A Warrior's Destiny
by Cyberwulfe

The starship Always shot through space, on its way to a star port for refueling and supplies. It had been on a long journey, and although its energy reserves allowed for many months in space, the reserves had been drained over the past two months by days of rapid acceleration. The two warriors inside were on a quest, and speed was everything. They had less than eight months before the planet earth would explode, and unless they assembled the seven magic Dragon Balls everyone on the lush green planet would die.

The two good friends, Cyberwulfe and Ozymandis, had been through a lot together over their five-month partnership. Ozy had teamed up with Cyber on his search in the hopes of becoming a more powerful fighter, and since then they had engaged in many battles, each increasing their fighting powers more and more. Every time earning themselves another Dragon Ball. Cyberwulfe wanted to use the balls to wish his friend and trainer RazorWolf back from the dead. The two wolves had been friends for many years. Cyberwulfe had been killed once and wished back to life by RazorWolf, and now he wanted to return the favour.

The ship was still many lightyears from the nearest space station, Beta-Nine-Seven. It would take approximately six days to reach the station, allowing the two fighters some time to recover from their previous Dragon Ball mission. An ancient religion had worshipped the magic ball until Cyber and Ozy told them what it really was and made a deal to acquire the rare stone. Every month, a group of asteroids passed by the planet, raining fire and destruction on the city below. Only the magic of the Dragon Ball was enough to prevent the city from being destroyed. Cyber and Ozy flew into space to meet the incoming wave of monstrous space rocks and successfully reduced each one to space dust, saving the planet from annihilation. They left the planet with the third Dragon Ball in their possession.

Although Cyberwulfe was dedicated to training and increasing his fighting power, he often slipped away from the onboard gym to hold the Dragon Balls in his paws and think about RazorWolf. He dreamed of the day when his friend would be brought back to life and they would once again fight side by side. But Cyberwulfe only had the first three balls, and there were still four out there in the galaxy. He knew many others were looking for them, and had fought to the death for the second Dragon Ball, but what other dangers lay ahead? The wolf rested soundly on a couch in the ship's lounge, holding the three balls in his arms, cradling them like a baby. He knew how precious the balls were and if he ever lost them he'd lose Razor forever. They were stored in a secret compartment, protected by three layers of shielding and only opened with either Cyberwulfe's or Ozymandis' eye retina scan. But Cyberwulfe planned on taking them with him when they entered the space station, not taking any chances.

Cyberwulfe sighed deeply and looked down at the balls, which glowed in unison with each other, radiating warmth and energy into his body. He wouldn't give up on his search for the others, no matter how long it took. He wanted Razor back. He never knew how his friend died, only that he was killed shortly after sending Cyberwulfe the first Dragon Ball. Cyberwulfe knew Razor's fighting power was huge, so it would have taken quite an opponent to kill him so suddenly. One possible event in the future would be a confrontation with that fighter, and Cyberwulfe would have to kill him. But until that day, he would continue training hard. Along with Ozy, who was also coming along well in his training, he was sure they could defeat the person who had killed RazorWolf.

It had grown late, and Cyberwulfe returned the Dragon Balls to their compartment and dragged his tired body into bed. He rolled onto his left side and cuddled the blankets close, feeling warm from the energy of the magic balls. He closed his eyes and thought of Razor once more, as he often did before bed. Soon his body relaxed and he drifted into a deep sleep.

"Cyberwulfe."

Cyber's eyes blinked open as the voice spoke to him.

"Cyberwulfe, wake up."

"Who's there?" Cyberwulfe said, looking around the dimly lit room.

"It is RazorWolf. Get out of bed," the voice became familiar.

"Razor? Is it really you?" Cyber crawled out of bed and looked around the room. Then before him appeared the translucent form of his old friend.

The apparition was an exact likeness of RazorWolf. The pure white fur was wrapped in the familiar red training uniform and purple armbands. His tail, ears, and tufts of fur acted as if he were standing in a calm breeze, blowing softly. His warm blue eyes lit up as he smiled, looking at Cyberwulfe as he stumbled out of bed and stood staring at the ghost.

"What's going on?" Cyberwulfe asked, stunned.

"I've mastered the art of dimensional shifting. I've come to visit you, and tell you something important."

Cyberwulfe looked Razor over again. Along with the familiar tunic he often wore, Cyberwulfe noticed a glowing halo above Razor's head. He was dead, visiting from heaven. Cyber choked a little and a tear ran down his face as he tried to hug the ghost, but stumbled as his arms passed right through.

"I need you to come with me to the spirit world. There we can make up for the lost time and I can explain everything," Razor appeared very serious and Cyber nodded.

"How do I go to the spirit world?"

"I need to take your soul and shift through dimensions with it until we reach the land of the dead," Razor offered his paw to Cyber," If you are ready?"

"Yes of course. I'm ready," Cyber took Razor's paw and his body suddenly went limp as his spirit left it. Cyber now floated above his lifeless body and stood next to RazorWolf.

"Now hold on. You might find this... unsettling," Razor smiled and gripped Cyber's paw tightly as he put two fingers to his forehead.

There was a blinding flash as the two left this dimension and entered a limbo of millions of other worlds and dimensions. Razor went soaring across the void and disappeared into a dimensional portal, with Cyber still in tow. Lights and flashing colours seamed to scream past them, then disappearing far in the distance. Cyberwulfe squinted against the light, seeing a blur of shapes and colours flying past at the speed of light as they burned a trail through space and time. Finally, in another blinding flash, their journey was over.

Cyberwulfe blinked his eyes until they focused once more and was amazed at what he saw. They were in a brightly lit world not much different than earth. There were rocks and trees and clouds in the sky, but also a wide assortment of strange creatures roaming about. There were other dead people walking around as well, each with halos above their heads. Cyber looked above his own head and saw a glowing halo.

"Am I dead too?" he asked Razor.

"I had to take your soul in order to bring you here. But don't worry, I can fuse you together when we get back. You're not dead by definition, just having an out of body experience," Razor explained.

"Well that's a relief."

Razor just smiled and walked onward, with Cyber close behind him. They followed a trail through the trees and crossed a bridge over a rushing stream before coming to a small log cabin. RazorWolf passed through a gate that led through a stone wall surrounding the house and opened the front door, motioning with his paw for Cyber to enter.

"Welcome to my home," Razor smiled.

"Nice place. Does everyone get one of these when they die?" Cyber entered, admiring the well built house.

It was a single storey, with a living room, kitchen, and front hall visible upon entry. Two doors led out of the living room, which Cyber assumed were the bedroom and bathroom. The furniture was very fine looking and made of wood. There were clay pots and pans, a few iron pots, and glass bottles of all sorts of colours. On the living room table was a bowl of fruit. Sitting down in a chair, Cyber found it to be quite comfortable.

"So, has it been difficult being dead?" Cyber asked as Razor took a seat.

