Megumi's tiny hands gripped the ridges of Toji's chest plate as he climbed upward, treating his father's armored body like a mountain to be conquered.
His violet eyes sparkled with determination as he pulled himself onto Toji's shoulder, settling there with a triumphant gurgle.
Inside the Vader helmet, Toji smiled. These quiet moments with his son had become precious beyond measure - islands of peace in the storm of trying to increase the universe's mortal level and his quest for divine ki.
"Conquering Mount Duskborn, are we?" Toji asked, his modulated voice softened as much as the vocoder allowed.
Megumi patted the side of the helmet, giggling at the hollow sound it produced. "Dada mountain," he declared, his vocabulary expanding daily at a rate that astonished even the imperial physicians.
Toji adjusted his position carefully, ensuring Megumi wouldn't fall. The boy's balance was remarkably good for his age, but Toji maintained a constant telekinetic field around him anyway - an invisible safety net.
"What shall we explore next?" Toji asked, enjoying his son's antics. "Perhaps the plains of my cape? Or shall we venture to the mysterious land of the desk?"
Megumi bounced excitedly on his perch, pointing toward the large desk across the room. "Desk! Desk!"
"As you command, young explorer," Toji replied, rising from his seat with careful movements. His damaged right leg required constant telekinetic assistance for smooth motion, but he'd mastered the technique to the point where it was nearly unconscious.
As he took his first step, Megumi suddenly stiffened on his shoulder.
The boy coughed once, a small sound that immediately caught Toji's attention.
"Megumi?" Toji turned his head slightly, the mechanical breathing momentarily falling out of rhythm.
Another cough, harder this time. Megumi's tiny body shuddered.
Concern flared in Toji's mind as he reached up with his prosthetic hand, gently lifting his son from his shoulder. He cradled Megumi in his arms, studying him through the helmet's visual processors.
"Are you alright, little one?"
Megumi's face contorted as another coughing fit seized him. This one was violent, wracking his small frame with alarming force. When it subsided, something dark spattered onto the floor.
Toji froze, his world narrowing to that single crimson spot on the polished black stone.
Blood.
His son's blood.
Time seemed to stop as Toji stared at the red stain, his mind refusing to process what he was seeing. Then Megumi coughed again, more blood speckling his lips.
The world seemed to crash into him again.
Toji moved with blinding speed, cradling Megumi protectively against his chest as he burst through the doors of his quarters. The guards outside barely registered his passage - just a black blur trailing a cape as he raced through the palace corridors.
Imperial staff flattened themselves against walls, some dropping to their knees in terror as Lord Duskborn tore past them like a living shadow.
But Toji saw none of them. His entire being was focused on the tiny form in his arms and the medical wing that lay several floors below.
He didn't bother with stairs or elevators. Toji simply blasted through the floor, descending vertically through multiple levels of the palace, debris raining around him as he crashed into the medical wing.
The imperial medical center was a marvel of technology - pristine white surfaces, advanced equipment, and the finest physicians in the galaxy.
All of which scattered in panic as Lord Duskborn materialized in their midst, trailing dust and fragments of ceiling.
"PHYSICIAN!" Toji's modulated voice boomed through the chamber, his breathing rapid and irregular. "NOW!"
A tall, slender alien woman with four arms and pale blue skin rushed forward, her professional instincts momentarily overriding her fear. Royal Physician Elara was renowned throughout the empire for her skill and composure.
"Lord Duskborn," she began, her voice admirably steady despite the circumstances. "What seems to be-"
"My son," Toji interrupted, extending his arms to show Megumi's trembling form. "He's coughing blood. Fix him. NOW."
As if to emphasize the point, Megumi convulsed with another coughing fit, more blood staining his lips. The boy's eyes were wide with confusion and fear, not understanding what was happening to him.
Physician Elara's composure cracked slightly as she took in the sight. "Please, place him on the examination table," she directed, gesturing to a nearby platform.
Toji complied, gently laying Megumi down. The boy whimpered, reaching for his father with blood-flecked hands.
"Da... Dada..."
"I'm here," Toji assured him, his prosthetic hand gently stroking Megumi's hair. "The physician will help you."
Elara approached with a medical scanner, her hands now visibly trembling as she passed the device over Megumi's body. The proximity to Lord Duskborn's aura was clearly affecting her, sweat beading on her blue skin despite the cool temperature of the medical wing.
"Stop shaking," Toji growled, his patience evaporating as he watched the scanner wobble in her grip. "Focus on your task."
