by Jamie L. Word
"Hope Renewed"
Koji continued to struggle to defeat Usami as the other heroes arrived on the battlefield to stand beside Yuko as she watched the fight involving pitting Kien and Kato against the rampaging robot Dregor! The Zodorians turned their attention towards Koji's battle against Usami in utter amazement, and Yoshio tried to watch both fights at the same time with much difficulty!
"They're both so powerful!" Yoshio muttered aloud as he quickly turned his head between fights in a futile effort to watch both. "I can't keep up with Koji and Usami and try to keep on eye on the other fight at the same time! This is nuts!"
Koji put up a valiant fight, but it was obvious that he couldn't hold out much longer at that pace! Everyone knew it was only a matter of time! Still, Koji pushed himself onward with grim resolve to stop the monster!
At Shun's lookout, Shun and Jontu sensed the battles, and they were very concerned about them.
"Kien has joined the fight alongside Kato!" Jontu exclaimed in grave concern over the potential plight of the weary Super Namek.
"Yes, I know, Jontu," Shun replied sheepishly as he trembled at the horribly powerful energies he sensed. "I can't sense what Kato and Kien are fighting, but it's not Usami. It must be another android of some kind! I don't know how much longer Koji can hold out in his battle with Usami! Usami's power has grown so much larger than Koji's! I suppose all we can do is hope!"
Back at the battlefield, Dregor began pummeling Kato and Kien as he adapted to their combined fighting effort! After a series of thunderous shots, the robot had pushed his foes back away from him, and Kien trembled as he dipped lower in the air! This sent shockwaves of concern through his friends who were watching from a small piece of island below and from Kato!
"Kien!" Kato called out in concern for his weakened Super Namek ally. "Are you okay?"
"I'll be fine!" Kien replied wearily, trying to reassure the boy while yet failing to completely reassure himself. "I'm going to try to generate an attack strong enough to put this mechanical monstrosity back in the junkheap, where he came from! I'm going to need you to keep him occupied for a little while! Do you think you can hold out for a few minutes against that thing alone?"
"You bet!" Kato proclaimed as he turned his full attention back on the robot and poised himself for battle with a look of determination on his face.
"That's the spirit, you little firecracker!" Kien encouraged the young Super Saiyan as he himself smiled at the fiery will of the boy. "I'll try to power up this one as fast as I can!"
Kien took two fingers and placed them to his forehead, beginning the power-up of a special beam cannon attack! Kato flew at Dregor with a savage battle cry and engaged the robot in a furious hand-to-hand clash! The others watched on with a bit of hope, realizing the strategy in the works!
Kato surprised the robot with his furious assault, and he began driving the robot back due to the sheer intensity of his attack! Dregor began his complex calculations to try to decipher the mystery of the boy's intensity! Kien continued to charge his attack, electricity crackling around him as the two fingertips touching his forehead began to glow! A brilliant white flaming aura had unsheathed Kien as he powered up his attack, and the wind howled in response to his building energy!
Meanwhile, Usami began pummeling Koji at will once again, brutalizing the seemingly helpless Super Saiyan! After a series of brutal hand-to-hand attacks that echoed thunderously as they struck Koji's body and face, Usami knocked Koji to the ground of a new island with a two-fisted smash!
Koji stood up once more; looking even more battered than before! He glared at Usami, who hovered in mid-air laughing at him mockingly! Koji grimaced in a mixture of pain, fatigue, and seething rage! His hair seemed to be wafted in a breeze, which did not exist, and his flaming aura flared as he flew slowly into the sky until he was parallel to Usami but still a fair distance away from the monster! Usami pondered what Koji would do next!
"What do you have in mind, Koji?" Usami inquired tauntingly as he observed the apparent surge of energy within the Super Saiyan. "Don't tell me you're going to pull that foolish stunt that fool Yukio did, pumping up his little muscles to become more powerful! He failed to beat me with that ability, so what makes you think you can do any better?"
