Idea for a SM/DBZ Crossover

[Comartemis]

12,000 years ago the Saiyan race rampaged across the universe, cleansing planets of their native races and selling them to the highest bidder. They were the most reviled and feared warriors in the galaxy until they made the mistake of attacking a planet called Magrathea, a part of the fledgling Silver Kingdom. A lone girl escaped the slaughter and delivered news of the massacre to Castle Charon, where it was relayed to the Lunar Palace. In retaliation for this unprovoked act of genocide, Queen Serenity the Third declared all-out war on the Saiyan Empire, dispatching the Sailor Senshi to annihilate the warrior race, while the messenger was adopted into the Royal House of Jupiter. Though the Saiyans fought ferociously, they were no match for an elite Infinite-form Senshi at the height of her power. The Empire was crushed, planet Vegeta was obliterated by Sailor Saturn, and the survivors were exiled to barren worlds at the edge of the galaxy.

***

Four years have passed since the fall of Chaos and the cleansing of the Galaxy Cauldron. The Senshi continue to face the occasional stray demon, but for the most part their lives have been peaceful since Usagi and Mamoru's wedding. Except for one.

Kino Makoto is haunted by dreams of the Silver Millenium. Dreams of a shattered world and an army of super-powered aliens. Driven by these dreams and an oppressive sense of impending doom, Makoto trains relentlessly, honing her martial arts to a razor-sharp edge; in Senshi form, she is more than a match for post-Saffron Ranma, even without her arsenal of magic attacks, which has expanded severalfold through her training.

That training is about to be put to the ultimate test.

In the absence of the Silver Kingdom, the Saiyans have had the chance to regain their former glory. Now, 2000 years after the fall of the Silver Millennium, the Saiyan Empire has completely recovered, the various colonies rallying together under the banner of Prince Vegeta. Once again, the galaxy lives in fear of the marauding aliens.

A space capsule lands in the middle of Tokyo one afternoon. The Senshi investigate, and are the only part of the crowd that is not surprised when a man steps out of the capsule.

Raditz has come to Earth; and this time, there is no Goku to save the day.

In the ensuing battle, the Senshi are utterly trounced; their magical arsenals are largely useless in melee combat, and Raditz is smart enough to stay in melee with at least one Senshi at all times, preventing the others from firing on him. After a ferocious battle ranging across the skies of downtown Tokyo, the Senshi lay defeated, save for Jupiter, whose training is just enough to keep Raditz from utterly destroying her. Still, she is no match for the Saiyan, and takes a vicious blow across the back of the head, knocking her out cold.

Raditz gloats over his victory over so many opponents at the same time, and prepares to finish the group off, until he catches sight of the Silver Crystal in Moon's brooch. Thinking it would make a nice trophy, he attempts to pry it out of the brooch, providing Jupiter with enough time to recover from her battle.

Raditz's attack, however, has jarred Makoto's memories of the Silver Millennium. She remembers her flight from Magrathea, she remembers seeing her parents killed right in front of her, and most importantly, she remembers the vow she swore; even if it took her a thousand lifetimes, she would kill every last Saiyan in the universe.

Fueled by her rage, her sorrow, and her burning hatred, Jupiter ascends to Infinite Sailor Jupiter, the Senshi equivilant of a Super Saiyan. The ensuing battle is pathetically lopsided, but Raditz recognizes the Infinite Senshi from old holograms of their ancient enemies. Before Jupiter can finish him off, Raditz alerts the Saiyan fleet that their old enemies still live.

Now Jupiter has just under a year to bring the Senshi up to her level, for the entire Saiyan armada, with Prince Vegeta at its' helm, is set to descend on Earth for the biggest battle the galaxy has ever seen.

Well, how does it sound?

I may or may not follow up on this idea. If someone else wants to use it, go right ahead, as long as you give me some credit for the idea.

[Seraphim]

A great idea!

Just two quibbles, why didn't Makoto tell the rest of the Senshi about her dreams and have them join in her training? Also, by Stars Usagi keeps the Silver Moon Crystal inside her body, and tranforms using the Rainbow Moon Chalice.


