The Nexus: Part 3

Rem In Nexus 3:

For the third time in a short period of time, Ebross disappears from the dimension he is currently residing in, and instead relocates to a place that is between dimensions. In other words, the Nexus....


"What now?" Rem asks himself moments later, turning around in time to see his hostess and a few children in the yard playing. Rem remembers a few of the kids from his first trip to the nexus, especially one girl.. Who had brushed up against him, and had given him such revelations, and then taken them away a moment later as their contact ceased. The namek still wanted to rush over to her, and take hold of her. To learn all that her mind possessed about the universe, his place in it, and so much more.. So much more. However, he held himself at bay because he had learned that the answers he sought were within himself and in his actions, just as it was for every other living being. His hostess turns moments later, and motions for the tall namek warrior to come over to her.


With a small smile, rem obliges, and walks briskly over. "Are we going to finish our conversation this time? Or shall i expect to be shipped back to namek halfway through again?" Again she smiles. "Watch this Namek Friend." She says, pointing to the ground. Rem is almost disgusted by the site he sees. On the ground before him is a large spider, and a colony of small ants. The spider had somehow trespassed into the ants terriotory, and the smaller beings were fighting back. Rem watched the event progress as his hostess spoke; "This is how a great many events in the universe's transpire. A large force, a seemingly invincible enemy trespasses against the customs or territory of a smaller force, who take up arms to defend their way of life, and their right to survive."


The woman ceases speaking for a moment, and lets the event progress. At first the spider was winning, destroying spider after spider with its mouth and feet, but as the battle waged on and on, it seemed to tired, and more and more ants rolled from the home. Finally, the spider mismoved, and he was swarmed. Dozens of the little beings crawled over and onto him, ripping into his flesh, and totally decimating his form in minutes. Finally, she speaks again. "Even the most terrifying and strongest of foes can be overturned through vigilance and strength in numbers." rem considers her words, and through his own past and experiences, he can find no lie there. Many times it seemed like earth or namek was doomed, only to be saved through the actions of a group of warriors who stood strong and vigilant against their foes. Again and again it seemed that the universe he lived in was saved like that. And yet, again and again it seemed more and more foes were drawn toward these locations, testing and trying the resolve of the defenders more and more... Surely there had to be a breaking point somewhere.... But not yet... Not quite...


"Let me show you something else...." The woman says, her faced squeezed in pain in seems. Rem sees the woman glow red for a moment, and the next thing he knows, he is once again being transported. This time, however, he isn't sent back to Namek, or earth.. At least not as he has ever seen them. "Let me warn you Namek... What you will see here won't be pretty.. And you will probably want to do something about it.... But for now just watch. Also... You CAN be seen by these people.. We are in their Universe for the moment. Anything that happens to you or i here, will happen.. This is real."Rem gets questioning look on his face. "Where exactly are we.."She looks at him somberly.. "You'll find out soon enough. For now, just realize that it is another Universe." She finishes at almost a whisper, " A universe far worse than your own...."Rem nods, seriousness covering his face, ready to accept whatever it is he has to see..."Don't raise your ki... Follow me." The woman sets off.


For the first time, Rem really looks around to see his setting. This planet looks like hell.. The ground is red and cracked, dead looking. The vegetation is similar to what would grow in a Desert on earth, barring a few stragely trees dotting the landscape. Huge craters that look as if they once contained water can be seen to the east and north. South, is a huge mountainous region, touching hte horizon and on....The 2 companions travel west, up a sand dune looking things. As they near the top, the woman drops to her stomach, and rem, not knowing what is going on, but willing to follow her lead, does likewise. They crawl the rest of the way to the top of the hill, and the site that meets rem is ghastly. Hundreds of feet away is what looks to be a small village. A dozen dilapidated dwellings dot a small oasis. A single pond of water, which is small by most standards, looking almost like a big puddle. A few measly crops grow on the edge of the village, not much of a harvest to be had...