"Not really. I built this house, made all these fine things, and I've kept busy in the local tournaments," Razor took a piece of red fruit and ate it," But if you mean emotionally... it's taken its toll on me."

"I know it must be hard, but Ozymandis and I have three Dragon Balls already and we'll have the other four soon enough. We're going to wish you back to life."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. It's not going to be easy for you to just find and take the Dragon Balls. You're going to have to fight hard, damn hard for them. This is no cakewalk as it once was on earth. Out here in space is where the big boys play. I was very proud of you when you defeated Storm, but creatures like them are small potatoes. Fighters like Frieza and Cell are average every day villains out here. You're going to have to train more, and harder, than you are now," Cyberwulfe could tell Razor was very serious.

"I don't suppose you have a few helpful hints for me, do you?" Cyberwulfe asked," I mean, if we're going to get our butts kicked I'd at least like to know I had a chance."

Razor just smiled," You know me too well. Yes I know who stands between you and the Dragon Balls. In fact, he has two of them now and will kill anyone without a second thought to get his paws on them. He's not like Storm or Frieza, he won't try to talk you out of it. If he knows you have the balls he'll kill you in an instant and steal them."

"Who is he?"

RazorWolf took a deep breath and looked out the window," Beautiful day. It's been raining all week. My garden needed it though."

"Razor, you brought me here to tell me something, not discuss the weather. Please tell me who it is," Cyberwulfe pressed his friend for the information.

"I'm afraid of what you will do after I tell you. I don't want you to rush off to your death. But if you do what I tell you then by the time you get the Dragon Balls, and before the earth explodes, you will have the power to beat him."

"I'll do anything you say. I've always trusted you."

"Very well," Razor leaned forward, his eyes becoming very stern," His name is Zero Tiger. I encountered him while searching for the second Dragon Ball, right after I sent you the first one I found. He demanded that I leave the planet and forget about the balls or he'd kill me. It was quite a fight, one for the record books, but he is the one who killed me."

Cyber's anger was apparent," What? He's the one?"

"Pay attention. I knew I had only one hope of defeating him, so I self-destructed, hoping to take him with me. I charged up to my full power of seventy-six million and exploded, but apparently it wasn't enough. I didn't kill Zero Tiger."

"How do you know? He must have been killed."

"No. I checked at the front gate, and asked everyone connected to entries into this place. No one has ever seen Zero Tiger. Judging by how tough he was, I'd say his fighting power must be close to one-hundred million."

Cyberwulfe's eyes lowered," A hundred million? That's incredible. It would take a Super Saiya-jin to beat him."

"Or a Lupine. A Super Lupine," Razor added," I had hoped that one day I would reach the legendary level of our ancestors and then be able to teach you how to become Super as well. But that day never came. Perhaps it is only a legend."

"Are you just going to let Zero win? I don't doubt there is a way to beat him. You taught me that. But one-hundred million is a long way to go. I'm training as hard as I can, but I am only one fifth of that strength. What can I do?" Cyberwulfe sounded desperate.

"I will tell you after dinner. Come on and get something to eat," RazorWolf stood up and walked to the kitchen.

Cyberwulfe got off the couch and followed his friend into the kitchen. It was small, with a wooden depression in the counter for a sink, which was filled with cool fresh water. RazorWolf pulled several small boxes and vials out of a cupboard and began to mix them together into a pot, cooking a stew over his iron stove. The smell of vegetables and spices filled the cabin, and Cyber dipped a spoon in to taste it. It was delicious. After a few minutes the stew was done, and the two wolves sat down at a table to eat.

"You mentioned something about tournaments?" Cyber asked.

"Yes. They have many fighting tournaments here," Razor answered," I've come in second place once, and first place once."

"Second place? There must be some strong fighters here," Cyber was surprised.

"Don't forget, my fighting power is only around eighty million now. There are fighters here that are well over one-hundred million."

"Maybe we can wish one of them back to life to fight Zero Tiger," Cyberwulfe exclaimed, then frowned as he saw a sad look come across RazorWolf's face," I'm sorry. I guess I got carried away."

"It's okay. I don't know why you'd want an old wolf like me alive again," Razor hung his head a little and sipped his stew.

"Nonsense. I'd rather wish you back to life than anyone else, even if we lose the fight against Zero. At least we'll be dead together. Then we can win some team tournaments."

RazorWolf smiled," There's nothing we can't accomplish together my friend. But don't worry. By the time you wish me back to life I'm certain you will be more than a match for Zero."

"I hope so too. I just... don't have much confidence in myself. Sure, I like to help Ozy during training and fighting, but deep down inside I know I can never be as strong as you. I'm just feeling too depressed I suppose. The past few months have been pretty hard."

"Still upset over breaking up with your mate?" Razor asked.

"Yeah. I guess it wasn't meant to be, which was hard enough. But then you were killed and I had to start the journey myself to bring you back to life. It's been awfully stressful and I am almost ready to give up," Cyber sighed and slumped down in his chair.

"You'd give up on me?" Razor looked down at his depressed friend.

"No. But I feel tired and I don't know what to do. How can I ascend to the next level?"

Razor smiled," I told you I would reveal that secret to you, and I will tomorrow. Come, you can sleep on the couch and in the morning we'll begin some training."

"What about Ozy? Won't he freak out when he finds my dead body?"

"No. Before I took you away I entered his mind and put him to sleep for a few days. He'll wake up and think he overslept. You two did have quite a battle the other day," Razor stood up.

"Yeah, he did most of the work and has earned his rest," Cyber stood up as well and carried his empty bowl to the kitchen.

Leaving the dishes to tomorrow, the two wolves settled down for bed. Cyberwulfe watched the sunset from the couch, looking through the living room window as the red sky turned pink and then finally faded to black as night set in. He curled up on the couch and dozed away into a deep sleep.

The next day, Cyberwulfe awoke to the smell of bread baking and the sun coming through a window onto his face. He sat up and rubbed his muzzle, wiping the sleep from his eyes and looking around. It took him a moment but he soon remembered where he was. He smiled and looked into the kitchen, seeing RazorWolf from behind as he prepared some breakfast. Along with the smell of bread, Cyber could just make out the smell of eggs cooking. He slid off the couch and walked into the kitchen, stretching his arms and legs out and cracking his back.

"Good morning," Razor said, turning to look at his sleepy friend.

"'Morning Raze," Cyber cracked a grin," What's cooking?"

"Scrambled eggs, bread baking for toast, and some fruit," Razor replied, stirring the eggs in the frying pan over the wood stove.

"Sounds delicious. I thought people didn't have to eat when they died?"

"Well I like to eat every once in a while. It keeps from dulling my taste buds. Besides, with the progress you and Ozy are making, I'll be eating real food again soon."

Cyberwulfe grinned again and nodded. He leaned against the counter and rubbed his eyes, blinking a few times before sighing and resting against the wooden counter top. Although he had slept all night, he still felt groggy and tired. As if he'd spent all of the previous day lifting huge rocks. His body felt tight and sore. The couch was comfortable, but he had awful kinks in his back and he body felt as if it would fall apart.

