, the beast would be unable to locate him, and thus would take a direct hit.

With the situation explained, Kami tackled the next question, one that he unfortunately didnt have the answer to.

"It is a vast world out there Zach, and there are many warriors like you. The balls are drawn to power, seek out the power and you will find what you are looking for"

This vague phrase was unfortunately all that Kami had to give him. The dragon balls were often found by those with a purpose, whether that purpose be good or evil. If Zach would search and put himself in the middle of things, he could perhaps find those whom the dragonballs had chosen.

[Zach]

As Zach maintained his flight path right next to Kami, holding onto the green man’s shoulder to aid in making sure he didn’t bump into him, the blonde listened to the Namkeian’s explanation for the earlier inconsistencies he’d noticed. They seemed to make sense to the boy and after a moment even made him feel a little regretful for having hit the beast as hard as he had. Still there didn’t seem to be any lingering effects from the punch so he didn’t let it bother him beyond that initial thought.

What did bother him was the vague nature of Kami’s answer to his second question. There were many different kinds of power and as he’d just seen, for all he knew, these dragon balls were attracted to sources of heat, they had after all just found on inside of a volcano. The possibility of thermal energy aside, there was electrical energy to be considered, the entire world ran on that so it was possible for the balls to be attracted to power plants. Ki energy was also a possibility, however while Zach could used maps to find volcanoes and power plants, there was yet to exist a map that could locate people of power. The convoluted possibilities continued even from there as power was not necessarily just people possessed of immense strength like himself, there was also political power, financial power and so on.

Zach got the distinct impression that Kami was being to vague because he didn’t actually know how to find the balls himself. It was far more likely that the dragon had stumbled upon the first one purely by accident. Still, he’d do as he was instructed, at least until a random search became obviously pointless, perhaps at that point Kami would be more forthcoming with his responses. Zach was also pondering the possibility of the balls being attracted to physically strong people. He knew that others had achieved the ability to sense energy and thus could detect energy signatures other then their own at a distance, but he’d never developed that ability, the only energy he’d ever been able to detect and manipulate was his own. If it came down to this specific possibility he would have to ask for more guidance, specifically directions to his destination. Once he was there it should be a simple matter to locate the person of interest, hopefully. Otherwise, and he dreaded the prospect, he might have to enlist the assistance of one of the others to work with him as a blood hound of sorts. Hopefully it would not come to that.

“Your answer is a little vague there. There are a lot of different kinds of power. Where should I start?” Zach asked as he continued to fly along next to Kami and his reptilian ride.

[Geurin]

Kami could sense Zach's blatant skepticism, the boy had little trust for Kami and that was becoming more evident the longer they stayed together. Kami hoped that this search with the dragon balls would help him find not only the dragonballs, but also find himself, and a trust in Kami.

It wasnt to unreasonable, and once Zach witnessed the dragon granting him the ultimate wish, he would be unable to deny not only the power that Kami held, but also the love that he had for both zach, and the rest of the world, And that all of his actions were done in this love.

"I would search the ruins of central, or the survivors in satin, they seem to be working hard to keep themselves alive. Certainly that is a greater power than any, a people working together to build up their society to its former glory. Perhaps you will find something there."

Kami said this as the dragon approached the lookout, They were almost there and so if Zach was going to leave, he would need to do it soon, or find himself back on the floating platform with Kami. But before he would leave Kami would say one last thing to him.

"I wish you would trust me Zach, I care for you deeply, and I have great faith and trust in you to give you such an important task. If we dont gather the dragon balls before Touketsuki, we will likely all perish. Do not doubt yourself, or your value to the Earths defense, your job is just as important if not more so than staying on the lookout and training"

He meant every word. Zach was a valiant warrior, and without him things would become far more difficult, and possibly impossible. Hopefully his words had rung true in the teen's heart, and he would be able to find the dragon balls, for faith would be his guide.

