In the three years since the death of Majin Buu, Chikyuu has been a peaceful place. Son Gokuu has been away from home, training the young boy from the islands, Uubu. Son Gohan is engaged to marry Videl, and the world champion Mister Satan has taken over operation of the Tenka-ichi Budokai.

A new force has appeared in Hell. This enigmatic new being, Queen Toripura, is the sister of the demon Dabura, who was one of Majin Buu's first victims upon reawakening. Toripura, seeking revenge for her brother's death, has bargained with those imprisoned in Hell.

Unaware of this, Son Gokuu and Vegeta have discovered a new twist to their lives on Chikyuu...

Assemble The Strongest Warriors!!
Hell Explodes!!

"Papa? What happened to Okaasan? She looks..." Trunks stared at his mother, lying unconscious on the ground. The four Saiyajin slowly descended to the ground, landing next to the two women.

"Oi, Chichi..." Gokuu whispered. Leaning over, he gently shook his wife. "Oi! Chichi!"

Vegeta snorted. "Let me show you how it's done, Kakarotto." Squatting down beside Bulma, he gently grasped the twitching brown appendage lying at her side, and...

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAA!" a shrill voice screamed as the woman with the wild mane of spiky blue hair shot bolt upright, clutching her backside. "That hurt!"

Vegeta smirked and loosened his grip on Bulma's newly-grown tail. "Serves you right, idiot woman."

Bulma glared at him. "What the hell do you think you're doing, sneaking up on me and kicking me in the butt!"

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "I didn't kick you, stupid." He held up the furry brown appendage. "I just pulled on this a little."

The spiky-haired woman stared at it. "Wh-wh-wh-wh-WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!?"

Vegeta pulled it again. Bulma screamed in agony.

"Oi, Vegeta, cut that out," Gokuu said. He gently scooped Chichi up and tried to revive her in a more humane manner.

Bulma, for her part, was still staring at the mysterious appendage in shock. "Where did that come from!?"

Vegeta let go of Bulma's tail. "Don't be an idiot, woman. You should have known you'd grow one when you made that wish."

Bulma's eyes widened. "The...the wish..." She clutched her head. "That's right...but...but..." She glanced over at Gokuu, then at Chichi, and sank to her knees. "Oh my God...what the hell did I do!?"

Vegeta snorted. "You turned yourself and Kakarotto's mate into Saiyajin."

Trunks walked up to his mother, staring at her in wonder. "Okaasan...you're really a...?"

Gokuu stood up. "Maybe we'd all better go inside."

Gohan landed lightly on the edge of Tenka, the floating palace of God. "Piccolo-san! Dende!"

The tall, stately Namek known as Piccolo opened one eye, regarding Gohan with little more expression than a slightly less intent frown. His best student, of course, knew the expression was one of affection and respect. "Gohan," he greeted.

Gohan ambled over to where Dende stood at the edge of the palace, watching the world below intently. "Someone just used the Dragonballs," the warrior-turned-scholar said, knowing smalltalk would be wasted here. "I was just wondering what..."

Dende glanced up, worry and amusement warring for dominance on his face. "Gohan-san." He paused. "I'm surprised you didn't feel what happened."

Gohan scratched the back of his head. "Well, I've been concentrating so hard on my studies..." He chuckled nervously. "It took me a few minutes to even realize the sky had changed."

Piccolo snorted. "It's no surprise you missed it. I didn't even catch it. Some idiots were playing 'my-ki-is-bigger-than-yours' downstairs. Couldn't sense a damn thing for it."

Gohan chuckled. "So what happened?"

The younger Namek smiled in a way that made Gohan feel uneasy. "Gohan-san...Bulma-san just made a very strange wish. You probably should go to her place now."

"What's wrong?"

The current god of Chikyuu shook his head. "Nobody's hurt, but you need to see this for yourself."

Gohan nodded, and took off, waving goodbye as he left.

Piccolo regarded the young god calmly. "So...exactly what did happen?"

His young successor smiled. "Well..."

"WHAT THE HELL!?"

Bulma winced at Chichi's volume. "Hey, not so loud...my head hurts."