Without uttering a word, Koji spread his arms out to his sides with the open palms facing outward, and then he began his power-up yell! His aura flared massively, the waters below began to churn and were almost parted to the ocean floor by the power Koji was summoning, and strong winds buffeted the battlefield in all directions from Koji's position! The heroes watching the fights even had to shield themselves and brace themselves against the furious power of Koji's power-up!
Rocks began exploding, and then they were swept up into the hurricane-strength winds! Mountains in the distance began to crumple, and Koji drew both hands together in front of him, fully extended with the open palms facing Usami! Dark clouds gathered in the sky above as the sky became quite dark, and lightning danced in the heavens as electricity discharged from Koji! The electricity shooting from Koji and his aura began occasionally striking the ground below, smashing the landscape up even more wherever it hit!
A glowing sphere of energy began forming in Koji's palms as he continued to power up the attack! The energy sphere seemed to disappear and reappear as Koji continued to charge the attack! Koji's power-up yell continued, and Usami watched on in overconfidence and curiosity as whirlwinds formed out in the water around Koji! The waters' waves crashed violently against the land for miles around, and the ground shook violently over that same incredible distance! The other heroes were terrified by what they sensed from Koji, trembling in fear at the power he was generating!
"How amusing!" Usami thought to himself as he smiled smugly at Koji's effort to generate the attack. "This should be quite interesting, if he ever gets around to using that new attack technique!"
"Now, if you truly want to test your power, stay right where you are!" Koji yelled at Usami as the veins bulged in his head under the effort.
Usami tensed up every muscle in his body and smiled a cocky smirk at Koji, signifying his readiness to endure the attack! Koji smiled and then laughed as he continued to generate the attack! The other heroes were still in abject horror as pebbles, stones, and rocks were rising from the ground all over the battlefield!
After a few more moments of powering up the attack, Koji revealed that he had developed the final flash technique! Usami's eyes widened in horror as he witnessed the attack steamrollering towards him! Everyone else turned away in horror and prepared for the worst! Kien paused from charging his attack and turned his attention towards the battle between Koji and Usami, and he was both astonished and left trembling in fear at the power of Koji's attack! Kato likewise turned to see his father's attack, and it frightened him as well! Dregor turned to see what everyone was observing, and his sensors picked up on the tremendous energy of Koji's attack, but he showed no reaction!
Koji's final flash attack slammed into Usami and roared into space, causing an environmental effect similar to a large celestial body moving too close to the planet! Usami's position was completely enshrouded in smoke when the final flash blast had moved off of the planet, and all the debris in the air fell back to the ground and the water like rain as all of the environment effects that began when Koji was charging up the attack gradually subsided! Even Koji's flaming aura returned to normal, and Koji was breathing very heavily after firing that attack!
Several moments passed, and finally the smoke dissipated to reveal that Usami was missing an arm from the shoulder down, missing one leg from the knee down, missing the other leg from mid-thigh down, missing almost an entire wing, and missing the two horns and a bit of the 'crown' on one side of his head! The other heroes gazed upon these results with excitement, and Koji began laughing, pleased at his handiwork! Dregor seemed to lack any sort of emotional content to have a reaction to the sight he beheld!
"Look at what you've done to me!" Usami muttered in utter disbelief as he stared at the damage he'd sustained from Koji's attack. "You've maimed me, you disgusting monkey! How dare you!"
"Well, you did ask for it!" Koji replied with a cocky smirk on his face as he surveyed his handiwork more closely to revel in what he'd done.
"You fool!" Usami snarled at Koji as he glared at the Super Saiyan menacingly. "Remember that I told you about the Namek cells in my body, and about how they enable me to regenerate any damage done to my body so long as the core of my being still exists?"
