[3] Group 3 - Market/Town

[Burter]

20. Olibu
21. Metal Koola
22. Vegeta
23. Reijin
25. Uub

Everyone is all settled in some abandoned house trying to figure out what the fuck to do and where to look. There has to be something in the market or town...

[Old Dave]

Sparsely lit glow globes hovered through out the hallways and room?s of the abandoned house that the five warriors now occupied. Dust lay in abundance across every surface, cob webs in ever corner, and creaking boards and beams on every floor. It could have been worse, but at least for now they had shelter and a place to take a load off and think about what they needed to do.

The study in which they stood was by far the biggest room in the house, shelves upon shelves of books lined every wall, and spanned from floor to ceiling. Cloth covered chairs and tables lay scattered among the clutter of accumulated knowledge that spilled from shelves to floor. And the faint flickering of age old lights cast an eerie ghost like glow through the disarrayed room.

?So, what was it that you were all sent here for?? Uub asked leaning upon the windowsill that looked down upon the market place two stories below.

Vegeta sighed in frustration as he ripped one of the dust covered cloths from a couch and took a seat on the cracking leather surface. ?We were sent to this damnable market to find a medal, but instead of finding it we were attacked by fucking ghouls, or zombies, what ever you want to call the things. And then you came along.?

Uub scratched his head and looked down at the market square below. He could picture the owner of this place looking down on a populace busy with their daily lives, a person of great importance. ?We need to find out who lived in this place.? he said turning back to face the group. ?Were in a study, there has to be something here to guide us, to give us a hint.? he motioned to all the books and desks through out the room. ?They had to have been an important person to be able to live in such luxury.?

?I?ll be damned, your useful after all human.? Reijin commented stepping out of the shadowy corner by the window.

Vegeta stood and nodded ?Agreed, let?s get to work, Metal Koola check the back wall, Olibu all the desks, Rei take the wall by the window, Uub take the remaining book cases.? the four nodded and went off to their appointed tasks.

?As for me, I?ll check the remaining rooms in the house.? and with that he spun on his heel and closed the study door behind him.

[Sammah]

?This place is nothing more than a fucking dump? Vegeta cursed to himself as he entered the abandoned building. What was the reason for them being here? There was nothing in this God forsaken town. Nothing at all, nothing living or moving inhabited this place. ?This is bullshit.? Vegeta hated the fact of them being stuck here. He could be doing something more productive in the real world, outside of this damned asteroid. Searching for the dragonballs was definitely one of his main options. Their team already held onto most of them, and it wouldn?t be long after they escaped from this dream world, if it is a dream world, that they?d find the rest.

?So, what was it that you were all sent here for?? The human brought up the question as they all entered a room two stories up which held a steadfast view over the market place. The prince was looking down at a couch covered with a dusty old cloth and he quickly grabbed ahold of the corner. It made a whooshing sound as he ripped it off, tossing it abruptly to the side.

?We were sent to this damnable market to find a medal, but instead of finding it we were attacked by fucking ghouls, or zombies, what ever you want to call the things. And then you came along.? Vegeta sat down on the used leather, quite comfortable for a dead environment.

?We need to find out who lived in this place.? The human brought up as he turned to face the group of elite fighters. ?Were in a study, there has to be something here to guide us, to give us a hint.? Uub motioned to all the books and desks through out the room. ?They had to have been an important person to be able to live in such luxury.? Reijin made a comment of sorts as he stepped out from his corner. Vegeta grunted in response, slowly pushing himself up onto his feet again.

?Agreed. Let?s get to work.? The prince began to scan around the study room and then out the door which led into the hallway of many more doors. ?Metal Koola,? He began as he returned his focus on the group, ?check the back wall for anything suspicious.? His eyes shifted over to Olibu, ?you got the desks. Reijin, get the wall over there by the window, and Uub, take the book cases.? The prince patted himself down as to remove any dust particles he may had gotten on himself during his short break on the couch. ?As for me, I?ll check the remaining rooms in the house.? He turned and began to walk out the door, shutting it tight behind him.

?We?ll see just how rich this bitch was.? He grumbled under his breath as he started down the hallway. Taking into consideration how they were attacked earlier by dead bodies, his nerves began to act up, warning him that he shouldn?t go any farther, or at least not by himself. Vegeta quickly snickered though, realizing that he was the prince of Saiya-jins, and fear had no home within his heart. His hand grasped a hold of the doorknob which he came across, but it was locked. The sheer thought of what was so important to lock behind doors egged the prince on more and more. ?What could it be?? He sneered, a grin quickly appearing on his face. His steps took him back a few feet, far enough for him to extend his arm completely out towards the door.

?Don?t mind if I do.? A slight ball of ki began to form at the end of his open palm. It grew with a steady pace, but he made sure not to get carried away with the pleasure of finally blowing something down. In an instant, the small blast was released, and a loud popping noise echoed throughout the luxurious building. The door collapsed inward and shattered into pieces, giving way for a darkened room which appeared to have no windows at all. ?Odd.? He whispered to himself, taking a few steps into the room.

