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Chapter 2: Goshin Blasts Off!
Goshin's mouth stretched itself wide in a yawn, and he rubbed one eye sleepily. The Satan City Spaceport was easily just as busy now as it was at any other time of day- even the reasonable ones. There were all kinds of alien beings here arriving to conduct trade and departing with their newfound spoils. Goshin saw a few Namekians, a group of Imeggans, a white-hooded Arcosian or two, and even a Refrigeran, a race that, according to myth, the legendary warrior Freeza was born from.
But none of this was of any concern to Goshin. The only people that mattered here were his friends and his parents, who'd all gathered to see him and Soku off to their space flight. The only problem was Soku wasn't there yet.
Son Taicho and Son Rushan, Goshin's father and mother, were practically sobbing over him and choking the breath out of his body with their superhuman embrace. “Mom, Dad... can't... breathe...” he managed between gasps. Reluctantly, his parents released him.
Goshin collapsed to his hands and knees and gasped in sharply, filling his lungs again.
“Sorry, son, but we're just going to miss you so much!” Taicho said. He pulled Goshin back up to his feet and ruffled his hair. “You don't know how proud I am.”
“Thanks, Dad,” Goshin said.
“I love you, Goshin. Call at least once every week!” Rushan added, kneeling down and kissing her son on the cheek.
“I love you too, Mom.” Goshin winced slightly as his mother tried, once again, in vain, to flatten his bangs, which immediately burst back into their usual place.
“Hey, Goshin,” Roola said, tapping him on the shoulder.
“Yeah?” Goshin said, turning around to face his friends.
Keshi held out a small charm, a medallion with a carving of a cat on the front. “We got you this. For luck,” she said.
“It was her idea. We all put in a little money for it,” Roola said. “We got Soku one, too.”
“Wow, thanks!” Goshin said, taking the tiny cat charm. “It looks familiar.”
Taicho and Rushan looked knowingly at each other. “That's because this cat is a martial arts master in legend,” Taicho explained.
“Oh. I like it,” Goshin said, smiling.
“Goshin! We're here!” someone called.
Everyone looked toward the source of the voice to find Soku and his two parents hurrying toward them.
“Hey!” Goshin shouted, waving happily with his free hand.
“Soku!” Taicho said.
“Sorry,” Soku's father said. “We were running a little slow this morning.”
“Goshin, are you ready!?” Soku cried, balling his fists excitedly.
“Ready as I'll ever be,” Goshin replied, less than enthusiastically.
“Soku, we got you and Goshin both a good luck charm,” Roola said, producing a second charm. This medallion possessed a carving of what resembled a big-lipped genie.
“Cool! Thanks!” Soku said, dropping his bags and taking the charm.
“Heheh, mine's got a cat on it!” Goshin said, grinning goofily.
“The way I see it, you two are gonna be protecting the planet, or something, right? So you deserve something as thanks,” Roola said.
“Yeah!” Bun and Doki said together, nodding.
“And the next time the two of ya come back to town, ya gotta show us a few moves, okay?” Roola said.
Goshin nodded. “Okay.”
“You bet,” Soku added.
“Flight 256 to Planet Sandala now boarding,” a woman announced over the spaceport PA system.
“Oh! Goshin, that's your flight! You two'd better get going!” Rushan said.
“Okay. Bye everyone,” Goshin said, grabbing two of his suitcases and hefting them up above his head. Taicho grabbed the third and placed it on top of the other two.
“Good luck, son,” he said.
Goshin felt himself surrounded by something and realized it was Keshi when he noticed her violet hair. “Bye, Goshin,” she said, releasing him.
Roola nodded. “Be seein' ya.”
“Bye everyone,” Goshin said, blinking away a few tears. He felt a lump in his throat beginning to build. “I'll miss you.”
“We'll all miss you, too,” Keshi said.
“But don't forget I'll be there!” Soku said, patting Goshin on the back and grabbing his bags. “Okay, let's go. Bye, everyone!”
And with that, Goshin and Soku turned and started toward their gate, and their new lives.
The ship resembled a massive pelican's bill, though the exterior was mostly white heat-shielded panels, with some red, yellow, and black markings representing the spaceline company's logo, a highly-stylized yellow “W” zooming amongst the stars against the black background of space.
