Disclaimer: Dragon Ball and all related characters don't belong to me.
Note: This story follows the events presented in Yoursweetsinner's one shot "She never got his name"; it is recommended you read it for some of the things in this chapter to make sense.
We belong to him.
By
Dr Facer
Chapter 1
Chi Chi makes a choice.
0-0-0
"Things were not supposed to be like this," Raditz thought; he had come to Earth expecting his younger brother to join him and instead he was now fighting him and his living cucumber of an ally! This annoyed the Saiyan warrior to no end, who could simply not understand why his brother was not behaving! Brain damage or not, he should have started killing the one hundred humans he'd demanded instead of being here picking a fight he could not win, not even with the help of that green man who had just been standing there with his fingers pressed again his forehead for several seconds now like a big idiot.
"Give me back my son!" Goku yelled angrily, redoubling his efforts to hit the man who claimed to be his brother.
"Go do as you were told and I'll consider it!" Raditz shouted back, effortlessly blocking his younger brother's attacks.
"Never, I'm not like you!"
"Stop this, Kakarot! Do you want to die so much? You should…" the long haired warrior stopped mid-sentence, listening to the beeping of his scouter, warning him of an unexpected power spike. Somehow the green man had amassed an outstanding 1330 units of power, but that was impossible! How could that cucumber head have done that? It could not be!
"Someone will die today, and it will be you, asshole! Makankosappo!" Piccolo announced with a fierce shout, unleashing his final and most powerful attack.
For a moment, after the attack hit and a cloud of smoke covered the area, it seemed as if Piccolo had succeeded, killing Raditz with his Special Beam Cannon. But as soon as the dust cleared, it became evident that this was not the case.
Raditz stood there, a scratch on his shoulder the only proof that the Makankosappo almost hit him. The Saiyan, thanks to his scouter's warning, had managed to avoid it at the last instant.
"Not bad, not bad at all!" Raditz commended as he pointed at his shoulder pad. "That thing went right through my armor, can you imagine if I had let it hit me?"
"That was my best technique… and he sidestepped it?" Piccolo took a step back, momentarily too afraid to think about something. If only Goku had done his job distracting this freak…
"I'm tiring of you, boys…" Raditz stated. "It is time to end our game, and your life… with a single blast!"
Goku cursed his luck as he got up. That stupid machine on his brother's face had warned him in time about Piccolo's attack, and would warn him again if he tried to use his Kame Hame Ha on him. Something clicked on the younger Saiyan's mind then. Raditz' machine; it had to go! It was the only chance they had of surprising him and win this fight!
With this idea in mind, Goku took advantage of his brother taunting Piccolo to do something he hoped would help them finish this once and for all.
He kicked at Raditz' face with all he had.
The older Saiyan tripped a step as he received a rather strong impact on his left temple, which was followed by a burst of electricity that stung his ear. He knew what that meant; his younger brother had crushed his scouter! Furious at this, Raditz started turning but he suddenly felt his strength draining rapidly.
Looking behind him, he found the last thing he ever wanted to see in this situation: His younger brother had grabbed his tail.
"You got careless and I… got your tail!" Goku announced with a triumphant smirk. "Hurry Piccolo, attack him again!"
"You don't have to tell me twice!" the green warrior said, raising his index and middle finger to his forehead, gathering energy once more.
"No, no! This is wrong!" Raditz cursed, his body refusing to follow his orders. "Kakarot, let me go or the blast might hit you too! Don't you care about that?"
"I don't… all I want is to save Gohan!"
"I was not going to hurt him!" Raditz yelled. "He's my nephew! I wouldn't hurt my brother's child!"
"But hurting me is fine?" Goku asked, his voice somewhat pained.
"I wanted to see if you're a worthy Saiyan!" the alien soldier replied, trying to sound as convincing as possible. "It was just a training session between brothers, that's our race's way! Don't tell me you will kill me? I'm family!"
"I-I guess…not" Goku's hold on his brother's tail started to falter as his eyes grew soft, his gentle nature getting the best out of him.
"Don't listen to him, Goku!" ordered Piccolo, who had just finished charging his attack and was ready to try using it again. "Think about your son, you idiot! Don't you want to save him and take him home?"
Piccolo's words hit Goku hard, and he realized that he was about to let Raditz free. His mind filling with images of a smiling Gohan, the younger Saiyan squeezed his brother's tail as hard as he could.
"Kakarot… brother… no…" Raditz could not take it anymore; he almost blacked out for an instant and fell on his knees as his strength abandoned him.
Piccolo stared at this with great interest. In front of him was his most hated enemy in a weakened state, and also that other long haired punk, but he was seemingly about to faint and would remain as harmless as a kitten for as long as his tail was being crushed. The emerald warrior smirked as an idea formed in his mind. This situation was very, very good for him.
"Goku!" Piccolo called. "Time to die… Makankosappo!"
The unruly haired young man had no time to react to what was happening, and was fully hit by his nemesis' attack, which cleanly went through him, causing him an immense amount of damage. Screaming in pain, Goku fell on his back, his blood spilling abundantly from the gaping hole in his chest.
Piccolo, who had already planned for this, quickly dashed to where his enemies were and stomped on the tail of the long haired warrior, denying him the chance to recover while using his other foot to step on Goku's gaping wound.
"You fucking traitor!" Raditz growled weakly. "You don't betray your friends in battle!"
"He's not my friend!" Piccolo laughed. "And this is what both of you deserve for getting in my way!"
"Why Piccolo…?" Goku struggled to ask as his life seeped away.
"Why? Because I'm evil, you stupid moron, that's why!" the green warrior cackled while pressing his heel on his fallen foe's bloody chest, relishing on the screams of agony he extracted from his rival. "I saw the chance to finish the both of you and I took it! There's no one left to help you! I finally won!"
Piccolo, however, was wrong. There was someone else left.
