JB: Chapter 12

The ship I bought with my credits on Ungara wasn't exactly one that had the best history. In fact, she was a former smuggler's ship. Apparently, she'd been the property of the Korugaran Smuggler Darjanik Taan, who used it to smuggle cargo into and out of war zones, quarantines, and blockades before Taan had been caught, not by a Green Lantern patrolling the spacelanes, but by local Ungaran Police while docked with a cargo hold full of Illegal Krolotean Gene Mods that he'd planned to sell on the black market. Apparently, he'd been too hungover to notice the hangar he'd docked in was being raided until it was too late.

It was sort of ironic in that his ship, the Lucky Lady, was fast enough to outrun all but the most dogged pursuit, but Darjanik himself hadn't been quick enough to avoid capture once docked. At any rate, the ship had been seized by the Ungaran Planetary Government and the dealer had picked it up at a government auction for a steal. While the history of the ship, and the nose art of a scantily clad Korugaran Woman that reinforced that history, had put off other bidders, the dealer, a Daxamite named Diro Vol, had seen the ship for what it was, a fast ship he could sell at a premium.

It was just that speed that made me want the ship. The fact that it had been reinforced to be able to stand up to Military Grade Fightercraft Weapons if it had to dogfight was a bonus, though I'd been informed that the Pulse Phase Cannon that had been installed had been removed by the Ungaran Planetary Police, as it had represented an illegal level of firepower more at home on a military vessel than a civilian one. They'd replaced it with a Pulse Laser that wasn't able to destroy a military space fighter in a single shot, but still had a decent amount of juice behind it. Regardless, the Lucky Lady was still a hell of a ship.

"How much?" I questioned.

"For a ship of this quality? Depends on what you're paying with and if you want an upgrade package." Answered Diro Vol.

"What sort of Upgrade Packages?" I queried.

"Stock, she's only two-hundred-fifty-thousand Oan Credits. You look like someone looking for the Bounty Hunter Package. That's another two-hundred-fifty-thousand Oan Credits on top. It contains an upgrade for the Pulse Laser to an X-ray Pulse Laser along with a Twin-linked Dual Ionic Beamer, all controlled remotely from the cockpit. It also contains a partial conversion of the Cargo Bay to Stasis Holding Cells, while also adding in a workbench and training area in the other half of the cargo bay. Finally, we upgrade the ship's ECM and Communications Technology to MilSpec levels." Informed Diro Vol.

"I'll take everything but the holding cells. What sort of training area are we talking about?" I asked.

"Ah, like to bring them in cold, do you? Well, not like I can really blame you. Some of the folks that get bounties on their heads deserve it. What sort of training area would you like? I recently got a deal on Brench Gravity Tiles rated for training up to thirty-thousand of those Arcosian Power Levels that seem to be all the rage these days. Yours for another one-hundred-thousand Oan Credits." Offered Diro Vol.

"Done." I agreed.

"Can I offer you anything else? Living Quarters modifications, maybe?" Questioned Diro Vol.

"Actually, now that I think about it, yeah. You can. I want planters with tropical fruit bushes to be installed in the Captain's Suite." I remarked.

"Tropical Fruit Bushes?" Queried Diro Vol.

"That's what I said. Can you accommodate that or not?" I asked.

"It's just an odd request is all. Sure, I can get you tropical fruit bushes. Any particular kind?" Questioned Diro Vol.

"Tamaranean Dragon's Eyes if you can get them. Or Bas Sugarberries." I responded.

"Got a sweet tooth, huh? I can get both of those for you, but it'll cost you another fifty grand each. Tamaran and Bas are both subject to import tariffs, after all. The Citadel and Planet Trade Organization aren't exactly on the Government's List of people they like, after all." Warned Diro Vol.

"Done." I agreed.

"That brings the total up to seven-hundred-thousand Oan Credits. Anything else?" Queried Diro Vol.

"I think just throw in reactor fuel, food, and freshwater, and that should be good." I affirmed.

"I can do that. Stocking you up fully will cost you another fifty-thousand Oan Credits." Informed Diro Vol.

"Done." I affirmed.

"That's three-quarters of a Million Oan Credits." Opined Diro Vol.

"Afraid I can't cover it?" I asked.

"I have to check. I wouldn't be a very good businessman if I didn't." Shrugged Diro vol.

"Lemme see your dataslate." I insisted.

Diro Vol handed the Dataslate over to me and I quickly navigated the menus to fill in my banking information and deposit the money into Diro Vol's accounts. I was quickly rewarded with a ding from my Tuffle-made Scouter, informing me of my purchase before I handed the dataslate back to Diro Vol. For his part, Diro Vol looked a bit gobsmacked that anyone had just had that much cash sitting in an account and free to be spent just like that. I got the feeling he had been expecting me to take a few days to liquidate stocks or something. I could only chuckle at his expression.

"Told you I was good for it." I smirked.