The inside, however, felt almost like a womb. It was warm and comfortable, with soft, plush seats arranged in several neat rows along the length of the different cabins inside it.
“Attention passengers: this is your pilot speaking. We will be taking flight shortly, so please, buckle your seat belts. The weather on Planet Sandala is currently sunny and a pleasant eighty-six degrees, Farenheight, with light winds blowing in from the sea. Projected flight time is forty-six hours, with no stopover,” came a calm, slightly bored voice over the intercom.
“Forty-six hours!?” Goshin groaned, slapping the restraint together.
“Hey, it won't be so bad,” Soku said. “Once we've exited the atmosphere, we can walk around.”
“But what are we gonna do then? We can't just walk around for two whole days.”
Soku shrugged. “I dunno, but my dad told me there's adventure around every corner.”
Soku looked like he was about to add something, but the ship began to vibrate, almost as if it were a massive living being, as the engines warmed up and began to fire. A low roar, reduced from its true ferocity by the nearly-soundproof superstructure, could be heard coming from the rear. And, finally, the ship began to move, slowly at first, but accelerating quickly as it climbed in an upward spiral toward the black sky. And then the vibrations stopped, and passengers began to unbuckle their restraints, stretching out for the long voyage to come.
“I'm hungry!” Goshin said, rubbing his stomach hungrily.
“Then let's go find the cafeteria,” Soku said. “My legs need some stretching anyways.”
Soku rose from the brown-upholstered chair, stretching his arms above his head, followed quickly by Goshin. The two walked between the rows of seats toward the back of the cabin, into a slightly-darkened corridor.
A man dressed in a black aviator's jacket and brown cargo pants tipped his hat. “Top o' the mornin' to ya.”
“Good morning, sir,” Goshin and Soku replied.
Soku spotted a map labeled “YOU ARE HERE” with a red dot representing their current location, and darted toward it.
“Okay,” he mumbled, “it looks like the best route is...”
“Okay, Goshin, I got it!” Soku said, turning around and grinning widely. “Just follow me!”
Goshin gulped.
“Soku, do you really know where we're going? There've gotta be at least two cafeterias on this big ship, and I think we'd've found one by now,” Goshin said. His stomach growled audibly.
“No, no, I know where we're going,” Soku said. “Like I said, adventure around every corner!”
“I'd rather eat first...” Goshin muttered.
“Oh, come on, what's the fun in that? Our lives're gonna be filled with adventure from now on anyway!” Soku said cheerily.
Goshin sighed. His stomach growled again.
Finally, Soku pushed through a door at the end of what seemed like the millionth corridor they'd passed through since they'd left their seats, and, lo and behold, a large room filled with round tables with shiny faux-wood tops and surrounded by plastic chairs waited through it.
“Oh, finally!” Goshin exclaimed, his hunger seemingly forgotten. He rushed to the nearest counter, deftly leaping over and dodging around chairs and tables in his way, and began to give the man behind it his order.
“... and a little of this, and a little of that... Oh, and some of this, yeah, no, more, yeah, that's good,” he said, pointing out an assortment of food, drool practically dripping from his jaws.
The waiter struggled to push Goshin's tray to the edge of the counter once it had been filled. Goshin handed a few bills to the man, picked up his tray, and sat down at a table nearby.
In less than five minutes, Goshin had consumed everything. All his rice, noodles, soup, meat, fruits, and vegetables had been chewed up and swallowed. He burped, covered his mouth, said, “Excuse me,” and blushed slightly before Soku made it over to the table with his tray.
By that time, several others had filed into the cafeteria, and most were staring at the boy who'd just inhaled enough food for ten men.
“Whaddaya think they're lookin' at, Soku?” Goshin asked.
“Well, you did just eat a week's worth of food,” Soku said, before spooning some noodles into his mouth.
“Nah, you just don't eat much,” Goshin said. “It seems like you only ever drink water.” He pointed to a rather large glass of ice water on Soku's tray for emphasis.
“Hey, you drink a lot of water, too!” Soku said.
“Yeah, but I eat a lot, too.”
“Whatever,” Soku said, shoveling another bite of noodles into his mouth with his spoon.