Gohan, sitting inside his uncle's space pod, wiped a tear from his face. He had given up on yelling for help several minutes ago and had instead settled on just sit and sniffle while listening to what was happening outside, hoping his father would win the fight soon so they could go back home.
His father suddenly screamed, and the child started to really pay attention. He did not really understand all that was being said, but the screams of his father he understood. Someone was hurting him, and Gohan did not like that, not at all.
His father screamed again.
Gohan was desperate and afraid; he didn't know what to do! All he knew was that he hated to hear his father screaming. A strong resolution burst inside the child and he decided that no one would hurt his daddy, no one! Feeling his body burn with a powerful rage, the boy acted on pure instinct as his power surged and jumped out of his uncle's space-pod, destroying it completely.
The infant landed out of the small crater the pod had been on and quickly surveyed the battlefield in front of him. His father was on his back, a pain filled expression on his face and the other man, the one who apparently was his uncle was also on the ground. The only one standing, and who still had one foot on his father's wound was the tall green man. He was the one hurting his daddy. And he didn't seem to want to stop.
"You monster...! Stop hurting my DADDY…!" Gohan yelled, trembling with unleashed rage and once again acting purely on instinct. All he knew then was that he needed to destroy that green monster, to hurt him back for causing his father pain. Blind with fury, the child allowed his ki to flare to life around him and with a mighty shout he launched himself at the emerald warrior.
The attack caught the evil fighter completely out of guard, and the results were devastating: Gohan went through flesh and bone with ease, ripping apart Piccolo's right arm, shoulder and a large chunk of his torso. The boy fell clumsily behind the mortally wounded warrior. His infantile rage sated, he fell on his knees breathing heavily, completely exhausted.
A loud thud was heard behind the child; Piccolo had fallen, agonizing, to the ground.
Gohan looked behind him, and fear crept up his stomach as he realized what he had just done. Shaken by the image of the wounded emerald martial artist the Son child did the one thing that still made sense to him and started crawling to his father.
Raditz was having trouble believing what had just happened. He had first noticed how the pressure on his tail lessened a little, which allowed him to turn and look at the green traitor above him, letting him contemplate the look of utter disbelief in his face; he gazed at his brother and noticed that despite the pain, Kakarot was also apparently sensing something that made him feel uneasy. Then he felt it too, a strange, faint sensation he had never felt before; he had no time to wonder what it was or why he felt it, for his nephew blasted out of his space-pod, flared his energy like a torch and proceeded to punch a hole through the one Kakarot had called Piccolo!
"How can that brat be so strong?" the Saiyan wondered as he got back on his feet, his strength quickly returning now that his tail was free. "The scouter didn't register anything out of the ordinary when I analyzed him before!"
"Ra... Raditz..."
The older Saiyan turned to look at his brother, who quite surprisingly still lived. Was Kakarot going to ask for his help now?
"What do you want, Kakarot?"
"Please, don't kill... Gohan..." Goku implored. "He's… j-just a kid."
Whatever Raditz planned to answer was interrupted by his nephew, who knelt at his father's side and placed his trembling hands on his chest.
"Daddy, let's go home!" the boy wailed, his eyes watering again as he noticed the wound on his progenitor's chest. "Let's go with mommy, she will make you all better!"
"Mom... can't help me... son," Goku answered with a strained whisper. "P-Please G-Gohan, don't c-cry... you have to be... stronger... than... me..."
The wounded young man tried to continue, but was interrupted by a violent spasm that robbed him of the chance. His body convulsed twice, blood sprayed from his mouth as his head fell to the side and then… nothing. He was now still and peace had returned to his face. Son Goku would never again feel pain. The brave hero was dead.
The child panicked as he saw this, and all he managed to do was to hiccup and sob. When he understood his father would not move anymore, Gohan's lips trembled and he started to cry as loud as he could.
Standing behind the boy, Raditz crossed his arms and tried to decide what to do about this development. His thoughts were interrupted when he noticed a labored breathing behind him. Turning, the long haired warrior realized that Piccolo still lived.
Seeing that piece of trash still alive angered him. Raditz knew well that he was not above using underhanded tricks to win a fight and would quickly admit that he was not great on cooperative teamwork. He, however, would never betray Nappa and Vegeta during a battle, unlike what that green piece of waste had done with his brother.
"I can't believe that bastard survived," he angrily whispered. Following an impulse, the long haired warrior grabbed his nephew by the back of the robe he wore and lifted him up, forcing him to look at Piccolo.
"Look. The person who killed your father still lives!" Raditz told Gohan. "You did not avenge his dead completely!"
Gohan did not answer, he instead cried louder than before.
"Shut up, boy!" Raditz ordered with a growl, shaking the kid a couple of times, forcing his cries to stop. "Shut up and listen to me!"
The child forced himself to obey and, in silence, tried to pay attention to what his uncle wanted to tell him.
"You did the right thing, you hear? He betrayed and murdered your father," Raditz said in the boy's ear. "Traitors don't deserve to live. You did well by hurting him. And now, my dear nephew, I'll send your father's killer to hell. Don't you like the idea?"
"B-but…" Gohan sobbed. "Mommy says…!"
"This traitor killed your father!" Raditz interrupted. "We must have revenge for what he did!"
The Saiyan warrior didn't wait for his nephew's reply and shot a blast of energy at Piccolo, completely erasing him from existence, leaving only a smoking hole in his place.
"A Saiyan must never cry in the battlefield, and you are a Saiyan! Do you understand?" Raditz reprimanded as he dropped Gohan back on the ground. "Now wait here and don't you dare to move; I have some things to do and I better not hear you cry again!"
Leaving his nephew behind, Raditz walked to his destroyed pod and looked over the remains, hoping to find his spare scouter. He did find it, at least what was left of it, under the cindered seat. He lifted it for better examination and decided that it would be impossible to make it work; the scouter's energy core was busted and the reader was broken. The lack of a scouter didn't bother him that much, as he knew that power-wise he was the strongest in this backwater world he was strongly considering purging before leaving; what really bothered him was not having a space-pod available so he could leave this mud hole as soon as possible.
