Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Unholy Crusade: Act 1 ❯ The Great Gospel, Part 3 ( Chapter 12 )

Unholy Crusade

Act 1: Reign of Fear

Chapter 12: The Great Gospel, Part 2

Last chapter…

Her eyes rested on the temple of the Great Gospel as she walked past it.

The one reason I came here was for the Gospel, not just protection from Cell.

I don't care what Preacher says, we need it desperately.

It's the only way to kill Cell once and for all…

She narrowed her eyes at her determination.

I'm going to get my hands on it sooner or later…

…and no one is going to stop me from using it!

*****

Cell watched her from the cliffs above the city.

He noticed her looking at the temple in the center of town, and he looked at it too.

So, if that is the center of the field…

He brainstormed a few ideas for destroying the temple, but later rejected all of them.

No good. I must discover what God this temple is dedicated to before I destroy it.

He chuckled to himself.

I don't want to enrage a fellow God…

^

Selena reached the eatery, and walked up to the booth.

"Good morning, ladies!" Selena greeted cheerfully, leaning on the counter of the booth. One of the female creatures that worked there smiled instantly on seeing the guardian.

"Selena-san!" she cried cheerfully. "Good morning! A pleasure to finally see you back in the Sacred City!"

"It's good to be back." Selena admitted, tilting her head cutely with a smile.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" the worker asked.

"Yes, there is." Selena nodded. "My two friends and I would like a breakfast of scrambled eggs and sausage links please. And I'll have a short stack of hot cakes also, please."

"Certainly!" the worker chirped. "Always happy to help you, Selena-san!" Selena smiled in charm, and took a seat on a nearby stool. The front of the eatery looked like a drive-up diner, the kind she saw in the American province. The people would just park their cars outside the building and sit at the food bar right in front of the building, watching the cooks work in the nearby kitchen. It just fascinated Selena when she first saw one. The diners usually served 1960 style hamburgers and hotdogs, but the similar eatery in the Sacred City served just about everything.

As she waited, she turned around and watched the people walk through the streets, minding their own daily business. The Sacred City thrived mostly on the teamwork of the people that lived her. All the jobs were based on helping the community rather than money. It was like working for a volunteer job no matter what you did. Selena took a job as a tailor for a nearby clothing shop for a while before she was appointed with keeping watch on the Sacred Spring. She liked working in the shop, making and mending the clothes the civilians wore and making sure they were clean and stylish. She didn't have a lot of passion for the job as time went on, and soon lost interest in it. She was grateful for watching the Spring instead. However, it was always a pleasure to do what was best for the public and help out to make everyone's life a little more peaceful.

That was what being a guardian was all about.

Selena spent most of her waiting time people watching, and it seemed like an instant when the food was presented to her.

"Here it is!" the female worker announced, grinning. "A breakfast fit for a guardian!"

"Oh, it smells delicious." Selena smiled, taking the plates herself. "Thanks, I'll take them down."

"Are you sure you don't need help with that?" the worker wondered. Selena's hands and arms were carefully shelving the plates. She smiled nervously.

"No problem. I got it. Thanks again!"

She shuffled down the street, being careful to not drop the plates on the ground and ruin breakfast. Fortunately, the crowd wasn't too thick and she didn't have any problems. She was just in the area of the hut Krillin and Sakura were in when…

"Here, let me take some of these…"

Someone lifted the plates off her arms, leaving only two plates in her hand. Selena looked over at her unwanted help to see that it was…

She frowned.

"Preacher…"

"You looked like you were going to drop these." The guardian explained. "I thought that you would need a hand or two. Besides, I didn't get to meet your new friends yet. Krillin and Sakura?"

Selena narrowed her eyes at him.

"Shouldn't you be guarding a temple like a good ward?" she snarled, heading into the hut.

"I don't have to stay up there all day…" Preacher huffed. "Besides, standing next to that bubbling fountain for hours…with the nearest bathroom half a mile away…you don't expect me to stay up there, do you?"

Selena had to laugh as she walked into the hut.

"I've always wanted to ask you about that…Krillin! Sakura! Breakfast!"

"Yay!" Sakura cheered, running to greet Sakura. Krillin was right behind her.

"Alright, chow time!"

"Who's that?" Sakura asked, pointing to Preacher. Preacher smiled at her, and bowed politely.

