After receiving the telepathic warning from King Kai, Lisette immediately scanned the cosmos for the signatures of Bojack and his crew. Sure enough, she sensed several massive, arrogant powers making their way across the stars toward Earth.
Honestly, she thought, you'd think they'd get lost at least once. Why is it always a straight line to my planet?
Even worse, their power levels were significant. Lisette estimated that even she would struggle in a one-on-one fight with the subordinates, and Bojack himself possessed a ki that officially surpassed her current state. They were roughly two days away. If she didn't find a way to bolster the team's strength, they were looking at a total wipeout.
Fortunately, the solution was right under her feet.
"We're out of time," Lisette announced to the warriors gathered at the Lookout. "We're going to use the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. You'll be going in pairs to maximize our training efficiency before the enemy arrives."
In the original timeline, the chamber was used to counter Cell. Here, fate had pivoted, and it would be the forge used to break the Hera Clan.
Lisette carefully selected the pairs. For the first day, she sent in Piccolo and Turles. She had considered sending Vegeta and Trunks first, but she knew Vegeta's current temperament all too well. The Saiyan Prince was still far too selfish; he would likely ignore the one-day limit and stay inside for the second day just to ensure he was the strongest.
"As long as I can kill them all myself, the rest of you don't matter," he would probably say, effectively stealing the training time of his allies. So, Vegeta was relegated to the second day. He could spend the next twenty-four hours meditating on a cliffside for all she cared.
Trunks would join Vegeta on day two. This left a core team of five—Lisette, Piccolo, Turles, Vegeta, and Trunks—to intercept the pirates. Nappa would have to sit this one out; they simply didn't have the time to cycle everyone through.
Regarding Bojack, Lisette's analysis was nuanced. While his power was immense, he seemed inferior to the Perfect Cell she had recently met. She recalled that in the movie, Bojack relied heavily on his subordinates to pin down opponents—using Bujin's psychic threads to trap Gohan and Trunks before delivering the finishing blows.
He's strong, but he's a bully who needs an advantage, Lisette reasoned. If we wipe out his support staff first and hit him five-on-one, we have a real chance.
***
The Hera Clan streaked through the void toward Earth. To Bojack, Earth was the most beautiful jewel in the Northern Galaxy—and therefore, by his logic, it belonged to him.
But as they breached the stratosphere and prepared to descend, a rift tore open in the air ahead of them.
"Hm...?"
A young woman in white stepped through the portal. She radiated a divine presence, wreathed in shimmering particles of light. Bojack recognized her instantly: the God of this world. He wasn't particularly worried; he had slaughtered many planetary guardians before his imprisonment.
But his expression hardened when four more warriors emerged behind her.
"Heh. Welcome to Earth, boys," Turles taunted, adjusting his white coat over his black shirt. "I appreciate you traveling all this way just to die. Saves me the trip."
Piccolo discarded his weighted turban and mantle, his eyes narrowing at a hulking man with a mohawk. "Hmph. It looks like we finally have a decent workout."
Beside him, Trunks drew his sword, his gaze locking onto an orange-haired man who had drawn a blade of his own. The two swordsmen recognized each other instantly as their designated dance partners.
"I'm going to show you the overwhelming power of Super Vegeta," Vegeta declared, his arms crossed. "Bojack is mine. Don't any of you dare interfere."
Lisette sighed. Vegeta was jumping the gun as usual, but since he was eager, he could act as the primary tank while the others cleared the field.
Bojack ignored Vegeta, his predatory gaze fixed solely on Lisette. "So, you're the God. You've got a nice planet here, little girl."
"Glad you like it."
"Be happy. From this moment on, Earth belongs to Bojack. If you submit now, I might let you live as my plaything."
Lisette felt a wave of cold disgust. "I've heard better pick-up lines from Krillin."
The short subordinate, Bujin, stepped forward. "Lord Bojack is peerless in the galaxy. He is the only one fit to rule the Northern Galaxy's greatest prize. Anyone who resists... dies."
It was a tired, circular logic. Lisette didn't bother with a verbal retort. She fired a Kiai Cannon that sent Bujin hurtling backward.
"You!?" Bojack roared.
"I'll deal with you later," Lisette said, taking flight. She chased after the flying Bujin, leaving the others to their duels.
She knew that in the movie, the Z-Fighters were cornered because they let the subordinates run wild while they tried to take Bojack individually. If they had worked together and cleared the support staff first, Gohan wouldn't have even needed Super Saiyan 2.
