Dragon Ball: Ascension

"That's right, it was me!" Karnel said with deliberate nonchalance, ignoring Thorne's rage as he pressed his foot down harder. "I killed one of your people. Now why don't you contact the strongest members of your race and bring them here?"

Karnel continued baiting the buried commander with various taunts and gestures, hoping to provoke a response that would draw out the Kaimo leadership. After all, he had no idea how vast their empire truly was. Rather than hunt them down world by world, which could take decades, it would be far more efficient to lure their strongest warriors to him.

Thorne thrashed desperately in the dirt, trying to break free and tear apart this insolent primitive who dared humiliate a Kaimo noble. Unfortunately, the power gap was so enormous that his struggles seemed almost pitiful, like an insect caught in amber.

"Having trouble there?" Karnel asked with mock concern, easing the pressure of his foot slightly. "Want to tell me what you're thinking about?"

Feeling the crushing weight lift marginally, Thorne exploded upward with all his remaining strength, launching himself into the air. His eyes burned crimson with pure hatred as he glared down at his tormentor.

"Damn you!" Thorne snarled, his face contorting with rage, veins bulging across his pale features. "I don't care about anything else right now, I just want to kill you!"

"So weak," Karnel taunted, effortlessly dodging Thorne's wild attacks. "Are you trying to swat mosquitoes? Come on, horn-head, I'm right here!"

Despite Karnel's dismissive attitude, Thorne wasn't actually as pathetic as he appeared. His power level roughly matched what Karnel's had been before his month of gravity training. As the leader of eight junior Kaimo warriors, he possessed considerable strength by galactic standards.

After being knocked down and battered repeatedly, Thorne's initial berserker fury began to fade. He pulled himself upright, breathing heavily, his body covered in fresh wounds. The shame and humiliation in his eyes had given way to cold calculation.

Thorne finally accepted the bitter truth: he was completely outclassed by this mysterious warrior.

"If only I could absorb those eight..." Thorne thought desperately, his gaze drifting toward the ongoing battle between his subordinates and the Bargonian fighters.

Karnel noticed the subtle shift in Thorne's demeanor and smiled with dark amusement. "What's this? Getting your sanity back? That's no fun at all."

"Why are you looking over there?" Karnel continued, following Thorne's line of sight. "I'm the one you're supposed to be fighting, remember?"

"Detestable... but there's no opening at all," Thorne realized with growing frustration. "The moment I make a move toward those natives, this monster will attack me without mercy."

Thorne retreated slightly, his teeth bared in a grimace that revealed purple blood. His mind raced, searching for any possible advantage.

"You're too weak," Karnel said dismissively. "In my eyes, you're no different from an ant. Contact your superiors and bring me your emperor. Defeating small fry like you gives me no satisfaction whatsoever."

"Don't get too cocky!" Thorne snapped back, his eyes suddenly blazing with religious fervor. "You may be stronger than me, but you'd never survive facing our emperor! He could crush you with a single finger!"

Karnel's expression darkened with irritation. "If that's the case, then you're useless to me."

Without warning, he launched forward and delivered a devastating combination of punches and kicks. Thorne barely managed to absorb the impacts, each blow driving him backward toward the main battlefield.

The situation there had deteriorated significantly. Despite their month of intensive training, the Bargonian warriors remained outmatched by the eight Kaimo soldiers. Only Ceror and Barok could hold their own against individual opponents, while their six comrades were being systematically overwhelmed.

All six of the struggling Bargonians had sustained injuries, constantly on the defensive with little opportunity to counterattack. It was clear they wouldn't last much longer before being picked off one by one. The eight reserve warriors watched anxiously from the sidelines, ready to intervene if any of their comrades faced mortal danger.

"Almost there... just a little closer!" Thorne gritted his teeth, enduring wave after wave of punishment as he deliberately maneuvered himself toward the embattled Bargonians.

Thorne crashed into a small crater near the main battle, his body broken and bloodied. Yet his eyes still gleamed with desperate hope.

"Success! This muscle-brained fool hasn't realized my plan. If I can just grab one of these natives and drain their life force to restore my strength, then order my eight subordinates to hold him off while I escape..."

Whoosh!

The thought had barely formed when a brilliant energy beam punched through Thorne's chest, leaving a smoking hole where his heart had been. The heat from the blast cauterized the wound instantly, preventing any blood from flowing.

Thorne stared down in disbelief at the thumb-sized opening in his torso, the edges blackened and seared. The acrid smell of burned flesh drifted through the air.

"Did you really think I wouldn't notice?" Karnel said coldly, his finger still glowing with residual energy. "Your little scheme was pathetically obvious."

Thorne's legs gave out as he collapsed, his vision already beginning to fade. With his dying breath, he managed to gasp, "Impossible... how did you..."

"Because unlike you," Karnel replied, "I don't underestimate my enemies."

(A/N: Press X to doubt)