"I-I'm t-trying, my lord," Elara stammered, the scanner slipping from her fingers and clattering to the floor. "F-forgive me..."
Something inside Toji snapped. "ENOUGH!" he roared, his destructive ki flaring around him like a black halo. "MY SON IS HURT AND YOU FUMBLE LIKE AN INCOMPETENT CHILD?!"
The medical equipment around them began to malfunction, screens flickering with strange patterns before shorting out entirely. A nearby monitoring device simply melted, its components liquefying as if exposed to intense heat.
Elara fell to her knees, her four arms wrapped around herself as she trembled uncontrollably. "P-please... don't erase me..." she whispered, eyes wide with primal terror.
Megumi coughed again, more violently than before. The sound cut through Toji's rage like a knife, redirecting his attention instantly. The boy's condition was visibly worsening, his skin paling to an alarming shade.
Before Toji could speak again, the medical wing doors burst open. Vegeta and Nappa entered first, followed closely by Bulma, whose face drained of color when she saw Megumi on the examination table.
"What's happening?" she demanded, rushing forward without the fear that paralyzed the imperial staff.
"Megumi is ill," Toji replied tersely. "This... physician... is too frightened to be of use."
Freeza appeared next, her white hair flowing behind her as she strode into the room. Her violet eyes - so like her son's - narrowed dangerously when she saw Megumi's condition.
"What is the meaning of this?" she demanded, her tail lashing behind her. "Why is my son bleeding?"
Elara struggled to her feet, professional duty wrestling with primal fear. "I-I was just beginning the examination, Your Highness..."
"Then continue," Freeza hissed, her tone promising violence. "And if my son's condition worsens while you tremble there uselessly, I will personally feed you to the Zattas piece by piece. Have you ever seen what those worm monsters do to living flesh, physician? They begin with the extremities, slowly working their way inward while keeping the nervous system intact for maximum sensation..."
King Cold's massive form filled the doorway, his presence commanding immediate attention. Unlike the others, he maintained perfect composure as he surveyed the scene, having heard enough while coming here.
"Enough theatrics," he declared, his deep voice cutting through the chaos. "Physician Elara, you will compose yourself and do your duty. Lord Duskborn, Empress Freeza - your emotional displays are counterproductive."
Cold's authoritative tone had an immediate effect. Elara straightened, her professional demeanor reasserting itself as she retrieved the scanner and began a proper examination.
"I require silence for accurate readings," she stated, her voice steadier now.
For several tense minutes, everyone complied. Toji stood rigidly beside the examination table, the mechanical breathing of his suit the only sound as Elara conducted her tests.
Freeza positioned herself on the opposite side, her expression cold but her eyes never leaving her son's face.
Finally, Elara activated a holographic display showing Megumi's internal systems. What it revealed caused her to step back in shock.
"This... this is impossible," she whispered.
"Explain," Cold commanded.
"His cells are breaking down at the molecular level," Elara said, pointing to the display where Megumi's cellular structure was visibly deteriorating. "It's as if something is... unmaking him from within."
"The cause?" Toji demanded, his modulated voice dangerously quiet.
Elara shook her head, genuine confusion in her expression. "Unknown. I've never seen anything like this. It resembles no disease or poison in imperial records."
"You're saying my son is dying and you don't know why?" Toji's voice dropped even lower, a sound like distant thunder.
"I... yes, Lord Duskborn. Without knowing the cause, I cannot-"
She never finished the sentence. Toji's prosthetic hand shot out, closing around her throat and lifting her from the ground. Her feet dangled as he brought her face level with his mask.
"If my son dies," he promised, his voice terrifyingly calm, "I will burn this universe to cinders as his funeral pyre. Every star, every planet, every living being - all will be consumed in my rage."
His destructive ki flared around him, black lightning crackling along his armor. The metal examination table began to corrode where he touched it, the material literally unmaking itself at a molecular level.
"Toji!" Bulma shouted, her scientific mind making connections the others missed. "Look at the scanner!"
The holographic display showed Megumi's condition rapidly deteriorating as Toji's aura intensified. The boy convulsed on the table, coughing up more blood.
King Cold's eyes widened with sudden understanding. Without warning, he stepped forward, his palm striking Toji's chest with ki-enhanced force.
The impact sent Lord Duskborn crashing through the medical wing wall, leaving a Vader-shaped hole in the reinforced material.
