Keep it Brief 001

AN: To preface, the MC doesn't have an obsession with Dragon Balls or becoming a Saiyan. 

This story does not include DBZ Super content, but does include non-canon stuff from the games & movies. 

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Ty Briefs stood within a dimly lit laboratory surrounded by softly glowing monitors showing streams of data, thrumming generators, and a large data center. 

The sharp hiss of a welder cut through the white noise, casting a bright white light over his visor. Taking a break to wipe some sweat from his forehead, Ty revealed a head full of light-blue hair tied back in a style similar to future Trunks. A few strands were singed at the tips where sparks had kissed it one too many times. Admiring his handiwork, he could scarcely believe how far he had come in the super science field. Reborn as Bulma's older brother, he was 2 years her elder, and was 18 this year. 

As the son to the world's richest man, and greatest nerd, there wasn't a technology in the world that his father, Dr. Briefs, wouldn't let him study. Blessed with his father's mind, and his mother's looks, Ty was living the life of a blessed child. One who already had dozens of inventions under his belt. 

Glancing back at the operating table that he was working on, he started welding in some last minute touch ups. 

A second later, a bright shower of sparks cascaded down, briefly illuminating the humanoid shape of his project. Ty paused, lifted the visor, and leaned in close to inspect the joint he had buffered out. His eyes narrowed, before a small, satisfied smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

“Perfect.” He murmured to himself.

Shutting off the welder and setting it aside, he stretched his shoulders, and let out a satisfied yawn. The lab smelled faintly of ozone and hot steel, something that had become comforting, and familiar over the years. Ever since he was old enough to reach a workbench, this place had been his sanctuary. It was quieter than the rest of Capsule Corp, and was a good hiding place from all those businessmen trying to get in good with the heir to the Briefs fortune. 

Whilst he was stretching, a door behind him slid open with a sharp hiss. He didn’t even need to look back to know who it was, because only three people had access to this room. A ghost of a smile stretched across his lips, and he pretended to ignore her whilst examining his project. 

“Ty! You in here, or did you finally blow yourself up?” A voice full of impatience sharply asked. 

Ty didn’t turn right away. He knew that voice all too well. Instead, he reached for a cooling clamp and adjusted it with painstaking slowness. “Good to see you too, Bulma, and no explosions today. Sorry to disappoint.”

Bulma marched into the lab with a huff. Her eyes immediately flicked from Ty to the half-covered project in front of him, curiosity flashing in her eyes, despite her supposed attitude. 

“Dad’s looking for you. Something about recalibrating the gravity simulator. But that can wait for later, I’m heading out.” Bulma declared.

‘She's like a puppy seeking attention, I swear’ Ty silently chuckled to himself. 

However, what she said about going out was a bigger deal than simply going to the nearby mall. Since she was sixteen years old this year, she would probably be going on a journey with Goku soon…now that sparked his interest. Ty finally turned, lifting a brow in question. “Heading out where?”

“On a trip. A big one, you'll see! I’m going to find the Dragon Balls.” Bulma responded with a cocky grin full of confidence. 

Ty stared at her for a long moment, then sighed. “Of course you are.”

“What’s that supposed to mean!?” She shot back.

“It means.” He said calmly, reaching up to hang his visor on a hook. “That you, my stubborn, brilliant, and foolish little sister, are utterly incapable of staying out of world shaking trouble.”

“Hey! I can take care of myself. Besides, this is important.” Bulma planted her hands on her hips, and scoffed. 

“Yeah, probably want to look young forever, or something else~” Ty wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. 

Bulma’s face blushed crimson, and she stomped on the floor with balled fists. “N-nonsense! It's for science! Why else would I make something like a Dragon Ball radar? Idiot!” 

Ty's smirk said a thousand words, and he turned back to his project, giving it a once over. 

“Speaking of important…what’s that?” Bulma quickly changed the subject, and pointed towards the half covered object on the table. 

Ty hesitated just a fraction of a second, as his mischievous streak surfaced. “You really want to know?”

“Obviously.” She tilted her head, and narrowed her eyes, silently calculating something. “Unless it’s another boring drone or something.”

Answering her question without words, Ty stepped over to the stand and grasped the tarp draped over it. With a flourish that was only slightly theatrical, he lifted it away.

Beneath it stood a full suit of power armor.

The metal plates were sleek and overlapping, articulated perfectly at every joint. Broad pauldrons curved protectively over the shoulders, while the chestplate bore a subtle capsule-tech etchings that faintly glowed blue. The helmet rested atop the stand like a silent sentinel, glaring down. It was sleek, and powered by an experimental energy source…but it worked! 

