Going Native: Desires Realized (ch. 79) (Patreon)

"Oooohhh! There it is!" Froot shouted, watching the golden aura cover the infant Saiyan's body. There wasn't an atmosphere, but Froot could feel a surge of power brush over his skin and fur. Tarble was pretty weak all things considered, but he had to give him this -- watching him rise to his feet, blood pumping out of his body like a broken faucet from a gaping hole in his chest? What he lacked in raw power, he sure made up with relentless determination and willpower.

Being dead for a couple of billion years taught Froot a few lessons, no matter how thick-headed he might be. One of those lessons was that willpower was far more difficult to achieve than strength. That fact was pretty much the reason that he died during his adolescence. The two of them were different sides of the same coin -- Froot had all the strength and none of the willpower, and Tarble had none of the strength but all of the Willpower. It was neat.

"So that's what they did to us, huh?" Froot questioned, eyeing Tarble's form. His black hair swayed, drifting up, while an aura of gold shimmered around his body -- a flicker of a flame nestled itself in the gaping hole in his chest. The bleeding slowed as the aura funneled to the wound, filling it. Ah… scary. How fine did your control have to be to mimic bone and blood vessels?

But… "Not all the way there yet, huh?" Froot questioned, shifting to the side. Tarble's power was spiking, the white of his eyes gazing back at Froot -- he wasn't aware. He'd pushed the envelope, delving deeper into his heritage, and achieved a False Super Saiyan state. Even now, Tarble was unconsciously trying to seal the deal and become a fully-fledged Super Saiyan, he was just missing that final piece of the puzzle. A catalyst.

Fucking Guardians. It was like they wouldn't be satisfied until they sucked up every last drop of fun in the entire universe.

"Let's-" Froot started, eager to test out the limits of Tarble's new form. Even unconscious, Tarble was the kind of opponent that Froot loved to fight -- the kind that relentlessly fought, ruthlessly exploited every advantage, and made you work for your victory. However, he was abruptly caught off guard when Tarble raced forward and planted a fist in his face. Froot recoiled, feeling the blow as he flew backward, tearing through the ship since he got too excited to reinforce it with his ki.

The broody brat's power had been upped seriously, Froot noted, catching another blow with his forearm. Several times stronger. He had more than tripled his output of power overall, so the form was giving him a decent boost. A smile found its way onto Froot's face as he began to trade blows with Tarble, his form perfect and precise, and every bit as ruthless as he was when he was aware.

Froot jabbed at Tarble's face, the blow knocked off course by Tarble guiding it away, the back of Tarble's hand touching his before that hand latched onto his wrist. With his other arm, Tarble slammed his fist down on Froot's elbow, attempting to break it. With his newfound strength, Tarble had better luck with the attempt, but still no dice.

A blow caught Froot in the ribs, then another in the nose. Froot felt the blows, but the most important feedback was missing. Pain. Not just pain, but aches and bruises, and that burning sensation that made your muscles feel like they were filled with acid. None of it was there. It couldn't be. His body had died billions of years ago, converted into orange energy because he couldn't hold up his end of a bargain to Larfleeze.

Even still, Froot smiled. "This is it!" He decided with a laugh, throwing Tarble to the side, the newborn Saiyan sailing through a freshly formed asteroid that white alien created when he was throwing around planets. He was probably the strongest in the system, but he wasn't the kind of opponent that Froot liked. Tarble sailed through them without making a sound, but he was still ready to return the blow when Froot raced after him.

Tarble blocked a strike, diverting it before he delivered a devastating high knee to the bottom of Froot's chin. He should be tasting blood by now, but he couldn’t taste a thing. Even if he got a chance to eat the Avarice Entity, he wouldn’t be able to taste it. But, now wasn’t the time to dwell on his regrets. After waiting billions of years, stored in a ring like some sort of ornament or guard animal, he had a chance to trade blows with one of his own species, however diminished.

A confrontational growl escaped Tarble, his blows raining down as he pushed the offensive. Fists, elbows, knees, and feet -- he used them all. Each met his guard, accepting the blows in retaliation for delivering brutal counters. For all the good that they did -- Tarble was the perfect Saiyan in that regard. You could rip off his arms and legs, and he’d just start trying to bite you to death. Fatal wounds were just an excuse to fight harder.

A hook slipped through Froot’s guard as they clashed in the rubble of planets. The scale of the battle was damn right humbling. Trillions of people were fighting their battles all in the same place. And this was just a drop in the bucket? It was really fucking annoying to admit, but maybe the Guardians had a point when they said the lesser races of the universe should be nurtured. Draw out the meal instead of feast once and then starving after.