Chichi's expression mirrored Bulma's. "Mine too...gah." She then glared at the other woman. "What did you do to us!?"

Gokuu put an arm around Chichi reassuringly, and fixed his oldest friend with a piercing gaze. "Bulma, what made you want to be Saiyajin? And why Chichi too?"

Bulma looked down. "This was a stupid mistake. I just thought..." She sighed.

"You actually thought? That's a surprise," Vegeta scoffed. Bulma glared at him.

"Okaasan, here," Trunks said, rushing in with two cups of water and a bottle of pills. He handed a cup to each of the women, then shook out a couple pills.

Bulma and Chichi each swallowed a pill, and Bulma sighed. "I'm damn glad I invented that hangover remedy."

Chichi set aside her water and crossed her arms. "Okay, what was the big idea? I thought you were just gonna make us younger."

Bulma shrugged. "Hey, I was drunk. It just came out before I knew what I was saying."

"So would one of you kindly explain this whole mess?" Vegeta snapped.

Bulma took a deep breath. "We were both kinda...upset at the way you guys always run off and leave us behind. And..."

Chichi looked into her husband's eyes. "Well...we felt...old."

Gokuu blinked. "Old? You're not that old, Chichi..."

Goten nodded. "Un! I never thought you looked bad at all, Kaachan."

Bulma gazed into her water cup. "Neither of us looked or felt as young as we used to. And we...well, we looked at you two..."

Vegeta bit off a curse. "I get it. After all this time, you finally figured out Saiyajin don't age like humans do."

Gokuu blinked. "We don't?"

The shorter Saiyajin smacked him upside the head. "Of course we don't, idiot!"

Bulma nodded. "Hai...well, it made us feel even older. Having husbands who look and act so young..."

The prince snorted. "So this was a vanity thing?"

Bulma stood up and screamed in his face. "NO, you insensitive BEAST! This is about not wanting to be OLD HAGS while you two are still young! This is about not wanting YOU JERKS to have to sit and watch us GET OLD AND DIE!" She slapped him hard.

And stared in shock as Vegeta actually flew across the room and crashed into the wall. "S...sonna..."

Gokuu blinked. "Sugee..." He turned to his own lifemate, and studied her intently. "You really did this for me, Chichi?"

"For us, Gokuu-sa," Chichi said. "I couldn't take bein' old an' broke-down an' ready to die with you still young an' strong." She sighed. "Although I didn't exactly plan on...well, on THIS."

Bulma nodded. "This is my fault. I'm sorry, Chichi...I shouldn't have..."

Vegeta walked over, massaging his cheek gently. "Why shouldn't you have, woman? You should be proud to be Saiyajin." He smirked. "Besides, it actually makes you a lot less offensive to look at."

"It did make both of you younger," Trunks pointed out.

Bulma blinked. "Hey...that's right. I haven't seen myself yet!"

"Neither have I," Chichi said. She and Bulma glanced at each other, and as one stood and ran for the nearest mirror.

The four men stood around blinking at one another. A moment later, loud whoops of joy and peals of girlish laughter erupted from another room. "Heeeeeh...I'll never figure women out," Gokuu said. Vegeta nodded.

"Oi! Anyone here?" a voice called from elsewhere in the complex.

"Oniichan!" Goten exclaimed.

Gokuu grinned. "Oi, Gohan! We're all in here!"

Gohan walked in, blinking. "Otousan? When did you get back?"

"Little while ago," Gokuu replied. "I meant to visit you, but I got caught up, and then..." He trailed off as he looked toward another room, where Gohan could hear...giggling?

Gohan blinked. "Anou...what's going on, anyway? Dende said Bulma-san used the Dragonballs..."

Vegeta snorted. Gokuu rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah...eheh...you're not gonna believe this one..."

Just then, the two women strolled back into the room, grinning and giggling. "Well, this isn't such a bad thing after all," Bulma said. "Oh, hi Gohan-kun!"

"Gohan-chan!" Chichi beamed. "Mou, shouldn't you be studying?"

