Echoes of Agony

He knew what to expect from this attack. Every single moment that passed, he was basically tearing through Lottus. Not literally, of course, but if Nasu himself was not holding back this could have gone in quite a different way which he would rather not have to inflict to a stranger whom he met for the first time.

That was what Nasu would have told himself, time and time again. And nothing, that was it. There was not a second voice that decided to intrude, not even the demon. Why? He was surprised he was basically beating down somebody helpless (not without reason), and yet there was nothing going on.

In truth, now that he thought about it, he had been feeling empty for a while now. He felt like something was missing but he did not know what exactly, there was just not that very sense of thrill or anything. Why? Even now Nasu gave himself a large plate to question, full of thoughts and other things and yet no one to possibly help him out was in the area. The man wondered just what was this strange lack, or rather absence of feeling.

Many other times, ever since the incident, when was the last time he actually enjoyed a small piece of his time? It was like he had changed, without him realizing it. But why did it suddenly feel like things used to be different?

"I do not want anyone. I do not know that person. Honestly, you are really something."

How annoying. Even after his attack, this stranger insisted, and nearly even stood up for himself and whoever he was trying to protect in his imagination. But there was not an extra moment granted to him until he collapsed, with a small sigh he just approached them and tried to look for any clues. What was this man's deal, even? His own deal could wait, but at least he was curious to understand if there was even the slightest chance he would not have to fight this man to the death again, and instead converse.

So, he just tapped him with his foot, seeing if he would wake up.

WC: 363

Total WC: 1,988

Thread Power Level: 89,768

Power Level: 448,840

HP: ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ 250%

KP: 5/6

MP: 0/6

OOC Notes/Items Used:

A moment or two passed, through which there was no more noise or sound. How sweet that sensation was, an endless void of anything. Yet one that was both familiar and scary all the same, it reminded him nearly of the years he spent locked away, closed into a world that was not his own to hopefully forget and move on. Perhaps even that was a part of destiny, something that wrapped him in darker roots and changed him into a person he was not, somebody that still acted like a Knight. That was something that he still struggled to accept, and yet he knew that he was not the same person, to this day, there was something else that lived inside him.

For years now he believed that it could have been literally anything, but even after hearing out Cheri, he wondered now if it was not all part of him. If it was not his own darkness that had just come alive because of another demon’s trick, and now he did not know how he was meant to deal with something of that caliber. There was no way he could know. But he could help out others that could perhaps face similar issues, that was what he believed when he saw Lottus go on a rampage like that.

Speaking of which, he woke up at one point. While Nasu had pretty much trashed his prey, he recovered it and was proceeding to burn it to a crisp, hopefully, even if he was doing so quite slow at it. First he needed to retrieve some wood, but all the same he was keeping an eye on Lottus. Like it or not, if the guy was going to go crazy again, he would have smacked him even harder.

“I guess you did. But in its defense, the mountain was getting hit for no reason. It is whatever, though, I believe I could tell you were not yourself.”

However, just how different his normal version was from that berserker one was of course a measure he could not begin to guess. How was he meant to know? It was the first time seeing this guy, but of course there was also a small sense of sympathy. Even before the demon incident, there had been times where he went crazy, going as far as giving up on ever using a sword for the rest of his days. And now he wondered if he could do anything, but most likely, in any practical way, there was nothing he could do.

“Do not sweat it. I have gotten clobbered so many times in just forty years, you get used to it. Being a warrior race it is the way we get to grow stronger, whether we win or lose.”

Perhaps it was true that all it took was a good thrashing, but of course that was a killer instinct. He could tell that much as a seasoned fighter, he wondered if this was really safe to count as a countermeasure. What if the other guy could not deliver a good hit on him? Would they just be left to die because of something that was beyond Lottus himself? Even Nasu to some extent, except the times on Namek, managed to restrain himself for a while. A period of time that felt endless, to be fair.

“Are you possessed by any chance? I have gone through something similar. Not quite the same, however, I have a demon that literally lives inside my soul or something like that. One of my friends can help it get better, though.”