For a minute, nothing moves. And then, Rems mouth drops. From one of the dwellings comes perhaps the worst thing rem could have imagined exciting it. 2 Namek citizens straggle out, backs bent, posture horrible. He watches, transfixed, as they head to the pond, fill up a bucket a piece, and walk to the garden. They empty their buckets over the pitiful plants, and speak a few words to each other before heading back to and disappearing into, the hut they exited. "What is this!" Rem quietly whispers to his companion.. "What is going on here.""Perhaps the worst possible thing that could ever happen to a universe.... Saiyans..." That almost explained everything, but rem had to know more. "What happened here? I thought the saiyans were all but wiped out at one point.."She smiles a smile of pity, "In your universe yes... The icosians destroyed the Saiyans, and what was left of the Saiyan race struck a death blow to the Icosian Heirarchy... killing the ruler and his oldest sons... After that, the icosian empire splintered, and chaos reigned for many years... Though, most of your galaxy was untouched as the main battles took place many many light years away..."Rem was nodding, he knew as much... But what could have happened here, differently, to cause such chaos and death on his beloved planet. Almost as if she read his mind, the woman continued her story.... "In this universe, a Saiyan Insurrection was led against the Icosian Leader in this part of the Galaxy, the same as in your universe, though that fact is unknown to almost all. The difference in this one was.... The Saiyans won!
That would almost seem like a good happy ending, an oppressed race throwing off their oppressors and declaring independance.... But oh... It was not."


Rem was caught up in the tale so far.. "In this universe, the saiyans threw off their overlords, but kept the same social order.. Kept the same social habits, which up to that point had been destruction and expansion. Here, the Saiyans came to know of the Nameks... Much as they had in your universe, but without the Kolds in the way, they made short work of the combined Terran and Namek forces, and stole the dragonballs and made their wishes. And again, and again. Rems mind was swirling... Saiyans, had come to Namek... And made the wishes, multiple times... A question rose in his mind, and so he asked.. "What of the Earth in this dimension."The woman answers his question quickly, "Well. This planet, Namek, was taken over by a certain sect of the Saiyan race, the rightful leaders of the bloodthirsty race. Earth, however, was taken over by a different sect, a revolutionary group. Tell me Namek, have you ever witnessed a battle between creatures with immortality AND eternal youth? No, of course not..."Rem was surprised.. "What??"The woman continued, "Yes. The wishes from the dragonballs on each planet were used to immortalize the leaders and strongest warriors. To give them eternal youth and power. For years these wars went on, each side immortalizing more and more warriors, neither side losing a fight, neither side gaining an edge. For almost 700 years these battles raged, until finally... It happened, the boiling point was reached.


In a desperate attack, the Namekian Saiyans, led by their King, attacked the Earth, and blew it up. They managed to capture a large number of the Earth Saiyans, and those who could not be killed, were bound in ki energy, and thrown into the sun. It's not known whether they faded from existence or not, but the extreme heat and gravity keeps them from ever escaping, and since they can neither die nor age... It's probably comparable to hell."Rem thought on this... Such a horrible way for a universe to progress... OR degress rather depending on how you looked at it. "As it was fated to be.." The woman began, "The saiyan empire turned on itself not too long afterwards and has been at war constantly with it self since." "What of Namek?" Asks rem. "Well.. its still under saiyan control, but since most of the Nameks able to create dragonballs are dead or in hiding... Not many saiyans make the trip out here, except to exploit and decimate the populations on a regular basis..." She ends her story...


Rem has so many questions, "Where are the warriors of today? Those who defend the universe every day." The woman shrugs, "Does it matter? If they hailed from Earth, they are dead. If they are saiyan, they are probably dead. If they are Namek, they are most assuredly dead. Most everyone is dead these days my friend.. Their are no hero's in this universe, only conquorers and warriors."Rem finally begins to understand, "So, are you telling me that a single beings death can decide the fate of a universe, that even if the more desirable side wins, victory is not the necessary outcome? That the universe is truly tread upon by threads, and those who dont take lightly when crossing them can sever it forever?"The woman smiles... "Did i say that? I was just showing you another avenue your universe may have taken to get where it is... What i really wanted to show you was this..."At that moment, a tall Namekian Emerges from the center Hut, as well as 3 other warriors, or at least thats what they are as far as rem can figure..."What is going on?" Rem asks quietly, but his hostess was no longer beside him, she was gone.. "What the hell am i supposed to do!?" He asks a little louder, but no one is there to answer. A moment later, rem realizes more warriors are coming, from the north. "Whats going on...?" Rem asks no one again. Moments later, the combined 4 Namekian warriors take to the sky, and land about 100 meters away from rem, looking away. Rem noticed that it looked like a good battlefield, and was wondering if the other nameks chose that place for that reason. The 5 wait, the 4 unaware of the 5th..