Goshin snored lightly, his head tilted back in the chair. His hands were folded contently over his slightly-expanded stomach.
“Hey, Goshin! Wake up!”
Goshin grumbled, his hand lifting unconsciously to rub his eye. “Wha?”
“C'mon, let's go,” Soku was saying, lightly shaking Goshin's shoulder.
“Huh?”
“You were asleep for, like, an hour,” Soku said. “Let's go explore a little bit.”
“Oh, okay,” Goshin said, standing up and stretching. “That was a good little nap.”
The two laughed for a moment, and then Soku led Goshin to the door they'd entered through earlier.
“C'mon, Soku, lemme see!” Goshin whined, straining to see the tiny hologram projected from a small red machine in Soku's hands.
“No, Goshin, it makes me nervous when people watch me play!” Soku said, twisting around to block the game from Goshin's vision.
“Oh, whatever, just give me a peak,” Goshin said, craning around Soku's side to look at the tiny character jumping over obstacles and on top of enemies. The character promptly ran straight into a mushroom-shaped enemy and flopped up into the air, and then below the display, as the game played a short tune.
“Aw, dang it. See, Goshin? I told you,” Soku said, turning the game off and stuffing it into his carry-on bag.
The scraping of forks and spoons against ceramic plates, as well as idle chatter, filled the air of the cafeteria. According to the ship's digital readouts, it was 6:17 PM on the second day of the journey.
“Y'know, Goshin, it's really not all that bad,” Soku said, tipping the remnants of a bowl of soup into his mouth and slurping them up.
“Yeah,” Goshin sighed, resting his chin in the palm of his hand. Before him lay a practical circus of empty plates, bowls, and cup, along with utensils licked clean.
“Hey, Goshin, look,” Soku said, gesturing with a fork.
“At what?” Goshin said, glancing in the direction Soku was pointing in.
“That family sitting at that table. They look like they're all dressed in rags,” Soku said.
Goshin spotted them. They were all dressed in ragged brown cloaks and had brown, fibrous skin and no noses. “Oh, I see 'em,” he said. “They sure are dressed funny.”
“They're Flourans. You remember what happened to Planet Flour, right?” Soku asked.
“No,” Goshin said, frowning and looking down at the floor. “I don't remember.”
“Well, maybe you should go talk to them. I think it might help you and them out a little,” Soku suggested.
Goshin stood tentatively, and, after a moment of mental debate, stepped over to the table.
“Can I sit here for a few minutes?” he asked.
“Why, of course, son,” said the tallest of the group, evidently the patriarch. He had a hood that concealed most of his white hair and beard.
“Thank you,” Goshin said, bowing politely before pulling out a vacant seat and sitting in it.
“What's your name, son?” the patriarch asked.
“I'm Son Goshin,” Goshin answered.
“That's a nice name, son. We're the Cerals. I'm Barley,” he said, introducing himself. He gestured to a vaguely feminine-looking alien. “This is my wife, Ota.” He pointed to a third individual, who was smaller than the previous two. “My son, Rye.” And, finally, he gestured to the smallest of the group. “My daughter, Mae.”
“It's nice to meet you all,” Goshin said politely.
Ota, Rye, and Mae all greeted Goshin warmly.
“Tell me, son, what takes you to Planet Sandala?” Barley asked.
“I'm going to go work for my uncle,” Goshin answered.
“Ah, but surely the Planet Earth isn't in such a bad state that someone as young as yourself truly needs to work?” Barley said, looking almost curiously at Goshin.
Goshin looked down at the table, unable to meet the old man's eyes. “Well, my uncle's also going to train me in martial arts.”
“Ah, I see. I wish Planet Flour had warriors like you,” Barley said, with an almost melancholic undertone.
“Why? What happened?” Goshin asked.
Ota put her arms around her two children, whose gazes were averted toward the floor.
“My dear boy, Planet Flour was once a peaceful agricultural planet. We exported much of the galaxy's grains, until one day when a group of space thugs came in and took over the planet. Of course, they were met with much resistance, but, being such a peaceful place, we were not prepared for war,” Barley said, his voice grave and face lined with the passage of years.
