Bringer of Death

Immortal Saga, Part 3: Heart of Darkness

Immortal Saga, Part 3: Heart of Darkness

High in Earth's upper atmosphere, the lookout floated on nothing, the

eternal watchtower over the planet. Clouds drifted by far below,

momentarily shading the ground. Those eclipsed by the clouds were

usually too distracted from their daily routines to look up...and even

if they had, the events on the lookout would have remained utterly

invisible to them.

Piccolo was panting in a cold sweat. A moment before he had been Piccolo

Katanaji and a former guardian of Earth, but those memories had

vanished. The light around him was beginning to dim. His mind was hazy

and his thoughts felt indistinct, as though someone had gone in and

sliced out sections of his brain. He opened his mouth to speak, but then

stopped in shock as his vision cleared.

Nail was standing there in front of him. Nail, the warrior he'd fused

with on Namek before fighting Frieza, still wearing the same clothes and

staring back at him in complete bewilderment. The two fighters looked at

each other, then looked down at their hands in confusion. Somehow,

they'd been unfused.

Then a tingle reached the center of Piccolo's brain and he spun to the

left. There was Kami, old and frail, but beside him...

Despite having never seen his father's face, Piccolo Junior immediately

recognized the Demon King. A wave of unexpected and unwanted emotion

swept over him...fear and guilt mingled with a strange sense of

excitement. Piccolo Daimao stared down at his son with dark eyes.

"You...!?" gasped the younger Namek.

Kami, already aware that his true counterpart had returned, turned

slowly to face him. "So we meet again, at last." The old guardian's

voice was calm and without fear.

Nail wasn't entirely sure what was going on; his memories of Kami were

already clouded enough, and he had only the faintest inklings of who

King Piccolo was. But the towering villain's energy was unmistakably

evil, there was no question about that.

King Piccolo bared his fangs into a wider, wickeder grin. He gave Kami

an angry glare, then leered at Nail for a moment. When his eyes fell on

Piccolo, though, his nose wrinkled in fury and his grin turned into a

mask of rage.