How are you going handle the difference in power between Moon/Saturn and Raditz?

[Tovath]

maybe I'm just a crazy Ranma fan, but I immediately started to think of ways that Ranma 1/2 could be worked into this story. Makoto could become a student at the Tendo Dojo, Cologne or Happosai could decide to look into this hot new martial artist in Juban, just think of the possibilities.

[Comartemis]

Just two quibbles, why didn't Makoto tell the rest of the Senshi about her dreams and have them join in her training? Also, by Stars Usagi keeps the Silver Moon Crystal inside her body, and tranforms using the Rainbow Moon Chalice.

Makoto doesn't really know what to make of her dreams because they're so different from images typically associated with the Silver Millennium; peace, prosperity, etc. She thinks they're just wierd nightmares, not memories.

As to the crystal, I'm sorta using a fusion of the manga and anime continuities; if I like it, I use it. If I don't, then I chuck it.

maybe I'm just a crazy Ranma fan, but I immediately started to think of ways that Ranma 1/2 could be worked into this story. Makoto could become a student at the Tendo Dojo, Cologne or Happosai could decide to look into this hot new martial artist in Juban, just think of the possibilities.

I thought of that too, but if (and that's a big if) I get around to writing this, I'll need to do some heavy-duty Ranma research; I'm mostly familiar with fanon.

[claymade]

Hum... Considering what we were just discussing on the Fic likes/dislikes thread, and the position you took on Good/Evil fics, I'm a bit surprised to see an idea that seems to come down to a contest of which side can out-genocide the other...

Seems a solid enough core for a fanfic. It's basically your standard "initial battle points to the necessity of a training sequence before the oncomming final battle" martial arts plot, with the SM and DBZ characters falling into the various roles. Certainly a worthy enough classic.

The fic will stand or fall on the quality of character interactions and plot points that you can pack into that framework. This is where I see the biggest hurdle for the fic. I don't see any obvious "handles" to hang either one or the other on--and you'd need them to make the fic truly interesting.

Take the original source for this plot as an example. Canon DBZ's Raditz/training/Vegeta arc worked so well not because of any of the main elements per se, but because of the dynamics and discoveries that they generated. Piccolo and Goku grudgingly working together, Piccolo killing Goku (but not in the way that he wanted to), the Z team's courage in fighting a hopelessly overmatched stalling action, and--arguably the core of the whole thing--the character growth dynamic that emerges between Gohan and Piccolo, changing them both dramatically through their experiences with each other.

This idea would need to have things like that to work. It can't be enough that the Senshi just find ways to get more powerful--they need compelling and interwoven points of character tension and growth of some kind that span and support the basic plot. Similarly, I think it would also benefit very much from two or three subplots going on, to put some meat on its bones.

What if it weren't Raditz? What if it was a young, un-head-conked Goku on his first mission, showing up on Earth for the first time? And what if Jupiter doesn't manage to actually kill him, giving the Senshi a Saiyan prisoner? That could work two ways--the Senshi can take the place of Grandpa Gohan, teaching Goku the ways of love and justice, while his redemption also puts tension and doubt on Jupiter's goal of wiping out the Saiyans as a species. Could have a nice little dynamic there...

How are you going handle the difference in power between Moon/Saturn and Raditz?

Not hard. Use anime canon and have Raditz utterly out-react them. Before Z even started they were already fighting at the "eyesight itself is basically useless" level of speed, which is something the Sol Senshi never demonstrably reach in the anime.

[Tovath]

I thought of that too, but if (and that's a big if) I get around to writing this, I'll need to do some heavy-duty Ranma research; I'm mostly familiar with fanon.

Go to http://ranmahentai.ranma.ws/RanmaManga/index.html
to read the whole Ranma manga.

[Seraphim]

Makoto doesn't really know what to make of her dreams because they're so different from images typically associated with the Silver Millennium; peace, prosperity, etc. She thinks they're just wierd nightmares, not memories.

As to the crystal, I'm sorta using a fusion of the manga and anime continuities; if I like it, I use it. If I don't, then I chuck it.

Aa. OK then.

