DB Multiverse

Part 5, Chapter 22.

Chapter 22

Translated by ZenBuu & proofread by Happi

The months went by. With each passing day, Buu learned new things and developed his abilities.

His thirty separate parts soon became fifty, then a hundred. The more numerous they became, the harder they were to control. With everything he was doing, he couldn't afford to lose his concentration.

He had encountered countless civilizations, both technologically advanced and otherwise. He had destroyed a few of them along the way, after appropriating their knowledge and cultures. But for the most part, he behaved like a peaceful explorer, a galactic tourist visiting new lands filled with strange wonders.

Buu had encountered a considerable number of magicians, many amateurs, but also some fairly powerful practitioners. Still, none of them were anything extraordinary compared to his current abilities. But when it came to magic, Buu was uncompromising. He had absorbed every single one of them, without exception. His understanding of the art of sorcery was undoubtedly among the greatest in the universe. Yet somewhere deep inside, he felt that the very essence of magic was far more magnificent and inaccessible than that. Something was eluding him, and this unknown element frightened him. If he were missing even the slightest piece of valuable knowledge, it would constitute a weakness that any mortal could exploit and turn against him.

To train his mystical arts, Buu used his own magical abilities as much as possible to fulfill the wishes he granted through his wish system. Half the time, the Dragon Balls' powers weren't even necessary, because he had mastered magic to a level rarely matched in the history of creation. What was still difficult to comprehend, even for him, was that his knowledge of it was so limited.

But Buu had time. He was finally beginning to feel confident in his vast undertaking. There was only one thing left to do: keep going relentlessly.

During the year 778.

One day among hundreds of others, a very mysterious visitor arrived on the world of wishes, now famous throughout the universe.

Small in stature, with wrinkled red skin, dressed like a vagabond and wearing a black cap, the individual appeared before the palace of the wish granting genie. He was stunned by such splendor. Few estates were so vast and magnificent.

His surprise only grew when he reached the palace entrance. The inside was far more spacious than the exterior would have suggested, as though it had been enlarged by magic.

His amazement quickly gave way to frustration. Hundreds of people were waiting ahead of him, all eager to appear before the lord of the palace. For a moment, he considered discreetly cutting in from time to time, but he quickly dismissed the thought. If nobody else was doing it, there had to be a reason. In the face of the legendary Majin Buu's omnipotence, trying anything was pointless.

Yet a loud voice behind him seemed to contradict his reasoning.

"Gorkor the Great doesn't wait in line!" shouted an imposing monster as he pushed his way through the crowd.

Just as he was about to grab the red skinned individual, who had tensed up, he was suddenly struck by a bolt of lightning from nowhere. The insolent monster's charred body collapsed before the shocked onlookers. A gentle voice echoed throughout the palace:

"Please remain in the place you have been assigned. Any attempt to cheat will be severely punished. Thank you for your understanding."

Strangely enough, the little creature decided to wait patiently.

Several hours later.

After what he considered an interminable wait, the pilgrim was delighted to hear the voice of the celestial Genie he had been so eager to meet. At last, his long journey was coming to an end. And his wish would be granted!

However, his enthusiasm quickly turned into uncertainty, then terror. The farther he progressed, the more what he heard chilled him to the bone.

"Greetings, Great Buu! Here is my wish... I want to be immortal!"

"Pfff, that makes the eight hundredth time I've heard that one. Rejected."

"Aargh!"

Next person.

"I want the power to save the people I love."

"Do you fancy yourself an altruistic hero? So cliché, especially since you're far from being an angel. Rejected."

"Aargh!"

Next person.

"I wish to have a thousand wishes!"

"What a lack of originality! Do you people really have no imagination? Out of my sight!"

"Aaaargh!!!"

The farther the line progressed, the more anxious the creature became. He remembered the sign at the entrance to the palace: "I grant your wishes or kill you." Buu wasn't joking. You had to be quite the daredevil to take your chances with him. If a wish didn't interest or amuse him at least a little, he didn't waste any time on it.