In the middle of his frustration, though, he suddenly realized that there was another space-pod in this planet; his brother's! All he had to do was to find it and then he would be able to leave this place for good. Pleased with this idea, Raditz looked again between what was left of his small ship until he found what he needed, which it seemed to be undamaged. Not trusting his luck, Raditz checked the small metal cylinder in his hands and smirked when it made a beeping sound. Excellent, his pod's remote still worked well, which meant he could use it to locate the signal of Kakarot's. Sure, it wouldn't give him the exact location, but finding the other space-pod would be now a matter of looking for it for a few hours, at most.
The long haired Saiyan walked out of the crater and found that his nephew had gone to sit at his dead father's side. The boy, while miserable looking, was not crying anymore, he obviously wanted to of course, but was managing to hold the tears back surprisingly well.
"At least the brat is obedient," Raditz muttered. He turned on the remote and pressed the search function. The small screen on the end of the cylinder blinked for a few seconds until finally, an arrow appeared, pointing in the direction where the other pod was.
"Good, Kakarot's pod seems to be intact." He smiled as he allowed his ki to lift him up.
"Wait!" a frightened child's voice called. "Don't leave me here! Please uncle, don't leave me alone!"
The alien warrior froze. Did the kid just call him uncle?
"Please don't go!" the child begged again.
Raditz spared a glance at his nephew and saw a devastated child about to crumble in despair. He knew he shouldn't care about the brat and should just leave him behind, but found that he couldn't do it. Cursing planet Vegeta's five warrior gods for his weakness, Raditz descended and walked to his nephew's side, who as soon as he had noticed he was not going to abandon him changed his panicked and devastated expression for one of hope.
The Saiyan sighed, slightly frustrated with the situation. What the hell was he supposed to do now? Babysitting was by far the last thing he wanted to do. And besides, he would win nothing by taking the kid with him. The warrior's brow knit as an idea entered his mind. Kakarot had turned into a soft weakling because he hit his head and was not raised as a Saiyan; but this kid here… perhaps he could raise him to be a strong member of his race, after all the kid had shown an amazing potential only a few minutes ago. Smirking, Raditz kneeled in front of the boy and roughly held him by his shoulders.
"Your father told you to be strong," he reminded Gohan. "I can make you strong if you come with me and do what I tell you. Will you do it, kid?"
Gohan, just too glad he had not been abandoned, nodded slowly. The boy, however, would have agreed to anything then, just to keep his uncle with him and not being left alone.
"Thank you Mr. Raditz," the boy whispered, his face still a mask of sadness. "Can we… can we take daddy home, too… please?
It took all of Raditz' self control not to hit the kid for pushing his luck so much. This boy was expecting him to carry Kakarot's corpse? The Saiyan was about to refuse but one look at his fallen brother made him change his mind. Kakarot had died because of treason, an already shameful enough death for any warrior; there was no need to shame him further by letting him rot here. Besides, taking his brother home and burying him there wouldn't take too long and, all things considered, how far could Kakarot's house be?
"Where do you live?" he asked Gohan. "Do you know how to get there?"
"In Mount Paoz," the child honestly answered. Gohan, still full of childish innocence, now felt reasonably safe even if he had to attach himself to a man who had him terrified and trapped only minutes ago. "But I don't know how to go back."
"Wonderful. Just wonderful," Raditz muttered, for a moment he considered incinerating his brother's body, but he had already made his mind about burying him so the only option now was to find out where this 'Mount Paoz' was.
"Stay here kid. I'll be back soon," the Saiyan ordered and, before his nephew could argue, flew away as fast as he could.
It didn't take Raditz too long to find a road and, as he expected, a vehicle. The warrior sped up as he descended and touched ground right in front of an old, black truck.
"What the hell are you doing, you idiot?" the driver yelled angrily as he braked to a sudden stop. "Jumping in front of my truck like that, do you want to die?"
"I want directions," the soldier said as he walked to the side of the truck and darted his hand with blazing speed to grab the trucker by the neck. "How do I get to Mount Paoz from here? Speak quickly and you might live."
"M-Mount Paoz?" the driver managed, struggling against the crushing pressure on his throat.
"Don't make me repeat myself!"
"L-look, just… it's far from here, alright? You… just keep going east… you got to pass S-Skull Valley and then… you'll find Mount Paoz!"
"That wasn't so hard, was it?" Raditz said, slowly releasing the man.
"Can… can I go now?"
The Saiyan chuckled evilly as he pointed a finger at the driver's head. "You shouldn't insult people stronger than you, unless you're ready to face the consequences."
"B-but I…"
Raditz didn't give the man a chance to finish talking, as he simply shot a line of ki at his head, blasting it into a bloody mess. Once he'd gotten rid of the annoying insect who had dared to insult him, the Saiyan's attention was drawn to the cargo on the back of the truck; it was nothing but a bunch of different fruits covered by a large piece of cloth. Raditz was not really hungry, but couldn't stop himself from eating a few pears. Before he went back to where his nephew was, the Saiyan took a few red fruits with him, as well as the cloth that covered the rest of the cargo.
Gohan was trying very, very hard not to cry. He had thought his uncle would not leave him alone after he had agreed to go with him and be strong, but he left anyway. Sure, he had promised he would come back, but he had been gone for a while and he was starting to believe he had been abandoned.
The boy had tried to look at his father before, but that only made him cry so he had instead walked a little bit away from him; he was now close to the big hole he had been trapped in and while there was little left from the space pod, something between the remains still managed to catch his eye. It was his hat; something about it was different. Curiosity getting the best of him, Gohan slid inside the crater and picked it up.