Lisette caught up to Bujin and thrust her hand forward, firing an energy blade at point-blank range. Bujin flickered out of the way, leaving only an afterimage.
"Hah! Hahaha!"
Bujin cackled, raising his hands to levitate the surrounding clouds of dust and debris. He hurled a barrage of boulders at Lisette with his telekinesis, but they all stopped dead in mid-air before they could touch her.
Suddenly, twice as much debris rose up behind Lisette, their tips sharpened by her ki.
"Tch!"
Bujin realized he was facing a fellow psychic. He dodged the return volley, trying to find an opening, but Lisette was already behind him. Her hand was pressed against the small of his back.
This time, the energy sword was real. It erupted from his stomach, the glowing blade slick with blood.
"Gah!?"
"I'm sorry you traveled all this way," Lisette whispered, "but I'm quite busy today. I don't have time to play pirates with you."
She used her telekinesis to slam him into the ground while he was still skewered. He coughed up a fountain of blood as the blade drove deeper into the earth. Lisette didn't stop. She waved her hand, and a massive ki-guillotine manifested in the air above him.
Execution.
The blade fell, severing Bujin's head. His body slumped into the dirt. Lisette knew that aliens could be resilient—Cooler had survived as a brain, after all—so she didn't take any chances.
"Hah!"
She fired a single, massive ki blast that vaporized the remains. Only when Bujin was reduced to ash did she consider the fight over.
Elsewhere, the clashing steel of Gokua and Trunks rang out across the sky.
Unlike Lisette's energy blades, these were physical weapons—honed steel screaming as they met in a shower of sparks. They moved in parallel, running across the air while maintaining a lethal distance.
Gokua lunged first. Trunks parried with fluid grace, closing the distance to deliver a horizontal slash. Gokua barely jumped back, a thin line of blood appearing on his abdomen.
"Impressive," Gokua grunted, wiping the blood. "To find a swordsman of your caliber on this rock..."
"You're not bad yourself," Trunks replied. "But you're still a step behind the one who taught me."
"Big words!"
Gokua roared, his sword becoming a blur. Clang! Clang! Clang! Trunks met every strike perfectly.
Frustrated, Gokua put his full weight into a massive overhead swing. Trunks dodged with a simple side-step and stepped in for a counter-slash. Gokua anticipated the move and raised his arm to block, but a second impact shattered his forearm before the blade even arrived.
"W-What!? Your scabbard!?"
Trunks had used his scabbard—infused with his ki—to deliver a crushing blow to Gokua's guard before following up with the sword. Gokua, realizing he was outmatched in technique and weaponry, kicked off the air to create distance.
"That's a fine blade," Gokua spat. "I think I'll take it from your corpse."
"Not happening. This sword is a memento from someone I lost. I'm not letting a scavenger like you touch it."
Trunks discarded the scabbard and gripped the hilt with both hands. He funneled his ki into the steel, causing the blade to erupt in a golden radiance. The sun reflected off the edge, making it look as though the sword were made of liquid light.
"Let's go."
Trunks ascended to his Super Saiyan state. Gokua responded by triggering his own transformation—his muscles bulged to grotesque proportions, tearing his clothes.
It was a power-weighted transformation. It increased his strength but killed his speed.
Trunks remembered his sister's words: "Never rely solely on raw muscle. A sword's true power is speed and precision."
A normal blade would have snapped under the stress of Trunks's current velocity. But this wasn't a normal sword. It was forged from Tenmei Stone—the highest-grade material on Earth—created by the Goddess herself. It was the only weapon of its kind, left to him by 'her.'
Gold hair shimmering, Trunks accelerated.
(A frontal charge!) Gokua thought. (I can tank one hit to land a killing blow!)
Gokua raised his reinforced arm to take the strike. He assumed he could block it.
The golden blade met his arm—and slid through it like a hot wire through wax.
"...Ah?"
"It's over."
Gokua's durability, even in his transformed state, couldn't withstand a blade coated in hyper-condensed ki. His arm, and then his torso, were sliced clean through.
Trunks sheathed his glowing sword as the two halves of the invader fell toward the sea. He had used the Ki-Infused Swordsmanship taught to him by his fallen master to end the fight in a single breath.
***
Status Report
Bujin: Vaporized by Lisette.
Gokua: Bifurcated by Trunks.
Remaining Enemies: Bojack, Zangya, and Bido.
***
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