“GWWWAAARR!!!”
Dan hovered above the Great Ape, silent as it stomped the barren land flat under the weight of its rage. Goku was innocent, the blame for this destruction lay on Dan’s lap. He pulled air into his lungs, past his tight set lips. His strategy was obvious. Sever the barrel thick tail from a distance and the Great Ape would fall, but he hesitated.
“Sorry Goku, but I really need to punch something, and you won’t remember this anyways…”
The Ki in his body swirled, drawn into a reinforcement for his body. Eyes tinted blue, Dan covered his face in Venom’s mask. The symbiote rallied its own Ki, tuned to meld with its master’s. The superman symbol on his chest shone, joined by flecks of light within the black of his suit. SIlver-white starlight, wrapped around his body like a midnight sky.
Dan dove, fists pointed at the Ape’s thick skull. To the beast's credit, it retained Goku’s freakish instincts. A snap of the head brought its savage eyes in line with Dan, red with the madness that lurked in the hearts of every Saiyan. Mouth opened wide, it spat a line of pink-white that cast shadows over the earth.
A flick of reflex engaged both Ki and thrusters, a push that slipped past the breath attack. Heat washed his body, a glare of needled fire under his skin. Dan ignored the close call, full effort put into speed as he closed the gap.
The Ape reached out, thick fingered hands aimed to squash the world flat between them. A dance of plasma brought Dan past the deadly grasp, a tight arc that ended with his fist at the base of the creature's ear. A crack, the sound of a tree felled by the wind, clipped the air like a stone.
“GWWARRR!!!”
The Great Ape reeled, staggered as its arms lashed out around it. Dan pushed off a hairy shoulder, free of the blind haymaker’s range. He slipped downward and planted a fist behind the Ape’s knee, another explosive pop that tipped the furred mountain to the side.
An eruption of broken stone filled the air as the Great Ape fell, bellows of complaint on its lips. Dan ignored the indignant cries, focused on the glow within the Ape’s mouth. A blast from this angle would strike the planet, a risk Dan couldn’t take.
He pulled at the well-spring of life force in his Kryptonian body and converted more into Ki. Feet light, he darted up the Saiyan’s side. His path carried him within inches of the press of the Ape’s fists, his mind lost to the instincts of Venom’s spider-sense. No thought touched the surface of his mind, just the moment.
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An adjustment of speed, a tilt of the body that brought him flat against the Great Ape’s fur. Dan slipped up the ape’s chest, overdrawn Ki focused to a single point. His knee drove forward, a blow that slammed the beast’s mouth shut, ahead of its destructive breath.
A muffled thump echoed from within the Great Ape’s sealed throat, followed by a dark plume of acrid smoke. A howl of pain beat Dan ears to a point of misery, a volume that earned a curse from Venom. He extended his hands to the offensive wails and released a wave of webbing.
The sticky rain covered the Great Ape’s face, a blocker for both its mouth and eyes. Dan circled as he continued his barrage, until he gained sight of the massive tail above the Saiyan’s rear. His body burned, cells pushed to his current limits as he channelled the flame of his Ki into his eyes.
Twin lances of blue carved free, a release valve that he put to good use. All the excess Ki he’d stuffed within himself speared outward, unrestrained and tinted with blood. Dan’s vision dragged over the Apes back, focused on the offending tail like the magnifying glass of a childish god.
“GWWAAAARRRR!!!”
A final bellow tore free the Ape’s mask of web, a wail of wrath and pain that faded to nothing as a massive tail crashed to the ground. Dan floated, unsteady in the air, as the Great Ape shrank away. Acid filled his body, each muscle in competition for the loudest scream. Venom rushed to help heal the damage, but new cells failed every second.
‘I think I pushed a bit too far…’
Dan settled next to the unconscious Goku, slumped to his knees as he waited for Ultron and May to arrive. Blood dripped from his eyes, vision blurred. His body was still too weak to handle the potential Ki within his Kryptonian biology. Even with Venom’s reinforcement, the damage was severe. He either needed to wait until his body gained strength, or spend far more time practising his Ki control.
“DAN!” May landed in front of him, but his neck refused to rise, locked by the spasms of his muscles. She knelt beside him and raised her hands, a wash of healing light at her fingertips. “What the hell is wrong with you… you could have died!”
“I’m fine…” Dan heaved up a bucket of blood, waste rejected from his system by Venom. “Really… I just need a night in a healing pod and I’ll be right as rain.”
“You just covered me in more blood that you should have in your body,” May waved Ultron over to set Dan on a stretcher. “You’re lucky to be alive and you know it!”
“Maybe…” Dan sighed as one of Ultron’s drones picked Goku up by one foot. “But I deserved worse…”
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“We're very sorry for your loss,” Dan bowed his head to the tearful Balinaka woman. She held the door frame to her humble residence, eyes lost as Dan forced himself to continue. “Beyond our condolences, we will provide for you and your children, onward into future generations.” He handed the woman a display pad with details on how to access a near inexhaustible supply of funds. “I know that we can’t compensate for your loss, but we hope to do all we can.”
The Balinaka took the card and retreated inside. Dan understood. The sight of the ones responsible for the loss of his loved ones would be a burden. Most of the families had responded similarly. Only the Vernol showed him little grief, more surprised that someone would care about their situation at all, let alone offer support.
“Let’s go,” May put her hand on Dan’s shoulder and led him away from the house. They rose into the air, aimed toward the central continent of Garnib. “We have one more family to visit, the wife and children of the Captain of the freighter.”