"Konnichuwa." He greeted.

"This is Preacher." Selena introduced dryly. "He's the oldest of the four guardians."

"And you don't like him very much…" Krillin observed. Selena shrugged.

"He can be a pain in the ass at times." She admitted. "Here, Sakura, eat up. Hey, don't give me that face!"

"No bad words, Selena-san!" Sakura scolded, snatching her plate out of Selena's hand. Krillin laughed as he graciously accepted his plate. Selena turned to Preacher after clearing her throat.

"You have my hotcake plate." She pointed out to him.

"You really should watch your language around small children…" Preacher advised, offering Selena her plate.

"Shut the hell up!" she snapped at him, snatching her plate from his hand. "I'll say whatever I want!"

"Selena-san!" Sakura shouted at Selena.

" 'Hell' is not a bad word…" Selena stated flatly.

"Mind if I join you for breakfast?" Preacher jumped into a different subject. "So, Shikimi-kun, how have your travels been? The last the boys and I heard from you, you were in New Zealand."

Selena sighed, and sat on one of the beds to eat her breakfast. The warm smell of hot cakes in maple syrup was seducing her nose.

So, she started talking about her travels since that time and stopped around the time she arrived in Sansho City and met Cell. Preacher, Sakura, and Krillin were hanging to her every word.

Wow… Krillin thought to himself, she's been practically halfway around the world…

What a gal…

I really like her…

Good thing I don't have to worry about her anymore…

Cell can't get in and can't try to kill her anymore…

I bet I have a really good chance with Selena now…

Vow or no vow, it's just you and me, baby!

"Krillin, are you okay?"

Selena's voice broke into Krillin's thoughts and he blinked.

"Huh?"

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Why are you staring at my boobs?"

Krillin freaked, and instantly backed to the other side of the room in fear.

"I WASN'T! I SWEAR I WASN'T! DON'T KILL ME, PLEASE! I'M TOO YOUNG TO DIE!"

Selena couldn't help but laugh.

"Forgiven. You gonna finish your breakfast?"

"Yeah." Krillin chuckled nervously, still believing his life was in danger.

Man, I gotta watch where I stare off into space…

^

The day went on without incident. Selena took Krillin and Sakura on a tour of the entire city. She also explained that the creatures inhabiting the city were a race of full- blooded guardians and they were the guardians of Earth before humans took the throne, and way before Nameks were even heard of. Also, the structures of the buildings did come from all over the world and from many time periods, since the creatures were artistic by nature, and were the world's greatest architects.

There were a lot of temples in the city, most of them paying tribute to guardians of the past. A temple for Kami was being built, since Mimic was informed that Kami was now gone. Seeing the construction site of the new temple made Selena sigh sadly.

Kami…

Krillin raised an eyebrow at her as she paused by the construction site each time they passed it.

"Alright, I've had enough guessing for myself." He decided.

"Huh?" Selena blinked at him.

"I wanna know what exactly happened between you and Kami. I know you were a student of his, so was I. What made him so special to you?"

Selena smiled simply.

"That's all we were. Teacher and student."

"C'mon, quit hiding it. You were more than that."

"Example…" Selena prompted.

Krillin sighed.

There's only one way I know of to get info out of Selena, and it'll possibly be the death of me…but here it goes…

"He was your boyfriend, wasn't he?"

Selena gasped in horror before latching her hands around Krillin's neck and shaking him violently.

"HE WAS NOT, YOU SICKO! HE WAS A SECOND FATHER TO ME!"

"Aaak…" Krillin gagged. "Sorry…forgive me…I just wanted to know…" Selena let him go, and Krillin caught his breath. "Second father, eh? How was he like that?"

"…" Selena stared at the ground sadly, hesitating.

"Did your real father die?"

"Yeah, he did. When I was six…yeah, he died."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Krillin moaned. He was tempted to ask how her father died, but he knew better. "My dad's dead too. But you still had your mother, right?"

"…" Selena shook her head sadly. "She died when I was very young. I barely knew her.

"Oh…" Krillin sighed sadly. "Yeah, I know how that goes. My mom's gone too."

Selena turned a suspicious eye to him.

"Okay, now you're just sucking up to me so that I don't strangle you again…"

"No, no, for real. My mom died when I was nine." Krillin admitted. "My dad left the family before I was even born, but I know he's dead now."