Speaking of which, it had been a while since he had seen Erebos. A part of his mind was a little worried, was he even okay? But thinking about it twice, he just discarded the thought, the guy could handle himself just fine. There was no reason that he would not be okay.

“I am Nasu, you probably have never heard of me. I was not even born in this galaxy, but I have been hanging around for a while, so I know the state of things more or less. Now I have two questions; one, are you hungry? And two, what brings you here?”

WC: 708
Total WC: 2696

The man had taken enough wood to finally toss it off the ground, put it together by making a nice little stand and closed the whole thing with rocks to make a circle. The rest was pretty easy, he impaled the fish up the stand and lit a fire by cracking together a couple of rocks. Essential surviving skills, nothing more, and now the fish was going to be ready hopefully in not too long. Nasu looked over at Lottus when he was called an old man and considered it a bit; yes, it was undeniable. He had made his course but he did not feel old just yet.

“Yeah, that is true. Older than the average fighter that is worth a zeni. I feel like I have only met one other old Saiyan whose aura impressed me.”

And he looked older, too. But he did not know much about him, so he would not be the best to give any information. However also Lottus left a lot to guess when it came to his condition, it was not possession, of course, he supposed it made sense since he expected a second aura to probably be perceivable, but sick?

“Sick. You mean that you have the worst throat ache in history or in the head?”

Probably the second one. He could kind of see it make sense, but sadly he was not an expert with that kind of problem. Cheri would probably suggest to appoint some time on his schedule for a psychiatrist but there was also nothing he knew about that, so he did not wish to mislead him. Even if he could tell that there was a trace of humanity even in the mentally insane, given he spoke of a dear person that left him.

“I know the feeling. I did not have even a place left to mourn her at, only an amulet. Which I buried back in her homeworld.”

The question of his own homeworld and all was instead one that he supposed was fair, as far as he knew he was the only specimen that had come from another galaxy so far. But there was also a point to be made that he was old but not that old to have known or witnessed anything, therefore all he could do was give second hand intel on that.

“As far as I know, my grandfather’s group split away. I am not sure why. But the reason I am here and not there is because they are all dead. Last time I was there, there were corpses and blood everywhere you could turn. Saiyans killed other Saiyans, natives and beasts killed Saiyans and vice versa. I am likely the last surviving man of that group that left for another galaxy at this point. After years I spent around the endless void I heard news of Saiyans and Tuffles in this world and figured I would come and see what my kin was doing, and if it would be any different from what happened in my world. So far so good, but as far as I know both Saiyan and Tuffle suffered a great deal, too. Still better than extinction I guess.”

WC: 535
Total WC: 3,231

He was the only one with the power to stay alive. An interesting perspective of course, even though Nasu hardly agreed with it he also knew it was somewhat true. But not in the exact way he could have meant it, he was sturdy and resistant but the only reason he was still alive was thanks to those few exceptional individuals that sacrificed their lives for him. What made it all the more important for him was not in the way they did so because Nasu was considered a relevant individual, no rather they considered Nasu to be worth their lives back then.

“I would not say it like that. It is true the majority of the Saiyans forgot how to draw out their latent power because of how peaceful the world was. But we fell by the hands of more Saiyans. They ultimately killed each other when controlled by one madman driven by a religion made out of Saiyan culture. To give some context, some decided to adapt with the natives and others retreated and did their thing until they attacked us.”

Said madman being of course his own father would have made things harder to explain, therefore he was sure to leave unnecessary details out. Of course Nasu managed to survive in the end, but at a cost that was not ultimately worth it. Lottus himself had experienced a near death experience, of course at a different hand; the Tuffles themselves did it. But he was no less surprised, he had known for a while that no one was innocent on the matter. Surely the Saiyans came first, but the Tuffles did their fair share of war crimes and in the end no one was really the best man between the two.

“We can not do much about it. Such insane individuals are born regardless of species or whatever not. I have had my life turned around by Saiyans, and before I have been saved both by Tuffle and Demon kind. It is strange how life works things out, sometimes.”

