"Echoes of a Dying Star"
---
Planet X-17 — Outer Quadrant of the Southern Galaxy |
The crimson sky burns overhead, twin suns descending behind jagged volcanic peaks. Winds lash the black sands of the broken world known as X-17, a once-bustling trading hub now reduced to war and silence. Somewhere within this dying world, a lone pod crash-lands, steam hissing from its exhaust.
The hatch hisses open.
Heavy boots strike rock. A tall figure steps out, wrapped in futuristic armor, red-black ki flickering faintly around his body. A dark mask conceals his mouth, its respirator humming softly. His black shoulder-length hair sways with the wind. His red-black eyes gleam like dying stars.
He scans the horizon silently.
> [SYSTEM: Activating… Status Scan…]
Species: Saiyan-Human Hybrid (Hanma Bloodline)
Age: 5
Power Level: 200
Status: Stable | Tail: Present | Potential: Limitless
His name is Cumber. Born of war, bred for conquest, and cursed with knowledge from beyond this world. A hybrid outcast. A secret storm.
> "This is the planet I chose... Not bad," Cumber mutters, his voice deep and calm, echoing through the mask.
In the distance, a race of gray-skinned warriors with flowing cloaks and crested heads approaches. The Zeltraxians, the native species, wary but curious.
Their leader, a hunched figure with glowing green eyes and a staff tipped in crystal, speaks first.
> Zeltraxian Elder:
"You are not of our stars. Yet your landing was not by accident… Who are you, stranger?"
> Cumber (cool, calculating):
"A hunter. A conqueror. But I offer no war… not yet. I need something first."
> Zeltraxian Elder:
"You carry the blood of destruction. Saiyan… and something else. We sense it. You came from the stars. You escaped… the asteroid."
Cumber's eyes narrow slightly behind the mask.
> Cumber (inwardly):
An asteroid?
...No. I know the truth. Frieza.
> Cumber (calmly):
"What asteroid?"
The elder turns away, pointing toward a crumbled observatory. A holographic screen flickers to life — a static-ridden image of a fiery breaking space apart where a planet used to be.
> "It happened not long ago. A planet of warriors... annihilated by cosmic fire. Frieza force calls it an asteroid. But legends speak of… betrayal."
> Cumber (low voice):
"Frieza… you snake. You'll get what's coming… but not from me. That revenge belongs to Kakarot and Vegeta."
He turns to the Zeltraxians.
> Cumber:
"Tell me about the rift."
The elder hesitates, then gestures to the edge of the horizon, where a torn crater bathes the land in blue-white light. Floating in its center is a pulsing dimensional hole, cracked like glass.
> Zeltraxian Elder:
"That... is the Time Wound. A fragment of space and time... ten years pass within for every year outside. It's unstable. No one who enters has returned."
> Cumber (smirking behind mask):
"Perfect."
I already setting my sights on power beyond mortal reach. The Cereal Dragon Balls… and the wish-granting Eternal Dragon Toronbo. Unlike Earth's Shenron or Namek's Porunga, Toronbo grants nearly any wish as long as you have the strength to wield it.
But in this era… Granolah is still a child.
The Heeters rule the planet.
And no one… no one knows the full value of the orbs yet — except you. And I will use it wisely so I don't pay the price like the foolish.
Planet X-17 — Southern Galaxy |
The Zeltraxian elder tilts his head, sensing your sharp shift in focus.
> Zeltraxian Elder:
"Another world calls to you, doesn't it, offworlder?"
> Cumber (quiet, deadly):
"Yes. Cereal. I need to leave. You said this was a trade hub once. Do you have ships?"
> Zeltraxian Elder:
"We have one—abandoned by space raiders. Warp-capable. Damaged, but it will fly."
> Cumber:
"Good."
Before you turn to leave, you reach for your face—
—with a crackle of ki, you crush the Frieza Force scouter, dropping the sparking remains into the dust.
> Cumber (flatly):
"I'm no one's dog."
> SYSTEM NOTIFICATION
[Scouter Destroyed. Location Signature Erased.]
[Frieza Force tracking: TERMINATED.]
---
HOURS LATER — IN ORBIT ABOVE X-17
You sit in the cockpit of a rusted, shield-scarred Saiyan-style shuttle, ki-wrapped armor pulsing slightly under your breath. You stare silently at the stars, eyes locked on one — far off, faint… but known to you.
Cereal.
The system pings.
> Destination Locked: Planet Cereal
Distance: 4 Days at Warp-2
Estimated Time: 96 hours
Alert: You are currently in Age 744. Granolah is 3 years old. Heeters are active.
> Cumber (inwardly):
The Dragon Balls should be hidden, forgotten.
The Heeters control the planet… but don't know the truth.
I'll take them. Make my wish. Then vanish to the Rift.
> Cumber (to the system):
"Warp now."
The engines roar.
---
4 DAYS LATER — Planet Cereal |
The ship breaks atmosphere over the green hills and sharp cliffs of Cereal. Cities are scattered in sparse clusters, mostly made up of the Cerealians and Sugarians who've been forcibly merged into one trade economy.
Above them, a massive orbital station hovers — Heeter Base One, controlling trade and weapons distribution. The Heeters, small in number but massive in influence, run the economy with an iron grip.
You're currently flying just below radar. One touch of your ki could alert them.
The Dragon Balls — two in total — are small, unlike Earth's or Namek's, and they are scattered across the wild regions of Cereal's rocky desert and overgrown jungles.