Koji was perplexed by this statement, and he watched in horror as Usami, uttering a yell, began regenerating his missing body parts on his way to becoming whole again! When Usami had finished regenerating all of the battle damage until he was no longer missing any body parts, he laughed! Koji was incredulous at this handy little trick of Usami's!
"And like the Saiyans, my power increases greatly after I heal from the attack!" Usami gloated as he powered up even more, and the whole planet trembled once more under the awesome force of his power-up.
"No way!" Koji muttered to himself in disbelief as he noted Usami's increase in power. "How can I beat him now?"
Meanwhile, Dregor renewed the conflict on his side of the battlefield by attacking Kato while he was distracted by the scene between his father and the monstrous Usami! Dregor punched Kato in the face, knocking him to the ground hard, and then he fired an energy blast into Kien's torso, wounding him and causing him to crumple to the ground in a senseless heap! Kien's attack powered down as he collapsed limply to the ground of a small piece of island! Kato got up and recomposed himself, and then he gasped in horror when he saw Kien prone on the ground, a pool of blood forming beneath him!
Then he saw Dregor taking aim at his mother, his uncle, and his other friends! His rage stirred within him greatly, and his flaming aura returned and swelled massively! Small pebbles, stones, and rocks began rising as the boy's energy climbed higher! The ground began to shake again, and Kato's muscles began growing larger! Dregor's scouter-like sensors detected the boy's power-up, and the robot turned his attention towards the little boy! Kato screamed in fury as a surge of power seemed to clear the landscape for about a hundred feet, and a strong wind blew across the landscape that got the attention of everyone except Koji and Usami!
"The boy's power has increased greatly," Dregor calmly stated in his monotone, computerized voice. "He is now much stronger than I am."
"Leave my family and friends alone!" Kato screamed in rage as he flew at the metallic monstrosity to attack.
Kato began pummeling Dregor with superior fighting prowess, overwhelming the robot with the sheer intensity of his rage and overpowering the robot with his increased power! Dregor staggered backwards, every shot resounding off of his metal hide! Kato dented up Dregor's armored form with each and every attack as he pressed his advantage!
Meanwhile, Usami and Koji prepared to renew their fight! Koji's jaw was gaping open in disbelief, and Usami was grinning devilishly! There was silence for a few seconds before Usami's voice broke that silence!
"You see, I told you!" Usami continued to taunt and gloat while addressing Koji. "I am the perfect being! I am a god! You should kneel and worship me! It's obvious that you can't beat me!"
With those words uttered, Usami flew at Koji and began hammering him at will! Koji seemed helpless to defend himself from Usami's sudden attack! With a thunderous elbow attack, Usami slammed Koji down to the ground of a small island, leaving a crater and a cloud of dust where he hit! Usami then flew straight down into the crater and drove his foot into Koji's torso with all of his weight and momentum behind it, knocking the breath out of Koji and making him spit up a bit of blood!
As Koji was groaning in excruciating agony, Usami began stomping on his chest repeatedly, causing him to spit up even more blood under the onslaught! Usami then picked him up by the shoulder strap of his armored chestpiece and slammed a brutal punch into his face, knocking Koji across that island over the water and through a couple of islands more before Koji's wounded form came to a stop in the middle of that final island, prone at the end of a long swath that his body had carved in the island!
Koji lifted his head up and began struggling to rise to his feet, coughing and trembling as he exerted the effort! He slowly made it to one knee, and he grimaced as he forced himself to stand on his feet, shutting out the pain! He spat a bit of blood from his mouth to the side of him, and then he glared up at Usami! Koji's face was even more battered and bruised than before, and he grimaced in great pain and exertion! His body trembled for a moment, alerting him to its desire to collapse right where he stood, but he then steeled his resolve and steadied himself on his weary legs once again! Usami smiled!
"You can't win!" Usami boasted as he taunted the Super Saiyan with his imminent defeat. "Look at you! You can barely stand, let alone fight! Perhaps one of your friends will provide me some sport while you catch your breath!"