[Comartemis]

Hum... Considering what we were just discussing on the Fic likes/dislikes thread, and the position you took on Good/Evil fics, I'm a bit surprised to see an idea that seems to come down to a contest of which side can out-genocide the other...

Not really sure how that applies here; the Senshi are obviously the protagonists and the Saiyans are obviously the antagonists. My problem on the Good/Evil thread was fics where "good" and "evil" are not clearly spelled out. Besides, Moon and the rest just want to keep the Earth from being destroyed, Makoto's the only one who wants to see them all dead. Her drive to defeat the Saiyans and protect the Earth turns into an obsession with wiping out the entire race, and that obsession drives her to her limits, creating tension between Jupiter and the rest in regards to the upcoming battle.

The fic will stand or fall on the quality of character interactions and plot points that you can pack into that framework. This is where I see the biggest hurdle for the fic. I don't see any obvious "handles" to hang either one or the other on--and you'd need them to make the fic truly interesting.

That is the biggest problem, isn't it. When I first envisioned this fic, it was just a one-shot with a single scene around which the whole thing revolved; Jupiter, with her memories freshly restored, rocketing from street level to engage a flying Raditz, screaming at the top of her lungs, "DIE, SAIYAN FILTH!" but then I started thinking that that sounded too much like something Frieza might say.

What if it weren't Raditz? What if it was a young, un-head-conked Goku on his first mission, showing up on Earth for the first time? And what if Jupiter doesn't manage to actually kill him, giving the Senshi a Saiyan prisoner? That could work two ways--the Senshi can take the place of Grandpa Gohan, teaching Goku the ways of love and justice, while his redemption also puts tension and doubt on Jupiter's goal of wiping out the Saiyans as a species. Could have a nice little dynamic there...

Now there's an idea! Maybe have Goku be about 14 or so, not fully indoctrinated in Saiyan ideals and more susceptible to Senshi philosophy if it's argued reasonably, making him doubt everything he's been taught.

Anyone know how old Goku was in Dragonball, just for reference purposes?

[Seraphim]

Don't know how old he was at the beginning of DB, but at the end he was 18.

EDIT: Nyaha! Found it! He was 12! *triumphant*

[Metroidvania]

He grows up throughout the series, what point in time would you like?

He's approximately 10-12 throughout the Dragonball arc, I can't remember a specific age....

After Karin's tower, old piccolo, and the egg forming, he goes through a growth spurt, which could mean puberty, in time to fight young piccolo, I would say about 15-18....

But those are just guesstimates.

Also remember, Saiyans aren't humans, and may thus have different "ages", or times when they grow into their "adult" forms.

[Heaven's Deamon]

Another thing to consider is "how could other DB/Z characters play roles?"

Bulma as a young genius and child of a scientist, no capsules, but she could be working on making them......(think Gina Diggers really)

Yamcha did plenty of odd jobs to be seen doing such things and not be a fighter.

Krillin as a monk being sent to study under Rei's grandfather......

Piccolo being a survivor of the Saiyan assault on Namek and out for revenge......

Basicly, if you just use the Saiyans you limit your options a bit, but if you bring in the other characters, they can still add to the fic even if they are not Super Powered Martial Artist this time through.

[Comartemis]

I was just thinking a little more about using Goku as the initial threat and I realized something; when Goku eventually turns to the Senshi's way of thinking, he's going to be wracked with guilt over the lives he took before the girls stopped him, giving him a burden that keeps him from becoming a Paladin character like he does in the anime.

That clinches it, Goku replaces Raditz as the initial threat; Raditz can come later to check on Goku when he doesn't report back to the fleet.

Basicly, if you just use the Saiyans you limit your options a bit, but if you bring in the other characters, they can still add to the fic even if they are not Super Powered Martial Artist this time through.

Oooh! Idea!

Happosai and Roshi are old sparring partners!

It fits perfectly; they're both perverts, so they'd get along great, from what I've seen they're at similar skill levels, and they've both been around since dinosaurs walked the Earth. I can have Happosai take an interest in Makoto as a means of assisting her pre-Saiyan training, and when Happi learns of this new threat, he can instruct Makoto and the rest to seek out Roshi for ki training.