Gohan's jaw dropped. "N-N-NANI!?" He stared at the young, beautiful, smiling woman with dark, spiky hair that looked and dressed and talked so much like..."Okaasan!?" He glanced at the other woman, trying to match what he knew with what he saw. "Bulma-san?" He shook his head as if to clear it. "What the...what happened?"

"Well...we sorta made a wish..."

Gohan rubbed the bridge of his nose. "S—sou ka..." A flicker of motion caught his attention, and he directed his gaze a bit lower...where a furry brown tail swung loosely at his mother's waist. A similar tail was curled around Bulma's leg.

Gohan's eyes glazed over. "I think all the studying finally got to me." With that, he fainted.

In a place where time is subjective, a young boy with dark skin toweled sweat from his face as he pushed himself onward, jogging a winding stretch of road surrounded by clear pink sky above and fluffy golden clouds below. The run was to be his final test under his sensei, and it was giving him time to think.

Uubu had been raised in a simple manner. His home was small, his family loved him and he they, and the majority of his days were spent either working to keep the house running and gather food, or playing with the other children. He had always been an exceptionally strong child; his mother and father had taught him to always use that ferocious strength for good. He had asked, several times, why he was so strong, but had never received a clear answer.

Until he had met Son Gokuu, his mentor, and learned the truth about himself.

It had surprised him when the spiky-haired warrior had told him the tale of Majin Buu, an evil force that had decimated entire galaxies. He had been horrified when Gokuu told him that he was, in fact, the spirit of Majin Buu reincarnated on Earth; had indeed met the Saiyajin's tale with denial, even hatred that this strange man would even dare to suggest that he had been such an evil thing.

When his parents confirmed Gokuu's tale, Uubu was shocked. He couldn't understand how his kind, caring, loving parents could sit there and tell him he was a demon reborn. Then they had explained that the circumstances surrounding his birth had not been normal, nor had most of his childhood. They had known, when he was born, that he would be special, and his mother had foreseen the coming of a man of wisdom, who would unveil the mysteries surrounding the young boy's life.

For his part, Gokuu had been surprised that Uubu had surfaced as early as he did. The island boy was nearly ten years of age, yet it had only been three years since the battle in which Majin Buu was destroyed. It had taken a while before the gods themselves finally explained that the soul of Buu had swam upstream against the flow of time to be reborn at the right moment. In short, Uubu himself was nothing short of a miracle.

So now, the miracle boy from a simple island home ran as hard and as fast as he could down the endlessly swerving pathway before him, wearing boots that weighed as much as mountains...and talking to himself. "Gokuu-sensei," he muttered, "You're a...great fighter, and...wiser than you seem...but...this is really ridiculous." He slung the towel back over his shoulder and unclipped the water bottle hanging at his belt. Taking a long sip, he called out, "Oi! Kaiou-sama! When can I take a break? This road isn't exactly made for people who still get tired!"

A moment passed, and Uubu blinked, slowing down slightly. "Kaiou-sama?"

Silence greeted him. "Mouuuu..." he grumbled. Raising his voice, he called out, "How many chickens does it take to cross the road with a light bulb?"

"Hell's been invaded," a soft reply came.

"No, it takes..." Uubu blinked, and stopped running. The deceased god stood a few meters away, frowning thoughtfully. "Nani?"

Kaiou-sama's glasses flashed. "There's an evil presence in Hell. It's horrible..."

Uubu stood beside the old being, confusion evident on his face. "Umm...isn't that normal? I mean, it IS Hell..."

The lord of worlds shook his head. "This is...abnormal. An intense, vile, living evil."

"Living...?" Uubu asked, confused.

"Hai," Kaiou-sama said. "And whoever...whatever it is..." He paused. "It's the most horrible, powerful, malevolent thing I've ever felt." He shuddered. "It's filling me with a loathing..."

Uubu placed a firm hand on the elder god's shoulder. "Calm yourself, Kaiou-sama," he said soothingly.

Kaiou-sama steadied himself, and gazed into the golden clouds thoughtfully, adjusting his glasses. "Whatever's down there...it rivals Majin Buu in the intense foulness of its presence..." He glanced sideways at the young boy. "...err..."