"What is this?.." Is all rem can say moments later, as a half dozen Saiyans touch down in front of the Nameks. "We came for some target practice." The saiyans say, as ki energies begin to swell. The nameks respond moments later. "No more. Never again will we be tortured and killed as we have in the past. If it means Xenocide then so be it, but your race shall not oppress us any LONGER!" Screams the namek in his last word, sending sand spraying as his Ki energy swells higher and higher. For a moment rem thinks he will go into chou, but obviously not. Perhaps this universe doesn't have chou.. Hell, it may not have Super Saiyan, if the story about the Icosians demise is true. Almost like a bullet, it strikes Rem. The namekian powering up has a ki signature that closely resembles his own, and is almost exactly the same as it use to be, before the change Rem underwent.. "What is this?" Rem asks, under the din of the 10 warriors all powering up now. All of a sudden, the fight starts. The saiyans slam into the Nameks, and vice versa. From his vantage point, rem can't tell exactly what is going on, but feels the power levels well enough to know that the Nameks are holding their own for now. All of a sudden though, a single Namekian power level drops to almost nothing, a death blow! Rem moves position, and sees the tip of an axe sticking out of the green mans back.


"Oh man.." Is all rem says as he rises to his feet, his power level rising with him. For a split second, all 9 standing warriors pause as the New Namek joins the fight, and then rejoin again, with 2 of the black haired warriors coming at the new comer. Rem wastes no time in powering up more, deciding to get straight into the fight. One of the saiyans has a sword, and swings it straight at rems midsection, in a slice. With a quick draw action, rem brings out his, and the two clang together. Rem grins at the larger warrior, and decides to try and use his speed. With a quick roll, rem ends up behind the saiyan, but has to quickly ki burst into the sky to dodge a ki blast his second attack had sent at him. Rem grimaces. Two on one wasn't fair, but the again... It didn't really have to be. As long as rem could hold off the two he was fighting for a while, he was hoping the 3 remaining nameks could take care of the other 4. Rem lets his eyes wander to the fight, and although he doesn't catch a glimpse of the lead nameks face, he gets a feeling of deja vu. That namek is also fighting two of the Saiyans, and holding his own pretty well it seems. The other 2 nameks are faced off against one saiyan, one namek has the advantage in his fight, the other is nursing a hurt leg. Rem comes back to his fight a moment later, as another weak blast is sent hurtling his way. With a wrist move, he deflects it into the air, and hears it explode a moment later.


As the first saiyan streaks toward rem, the namek simply zanzoukens to the right of him, and send shis left foot out, letting it connect square with the saiyans gut, barrelling him over. He can't finish the combination, because the other saiyan is right there, swining at rems head. Rem ducks, but is still caught slightly, and falls out of the air. he hits the ground, and rolls, moving out of the way of a chopping sword. He rolls a few more feet, and jumps to his feet, swinging his sword at a fast pace. The saiyan who had been attacking was a little overzealous, and was cut across his ribs as a reward. Rem jumps back again, dodging the other incoming saiyan, and quickly sheathes his sword. "Y'all should quit now. I don't like fighting."The two saiyans look at each other and laugh, "Then perhaps you should QUIT!" One screams, the wounded one, launching himself at rem, and releasing a barrage of kick punch combo's. Rem easily blocks them, and then accepts a decent punch that bounces off his armor, in return for getting his hand up, and slamming it into the saiyans face. The warrior flops back onto the ground, and stays there for a moment. Leaving rem and the healthy one to fight for a bit. it's not much of a fight though. Rem easily outmatches his foe, even with the crystal around his neck holding back a good portion of his power.


Rem blocks the punches and kicks sent his way, retuning a good many to the saiyans ribs and face. In about 30 seconds, his foe is breathing hard and bleeding in multiple places. Rem has a single stream of blood coming from his earlier head wound, but it doesnt trouble him much. With a final block, rem quickly zanzoukens backwards, and launches a decent sized ki blast. The saiyan attempts to deflect it, but it blows up as it touches his hand, sending him flying smoldering and smoking. The saiyan lands on the ground, moments after his teammate gets to his feet. He attacks rem head on, and quickly learns his lesson. Rem doesnt even block his first punch, but rather grabs his hand, and twists. The saiyan side flips, and lands on his ass. Rem comes over quickly, and sends him into unconsciousness with a hard punch to the neck. Rem turns, just in time to see the last saiyan warrior hit the ground, bleeding profusely from the temple.