Then the next person gave him hope.

"I want to be able to see people's true hearts."

"Ah, finally, something innovative! Very well, your wish is granted."

SNAP

Shortly afterward, the man whose wish had just been granted passed by the pilgrim and those around him, walking back in the opposite direction. He was making use of his new ability.

"It's incredible, ladies and gentlemen! I can read your hearts! Like you, sir! And you! And you over there, and..."

He stopped, his joy turning to dismay.

"Oh, but actually... You're all absolute scumbags!"

Further away, the djinn could be heard chuckling. He had decided to grant this wish because of its originality, and to see how this charitable alien would react upon discovering that nine out of ten people in the waiting line had evil thoughts.

Buu restrained himself from reading people's wishes in advance. That didn't stop him from scanning the minds of anyone who might want to harm him. He had already had some unpleasant surprises in the past, so he no longer took unnecessary risks. Even though he had pieces of himself scattered throughout the nearby systems, he didn't know whether Babidi's spell, or some other possible magic, might affect all of his cells, regardless of the distance.

He continued granting, or refusing, the following wishes until he came across the person whose presence he had sensed, and who was more of an annoyance than anything else.

"Not you again, Videl?" he sighed wearily.

"Yes, me again, Buu," replied the Earthling, who had changed her appearance to that of a space adventurer. "Send me back to Earth as many times as you want, I won't give up. If you're tired of me, grant my wish and you'll be rid of me. Bring Gohan and his friends back to me!"

"You know that if I don't grant your wish, I'm supposed to kill you?" Buu replied, narrowing his eyes. "I've already made a few compromises for certain exceptions, but you're tarnishing my reputation by constantly benefiting from my mercy."

"Then either kill me or grant my wish, but make a decision, Buu! I trust you to make the right one, in the name of the friendship between you and my father, and in your great kindness that you've shown until now, I beg you, bring us..."

"I'm sending you back to Earth."

SNAP

With a snap of his fingers, Buu teleported Videl back to her home planet, leaving the next person completely dumbfounded. The djinn sighed, knowing full well that Videl wouldn't be discouraged. But he would never hurt her, and she knew it. It would come down to which of them cracked first.

The next person approached hesitantly and bowed before Buu.

"Lord Buu, I wish to know the answer to life, the universe, and everything."

"Cookies."

"Isn't it forty-two?"

"Why come to me if you're already convinced you know the answer? Even if you're wrong. Here's mine: cookies. Now disappear."

For an hour, Buu continued granting around twenty more wishes. Then the pilgrim in his vagabond attire finally approached.

"It's my turn!" he thought, suppressing his emotions of fear and joy.

"Omnipotent Buu, please, could you open this sealed music box?" he implored in a falsely pleading tone.

Buu raised an eyebrow. It was rare for someone to come to him with such a trivial request. The box this individual was showing him seemed ordinary enough. But thanks to the many magicians within him, he could detect the magical aura that kept the box firmly sealed. And this little creature, who was undoubtedly a sorcerer, was attempting to deceive him. Ordinarily, that would have infuriated him, but he appreciated the magician's skillful choice of words.

He probed the inside of the box and the sorcerer's mind. The sorcerer did not detect his psychic presence, meaning that he wasn't very powerful and posed no threat. What he intended to do didn't either. On the other hand, if Buu granted his wish, what came next promised to be amusing, judging by the delightful story that was revealing itself to him.

Everything would depend on the magician's answer to his next question.

"What's inside?" he asked the sorcerer, whose name he knew from probing his thoughts was Hoi.

"A great hero is imprisoned inside, Great Buu," Hoi replied.

"A very subtle answer," Buu said with a smile. "A clever half-truth with promising consequences. This is for you."

SNAP

The music box began playing by itself, much to Hoi's delight, as he wore a grin of anticipation. After a few moments, the box opened, and a thick cloud of smoke emerged. Buu immediately drew a connection to his own release. It reminded him of his past imprisonment. It was an unpleasant memory.

