Continuing on his journey to places he shouldn't be, Gandigan had managed to travel right to the very end of the great Snake Way, and now found himself travelling in a plane even further up than where he was before. First came a smaller planet that had small home but appeared to be unoccupied from where Gandigan was looking. The Namekian pushed through what felt like an endless void, unsure of whether or not he was still even within the afterlife. Was this Heaven? Where the good guys went? If so then where was everybody?
In particular, where were the Shinjin? That was who Gandigan was looking for on this day. After having heard from Prophos a number of troubling things, Gandigan wanted to have a few of their discussion points confirmed. First and foremost was the identity of the so called 'Horsemen' of whom Vale was supposedly a member of. Next came the magical orbs; if the Horsemen knew what the orbs were and what they could do then other Shinjin probably would.
Eventually Gandigan came across a planet far larger than any other he had seen within this empty space; so lush and full of life that it reminded him of home. Gandigan touched down with a field of tall grass, but found himself alone as before. Despite the enormity of the planet it appeared empty again... yet he could feel life forces off in the distance. Knowing that he was likely trespassing in this land Gandigan walked softly in their direction hoping to find someone forgiving of a little rule breaking.
"Kai Kai" echoed around the space as a glowing yellow portal spat out two figures. One was an old man with a walking staff, and the second was a small yellow budgie. The old man looked around for the bird as it flitted around the open space. "Copernicus!" He cried out with a croaky voice, the bird turned and landed upon the shoulder of the elderly figure as he bent his head to the budgie as it tweeted into his ear. Some small noises of assurance and acknowledgement followed.
Patience would stand as upright as his body would allow and stride towards the Namekian. "Hail traveller, what brings you here?" he asked inquisitively, taking in the appearance of the powerful figure ahead of him.
His face screwed up slightly in confusion when he realised the magnitude of strength that the visitor possessed but relaxed to an easy smile when he processed that they were in heaven and they had probably just gotten lost.
It seemed it was not only the Saiyans that were gaining higher forms, the aura that Gandigan gave off, just passively, was intimidating to most, but Patience felt that here in the land of the Kais, no true danger could befall him.
"My name is Patience, may I ask your name?" Patience queried, it was best to be polite in any case, and the Namekian as of yet, was not hostile. Copernicus took off once more, flapping hard into the sky.
It didn't take long for Gandigan to be discovered by one of the denizens up here, though the man who approached him was not what he was expecting to find. The stranger, who introduced himself as Patience, asked for his name, as well as his purpose here. He didn't appear to be threatening in either his tone or his power, so Gandigan felt comfortable explaining himself. "My name is Gandigan, and I hail from the planet Namek. I did not mean to cause offense in trespassing however I have important questions that need answering."
The Mazoku took a step forward, getting closer to the man while trying to figure out who he was really. The man actually looked a bit Human, which caused Gandigan to assume that he was speaking to someone that was dead as well. "You are dead too? I was looking for some of the Shinjin, but I'm not sure where to find them. I met one a while back... Prophos was the name. Maybe you know him? He told me a few things that I would like to discuss with someone else."
Gandigan took another look around, trying to sense if there was anyone near by, but it would appear that the two were still alone. "Would you happen to be able to point me in the right direction? It's rather urgent that I speak to them; the fate of the universe may be at stake here."
"Gandigan hm... A pleasure." Pat smiled in acknowledgement, the Namekian went on to explain that not only was he trespassing, which the Shinjin should have caught onto already, but he was seeking knowledge. Pat was not one for denying such pursuits.
As he was approached; Pat was slightly confused or perhaps concerned before the following question baffled him. "Um, no, I'm not deceased, no Halo see?" He pointed above his head to his hat, but clearly, no distinct halo shone there. "I am also a Shinjin, but I do not know of Prophos as I am not familiar with most of us, but I will answer what I can."
Gandigan's expectations clearly weren't being met by the elderly figure of Pat. Understandable, of course, he spoke once more. "The Universe at stake is rather above my pay grade. Alas, the Kais are not well known for their activity in the Mortal plains. However, I can see whom I can spread the message to. I am able to walk between the realms, you see? What is the problem with Prophos? A prophecy perhaps? Us Shinjin are rather blatantly named oftentimes." A hint of fear crept its way into his voice but was subdued by the serious tone. Pat's face darkened, this could be a prank or entirely truthful, and both deserved his full attention.
Copernicus ceased making noise as it silently looked between the two of them, its simple form conveying confusion and concern.
Gandigan looked above the old man's head. "Oh?" He hadn't even actually noticed his own Halo until now, moving his hand up over his head to check it out. Most of the dead that he encountered in Hell lacked Halos, as most of them also lacked bodies at all. He had generally only interacted with Oni and Shinjin up until now, and hadn't even realized the man he was speaking to was one of them. "My apologize, but I am glad to have found you, Patience."
Patience didn't know who Prophos was, but that was fine. All he really needed was to ask someone about the things that Prophos had told him. "I will not ask that you interfere with the mortal realm today, Patience. This story which I must ask you about is actually more linked to your world than it is mine, which is why I believe you may be able to help me after all."
Gandigan cleared his through, before starting from the beginning. "The most worrying thing told to me by Prophos was the story of the Horsemen: Four Shinjin born of evil, who were locked away. The reason he told me of this was because I claimed to have met one of them myself: a Shinjin by Vale. Purple skin, white hair. I also heard tales of another one on Namek, called Cyprus, with orange skin and a green coat. Is this story true? Are these Horsemen as dangerous as Prophos told me?"