Cold moved with surprising speed for his size, scooping Megumi into his massive arms before Toji could recover. He cradled the boy protectively, his expression grim as he stared at his son-in-law through the shattered wall.
"Get out," Cold commanded, his voice like arctic ice. "Leave this place immediately."
Toji had already regained his footing, his stance suggesting he might attack. "What are you doing? My son-"
"IS DYING BECAUSE OF YOU!" Cold roared, his composure cracking for the first time. "Your ki is poison to him! The more agitated you become, the worse his condition grows. YOU are killing your own son with your presence!"
The words hit Toji like a physical blow. He staggered backward, the mechanical breathing faltering as the implications sank in.
"What?" he whispered, his modulated voice barely audible.
"Your destructive ki," Cold explained, his voice lowering but losing none of its intensity. "It is unmaking him at a cellular level. The longer you remain near him, the faster he deteriorates."
Toji stood frozen, his mind refusing to process what he was hearing. He looked at Megumi, cradled in Cold's arms, then at his own hands - one flesh, one metal - as if seeing them for the first time.
'I'm killing my own son?'
The thought was unbearable. Megumi coughed again, speckling Cold's imperial armor with droplets of blood.
Without another word, Toji launched himself upward. The ceiling shattered as he crashed through it, then the floor above that, and the next, and the next. He tore through the palace like a missile, leaving a tunnel of destruction in his wake until he burst into open sky.
He didn't slow down. Toji accelerated to his maximum speed, the atmosphere burning around him as he broke through into space. He needed distance - as much distance as possible between himself and his son.
The stars blurred as he flew, pushing his damaged body beyond its limits. Planets, solar systems, entire galaxies passed beneath him as he raced away from the Imperial Capital, away from Megumi.
Eventually, he spotted a barren planet in an uninhabited system. Toji plummeted toward it like a meteor, his entry into the atmosphere creating a fiery trail visible for thousands of miles.
He struck the desert surface with apocalyptic force, the impact creating a crater nearly a mile wide. The sand around him vitrified instantly, turning to glass from the heat of his landing.
In the center of this devastation, Toji slowly removed his helmet. His scarred face contorted with anguish as he tilted his head back and screamed his rage and pain to the empty sky. The sound carried no words, just primal agony that echoed across the barren landscape.
When his voice finally gave out, Toji knelt in the glass-lined crater, his breathing ragged and painful without the suit's assistance.
"King Kai," he called out, his mind reaching across dimensions. "KING KAI!"
There was a moment of silence before the response came, tentative and concerned.
"Toji? What's wrong? Your mental voice is... alarming."
"My son is dying," Toji replied, his mental voice tight with controlled panic. "My ki is killing him. Every moment I spend near him accelerates his death."
"What? How-"
"I don't have time for questions!" Toji interrupted. "I need answers. NOW. Why is this happening? How do I stop it? Can he be saved?"
King Kai's mental presence recoiled slightly at the force of Toji's demand, but quickly recovered.
"I... I can only theorize, Toji. This situation is unprecedented. A mortal with destructive ki..."
"Theorize then," Toji growled, his patience nonexistent.
"Very well. Megumi, despite his extraordinary nature, is still an infant. His ki reserves are limited, his cellular structure still developing. Adults with greater ki reserves can withstand brief exposure to your energy, but prolonged contact..."
"Are you saying I've been poisoning my son since my return from battle?" The horror in Toji's mental voice was palpable.
"Essentially, yes. Destruction energy requires sustained contact to begin its erosion of living tissue. Your constant presence as a father has allowed the destructive energy to accumulate in his system beyond what his young body can withstand."
Toji's fist struck the glass surface beneath him, shattering it into thousands of fragments. "Will distance be enough? Will he recover if I stay away?"
King Kai's hesitation was answer enough.
"The process has already begun, Toji. Once destruction energy takes hold, it continues its work unless countered."
"Then how do I counter it?" Toji demanded. "How do I save my son?"
"That's the problem. As you learned with your own injuries, conventional healing cannot repair destruction energy damage. Even Senzu beans..."
"I DON'T CARE WHAT CAN'T BE DONE!" Toji roared, his voice shaking King Kai's entire planet. "TELL ME WHAT CAN BE DONE!"
When King Kai remained silent, Toji's rage exploded across dimensions. Through sheer force of will, he reached out telekinetically, somehow bridging the gap between realms to close an invisible grip around King Kai's throat.