"…" Selena stared at him suspiciously. There was pretty much no reason why he would talk about his dead parents like that suddenly…unless he was trying to weasel his way out of another strangle hold…

Selena kept walking down the street back to the hut.

"Well, that's pretty much the whole town…let's head back."

"What happened to your daddy, Selena-san?" Sakura wondered innocently. Selena shook her head, holding the little girl's hand.

"You don't ask questions like that, little one."

"Well, my mommy and daddy are dead too…"

"I know how they died…" Selena sighed, thinking back to Cell. "I don't need to ask."

"C'mon!" Sakura whined, tugging hard on Selena's hand. "How did your mommy and daddy die?!"

Selena suddenly tore her hand out of Sakura's grip and raised it as though she was going to slap her. Sakura gasped and shielded herself.

"Hmph." Selena snorted, lowering her hand back to her side. "Well, if it'll make you happy… Mama died of a sickness after giving birth to me. She's buried in her hometown in Nagasaki. Papa died when our house burned down."

"Really?" Sakura blinked.

"Yes." Selena nodded, crossing her arms and walked a little faster. Sakura's eyes started to water, so Krillin held the little girl's hand.

"She's right." He agreed. "You shouldn't ask questions like that. It's rude, Sakura."

"…" Sakura just nodded as she and Krillin walked behind Selena back to the hut.

^

Cell's super sensitive hearing picked up Selena's conversation from below, and he nodded in satisfaction of what he learned so far.

The pieces of the puzzle are slowly coming together…

I'm sure I can find out more later…

Now then…

He looked down at the city below him…

Looks like I have to enter the old fashioned way…

^

The sun had set rather quickly, and night was covering the land silently. The people of the city were retreating to their homes as quickly as possible. This night was the third night of their summer Matsuri. Krillin, Sakura, and Mimic were inside the hut while Selena was once again changing her clothes in the bathroom.

"Summer Matsuri?" Krillin blinked at Mimic made them some tea on the small stove. "Shouldn't everyone be outside, yelling, screaming, and celebrating like on a regular Matsuri?"

"This is different." Mimic shook her head as she put the pot on to boil. "We all stay indoors and quietly pray for the summer spirit of this home to rise and give us good fortune for the year. 'Yelling, screaming, and celebrating' makes the spirits bitter and will bring bad luck."

"But…that's how Japan does it…"

"Let them do what they wish. We at the Sacred City practice the old ways before Shintoism."

"Oh, ok."

"Selena-san!" Sakura called to the bathroom door. "Tea's almost ready!"

"I'm doing my hair! I'll be right out!" Selena called back.

"What the heck is she putting on?" Krillin wondered.

"Her yukata, most likely." Mimic nodded.

" 'Yukata?' " Krillin blinked. "I haven't seen her in one of those before…"

"That's because it's ceremonial. Kami gave it to her just before she finished her training under him."

Krillin raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, Miss Mimic, how much do you know about Selena?"

Mimic smiled.

"I'm practically her mother."

"Well, what's the deal with her and Kami. She called him a second father."

"Well, they were very close… Kami missed her a lot. He said the Tenkai felt empty without her there."

"He told you that?!" Krillin blinked.

Mimic sat down at the tea table, and leaned on it with one elbow.

"I was a student of his too, long ago…when he was taking pupils…"

"Wow." Krillin marveled, sitting across from her. "So, how much do you know about Selena? What can you tell me?"

Mimic smiled slyly.

"Are you interested in her?"

Krillin blushed, not so sure what she meant by that.

"I'm interested in knowing who she is." He decided to put it. Mimic smiled.

"She was born and raised her in Ireland, in a small town called Rosewater. Her father was native Irish, and her mother was Japanese. Her name back then was Shikimi Lawless, a Japanese first name and an Irish last name. Shikimi's mother died when the child was a year old, and she lived with her father since."

"She said her father died when her house burned down."

"Not just her house burned down…her whole town was burned to the ground."

"Huh?!"

"No one knows how or why, but the entire town of Rosewater was destroyed in a blazing fire. Shikimi was the only survivor. She was only six years old, and all she could do was collapse on the ash-covered ground and cry. From the Tenkai, Kami noticed that she was the only survivor, and quickly descended to Earth to save her. He took her to the Tenkai, and raised her there. She spent two years under Kami's watchful eye, and she enrolled herself as a pupil of his and took his training course."