He stands where he is as the Namek warriors quickly attend to their fallen friend. After removing the axe from his back, they heal him rapidly, and he is on his feet, though somewhat wobbley a few moments later. The 4 then proceed to check the 4 saiyans around them for vitals, and violently slice the throat of one still breathing. Rem cringes, not use to seeing such malevolence from his kin. Then again, he can almost understand their plight. The 4 warriors then turn their attention to the new comer, Rem. The leader, and what looks to be his second in command come straight to him, while the other two walk quickly past. Moments later a scream from one of the saiyans signals their final demise. "Who are you stranger?" the leader asks, a quizzical look on his face, obviously.. Rem thinks for a moment, and seeing no reason to mislead them, answers truthfully.. "Rem. Of Earth."With a raised eyebrow muscle, the leader says... "Earth eh? Earth has been gone for almost 1300 years.. Only rumors of Namekian Dragonballs being their, and tales of some of their great warriors still exist as proof of Earth being real, once. And since you are no where near old enough to be from that Earth, your either lying... Or have a hell of a tale.. Come though, let's get out of the sun, radiation is bad around this time."


Rem, still not knowing what exactly to do, follows the nameks as they take to the air, and land outside of, and then enter, the largest of the demesyn's...... The inside is as uninspiring as the outside, with but a few chairs scattered around. The 5 warriors quickly take seats on the ground, or in chairs, in a circle, and begin passing around apuch of water. The liquid feels cool against his throat. "So tell me Namek... Where did you really come from..."Rem passes the pouch on, and says instead; "Could i at least be privy to your names?" With a smile.The Namekian Leader thinks for a few moments, and then signals to the nameks beside rem to the left and right, "Tinabul, and Harmelod." Signaling to the warrior beside himself, the leader announces the 3rd warrior as, "Tridrano" and himself, he announces as, "Trumpet."Rem had expected as much...


The facial features between himself and the elder namek were just too close... But still, it was a hard thing to grasp. Sitting less than 3 feet in front of him is the Namek who plagued rems mind for many years. The same namek who was destroyed on Rems Earth almost 10 years ago... The same Namek who spat forth an egg containing both his, and saibawarrior escence. The same egg who grew into the warrior sitting across from Trumpet this moment.Rem couldn't speak... Couldn't even acknowledge the warrior's names... Finally, he manages to utter a phrase, "Could we speak alone?"Rem knew this being wasn't his father. Not only did he grow up in a totally different universe, but his whole history up to this point would have been different. Hell, he should be dead by any rights. If not because of the saiyan oppression, then by a single saiyan warrior on Earth, 10 years ago. Obviously, since earth didn't exist 10 years ago though, he had stayed on Namek, and somehow survived through all unlikeliness. Somehow, rem knew this was all set up by his hostess, but decided to play along for a while. There had to be a reason he was here, and secondly, he was in awe. He had felt Trumpet's power, and indeed, it had been higher than most warriors rem had ever faced. For a namek, without chou, he had to be one of the greatest in this universe. Trumpet obviously acquiesced to rems request, cuz when the namek came back to the present moments later, he was alone with his father, who's eyes were questioning and intense, but not accusatory.


Rem began slow, "Look.. I don't know why i'm here.. Perhaps i was to learn something, perhaps to teach me a lesson. Perhaps there was no reason nor rhyme.. But i'm here... And, i need to tell ya... I'm...." rem had a hard time getting it out.. He couldn't really believe it fully yet.He started over, took a gulp, and got it out, "Look, I'm your son... Well.. I would be if things were different.. I'm from, Earth.. Like i said... In my Universe you die there in a battle with a Saiyan... Lots of weird and unfortunate things happen, and well... Here i am... A universe and a planet from home, with no answers to my questions..."


Trumpet looks completely stunned, then says... "It'd have to be a damn saiyan to kill me wouldn't it..." He says with a grim smile... "Anyway.. I believe you.. I felt your ki energy on the battle field earlier, and i knew something was different about it... I just didn't realize it was MY energy i was feeling, i realize it now..." The nameks head drops back for a moment, "So, is your universe better than this one?"


