Area A: Day Seven

[Orion]

"... Either way, you lose. So, what?s it going to be, Goku? Will you wage ..."

Broli's smug, contemptuous words rolled off his snake like tongue, entering the victorious confident aura that his self satisfaction now oozed out like blood. Only a small portion of the Black Demon's condescending overture hit Goku's ears and sunk into awareness. The majority of the snide albeit truthful words were muted by the frantic rushing of thoughts within the newly infected Saiya-jin, circling, speeding back and forth like helpless comets, drawn into an unbreakable rotation around an empty black hole until being swallowed into its abyss.

That abyss would be the Black Virus.

Already, so soon after the black scarred skin marking the virus' entrance into Goku's body had mutated, the world was waning. Through his teal eyes, the snow shimmered, brighter than the luminosity of its natural white. The frosted lake near him revealed multiple reflections of the struggling Saiya-jin, jagged shards of ice surrounding the impact point of Goku's forehead basted lightly in his crimson blood. As each unique snow flake glided from the heavens, they pulsed outwards, expanding like helium balloons before shrinking akin to a grain of sand. He looked upon his right arm, the fingers on his hand hooked and clawed as a result of the warping of his senses. It shook ever so slightly, like the intense cold in the frost bitten wasteland was growing to be more than Goku could handle. Yet, it wasn't from the cold. Goku knew. It wasn't the virus, either. Not yet, anyway. It was the pure, unbridled anger.

He dominated Broli in terms of physical strength, although they seemed evenly matched in a war of words. The Black Demon knew how to effectively utilise the smorgasbord of abilities at his disposal; he had used Broli's Instant Transmission to position himself for the virus transfer. But what now boiled inside Goku's soul was a steaming hatred and burning refusal to accept the turn of events. Victory over this monster, a Saiya-jin husk accommodating a potentially apocalyptic demon, seemed only a matter of time. Goku was so close to gaining a real, compensating sense of redemption after his past acts, and his past failures. The death of Broli, and consequently the Black Demon, would signal the beginning of the end to his inner turmoils and break the chains that kept his soul prisoner to his transgressions. Now, those inner turmoils would only multiply.

Goku's sharpened eyes travelled back to the mirroring ice of the frozen lake. Through ten or more different reflections, he could see the hideous ebony skin. It covered the entire right portion of his neck, pronouncing the veins which had also sunk into the defacing hue. The growth ran up till the base of his jaw, with a few slithers of black arching up like carefully pigmented lines of a tattoo. The same lines also ran out of the base of his neck, craning over his right pectoral muscle like four bony fingers. He ran his fingers across the blackened skin, his rejecting gaze piercing back into his eyes. Hearing the familiar, husky voice, Goku turned to see Broli - no, the Black Demon - chuckling in his sadistic pleasure at the earthling's snowballing anxiety.

Goku shot his glance back to the dodecahedral ice mirror, his fate becoming as blindingly obvious as powerful spotlights shining directly into his eyes. In an amount of time known only to Broli, his mind would be consumed by the virus. The living, almost spectral essence of the virus was flowing through his veins, mixing with his blood and coarsing into his brain. Soon enough, no matter how much he fought it, he would end up like Broli before him. His whole life, and the powers he had trained for and mastered, would be at the unrestricted access of an exact replicate of what raped Broli of his mental awareness, and his life. His strengths would be utilised to massacre thousands, possibly millions, to sate the dark bloodlust that would eventually become his only course, his only reason, in life. With the warping intoxication this new Black Demon would provide, Goku would have no choice but to become that with which he battled so hard against.

No.

He wouldn't accept it.

In a brilliant display of light, Goku's golden aura shimmered, then exploded, his rage acting as the catalyst to his power like a lit flame to a tank of petrol. The golden beams of light cascaded over the snow and shattered ice, reflecting several fold from each other to produce a spectacular vision of beauty. In an instant, that beauty was destroyed by the utmost rage and hatred for Goku's situation. The light dispersed, replaced by a harsh, intrusive light that almost burned Broli's retinas. The immediate snow around him melted as if Goku were a heat lamp, and to an extent, he was becoming one. The shards of ice shrivelled as they dissolved into themselves, becoming puddles of water before blowing away in the torrential winds Goku was now generating.