Lottus was apparently only a victim of destron, itself. The Saiyan had an average understanding of it but he was no scientist and had no idea how it even worked, only that you were not meant to breathe it. So of course and obviously not to Lottus’ surprise, he could find no word of advice for his fellow kin. He knew someone who could maybe help him, but given Lottus felt like he had been greatly invested in the previous conflict, he had his own doubts that he would allow himself to be helped by Cheri.

“So you live every day to the last and not care whether you stumble upon a mountain capable of crushing you, with the knowledge that you will die anyway. I can respect that, even if I would much rather prefer if you sought help. I would rather preserve my kin than watch it die any further, alongside anyone else in this world, of course.”

With a quick grip, he removed a piece from his prey and gave it a nice look to make sure that it was not undercooked before he just stuffed himself with the meat. He did not need to tell Lottus to grab himself some, of course. It tasted good surely, and it melted in the mouth, that was surely a fine hunt. Once he gulped it down, he looked over the fellow Saiyan again.

“Even if you do not trust Tuffles, which I assume is the case, have you tried looking out for anyone else that understands a thing about stuff like that? I honestly do not. In my world the best level of technology we had were old space pods and only because they were salvaged from the Saiyans that landed, for the rest everyone used simple things such as rock, wood, metal and magic. So I have no idea what to say. But for example Earth has some intelligent people.”

WC: 664
Total WC: 3,895

True enough.

The man did not exactly stop to think about who this person was, he figured that anyone would wish to be cured of any illness and all, that it was simply the thing your average person would want for themselves. But of course neither one of them were average in one way or another, there was just no telling for him to even understand Lottus. A person plagued for years; sure, that was a concept he was all too familiar with, but while his mind worked to erase so many memories so that his sanity could remain safe for the past twenty years, this man remembered it all.

Time had not been as kind to him as it had been to Nasu. Even to this day, there was a reason he decided not to ever return to his world or even nearby his quadrant, besides the fact that everyone was dead, but almost as if he feared there was a threshold for the Saiyan. One that he had triggered the moment he left, where he slowly regressed and forgot each and every painful memory for years to come so that it could preserve the man in the way he wanted to be; but what if that never happened?

If he had to experience and remember that pain for twenty years with no one but himself for company, then he was pretty sure that it would have consumed him. He did not believe he would have been exactly like Lottus but perhaps a close match, that he would have gladly marched to death, but to the rhythm of the corpses that followed his steps. A strange and radically different man, perhaps even the sort of individual he could have become under Rosemary’s influence if the Namekians and Erebos did not intervene. He knew that it was not something he ever wished to even think about, but it was true.

He did not know if he respected or understood Lottus for the matter. Maybe he did understand but in truth Nasu was quite radical when it came to ‘the warrior race’: it was stupid. A concept that he did not observe in nearly no Saiyan of note he met so far but that was not a bad thing, instead he met Saiyans that were entirely different from some fighter warrior wannabe. It did not take further than a stroll around Vegeta to see the Saiyans even have careers; building, cooking or whatever else, it was astonishing and something that he enjoyed seeing.

When it came to the warriors bit, he had some demands to see in a warrior. It had to be someone who could tough it out to the end, that did not care about losing, and that would keep raising even in death. That was what a warrior was, in his opinion. That was what he strived to be, everyday. But what was the difference between a Saiyan and Knight? That was a talk for another day. He wondered, was facing death honorable for a warrior? Or was seeking help not just a fight of its own?

“That is a sound argument. I understand that maybe a reason to live is necessary, but it would not hurt if you did not wish to die out of principle. Of course, if that is your ultimate wish I can not move you off that track but I will say that it is a shame. You would probably be an invaluable asset if you could control yourself, but perhaps that is not something you can help. I am no doctor but I wonder if the damage done to your head can even be repaired at this point.”

Probably not. All the more reason that no more could be done but simply give up to death at a certain point, it was no easy thing to say but it was true. Perhaps in another life, things would be fair for him, but he feared there was no more he could say on the matter, especially when he brought up the murder and all. He did not condone it of course, but what was he supposed to do? Scold him? He had no authority and frankly put it would not work on an individual like this, but it was not like he had not already taken a similar read off him; he had seen him as that kind of Saiyan except a lot more extreme because of those moments he had every once in a while. Especially out of war, he did not think it was a weightless matter to kill someone in general.

