He didn't remember dying.
Not exactly.
There was a sound—loud, metallic, like a train wreck in reverse. Then pressure. And silence. Just long enough to question if time had stopped.
And then—he fell.
Not through space. Not through time. Through something else.
When the sensation ended, he lay flat on a field of scorched grass beneath a sky that crackled with unstable energy. The clouds split open in jagged seams, revealing stars he didn't recognize. His body ached. His breathing was shallow. But he was alive.
Barely.
"Wh... where the hell am I?"
The question came out in a whisper. His throat was dry. His hoodie was singed. Steam still rose from the earth like it had only recently endured hell.
He sat up slowly and looked ahead.
And froze.
Two figures stood locked in battle. One in orange, lean but powerful, with fists clenched and eyes burning. The other—taller, muscular, and cruel-eyed—wore armor that shimmered like alien steel. His long, wild hair whipped in the wind as he hurled a body aside like it meant nothing.
That body... crumpled near the edge of the crater.
The figure in orange collapsed seconds later, chest rising and falling in sharp bursts. He coughed blood. One arm bent at a sickening angle. But his eyes still glared with defiance.
"No way…" the boy muttered, standing shakily.
He knew that face. Those clothes. That battle.
He'd seen this scene before.
It wasn't a coincidence.
It wasn't a dream.
"That's Goku. And that's—"
Raditz. Saiyan elite. Ruthless. Dangerous.
The first enemy. The first death.
But this time, Goku wasn't getting up.Piccolo wasn't charging anything.And Raditz was walking forward.
"Your stubbornness... it's over, Kakarot," Raditz spat, lifting his hand. A glowing orb of ki formed in his palm. "This is the end."
"No... no, this isn't how it goes..."
The boy—Riven—gritted his teeth. His hands clenched into fists.
Everything in him screamed run. This wasn't his world. This wasn't his fight.
But something deeper—something ancient—rumbled from within. His heartbeat pulsed in his ears, louder with each beat, matching the flicker of sparks trailing around his fingers.
[SYSTEM INITIATED – ASCENSION CORE // Version: UNKNOWN]> Interference Anchor Detected> Temporal Distortion Active> Soul Threshold Crossed: +1 SOUL POINT OBTAINED> Combat Path Available: ENGAGE
A soft tone rang behind his eyes. It wasn't a sound. More like an urge.
He didn't understand how or why.Only that this was his chance.
Goku's breath was shallow.
Raditz raised his arm.
Riven took a step forward.
The ground cracked beneath his foot.
"…I won't just stand here."
A second step. Ki began to leak from his skin like shimmering haze, flickering silver for an instant.
"I'm not from here… but I'm done being powerless."
Raditz paused. His head turned slightly, sensing something—something new. Foreign. Wrong.
And Riven broke into a run.
[Soul Point Banked – 1 Point Available]> Unlock Option: ??? (Summon Core Incomplete)> Synchronization: 12%... 13%...> Commencing First Contact> WARNING: Power Gap Detected – Survival Rate: 7.2%
A burst of pressure shot out around him. Stones lifted from the ground. The wind howled as Riven leapt across the crater's edge, toward the battlefield below.
Toward Raditz.
Toward destiny.
And as he did, the final system line pulsed red:
[DIMENSIONAL CLASH – ENGAGED]> Interference Level: Rising