It was strange, the orange crystal sphere, the one his father had called Dragon Ball and his mommy had attached to his hat was now just a grey rock. The child had no time to ponder on the reason, for a couple of apples fell at his side. Looking up, he saw his uncle had dropped them.
"We're leaving when I'm done doing something, so you better eat quickly," Raditz ordered his nephew as he landed besides Kakarot.
While the boy munched on the apples, the long haired soldier occupied himself wrapping his younger brother's body with the large cloth he'd brought with him. Once he'd finished covering Kakarot, Raditz lifted him over his left shoulder, firmly holding him steady with his left hand.
"Come here kid, it's time to go!" the Saiyan called.
"Y-yes, I'm coming," replied Gohan, rushing to where his uncle waited.
Raditz picked the boy up when he was close enough and was surprised, almost scared out of his mind, when Gohan hugged his neck strongly, pressed against his chest and coiled his little tail around his forearm. Just like a few minutes before, Raditz had to use all of his self control not to hit the kid, or simply dropping him and kicking him away.
After breathing deeply a few times, Raditz managed to calm down enough to fly without dropping his nephew for being such a clingy pest and, before he changed his mind about the whole thing, he took off, flying to the east as fast as he could.
"Huh… Mr. Raditz?" Gohan whispered. "Are we seeing mommy?"
"Yeah, I guess we are." The Saiyan said, wondering for the first time what type of woman was Kakarot's wife, and if killing her would be necessary in order to take his nephew with him.
"Good, I miss mom," the child yawned then and almost immediately, fell asleep.
"Sure, make yourself comfortable," the tall Saiyan muttered unenthusiastically as he noticed that his nephew had decided this was the perfect time to fall asleep. He reasoned that whatever the kid had done when he wounded Piccolo had taken a heavy toll on his energy so this was not so surprising; still, Raditz wished that the little kid's tail had unwrapped from his forearm.
Not too long after, Raditz flew over a ravine full of skeletons, which he correctly guessed would be Skull Valley and that meant his destination was close; increasing his speed, the soldier passed a tall mountain and found himself in a familiar place; the same hills where the woman he had met earlier lived.
An amazing coincidence, the Saiyan realized, that said fiery nymph lived in the same area her brother had, maybe she even knew where Kakarot's house was. Raditz remembered something then; the girl had claimed she had never seen someone with a tail before, which was strange considering his nephew also lived in these mountains.
"I knew she was lying, I should have questioned her further," Raditz regretted as he frowned at himself for not asking more questions. But then again, he had been more interested in other things he could get from that woman at the time, and had no way to know he'd be back here on the same day just a few hours later. "Well… it seems I'll have to visit her again to teach her not to lie."
His decision made, Raditz flew right to where he remembered her house was, and touched down outside it in a matter of seconds. He placed his brother and sleeping nephew on the ground and realized the wind during his flight had uncovered Kakarot's face but decided it was not important. Stretching his arms once, the Saiyan prepared to enter the cabin, but a sudden crash caught his attention; he looked to his right and saw her, standing very still with a panicked expression on her face.
0-0
She was looking at herself in the mirror, her eyes set on the purplish mark adorning her neck. That man had bitten her there while they were doing… that. He bit her, and it still hurt.
"What am I supposed to do with this?" she whispered anxiously while wishing she had bought proper make up to cover it up instead of buying only lipstick the last time she and Goku went to the nearby town. "I can't believe this... giving me a hickey just here!"
It was a good thing most of her clothes were conservative, since they would hide this shameful stain on her flesh until it was gone.
Wondering how long it would take for it to disappear, she brought her fingertips up and traced the mark slowly, instantly remembering the moment it had happened, how he had first rained gentle kisses on her neck just to suddenly bite her, distracting her long enough for him to force her legs open.
"Curse him! I'm glad I'm never seeing that horrible man again!" Chi Chi spat as she forced the memory of him out of her mind and buttoned up the high neck jacket she had decided to wear for the rest of the day.
She glanced at the clock on her wall and her knit brow as she saw the hour. It was late and she had not cooked anything for her son and husband to eat yet. That, however, was not important. What was important was the fact that Goku was late; an hour late to be precise. For a brief moment she wished she had paid more attention when Goku tried to show her how to feel and trace the Ki of others. She knew the basics of the technique and could somewhat do it if her target was no more than a few steps away, but that was it. Chi Chi had deemed that as an unnecessary skill she would never need as a married woman, and now she realized it had been a mistake not to pay more attention to her husband when he had tried to teach her, if she had, she could try to feel how far away from home her family was.
But she couldn't, so she would have to find something else to do to keep her mind occupied until Goku was home. Hoping that cooking for her husband would help her forget the events of that morning, the Ox Kingdom's princess made her way to the kitchen and started rummaging for something to prepare a soup or stew with. Losing herself in the familiar task of working for her family, Chi Chi finally started feeling more like her usual self.
Noticing she would need more water for the broth she was making, the woman reached for a bucket and went out to get what she wanted from the water barrel Goku had placed in the back of their house. It didn't take her more than a couple of minutes to finish this task, and after placing the lid on the barrel she made her way back, hoping this would be enough water to boil both the vegetables and chicken.
Occupied with these domestic thoughts, Chi Chi almost screamed the moment she turned the corner and saw him standing in her garden. It was him again. And Goku was still not back. She noticed the bundle at the man's feet, stared at it more attentively and saw the pale face of her husband; her dead husband. Chi Chi looked to the other side and saw her son also laid as motionless on the ground as his father. Fear creeping up her spine, she felt her hands go numb and dropped the bucket, spilling water all around her. Understanding her family was dead, a grim thought entered her mind:
He killed them. Goku is dead. Gohan is dead. He killed them and I had sex with him. I had sex with the man who killed my husband and my son!
Chi Chi's hands balled slowly into fists as her shame, guilt and pain all mixed inside her and turned into a strong, irrational fury. Allowing her anger to crush her fear, she yelled a cry of despair and launched herself at him, not caring about the consequences anymore.