"Right, well. It'll take a week to get everything ready to go. I hope you saved enough cash for a Hotel." Intoned Diro Vol.

"Don't worry about that. I'll meet you back here in a week's time." I chuckled.

And with that, I was off deeper into Tokoo City to pay for a stay at a hotel. It was a mostly pleasant week, though I couldn't get much in the way of any training done. By the time the week was over, however, I was practically begging to fly out of here and head to Earth. Fortunately, Diro Vol was as good as his word and more. Much of the interior was still furnished, and he went the extra mile with the plants, getting me a small tree of Tamaranean Dragon's Eyes and several rows of Bas Sugarberry Shrubs. By the time I was ready to set a course for Earth, I was fully satisfied that I'd gotten my money's worth.

As I lifted off in the Lucky Lady, I plotted a course for Earth using the Ship's Fold-Space Drive. My course would allow me to get there in a day, which wasn't too shabby for someone who'd learned Stellar Navigation on the Job. Once the course was laid in, and the Fold-Space Window opened, all that was left to do was sit back and wait for the navicomputer to spit me out in the Sol System. That being the case, I headed for the main living area to make myself something to eat and kick back on one of those couches that I'd seen.

I entered the kitchen to find that the food that I'd been promised was all there and set about prepping the Thanagarian Equivalent to Biscuits and Gravy, which used a different animal than pigs for the sausage gravy. I didn't care to think too hard about it, since all this stuff came from a can, to begin with. I damn sure wasn't going to whip up sausage gravy from scratch in a starship galley. It tasted about the same to me anyway. Once I'd finished eating, I headed for the captain's Quarters to get some shut-eye.

When I woke up, it would be to the news that not only had I arrived in the Sol System, but there was a Green Lantern waiting for me in orbit, demanding I land the Lucky Lady on the Moon so we could 'have a chat'. That sounded like Hal, to me. There's no way Guy would have been as polite, and I was fifty-fifty on whether Jon Stewart was a thing yet or not. Either way, I did as I was asked, landing the Lucky Lady on the Sea of Tranquility, putting her down within sight of the Apollo Eleven Lander, actually.

No sooner had I done that, than I heard a knocking from the airlock hatch. Making my way over to the airlock, I hit the interior switch to open the outside hatch from the inside. The airlock cycled for a moment before everything shut once again and the inner hatch opened. Moments later, my assessment had proven correct as the brown-haired, smugly-grinning, uniform-clad, form of Hal Jordan stepped into my ship.

"Hey Welcome to Earth, mind telling me who you are, why you're here, and why you've got a Spaceship my ring says belongs to a Wanted Criminal?" Questioned Hal.

I could only groan in response. In my rush to get to Earth, I'd forgotten how cocky Hal could be, and now this was gonna be a pain in the ass to deal with. I didn't have any room to complain, though.

After all, I had literally walked right into this. . .

XXXX

Meanwhile, on the world of Aegri Somnia Five in Sector Three-Thousand-One-Hundred-Twelve, a war against a despot had gone completely off the rails. First had been the inhabitants of Aegri Somnia Five hiring a trio of Saiyan Mercenaries in the form of Karn, Squas, and Beenz to help defend their planet against attack from the Forces of Aegri Somnia Four. That had quickly led to a rout of the attacking forces, prompting the Despot of Aegri Somnia Four himself to take the field, the former Green Lantern Ayria. Between the Power Ring and three Saiyans each with enough power to blow up a moon, the battle wrecked the City of Aegospina where the fighting had taken place.

However, that hadn't been the worst part. If it was just a ruined city, that would be one thing. Cities could be rebuilt, after all. No, instead the fierceness of the resistance had made the news, leading to a broadcast that had been picked up by the Planet Trade Organization. The news that Karn, Squas, and Beenz had been sighted on a world in one of the backwater sectors of the universe had Frieza sending out Dodoria and his Team to Aegri Somnia Five using one of the Fold-Space Drive Equipped Carriers.

Now, as the battle raged on the planet below, a third party entered the battlefield. Dodoria and his Team outclassed any of the other combatants by quite a bit, all save the Despot Ayria, and Frieza's orders where it concerned the Green Lantern Corps were to be strictly reactive and only to fight back if they attacked first. Meanwhile, Ayria was perfectly content with sitting back and allowing the PTO to kill the Saiyans for him.

It happened in the blink of an eye. One moment, Karn was blasting his way through a regiment of invading forces, when the next, his Scouter beeped wildly, forcing him to jank aside in mid-flight to avoid a sudden blast. Turning, Karn frowned as his Scouter blared out a Power Level of nine-thousand in the direction the blast had come from. Looking that way, he saw a sight he hoped he wouldn't see. Saida, one of Dodoria's Team from Planet Malus. The Amphibian Warrior smirked at Karn as he fired off another series of rapid-fire blasts, forcing Karn to Dodge. As he did so, Karn tried to reach his teammates over comms.