But logic didn’t mean shit back then. Still didn’t now. All Froot wanted to do back then was fight. Fight the Guardians, fight the emotional entities, fight the few other Saiyans that made up his species… he wanted to find his limits and shatter them. Failing that, he wanted to die in style with a great big smile on his face.

“Yer fists ain’t quite enough to punch away stray thoughts,” Froot told Tarble, knowing that he couldn’t understand. But, even in a state like this, Tarble understood he was being provoked.

A roar escaped him, something that Froot knew was uncharacteristic for the little Saiyan. He couldn’t be more different from those that Froot knew. All restraint and control… willing to swallow his pride was a big change. But, underneath it all beat the heart of a true Saiyan -- the desire to win. To be better than you were when you woke up that morning. To improve and overcome any obstacle put in your path.

And right now? He was the obstacle that Tarble had to overcome.

They blasted through space, tearing through anything stupid enough to get in their way(,) and all the while they fought tooth and nail. Tarble attacked relentlessly, his fists moving in blurs as he forced Froot on the defensive. Each clean hit drove him to fight harder and each blow that was blocked drove him to fight even harder than that. Froot had no clue where they were, but he had an idea when he caught a glimpse of that Freezer guy fighting Glowstick.

Asteroids floated around them, all made of metal and carrying hints that they used to be part of a design. The bodies were the most telling hint. There were a lot of them. Froot hadn't exaggerated, way back when he was alive, if there had been this many dead people then the universe would have been depopulated several times over. And this was just a single battle? A blip? Crazy to think about.

His lapse in concentration cost Froot a hook to the face that sent him flying through an asteroid, punching through the metal like it was nothing until he righted himself. A roar echoed in Froot's ears, warning him that Tarble was coming. However, he felt something else. An itch in the back of his neck.

Larfleeze was nearby. That took the edge off his good mood.

Tarble raced towards him, punching at his face and Froot met the blow, their knuckles slamming together and releasing a surge of energy that blasted away the nearby asteroids(,) if it didn't simply obliterate them. Tarble wasn't the type to savor the moment even if he was conscious, so it wasn't a shock when he immediately followed up the blow by trying to kick him in the face. Froot dodged the blow, narrowly avoiding getting a boot to the face before he retaliated with a spinning kick of his own. Tarble countered the attack, following through with his own momentum by flipping sharply and kicking the attack away while his hands touched down on the asteroid.

Using it as a platform to give him leverage, Tarble twisted and slammed his foot into Froot's gut and sent him flying into the 'ground'.

>Come back.<

Froot grit his teeth, recovering from the blow and blocking a high knee with his forehead as Tarble pressed the attack. He pushed back against the order, his feet digging into the ground to launch himself at Tarble, only to falter before he could finish the action.

>Mine! Come Back! Liar?!< Larfleeze recalled him, taunting him and prickling his pride. Fucking orange fucker…

To hell with Larfleeze. He was anything but a liar.

>Fine.< Froot responded, letting his guard slip before he turned his back to Tarble and blasted off towards where Larfleeze was. To his disgust, the orange creature had retreated to his hidey-hole. That was incredibly disappointing. But that bitter pill was washed down with the fact that Tarble was giving chase. Though, power-up or not, Tarble wasn't quite as fast as him, letting Froot reach his destination with some time to spare.

It appeared to be empty space -- well, not exactly empty, seeing that it was filled with corpses and wreckage. A moment later, the curtain fell, revealing what was really there -- Larfleeze's home. It had been part of the gift that he had handed over to earn a shot at eating the Avarice Entity -- a magical cloak or something that would hide his treasures from any that sought to steal it.

Only that hadn't been enough.

Larfleeze's home was an old asteroid roughly the same size as a small planet. One with two moons. The second part of his gift and his failure that led to his fate.

The moons were a bright orange and seemed to be made out of glass, only it was the toughest glass imaginable. Within the moons was a moving object that lazily shifted around underneath the surface. Dark orange stars -- one held a group of four and the other held seven arranged in a circle with one in the middle.

Froot had no clue what they were, but some old green slug guy once said they were the greatest treasure in the universe, which is why Froot picked them to be his meal ticket. There were meant to be seven in total, but Froot had only managed to find two of them. He knew where another one was, but his time limit ran up before he could claim it. Though, it was billions of years ago so it had probably moved at some point.