The Kai gasped, his physical body on his tiny planet raising, as he choked.
"How... are you... doing this?" King Kai managed to project.
"I will tear this universe apart if that's what it takes to save my son," Toji promised, his mental voice cold and certain. "Now tell me how to heal him, or I swear by God that I will find a way to make a Kai suffer."
"Grand... Kai..." King Kai choked out. "Might... know..."
Toji immediately released his telekinetic grip, allowing King Kai to breathe again. "Explain."
After several moments of recovery, King Kai continued, his mental voice shaken but clear.
"Grand Kai oversees all four directional Kais. His knowledge far exceeds mine. If anyone would know of a way to counter destruction energy in a living being, it would be him."
"Contact him," Toji commanded. "Now."
"It's not that simple, Toji. I can't just summon Grand Kai on demand. And even if I could... whatever remedy might exist would be in the afterlife, inaccessible to the living."
Toji took that in, processing what King Kai stated. After a long moment he spoke again.
"I'm sorry for attacking you, King Kai," Toji said after a moment, his voice calmer but no less intense. "But understand this: my son will not die. I will not allow it."
"I understand your pain, Toji, truly I do. But some things are beyond even your power. The barrier between the living world and the afterlife-"
"Is not as impenetrable as you think," Toji interrupted, rising to his feet.
"What do you mean?" King Kai asked, confusion evident in his mental voice.
"You said any remedy would be in the afterlife, where I have no access," Toji stated, replacing his helmet "You're wrong. I do have access."
"That's impossible. You're alive, Toji. The dead can occasionally communicate with or visit the living under special circumstances, but the living cannot enter the realm of the dead. It's a fundamental law of reality."
"Then reality will bend to my will," Toji replied with a growl.
He raised his hands before him, focusing his destructive ki in a way he had never attempted before. The black energy gathered between his palms, crackling with power that made the air itself shudder.
"Toji, what are you doing?" King Kai's mental voice was alarmed now. "Whatever you're attempting, stop! The consequences-"
"Mean nothing compared to my son's life," Toji cut him off, his concentration absolute.
Through sheer rage and determination, Toji dominating his Ki, began to pull his hands apart, as if opening an invisible door with his fingers. The space between them distorted, reality itself protesting as he forced it to yield to his will.
"This is madness!" King Kai projected, watching in horror through his telepathic connection. "You can't tear open the barrier between realms! What this will mean alone-"
"Watch me," Toji growled, pouring more power into his efforts.
The fabric of reality began to tear, a jagged crack appearing in the air before him. Through it, faint red light glowed - the first glimpse of another realm.
Toji stepped back and ignited his black lightsaber, using its edge to widen the tear. As he worked the blade along the crack, something remarkable happened - the normally pure black energy began to show hints of purple at its edges.
"Impossible," King Kai whispered in Toji's mind. "You're channeling... but that would mean..."
Toji ignored him, focused entirely on his task. The tear widened into a circular portal approximately seven feet in diameter. Beyond it stretched a landscape of crimson skies, jagged rock formations, and distant screams.
Hell.
The place with the strongest Ki signatures for him to connect to.
"Toji, stop this immediately!" King Kai pleaded. "You don't understand what you're doing! Breaking into Hell isn't just dangerous - it's cosmic sacrilege! The balance between realms-"
"Will be restored when I return," Toji replied calmly, stepping toward the portal. "With a cure for my son."
"There's no guarantee you'll find anything! And even if you do, the Ogres, the guardians, the demons, the dead -they'll all try to keep you there! You could be trapped forever!"
"Then I'll destroy them too," Toji stated with absolute certainty. "Nothing will stop me from returning to my son."
With those words, Lord Duskborn stepped through the portal into Hell, the mechanical breathing of his suit echoing across both realms as reality itself bent to a father's rage.
------------------------
(Author note: So, we going to Hell. Quite the surprise isn't it.
What? You didn't think that whole people dying, shitting themselves because of Toji's Ki was only for pure aura farming did you.
Sure- I'll admit, it was to a great extent, but it logically leads to this.
Megumi, though with a lot of potential, is still a baby, who is constantly being exposed to destructive energy. It is a testament to how strong Megumi is, that he hasn't died already.
Who do you think we'll see in Hell?
Just so you all understand why Toji is freaking out so much, if Megumi dies, the Dragon Balls can't revive him, he's a baby so he'll reincarnate, and Toji realises this.
Well, I hope to see you all next chapter,
Bye!)