"Beenz! Squas! I've got Saida here, that means Dodoria's around here somewhere! Watch out!" Called out Karn.

"They've already got the memo. You're late to the party." Came a rumbling voice from above Karn.

Karn looked up and his face went pale in shock as the bulky, pink, spike-covered, form of Dodoria loomed up above him. Dodoria wasn't alone, either, unfortunately. Krumbo, the Red-Skinned, horned, bastard was floating there too. He had Squas and Beenz's formed slung over his shoulders.

"They put up a Hell of a Fight, but in the end, ain't no Saiyan alive can fight me and live." Smirked Dodoria.

"Don't be sad, here let's reunite you with your team." Sneered Krumbo.

As he said that, Krumbo tossed Squas and Beenz's corpses at Karn. Of course, it wasn't just a matter of showing contempt. Krumbo used the tossed corpses as cover to close with Karn, shoulder-checking the Saiyan in Mid-Air and blasting him backward for Saida to fire a two-handed energy wave into. All Karn could do at this point was cross his arms in front of him and hope to tank the blast. Fortunately, this hadn't been one of Saida's strongest attacks, so when the light, sound, and pain from the resulting explosion faded, Karn was still somewhat able to fight. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to last much longer.

"Say good night!" Rumbled Dodoria from above him before belching out a mouth blast at Karn.

Karn couldn't hope to block that, so he did the only thing he could. He raced for the cover of some destroyed buildings in the ruined city below, hoping he could put enough bits of architecture between that blast and himself that maybe, just maybe, it could rob the blast of some of its power. Dodoria, for his part, snarled and gestured with his spike-covered arms, directing his blast to follow Karn. It did so, blowing through several half-wrecked Skyscrapers from the previous fighting in the process and turning them into complete wrecks. Karn ran as best he could, but it wouldn't be enough. Eventually, the blast reached him just as he tried ducking for cover into the basement of a partially crumbled apartment block.

The resulting explosion turned that entire section of the city into a glass floor in a blast of heat, sound, and fury. Scanning with his scouter, Dodoria smirked as he failed to pick anything up. That was a job well done in his mind, and he hadn't even had to so much as speak to the Green Lantern of this shit heap! As he and his team headed back to their Carrier to celebrate and head back to PTO Space through Fold-Space, neither Dodoria nor any of his subordinates stopped to even think about manually checking for a body.

That was to prove a mistake in the future, as Karn had not been killed in the blast. The Basement he had ducked into and the power he had robbed from the blast by making it chase him through skyscrapers had shielded him just enough to survive, if badly wounded and unconscious. He would be dug out of the ruins of Aegospina by the Forces of Aegri Somnia Five and nursed back to health.

When he took the field next time, he would be three-point-eight times as strong as he had been going into the fight, with an Arcosian Power Level of eighteen-thousand-two-hundred-forty thanks to almost being killed by Dodoria. The Zenkai may be inconsistent, but it was definitely something to be thankful for. By that point, however, the war would be over, as Ayrlia would have been slain by his own Concubine. That meant that Karn would have to find a new place to hide out and train until he was strong enough to kill Dodoria and avenge his team.

He would select a planet from a star chart at random to do so. The world he picked was one that was seemingly inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, as the wider Universe had yet to cotton on to its importance. A ball of dirt and water, mostly water, with a native species that tended not to produce exceptional powers outside of extremely isolated areas and rare circumstances. He had selected Earth. Unfortunately, the spacecraft he had available to him in the aftermath of the war did not have a fold-space drive, instead being one of the knock-off Attack Balls that had been made by various concerns throughout the universe. It would take him a year to arrive using the Attack Ball's reactionless drive.

When he did, he would very quickly discover he was not the only Saiyan on the Planet. . .

XXXX

AN: All right, so here's the next chapter. Rugulo gets to Earth and has a run-in with Hal Jordan, whose ring hasn't informed him that Darjanik Taan has been captured by the Ungarans. At the same time, Dodoria and Company go hunting for one of their missing Saiyan Teams and wind up repeating the same mistake they made with Bardock with Karn. Karn will arrive on Earth in a year, though whether he's a potential ally for Rugulo or a potential enemy has yet to be seen.

As for when in the timeline we're at. It's currently the middle of Year One on DC Earth. That means that Batman is still mostly fighting the Mob and Dick is currently Robin, while Superman still is fighting Lex Luthor, but also has no concrete proof that Lex is the guy sending all these weirdos and clones after him. It means Wonder Woman has only just arrived in Man's World, and Hal Jordan has only just returned from finding out Sinestro is Evil. Barry Allen is currently the Flash, with Wally as Kid Flash. There will, of course, be alterations to the Continuity to take the Dragonball Stuff into account, however.

At any rate, the next chapter will involve Rugulo and Hal's chat along with Rugulo finally getting to Earth Proper. I'll also have images for this chapter out before then.

Stay tuned. . .