"Only two years? She left the Tenkai when she was eight?"

"Not exactly. Two years after he brought her to the Tenkai, Kami discovered Shikimi had living relatives: grandparents on her mother's side. He decided it was best to take her to them so that she could live with family. I was told that Shikimi put up a lot of resistance, but she reluctantly left the Tenkai for her grandparent's estate in Hiroshima. I don't know exactly what happened there…but when she was twelve, Shikimi ran away and ended up here after her travels."

"Wow. From Japan to Ireland at twelve?"

"After taking Kami's training, she learned how to protect and take care of herself. But it is still an impressive distance."

"Yeah. So then what happened?"

"I took her in, and trained her with my three other students. The four of them became very good friends, and they did train very hard to be 'down-to-earth guardians' together. However, Selena soon lost interest in her training here, and wanted to see the world. She was hoping to train abroad. So, at only fifteen, she left the Sacred City. The last we heard of her before now was two months ago, when she was in Italy. But I guess in the recent days, she was out chasing the monster of Nikki Town."

"Yeah, she was. I can vouch for that."

"That's all I know."

"So, how did she change her name to Selena?"

"I'm not sure, but I can guess. Have you noticed her love for music? I'm rather sure she has appreciation for the singer Selena. I remember her favorite artist to be CLEO, however…"

"TEA'S READY!" Sakura suddenly shouted, noticing the kettle steaming and whistling. Mimic chuckled and got up.

"Selena-chan!" Mimic called to the bathroom door. "Come get your tea!"

"I'm still doing my hair!" she called back. "I'll be right out!"

"You said that five minutes ago!" Krillin called to the door.

"You wanna get strangled again, Krillin?!" Selena shouted.

"YEEEK!" Krillin panicked, quickly ducking under the tea table. Sakura laughed.

"You're funny, Krillin!" she giggled.

^

"My hair is way too thick for this…" Selena grumbled, twisting her hair into a bun on her head. She was sliding a wooden hairpin through the bun to keep it in place, but it kept falling apart. The hair instantly came undone, and the pin clanked onto the floor. Selena growled, then bent to pick it up.

However, when she did that, something in the folds of the yukata poked sharply at her hip.

"Ow!" she yelped, straightening back up. She dug through the robes furiously. "What the hell was that? A safety pin come undone?"

She pulled out a small tin flute, and her anger quickly melted away.

"Oh… Papa's flute… I forgot I put it here."

She held it in her hands delicately, all of her fingers over the small holes except for her pinkies. Then, she put it to her lips and quickly piped a quick scale. The flute tweeted happily each note, like a happy bird in the early morning.

"She still plays like a dream…"

A small memory flooded back into her head…

…Papa and me on the porch…

…It's a hot summer day, and I'm wearing my favorite dress…

…I'm sitting on the stair, and papa on the porch swing…

…Papa's playing a quick reel on the tin flute…

…It's my favorite tune…

…I laugh and stand up, then I dance…

…My feet step with the melody…

…I sing in "la"s happily, with no care in the world…

…I was happy…

Selena lowered her head sadly.

"I…was happy…" she moaned. "Papa…"

She quickly gathered herself together.

He's dead and gone, and there's nothing you can do about it…

…so stop bitching!

Think of the here and now! That's the only thing you can do!

And coming back to the here and now, she frowned in the mirror at her messy hair.

"I give up…" she moaned, then she turned to the door. "Mimic-san! Can you please help me with my hair?!"

^

The night slipped the streets of the city into complete darkness. Hardly anyone was out. There were only those who patrolled the streets, keeping an eye out for the monster named Cell. The patrolmen moved silently over the cobblestone streets, looking around for anything suspicious. There were others standing watch by the front gate, looking out at the desolate flatlands before them. So far, they had nothing to report. They didn't see him sulking around the cliffs either, so it was a reason for them to be cautious.

One of the guards by the gate clutched his spear in nervous tension. He had no idea what to expect from this night. With summer spirits being awakened in the homes and buildings of the city, he wasn't sure what would happen. There was always a case where a spirit awoke unwillingly and wrecked havoc on unsuspecting civilians. This particular guard had a fear of raging spirits, having being attacked by one on this very night long ago. His partner put a comforting hand on his shoulder, and gave him a look to not be nervous and to look out for that creature. The guard nodded, and straightened his back. He felt ready for anything.