Uubu smiled. "I'm well aware of...that. Don't worry. Please continue."

"Hai...it's so strong that I can't really see what's going on down there."

Suddenly, the road they stood upon shook. "What the—?"

A resounding crash caused the entire length of Snake Way to rattle. Kaiou-sama and his young charge staggered, struggling to regain their footing. "What's going on!?" Uubu screamed.

"I...I don't know!" Kaiou-sama replied, panicking. "This is impossible! It's..." He levitated himself above the shaking road, and reached out with his mind. *Gokuu! Gokuu, come quickly!* "Uubu! Get off the road!"

"I...I can't!" Uubu replied, struggling against the massive boots on his feet. "I'm too heavy!" He began powering up to destroy the offending footwear.

"Hurry! You've got to get off the road!" Kaiou-sama glanced around, waiting for the Saiyajin to arrive. *Gokuu? Gokuu! Get up here right NOW!*

With a mighty rumble, the serpentine road bucked wildly, launching Uubu into the air. With a cry of surprise, he crashed into the ancient god, sending him flying into the distance. A fierce scream tore from his throat as he unleashed his full aura, shattering the boots and a portion of the ages-old roadway to fragments. The damaged road whipped toward him, smacking him hard in the back. Crying out in pain, Uubu plummeted into the golden clouds...and the great road steadied itself.

Kaiou-sama looked on in shock. "No..." He sank to the serpentine path, head lowered mournfully. "Uubu..." *Where are you, Gokuu? Why...how did you let this happen?*

Gokuu frowned at his reflection, tilting his head. "Anou na...I don't get why I have to wear this stupid suit." He tugged at the ridiculously tight collar and adjusted the silly piece of white cloth that didn't seem to serve any purpose whatsoever.

"It's a formal dinner, Gokuu-sa," Chichi called from the other part of the large guest suite. With the afternoon's events, it had gotten so late that Bulma insisted the Son family get ready for the banquet at her place, and further suggested that the entire family return to her home afterwards to spend the night. Chichi had accepted, and once Gohan had been revived and filled in, everyone had set about getting cleaned up and dressed. This entailed Chichi wrangling Gokuu into his powder blue wedding tuxedo, which nearly burst apart at the seams from his sheer muscle mass, despite her efforts over the years to alter it so that it would fit him no matter how bulky he got.

"Hai hai..." Gokuu sighed. "I just hate wearing—"

"—anything you can't fight in, I know," Chichi finished, rolling her eyes. "Do you need help with the bowtie?" She walked out into the main room, where Gokuu was fiddling with his collar.

"Arigatou, Chichi!" The discomfited warrior turned...and gaped in shock. "Maa..."

Chichi smiled shyly as she stood in the doorway, posing prettily. A knee-length red silk qipao

"Saa, Chichi...you look beautiful..."

Chichi blushed. "Thank you, Gokuu-sa. You're looking quite nice yourself." She gracefully walked over and adjusted his collar and tie. "Come on, let's go join the others."

"Un!" Gokuu nodded, smiling broadly. Offering his arm, he escorted his lovely wife through the halls of Capsule Corporation.

As they exited the compound, a rather interesting assembly awaited them. Vegeta stood leaning against the limousine, clad in a navy blue dinner jacket and slacks, pink silk shirt, and polished black cowboy boots. A string tie hung around his neck, clasped with a gold ornament that resembled the royal crest of Bejiitasei; lastly, a grey Stetson was perched upon his head, brim tilted forward to shade his eyes. The trademark scowl was set deeply on his face, likely amplified by his current state of dress. Gokuu sympathized with him. Gohan, by contrast, had gotten off easy, wearing a simple yet stylish grey suit with a striped tie and brown shoes. The two younger kids were shuffling about, adorable yet clearly uncomfortable in matching black tuxedos. The large Saiyajin had a brief mental image of Super Saiyajin 3 Gotenks in a tuxedo, and fought to suppress a chuckle.