"No need to apologize Gandigan, I am a rather unexpected figure." He said calmly, trying to reassure the Namekian. Gandigan continued saying he wasn't needed to meddle, which brought some disappointment across Pat's face. "A shame I do love the occasional meddle." He chuckled before letting his conversation partner continue.
The Horsemen... Had it really been that long, long enough that their cages had weakened? A shudder went down the elderly shinjin's back as his skin became covered in goosebumps. Copernicus landed back on the man and tweeted softly into his ear.
"I have no idea what form or guises they might appear in, but these were ancient kais. Powerful beyond their station as the story goes. Before Yemma had fully taken his role, it was their task to escort souls to the Heavens and the Hells." Pat's worry was broken by a chesty cough. "They are dangerous, there is no denying it, if they were to find each other, and form a pact, it would mean disastrous things." He paused once again, mulling over his thoughts. "Though they are still individuals, and if there are only two of them, there's little to fear. I've heard many of the legends require all four of them to cause real trouble. So, as long as we are vigilant, we shall be fine." Patience assumed that was the case anyhow, there were only tales of when all of them were together that problems arose, and there was no telling if the other two had escaped yet.
Patience more or less confirmed what Gandigan had heard from Prophos, though he seemed to believe that the Horsemen were only a threat if the four were together. "Maybe you're right, but there's more to the story than that. You see, while on Namek last year I encountered a woman by the name of Usumidori. As it turns out, this woman was actually an Oni, who was on my home searching for a special artifact. This artifact I would later find out were very powerful and dangerous."
Gandigan was unsure if that meant anything to Patience, so he gave a quick overview. "Legend states that there are select orbs with stars on then, which brought together grant the user a great power. The reason why I mention this is that recently a tournament took place on Namek, where one of the prizes was a sphere which was said to resemble the ones from legend. Cyprus entered this tournament, and although he did not win I find it curious that he would take part in the first place. To add to all of that, Vale was also very, very eager to travel to Namek. I believe these events may be linked in some way, though I don't know for certain yet."
Unfortunately Gandigan's death made investigating difficult; there was only so much he could do up here. "I have asked Prophos to travel to Namek and check things out for me... if you're really looking to get into mortal affairs then you're welcome to join him, though having someone to guide me around these parts would be nice as well. I need to find out as much as I can about the Horsemen, Usumidori and these orbs. If you could take me to anyone who might know about them? There's got to be others up here with some information."
A powerful artefact? There were many that had come and gone over the years. Some had become irrelevant with the power of the Super Saiyans, others had slipped from reality into the land of fantastical tales. An Oni searching for it was all the more concerning, especially now that some of the Horsemen are apparently roaming free.
An Orb with a star, nothing jumped to mind for the elderly man, which brought forth more concern, what could it mean? These starred prizes?
Pat spoke after contemplating for a moment “If both of them were aiming to acquire it then it might be solely to do with them and their plans. Perhaps this Usumidori was trying to stop them? I had nothing to do with the Horsemen, they were before my time but maybe this Oni was part of their containment in some way?” Pure speculation, but he had to put some ideas out there.
“As for joining the young Prophos, I don’t believe I can abandon my position on Earth. I am the head of the Orin temple you see and I have pupils to care for. As for people who may know something that might help. I am not the most well connected man, especially to trespassers… Not that I personally mind, but they are quite rule heavy around here.” Pat finished and scrunched up his mouth as he ran through the possibilities.
“I think your best option is to head up there,” The elderly man crooked a finger up the hill towards a structure. “Then hope they don’t immediately kick you out.” He gave a small chuckle. “I do truly wish I could help more, but I’m little more than a worker here.” His voice was full of remorse.
"Stop them? I wish. But Usumidori is just as evil as the Horsemen are, Patience. If they're working towards something nefarious on Namek then I would bet that Usumidori is aiding them. Perhaps it is just a coincidence, and they're both working towards their own separate goals, but I just don't know right now. Hopefully Prophos will be able to discover more when he gets to Namek. The sooner I get some answers the sooner I can finally be at peace... that's what death is supposed to be, right?"
Gandigan had enjoyed the early days of death as much as he had the last days of life. So many different people and ideas pushing and pulling in so many different directions, and so much stress. Part of him just wanted to run away for a while and not have to worry about these sort of things, but Namek was at stake here. He needed to push on.
"You live on Earth? Well, in that case perhaps you can do some investigating down there? I don't know where Usumidori has gone, but she could be down there." Gandigan looked over to where Patience pointed, seeing a building off in the distance. He figured that the inhabitants were probably less friendly than Patience was, but as the old man said that was probably his best bet. "Very well. I shall try. I hope to see you again some day, and hopefully with good news."
Gandigan gave a nod to the Shinjin before taking off.
Gandigan proposed his own theories on the situation, all of which pointed to bad things happening on Namek in the near future. Little Pat could be affected from his residence on Earth, but he could indeed do his own research. He gave his blessing to Gandigan as he went on to the Kais, were there answers in the Heavens? Pat could only hope for Gan’s sake, lest he be cast down to Hell.
The older Shnijin’s best hope would be to catch this ‘Prophos’ hanging around Earth and also this Usumidori; if they could be found or talked to, they could provide some insight. Now there were also these orbs that had surfaced, were they merely ornamental, or were there some more powerful abilities that they concealed.
Only one thing was certain, this land of ancient constructions bore no answers to Pat’s questions but at least he had found someone who was concerned and a diligent investigator. Hopefully one of his fellow Kais or Shinjin could help him in his quest.
For now, however, all he could do was train his students, maybe one of them could rise through the ranks and become another great defender of Earth and beyond. It was impossible to say how long that would take, but he could wait, after all, he was very… well… Patient.
Apr 6, 2024 1:21:15 GMT -5
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