Little by little, the smoke took the shape of an individual dressed in strange, almost antiquated clothes. He was playing an ocarina and seemed completely unfazed by what had just happened. Through his powers, Buu learned that this hero's name was Tapion.

But a moment later, he opened his eyes and locked gazes with the sorcerer.

"Why did you release me?" he asked angrily.

"Heh heh..." Hoi chuckled. "Aren't you happy to be out of your prison, young man? Go on, thank this benefactor who has granted you his mercy."

Tapion turned toward Buu, who was calmly watching him.

"Don't listen to what he's saying! You shouldn't have done this. You have to put me back in the seal!"

"Why would I do that?" Buu replied with amusement. "Usually, living beings are happy to get out of prison. Why would you want to return to that nightmare?"

"You don't understand!" Tapion cried out. "You're all in danger now! You have to..."

Suddenly, the young man was seized by violent convulsions, and a powerful white aura erupted from his body. He cried out in pain as his aura merged with Hoi's behind him. The sorcerer burst into laughter, while above their heads, a gigantic monster began to materialize in the form of white smoke.

All the people waiting in line began screaming in panic. Buu, meanwhile, started applauding enthusiastically.

"Not bad at all. Now that's what I call a pleasant surprise!" he exclaimed.

Hoi remembered the Genie's presence and began to tremble. He knew of the legendary creature created by the sorcerer Bibidi, a true celebrity in the dark world of sorcerers. He had come to see Buu because he was the only being in the world capable of freeing the ancient monster of his clan. But now that it had been done, how would Buu react?

Meanwhile, the monster continued to free itself, eventually reaching its full physical form. The room could not contain its gigantic size, and the roof of the building collapsed. The people waiting in line screamed, convinced that they were about to die beneath the rubble. But the debris was stopped by a protective barrier several meters above their heads.

"Your wish has been granted, sorcerer," Buu declared. "However, everyone inside this palace is under my protection. Neither you nor your creature will be able to harm them in the slightest."

"T... Thank you, mighty Buu," Hoi replied nervously.

"Not so fast!"

Hoi turned around and saw Tapion standing there, an ocarina in his hand.

"You bastard! You killed Minosha!" shouted the former hero. "Your joy will be short lived, because I'm going to seal this entire monster inside my body!"

"No way!" the sorcerer shouted. "Hirudegarn, kill him!"

With a powerful movement, the gigantic creature slammed its foot down where Tapion stood, but the hero narrowly avoided the attack. He leaped over the ruined walls and disappeared into the surrounding forest. Hoi climbed onto Hirudegarn and ordered him to pursue his enemy. As they headed outside, Buu rose from his chair and flew into the air to keep them in sight. His voice echoed throughout the palace as he reassured those waiting in line and told them to be patient:

"The current wish has slightly longer lasting consequences than usual. We are doing our best to shorten your wait, but please note that it's important to enjoy the show. Please be patient, thank you."

Now that the amusement of the surprise had worn off, he had no qualms about reading the minds of the three fools who had just smashed up his palace. He learned the entire story: an ancient clan of evil sorcerers had infused a giant statue worshipped on their planet with the energy of evil, turning it into a massive weapon of conquest.

"Strange," Buu murmured. "Its design is almost identical to mine. A magical creature, born from corruption at the hands of a bunch of little wrinkled sorcerers, created to conquer worlds across the cosmos... If my destiny were being written by all powerful authors, I'd say they lack imagination!"

Their shared origins were no coincidence. One day, he would have to look into that matter. Perhaps this sorcerer had some answers for him. For now, though, the spectacle was well worth watching.

Perched on his servant's shoulder, Hoi relentlessly pursued Tapion through the jungle. The latter couldn't afford even a second's respite, let alone find the time to take up his sacred instrument and play.

"This can't be happening!" he grumbled, hiding behind a rock. "If I can just play the opening notes, he'll freeze in place, but I can't even catch my breath!"

"Kill that vermin, Hirudegarn!" Hoi shouted triumphantly. "Stop wasting time like an idiot and show them our power!"

