Hi everyone ! So... This is the first thing I post on RRL... A fanfiction set in the Dragon Ball universe. Truthfully, although I like it well enough, every time I decide to share it, I get cold feet. Anyway, I just have to brace myself ! If you find the story interesting, you see errors in my english (I'm French and learned english watching TV, so...), please let me know ! Also, if you think there are inconsistensies with the original story, I would really like to hear about it (with Dragon Ball, not Dragon Ball Super since I haven't watched or read it, yet)... Especially at the beginning.

Anyway ! The idea of this story is... Well, like most people, I grew up with Toriyama's story, watched it on TV, then read the mangas. Simply put, I loved it. However, there was another thing I loved : Magic. Be it fantasy books I read, or my own creations, magic is often a pillar of those stories. In Dragon Ball, although magic exists, their users are there to cast a favorable light on the heroes and their fight (the kaio shin giving his strength to Gohan, Dende's healing, Shen Long) ... Or they're villains who get killed pretty quickly (Babidi, Dabra...). So, I created this story to explore the subject...

The young man, bathed in the golden light coming from the seven balls on the ground, seemed lost in thought. Head bowed, as if he was praying, he was thinking about the event that lead him to this point in time : earth's destruction. The death of his best friend. And then, the erasure... That's how he thought of it now. Something that couldn't have happened if not for these same seven balls he painfully gathered once more. The miraculous reappearance of the earth and the resurrection – as well as that of everyone killed – of the one who gave birth to his resolution.

Now that she was back, however, the plans he formulated during his lonely time in space wouldn't be as difficult to achieve. Without the radar in his coat pocket, he never would have assembled the balls so fast.

“And now, what ?” Sala malik, cat burglar, asked.

The young man turned around, smiling. His green skin tone didn't surprise her. Anyway, she had already seen him without the numerous layers of clothes usually covering him. The hooded-coat hid most of his face, only showing his skin tone and smile.

“Well, now I just need to call forth the one who will grant us our wishes...” He turned towards the light again, a thoughtful expression on his face. “If I recall correctly, it should be something like... Shen Long, show yourself !”

“Show yourself... seriously ? Is that supposed to be a magic formula ? I was expecting something along the lines of hocus pocus or abracadabra. What a downer!” At first, a skeptical smile adorned her pretty face before it was replaced by an aggrieved pout. It changed once more swiftly into astonishment, though...

With a harsh explosion of lights and sounds, a luminous pillar was erected in the sky before taking on a solid form. An oriental dragon with deer antlers directed an intimidating glare on the two lone people in this mountainous desert. After a short silence, he opened his gigantic maw to talk :

“You have assembled the dragon balls. I shall grant you three wishes.”

Sala emitted a gulping sound before saying :

“I heard rumors in the western capital, but I wasn't expecting him to be so... massive.” After a moment of reflexion, she asked : “Do you know what to ask ?”

“I have to pay attention to my wording, but yes !” He inhaled deeply before advancing one step to make his wish : “I wish for us two, to possess the infinite potential to learn and develop every form of mystical energy.”

The sacred dragon opened his mouth in response :

“I can grant you the potential, but you will have to work in order to nurture it.”

His eyes lit up after he finished talking. The couple felt something changing. The feeling wasn't clear, like pain or a touch... more spiritual, like a thought or a whisper maybe... Soon, the dragon's eyes lost their brilliance and he asked them about their second wish. The young man considered it for a moment, then he spoke up again :

“I wish to possess a data bank on my spaceship, detailing informations about places where we could find knowledge about magic : their coordinates, nature and occult level.”

When it was time for the last wish, the young man kept quiet. He didn't really think past this point. Moreover, he didn't think he would only need two wishes to get everything he wanted. At this point, and just when the sacred dragon was starting to get antsy, Sala took a step forward to address Shen Long :

“I wish for a portable universal translator.” She asked loudly, and turned towards her friend, saying in a lower voice : “Avo, you should think ahead a little. You want us to travel into space, visiting planets probably inhabited... Do you expect them to talk our language ?”

“Nice catch, Sala ! Thankfully you're here !”