"I feel awful," Cyberwulfe blurted.

"Hmm... I'll have to give you a massage after breakfast. I wasn't sure if you'd be able to handle a trip to the land of the dead. When I first got here my body felt so sore and tired all the time. But you get used to it after a while," Razor explained," You'll feel better by tonight. Then again, after training you won't."

"Please tell me you have a hot tub or something?" Cyberwulfe rolled his head to one side.

"Not really, but I do have a spring-fed pool out back. It's always nice and hot. I like to soak myself every once in a while to relieve tension, or just for fun."

"Good. I could use a nice hot bath."

Razor tended to the eggs and soon they were finished. The bread came out of the oven smelling wonderfully, and the two wolves once again sat down at the table to eat. Cyberwulfe asked more questions about life in the underworld, and Razor told him about the upcoming tournament the next day. Every few weeks there were fighting tournaments and Razor had attended several of them.

"I want you to enter the tournament with me. We'll probably take second place together," Razor said, taking a bite of bread.

"Are you serious? I thought you said there were some seriously huge fighters out there?" Cyber gasped in reply.

"Yes there are, but I can handle them. We can join together in a tag team match and go head to head against some strong fighters. We'll spend today training and then tomorrow we'll enter the tournament. It will be good for you, and maybe even increase your fighting power."

"Alright. Sounds good," Cyberwulfe nodded and finished his eggs.

"Want some more?" Razor asked, standing up and heading towards the stove.

"Please."

Cyberwulfe stood at one end of a grassy field. The field was lined on all sides with trees and was about half the size of a football field. In the field were large boulders and other obstacles, including several tree trunks that had been dug into the ground and stuck out at odd angles. This was RazorWolf's training ground. Razor stood at the other end of the field, facing his friend. The two were about to begin a sparring match. RazorWolf's method of training was forty percent personal training and sixty percent sparring. While gaining personal strength through training, the trainee also gained experience through sparring, which RazorWolf considered the most important part of training.

A cool breeze blew through the field, blowing the tassels of Razor's belt which was tied around his waist. He wore his usual red tunic with purple boots and belt, with a navy blue weighted shirt underneath. Cyberwulfe wore his black khaki pants and a gray shirt, with hiking shoes on his feet. He also wore something he'd not worn in a long time. He borrowed a red bandanna from RazorWolf and tied it around his head. The breeze also blew the loose ends of the bandanna as the two wolves stared at each other from across the field.

"Ready when you are, Razor!" Cyberwulfe called from across the field.

"Alright. You'd better hope so!" Razor called back and suddenly disappeared.

Cyberwulfe could sense his friend approaching rapidly, and put his arms up in a defensive stance. He caught RazorWolf's attack on his forearm, a nice solid punch. Cyber spun around and tried to kick Razor, who easily blocked the attack and followed up with another punch. Cyber, put his elbow up and blocked it, swinging his fist around to catch Razor on the chin. The white wolf flipped backwards and rolled in a somersault along the ground before jumping to his feet again.

"Not bad. You've gotten good," Razor smiled, rubbing his chin.

"I had a good teacher," Cyber replied.

Razor chuckled before launching himself at Cyberwulfe again, throwing a barrage of rapid punches and kicks at his sparring partner. Cyber had no trouble dodging or blocking the attacks. It was as if Razor was holding back to give Cyberwulfe an easy fight. But Cyber would take advantage of this while he could. He swung his fist suddenly and was sure he'd hit RazorWolf clean in the face, but then the white wolf disappeared as he fist passed through air. Cyber stood glancing around, trying to sense where his partner was. Suddenly he sensed RazorWolf directly behind him, and was hit hard in the back of the head. He went stumbling forward, rolling over and over on his face and landing on his knees, whirling around to face Razor.

He saw a blur of red and white as RazorWolf hurtled towards him again. Still on his knees, Cyberwulfe dug his feet into the ground and caught the attack, blocking the punches and kicks that flew towards him. He ducked a kick and grabbed RazorWolf's other leg. Flying up into the air, dragging Razor behind him, Cyberwulfe spun his partner around and then let him go flying into the ground, making rocks and dust fly everywhere. Looking down, Cyber saw Razor climb out of a deep hole in the ground.

"You are definitely getting better. I might have to power up on you," Razor looked up at Cyberwulfe.

"Don't go easy on me, Razor. If you really want me to get stronger then you'll have to kick my ass like you used to back on earth," Cyberwulfe replied.

"Well I did promise you you'd be feeling sore tonight," Razor grinned.

He decided it was time to give Cyberwulfe a real fight. He stood at the edge of the hole and began charging up, slowly at first but then rapidly. His muscles bulged as the power surged through his body. Flames erupted from his body and he gritted his teeth as his fighting power grew. Small rocks rose into the air towards Cyberwulfe as the white wolf on the ground continued charging higher and higher. Cyberwulfe also began to increase his power level, sending waves of energy shooting out as the fire erupted from his body, spreading several meters away from him. Energy crackled around him like electric arcs.

RazorWolf looked up at Cyberwulfe, admiring his power, which was now much higher than he remembered it ever being. The last time they had sparred together, Cyberwulfe's power was only five million. Now he could tell it was well above ten... and rising. Razor charged up a beam of energy and shot it at Cyberwulfe. Cyber reached out his paws and caught the beam, then gripped it and threw it into the air, sending it screaming into the clouds. He returned Razor's beam with a volley of exploding bombs. Razor jumped backwards, dodging the bombs as they exploded around him, firing back a quick beam of energy which Cyberwulfe dodged. Razor jumped into the air and flew towards Cyberwulfe, who soared down to meet him. They met, crashing together, their flames swirling red and purple together as the warriors grappled their claws together and pushed each other around in mid air.

They crashed to the ground, their feet digging deep into the ground, shredding the grassy field as their struggled against each other, their flames shooting out everywhere as they gritted their teeth. Finally Cyberwulfe exploded in a powerful burst of energy, sending RazorWolf flying backwards and crashing through a large boulder. Cyberwulfe followed closely, landing a punishing punch to Razor's head, slamming him into the ground below. He once again dropped a cluster of exploding bombs, watching as a huge explosion enveloped the crater where RazorWolf had fallen. Cyberwulfe landed on the ground and stood several feet from the edge of the cloud of dust that remained after the explosion. When the dust cleared, RazorWolf stood with a bloody lip. His tunic was torn in several places and he was limping slightly. Rocks lay strewn about from the explosion.

"Are you trying to kill me, Cyber?" RazorWolf gasped.

"I thought you'd put up more of a fight than this," Cyberwulfe replied.

"Alright. I can tell you're a lot stronger than I thought. Now I'll have to teach you a hard lesson," Razor said, wiping the blood from his chin.