Raditz had to admit he was truly surprised by the fierceness with which the woman was attacking him. She had actually managed to force him back a few steps just by the sheer ferocity she was exhibiting! Her rage, however, revealed to the soldier a truth he was already suspecting: This woman was indeed Kakarot's wife. She had to be. Why else would she react like this after seeing his body?
"I'll kill you, I swear!" Chi Chi cried desperately, her voice marked with unfathomable pain. "You killed my family, you fucking bastard!"
"I didn't kill Kakarot!" Raditz argued strongly until he got tired of blocking the woman's punches and easily caught her wrists so he could force her arms down. "Now, listen to me, I…"
"LIAR!" the princess screamed angrily. "You killed Goku and Gohan, I HATE you!"
Raditz, not even noticing the tears running down the woman's face, started considering killing her just to shut her up, and was about to do so, but the voice of a child stopped him.
"Mom?" Gohan called. "Mommy?"
"G-Gohan, you live?" Chi Chi whispered in disbelief, her anger vanishing as she saw her son sitting, alive and well, in front of her.
Seeing no need to restrain the woman anymore, the Saiyan let her loose and watched in silence how she ran to her son and hugged him fiercely. Such displays of affection bored the warrior immediately, as they were nothing but a waste of time as far as he was concerned.
"Gohan, are you alright?" asked Chi Chi, caressing her child's face to convince herself that he was truly there. "Did he hurt you?"
The boy, now in the safety of her mother's arms, allowed himself to sob and started crying loudly. "The… the green man killed daddy!"
"Green man?" Chi Chi looked up from her son and threw a cautious, but quite questioning, look at the armored soldier behind her.
"Kakarot was killed by a fighter named Piccolo," he informed her. "That piece of trash got him by surprise."
Piccolo. Chi Chi felt her stomach twist with renewed fury. She knew they should have locked him up inside Kami Sama's castle after the Martial Arts Tournament, but her husband had chosen to let the demon roam the world free and now had paid the price for his naivety.
"Goku was always stronger," the new widow said as she looked at her deceased husband. "How did that… villain managed to kill him?"
Raditz lifted a brow, he didn't have any obligation to explain that to this woman, and he certainly didn't feel like it. His nephew, on the other hand, was apparently quite eager to inform his mother about everything.
"He took me from dad," Gohan said then, pointing an accusing finger at his uncle. The boy was not crying anymore and having learned before that it was never a good idea to keep things from his mother, decided to tell her what he knew. "Daddy had to do something for him, but dad said no… then I was in a space ball and then… I think daddy was fighting and Piccolo hurt him… he hurt daddy pretty bad… so much b-blood…"
Gohan's voice broke then and he started crying again.
"I see," Chi Chi muttered, pressing her son against her chest. "Why did you take my son?"
"I needed to convince Kakarot to come with me," the Saiyan said evenly. "I knew he would listen to me if I had his kid."
"His name is Goku. Not Kakarot."
"My parents named him Kakarot. That was my brother's true name," Raditz corrected. "And you tried to stop me from finding him."
"Look at what happened after you met him, he got killed by that cursed demon!" She quickly snapped while staring at him with anger filled eyes. "My husband was murdered because of you!"
"I don't need to justify my actions, woman!" the alien soldier glared at her. "It wasn't my fault Kakarot decided to join Piccolo and fight me instead of listening to what I had to say!"
"He… he trusted Piccolo?"
Raditz chuckled. "Ironic that he preferred to listen to that traitor and not his older brother; this planet really messed Kakarot up."
Chi Chi did not answer, she was trying to comprehend why her husband had decided to trust Piccolo of all people. Didn't Goku understand how dangerous and evil Piccolo was? No, he obviously did not. Goku always tried to see the good in others, even if there was no good to be found.
"Oh… Goku… Goku… you never learned did you?" Chi Chi whispered, a pair of tears sliding down her face. "You always had to be the noble one, didn't you?"
"I… I beat Piccolo, mom," Gohan announced timidly, hoping that would console his mother at least a little.
"You… what?"
"The kid's not lying. He punched a big hole on this...Piccolo, he almost killed him," Raditz confirmed, the conversation finally moving to something he found more interesting than the woman's boring grief.
"But is he dead?" Chi Chi asked then, her eyes grew cold as she looked at the man standing in front of her. "Did you kill Piccolo?"
"Of course I killed him!" Raditz assured her. "Traitors don't deserve to live."
"And before that… did he suffer, was he in pain?" Chi Chi was anxious.
"Your son almost ripped him in half." the Saiyan replied, knowing that would be answer enough.
"...I'm glad," the princess whispered.
"Mommy?" Gohan asked, not sure if he had heard correctly.
"What did you say?" Raditz asked as well, wondering the same thing his nephew did.
"I said I'm glad!" she shouted, new tears sparkling in her eyes as she did so. "I'm really glad Piccolo is dead, and I'm happy he died in pain! It's what that demon deserved for killing Goku!"
The warrior stared attentively at the woman, amazed to no end by what she had just said. She had spoken like... like a Saiyan female. Was that the reason why Kakarot, even with no memories of his heritage, had married her? Puzzled by this idea, Raditz suddenly realized that punishing her for lying to him was not so appealing anymore.
Chi Chi, still holding Gohan close to her, had closed her eyes and was deep in thought. She knew she was being petty, yelling those things about how she felt glad Piccolo was dead, but the princess didn't care. She knew quite well that if Piccolo died, Kami-Sama and the Dragon Balls would be gone too, destroying any chance of her husband ever coming back to life. Well, if the only consolation she could have other than having Gohan safe and sound with her was knowing that Piccolo had suffered before dying, then she would take it, as petty as it was.
A sudden blast of Ki brought her out of her grim thoughts; startled, the widow looked behind her and found a smoking man-sized hole, a hole the long haired stranger was placing her husband in.