“It was not long before the old governments were crushed, and the unified resistance became pockets of resistance, and those pockets were slowly destroyed, one by one. These gangsters destroyed much of my world's farmland, and began to use it to grow flowers outlawed by the interstellar trade treaties.” Barley shook his head solemnly.
“Why didn't anyone try to talk them out of it? I don't understand, didn't they realize they were hurting innocent people?” Goshin said.
“We did try, son. But they were never willing to listen, and the barrels of their weapons were eager to speak. Some even tried to assassinate their leader, who had become the planet's new lord. But the lord was a being so powerful that he simply obliterated anyone who stepped forth to kill him.”
Ota pulled her children in closer.
“Then a stranger came to the planet, supposedly to conduct business with the lord. This man killed the lord, and we hailed him as a hero, but he left as soon as he'd arrived. We thought things would get better, that the whole lot of them would fall apart without their leader, and we were only half-right. The organization did fall apart, but the higher-ranking members became warlords and began to fight over control of the planet, turning it once again into a battlefield, and so it remains today,” Barley finished.
“So how did you get away?” Goshin asked.
“We saved up enough money to pay the smugglers to get us away from the planet. We came to Planet Purin, where my family and I found work for a short while. We saved just enough to move on when the jobs ran out, and repeated the cycle on the next planet, and the planet after that, saving a little more each time. One day, we hope to have enough to send someone powerful to restore balance on our planet. That is the dream that keeps me going every day, that one day, my children will be able to go home. That is the dream for which I, my wife, and even they toil for, day by day. This is the first restful day we've had in a long time,” Barley said.
“Oh, wow,” Goshin said, looking down again.
Then, suddenly, his head jerked up and he looked the old man right in his green, age-worn eyes. “Keep your money. One day, I'm going to be charged with protecting my planet, but when I'm strong, I promise I'll come to your planet and stop the warlords,” he said, clenching his fist, his eyes sharp with determination.
“Son, you're only a human. These monsters are far above the realm of normal humans,” Barley said, frowning in concern. “I can't bear to have any more needless deaths on my conscience.”
Goshin simply smiled. “Then I'll be more than human.”
Goshin smiled and waved good-bye to the Cerals, who reciprocated happily, before disappearing amongst the crowds disembarking from the ship. Planet Sandala's air was humid and carried slight wisps of salt, and a light, balmy breeze ruffled Goshin's hair as he and Soku walked slowly through the gates into the spaceport.
Above the crowds of people, Goshin and Soku could see several signs. It took them to find the one they were looking for, which read, “GOSHIN AND SOKU”.
They hurried to the old man holding up the sign, and bowed to him. “Well, boys, it's nice to meet you both. I'm the Muten-Dashi, but I'm sure you already know that. Now, hurry along, I have to meet my great nephew,” he said.
“But, sir, I am your nephew,” Goshin protested.
“My what?” the old man replied, his eyes blinking inquisitively, magnified several times by his thick glasses.
The small green craft alighted gently on the rocky surface of Planet Dashi. Inside the spacious cockpit, the Turtle Hermit himself unstrapped himself from his harness and stretched his arms up into the air, yawning and turning around.
“All right, boys, let's get going!” he said.
He led Goshin and Soku, who rose from their seats at the crew's stations, down a short corridor and to a hatch. He quickly tapped a code into the unlocking mechanism that opened the hatch and extended the boarding ramp, and the door retreated upward and the Muten-Dashi strode down the dark matte gray ramp.
Waiting for them at the bottom were two of the master's other disciples. One was a tall, well-built young man with a bald head, wearing a casual blue gi with the character Kame displayed on the back, and a red sash tying it around his waist. The other was a serious-faced young woman with short-cropped raven-black hair, wearing a violet gi similar in style to her counterpart's.
“Welcome home, master,” the two said in unison, bowing low.
“Banbo, Ramis!” Dashi said, addressing the two, “these are your new comrades, Goshin and Soku.”
“Welcome,” Banbo, the young man, said, bowing to the both of them.
“Uh, hi,” Goshin said, attempting to imitate Banbo's greeting.
“Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pick up my great nephew from the spaceport now,” Dashi said.
Goshin, Soku, Banbo, and Ramis sighed.