He clenched his fists together and gritted his teeth, sending bright blue flames shooting out. Shock waves launched out from where he was standing, sending rocks shooting everywhere. Dust clouds rose from the ground as it shook. The flames flickered violently as RazorWolf charged his energy higher and higher, electric arcs shot out and sparked around him. The force of the waves causing Cyberwulfe to stumble backwards a little.

"That's what I wanted," Cyberwulfe smiled and watched his friend charge up.

RazorWolf stared back at Cyberwulfe. His head was lowered slightly and a snarl crawled across his bloody lips as the flames licked around his body. Before Cyber could react, Razor had shot at him and buried his elbow into the wolf's chest. Cyberwulfe's eyes shot wide open and he gasped for air. He staggered backwards holding his chest and fell to the ground. He panted heavily as the impact of RazorWolf's elbow stopped his breathing for several moments. He groaned and slowly got up from the ground. As he got to his knees and started to stand, Razor flew up and hit him in the stomach. Cyberwulfe just barely moved his paws in time to block it, but the fist still hit him hard in the gut. Cyberwulfe gritted his teeth and gripped RazorWolf's paw in his paws and pushed the white wolf away. He snarled and pulled Razor closer to him and then sent his knee slamming into Razor's stomach, followed by a punishing roundhouse kick to the head, sending the white wolf flying through the air. But Razor quickly recovered and flew back at Cyberwulfe.

Cyber acted injured, but just as Razor reached him he rose his arm and fired a pointblank energy blast into Razor's face. But the stronger wolf saw the attack coming and put his paws up to block the attack, sending it soaring into a nearby rock. He continued his original path and flew through the cloud of dust to meet Cyberwulfe. The two wolves started brawling, exchanging rapid punches. Attacking, dodging, blocking, drawing blood. Cyberwulfe slowly increased his fighting power to his maximum to adjust to Razor's power level. But his old trainer was much stronger than he was, and after several more well placed blows he was once again sprawled out on the ground. He sat up slowly and spat blood onto the ground.

"Is that all you've got?" he joked, knowing Razor was beating him pretty badly.

"You hungry for more?" Razor joked.

Cyberwulfe stood up and faced his opponent again," Bring it on!"

He leapt into the air and flew towards RazorWolf, sending his leg towards the wolf at lightning speed. RazorWolf simply raised his arm and blocked it. Cyber blinked in disbelief and swung around again with his other leg, then his right fist. Razor just effortlessly blocked each punch and kick, then swung at Cyberwulfe with his fist. Cyberwulfe caught it in his paw and gripped RazorWolf tightly, then swung him around and threw him against a rock. Following closely, Cyberwulfe swung his fist back, ready to strike. RazorWolf disappeared just as Cyber's fist crashed through the rock. Looking around, Cyberwulfe couldn't see RazorWolf anywhere. Suddenly he detected a large power above him.

Turning to look he saw RazorWolf floating above him charging up a powerful energy beam.

"Not the Kamehame-ha?" Cyberwulfe growled.

RazorWolf began chanting the familiar words that announced the attack.

"Kaa... Mee... Haa..." RazorWolf cried out as the energy built between his paws.

"Razor! I wanna call a time out!" Cyberwulfe growled, shouting up to his training partner.

"Mee... Haa..."

"Razor!!" Cyberwulfe screamed.

"Mee..."

"Dammit!"

"Haa!" RazorWolf fired his powerful Kamehame-ha down towards Cyberwulfe.

Cyber looked up at the blue and white energy beam bearing down on him. He only had a split second to charge up a counter attack, so he took that time to use one of the powerful attacks that RazorWolf had taught him in his early stages of training.

"Masenko-ha!" Cyberwulfe crossed his paws and aimed them at the incoming beam.

The orange blast shot forth and slammed into the Kamehame-ha. The two beams crashed together and swirled into a large ball, sending energy waves in all directions. The ground around Cyberwulfe cracked and fell apart, digging him into a crater as rocks and debris flew everywhere. RazorWolf continued his barrage, channeling more and more energy into the blast, forcing it closer to Cyberwulfe who could only watch as the beam drew towards him.

"Eyyaahh!" Cyberwulfe screamed loudly, planting his feet firmly into the ground and adding his full strength to the energy beam.
It exploded from his paws and blasted RazorWolf's Kamehame-ha back towards him. Razor twitched a little as he saw what Cyberwulfe did. The orange beam was coming up at him now.

"Alright, Cyberwulfe," Razor whispered," You asked for it."

RazorWolf charged to his full power, sending all his energy into the beam. It blasted from his paws in a violent spray of energy, cutting easily through Cyberwulfe's beam and was about to hit the defending wolf when it suddenly disappeared. Cyberwulfe stood with his paws up in the air facing RazorWolf, but everything had calmed down. The energy shrouds still surrounded both fighters, but the beams of energy were gone. RazorWolf flew down slowly and walked to Cyberwulfe.

"That blast would have surely killed you if I'd let it hit you," Razor explained.

"Yeah, I appreciate the thought," Cyber replied, rubbing his chin and looking at the blood on his paw.

"Okay, I'd say that was a good workout," Razor smiled, feeling his own lumps and pains.

"So, are you impressed with my new power?"

"I've always been impressed with your progress," Razor replied," But your strength is incredible. You are much farther than I ever was after I started my training. You've reached over twenty million in less than two years. I trained for several years just to achieve the level you were at when I first found you."

"Well don't forget. Gokou started my training and he's the strongest fighter in the galaxy. He really got me started and when I got to earth I already had a power of two-hundred thousand."

"And I trained you to over five million," Razor added.

"And now I'm over twenty million," Cyber flexed his muscles and smiled.

"Let's go get cleaned up. I'll bandage your wounds if you bandage mine."

"Isn't that `scratch your back'?" Cyberwulfe cocked his head to one side.

"Details, details," Razor smiled.

The two wolves left the ruined training ground and headed toward the house.

Cyberwulfe stood on the rocks beside the hot spring. RazorWolf was on his way, bringing some snacks to eat while they soaked their sore muscles in the soothing water. It was a nice little spot, surrounded by trees with rocks all around the spring, which looked just big enough for three or four people to occupy. Cyber looked around before unwrapping the towel from around his waist and wading onto a ledge, then slowly slid down into the deeper water and sighed as he sank up to his chest. He found a natural chair that was formed into a crevice and reclined against it, closing his eyes and just relaxing after a hard day of training.

RazorWolf came around the corner on the path leading back to his cabin. He smiled as he saw Cyberwulfe already enjoying the spring. Gently placing the tray he was carrying on the rocks, he discarded his towel and joined his friend in the hot waters of the pool. He stood chest deep in the middle of the pool. Cyberwulfe opened his eyes and watched his friend. The two of them returned looks for a few minutes as the water soaked into them and soothed their muscles.

"What snack did you bring?" Cyber finally broke the silence.

"Just some warm tea and fruit. I often have warm tea after training," Razor replied.

"Sounds nice. But I wouldn't mind staying here until my skin prunes," Cyber smiled and sighed.