Buu frowned, suddenly overcome by a surge of fury. These sorcerers really were all the same. Arrogant, intoxicated by delusions of grandeur, when they were nothing without their all-powerful servants. He wondered whether his own life might have turned out very differently if Bibidi and his son had treated him with respect, as an equal. But servitude...

Buu attuned himself to the deepest recesses of the giant creature's mind and realized that, within the abyss of the evil soul that had been forcibly instilled in it, a lament could be heard. The lament of a broken legend. An idol once worshipped, now condemned to be nothing more than the slave of a pathetic insect.

The djinn sighed and decided to put an end to this little game, which was rapidly losing its appeal.

"I'd quite like to absorb you, you know," he said compassionately. "But you don't deserve such an end. I understand your sorrow and resentment. Even though you didn't wait in line, as the law of this palace requires, I'll make an exception and grant your wish. Become the idol you once were again."

SNAP

Farther away, Hirudegarn came to a halt. Before his master's horrified eyes, the monster began to tremble, then transformed into an enormous stone statue in a matter of seconds. Just before its inner voice faded away, Buu caught an inaudible whisper filled with gratitude. It brought a genuine smile to his face.

"No!!" Hoi cried, pounding on the stone shoulder. "What happened? What did you do to him?!"

The sound of a sharpened blade made him jump. Behind him, Tapion was preparing to leap at him, his eyes filled with hatred.

"Your crimes end here!" the hero shouted.

"Don't even think about it, you runt!" Hoi exclaimed, raising his hands in front of him. "I am still a powerful sorcer..."

In a split second, his body was cleanly cut in two, bringing his sentence and his life to an abrupt end. Tapion wasn't the kind to waste time. He bore the title of hero, but he didn't feel the part. He simply accomplished his goals without wasting a moment, nothing more.

"You're avenged now, little brother," he said bitterly. "At last, this nightmare is over. I miss you so much..."

Just then, Buu appeared beside him, floating in the air and making him jump.

"That was interesting," the djinn said with a smile. "We've got something close to a happy ending. This monster will be worshipped beside my palace. I'm keeping it. An ugly sorcerer is dead, which suits me just fine. That leaves only you."

"What do you mean?" Tapion asked sadly.

Buu pointed his thumb toward his ruined palace. Before Tapion's fascinated eyes, the building began to rebuild itself.

"If you have a wish you'd like me to grant, I'll be waiting for you inside my palace. Follow the rules, and we'll see what we can do."

Giving him one last smile, Buu returned to his palace, leaving Tapion standing motionless in stunned disbelief.

A few hours later.

Tapion stood before the Genie, who was still seated on his throne. Buu wore a broad smile.

"What is your wish, young man?"

"Can you bring my brother back to life, mighty djinn?" Tapion asked. He had learned Buu's identity from the other wish-seekers.

"I've been asked to resurrect the dead before," Buu replied. "Sometimes I've agreed, and sometimes I've refused. It all depends on the story behind the wish. In your case, I have no problem granting it."

"Really? Just like that?" Tapion asked in astonishment, his voice filled with emotion.

"Just like that."

SNAP

And so ended this amusing little adventure, which had brightened Buu's otherwise monotonous existence. The hero Tapion was reunited with his resurrected brother, and the two threw their arms around each other as the satisfied Genie watched. The two heroes respectfully bid Buu farewell, then set off together to explore this new era, filled with new civilizations.

Once they were gone, Buu chuckled and resurrected Hoi with a snap of his fingers. Before the sorcerer could even realize he was alive again, Buu absorbed him and made his knowledge his own. The crooked magician's magical abilities weren't all that impressive. As for what he had been searching for, Buu sighed in disappointment. Hoi and his peers possessed barely half the talent of his magical father, Bibidi. They had used their own ritual to bring Hirudegarn into existence, but their magic was merely a close relative of the magic behind Buu's own creation. The magic that made up Buu was truly unique in the entire Universe.