"What are you doing?" she asked him.
"I'm burying my brother," he answered calmly. "That's the only reason why I brought him here."
"No! Don't put my daddy there!" Gohan started, the child already knew her father was dead, but he didn't know anything about burials and the idea of his father being put in a hole, never to be seen again, was not comforting at all.
"This is what you do when people die if possible, kid," Raditz interrupted. "You give them a place to rest undisturbed."
"But... daddy!" the kid started shaking, not liking the idea of seeing Goku inside that hole.
"He is right, my dear," Chi Chi said then, softly stroking her son's hair, trying to calm him down a little while she ignored the pain seeing her husband put in a grave caused her. "It has to be done. Your father needs a place to rest and this... this is a good place for him, Gohan. He... he grew up here, I'm sure he will be at peace in these mountains."
"Will dad be happy?" the child asked, struggling to hold back new tears.
"Yes, Gohan," Chi Chi assured, straining to keep her voice steady and finding it very difficult in the face of her child's grief. "Daddy will be happy here. I'm sure he will."
The Saiyan had completely ignored the exchange between the boy and his mother and had instead focused on his job, resorting to using the bucket Kakarot's wife had dropped to scoop the dirt he was using to fill the grave.
By the time Raditz finished working, the boy and the mother were both standing in silence by the new tomb. The warrior assumed they were praying or doing whatever it was people in this useless planet did when they mourned, and decided he didn't care about it. Walking a few steps away from the woman and his nephew, the Saiyan reached for the remote he kept in his back pocket and turned it on. To his surprise, the remote's screen indicated that Kakarot's pod was very close by; he shouldn't have a lot of trouble finding it.
"Are you leaving? Good, make sure you never come back here." The widow said coldly.
Raditz looked up from his remote and considered telling the annoying female he would return for his nephew but in the end decided against it; if she knew he was taking the boy with him she could try to hide or run away, and he really was not in the mood for a chase in the forest.
"Didn't you hear?" she insisted. "I told you not to come back!"
The soldier didn't answer and took off. He would be back of course, but she didn't need to know when or why.
0-0
Raditz was pleased. He had found Kakarot's pod rather quickly and not too far away from where he lived, covered by thick vegetation. The pod was not in optimal condition, of course, but it would serve well for what he needed it for. Pressing a button hidden near the porthole, the Saiyan managed to open the small spherical space ship and looked under the seat, smiling when he found the scouter where it should be.
"Great, the scouter's battery is still almost full," said Raditz as he adjusted the machine to his ear and turned it on. "I can finally report to Vegeta about what happened here."
Wasting no more time, the Saiyan soldier called his prince.
"You're using a different frequency, Raditz, what happened to your scouter? Did you drop it while playing with your little brother?" Vegeta's mocking voice greeted once the tall Saiyan managed to make contact with the prince.
"Something like that," Raditz answered, not wanting to relate how his brother had destroyed his previous scouter.
"So what happened to Kakarot, I'm guessing he's dead?" the prince asked. "Nappa and I were sure you had killed each other, but it seems we got it half wrong."
"Yes, my brother is dead. His ally betrayed and killed him."
"And you then got rid of this traitor. How convenient," Vegeta said. "Well, why are you wasting time there? Stop bothering me and hurry back, we'll meet at Planet Frieza #47."
"What about Kakarot's son?" asked Raditz. "The kid could be useful."
"You third class soldiers are so sentimental," the Prince huffed with disdain. "Kill the brat; we have no use for an inferior half-blood Saiyan in our group."
"Kill him?"
"I don't feel like repeating myself, Raditz," Vegeta warned. "Do as I said or I'll have to teach you a lesson when we meet again."
"Fine. I'll take care of the child," the long haired Saiyan agreed after a moment of doubt. It was a pity, really, since he really thought his nephew could be a great soldier.
"See that you do," Vegeta said, cutting the signal off.
Raditz took in a deep breath and sat inside the space pod, pressing a series of buttons in the control panel so he could have the system reboot itself before inputting his own data into its memory. He hoped doing this would help him forget about Vegeta's commands, which to him made no damned sense. Kill the kid? Why? Surely having another member on the team, even if it was a kid, would be an asset, not a drawback.
A beep on his scouter alerted him of an incoming call. Raditz frowned as he identified the frequency; it was the secret one Vegeta always used when he wanted to speak without Frieza's men listening to him. But why would the prince want to use a secure channel now?
"Have you killed the kid yet?" Vegeta inquired as soon as Raditz answered the call.
"No, not yet."
"Good. Because I want you to train him."
"Didn't you want him dead a second ago, what's going on?"
"He's a hybrid, I'm interested in knowing how strong he can become," the prince explained. "If his power increases like that of a true Saiyan it might be worth a shot to try to have more of them."
"But why keep it a secret?" Raditz asked. "They'll know about it the moment I set foot in a planet controlled by Frieza, besides..."
"I don't want them to know a lost Saiyan had a child," the prince interrupted. "Zarbon and Dodoria already asked me questions about why your brother was lost for so long; they think we tried to cover his existence from Frieza, so it's actually a good thing Kakarot died... but if they learn his child survived they will immediately look into it, and I won't be able to know how strong a half-blood Saiyan can be. Considering this, I believe it is best if you present the brat as your own. After all, you have already pledged your allegiance to Frieza, so your kid should not pose a big threat."
"I didn't know Zarbon and Dodoria were aware about me coming here."
"Those two assholes are always looking at what we Saiyans do, you should already know that. Trust me on this, Raditz, it'll be better if they think that brat is your son; it'll keep them from thinking we're conspiring against Frieza or something."
"Fine, I'll register the kid as my own," Raditz promised, not pointing out to the prince, for his personal safety of course, that if he showed up with a kid all of a sudden it would be even more suspicious than just admitting it was an orphaned half-Saiyan. "Where should I train him then? Do you have any specific place in mind?"
