Chapter Text
“Would you like more tea, my lord?’
“No, thank you, Miku,” Kaioshin answered his apprentice. “That will be all.”
“Yes, my lord,” replied the pink skinned female Kai with a reverent bow. She took the teacup and other dirty dishes from the small outdoor table, placed them on the rolling cart and took them inside for cleaning.
Kaioshin reclined in his chair and inhaled deeply in contentment, enjoying the sun’s warmth on his violet skin. His eyes languidly surveyed the verdant paradise that was his home.
Though he had lived here for eons, he never tired of the perfect beauty that was the world of the Kais.
“She’s a fine specimen of a woman, isn’t she?” Elder Kai commented, bringing Kaioshin out of his revery.
“Indeed,” the Supreme Kai replied. “A fine apprentice, she is. Intelligent, obedient, respectful, but also inquisitive and eager to learn,” he said as he sat more erect in his chair. “That’s what impresses me most about her.”
“I doubt that is what he meant, my lord,” Kibido, Shin’s trusted attendant, quipped, eliciting a chuckle from his master.
“You don’t say?” Shin said with a knowing grin.
“Let’s just say I found out the hard way that she can also be quite spirited when she wants to be,” Elder Kai said as he rubbed his cheek, which still stung after the slap he had received from Miku when his hand ‘accidentally’ rested on her backside.
Shin and Kibido tried to stifle their laughter, not wanting to disrespect their elder, but he joined in and laughed with them anyway. It served him right, after all, given his misconduct towards the young lady.
After a while, Miku returned to where the men were chatting, asking to speak with Shin. Kibido and Elder Kai excused themselves to take a walk together and give their master and his apprentice some one-on-one time.
“Please,” Shin gestured to the chair next to him. “Sit, child.”
“Thank you, my lord,” Miku replied as she joined him.
“So, what’s on your mind, dear?” Shin asked.
The younger Kai paused only briefly before speaking.
She took a deep breath, nervous, her heart thudding as she considered how to word her question.
“Well… my lord,” she began, rubbing her moist palms together before laying them in her lap. “I know that everything good in the universe is supposed to have a complete opposite. Life and death, pleasure and pain and the like. But, I still don’t understand why.”
Shin nodded and offered her a warm smile.
“It is the question that’s been asked since the dawn of time. Why all the death? Why all the suffering?” Shin leaned forward, folding his hands on the table. “And yes, everything good must have an opposite. But the reason is quite simple, really.” He leaned in closer, eyes intensifying as he drove his answer home.
“The truth is, life, joy and pleasure cannot exist without death, sorrow or pain.”
Shin gave Miku a moment to let that sink in before continuing. “If we are never sad, how can we know when we are happy? If we never experienced fear, how can we know peace? Or joy without sorrow?”
“Is that why we also must have a God of Destruction?” Miku asked.
“Indeed,” Shin replied. “There cannot be creation or renewal without destruction. Without a destroyer, what purpose is there for a creator?
“This is why my life is tied to that of Beerus the Destroyer. Without the one, the purpose of the other would be moot.”
It made sense, yet sounded too simple.
Or perhaps there was no other explanation.
Miku pondered her master’s words, turning them over and over again in her mind. It was the law of natural order. The means of keeping balance in the universe. A bitter pill, but the truth nonetheless.
As future Supreme Kai, Miku knew she would have to make some very hard choices, even if it meant that someone would have to suffer.
The younger Kai was pulled from her thoughts when she noticed Kaioshin’s expression change to that of distress and looked in the same direction as he.
Right in front of them was a distortion of some kind.
A portal? Vortex? A breach?
The two Kais stood, watching. Miku’s heart hammered, her breath quickening, nerves shaking. And although Kaioshin tried to keep a brave face, she saw him go pale.
“Wha… what is happening, lord?” Miku fretted, eyes fixed on the distortion.
“Try not to panic,” Shin said as calmly as he could muster. “Whatever it is, I’m sure we’ll manage. Try to stay calm so you can think clearly in case we have to fight.” But Shin was hoping it wouldn’t come to that.
Four aliens came through the portal. They were tall and gray skinned with long, pointed ears and pig snouts. One of them quickly caught and restrained Miku. She struggled in the alien’s grip, but her attempts to break free proved futile.
“What is the meaning of this?” Shin demanded.
One of the aliens stood before him. “I’m sorry,” he said before raising a weapon at Shin and firing.
o-o-o-o-o
A butterfly flitted across the pink sky as Whis stood in the lush garden of the Destroyer world preparing to devour the last dumpling he had received on his recent visit to Earth. It was Chi-Chi’s newest recipe for the delectable concoction, stuffed with a luscious pork filling to die for.