Rem smiles, "Yeah... In mine, the Icosians wiped out almost all of the saiyans, and in turn, the earth forces combined with the saiyan remnants overthrew the Icosian leaders. At the moment, the renewed saiyan populace, as well as Earth, and Namek have a triumvirate of power in this galaxy." Rem shrugs, "At least its peaceful, and if the saiyans ever did try something, the universe could marshall enough power to stop them if need be..."


Trumpet gives a light laugh, full of malice... "Didn't stop em from killing me it seems... Anyway, good... We may be fighting a losing fight here.. But at least somewhere there are bright lights within the galaxy."


Rem doesnt laugh or smile, "I heard your speech to the saiyans earlier.... What kind of army does namek have?"



With a grimace Trumpet answers, "If we did have an army, i could you could call ME the general. The 3 nameks here and my lieutenants. This village here is probably among the largest left on Namekia, and we only have about 40 people living here. There are 12 villages ranging from about 10 to 30 people left on Namek, so if we needed a large force.... Well... We might be able to get about 130 at most... 150 if we used some of the younger boys who can fight..."


Rem grimaced, the situation was worse than he had thought. The Namekian race was all but wiped out. "Why don't yall leave? Go to another planet somewhere the saiyans arent, or are too busy to bother with.."


Trumpet shrugs, "We have no ships, no scientists.. No way to get off the planet... "


Rem says real quick, "Why not use the dragonballs?"


An evil look slams rem back into his seat, "NEVER! The dragonballs have been taken too lightly for millinnea." Quickly trumpet settles down, "I apologize, but the dragonballs power has been raped and reaped for centuries for nothing but personal gain, not for the good of all people. Besides, there are no dragonballs active at the moment, all the previous creators are dead, and as long as none exist, the Saiyan insurrections shall be fewer. A few instances like today we can handle, an army of saiyans scouring the planet for the coveted orbs would destroy our civilization far faster than a straight war against the Saiyan King himself. Also, the saiyans have dragon radars that span light years, they would know they were active before we could even gather them all."


Rem saw the problem... The nameks couldnt build ships, and they couldnt wish for ships... "Wait, why don't you steal the ships needed?"


Trumpet grinned, "We do. We've got about 70 space pods that we've gathered from around the planet from all the saiyans landings and such over the years. We've even got a nice sized passenger ship, that can seat about 20-25. However, thats still less than a hundred people. We'd have a good portion of our population still left on the planet."


Rem thought, and asked, "Why don't you send the children, the old, and a few warriors off planet. Leave the bulk of the army here to capture more ships, and let the saiyans know Nameks still haunt Old Namek."


Rem realized, at that moment what he had just said. This planet wasn't new namek. It was old namek.. This was the original planet his people had come from, not a new one found after this ones destruction. Suddenly, his experiences here took on a semi-religious feel. Like a muslim visiting mecha, his reverance multiplied over and over.


Trumpet considered this and said, "We've considered doing that.. But no one really knows where to go. No one alive has been off Namek in many Millinnia. We don't even have space charts, or locations of other planets."


At this, rem grinned. "I do though. As a matter of fact, let me tell you something that may surprise you. In my universe, this planet was destroyed by an Icosian, and the Namek people, after being resurrected were moved to a new planet. I know the location of this planet, and it is a long way away. As a matter of fact, it is almost as far from Earth as this one, only in the other direction, farther from Vegeta."


The older namek smiled, "Perhaps... Perhaps."Rem gets an idea quickly, "Here, let me write down the coordinates, i have a way of disappearing just when it seems a situation may resolve itself." And after finding a writing utinsil, rem writes the location of New Namek on a piece of paper, and hands it to his father.


All of a sudden, a woman, human looking, appears next to Rem. "Its time to leave my Friend, i hope you found some peace here." Trumpet looked surprised for a moment, but it passes quickly. "Go in peace my son..." is all he says


.It takes all of rems effort not to scream "I'll return father!" But he doesnt know if he will ever be allowed to... With a flash of Light, rem reappears Beside Sai and the others yet again, a trickle of blood dripping down his forehead. For them, only moments had passed. For him, it had been hours.