"I'm here, ya' bastard," Froot said, flying into the asteroid to find Larfleeze sitting on top of a mountain of orange rings as he clutched the central battery close to his chest. A few other constructs floated around, a few hundred that had been gathered over billions of years, each being defeated by his hand.

"Protect this place," Larfleeze ordered. "Protect what's mine!" He added, clarifying. Froot tsked, throwing his hands behind his head as he gazed up at the creature he ended up serving because of his arrogance. He had been so young back then, so eager to prove himself to the others. Failure never once crossed his mind and he had been so quick to give his word. Too quick.

Froot sighed, looking to the entrance behind him. "Protect it yerself," he dismissed the order easily. He might be a mere construct, but he was still a Saiyan at heart. And a Saiyan always had their pride.

Larfleeze gnashed his teeth in anger, glaring down at Froot. "Liar?" He provoked, holding the lantern that contained his desired meal tightener to his chest.

"Told ya' that I wasn't gonna help ya'' if ya' didn't give me another shot," Froot refuted. It was easy enough to guess what got Larfleeze so riled up. The Guardians and Freezer were here. He was afraid he'd lose the power battery like he lost his rings.

"Dumb monkey!" Larfleeze spat, his tone venomous. The other constructs bristled, ready to attack and respond to Larfleeze's will like the slaves they were. "Smelly monkey!"

Froot hissed, "I don't smell!" He shouted back, shaking a fist at Larfleeze. He couldn't smell. He was a construct!

Larfleeze opened his mouth to retort, but the base shook violently before the ceiling came raining down upon them.

Looks like Tarble had caught up. It was time for their final bout(!)

Tarble dropped down into the center of the room, pivoting sharply to look at Froot. Veins bulged in his neck, his power spiking before he launched himself at the primal Saiyan and they clashed once again. The atmosphere was lost, vented out through the opening Tarble had made and Larfleeze howled his anger and greed.

Froot smiled, slamming a fist into Tarble's guts to send him flying back through the ceiling(,) before he leapt up, landing on the surface of the planet. Tarble flew above, almost hesitating to attack. Warning bells rang in Froot's mind when Tarble began to angle away from him, cupping his hands at his sides.

"Ka…"

…

My body felt hot. Like a sun was burning in my gut, my veins were filled with liquid fire, and I was being cooked from the inside out. It was unbearable. More than anything else I've ever endured -- the Wrath State, being nearly bisected, all the bruises and broken bones -- none of it could compare to the feeling of just… burning alive from the inside out.

My consciousness flickered like a sputtering flame, drifting in and out of awareness. Where was I? What was I doing? What happened? I couldn't even properly think about the answer before I was pulled back into the darkness of unconsciousness. It felt like I was dying over and over again. I… dying…

Ah. Avery and Technician were dead… did I die? I'm pretty sure I died… Froot…

Froot… he…

I was fighting him right now, wasn't I? I couldn't tell. Every sense was smothered, leaving me deaf, blind… I thought I could taste blood(,) but I couldn't smell anything. So, I was down about three senses. The important ones too. I'd give up another if it meant I didn't have to feel the awful burning sensation that filled me.

I needed… I needed… I needed to get it out. Channel it. Get rid of it- no… no, if I was… if I was fighting Froot, then I needed… I needed to win. No, wait… I… I wanted to win. So, I… I…

"Ka…" I stared, distantly hearing the word through my muffled senses as I channeled the burning to my hands. It gushed towards them like a dam being unleashed. I couldn't muster up a better technique to use. The rest were beyond me at the moment.

"Me…" I continued, the burning lessening as I compressed more and more power into the palms of my hands. Yet, the more power I channeled into the attack, the weaker I felt.

I was dying. The burning that filled my veins… it's what was keeping me alive. Using it for an attack would kill me.

Oh well.

"Ha…" I continued -- it didn't matter. If I died, then I died. I just wanted to win. I wanted to win because it meant there would be fewer enemies for the others to deal with. Frieza would die. Larfleeze and Froot would die. Hal… Hal wasn't a killer, so the others would be safe. So, me dying here was fine.

"Me…!"

…

"HA!" Tarble shouted, thrusting his hands forward before a royal blue blast of ki raced towards Froot. His eyes widened as he reached up with his hands, catching the blast with the palms of his hands.

Heavy.

The word rang out in Froot's mind as the ground beneath him buckled despite being reinforced with his ki. The word was a foreign one. One he didn't normally use at all, but there was no better descriptor for the blast barreling down towards him. His legs bent, forced to underneath the immense weight and power of the attack.

