Chapter 3: A Cry That Shook the Cosmos
Universe 7 – Beerus' Planet
The warm scent of exotic spices filled the air as Whis carefully plated a divine meal—golden-brown dumplings drizzled in celestial honey, alongside a shimmering bowl of cosmic rice. It was, in his opinion, a masterpiece.
But, naturally, Beerus was unimpressed.
"Whis! Is the food ready or not?!" Beerus groaned, arms crossed, tail flicking impatiently.
Whis, ever the picture of patience, smiled. "Yes, my Lord, and if you don't yell, perhaps you'll enjoy it before your nap."
Beerus rolled his eyes and reached for his meal—
And then it hit.
A wave of energy so foreign, so overwhelming, that his entire body tensed. The spoon in his hand trembled before clattering onto the table. Across the cosmos, similar reactions echoed. Gods flinched, angels froze, and something primal stirred in the deepest reaches of existence.
Even the Oracle Fish, peacefully dozing in its water bowl, jolted awake with a terrified gurgle before fainting outright.
Beerus straightened, eyes narrowing. "Whis… what was that?"
Whis, for once, looked uncertain. "That, my Lord… is not something that happens every day."
Beerus's gaze lingered in the distance. "Tch. Whatever it is, I'll deal with it when I wake up." He grabbed his bowl, stuffing his face. "Wake me if it gets really interesting."
Whis simply chuckled. "Of course, my Lord."
But deep down, even he knew—this was not the kind of thing one simply ignored.
---
Omni-King's Palace
A certain small, colorful ruler bounced excitedly toward the Grand Priest, his voice echoing through the grand chamber.
"You know, like, just now, you know? I felt a thing, you know? Like a really big thing, you know?"
The Grand Priest clasped his hands behind his back, his smile as unreadable as ever. "Yes, King Zeno, I too felt it. A disturbance unlike any before."
Zeno blinked. "What do we do?"
"For now? We wait. The cosmos has yet to reveal its full hand."
Zeno tilted his head. "Hmmm. That sounds… mysterious!"
The Grand Priest merely smiled.
---
Universe 9 – Planet Plant
Inside a high-tech Tuffle facility, nestled deep in the metallic cityscape of Planet Plant, a young girl with wild curls and bright eyes stood with arms crossed.
"Dad, are you sure this thing is safe?" Cryella asked, peering at the strange device her father, Ruffio, was assembling.
Ruffio, a gruff but brilliant scientist, wiped his brow. "Of course it's safe! It's a scouter. Just a very strong one. The standard models cap at 500,000, but I've boosted this one to read up to four million."
Cryella raised an eyebrow. "…Four million? Who even gets that strong?!"
Ruffio huffed. "Saiyans, that's who. And considering we're currently housing a baby Saiyan—" he gestured toward the peacefully sleeping infant in the incubator, "—I figured we should be prepared."
Cryella glanced at the sleeping Akuma and pouted. "He's just a baby, Dad. What's the worst he could—"
"Let's find out," Ruffio interrupted, activating the scanner.
The machine hummed, whirred, then—
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Numbers skyrocketed instantly.
400,000… 600,000… 800,000…
Then it hit 1,000,000.
Ruffio took a slow, hesitant step back. "…That's not normal."
Cryella, wide-eyed, whispered, "We don't need the upgrades, huh?"
The scouter crackled violently.
1,500,000… 2,000,000… 3,000,000…
"Okay, shutting it down!" Ruffio scrambled to switch the scanner off before—
BOOM!
The machine exploded in a flash of sparks. Smoke filled the lab as the scouter clattered to the ground, utterly fried.
A moment of stunned silence.
Cryella, coughing, fanned the smoke away. "Sooo… about that 'four million' limit."
Ruffio groaned, rubbing his temples. "We're in deep trouble."
Akuma, blissfully unaware of the chaos he'd just caused, yawned in his incubator.
And then he started crying.
---
The Decision
"Alright," Ruffio said, massaging his forehead. "We need to put him down."
Cryella's heart nearly stopped. "What?!"
"He's too dangerous. A baby this powerful? He'll wipe us all out before he's potty trained."
Cryella immediately stood in front of Akuma, arms spread wide. "No! Mom said we'd raise him no matter what!"
"Your mom doesn't know the kid could bench press a planet!" Ruffio shot back.
And then—
The door opened.
A petite woman with curly hair, glasses, and an unmistakable air of authority stepped in. Firea, Cryella's mother.
"I heard shouting. What's going on?" she asked, arms crossed.
Cryella pointed at Ruffio. "Dad wants to get rid of Akuma!"
Firea's gaze sharpened. "Excuse me?"
Ruffio swallowed. "He's—he's got a power level in the millions! He's a time bomb waiting to go off!"
Firea adjusted her glasses. "And your solution is to throw him away?"
Ruffio hesitated. "Well—"
"You will raise him," Firea said, her voice cool but firm. "And if you so much as think of harming him, I will personally make sure you regret it."
Ruffio blinked. Looked at his wife. Looked at Akuma.
Looked at his wife again.
"...Fine," he muttered. "But if this blows up in our faces, don't say I didn't warn you."
Cryella cheered. "YES! I got a little brother!" She scooped up Akuma and spun him around before kissing his forehead. "You're gonna call me Big Sis in the future, got it?"
Akuma gurgled in response.
And then his stomach growled.
Firea chuckled. "Alright, hand him over. I'll feed him—though if he's a Saiyan, he might suck me dry."
Ruffio muttered, "Oh, he definitely will."
Firea smirked. "Good thing I stocked up on baby formula."
As Akuma latched onto his bottle, finally settling down, Ruffio sighed. "Alright. Let's get some rest. Something tells me we're gonna need it."
As the family settled in for the night, none of them realized—
Across the cosmos, gods and warriors alike were already stirring.
Because that single cry—the cry of a Saiyan—had not gone unheard.
---
To Be Continued…
Find out next time on Ancient Legends!