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Chapter 2: Goshin Blasts Off!
Goshin's mouth stretched itself wide in a yawn, and he rubbed one eye sleepily. The Satan City Spaceport was easily just as busy now as it was at any other time of day- even the reasonable ones. There were all kinds of alien beings here arriving to conduct trade and departing with their newfound spoils. Goshin saw a few Namekians, a group of Imeggans, a white-hooded Arcosian or two, and even a Refrigeran, a race that, according to myth, the legendary warrior Freeza was born from.
But none of this was of any concern to Goshin. The only people that mattered here were his friends and his parents, who'd all gathered to see him and Soku off to their space flight. The only problem was Soku wasn't there yet.
Son Taicho and Son Rushan, Goshin's father and mother, were practically sobbing over him and choking the breath out of his body with their superhuman embrace. “Mom, Dad... can't... breathe...” he managed between gasps. Reluctantly, his parents released him.
Goshin collapsed to his hands and knees and gasped in sharply, filling his lungs again.
“Sorry, son, but we're just going to miss you so much!” Taicho said. He pulled Goshin back up to his feet and ruffled his hair. “You don't know how proud I am.”
“Thanks, Dad,” Goshin said.
“I love you, Goshin. Call at least once every week!” Rushan added, kneeling down and kissing her son on the cheek.
“I love you too, Mom.” Goshin winced slightly as his mother tried, once again, in vain, to flatten his bangs, which immediately burst back into their usual place.
“Hey, Goshin,” Roola said, tapping him on the shoulder.
“Yeah?” Goshin said, turning around to face his friends.
Keshi held out a small charm, a medallion with a carving of a cat on the front. “We got you this. For luck,” she said.
“It was her idea. We all put in a little money for it,” Roola said. “We got Soku one, too.”
“Wow, thanks!” Goshin said, taking the tiny cat charm. “It looks familiar.”
Taicho and Rushan looked knowingly at each other. “That's because this cat is a martial arts master in legend,” Taicho explained.
“Oh. I like it,” Goshin said, smiling.
“Goshin! We're here!” someone called.
Everyone looked toward the source of the voice to find Soku and his two parents hurrying toward them.
“Hey!” Goshin shouted, waving happily with his free hand.
“Soku!” Taicho said.
“Sorry,” Soku's father said. “We were running a little slow this morning.”
“Goshin, are you ready!?” Soku cried, balling his fists excitedly.
“Ready as I'll ever be,” Goshin replied, less than enthusiastically.
“Soku, we got you and Goshin both a good luck charm,” Roola said, producing a second charm. This medallion possessed a carving of what resembled a big-lipped genie.
“Cool! Thanks!” Soku said, dropping his bags and taking the charm.
“Heheh, mine's got a cat on it!” Goshin said, grinning goofily.
“The way I see it, you two are gonna be protecting the planet, or something, right? So you deserve something as thanks,” Roola said.
“Yeah!” Bun and Doki said together, nodding.
“And the next time the two of ya come back to town, ya gotta show us a few moves, okay?” Roola said.
Goshin nodded. “Okay.”
“You bet,” Soku added.
“Flight 256 to Planet Sandala now boarding,” a woman announced over the spaceport PA system.
“Oh! Goshin, that's your flight! You two'd better get going!” Rushan said.
“Okay. Bye everyone,” Goshin said, grabbing two of his suitcases and hefting them up above his head. Taicho grabbed the third and placed it on top of the other two.
“Good luck, son,” he said.
Goshin felt himself surrounded by something and realized it was Keshi when he noticed her violet hair. “Bye, Goshin,” she said, releasing him.
Roola nodded. “Be seein' ya.”
“Bye everyone,” Goshin said, blinking away a few tears. He felt a lump in his throat beginning to build. “I'll miss you.”
“We'll all miss you, too,” Keshi said.
“But don't forget I'll be there!” Soku said, patting Goshin on the back and grabbing his bags. “Okay, let's go. Bye, everyone!”
And with that, Goshin and Soku turned and started toward their gate, and their new lives.
The ship resembled a massive pelican's bill, though the exterior was mostly white heat-shielded panels, with some red, yellow, and black markings representing the spaceline company's logo, a highly-stylized yellow “W” zooming amongst the stars against the black background of space.