A few seconds later appeared things that looked like a phone and a pair of earpieces. Sala caught them in the air deftly. Shen Long bade his farewell before the dragon balls followed the pillars into the sky, divided and disappeared over the horizon, each in a different direction. In a year, they would be usable again.

In the meantime, Sala was checking how the translator worked, and Avo was trying to... feel how the sacred dragon changed him. At the moment, he didn't really feel much different. Maybe he perceived things a little more accurately, but that was about it.

“Do you feel... different ?” Avo asked.

“Huh... Oh ! Not really.” Sala was completely engrossed in the device she held and didn't really pay attention to her green friend. Just like the radar, she discovered that this technology was marvelous, although in a very different way. Obviously, the creators were two very different people.

Avo was a little depressed, but thought about his second wish and said :

“We should check the data. Also, you should prepare your bags if we're to leave earth. Personally, I'm ready.”

“Right! Easy for you, you live in the damn ship. It is somewhat peculiar though... It was obviously build to leave in it... as well as travel across the stars. Was your race nomadic ? Is it some kind of space yurt ?"

“How should I know ? The only one I knew was my... ahem, father, and he didn't talk much about it. You know... before he died.”

“Riiiiight ! Sorry !” Sala blushed in shame, rubbing her head with one hand. “Soooo... let's go check the data, then !"

And she darted in the direction of the ship. Speaking of ship, it didn't really look like the standard rocket or spacecraft. It didn't even look like a house. It mostly looked bizarre, a crossing between insect and technology, in a white material that didn't appear to be metal. At least, not a conventional one...

For a long time, Avo didn't know what his house or he actually were. Actually, Avo never got the chance to meet people like him, except for his “father”. That was the name Avo used but the man never liked it. He said it sounded too human, which they were not. He always told him to call him Genitor or by his name, Bana. Of course, he had heard about the Demon Piccolo, and viewed some archive footage so he knew he wasn't the only one. Unfortunately, Piccolo didn't seem like the guy that would like to just... chat and anyway, it seemed some heroic kid had killed him, way before he was born.

In spite of all this, Avo wasn't really bothered since he managed to make friends with some humans... especially one : Sala Malik. She always was an energetic person, dragging people in her life like it was theirs, or getting into yours because she was curious. Actually, that's how they became friends.

Avo never invited her over... She just showed up one day, the first time he went out to the city. It was a few weeks after his genitor had died, Avo decided that he was tired of living alone, planting trees and gardening. He wanted to meet other people, something he couldn't do ever since he was born, because of his father's urgings. In his mind, they were too different to be accepted. That was true, in a way.

When he arrived in the city for the first time, he noticed the difference between him and everyone else. But he also noticed the difference between everyone... and they were a lot. Here and there he could see people with animal's head. Some were tall, others short, fat or slim, charming or ugly. Still, everyone of them still stared deeply at him when he passed by, with surprise, coldness or animosity in the eyes.

Except for her : a young girl, about as tall as he was at the time, running around, stealing stuff from the stands in the market or in the shops. Everywhere she went, she was chased after with loud yelling or someone with a stick, and she just laughed and joked in retaliation, all the while running. She was... a force of nature. For a while, Avo observed her from afar, for some reason, he was curious about her. That was... until she surprised him, almost causing him to fall off a few stories high building. One moment, she was running away from someone she stole a wallet from, the next he was looking everywhere for her, only to find her sneaking up on him.

After this moment, it was her turn to get curious about him. She wouldn't let him go and even though he could fly, it would be quite conspicuous in the city's airspace. She asked him a bunch of stuff while keeping a look-out for pursuers (and continuing to steal things in the meantime ! Although less obviously). At the time, he had no idea what personal property was, or why the people were so mad at her. Still, he knew there was something wrong about her conduct and he didn't wish to be labelled her acquaintance for a first impression. He answered some questions hoping to make her leave... to no avail. So he tried to avoid her : blending with the crowd, taking random turns down alleyways... Only to get lost himself. Apparently though, she didn't have any trouble following him ! As they were getting back onto a main street, he asked her how she could find him (or where they were) so easily.

“This city's my home ! I know her like the back of my hand !”