[Zach]

“I trust you enough to stay around don’t I?” Zach responded to Kami’s statements in reverse order. “If I didn’t you probably know I would have headed off with Captain Ryota. But Earth’s forces needed organization and you were the only one stepping up to the task. That and there was that little detail of saving my life.” the teen continued as he flew alongside the green man. Now that they were approaching the lookout and the dragon seemed docile enough, Zach dropped out of his transformed state, straining slightly to maintain the same flight speed as his energy output dropped.

“And I take it the backpack is in case I find more then one of these balls while I’m out?” the boy asked rhetorically, otherwise why would he have been given it? “If you don’t need me for anything else here then I’ll set out right now, though if you don’t mind I want to be back tomorrow for some training of my own, have to keep in shape you know.”



{Sorry about the length, bad day yesterday followed by bad sleep. I take it we are nearing the end of the topic?}

[Geurin]

Kami was reassured by Zach's answer, so long as the two of them could keep on the same page about where loyalty was at, and as long as he knew Kami's dedication to his well being, the two would continue a fruitful relationship.

"The backpack has clothing, water, and a map of the world for you. You are welcome to train on the lookout as much as you like, but I bet you will find more than you expect out there in the world, My dragon was but the tip of a very large Ice-burg."

Kami knew the evil that was out there, and hell even if it wasnt evil, the power out there was great. But nothing that Zach couldnt handle. He nodded as they landed on the lookout, Kami jumped off the dragon to be eye level with zach before he left. The dragon promplty rolled over on its back, as if expecting a tummy rub, which he would get later.

Kami held out his right hand and a small green energy came out, the same that had repaired zachs organs some time ago. This one healed any minor burns he may of sustained in his combat with the dragon, as well as any cuts or bruises. Kami knew zach hadnt lost much, so he didnt need to exert much energy.

"While you are gone zach I want you to know, I will be training myself. When the time comes we will call be called to action, including myself. So do make hast in your journey, the fate of the world depends on it!"

With that Kami would see zach off in whatever manner he saw fit. Hug, hand on shoulder, handshake, or just a simple nod, whatever the teen wanted, and with that he would be on his way.

"As for you..."

Kami said, turning to the dragon, his voice dark and ominous.

"CoochiCoochicoo!"

He began rubbing the dragons tummy ferociously, and the dragon would kick its leg. A comical end to a very serious beginning.

(Kami Out, PL please)

[Zach]

“Hmhmhm… I dress like this all the time, do you really think I will need more clothing?” Zach joked after Kami listed the contents of the backpack he’d been issued. With his energy output, cold didn’t bother him any more and the only time he ever modified his wardrobe was to take something off, not put it on and even then it was usually only heat related. Still the water and the map would come in handy, although he fully intended to be back before night as he’d unofficially scheduled his next session in the gravity chamber for the following day. Still, he could at least do a bit of additional poking around the area surrounding the tower at the base of the lookout on the off chance that one of those balls was so attracted to their power that it never left the vicinity.

He stood still while Kami gave him a once over with that green energy he’d used once before on him. Zach however was unconscious at the time so he obviously wouldn’t remember the application let alone the color of the energy. Still after a moment it was quite obvious what the energy was doing as he felt somewhat revitalized and noticed one or two minor burns vanish. He hadn’t even known they were there do to the intensity of exertion at the time he got them and they’d been so minor they neither would have left a scar anyway, but the boy was thankful just the same. He’d also had what amounted to a rug burn on his chest from grabbing the giant lizard’s tail that also vanished when Kami’s hand passed over the area.

“Thank you.” the boy responded and smiled for once. “I’ll be back tonight, I wanted to get some training done myself tomorrow. I’ll start intensive searching after that.” Zach stated and lifted off. “Be back soon.” he added with a wave and darted up into the sky and then plunged down through the artificial horizon created by the lip of the lookout. The blonde would then spend the remainder of the afternoon gliding through the woods in an expanding, circular search pattern around the base of the tower, turning up nothing but an ancient village of native folk.

{Topic complete, Power Level Increase requested. Heavy weights are in effect.}