[Burter]

EVENT

At this rate, Brim though, they would never find the clue. So the green executive found it appropriate to give a little hint...

A book opened in the library. The closest person, Reijin, peeked in it. It was torn up, and had some blood stains, but something was still readable...

MARKETPLACE
STAND #51
DEATH AWAITS

[Metal Koola]

Metal Koola leaned over Reijin's shoulder to take a peek at the book that seemed to have been deliberately shown to them. Was this a clue to where they were supposed to be heading? It certainly wasn't a coincidence that the book seemed to give deliberate directions as to where they should go in the market.

?Stand fifty-one, eh?? He crossed his arms as he examined the lines more closely. The text was barely legible, as the pages were stained red with the blood of who or whatever had been here. ?I guess I'll meet you guys over there then.? MK turned on his feet and started making his way for the door.

?As I'm sure you all know, I've never been one to keep death waiting.? He chuckled at the little joke he had made as he exited the building and walked towards the marketplace stands. All the stands seemed to be uniform throughout, but one of the stands seemed to be calling to him. Yes, that was it, Stand #51. He walked closer to it and noticed something very different about this stand. Although the others seemed to have a little bit of blood on them here or there... this one was covered in it. The blood had dried and it looked almost as if the entire thing had been painted red, very sloppily though.

Walking behind the stand, he saw something he wasn't expecting...

[Reijin]

The Saiyan youth was standing in what appeared to be a study of some sort, one that looked as if it had not been entered in many years. Reijin sighed as he looked from one cobwebbed bookshelf to another. Was this entire game nothing more than a scavenger hunt of sorts? The zombies earlier had been fairly entertaining, but now Reijin could find nothing to really keep himself occupied. He had been all for enjoying this little game, but he was beginning to grow bored of it. He turned and ran his fingers absently over a dust ridden book. Pulling his finger closer, he blew the dust from it and then looked at the title on the book. ?How to Date a Cat,? he read slowly from the cover. He shook his head and looked to the others.

?So, what was it that you were all sent here for?? Reijin looked up to see Uub leaning against a small window that overlooked the marketplace. Uub had spoken up to break the silence a bit, but no one seemed eager to respond to him.

Of all people, Vejita was giving agitated sighs every couple of seconds as he ripped a leather bound book from the shelf and replaced it with another leather bound book. Finally he just tossed the book onto a table and walked over to a small couch, pulling a tattered cloth from it, and plopped down onto it. He was promptly rewarded with a large furious cloud of dust around him. He waved his hand angrily in front of his face to clear the dust as he finally responded to Uub?s hanging question. ?We were sent to this damnable market to find a medal, but instead of finding it we were attacked by fucking ghouls, or zombies, what ever you want to call the things. And then you came along.? He let the final words trail off dryly to show that he really didn?t think of that as any form of positive omen.

Uub just continued about his business, not catching the mood of the room, or more likely just not caring. He looked through his window and watched the marketplace, giving it a general scan to see if anything caught his eye from his current angle. From his height, he could see nearly every angle of the marketplace. A person would have to be pretty high on the food chain to be able to afford such a profitable location, he reasoned. Then something occurred to him. ?We need to find out who lived in this place.? He looked back over his shoulder and turned to the group. ?We?re in a study, there has to be something here to guide us, to give us a hint.? He motioned his hands out around him at the books. Everyone else stared at Uub as if he was simply stating the obvious. Finally, the human crossed his arms and spoke with a smug grin on his face. ?They had to have been an important person to be able to live in such luxury.?

The room went silent for a moment, and then Reijin simply shook his head. ?I?ll be damned, you?re useful after all human,? he commented sarcastically. He stepped out from the corner of his own window and leaned against the table that held the discarded book that Vejita had tossed onto it.

Vejita took Reijin?s words as sincere as he nodded. ?Agreed, let?s get to work, Metal Koola check the back wall, Olibu all the desks, Rei take the wall by the window, Uub take the remaining book cases.? With that, Vejita turned away from the group and smirked to himself. ?As for me, I?ll check the remaining rooms in the house.? The Prince was then gone, shutting the door to the study swiftly behind him.

Reijin paid him no attention as he squeezed his earlobe to activate a search feature on his LENS unit. He began to run his fingers slowly over the wall before him to see if there was any possible sign in any hidden doorways in it. After what seemed to be an eternity, Reijin finally just quit, looking at the rest of the group in disgust. ?This is bullshit.? Reijin finally turned back to the table behind him and slid out a chair, noticing Olibu grabbing one as well. Reijin gave him an eye as he sat down and kicked his feet up onto the table in front of him. Uub looked at him from the book shelf.

Giving a defeated grin, he simply shrugged. ?Nothing over here. I don?t get it. Who keeps books titled ?Ten Ways to Skin an Android???

Reijin simply shrugged. ?Hell if I know. Honestly, I really don?t care.?

Uub walked over and slammed his hands down onto the table at Reijin?s comment, eyes blazing with an inner fire. ?Ok, look, I?m just trying to help your ass out. If you just want to sit there and not help find a clue, then that?s fine, but don?t try to bring the rest of us down in the process.?