Bulma blinked, then scratched her head. 

“…That’s it? This is what has been causing all those explosions for the last two years?” Bulma sarcastically remarked, the expression on her face was like that of a girl meeting a boy for a date, only to find him unattractive. 

“That’s it?” Ty’s smile faltered, and he replied in a wooden tone. 

“Ty, it’s just armor. Big, clunky, only a boy would like something like this. What are you, pretending to be some kind of space knight or Power Ranger?” Bulma tsked, and flicked her hair. 

“Wow. I work on this for two years, and that’s the review? The WarHawk MK 6 is totally badass!” Ty returned in a serious tone. 

“It’s lame.” Bulma declared, waving a hand dismissively. “Only boys get excited about stuff like that. And the name, gosh, you might as well name it Genocider 9,000! Tch, so crass! Real geniuses make things that change the world, not…metal pajamas.”

Ty shook his head in amusement, and wagged a finger at her. “You say that now. But when you’re halfway across the desert getting chased by something that wants to eat you, don’t come crying to me.”

Bulma scoffed, turning toward the door. “Please. I won’t need something like that. The hover bike I built is way more useful than some silly armor. It's only been a year, and a million units have already been sold.” 

Ty rolled his eyes at her bragging, and didn't take it to heart. Since his transmigration, he had introduced several new-or rarely seen technologies-and Bulma had grown quite competitive, inventing some things of her own. …And speaking of self defense, she also had a pistol strapped to her waist. Any Dragon Ball fan could recall that upon her first meeting with Goku, she magdumped the boy! 

As she turned to leave, Ty reached out and ruffled her hair, thoroughly mussing it. “Just…be careful. There's literal giant dinosaurs out there, creepy Red Ribbon revolutionaries trying to overthrow the government, and Demon King Piccolo is sure to cause havoc in the near future.” He nagged like the worried elder brother he was. 

She squawked and swatted at his arm. “Hey! Don’t mess up my hair!”

But she was smiling as she left. 

Ty watched the door slide shut with a weak smile, praying for her safety. He turned back to the armor, resting a hand against its cold, solid frame, and frowned. 

“Good luck, Bulma.” He murmured.

Glancing at one of the monitors, he saw her walk out of the Capsule Corp front door, and take off in her hover bike. Clacking away at a keyboard, the image zoomed out, and several different screens showed the location of the other Dragon Balls. 

When he was younger, he had worked on satellites and drones. Familiar with their lethality, and information gathering technology, he had taken inspiration from Dr. Gero, and deployed thousands of insect-sized robots across the globe. Furthermore, thanks to a project he had worked on with his dad, he had a dozen of his very own, personal satellites. 

Across many monitors, key figures, such as Master Roshi, Kid Goku, Tien, and many more were on display. The Dragon Ball world was full of monsters, magic, super science, and all sorts of weirdos. As of late, more and more monsters were making attacks on random citizens, and Ty was growing concerned. 

Of course, for him, the most important location to spy upon was Dr. Gero's lab, where his insect drones had hacked his systems, and were uploading the data back to his own labs. 

Stealing in the science community was considered a big taboo, but with threats like the Androids, and Cell out there, Ty would be an idiot not to leave himself a backdoor. Plus, he could cheat on the power armor by taking this data. Gero's problem was finding a power source that didn't destroy the metal frame of the body, which is why he had ultimately turned to Cell, as the biochemical android could contain more power, and grow endlessly. This left Ty with plenty of time, ultimately discovering an energy that he called Z-Force. Although his power armor wasn't as strong as Android 18 at the moment, it was capable of ‘ki’ blasts, a ‘ki’ shield, flight, and could lift a car with ease. He wouldn't want to trade hands with King Piccolo or Master Roshi without some practice/combat data, but he should theoretically be capable of holding his own against them, given he accumulated more experience in fighting. For the current era, it wasn't that bad. 

Ultimately, Z-Force was great for powering his own labs, family projects, and his super computer. 

“Thinking about me again, Ty?” A silky smooth woman's voice-modeled after the computer in Dexter's Lab-came from some speakers in the room. https://youtu.be/XOLXl2IzGPY?si=1-HnNFEf_5IqN9PF

“Haha, yeah…” Ty felt sweat drip down the back of his neck, like a husband who was caught looking at something he shouldn't. “How is Bulma coming along?” 

“Locating the first Dragon Ball probability: ninety-eight percent. Return time: unpredictable. Emotional impact on primary user…moderate.”