The inside, however, felt almost like a womb. It was warm and comfortable, with soft, plush seats arranged in several neat rows along the length of the different cabins inside it.
“Attention passengers: this is your pilot speaking. We will be taking flight shortly, so please, buckle your seat belts. The weather on Planet Sandala is currently sunny and a pleasant eighty-six degrees, Farenheight, with light winds blowing in from the sea. Projected flight time is forty-six hours, with no stopover,” came a calm, slightly bored voice over the intercom.
“Forty-six hours!?” Goshin groaned, slapping the restraint together.
“Hey, it won't be so bad,” Soku said. “Once we've exited the atmosphere, we can walk around.”
“But what are we gonna do then? We can't just walk around for two whole days.”
Soku shrugged. “I dunno, but my dad told me there's adventure around every corner.”
Soku looked like he was about to add something, but the ship began to vibrate, almost as if it were a massive living being, as the engines warmed up and began to fire. A low roar, reduced from its true ferocity by the nearly-soundproof superstructure, could be heard coming from the rear. And, finally, the ship began to move, slowly at first, but accelerating quickly as it climbed in an upward spiral toward the black sky. And then the vibrations stopped, and passengers began to unbuckle their restraints, stretching out for the long voyage to come.
“I'm hungry!” Goshin said, rubbing his stomach hungrily.
“Then let's go find the cafeteria,” Soku said. “My legs need some stretching anyways.”
Soku rose from the brown-upholstered chair, stretching his arms above his head, followed quickly by Goshin. The two walked between the rows of seats toward the back of the cabin, into a slightly-darkened corridor.
A man dressed in a black aviator's jacket and brown cargo pants tipped his hat. “Top o' the mornin' to ya.”
“Good morning, sir,” Goshin and Soku replied.
Soku spotted a map labeled “YOU ARE HERE” with a red dot representing their current location, and darted toward it.
“Okay,” he mumbled, “it looks like the best route is...”
“Okay, Goshin, I got it!” Soku said, turning around and grinning widely. “Just follow me!”
Goshin gulped.
“Soku, do you really know where we're going? There've gotta be at least two cafeterias on this big ship, and I think we'd've found one by now,” Goshin said. His stomach growled audibly.
“No, no, I know where we're going,” Soku said. “Like I said, adventure around every corner!”
“I'd rather eat first...” Goshin muttered.
“Oh, come on, what's the fun in that? Our lives're gonna be filled with adventure from now on anyway!” Soku said cheerily.
Goshin sighed. His stomach growled again.
Finally, Soku pushed through a door at the end of what seemed like the millionth corridor they'd passed through since they'd left their seats, and, lo and behold, a large room filled with round tables with shiny faux-wood tops and surrounded by plastic chairs waited through it.
“Oh, finally!” Goshin exclaimed, his hunger seemingly forgotten. He rushed to the nearest counter, deftly leaping over and dodging around chairs and tables in his way, and began to give the man behind it his order.
“... and a little of this, and a little of that... Oh, and some of this, yeah, no, more, yeah, that's good,” he said, pointing out an assortment of food, drool practically dripping from his jaws.
The waiter struggled to push Goshin's tray to the edge of the counter once it had been filled. Goshin handed a few bills to the man, picked up his tray, and sat down at a table nearby.
In less than five minutes, Goshin had consumed everything. All his rice, noodles, soup, meat, fruits, and vegetables had been chewed up and swallowed. He burped, covered his mouth, said, “Excuse me,” and blushed slightly before Soku made it over to the table with his tray.
By that time, several others had filed into the cafeteria, and most were staring at the boy who'd just inhaled enough food for ten men.
“Whaddaya think they're lookin' at, Soku?” Goshin asked.
“Well, you did just eat a week's worth of food,” Soku said, before spooning some noodles into his mouth.
“Nah, you just don't eat much,” Goshin said. “It seems like you only ever drink water.” He pointed to a rather large glass of ice water on Soku's tray for emphasis.
“Hey, you drink a lot of water, too!” Soku said.
“Yeah, but I eat a lot, too.”
“Whatever,” Soku said, shoveling another bite of noodles into his mouth with his spoon.