For her part, Bulma was dressed to the nines and loving it. Clad in a low-cut blue evening gown which showed off her shapely body rather effectively and matching high heels, the rejuvenated woman had made herself up and donned her best jewelry. Her stiff, spiky blue hair fanned out evenly on either side, falling to just below her shoulders. What appeared to be a light blue velvet belt encircled her waist. Gokuu blinked at the belt as he thought he saw it twitch slightly. "Oi, Bulma, what happened to your tail?"

Bulma giggled, and the 'belt' uncurled itself, waving around behind her. "I dyed it to match my hair," she said. "What do you think?"

"Disgraceful," Vegeta snorted. "Such an absurd display of vanity is unbecoming a Saiyajin." Bulma stuck her tongue out at him and curled her tail back around her waist.

Gokuu chuckled...then gaped openly at the last member of the entourage. "P—Piccolo!?"

"Son Gokuu," the Namek greeted, nodding stiffly. Of all those present, his attire was by far the most surprising: a pristine white tuxedo, replete with gleaming white shoes, a pale aquamarine cummerbund, a white opera cape with aquamarine satin lining, and a white top hat. He even carried a polished ivory walking stick with a gold handle.

Gokuu shook his head and chuckled. "I didn't expect you to be coming to this thing. Especially not all dressed up like that."

Piccolo snorted. "Dende and Gohan insisted. And the outfit..." He smirked. "I figured if I had to do it at all, I might as well go all out."

Gokuu grinned. "You look great. Everyone looks great."

Bulma and Chichi agreed wholeheartedly. After a quick round of straightening collars and ties, the entire group filed into the limousine, and were off.

Uubu awoke to find himself drenched in blood. *That's odd,* he thought. *It doesn't hurt as much as I thought it would...* He sighed inwardly. *Well, I'm already among the dead, so I'm in good company...*

He heard a splash, followed by a loud squelching noise close to his ear. There was a brief sensation of being lifted...and then he was dropped again, this time on hard, hot ground. "Get up, kid!"

Uubu blinked, and tried to clear enough blood from his eyes enough to open them. A quick once-over revealed that he wasn't wounded noticably...so where was all the blood coming from?

Finally opening his eyes, he took a glance to his left, and discovered he was lying on the shore of a lake of blood.

A taloned foot slammed into his face, sending him sprawling. "Welcome to hell, boy," a deep, sinister voice chuckled.

Uubu sat up, rubbing his face. "Ugh...I thought the dead didn't feel pain..."

The figure before him cackled. "Silly child. You're not dead...yet."

Uubu glanced up at the speaker...a white, lizard-like creature with a malevolent leer on its face. "Who...?"

"Not that you're going to live long enough for it to matter, but you might as well die cursing my name," the dead alien said. "I am Freeza."

Uubu's eyes widened. "F—freeza..."

"Ah, I see my reputation precedes me," Freeza chuckled. "Excellent. Then you know—"

Uubu didn't give him a chance. "RAPAPAU!" A blazing white shaft of energy lanced forth from his extended hands, slamming into the dead alien. Freeza's eyes widened as he was slammed across the cavernous expanse of Hell. The young boy scrambled to his feet, easing into a defensive stance, eyeing the evil spirits around him warily.

"Oh, please," one of them snorted. "We're all dead here, kid! Do you really think you'll be able to—"

"What..." Freeza rasped from where he had landed. He stood shakily, glaring at Uubu with pure hatred. "What the hell did you DO to me, you accursed brat!?"

Uubu regarded him calmly. "What I intend to do to all of you if you don't release me immediately," he said. "As your friend there said...you're all dead. All that's left of you is your evil ki. If that's gone, you disappear forever." He smirked. "The technique I just used erases ki."

The various denizens of Hell regarded the dark-skinned kid warily. Freeza sputtered furiously. "Kono yarou...!"

"He can't fight all of us at once!" one of the taller creatures boomed. "Everyone together! We'll take this little brat down!"

In short order, they were upon him. Uubu ducked, dodged, blocked, countered, and launched his own offensive at the blinding speeds borne of training with the fastest, strongest fighter alive. In less than the time it takes most people to draw a deep breath, Uubu had scattered his attackers, and stood with his head bowed, palms pressed together before him. "PAURAPAPAU!"