Whis had meant to save some of them for Lord Beerus, but the God of Destruction had been napping since they’d returned and, of course, he didn’t want to see such good food go to waste.
He was half way through his snack when he felt Lord Beerus’ ki approaching and quickly shoved the rest into his mouth before the destroyer god reached him.
“Ah, my lord,” Whis greeted his master. “I trust you slept well.”
“Yes, yes, Whis,” Beerus yawned. “Quite well, thank you,” he said as he stretched before placing his hands behind his back. “And I woke up dreaming about those dumplings we brought back from earth.”
“Er… uh… dumplings, my lord?” Whis asked as he felt the blood rush to his face and hoped his master didn’t notice.
“Yes, dumplings. Now get them for me at once,” Beerus ordered.
A bead of sweat trailed from Whis’s forehead and down his face. He laughed nervously as he tried to figure out how to explain himself.
Beerus’ eyes narrowed. There was only one reason his angel would be so hesitant.
“You ate all the dumplings, didn’t you?” Beerus hissed.
“Well, you see, my lord,” Whis answered as the destroyer god crossed his arms. “You slept for quite some time and I didn’t want the dumplings to spoil.”
Pathetic excuse!
“Then you should have put them in the freezer.”
“Oh, but my lord, doing so would’ve affected the quality of the food,” Whis explained.
Beerus wasn’t buying it.
“It would’ve also insured that I got my share.” Beerus snarled, livid.
“Why, Whis, why must you forever deny me the culinary delights of Earth just because I have to sleep?”
“And why couldn’t you have eaten your share before taking your nap?”
“You know I could hardly keep my eyes open by the time we got back!” Beerus exclaimed.
“And yet, after all these eons, you still expect such delicious food to be safe under my care,” Whis giggled. “Even you have to admit, that’s quite gullible of you, my lord.”
“Then, perhaps, I am also gullible enough to expect more proper respect from you,” Beerus retorted, quite insulted. “I swear, if you keep denying me the experience of delighting in such delicacies, I’ll personally...” Beerus was screaming before he could finish.
And then, he vanished.
“My lord?” Whis called out, bewildered.
He could no longer sense his master’s ki.
o-o-o-o-o
Elder Kai sensed that something was wrong and ordered Kibido to transport them both back to Kaioshin’s home. But by the time they got there it was too late.
Miku was on her knees, weeping.
“He’s gone,” she sobbed. “Oh, Kami, he’s gone!”
“What happened, my dear?” Elder Kai asked as he rushed to her side and helped her to her feet.
Miku told them about the portal, the aliens and what they had done to her and Shin.
“As apprentice, it was your duty to keep our master safe,” Kibido chastised. “You have failed him.”
“Kibido!” Elder Kai snapped. “Can’t you see the poor child is in distress?”
“No, Elder Kai. He’s right,” Miku admitted. “I have failed him.”
“From what you told us, there was nothing you could’ve done,” Elder Kai said. “You were restrained.”
“But I should have done something… I should’ve… I…” But she couldn’t continue as she choked on fresh tears.
“Pull yourself together!” Kibido ordered. “With Kaioshin gone, the universe now rests on you as Supreme Kai.”
But Miku never expected it to happen so soon. She didn’t feel ready and still blamed herself for Shin’s death. She turned to Elder Kai.
“Don’t look at me, ” he said. “The role of Supreme Kai was entrusted to you. Besides, I’m too old now.”
There was no choice in the matter. Miku had to focus and accept the fate that had befallen her.
o-o-o-o-o
The crystal ball atop Whis’ staff rang, alerting him of an incoming call. He answered to see the scarlet face of Kibido.
“Whis, I’m afraid I have troubling news,” He announced without preamble. “The Supreme Kai is dead.”
“Oh, dear,” Whis said, creasing his brow. “I was afraid that might be the case. Lord Beerus is gone as well.”
Kibido proceeded to tell him of the events that lead to Shin’s death, and Whis used his staff to see what had happened for himself.
“I recognize these aliens,” Whis said. “Lord Beerus destroyed half their planet because he wasn’t satisfied with one of their desserts.”
“Kaioshin took on an apprentice,” Kibido said. “She will be taking the master’s place.”
“Unfortunately, Lord Beerus never had an apprentice,” Whis admitted. “So, I’ll have to go to the Omni Kings and ask who they want to take his place.”
“Good luck, Whis.”
“Thank you. And my sincerest condolences.”
“As to you,” Kibido said before cutting off the transmission.
Whis sighed.
Good luck, indeed.