Goshin snored lightly, his head tilted back in the chair. His hands were folded contently over his slightly-expanded stomach.
“Hey, Goshin! Wake up!”
Goshin grumbled, his hand lifting unconsciously to rub his eye. “Wha?”
“C'mon, let's go,” Soku was saying, lightly shaking Goshin's shoulder.
“Huh?”
“You were asleep for, like, an hour,” Soku said. “Let's go explore a little bit.”
“Oh, okay,” Goshin said, standing up and stretching. “That was a good little nap.”
The two laughed for a moment, and then Soku led Goshin to the door they'd entered through earlier.
“C'mon, Soku, lemme see!” Goshin whined, straining to see the tiny hologram projected from a small red machine in Soku's hands.
“No, Goshin, it makes me nervous when people watch me play!” Soku said, twisting around to block the game from Goshin's vision.
“Oh, whatever, just give me a peak,” Goshin said, craning around Soku's side to look at the tiny character jumping over obstacles and on top of enemies. The character promptly ran straight into a mushroom-shaped enemy and flopped up into the air, and then below the display, as the game played a short tune.
“Aw, dang it. See, Goshin? I told you,” Soku said, turning the game off and stuffing it into his carry-on bag.
The scraping of forks and spoons against ceramic plates, as well as idle chatter, filled the air of the cafeteria. According to the ship's digital readouts, it was 6:17 PM on the second day of the journey.
“Y'know, Goshin, it's really not all that bad,” Soku said, tipping the remnants of a bowl of soup into his mouth and slurping them up.
“Yeah,” Goshin sighed, resting his chin in the palm of his hand. Before him lay a practical circus of empty plates, bowls, and cup, along with utensils licked clean.
“Hey, Goshin, look,” Soku said, gesturing with a fork.
“At what?” Goshin said, glancing in the direction Soku was pointing in.
“That family sitting at that table. They look like they're all dressed in rags,” Soku said.
Goshin spotted them. They were all dressed in ragged brown cloaks and had brown, fibrous skin and no noses. “Oh, I see 'em,” he said. “They sure are dressed funny.”
“They're Flourans. You remember what happened to Planet Flour, right?” Soku asked.
“No,” Goshin said, frowning and looking down at the floor. “I don't remember.”
“Well, maybe you should go talk to them. I think it might help you and them out a little,” Soku suggested.
Goshin stood tentatively, and, after a moment of mental debate, stepped over to the table.
“Can I sit here for a few minutes?” he asked.
“Why, of course, son,” said the tallest of the group, evidently the patriarch. He had a hood that concealed most of his white hair and beard.
“Thank you,” Goshin said, bowing politely before pulling out a vacant seat and sitting in it.
“What's your name, son?” the patriarch asked.
“I'm Son Goshin,” Goshin answered.
“That's a nice name, son. We're the Cerals. I'm Barley,” he said, introducing himself. He gestured to a vaguely feminine-looking alien. “This is my wife, Ota.” He pointed to a third individual, who was smaller than the previous two. “My son, Rye.” And, finally, he gestured to the smallest of the group. “My daughter, Mae.”
“It's nice to meet you all,” Goshin said politely.
Ota, Rye, and Mae all greeted Goshin warmly.
“Tell me, son, what takes you to Planet Sandala?” Barley asked.
“I'm going to go work for my uncle,” Goshin answered.
“Ah, but surely the Planet Earth isn't in such a bad state that someone as young as yourself truly needs to work?” Barley said, looking almost curiously at Goshin.
Goshin looked down at the table, unable to meet the old man's eyes. “Well, my uncle's also going to train me in martial arts.”
“Ah, I see. I wish Planet Flour had warriors like you,” Barley said, with an almost melancholic undertone.
“Why? What happened?” Goshin asked.
Ota put her arms around her two children, whose gazes were averted toward the floor.
“My dear boy, Planet Flour was once a peaceful agricultural planet. We exported much of the galaxy's grains, until one day when a group of space thugs came in and took over the planet. Of course, they were met with much resistance, but, being such a peaceful place, we were not prepared for war,” Barley said, his voice grave and face lined with the passage of years.