"I do. Take him to Hipra," Vegeta ordered. "You'll have four years to train the kid, after that I'll go and see how strong he's gotten."
"Hipra? Why should I go there?"
"Are you challenging my judgment?" the prince asked. "Frieza doesn't care about that planet; even Zarbon and Dodoria consider it a worthless hole. It is the perfect place for you to train."
Raditz had to admit Vegeta was not as careless as he just thought. He wasn't that familiar with the planet, but he did know Hipra was so low on the list of worlds Frieza didn't care about that his training there would be completely unnoticed.
"You have four years to make sure the kid's power level gets to at least two thousand units," Vegeta commanded. "And raise your own to a minimum of three thousand while you're at it. Your current power level is embarrassing."
The tall Saiyan gritted his teeth at the comment; he hated when Vegeta mocked his strength.
"That will be all for now Raditz," the prince concluded. "I'll contact you again in a year or two. Do not disappoint me."
Not waiting for a response, Vegeta ended the transmission, leaving Raditz deep in thought about his new orders. All things considered, he admitted, it could have been a lot worse; Hipra was a dump for what he knew, but it was safe from the constant scrutiny of the Planet Trade Organization and having four years to train as much as he wanted was worth being stranded there.
Not really having any further use for it until he reached Hipra, and also not wanting to hear from Vegeta or Nappa for the rest of the day, Raditz turned off the scouter and placed it back under the seat. He then got out of the pod and paced around the small ship, waiting for it to start checking its systems.
A pang was heard from inside the pod, indicating the system had started rebooting. Raditz checked the status and sighed in disappointment. The CPU had been off for so long it was doing a complete check up! It would take the pod over ten hours before it was ready to take off.
Ten hours. He would have to find something to eat and a place to sleep.
0-0
Back at the place where Goku had died, three people jumped out of an aero-car, inspecting the place as they hoped to find clues about the whereabouts of their friend.
"The aero-car is low on gas," Bulma informed her two companions. "This is the last place we can check, we need to get some fuel after we're done here."
"The craters we spotted from the air made it obvious they fought here," Roshi said while inspecting the rather large depressions on the ground. "There's some pieces of machinery in this one, and that one was caused by a ki blast, I'm sure of it."
"That's not important now, master Roshi; look at what I found," Krillin announced.
In his hands, the former monk held Gohan's hat, but instead of a Dragon Ball attached to it, there was just a round rock.
"What does that mean?" Bulma asked.
"It means Piccolo is dead," Roshi answered, his mood turning very dark very quickly. "And that Kami-Sama is dead as well."
"And with no Kami-Sama... the Dragon Balls have lost their power," Krillin recalled. "This is bad."
"Very bad," Bulma agreed, finally understanding why her Dragon Radar had lost track of the four stars Dragon Ball hours ago, forcing them to carefully comb the area while they looked for Goku and his son.
"If Piccolo is dead, then Goku and Gohan might still live," Krillin hoped, even if in his heart he was almost sure of the contrary, the man who claimed to be Goku's brother had been simply too powerful.
"Perhaps we should go to Mount Paoz and check if they went back there?" Bulma suggested, seeing no point in staying in the empty battlefield.
"And if they didn't? Would you like to tell what happened to Goku's wife?" Roshi challenged.
"I think we should continue looking for Goku," Krillin answered. He remembered a little of Chi Chi's temper from the last Martial Arts Tournament, and didn't want to risk facing the wrath of the Ox princess if he didn't have to.
"We can't until we get fuel," Bulma reminded them.
"It's also getting late," Roshi noted. "I say we find a place to spend the night, we'll try something different tomorrow."
"Master Roshi!" the short martial artist scolded. "Are you saying we should give up on Goku?"
"No. but we've already checked most of this area, and the only trace we have so far is Gohan's hat," the elder said in a grave voice. "Goku is not here, that's plainly obvious. Our only chance to find him is to ask Karin-Sama; and we will do that tomorrow. Or do you have a better idea?"
"No, I don't," Krillin said sadly, studying Gohan's hat and hoping his best friend was safe.
0-0
The sun had almost set over the horizon, and it soon would be too dark to see without a lamp, but the woman who stood in front of a freshly covered grave didn't care. She had stayed with Gohan until he had fallen asleep before coming here to finish what that man had started. She recalled that Gohan had been uncharacteristically quiet after Goku had been buried, but reasoned that maybe the shock had caused it. Whatever the case, the child had not asked further questions about death or burials and for that, Chi Chi was grateful; because she knew she was not in the right state of mind to answer him.
"This should be enough," she whispered, placing the last rock she had collected over her husband's tomb. Placing stones over the dirt was necessary to keep animals from digging out the body, something that useless man had apparently ignored. Sighing, the new widow reached for something else she had done before she went to the river to collect stones: a board she had carved Goku's name on, which she planted firmly at the head of the tomb. She wished she had done better, but under the circumstances this would have to do for now, maybe later her father would pay for a decent tombstone.
Chi Chi stood up, her eyes never leaving her husband's grave. Covering it with stones had truly convinced her that this was real and not a nightmare she had been trapped in. Goku was dead and would never come back.
"Why did you trust Piccolo?" the pained widow asked the silent tomb. "Why did you take your chances with him?"
The princess sighed and hugged herself to fight the cold she felt in her arms. Those questions were stupid and she knew it. Goku had trusted Piccolo because he was innocent and had a pure heart; so pure that he never lost the ability to ride his flying cloud while she had lost it years ago. It was no surprise then that he would agree to join the most evil creature in the planet.
"You were so innocent Goku... almost like a child," she muttered, remembering how her husband's naivety always surprised her and how it kept her guessing about which things he would understand or not. "I always liked that about you... but I also knew it would get you into trouble some day... I just didn't think it would... get you killed.