Froot had noticed that Tarble's ki was naturally dense, but this was on a completely different level. It felt like he was going to be crushed. His arms pushed back, trying to push away the blow, but instead, his arms were forced to bend as well.

He reached his limit. The Saiyan in him rebelled at the idea, but he wasn't really a Saiyan anymore, now was he? Just a shadow of one. His flesh and blood replaced with orange light, his limit pre-determined. There was no pushing past it.

This was it.

"Good on ya'!" Froot cheered, a wide smile on his face as the ground buckled again, the technique surging forward. “Live a life full of good food and fights! Find a woman that won’t let ya’ get away with anything! And eat the Emotional Entities for me! I wanna know how they taste when we see each other again in tha afterlife!”

The technique bared down on Froot, his hands disappearing within before it slammed into him, driving him into the planet then through it. His smile never wavered, even as his body broke apart along with the planet itself. His final thoughts were filled with pride, content with knowing that he was just a stepping stone for Tarble to become something greater. Greater than he was now, and greater than what the Saiyans were.

So, this is what she meant. With his final thought, Froot was no more.

…

As the power left my body, my consciousness returned, however feebly. The Kamehameha technique ended, the light fading to reveal… a planet? What was left of one, at least. I reached out with my ki sense-

My attention was stolen when something escaped from the rubble of the planet. Something bright orange moved in a flash, revealing itself to me. At first, I thought it was Larfleeze, but the creature was far too big. Its bright orange eyes met mine and it clicked into place.

The Avarice Entity. It was shaped like a snake -- glowing orange eyes, an open maw that was marked with a forked tongue, and two large fangs. Its long(,) slender body was marked with orange scales(.) A shimmering orange aura surrounding it much like the one around Froot. I couldn’t quite make out the end of it, but it was easily hundreds of feet long. Big enough to swallow me whole.

“Eat… that?” I muttered, my vision darkening as my consciousness slipped through my fingers like grains of sand. A huff of a laugh escaped me that was followed by a mouthful of blood.

Maybe one day.

I shook my head, "Not… yet," I told myself, flying forward towards the wreckage of the planet. There wasn't much left of it, but it was made of stone… how had we missed this during construction? No…, it didn't matter. I had… to finish this while I still had the strength. The giant snake watched me as I flew by it, zeroing in on the waning presence left near the planet.

There I found Larfleeze. He clutched an orange power battery in his arms, holding it protectively much like a mother would a child. He floated in space, leaving behind a trail of blood and gore behind him, everything below his ribs gone. That was good. If he was in good condition… no matter. He was dying. And so was I. The glowing purple patch could only undo so much damage so quickly, and healing myself now would make me blackout.

"Mine… it's mine… it'll always be mine…!" Larfleeze whispered, a sob in his tone as he held onto the battery. I spared it a glance, noticing the crack in it that had probably let the snake get out of it.

Weakly, I held out a hand and a ball of ki flickered to life. It shaped itself into a spear, though shorter and thinner than normal. I floated towards Larfleeze, who seemed to take notice of my presence. He held out a hand, "Help Larfleeze?"

"No," I refused, thrusting the spear forward. I was weakened, but so was Larfleeze. The spear punched through his chest, blood welling out before drifting up in a drop of red. That glimmer of light left Larfleeze's eyes…

He was dead. The orange power battery was broken. Froot was gone too.

I had won.

As if to disagree with me, I saw a flash of pink out of the corner of my eye. Looking over, I saw a woman -- long black hair, saiyanoid body shape, immodestly dressed with her dark pink armor covering all the wrong locations. A pink ring on her finger. With the flash came others, revealing other races, though they all wore the color pink.

"Damn," I rasped out, turning to face the group of six, my eyes darting between the first that arrived, and another. Tall and slender, dark blue skin, dark eyes, which made the pink crown and armor stand out that much more. "I'm fading pretty fast, so… we'll have to make this quick," I spoke, coughing up some blood, blinking a few times to clear my vision.

The blue one looked at me, "So quick to make enemies, Prince Tarble."

Was she trying to talk me to death? In my condition, it might work. "With who I am… anything on the right side of the spectrum… we aren't likely to get along." This made seven lantern corps. The dark-haired saiyanoid glared at me. Human, maybe? Hard to tell. So many races looked like mine.

"True… but you hold such love in your heart," she responded, the Lanterns fanning out. "No romantic love despite the soap operas," she noted, sounding amused. "But for your family. I see why you were chosen by the Guardians."