An intense sphere of pure luminescense radiated from the young boy, bathing everything within five hundred meters in white light. When the light faded, the damned lay dazed on the ground, their ki diminished tremendously.

Somewhere behind Uubu, an unseen person began clapping theatrically. "Splendid, child. Absolutely splendid." The boy whirled to find a tall, red-skinned woman approaching him. "I must thank you...you have made my work here easier with your little technique." She smiled rather unpleasantly. "And now, it's time to deal with you."

Uubu backflipped away from the strange woman, attempting to feel out her defenses. "You're not dead," he noted. "Who are you?"

"You need only know that I am queen here, and that your life shall soon be forfeit." And with that, she vanished.

Uubu looked around, trying to find a trace of her. He couldn't sense her ki anywhere; the situation wasn't good at all.

The sudden whoosh of air behind him was his only warning, but it came too late. Even with his lightning-fast reflexes, he found he was unable to react in time to save himself.

His last thought as he heard the sickening crunch of his own neck being snapped was about his mother, his father, and his mentor.

And then, rather unceremoniously, Uubu died.

The banquet was a rather joyous affair, if a bit chaotic due to the altered status of Bulma and Chichi. Plenty of food was laid out for the guests, pleasant music drifted softly through the banquet hall, and the melodies of conversation and laughter filled the air.

"So you're sponsoring a world tour for the Tenka-ichi Budokai?" Gokuu asked Mister Satan.

"That's right," the afro-sporting man said. "It's a way to get fresh blood into the mix, you know?"

Gokuu grinned. "Un...shame none of us will be able to be in it, but I guess it wouldn't be very fair if we were, would it?"

Satan laughed. "Hahaha! Yes, you're all so strong, after all!" He cleared his throat. "Of course, I'd be honored to have you all as spectators, judges, referees, and so forth."

Gohan chuckled. "I'm sure a few of us will be around for the tournaments."

"Yeah, it ought to be—" Gokuu paused. "Nan da...?"

"Eh? What's wrong, Gokuu?" Satan asked.

By way of reply, Gokuu pointed across the hall, where a whirling vortex had formed in midair. Everyone turned and blinked as a diminuitive old hag in a black robe and pointy hat floated into the room atop a crystal ball. Behind her, a blue-skinned creature that several of those present recognized appeared behind her. A halo floated above the head of the latter. "Sorry to intrude like this," the old woman said.

Gokuu stood. "Baba! Kaiou-sama! What are you doing here?"

Mister Satan stared. "Who are these people?"

Kaiou-sama strode into the middle of the room, arms behind his back, an expression of intense worry on his face. "This concerns everyone," he began. "There has been an...incident."

"An incident in the afterlife?" Gohan asked.

The old god nodded. "Something terrible...an evil force unlike anything I've ever felt...invaded Hell."

This was met by a collective gasp. "Something invaded Hell!?" Piccolo asked, disbelief in his voice.

"Something horrendous...and incredibly powerful." The ancient king looked down. "Gokuu...I'm afraid Uubu is dead."

Gokuu gasped. "NANI!? How!?"

Kaiou-sama shrugged helplessly. "Whatever invaded Hell...somehow caused an earthquake on Snake Way. Neither of us were prepared for it..."

Gokuu closed his eyes. "Shimatta. I made him wear those boots..." He looked up, peering intently into the deity's face. "He fell down, didn't he?"

"Hai," Kaiou-sama nodded. "He fell into the clouds, and that's the last I saw of him." He fidgeted. "The...invader, whatever it is, is so powerful it's blocking me from seeing into Hell. It even blocked me from calling you to come save Uubu before it was too late. Even Dai-kaiou-sama can't figure out what's going on down there." His glasses flashed. "Whatever happened, though, there's almost no chance that Uubu is still alive. I'm sorry."

Gokuu turned his gaze to the ground, clenching his fists. "Iya, Kaiou-sama. It's my fault. I should never have..." He swallowed. "I should never have taken him to ano-yo. Whatever happened is all my fault."