"No!" Koji thought to himself as he looked back at his wife, his brother-in-law, his three unrelated friends, and finally his only son.
"Let me see, who shall it be?" Usami inquired rhetorically as he taunted the battered Saiyan even more. "Hmmm. The boy looks to be the strongest among them! Perhaps he can give me some sport while you take a breather!"
"You ... leave ... my son ... out of this!" Koji growled in growing rage, his hair bristling up a bit more as his eyes reflected a savage rage building.
"Well, you're certainly full of fire and spunk for a man who's all but dead!" Usami taunted the angry Saiyan in his arrogance.
"I can't ... let him hurt ... my son!" Koji thought to himself, as his hair seemed to be blown by a wind that didn't exist. "Who ... will he turn ... his attentions to ... afterwards? ... The Zodorians? ... Yoshio? ... Yuko?!?"
His rage swiftly soared to a crescendo within him, and his golden flaming aura returned, flaring massively as he screamed his rage into the heavens! Electricity began to crackle around his flaring energy aura, as his muscles became slightly larger! The ground shook violently, and hurricane-strength winds buffeted the landscape out from Koji in all directions for an unbelievable distance! The powerful winds cleared the landscape of several islands and caused the waves of the waters to wash over the land on some of the islands as the waves just slammed violently against the shores of other areas of land for many miles away! Small pebbles, stones, and rocks rose and exploded, and large rocks and other massive debris began rising off the ground! The whole planet began shaking strongly, and the entire planet experienced some level of winds and strong waves in the water!
Over a large portion of the planet, mountains crumbled into the ocean and onto the ground to form large piles of rubble, and rocks began to explode out of the ground! Lava also began to spew from places where the ground had opened up for almost half-a-planet's distance, and small lakes, streams, and rivers were parted in two all the way to the bare ground beneath them, and the waters rose up in towering walls while lava sprayed into the air from the bare ground of the waters' beds between the watery walls! Some of the nearby islands shook so violently that they shook to bits, breaking up and sinking into the churning waters!
The Zodorians grabbed Kien's limp form and flew up into the air, and the human heroes joined them in the air, but the sky looked menacingly, being overcast and pitch black! Radical lightning flashed across the heavens as terrible whirlwinds formed over land and water for miles around! The four retreating heroes were buffeted roughly by the mighty winds as they desperately sought cover as trees were also being ripped from the ground and lifted skyward by Koji's unbelievable power-up!
Back at Shun's lookout, both Shun and Jontu were incredulous at Koji's newfound power, and both were trembling in awe! Shun's staff fell from the shocked Namek Kami's hand and clanked onto the lookout platform!
"Do you sense that incredible power, Kami Shun?" Jontu gasped in utter disbelief at what he sensed.
"I sense it, but I can't believe it, Jontu!" Shun muttered in total bewilderment, not even noticing that he had dropped his staff. "How is it possible to generate that much power? It's unfathomable!"
Back at the battlefield, even Kato and Dregor had to stop fighting to brace themselves against the power of Koji's power-up! Usami shuddered as he sensed the power emanating from the mighty Saiyan! The other heroes still desperately sought shelter from the terrifying environmental effects of Koji's incredible power surge!
"We're going to take Kien back to Shun's lookout, if it's still there!" Sumio shouted to Yoshio and Yuko over the volume of the apocalyptic power-up. "If we hurry, maybe Shun can heal Kien's wounds!"
"Right!" Yoshio shouted back to the Zodorian brother-sister duo. "We're going to stay here! We can't leave them alone against those monsters! Besides, they're family!"
Sumio and Sumie simultaneously nodded and then flew away, leaving Yuko and Yoshio to brave the unbelievable fury of the conflict! Both humans swallowed hard in dread anticipation as they continued to seek shelter in the midst of the maelstrom of Koji's power-up! Even Kato and Dregor couldn't continue their battle due to the severity of the environmental effects!