Dragon Ball BE

Chapter Four: Minus

Upon boarding his ship, following an incident with some Graspovian hunters on the planet Arlia, Jaco received a Galactic Patrol communique to return to Earth to investigate another Saiyan energy reading. Apparently, it had the wave pattern of an Oozaru transformation.

Blast it! Jaco thought. I warned Master that something like this would happen.

"I'm on my way," Jaco responded, throwing his craft into top speed almost immediately.

Although he hadn't been known to get emotionally invested in prior cases (and where she was concerned, he probably wouldn't have thought to make contact at all if this was one of his "normal" cases), Jaco surprised himself by hailing Tights.

"—ello?" came her excited voice on the other end. "Hello? Jaco? Is this thing on?"

"Yes, Tights," said Jaco, momentarily frustrated at the Earth girl's incompetence. Wasn't her family supposed to have the highest collective intellect on the planet?

"What took you so long to call, you jerk?"

"That isn't important right now!" Jaco snapped. "I mean," he cleared his throat and calmed himself as best he could while hurtling through space toward a planet that might be getting destroyed by a giant, alien, terrifyingly powerful were-monkey at that very moment. "It's good to know that you are alive."

"Uh, thanks?" Tights said, confused. "What's going on, Jaco?"

"I don't mean to alarm you, Miss Tights. But there is a dangerous, alien presence on your planet as we speak." Jaco had to back away from the transmission console at this point, so the sound of the girl's nerd-squealing wouldn't damage his auditory nubs.

"That. Is. So. Cool!" she said, completely ignoring the danger element because aliens and future book content. "Are you gonna give it a Super-Elite butt-kicking?"

"A giant, laser-breathing simian is most definitely not cool!" The end of this statement was contradicted and drowned out by more of Tights' squealing.

"Can I come?" asked Tights. "Can I, please? I wanna see you fight it!"

"You most certainly may not!" shouted Jaco. "Where is your family right now?"

"Let's see," Tights thought for a second. "Dad's in his lab, like always; Mom's out shopping at the West City Mall; and Bulma's traveling for Spring Break, trying to find 'Dragon Balls' or something."

Jaco was shocked at this. In addition to superhuman geezers, a morality-sensing cloud, and a Saiyan, Earth had Dragon Balls, too!?

"Did you say 'Dragon Balls'?"

"Yep," Tights answered casually. "Large, orange orbs with stars on 'em. Little Sis found one in our attic, of all places. Dad isolated its energy signature and made Bulma a tracker for her trip."

"Do you know where she is right now?" Jaco asked, fearing that his...friend's younger sister had unwittingly wandered into the Oozaru Broly's crossfire.

"Gimme a minute," said Tights, followed by the beeping sound of her accessing some primitive, Earth communication device. "Hey, Bulma?" her voice was distant now, and infuritatingly casual. "Guess what?"

Hurry it up, you stupid Earthling! Jaco silently screamed at her.

"Yep, that Galactic Patrol jerk finally called me back! Hey, listen: he says there's some giant space monkey thing on Earth, destroying stuff. Yes, really! Ugh! I can hear him huffing and puffing, so I'd better get to the point: Where are you right now? Oh, cool! No giant ape, huh? Okay. Good luck, Sis! Thanks. Bye!"