*EDIT*
And Bulma can be introduced through correspondance with Professor Tomoe! The ideas just keep coming!

[Heaven's Deamon]

Not to mention Bulma and Ami teaming up to invent new things, or Re-invent Silver Millenium tech......

[Comartemis]

One of the biggest problems I had with DBZ was how the individual fighters had no distinctive fighting styles or advantages over the others; sure, some could regenerate, some could drain ki, but for the most part all the characters in DBZ fought exactly alike; there was nothing like Ryoga (built like a tank and moves just as fast) or Ranma (becomes smaller and faster when hit with cold water) or Sailor Moon (pathetic in melee, lethal at a distance). I'm going to remedy this by implementing Seraphim's suggestion of having Makoto mention her dreams to the other girls. Makoto's bad feeling is largely dismissed by the others, but Usagi shows more of her budding maturity by saying 'we should be prepared in case another enemy shows up', and follows up on Makoto's suggestion by requesting that the girls take up the martial arts to eliminate their weakness in CQC.

The results of this are that each of the girls picks a distinct style of martial arts and takes it all the way to black belt/10th dan/whatever the highest rank is.

The main reason I'm doing this is because if I don't, Makoto is going to be training rank amateurs; not even the Hyperbolic Time Chamber (or the Time Gate in this case) would be enough to help the girls then. There's just one problem. I need some martial arts that match the girls' personalities or characteristics to a certain point.

I'm planning on having Makoto utilizing a combination of Musubetsu Kakuto and Mu Tai kickboxing (people tell me it's a savage style) with elements of other styles mixed in. Usagi is mastering Aikido (redirecting an opponent's attacks suits her preference for nonviolence perfectly), and Hotaru is taking lessons in naginata-jutsu for obvious reasons. Beyond that, I don't know what to have the other girls practice, though I think Ami would take a shine to an "intelligent" art like jujitsu (with wrist turns and elbow locks and such as opposed to something bone-crushing like Mu Tai).

Any suggestions?

[claymade]

I was just thinking a little more about using Goku as the initial threat and I realized something; when Goku eventually turns to the Senshi's way of thinking, he's going to be wracked with guilt over the lives he took before the girls stopped him, giving him a burden that keeps him from becoming a Paladin character like he does in the anime.

Ironically enough, the character I consider one of the all-time most agonizingly grating examples of the paladin-type in manga came out of just such a backstory. I'd personally take a Goku over a Kenshin any day of the week--and twice on Sundays.

(Not that I'm saying your Goku'd turn into a Kenshin, of course--just remarking that said plot element isn't a sure-fire deflection of said malady.)

Anyway, it could be an interesting thing to add to his character, although I wouldn't myself suggest letting him get too angsty about it. (Angst makes gag in large quantities.)

Happosai and Roshi are old sparring partners!

I'd... suggest caution. Adding another universe to a crossover is a "heavy" thing plot-wise, with a lot of baggage. Not something to be done lightly. The simplicity of "Moon Kingdom vs. Saiyan Empire" is not something you want to loose unless you really have a compelling reason why the Ranmaverse characters are needed. If they're not going to be integral to the main plot, I'd suggest not taking on that thematic baggage.

Another thing to consider is "how could other DB/Z characters play roles?"

Not to mention that you want to be stocking up on your "named" antagonists for the final battle. Indeed, one of the advantages of having the initial assailant be Goku is that it frees up Raditz to be a part of the final showdown. (IMHO, he'd make an awesome endboss for a reformed Goku, who this time still has his memory of Raditz as his brother, introducing a dynamic that was absent from their canonical fight. Brother vs. brother duels are, to my way of thinking, too awesome to be put into words.)

In this time period, you'd also have Vegeta, Nappa, and Vegeta's father, IIRC. Vegeta'd be a natural endboss for Jupiter, while King Vegeta and the Moon Princess seem symmetrical enough. I wouldn't recommend throwing Friezza & co. into this myself, as it would dillute the Moon Kingdom vs. Saiyans aspect to the story.