"Yeah, this is a good spot to just relax and think about things. I've done a lot of thinking since I first arrived here."

"About what?"

"Well being dead mostly. But I've also thought about you quite a bit."

Cyberwulfe blushed a little," Why me? About my training and finding the Dragon Balls?"

"No, not really. Just thinking if you were alright. But judging by your fighting power I know you're fine. And by the time you leave the day after tomorrow, you'll know everything you need to in order to defeat Zero Tiger and get all the Dragon Balls."

"And then we can wish you back," Cyber added.

"Of course."

"Do you still give those wonderful massages?" Cyber asked.

"Of course," Razor smiled.

RazorWolf floated over to another chair-like crevice and allowed Cyberwulfe to float over and sit in his lap. The white wolf began working on Cyber's tense shoulders, his skilled paws moving along the muscles. Cyberwulfe murred softly and relaxed, resting his paws on Razor's thighs as the effects of the massage soothed his body. RazorWolf rubbed Cyber's shoulders and his arms, loosening them up before moving back to Cyber's neck and shoulder muscles. He balled his fists and rubbed them up and down Cyberwulfe's ribs and spine, kneading away the tightness in the muscles.

RazorWolf worked on Cyber's back some more and then rubbed his ribs, then wrapped his arms around Cyberwulfe and hugged him tightly. Cyberwulfe didn't object, but gripped Razor's arms and held them close. The two wolves snuggled each other in the pool for several moments before Razor spoke.

"It's been a long time..." he trailed off.

"For both of us. I know you must be lonely here," Cyber replied, scritching Razor's arm.

"Horribly lonely. Sometimes I just stay in bed all day because I don't feel like going outside. As if I don't deserve to see the beauty here."

Cyberwulfe could feel his friend shudder. He was crying.

"Hey, come on now," Cyberwulfe tried to calm his friend," This is only a temporary place, alright? We'll have you wished back soon and then we'll be together forever. With the power we've obtained now, nothing can stop us. And I won't let you go out by yourself and get killed again. Next time we fight, we'll die together."

"Or win," Razor added.

"Definitely win."

Razor smiled and squeezed Cyberwulfe tightly, snuggling him and scritching his chest softly. Cyber murred once more and the two cuddled for several more minutes before Razor noticed what time it was.

"We should get back to the cabin and get something to eat. It will be dark soon and I want you well rested for the tournament tomorrow," Razor said, releasing Cyberwulfe from the cuddle.

"Yeah, I almost forgot about that," Cyberwulfe floated to the rock and climbed out.

"Remind me, before you leave, to tell you the rest of the details regarding Zero Tiger and your mission. I won't leave you without some resources, and some idea of how Zero fights."

"Of course."

Razor also exited the pool and toweled off his wet fur. Cyberwulfe also toweled off and then wrapped the towel around his waist once more. He ran his fingers through his hair and looked at Razor, who just looked back with a kind smile on his face.

"I'm sure everything will work out fine," Cyber said.

"I know it will," Razor replied.

The two wolves headed down the path to the cabin. After another of RazorWolf's delicious stews, the two settled down for the night. Cyberwulfe once again watched the sun set and then drifted to sleep, dreaming of the day he'd avenge RazorWolf's death and finally wish his friend back to life.

Cyberwulfe woke up earlier than the previous day. Although rested, he felt tired and still a little sore from the previous day's training. He dragged himself into the kitchen and pulled a cup from the cabinet, then pumped the handle beside the sink to fill it with cool water. He tilted the glass and drank the water slowly, letting it trickle down his throat. He looked down at the empty glass and sighed. Cyber leaned against the counter, holding the glass in his paw and looking out into the cabin. How could he leave such a beautiful place and go back to his old life. He knew he was the only one who could get all the Dragon Balls and defeat Zero Tiger.

After pouring himself another glass of water, he turned back to the cabin again to see RazorWolf standing in his bedroom doorway. The white wolf looked so old and weary as he stood leaning to one side, an expression of defeat on his face. He eventually walked into the kitchen and faced Cyberwulfe.

"Something wrong?" Cyber asked, reading the expression on his friend's face.

"Just a night full of bad dreams. I've been awake for the past three hours," Razor replied," I got tired to watching Zero kill you over and over."

"I'm sorry..." Cyberwulfe hugged Razor tightly, scritching his back as the white wolf clung to him," But it will take more than a dream to kill me, right?"

Razor cracked a weak smile," Yeah, I guess so. I've just had a rough night."

"I don't suppose you have any senzu beans with you, do you?"

"Yes, of course. We'll have to eat a few before the tournament, and I'll bring some with me to eat between matches," Razor went to the cupboard and pulled out a small sack. Inside were several small beans.

"How many matches are there?" asked Cyberwulfe.

"We will enter the tag team match. If we keep winning we'll only have to fight in three matches. The first and second matches for us will eliminate opponents, and the third one will be between us and whoever has won all of their matches," Razor replied," I've seen the team matches before and some of the fighting can get pretty nasty, so you'll have to keep your head at all times."

"You know I will," Cyber smiled," I know this is important. We haven't fought together in a long time, but I'm sure we'll do well."

Razor just smiled and once again prepared breakfast. The two friends ate heartily, filling their stomachs with eggs and toast, bacon and fruit. Cyberwulfe lay down on the couch to rest for a few moments and digest his food. Finally it was time to leave for the tournament. Each fighter dressed in red tunics. RazorWolf tied a small brown sack around his belt, containing four senzu beans, and also gave one to Cyberwulfe. Cyber also tied the red bandanna around his head and pulled at the tunic, loosening it around his waist and allowing him a little more freedom of movement. He was ready.

The two fighters flew off, with Cyber following Razor, towards the tournament. A large building came into view, shaped like a coliseum. Cyberwulfe smiled as he became excited. He was always eager for a fight, and this was his first real tournament. Even if he lost, he was sure he'd have fun at the tournament. As they flew up to the building, Cyberwulfe could see a large crowd of people gathered around the coliseum, awaiting entry into the event. Razor flew down to a small archway that led into the back of the building, with a banner hanging overhead that read "Participants Entry". Cyber and Razor landed and strode inside.

The hallway was lit with torches, and Cyber followed RazorWolf down the hall, knowing his friend had been this way before. They entered a small room that contained a desk and several other people who looked like fighters. At the desk was a green skinned humanoid. Razor approached and placed his paws down on the desk.

"My partner and I would like to enter the team tournament," Razor said.

"Alright. I'll need your name and team name," the secretary replied.

"I'm RazorWolf and this is Cyberwulfe. And our team name is..." Razor thought for a moment and then looked back at Cyberwulfe," Tiger Lily Wolf Pack."

"Alright. You've been here before RazorWolf, so you know where to go. Good luck," the secretary scribbled their names down and looked past them at the next fighter coming to sigh up.

"Tiger Lily?" Cyber whispered as Razor led him down another hallway.