His already impressive muscles bulged outwards, his spiky hair rigidly fighting the buffets of wind circling him. Bolts of lightning snaked across the Super Saiya-jin's skin, desperately trying to find their way to his golden crown, where they sank into the topmost spike of hair. The very earth itself shook beneath Goku's feet, trembling before the power that was being unleashed upon it. Surely everyone on Dante could feel what was happening now.

"As sure as I am that I won't be taken by this virus," Goku spat at Broli, trying to convince himself more than the Black Demon, "I'll make sure that you are no longer here to see it either way!" As the last vengeful words escaped his gritting teeth, Goku charged towards Broli, spraying a flower like pattern of snow from his feet.

"Don't try to convince me," the Black Demon retorted quickly, adding an infuriating smirk. Goku roared again, blowing perfect hemi spheres in the snow around his pulsing aura. If this is how it had to end, then he wouldn't let two Black Demons rampage unchecked throughout the universe. Pulling his fist behind his shoulder Goku could feel a new presence pounding through his head. Time was running short, and Goku's anger flared. He was just approaching Broli --

Goku.

Goku's heart skipped a beat. What was that voice? He heard it, but he didn't hear it. It was like a telepathic message.

Ha ha ha ha ha. Hello Goku.

It was in him. The virus had surfaced. It was talking to him inside his head. With a husky, commanding voice, it poked and saturated Goku's mind in an intrusive manner. The bewildered Super Saiya-jin fought against the presence, erecting a feeble wall over his mind. The Black Virus' goal for now wasn't to take over, however. A momentary brain lapse was all that it seeked, and all that it found. In the introverted second Goku spent in his mind, Broli had found the opening to break the Saiya-jin's attack.

A hammering fist ploughed through Goku's frozen mentality and his unaware face. Broli's knuckles dug deep into the skin upon his newly infected enemy's cheek, forcing it to mould to the bony joints. The elasticity of Goku's skin stretched out as the Black Demon's fist kept going after the collision, lifting the Earthling from his snow coated boots and sailing over the pearl white earth. His golden hair crashed into the cold sleet, clearing the way in a snow less path until the momentum in his body finally depleted.

A swift, sleet ridden wind washed over the area. The Black Demon smirked, taking proud steps through the snow. In his right hand, a pulsing energy ball flamed into life despite the bitter cold. The small flakes from the sky faded away at the presence of the ki orb, which Broli held at the ready to toss. Smacking his frost bitten lips at the prospect of burying the Earthling Saiya-jin in the cold embrace of Dante's surface, Broli soon towered over the fallen fighter. His face, forearms and thighs were covered in the white precipitation, with the fur on his tail icy and matted. Facing his palm downwards, Broli braced himself for the spray of blood that would erupt from Goku's back. Suddenly, he noticed an irregular glow beneath the snow. His eyes sharpened, but it was too late.

A prompt pivot of Goku's midsection twisted his body to face up into the sky. Upon his forearms spun two glowing yellow kienzans, cleverly construed and hidden beneath the snow. Arching his right arm towards Broli's face, the intensely rotating blades barely missed slicing across his cheek, warming the Black Demon as it passed over. Broli was not so fortunate with the follow up attack; Goku swung his left arm horizontally over the Black Demon's midsection. Although agile, Broli could not hope to dodge the razor sharp edging of the kienzan buzzsaw. The rotating ki blades tore into his taut abdominals, ripping his flesh away in a clean, concise line. Blood sprayed from the cut like watery foam from the back of a jet ski as the kienzan finally finished its job.