Reijin gave a noticeable and voyeuristic yawn and let his eyes lazily wander across the tabletop to make a point. Upon doing so, he saw that the book that Vejita had thrown onto the table was now open. Reijin assumed that it must?ve flipped open as Uub slammed his fist down on the table. The Saiyan?s feet flipped down from the top as he grabbed for the book, sliding it closer until it rested before him. Nothing in the book seemed to make sense, as Reijin flipped through a couple of pages. Finally, he flipped back to the page he had found it opened on, and stopped to admire the dark stains of blood that covered the thick bound book.

MARKETPLACE
STAND #51
DEATH AWAITS

Reijin eyed the page cautiously, and then looked up at the others. He shot Uub a cool look to accompany his omnipresent smirk. ?Ok, hotshot. You want me to find something magically? How about this one? Here?s your clue.? He dropped the book back onto the table as the others walked over to look at it. Vejita still had not yet returned.

?Stand fifty-one, eh?? Reijin glanced up to see Metal Koola leaning in over his shoulder to peer down at the book. The metallic changeling crossed his arms sternly. ?I guess I'll meet you guys over there then.? The tall creature turned and walked towards the door. ?As I'm sure you all know, I've never been one to keep death waiting.? The door swung shut behind him as he strode out without a second glance.

Olibu looked over at the rest of the group. ?Does anyone other than me think that to be unwise??

Reijin shrugged and rose to his feet. ?Who cares? Do you want to spend this entire little game sitting around and waiting for zombies to come into this room and kick our asses? Let?s just go meet them on our terms. Besides, this is some television broadcast show, right? That would make for some good ratings.? He stepped back to the window that he had been looking out of earlier. He watched as Metal Koola walked complacently into view beneath them. He didn?t even look up at the window as he glided towards the exact location of Stand 51. Reijin squinted his eyes as he tried to rub a circle into the mist and dust that had accumulated on the window. He could see the stand now, but he couldn?t make out many distinguishing features.

A large amount of blood covered the stand, almost as if it had been splashed onto the stand from some form of large creature or vat of liquid. Most of the blood was dark and dried around the structure, but Reijin?s eyes caught the eerie view of a pool of what appeared to be fresh blood gathered beneath the shop stand. Reijin motioned for the others to look out of the window towards Metal Koola as he approached without any form of cautiousness. He boldly stepped around behind the stand and out of view from the others, but as near as they could tell nothing happened immediately. A thought dawned in the mind of the pure Saiyan. ?Did anyone else notice all of that blood around that area earlier??

He glanced at the others and they all shrugged their shoulders. ?I didn?t think so. We searched that area earlier and I could have sworn there was some form of plushy animals being sold in that vicinity. So either Metal Koola is about to attack a large beanie baby, or we should probably head down to check it out as well.?

The words had barely enough time to exit Reijin?s mouth before a loud explosion and crashing noise was heard. The building shook for a moment and the group took a step back in their steadfast resolve. The door to the rest of the building slammed openly loudly and Vejita appeared no worse for the wear in the doorway. ?What the hell was that?? he demanded, as if the others had an answer ready for him.

Reijin quickly turned to look back out of the window from the shop, but found the entire window to be covered by a large amount of running blood on the entire thing. The opaque liquid slid down the sides of the window like a thick syrup, blocking all view from the inside out. Reijin glanced at the others, a bit taken aback. ?Well? Would anyone care to explain this??

Uub turned to them. ?Is it a Saiyan trait to demand answers from other people when they know very well that no one else knows the answer either? Take a look over here. All of the windows are covered by that stuff. I?d almost say that some large creature just exploded his guts all over our building, or the building is bleeding, or something?? He looked around puzzled for a moment. ?You know what? Fuck it, let?s just go out and look.?

Reijin smiled and walked over to him, slapping him on the shoulder. ?Well well? Seems like the human is wanting to get a taste of the big boy work. Very well, human, let?s head outside then.?

Uub?s arm spun around and grabbed Reijin by the wrist tightly and he gave the raven haired youth an even stare. ?My name is Uub.?

Reijin?s smile seemed to shift from comical to dripping with mock sincerity swiftly. ?Ok, Uub. I?ll tell you what. You have about three seconds to release my arm, or I can promise you that the next time these rivers run with blood that it will be your blood we are drowning in.?

Uub gave him a glare, and then finally let go, walking over to the door and pulling it open. He turned, giving the others a bow. ?All aboard! Next stop, the ninth and final circle of Hell.? He motioned for them to go out and peered out while he waited. He could see nothing outside of the ordinary from his inside point of view. Finally, Olibu cracked his knuckles and stepped outside obligingly. The others gave a grave look around, and then the group quickly exited the room, stepping outside to look at the house and to find Metal Koola.

[Burter]

END OF ROUND

The others had just left the library by the time Koola had gotten to the market. His quick speed came in handy when he really wanted something.

"Stand 50...51..." He continued counting until finding the correct one. Without wasting a beat, the metallic changling moved behind the countertop. "Oh my..." He let out a surprised gasp at the sight. This was most unusual...

The figure lept forward, and that was all he remembered.

21. Metal Koola - DEAD