"Yes. You know how much I like them, and those nice lilies you used to give me on earth were so beautiful. Well, it was the first name that came to mind," Razor shrugged.

"Well it's fitting anyway," Cyber smiled.

The two came to a larger room that had many benches and a set of showers at one end. This was the waiting room for the fighters. Razor, however, walked through this room right out to the edge of the arena. He knew the best place for watching the fights, and he wanted Cyberwulfe to see what kind of fighters he'd be up against.

Soon afterwards the tournament started. The first round was the single fighter melee, where two fighters fought each other without the help of a partner or team. The first match was between a wolf and a tiger. The wolf looked smaller and was dressed in a simple white tunic, contrasting her black fur. A red scar streaked across her left eye. The tiger, a massive hulking beast dressed in golden armour, seemed more likely to win. After five minutes the tiger was left bleeding and unconscious on the ground. The wolf left the arena without a scratch on her.

"She fights well," Cyber said.

"She has a low fighting power. These are just the scrubs. It's good for show, but all the real good fights will come later," Razor replied without taking his eyes from the arena.

He was right.

Cyberwulfe watched as each match was fought. Each one ending in victory for one fighter, and a visit to the hospital for another. Finally the team tournament started, and Razor and Cyber took their positions in the waiting booths. Each booth had a good view of the arena, which allowed the fighters to get a look at the teams they would be fighting against.

"We're placed third," Razor told Cyber," If we win we'll go on to the second round, and then the final round. If we lose, we're out."

"What makes you think we'll lose?" Cyber smiled and elbowed RazorWolf.

"Just don't get cocky. You need to stay focused in order to win here. Some of these fighters are well trained, and they don't make mistakes."

Cyberwulfe just nodded in response. There were four matches in the first round, between eight teams. These eight would be cut down to four in the second round, and finally the last two teams would fight in the third round. Cyber and Razor were in the third match of the first round. Cyberwulfe watched as the teams fought, using each other's strengths and weaknesses to their advantage. One teammate would use his low centre of gravity over his opponent, while his partner flew in behind him to knock him off his feet. Cyber watched and took mental notes of what to expect, and how he and Razor could work together.

Finally it was their turn. Cyber walked out into the arena with RazorWolf next to him, waving to the crowd. He had fought here before and was well known, and apparently a celebrity. Several people called his name and tossed flowers into the arena. Opposite the two wolves was a team of scaly reptilian fighters. Cyber had a quick flashback to when he fought the reptilian aliens of the Storm mercenary team. He felt a tingling in his side as he remembered Storm's sharp spikes ripping through him. But he just shook off the feeling. Storm and his henchmen were long dead... then again, he was in the land of the dead.

"On the east side," began the announcer," We have Jisk and Fang of the Shuriken team."

The crowd both roared and booed the team as they waved their scaly hands in the air. The two were dressed in light armour, covering their torsos, legs, and arms. Both seemed well built and ready to fight. Some visible scars on their bodies made their experience obvious.

"And on the west side, the familiar champion RazorWolf and his partner Cyberwulfe of the Tiger Lily Wolf Pack," the announcer continued.

This time the crowd cheered, standing up and waved their arms in the air. They knew RazorWolf could fight well and expected a good match. Razor walked twenty paces from Cyberwulfe and looked at him from where he stood. Cyberwulfe looked to his right and nodded to his partner, letting him know he was ready. A drop of sweat ran down his forehead. This was it.

"Just let him come to you, Cyber," Razor said.

"I will. Good luck," Cyber replied.

"You too."

The fight began. Cyberwulfe raised his arms in a defense position as the reptile ran at him. The alien seemed to phase as he approached, and Cyberwulfe blinked as he passed right through him. He opened his eyes to see the alien right in front of him, his palms facing out, and hit Cyber right in the chest. Cyber was knocked backwards from the blow and swung his legs around in a back flip. He landed on his toes and launched himself back towards the alien, who leapt backwards several times, trying to get away from Cyber. The wolf approached him quickly, then smirked and disappeared. The reptile stopped on the ground and looked around, but was suddenly hit hard from behind. Cyberwulfe stood just behind where the alien had sat seconds earlier.

RazorWolf was already deep in combat with the other reptilian fighter. They were throwing punches at each other, blocking and taking hits, but RazorWolf had the upper hand. He swung his leg around and caught the alien in the ribs, sending him flying through the air and slammed hard into the ground. He snarled and held his throbbing side, staggering to his feet as Razor came at him again, punching him hard in the stomach and again in the face. The alien slumped to the ground. He was out of the fight.

Razor stood and waved to the cheering fans before looking towards Cyberwulfe. He was grappling in mid air with the other fighter, and seemed to be doing well. Just as it seemed as though the alien would push Cyber into the ground, Cyberwulfe spun him around quickly and smashed his face into the arena's floor. The alien grunted from the impact, then his eyes widened in horror as Cyberwulfe charged up an energy attack and fired it. The beam knocked him deeper into the floor and knocked him out cold. The first round had gone to Cyberwulfe and RazorWolf.

"Good job," Razor said, shaking Cyber's paw," I thought that first hit was a little nasty though."

"Yeah. I thought he'd phased right through me, but it was just a trick," Cyberwulfe replied," I've seen Piccolo use a similar technique. Maybe I should learn it someday."

"Maybe."

"Should we eat a Senzu?" Cyber asked, patting the pouch on his belt.

"Not yet. We won't need it until the last round. So save your strength," Razor said.

"Alright."

The second round was tougher than the first. Two large white tigers were their opponents, but after a long fight they managed to overcome the feline duo. Cyberwulfe had taken a bit of a beating, so he ate a Senzu bean and smiled as his strength was restored and his sores disappeared. He was feeling great.

"So who do we have to fight in the last round?" he asked Razor.

"I don't know. We took that break after our first match I didn't get to see who was in the fourth match," Razor replied," But it must be someone good if they lasted this long."

Cyberwulfe went to the waiting booth for the final match and watched as the fighters came into the arena. On one side was a pair of blue skinned humanoids with horns sticking out of their foreheads. They looked strong just from appearance. But it was the second team that caught his attention. Both fighters looked naked, although their skin was their armour. One was white with blue armoured points on his head, chest, and shoulders. His feet and hands had three digits, and he had a long tail. His partner, a larger fighter, had a similar appearance, only he was armoured on his head, arms, and legs. It was Frieza, and his brother Cooler.

"Holy smokes. Look who it is!" Cyberwulfe gasped and pointed.

"Yes. They fight here a lot. They're quite good," Razor replied.

"Do you think we'll have to fight them?"

"Maybe. But if we do get ready for a fight. They are brothers after all, and they work as a very efficient team.

"Then again, so do we."

Razor just smiled.

Frieza and Cooler won their match, and there was only a short half hour break between the matches. Soon Cyberwulfe and Razor found themselves in the arena staring down two of the strongest fighters in the galaxy. In their time, they had traded punches with the mighty Gokou, but both had been defeated by the Super Saiya-jin. Since then they had spent a lot of hard training in the land of the dead to become even stronger. But their hopes of ever beating Gokou had died long ago.