Still adequately fuelled by his burning rage, Goku was not about to let up with the advantage he had now. Broli roared in the sharp, excruciating pain over his stomach, putting his black and burnt hand over the top of the wound. Goku had taken a step back, dropping his weight onto that leg before pushing himself forward to recommence attacking. The Black Demon looked up with his white empty eyes, an intense flame burning within them. With his free hand, he grabbed Goku by the head as soon as he was within grabbing distance. Goku swung his arms around wildly, trying to amputate the limb that held him captive. Swiftly, the Black Demon removed his hand from his chest, which was now saturated in blood, and drove it into Goku's open gut.

Broli could feel Goku expel the breath in his lungs onto his palm and smiled at his discomfort. Again he withdrew his titanic fist and slammed him again. A similar detrimental effect was absorbed by the Earthling Saiya-jin. Broli took his bloodied hand back, clenching his fist tighter than before and tensing his bicep. Releasing a proud, insidious laugh that rung in Goku's ears, he rammed his fist one last time into Goku's abdomen with such force that his body was torn from Broli's grasp. The Super Saiya-jin flew like a paper plane, lightly skidding onto the snow before coming to a limp stop.

"Perhaps its better this way," Broli called over the snowfield, placing his hand upon his wound once again. A luminescent glow shone from his palm and onto his stomach. The Black Demon grimaced slightly as he cauterised the wound with his own searing energy. He removed his hand, revealing a blood stained scar. "If this is all the fight you can show me." Broli smirked again, unbeknownst to Goku, whose face was sunken into the snow. The Black Demon could now afford to gloat to his opponent. Goku was already undergoing the slow, diminishing process of becoming a slave to the Black Virus running through his veins. The strength that the Earthling warrior once radiated had fallen, and Broli had the upper hand.

Come on Goku. Get up.

The ethereal voice made its presence known again. Although groggy from the last round of punches to his stomach, Goku still heard the words.

"I... can't..." Goku coughed, flipping his head out of the snow and staring up into the stormy sky.

No, you're right. You can't. But I can.

"I... no..." Goku murmured, running his hand over the leathery black skin on his neck. "You... you won't take... me."

Goku, the Black Virus said sternly, I won't have us dying so early. We have immense power. Just think of the destruction we can cause. The terror. The death. We won't be silenced so soon.

"Those are your plans! Your plans!" Goku screamed with a sudden burst of rage. Broli laughed at the obvious battle going on within his enemy's head.

They don't have to be. Just let go, Goku. We could become so much more. We'll start by showing him what real power is.

"No!!!" Goku roared back, slamming his fists into the snow. After his display of anger, his body slumped onto the ground. The exhaustion was taking him over.

The Black Demon stood tall, his hands on his shoulders, waiting for Goku to get up and try again. He remembered when he had broken Broli's spirit and taken over him totally. He took immense pleasure in knowing either way, Goku's life was almost over. Hopefully the Earthling warrior had a little more fight left in him though. The Saiya-jin blood of his host craved battle.

Weakly, Goku's body stirred. Broli watched intently as the weakened Saiya-jin climbed to his feet, his back to him. He got up calmly and slowly, burning up as minimal energy as possible. The frost bitten tail wrapped around his waist, shaking to remove the collections of snow through the golden fur. His hands tightened into solid fists, hard as rocks. Goku spun around, his eyes closed. With little to no external effort, his golden aura exploded around his body, blowing away the snow at his feet. Broli was surprised to see the Saiya-jin still in his ascended form, but was nonetheless prepared to knock him down once again. Gradually, Goku's eyelids lifted, revealing his eyes.

But there were no irises to speak of.

His eyes had become white, plain voids. The beautiful teal irises had been swallowed by the engulfing nothingness. Goku's power level suddenly sky rocketed, splintering the earth around him. It rose higher, above Broli's strength again. Yet, it couldn't be possible. Goku was tired, and weakened. How could ...

"Black Demon," Broli said churlishly.

The possessed Goku chuckled. "That is your name. Not mine. I am the Dark Flame, come to cleanse the universe of inferiors with my searing fire. And I won't let this body perish at the hands of you. My plans are far greater than dying here."