Then…he saw it.

"Look there!" he shouted to his partner, pointing out into the flatlands. His partner saw it too. It was the creature, just as Selena had described it. The monster was calmly walking towards the city gates, in no particular hurry. The guard was about to panic, never having seen anything so horrible. The partner looked at the guard sternly.

"This is not a spirit. We can kill it. Prepare yourself, now."

The guard drew in a brave breath, and nodded. He held his spear to the monster as it walked closer. Its pace didn't slow or quicken. It wasn't affected. The partner held out his spear too. The monster still kept walking towards them. Its stomping steps were soon echoing off the city walls.

…kt-ch…kt-ch…kt-CH…KT-CH…

It stepped by the entrance…

…and stopped just before the gateway.

Then, it just stood there, looking past the guards and down the street. It seemed to be looking for something.

The guard's partner spoke.

"Go back, now. You cannot enter this place, demon. It will mean your demise!"

The monster looked at the partner simply, and the partner flinched.

"A demon, am I?" the creature challenged. Then, it looked back out at the street. "That is incorrect. A demon only stands for mischief and chaos. I…"

Then, its aura flared around its body, releasing a strong and horrible power. The guard and his partner stepped back, intimidated.

"I stand for death and destruction. I am more than a demon…"

Cell smirked, then took one step inside the city.

"I am a god!"

Both guards watched in horror as Cell slowly took steps inside the city, keeping his aura flaring at full power. He looked at the both of them as he walked by.

"Just stay out of my way, and I promise not to hurt you. I have more important matters to deal with here."

He continued down the street, very slowly. He was moving much slower than he was walking towards the city. The guards moved around so that they were well behind him and out of the range of his tail. They were terrified.

"He's…walking on the holocram! How is this possible?!" the guard stammered. "This monster is pure evil. It should be dying!"

"Sound the alarm." His partner ordered. "Get the Four Guardians and Mimic-san out here now!"

**End of Episode Bonus!**

Original Character Profiles!

Selena

Real Name: Shikimi Lawless

Age: 19

Sex: Female

Height: 5'7

Hair Color: Brown

Eye Color: Blue

Occupation: guardian

Education: High school dropout, some medical school

Affiliate: member of the Four Guardians

Weapon of Choice: Ki staff

Vehicle of Choice: TCD 2121 Dream Weaver (swoop)

Personality: Very intimidating and rather aggressive. She is a very nice person at heart until you press the wrong button. She angers rather easily, especially when she hears perverted comments or references to boyfriends. She could easily be mistaken for a man hater (she isn't). She is a skilled fighter, and she never runs from a fight. She's more than likely to be the one to start the fight. She likes to act and dress sexy, although she would clobber anyone who suggests sex to her. Likes to have things her way, and can't seem to settle in one place for long.

Background: She was born in Rosewater, Ireland to a loving mother and father. Her mother died when she was young, so she lived with her father in the small and happy town. When she was six, Rosewater was burned to the ground and she was the only survivor. Kami rescued her, and took her the Tenkai where she could be raised and trained as a fighter. She remained on the Tenkai for two happy years until Kami discovered she had grandparents living on the surface. She was taken to live with them. The time between the ages 8-15 remain unknown, however she ran away from her grandparents when she was twelve and arrived in the Sacred City when she was thirteen. She trained under Mimic until she was fifteen, and then she left the Sacred City to see the world. Along the way, she had her name changed to Selena, and saw very many fascinating places and met wonderful people. She was 19 when she and Cell first met, and the biggest adventure of her life began.

Other Appearances: Selena also appeared in my first DBZ fic: The Deadly Sin Chronicles (on Fanfiction.net, go read if you wish, it's not all that good but I'm keeping it there anyway). She along with the other Four Guardians and Mimic teamed up with the Z fighters to fight evildoers from another dimension. However, Selena was slightly different from her UC version. Although she did wear the black and white training gi and did equip herself with a ki staff, she was much younger, had blond hair, lived in London, and could also fly. Unrevealed in the story, Preacher was her older brother, and she was half-human, half-unknown alien specie (which explained her strength). Either than those subtle changes, she and the other Four Guardians and Mimic were the same as they are in UC.

To be continued in next chapter!