Cyber had been paired up with Frieza, the smaller and weaker of the two. But still formidable. Cyber knew very little about Frieza from what Gokou had told him, but one thing he did know is that Gokou's power as a Super Saiya-jin was close to thirty or forty million when he beat Frieza. Did Cyberwulfe had the power to beat him? He hoped that training with RazorWolf the previous day, and his training with Ozymandis over the past weeks, was enough to prepare him for the fight ahead.

Razor took the last few minutes to speak to Cyberwulfe before the match.

"Now, Frieza is obsessive and power hungry. He has been all his life, so the more damage you do to him the more angry he'll get. He'll make mistakes. He takes pride in being able to kill everyone he's ever fought in his life, but under the rules of the tournament he's not allowed to kill anyone. So don't worry about that," Razor explained," But either way, I've got your back covered. Cooler shouldn't give me much of a problem. His power is small compared to mine."

"There's a relief. Maybe I should just let you take both of them," Cyber joked.

"We have to do it as a team. Again, under the rules..."

"I know. I was only kidding," Cyber shrugged and smiled.

"Remember, I'm right here if you need me."

Cyber just nodded and the two separated once more. He looked down the arena at Frieza, who stood there swishing his tail back and forth. Like Ozymandis, Frieza could easily use his tail as a weapon, so Cyber made a mental note to watch for the tail. He squeezed his fists and looked up at Frieza with a stern look on his face. Gokou had stood in this position many years earlier, and now it was Cyberwulfe's turn to humble the mighty Frieza. He took a deep breath and stood in a defensive position.

Cyberwulfe and Frieza approached each other slowly, then began circling one another. Knowing speech was a waste of time, Cyber kept his mouth shut. Frieza, however, had a habit of talking during a fight.

"You know, I've won this tournament a dozen times before," he taunted," Why don't you just give up and let me win."

"Because this is my first time. You should be a gentleman and let me win," Cyber countered.

"Oh that's rich," Frieza chuckled," And I've heard the first time often hurts. Well since it's your first time you won't mind me breaking you in then."

Frieza finally attacked. He shot towards Cyberwulfe and swung his tail at him. Cyber caught the tail in mid air and swung Frieza around, tossing him onto his back until he skidded to a stop. Frieza jumped up and leapt towards Cyberwulfe again, throwing punches. Cyber didn't bother to block them as he easily dodged the white fists. A lot of Cyber's training involved increasing his speed, so strength wasn't important as long as he could outmaneuver Frieza. Frieza gritted his teeth, throwing his fists rapidly at Cyberwulfe. He changed his tactic and used a combination of fists and feet, throwing an odd kick at the wolf as he continued his barrage of fists. Cyberwulfe gripped one of the hands in his paw and pulled Frieza closer to him.

"Close your eyes," he taunted," You're not going to want to see this."

Cyberwulfe raised his knee so quickly into Frieza's stomach that the white skinned alien didn't have a chance to move. Frieza gasped and stumbled backwards, gripping his stomach. Cyber crouched, ready to launch himself at Frieza when he detected something coming towards him. He looked up to see a large energy blast flying towards him. He leapt into the air to avoid it and was suddenly hit hard from behind. He slammed into the ground and flipped end over end and landed on his face. He looked up to see Cooler floating in mid air. RazorWolf floated several meters away.

"They work as a team, huh?" Cyber mumbled to himself as he rose to his feet.

Frieza had recovered from the attack and seemed to be charging up. His eyes flared as his face wrinkled with anger. Cyber could feel Frieza's power level raising as the once skinny looking fighter began to bulge. His shoulders expanded, as did his arms and legs. Frieza almost doubled in size as he charged closer and closer to his maximum power. Then he stopped and stood staring back at Cyberwulfe.

"You got lucky that time. Now I won't be so gentle," Frieza glared at Cyber.

"Anytime you want more, come and get it," Cyber replied.

Frieza just smirked and ran at Cyber. Cyberwulfe sidestepped Frieza and did a back flip to get some distance from Frieza, but the alien moved quicker than he thought and Cyber was hit hard from above. He hit the ground on his back and rolled over several times before flipping to his feet and turned to face Frieza. The white skinned alien was much stronger now, and Cyberwulfe would have to raise his power to compensate.

RazorWolf was also having problems. Cooler, once a weaker fighter, seemed to have dome some heaving training since the last time Razor saw him fight. Razor had taken several serious hits from the larger fighter, and stood trying to catch his breath. He jumped at Cooler, throwing both his fists out at the larger alien. When Cooler grabbed Razor's fists to block the punches, Razor flipped over his arms and kicked Cooler in the head. He followed with a punch to his back and a stronger kick that sent Cooler flying. After the dust settled, Cooler stood up and glared back at RazorWolf. He spoke less than his brother did, and said nothing at this point. Razor came at him again. He swung his fist at Cooler, but the larger alien blocked the shot. Razor tried punching and kicking, but Cooler blocked each one. Razor faked a left hook and came around with a right uppercut, but Cooler blocked the second shot then grabbed Razor's left arm, swung him around and slammed him into the ground.

Cyberwulfe was also have little luck getting through Frieza's defenses. All his techniques were no good against the more experienced fighter. He stood up and looked at how Razor was doing. He looked just in time to see his partner slammed into the ground. Cyber leapt backwards to stand beside Razor, who stood up quickly and stepped back so his shoulders were pressed against Cyber's.

"This is harder than it looks," Cyber said.

"Yeah. Cooler's definitely been training," Razor replied," I know I tell you to never fight at full power, but you might have to max out this time."

"Sounds great. Well if we're going to charge to maximum we might as well give the audience a good show," Cyber grinned.

"You got it."

Cyberwulfe gritted his teeth and flexed his arms, the muscles bulging forth as he began to increase his power level. Energy crackled and sparked around him, igniting flames that shot forth in a raging fury. The crowd cheered as Cyberwulfe's flaming energy shroud changed from red to blue as his power skyrocketed. The ground shook and tiny bits of debris on the arena floor levitated into the air. His hair waved in the current of his energy that shot forth from every pore in his body. The tails of his bandanna flew wildly. He stared back at Frieza with an angry fury.

RazorWolf grinned a sly grin at Cooler as he began charging up. Without warning he exploded with power, sending a burst of energy and flames outward, swirling around Cyber's energy shroud as the two fighters stood back to back. Cooler raised his arm to cover his face as the clouds of dust blew at him. The energy waves rippled around him as if he were a rock in a rushing stream. RazorWolf's power continued rising until it was well over fifty million, then he slowed down and stopped at sixty-two. He stood facing Cooler with a smug look on his face, having hid his true power during the whole fight. Cyberwulfe now charged to his maximum, having reached a final power of twenty-six million. He only hoped it would be enough, but he still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

"Sonic dash!" he cried.