He didn't register the feminine pronoun or even would have noticed the oddity in calling a town a she. The only thing he was interested in, was her knowledge and finding out a way to make her leave. Navigating the city seemed like a useful skill, if he intended to come back. There were so many different and interesting things ! So, he accepted, albeit reluctantly her tagging along. He marveled over things so basic to the young girl, that it just made her more curious. How could he have never seen things as simple as a car, cellphone or a supermarket ? Even if he lived under a rock in the mountain, surely he would know people who travelled to the city, no ? Everything she found out about the green guy in weird clothing made him seem more original and fascinating. He seemed so alien and yet... She couldn't figure where she ever saw a face like his.

Sala would never find out that her impression came from an old documentary she saw in History, when she still attended school, about a tyrant who could destroy cities with the wave of a hand. If she remembered, perhaps she wouldn't have been so keen as to interact with this intriguing looking stranger... His mysterious vibe only intensified when Avo (she learned his name early) just up and flew at the end of the day, bidding her goodbye as if nothing was wrong. Not only her, the onlookers around also watched him leave with eyes as round as saucers !

It took her a while to finally follow him to his home... and as soon as she saw it, several conflicting ideas emerged about it : insect, vehicle, alien... It was the weirdest thing – and a little creepy to be honest ! - she ever saw in her life ! The house's door was underneath it, and it lowered after Avo said something... Since she was a little ways away from the whole scene, she didn't know what he said. From what she could tell, there weren't any hinges or actuator to lower the platform/door. Probably an anti-gravitational field, or a magnetic one, she thought at the time. Truth was : earth's technology could (almost easily) manage something like this... But the design of the entire house was by no means from around here ! That's when she knew he was an alien and the day she decided to stick to him like glue...

After that, they came to know each other for a while. He came to her city or she went to his place to chat, or they walked around while going on with their everyday life. Somewhere along the way, they both joined a group of street kids. Later on, Avo found out it was called a gang...

Although he didn't really need anything, he still helped them with their crime when they needed him. He would keep a look-out, heal the injured and sick with the bit of healing magic he knew, and for those who showed interest, he taught how to harness their inner energy. They couldn't do much with it, since he himself wasn't very well-versed... Still, they could use it to enhance a bit their bodies and health.

In order to blend in with life in the city, Sala had to teach him about clothes. Of course, he noticed the passersby gazes towards him and asked why they were looking at him this way... That's when he discovered about the demon Piccolo's appearances and his story. Needless to say, he was curious, but more than that, he was frightened. The last thing he wanted was to become a monster... Actually, it was never a question before. But the eyes of humans seemed to consider him one already ! Also, he was a little afraid of becoming another demon...

However, life went on! He learned to hide his facial features a bit to live among humans, and was even accepted by their little gang. It all went well and peaceful, except for the occasional brushes with the police. Until one day... The monsters Buu and Babidi came to Earth to start a massacre ! It was a grotesque and gruesome one where the sorcerer showed everyone on Earth what would happen if the humans didn't tell him where his enemies were hiding. A senseless and purely evil plot in Avo's eyes which may or may not have worked since later, the sorcerer went completely silent... On the other hand, Buu's killings never stopped and even intensified a bit.

Despair and chaos emerged in the humans' hearts : everyone thought they would die ! Avo, as desperate as anyone else, asked Sala to come with him to his house, hopefully avoiding Buu by leaving the city. As they were leaving as Avo lived most of his life, in peace and ignorance, the lights illuminated the sky, like thousands upon thousands of falling stars in broad daylight. Only... those falling stars behaved like homing missiles, targeting every living thing on earth. Avo managed to avoid death thanks to his unique physiology... Sala wasn't !

The last few days of earth, he spent in depression and solitude. He kept an almost religious vigil over her grave mound before he recalled what she found out about his house... A spaceship : a vehicle he could take to start his life anew anywhere in the universe. He didn't want to just start it anew though ! He had a purpose gradually budding in his heart, a Will !

The rest of this story, we already narrated. As he was pondering in space near earth's former place, about where he should head to, what he should do... Earth came back and with it... he soon felt every living beings coming back to life. It was a peculiar, joyful and spectacular moment for his senses, when the empty husk that was Earth started lighting up in his inner vision like the windows of a city after a blackout.

Now here they were, stepping onto the platform to head towards horizons unknown, totally new for earthlings and probably fantastical !