Chosen? "Who…?" Damn it. I was fading too fast. I could barely keep my eyes open. My hearing grew muffled and felt so light that I could fly free of my body.

"Rest, Prince Tarble. You have done enough."

Everything went black before I could disagree.

…

"Prince Tarble!" Komand'r shouted, blasting past the chaos of the battlefield. It was easy to follow the trail of devastation that Tarble had left behind. Komand'r couldn't claim to understand everything that happened thus far, but she understood that Prince Tarble had suffered a fatal wound. Yet, even with it, he proved himself every bit the warrior that she thought he was.

It was for that reason she could follow his trail, leading up to where a planet had appeared and disappeared in a powerful attack. She arrived to find Prince Tarble floating in space, his body covered in wounds, yet the most grievous of them all seemed to have been tended to. A terrible wound that punched through his chest, roughly the size of a large fist.

Komand'r raced towards him, reaching him in a fraction of a second. Her scouter picked up vital signs, but they were weak. Such a word seemed impossible to apply to Prince Tarble until now. His eyes were closed, proving that he was unconscious, and Komand'r wasted no time with her decision. She grabbed Prince Tarble and flew to the Warworld.

Her focus on keeping him alive was so great she failed to notice a change in the Prince.

On his necklace was a power ring for every color of the spectrum, minus one.

…

"How dare you!" Frieza shouted, pointing two fingers at Hal, prompting him to form a kite shield to hide behind. A powerful blast of purple energy slammed into it(,) but it broke upon his shield. It flowed over Hal as he raced forward, his hand shifting into a battle axe.

He didn't need to block. He didn't need to dodge. His body was entirely a construct now, and one reinforced with Ion. Hal had no clue if he hit that mythical Trade Organization number to make sure no one died around him, but he had a feeling he was close. Close enough that Frieza was starting to sweat a bit.

He reached Frieza, using his kite shield to knock away his hand before lashing out with his other. The edge of the axe bit into Frieza's shoulder, carving a line down that bioarmor that covered his body, but not deep enough. Frieza darted back, his face twisting into an expression of utter contempt as one of his hands went to his shoulder, the purple blood standing out against his white body.

"All that arrogance is gone, huh?" Hal questioned, a small dual tone echoing in his throat. A side effect of fusing with Ion. Or becoming a construct. Who knew? "Run out of planets to throw around?" He asked, his lips curling back into a smile while he raised his left hand, showing the red ring that remained embedded in his middle finger.

"I will exterminate your entire species," Frieza swore between grit teeth, practically shaking with rage. It was hard to tell because of how overwhelmingly powerful the alien was, but Hal realized he wasn't much of a fighter. He wasn't used to being pushed back. Or even being injured. "You will watch everyone you love curse your name as they die screaming!"

That wouldn't happen. Hal would make sure of it.

Frieza reached out with a hand, trying to grab hold of him(,) but a neat part of fusing with Ion was that he had the ability to just… ignore stuff like Telekinesis. He didn't want it to affect him, so it didn't. That fact, Hal found, frustrated Frieza immensely.

"Rahh!" A snarl ripped from Frieza's throat as he lashed out at him with thousands of asteroids. Hal's green ring glowed, and those same asteroids were covered in an aura of green power, stopping them in their tracks. His red ring flashed, and thousands of swirling red pools appeared in front of the asteroids. He sent them through, swarming Frieza with them. Hal doubted that they hurt him, but they would annoy him.

And it gave him a second.

"Ready?" Hal asked, clenching a fist. He got a confirmation.

No sooner, the small moon’s worth of asteroids blasted back with explosive force, revealing a thoroughly annoyed Frieza. His eyes narrowed into slits, a deep frown on his face -- he wasn't happy. To think that the fight started off with confident laughs and mocking taunts. Hal met his gaze unflinchingly, his resolve growing.

This was where it ended, Hal decided. This entire war led by an egotistical monster. And Tarble… he would have to see about Tarble. Peace and Prosperity, huh?

With that thought in mind, Hal flew forward, a clenched fist aimed at Frieza. The color of his body darkened as Saint Walker's hope flowed into him. Because of it, Hal could easily spin out of the way of Frieza's dark purple blast. As he neared, Frieza seemed to panic, throwing up a hand and launching a larger attack at him.

Only for it to bend out of the way. The Guardians… most of them were dead. Killed during the battle with the Saiyan, then with Frieza. Ganthnet was one of the few left. And they had to make the best of it.