The crowd gasped as he disappeared from sight, and suddenly watched Frieza take a hard hit and fly through the air. Cyberwulfe flipped upward and somersaulted before landing on the ground. Frieza was still in mid air before he once again launched himself into the Sonic Dash, crashing down on Frieza with such force that he drilled his opponent into a deep crater. Cyberwulfe then charged up a powerful energy beam and sent is crashing down upon Frieza. He landed several feet away from the crater and watched as Frieza stumbled out of the hole. His face was bleeding and his left arm hung at an odd angle.

"Arrgg!" Frieza screamed," I'll kill you!"

"Not here you won't. Not according to the rules anyway," Cyber replied, the flames still rushing around him.

Frieza shot at him like a bullet, but Cyber was faster. He leapt at Frieza and slid underneath him, grabbing his legs and pulling him backwards. He gripped Frieza's left arm and brought his whole body slamming down onto his knee. Cyber heard a satisfying crack as Frieza's back was slammed hard against his knee. Before Frieza fell to the ground, Cyberwulfe kicked him into the air. He flashed and disappeared, appearing in the air again, directly in the path of Frieza's flight. Holding his paws together, he slammed them down onto the fighter, sending him crashing back into the crater, driving him deeper and deeper into the ground. He stopped floating in the air, and allowed gravity to bring him crashing down feet first onto Frieza. The alien lay unconscious on the ground.

Cyberwulfe charged down and climbed out of the crater in time to watch RazorWolf carry Cooler's unconscious body over and toss it into the hole along with Frieza. The two wolves of the Tiger Lily Wolf Pack had won the team tournament. RazorWolf took Cyber's paw in his and raised their arms up to the cheering crowd. This was a match to remember. Razor looked at Cyberwulfe as he smiled and waved to the crowd. He knew his friend had to return to the land of the living the next day, but somehow he wished he could stay and train with him, fighting in tournaments and winning together as they had done today. But he would have to wait until Cyber and Ozy captured all of the Dragon Balls and wished him back to life. Then he'd have forever to fight with Cyberwulfe.

That evening, Razor and Cyber sat opposite each other at the kitchen table to discuss Zero Tiger. Cyberwulfe sat with his arms folded across his chest, listening intently as Razor began.

"ZeroTiger is exactly as he sounds," Razor explained," He's a white tiger, about six and a half feet tall, well built, with piercing blue eyes. He used to hang out with a gang of other strong fighters, with him as the leader, but I killed them all during our fight. He may have hired more thugs, or he might be alone."

"Alright. So I should look for the white tiger surrounded by big goons, right?" Cyber asked.

"Pretty much. He also uses weapons to fight. When I fought him he was using a large sword, which was pretty much all he had with him. But I'm sure he is capable of using various other types of weapons. I suggest you find a good sword and learn how to use it. That will at least even the playing field a bit."

"Alright. I still remember the training we did with GunBlades back on earth. I should see if I can find one," Cyber added.

"Good idea. Zero also flies around space in a large red spaceship called the Blood Hunt. The name sounds fitting, let me assure you. Remember what I told you. If he knows you have the Dragon Balls he won't stay around for tea and crumpets. He'll kill you right away. So you'll have to be on guard at all times. I assume that after I was killed he stole my ship, the Forever. So chances are he's got a ship now that is both faster and more powerful than the Always. If it comes down to a chase, it would be better for him to catch you and fight it out than to risk losing the ship, alright?"

"I gotcha. But would he be smart enough to use it?"

"He's smarter than you might think. I really don't know what to expect from him right now, Cyber. The blast I created when I died should have been enough to kill him, so there's no way he escaped without serious injury. It may have taken him this long just to heal. So as long as he's bandaged up somewhere then you've got a better chance of finding the Dragon Balls."

"Right. Let's hope he's hooked up to a respirator somewhere. I'm sure by the time we meet I'll be strong enough to beat him. Which reminds me, what's this big training idea that you have for me?" Cyber changed to another important subject.

"Yes of course. I want you to start training with Ozy in the gravity room onboard Always. I want you to work as fast as you can to get up to the maximum limit of one-thousand times earth's gravity."

"One thousand? Holy shit!" Cyberwulfe exclaimed.

"It has to be done," Razor continued," Once you reach the full limit, I want you to fly to the Gemini star cluster. It's in the navigation computer on the ship. In that star cluster is a black hole. I don't know how good you did in school back on Canis, but the gravity inside a black hole is so strong that not even light can escape."

"Right. It makes sense then I suppose. The power of the black hole's gravity would be an excellent training ground, right?" Cyber guessed.

"Exactly. Within a few weeks you could easily triple your fighting power. I estimate that by the time you are done in the gravity room, your fighting power will be over forty million. After a week of training in the black hole you should have more than enough power to kill Zero in an easy fight."

Cyberwulfe smiled," Then there is a way. I can beat him."

"Only if everything works out. Remember, you still have four more Dragon Balls to find. It won't be easy multitasking so much at once, but you can train in the gravity room en route to your next Dragon Ball destination," Razor suggested," It's important that you keep Ozy up to date on everything, and help him get his fighting power up as well. You might need him in the fight, and unless he's on par with your power he won't do you much good."

Cyberwulfe nodded. He knew what was at stake, and he didn't want to lose Ozy, his best friend. The seriousness of the situation began to sink in, and despite his hopes of beating Zero Tiger, Cyber began to have doubts.

"What if something goes wrong?" his voice cracked as he spoke.

"I don't know. All you can do is try as hard as you can. I know you have the ability deep down inside you. I've sensed a great power within you since we first started training. If anyone can beat Zero Tiger, it's you."

Cyberwulfe smiled again, his hope restored. He could do it.

"Now get some sleep. I'm taking you home tomorrow," Razor smiled back, sighing after having spoken all this time.

"Alright. Good night then," Cyber went and curled up on the couch.

"Cyber! Cyberwulfe, wake up!"

Cyberwulfe blinked his eyes and sat up in bed. He was back on board the Always and Ozy was shaking him.

"What's wrong?" he asked, groggily waking.

"Nothing. Just that it took five minutes of shaking to get you to open your eyes," Ozy stood back as Cyber swung his legs over the side of the bed.

"Yeah. I must have been really tired and I overslept. Guess I didn't feel like getting up either," Cyber replied.

"Me too. I looked at the chronometer today and we've both been asleep for three days. Talk about a rest. I guess fighting those asteroids took more out of us than I thought."

"Yeah. I was feeling wiped out myself. Well, time for breakfast I suppose," Cyber hopped off the bed and walked towards the door.

"Hey Cyber, what's that thing?" Ozy asked, pointing to Cyberwulfe's shelf on the wall.

Cyber looked to see a golden trophy with a pair of golden figures fighting on the top. Cyberwulfe smiled," Ozy, you and I have some things to discuss. Come on, I'll tell you over bacon and eggs."

The End

Cyberwulfe, RazorWolf, Ozymandis
© their players