“They do say you end up paying the consequences for your actions. In the end if you can not find help, it is your own fault on that matter. But since you seem to accept it, it is probably a small matter to you. If I was you, I would honestly just find a quiet planet and retire. I too understand that death should not stop you from fighting, but then it is useless if you have no reason to fight for, what is the point in bothering yourself with more battles if you are meant to die? For sports or fun? I do not know. It sounds frustrating after a while, since it will all end at a certain point.”

For Nasu, there was no end. He would keep fighting after death, even if a hundred demons surrounded him in that otherworld the Shinjin told him about, because he had his own morals to uphold. Death was at best just a checkpoint, he was not going to stand still and relax just because he could.

But then he also heard an interesting name. Vocado. That was a while back, honestly. But he figured that he did help him out, therefore he could probably consider his opinion on the matter; he was definitely a weapon, but he did not understand if it was not as dangerous for the wielders as it was to the enemy. What good was a weapon that could snap and suddenly hurt you? Especially in war, it was basically game over. The enemy would take advantage and knock you down, ultimately winning.

“I do not disagree with Vocado necessarily. But from what I saw you do not exactly listen to anyone while in that state. Then I ask, why not seek help? At least try and control it better, because if you can just end up killing your own allies in war, then I fear even as a weapon you would be no good. Unless they just drop you somewhere and expect you to take down a whole base by yourself but I have seen one man raiders and honestly that never works. If I were you I would reconsider if it is worth getting better, in one way or another.”

He gulped down the last of the fish he cared to eat, the rest he could probably eat it. His hands patted the dust off his clothes from the earlier bout before he looked away towards the capital. He figured it was time to go back soon.

WC: 1,194
Total WC: 5,089

Nasu continued to chew and taste upon his prey’s flesh, a common lake fish. He did not necessarily find enjoyment or satisfaction by eating it, he simply did it to survive. He was not one to just go around and eat food carelessly, except on Earth but only due to how delicious that place’s meals were. But that was something out of the point, there was an infinite amount of things that could be considered wrong or right but sadly not one of them was murder in his opinion. It was something out of good and evil, because it was not like the good guys did not necessarily ever take a life if needed but of course that alone defined where you stood upon the spectrum.

Under other circumstances. In most other cases people could possibly find both good and evil in you without really coming across a real and final answer, was it bad to take lives? To Nasu, it was only a necessary evil. However the same definition was not meant to match others’, of course the real only answer was: did you have to do it? Why? In the end Lottus had his own problems and was raised under different conditions, he could understand that to him murder could basically be as easy as slicing butter but it was not something he supported in any shape or form.

“Figures. That is how messed up life is, from start to end. But all things considered I will hope that you get better somehow.”

He would have to likely be careful about this individual, especially when so close to Hatchi, even so he was essentially connected to the city, so he doubted he needed any extra care in tracking any other individual. If something happened, he would know it. He was not surprised in the slightest to hear that he would not be content by dying peacefully, he did not see where the self respecting Saiyan part played any role, if anything he believed any self respecting warrior would not just fight without motivation but he doubted he could just kick it in his head, their ideologies were far too different.

“There is no way to erase destron eternally. By now it must be common technology; other civilizations copy others and so on. Just like mine did with the space pods. What is done is done, basically. The past can not be erased, you can only move on.”

He commented shortly. He did not see that mission as a possible one, but who was he to talk to; the self declared guardian of the Tuffles. Or well, not self declared rather, when he worked together with the Chancellor. Anyhow, Nasu would keep in mind this individual. He doubted he would see him again as Nasu rarely was the one to hang around with other Saiyans in the first place, but he would surely remember this conversation.

And he was not out of fish. With a small sigh he finally headed off, back to his watch spot so he could keep his guard up a little longer before elaborating his plans any further.

WC: 525
Total WC: 5,614

Thread Exit