"I think the more pressing concern here," Piccolo broke in, "is why the serpent road was attacked, why they were after Uubu, and what precisely is going on. And for once, I'd like to know what's about to happen before all hell breaks loose."

Gokuu nodded. "Un. We've got to figure this mess out fast."

"Rise and shine, my minions," Toripura called in a sing-song voice. The various warriors picked themselves up off the ground, groaning and muttering.

"It seems," the demon queen began, "that our guest managed to weaken all of you considerably. However..." She smiled. "That doesn't change our agreement. We proceed with the plan, and with the ritual."

"So tell us about this ritual," Korudo said, crossing his arms. "You've been rather vague so far."

"It's rather simple, really," Toripura explained. "Your basic demonic summoning ritual...sacrificing the blood of a pure, innocent being to raise a demon from Hell." She gestured to a nearby stone slab, where the body of Uubu lay still. "Thanks to my...unique talents, our friend here hasn't crossed over yet." She looked around. "Now, we're going to need a suitable chalice from which to drink the blood of the sacrifice..."

Wandering around for a moment, Toripura came to a stop beside the magician Babi-di. Leaning over, she purred into his ear, "I believe you can be of assistance in this matter."

The wrinkled creature blinked. "Me? How?"

The other demons winced as the devil queen ripped Babi-di's head free of his body. His eyes, plucked out almost immediately by the demoness, continued to stare in wild-eyed terror as Toripura casually stripped the flesh from his skull and scooped out the innards.

"That was rather disgusting," Korudo commented to nobody in particular.

Toripura smiled. "Alright, I'd say we're ready to begin." Producing a crimson stiletto from within her robes, she walked over to Uubu's body and sliced open his neck. "Everyone gather 'round," she said. "We're all going to drink from the loving cup."

As the demons lined up, Toripura filled the skull with Uubu's blood, and passed it first to Cell. Each of the damned warriors drank from the crude goblet and passed it down the line, with Toripura refilling it as necessary. Finally, she held it to her own lips, poised to drink, smiling.

Each of the deceased warriors began to convulse, writhing in agony as the halos above their heads slowly dimmed. The most evil beings ever gathered in one place gagged, choked, and gasped as the pain wracked their bodies.

"What...what have you done to us?" Cell gurgled.

"Why, I've restored your lives," Toripura said. "Of course...this boon comes at a price. For a being of evil to drink the blood of the pure...it's quite painful, really." She gazed at the full goblet, before disdainfully tossing it aside, watching its contents stain the ground. "Agonizing, in fact...even deadly, to lesser demons." She cleaned her stiletto on Uubu's clothes, and returned it to its hiding place. "Warriors of your stature, of course, can bear the pain, but only at a substantial loss of personal power. And, of course, the loss of the immortality of death."

Freeza glared up at her. "You twisted, manipulative bitch..."

Toripura waggled a finger. "Temper, temper, my lieutenant," she cautioned. "Your very souls belong to me now, and you are mine to do with as I please." She began gathering dark energy between her palms. "And as soon as you gentlemen are finished retching your guts out...we shall be leaving this wretched place."

The gathering was interrupted as Kaiou-sama stood stock still. "Enma?" he asked the empty air. "Yes, I can hear you...WHAT!?" He paled.

"What is it, Kaiou-sama?" Yamucha asked.

Gokuu gasped. "That evil..." Around the room, various warriors suddenly looked ill at ease, the overwhelming press of evil bearing down on them.

The old deity looked around the room, a grimace firmly set on his face. "The gates of Hell just exploded," he said at length. "Every demon, every damned spirit...all the evil there ever was has escaped its confinement."

"In short," Piccolo summarized with a scowl, "All Hell just broke loose."

Ossu! Ora Gokuu!
The world's full of evil...this isn't good! All kinds of strange things are happening everywhere. But for some reason, nothing really horrible has happened yet. While we're all waiting for the other shoe to drop, Mister Satan has decided that the Tenka-ichi Budokai will go on no matter what! Eh? Bulma and Chichi have a favor to ask?

Next Dragonball Theta: "Preparations For War!! Theta-senshi Go Into Training!!" Mata ne!

POWERED BY DREAMHOST