Frieza recoiled, his eyes widening as a new construct formed in Hal's hand. A sword. One of legend(,) Excalibur. The blade was a deep green while holding a core of red, perfectly tempered and shaped.

"This is where it ends," Hal spoke, willing the words into reality as he closed the distance and swung down. The blade raced towards Frieza, who glared pure murder at him. Time seemed to slow as the blade descended, poised to take Frieza's head off. It wouldn't kill him, but it would weaken him severely. Enough so that he could be imprisoned indefinitely.

Only for something to get in the way.

Frieza's tail lashed out, placing itself in the path of the blade. His blade sliced through, but not without being diverted. A hand was placed against Hal's chest(,) before a blast washed over him.

No. Not yet.

Hal shifted his grip, uncaring of how his body chipped and cracked underneath the tidal wave of power. He moved forward against the current and swung down again.

The tidal wave ended, revealing Frieza as he staggered back, cradling the stump of an arm, as a slash marked his chest. His face twisted from a mask of fury to one that Hal could only describe as fear. Hal's body reformed, and the action brought his attention to just how badly he had been damaged. Their eyes met, Hal raised his sword with an arm that was mostly gone. He expected a lot of things in that moment -- Frieza unleashing a slew of curses and threats. To attack him.

What he didn't expect was for Frieza to turn around and blast off in the direction of the Warworld.

"That…" Hal trailed off, watching him race across the system until he wasn't even a speck in the distance. He was running away? That was…

"We… won?" Hal questioned, knowing that Tarble was critically injured, even if he had somehow managed to defeat that Saiyan. The Red Lanterns were still an issue, but their alliance with the Frieza-Force was dealt with. Sinestro was already defeated -- he had barely been worth a mention after Hal fused with Ion. The fighting around them had died down, mostly because there were a great deal fewer people to fight.

An alert reached Hal -- the curtain around the system had dropped. He started to fly forward, knowing that Frieza and Tarble were about to escape, only to be held back by Saint Walker. His expression was grim.

"How bad?" Hal asked, that opportunity slipping through his fingertips. The Warworld slipped into hyperspace and it was gone. The Trade Organization had fled the battlefield.

Saint Walker shook his head, "We lost." He voiced, prompting Hal to open his mouth to argue.

However, Saint Walker held up a ringed finger, displaying a hologram. It was… it was a list of declarations of surrender.

Hal's jaw dropped, bringing up his own channel that monitored the net -- and there he learned what had happened. Outside of the Vega System, the war had been waged. A blitzkrieg. While the galaxy's eyes were on the Vega System, every front had been attacked. Capitals with depleted forces were taken because they were all in the Vega system. To stop a weapon that wasn't there.

They won the battle, Hal thought to himself, taking in a deep breath and letting it out.

But they lost the war.

...

So ends the war. Nearly five hundred thousand words in the making. Tarble is a planet buster, entered a False Super Saiyan state, and gained another power ring. Hal has fused with Ion.

In all, both sides lost. To take stock:

Most of the Guardians are dead. Most of the Green Lanterns are dead. Oa and Mogo are destroyed/dead. Trillions are dead on the Federation side. The Federation lost the war because the Vega system was a distraction.

The 501st is dead. Frieza was wounded. Thirty billion good soldiers were killed by ‘friendly’ fire. Two Dragon Balls are in what’s left of the Guardians and Hal’s hands. They were forced to abandon the Vega system. Frieza now knows that the Super Saiyan legend isn't the Wrath State. Atrocious betrayed the TO. Sinestro was defeated.

Over all, I’d call it a Valiant Defeat on the Trade Organizations part.

But the biggest loser of them all was Larfleeze. He lost his shinies, his pet snake, his house, all of his friends, and his life. Poor guy.

To think that the war wasn't meant to last more than fifty thousand when I first started Going Native. The next chapter is really going to tackle the aftermath of the war, how it ended exactly, dealing with the peace treaty... fun stuff.

I ended up changing up the final arc a bit because I think I gave myself a bit too much fluff room. So, we have the aftermath chapter, then a chapter or three where loose ends get tied up, then the aftermath of it. Then, finally, Earth.

So, in theory, we have 3-6 chapters left for Going Native.

When the Earth Saga begins, I’ll probably make a new thread for the story. I want the Earth Saga to be a jumping in point for new readers, so I think it would be for the best. I’ll probably call it Gone Native. Also, as a heads up, I’ll likely take a week or two to post the new thread to build up a backlog.

Hope you all enjoyed!