“It was not long before the old governments were crushed, and the unified resistance became pockets of resistance, and those pockets were slowly destroyed, one by one. These gangsters destroyed much of my world's farmland, and began to use it to grow flowers outlawed by the interstellar trade treaties.” Barley shook his head solemnly.
“Why didn't anyone try to talk them out of it? I don't understand, didn't they realize they were hurting innocent people?” Goshin said.
“We did try, son. But they were never willing to listen, and the barrels of their weapons were eager to speak. Some even tried to assassinate their leader, who had become the planet's new lord. But the lord was a being so powerful that he simply obliterated anyone who stepped forth to kill him.”
Ota pulled her children in closer.
“Then a stranger came to the planet, supposedly to conduct business with the lord. This man killed the lord, and we hailed him as a hero, but he left as soon as he'd arrived. We thought things would get better, that the whole lot of them would fall apart without their leader, and we were only half-right. The organization did fall apart, but the higher-ranking members became warlords and began to fight over control of the planet, turning it once again into a battlefield, and so it remains today,” Barley finished.
“So how did you get away?” Goshin asked.
“We saved up enough money to pay the smugglers to get us away from the planet. We came to Planet Purin, where my family and I found work for a short while. We saved just enough to move on when the jobs ran out, and repeated the cycle on the next planet, and the planet after that, saving a little more each time. One day, we hope to have enough to send someone powerful to restore balance on our planet. That is the dream that keeps me going every day, that one day, my children will be able to go home. That is the dream for which I, my wife, and even they toil for, day by day. This is the first restful day we've had in a long time,” Barley said.
“Oh, wow,” Goshin said, looking down again.
Then, suddenly, his head jerked up and he looked the old man right in his green, age-worn eyes. “Keep your money. One day, I'm going to be charged with protecting my planet, but when I'm strong, I promise I'll come to your planet and stop the warlords,” he said, clenching his fist, his eyes sharp with determination.
“Son, you're only a human. These monsters are far above the realm of normal humans,” Barley said, frowning in concern. “I can't bear to have any more needless deaths on my conscience.”
Goshin simply smiled. “Then I'll be more than human.”
Goshin smiled and waved good-bye to the Cerals, who reciprocated happily, before disappearing amongst the crowds disembarking from the ship. Planet Sandala's air was humid and carried slight wisps of salt, and a light, balmy breeze ruffled Goshin's hair as he and Soku walked slowly through the gates into the spaceport.
Above the crowds of people, Goshin and Soku could see several signs. It took them to find the one they were looking for, which read, “GOSHIN AND SOKU”.
They hurried to the old man holding up the sign, and bowed to him. “Well, boys, it's nice to meet you both. I'm the Muten-Dashi, but I'm sure you already know that. Now, hurry along, I have to meet my great nephew,” he said.
“But, sir, I am your nephew,” Goshin protested.
“My what?” the old man replied, his eyes blinking inquisitively, magnified several times by his thick glasses.
The small green craft alighted gently on the rocky surface of Planet Dashi. Inside the spacious cockpit, the Turtle Hermit himself unstrapped himself from his harness and stretched his arms up into the air, yawning and turning around.
“All right, boys, let's get going!” he said.
He led Goshin and Soku, who rose from their seats at the crew's stations, down a short corridor and to a hatch. He quickly tapped a code into the unlocking mechanism that opened the hatch and extended the boarding ramp, and the door retreated upward and the Muten-Dashi strode down the dark matte gray ramp.
Waiting for them at the bottom were two of the master's other disciples. One was a tall, well-built young man with a bald head, wearing a casual blue gi with the character Kame displayed on the back, and a red sash tying it around his waist. The other was a serious-faced young woman with short-cropped raven-black hair, wearing a violet gi similar in style to her counterpart's.
“Welcome home, master,” the two said in unison, bowing low.
“Banbo, Ramis!” Dashi said, addressing the two, “these are your new comrades, Goshin and Soku.”
“Welcome,” Banbo, the young man, said, bowing to the both of them.
“Uh, hi,” Goshin said, attempting to imitate Banbo's greeting.
“Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pick up my great nephew from the spaceport now,” Dashi said.
Goshin, Soku, Banbo, and Ramis sighed.