> SYSTEM SCAN ACTIVATED
[Scanning for irregular ki energy signatures]
…
Dragon Ball 1: Detected – Location: Blackstone Gorge (Jungle ruin)
Dragon Ball 2: Detected – Location: Vault Room, Heeter Outpost 7
You clench your fist. Time to move.
Cereal — Jungle Outskirts, Blackstone Gorge |
You descend silently through the treetops, your boots crunching against damp moss and ancient stone. The ruins below stretch across the jungle floor like cracked bones — Blackstone Gorge, home to forgotten temples and native Cerealian relics.
Your mask's sensor flickers.
> SYSTEM SCAN:
Ki Signature Detected — Low, Stealth-Adaptive, Cerealian origin.
You narrow your eyes.
> Cumber (quietly):
"Someone else is here."
As you enter the ruin's core, your eyes catch movement — just a blur. Then… a flash of a lens. A tiny energy blast pierces a bug on a tree leaf from 100 meters away.
She's watching you.
A figure drops down in front of you. She's young — your age — wearing a dusty cloak, scarf, and worn utility boots. A rifle slung over her shoulder, light and silent. Her most striking feature: heterochromatic eyes — one emerald green, one icy blue — and long hair that fades between blue and green, like the jungle mist and sky met halfway.
She doesn't raise her rifle. She just studies you.
> Cumber (calm, composed):
"You don't belong in a ruin like this."
> Girl:
"Neither do you. Especially not with that tail."
Her tone is sharp, but not hateful. She's observant. Dangerous. Independent.
> Cumber:
"You noticed."
> Girl:
"I see everything. It's why I steal from the Heeters and they never know."
You pause.
> Cumber:
"A skill-robber, then. Sneaky. Good aim. Hidden ki… I could use that."
She crosses her arms, eyebrow raised.
> Girl:
"Why? You planning something?"
> Cumber (nodding):
"There's a green orb inside one of their outposts. Small. Hidden in Vault Room 7. I want it. Can you get it?"
She narrows her eyes.
> Girl:
"You're asking a lot."
> Cumber:
"I'll repay the favor. Anything. You can ask me whatever you want. You can even stay with me until I make it up to you."
She hesitates — just for a second. Then… smirks.
> Girl:
"Hmph. Tempting."
You step closer.
> Cumber (removing your mask just slightly, voice softer):
"My name is Cumber. I know who I am. A Saiyan. And I know what the Saiyans did to your people.
But… we were forced by Frieza. And then he destroyed my home. My people.
I'm not your enemy."
She studies your face now. Her breath slows.
> Girl:
"...My name's Lyra."
> Lyra:
"And I believe you, Cumber. But don't think this makes us friends. Not yet."
She throws you a small communicator chip.
> Lyra:
"Wait two hours. If I'm not back by then… assume the worst."
You nod. Silently. She vanishes into the trees like mist.
Heeter Outpost 7 – Two Hours Later
You wait, crouched in a rocky canyon far from the base. Your ki is tightly wrapped, invisible to scouters.
> SYSTEM: Passive Scanners Online… No alarm triggered.
Then—
A soft ping. The communicator buzzes.
> Lyra (whispering through chip):
"I'm in. Found the orb. Weird glow. They don't even know what it is. Vault door was cake."
Then a pause.
> Lyra (voice sharp):
"Wait. Footsteps. Multiple ki signatures. I've got to—"
Silence.
...
> SYSTEM: Connection Lost.
You stand. The wind howls around you.
Your chest tightens.
> Cumber (inwardly):
She got caught. Or something else.
She risked everything… for my goal.
You're sharp, Cumber. Patient but precise. You take what you can control — and give others a chance to prove their worth. The first Dragon Ball in hand, you now wait… trusting Lyra, watching the wind.
---
Planet Cereal — Blackstone Gorge | | Nightfall
The jungle is still now. The creatures are silent. Moonlight filters through the canopy, casting faint reflections off the small orange orb glowing in your hand — the first of Cereal's Dragon Balls.
Its power hums quietly. You can feel it even through your gloves. A relic left by the Namekians before the war — and soon, it will answer to you.
You sit cross-legged in the shadows. Breathing slow. Mask lowered. Ki still.
Then—
> Rustle.
A faint breeze. A figure limps through the bushes, cloak torn slightly, blood staining the scarf.
> Lyra (panting):
"Hey… you owe me."
She tosses the second Dragon Ball to you. You catch it midair.
> SYSTEM: Both Dragon Balls acquired. Summon Ritual Available.
You stand slowly, walking over. She sits down, wincing, removing a tiny dart from her shoulder.
> Cumber:
"You're hurt."
> Lyra:
"Tch. Just grazed. Heeter guards didn't even know what they were protecting. Vault was buried under junk. Got out clean… mostly."
You kneel beside her.
> Cumber (quietly):
"You kept your word. I will too."
You set the two glowing orbs side by side. Red-black ki wraps around your palm. The old Namekian words echo in your mind — words your secret knowledge has burned into your soul.
> Cumber:
"Rise, Toronbo — and grant my wish."
The two Dragon Balls glow blindingly. The sky twists. Lightning arcs across the stars. The ground rumbles.
> VRMMMMMMMM
A beam of light shoots upward — and from it descends the towering figure of Toronbo, Cereal's Eternal Dragon. Sleek, serpentine, gold-trimmed and emerald-eyed, his body coils through the sky.
> Toronbo (echoing):
"You who have summoned me… speak.
I shall grant any single wish within my power — if it is within your strength to wield."