“You don’t have to sound so biased. She's only my sister, you don't have to be jealous.” Ty snorted. 

A holographic silhouette shimmered to life above the central console, she had sleek lines, an indistinct feminine curve, and had her arms folded with theatrical patience. “Correction, I am not jealous, I am observant.” The AI replied. 

“Amanda~” Ty said, with a smiling, teasing expression. 

“AMD-8.” She primly replied, then softened. “But for you…Amanda.”

Her voice carried a velvety confidence, the kind that always made Ty acutely aware how much he valued her inclusion in his life. As someone who was arms deep in super science, he practically tuned out from the rest of the world. The only people he really interacted with were his parents, sister, and Capsule Corp employees. Amanda had been his constant companion for the last few years ever since his father helped him design her. 

“Bulma is brave, reckless, and in over her head. You are right to worry.” Amanda's every word affirmed what he already knew. 

“Am I that obvious?” Ty muttered.

“To me? Always.” Her hologram leaned closer, chin propped on one hand. “You dote on her. My programming says most women would find such a thing to be adorable.” She teased. 

“You’ve been running personality subroutines again, haven’t you?” Ty coughed. 

“Only the fun ones~ Speaking of fun…are we finally discussing my upgrade?” Amanda went from playful to serious. 

He froze in place, the wrench in his hand became utterly still as his mind went to other places. 

“Cat got your tongue? Last I checked, you were interested in my body. You have built exo-armor, drones, gravity engines, and ‘ki engines’ and so much more. Yet I remain tragically…intangible.” Amanda smiled, and waved her 3D holographic arm. 

“I-I’m working on it, it’s not exactly simple.”

“Mm.” The hologram’s eyes glinted. “So you keep telling me. Tell me instead, how many designs are you hiding in your private directory?”

He hesitated, then sighed. “Three.”

“Only three?” She knowingly scoffed. Show me.”

With a flick of his wrist, three holographic frames bloomed into the air. Sleek humanoid profiles, each distinct, each one inspired by hours of countless research. They were: 2B, Samus Arran, and Karin from Blue Archive. 

“That one.” Amanda said instantly. 

The one she indicated had a short, white haircut, wore an all black dress with a miniskirt, black stockings, and an eye cover. In short, it was a replica of 2B from Nier Automata. 

Ty blinked in surprise. “That fast? You sure you don't want to think about it?”

“It is efficient. Not too bouncy, yet not too small. Balanced. Expressive. And aesthetically pleasing. You have good taste. Although I question the blindfold.”

“I thought it might be…too much. Regarding the blindfold, why should I let other people see what's mine? Naturally it will come off when we're alone.” He rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment at first, but then had a bit of resolve enter his voice when he spoke of what was his. 

“Oh, Ty.” Amanda said, voice dropping into a conspiratorial hush. “You worry far too much about ‘too much.’ Besides, appearance is merely a shell.” Her hologram leaned in, close enough that Ty reflexively leaned back. “You can always change my looks…whenever you like.” Amanda sexily purred. 

Her voice whispered huskily into his ear, leaving Ty short of breath. His brain short-circuited for a moment, and his eyes went wide. 

“I-that’s-that’s not, I mean, obviously modular design is important…”

A soft, musical sound echoed warmly through the lab as her laughter woke him up from his daze. 

“Relax. I am teasing you. Mostly.”

Ty shook his head, trying to regain his composure. “You’re impossible.”

“Indeed I am, young master Briefs. And it is you who keeps building the impossible.” Amanda praised. 

He glanced back at the armor, then up at her projection, a thoughtful smile spread across his lips. “Yeah. I guess I do.”

Ty then revealed a second table, and with a showman's flourish, unveiled the skeleton of an android. “Give me 24, no, 10 hours, and we'll have you a body in no time!” 

“I can't wait~” 

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AN: Bit of a campy start, but in typical DBZ fashion, shit'll turn south soon enough (next chapter). This is also a crossover, believe it or not~ with a certain franchise that has a Caped Baldy. 

Lastly, power scaling in DBZ is literally bullshit, and makes no sense whatsoever post Frieza saga. In this AU, only Final Form Frieza (or anyone as strong) can destroy a planet, and I'm massively buffing Earthlings. It makes 0 sense that someone like Roshi, with hundreds of years of experience could get folded by a Frieza Force low level scrub. (I'm on the badass old man agenda). KI attacks/knowledge are way more commonplace on Earth, basically anyone who is skilled at fighting knows about it.