"I... I did something very b-bad," Chi Chi whispered after a moment of silence. "Piccolo was not the only one who betrayed you, Goku... I did too.
New tears trailed down her face and she trembled in shame before she could gather the courage to continue her confession. "Your brother was here this morning, Goku, and I-I s-slept with him. I was un-unfaithful to you today, I'm so sorry...!"
Chi Chi could not say more, her shame and guilt had grown so strong that she could do nothing more than cry desperately, wishing with all her heart for a way to erase her adultery... for a way to bring her husband back to life... for a way to make things as they had been just the day before.
But the Dragon Balls were gone; there was no way to fix things anymore, and knowing this only made the widow's sorrow deeper.
"You put rocks on top of Kakarot's tomb," a voice said behind the Ox Princess. "Are there animals here that could steal the body?"
Chi Chi tensed the moment she heard that voice. She thought he was gone for good, but for some reason he had returned. Why was he here again? Did he enjoy tormenting her so much?
"I'll be sleeping here tonight," he announced, ignoring Chi Chi as he started walking towards the house.
"Where... where do you think you're going?" she called, drying her tears as she got up. "I told you to never come back! Stop right there you monster!"
The Saiyan stopped and turned to regard the woman behind him. "I said I'm sleeping here and nothing you say or do will make me change my mind. I've tolerated you long enough as it is, so unless you want me to break every single bone in your body, you'll shut up now!"
Despite herself, the widow froze instantly. The way that man had growled those words and the cold determination she saw in his eyes convinced her to avoid angering this man further.
"You're smart when you want to be. Good, I hate women who only have good looks," Raditz said, calmer now, as he entered the house.
Too confused and startled by that comment, Chi Chi was actually able to place her grief aside and, after a couple of minutes of indecision, followed the man into the house.
She found him laying on her couch, his hands crossed behind his head and his eyes closed already. For a moment she thought he was sleeping, but she soon realized he was still awake.
"Why are you here?" she risked asking.
His eyelids rose and he looked at her. "If you must know, I'm here for my nephew. Now, I did tell you to shut up, didn't I, Earth girl? Go somewhere else and let me sleep."
"You go somewhere else. Get out of my house. Now," Chi Chi ordered, hoping her voice sounded firm and commanding enough.
The Saiyan got up and, for a moment, the princess thought he was actually going to obey her, but he blurred out of her sight and reappeared right in front of her. He grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her against the wall so fast she didn't even have the time to scream.
"Listen to me Earth girl, and listen well," he whispered in her ear, placing emphasis on his nickname for her just to annoy her. "Yes, we fucked this morning and I understand that might be the reason why you're being such a nagging witch, but I did bring your child back home and I avenged my brother's, your husband's, death. I feel I've earned at least a few hours of sleep without you bothering me!"
Raditz stressed his last sentence by squeezing hard on the widow's shoulders, just to remind her how strong he was compared to her. "Now go upstairs and let me rest, Earth gi..."
"My name is Chi Chi, not Earth girl," She interrupted, her face was low to avoid showing her anger and frustration. She had to admit the man was right; despite their lustful encounter that morning, this man had avenged Goku's death and had returned Gohan to her, and even if she didn't like it at all, he did deserve at least a night of sleep. "And you... I guess you're right, you've earned a few hours of rest. But I expect you to leave forever tomorrow."
"Chi Chi, huh?" Raditz smirked as he released her. "Don't worry then; I won't come back to this mountain after tomorrow, I promise you that."
0-0
Chi Chi woke up feeling terrible. She hadn't been able to enter her room the night before; the sole idea of sleeping in the bed she shared with Goku made her hurt so much she couldn't even stand to look at the door of her bedroom. The woman had instead slept in Gohan's bed, finding that having her little son close relaxed her.
She opened her eyes slowly and allowed herself a soft smile at the image of Gohan sleeping at her side. Feeling a wave of motherly love fill her, Chi Chi promised to herself she would never let anything bad happen to her son.
"I'll protect you, Gohan. I swear I will," she muttered and gently kissed her son's forehead. Filled with newfound purpose, the woman made her way downstairs, intending to prepare breakfast.
She froze the moment she entered the kitchen. It was a mess. She didn't have a refrigerator, but her larder had been literally ransacked. There was no food left in it. Clumsily opened cans, bottles of juice and pieces of dry meat littered the floor, and all her vegetables and fruits were gone as well.
"Food in this place is actually not that bad," a voice called from the kitchen's door. A voice Chi Chi knew quite well by now and that she had hoped she would not listen to again.
"You goddamned pig! I was about to make breakfast for my son!" she shouted, throwing an empty can from the table at him. "Who gave you the right to eat all our food?"
Radit caught the can easily and crushed it absentmindedly. "If you're worried about that, I'll get the kid something to eat once we arrive to our destination."
"Destination?" the widow asked, not liking at all the idea forming in her mind.
"A place where I can train him to be a strong warrior."
"No you won't! The last thing Gohan needs is martial arts training, I won't allow it! I'll…"
Chi Chi couldn't finish her sentence, as she found herself once again pinned against the wall. He was holding her by her shoulders, just like he did the night before and just like then he was also hurting her a little.
"I'm going to train the boy, and nothing you say or do will make me change my mind about it, you hear?" He told her, smirking as he noticed how similar this conversation was to their previous one.
"I'm not letting you take my son away from me!" she growled, struggling as she tried to break free.
"I'm not leaving Gohan here to be a weakling; if you don't want to be separated from him you should come with us," he challenged with a mocking smile as he released her. "If you dare, of course."
Raditz walked out of the kitchen and climbed the stairs without waiting for her answer, and before Chi Chi could really understand what he was going to do, she saw him walk out of the house with a half awake Gohan in his arms.
Horrified at the thought of losing her son to that man, the widow ran after him and managed to grab him by the shoulder, forcing him to stop. "Please, don't take him away from me, please!"
"Mommy?" Gohan asked, fully awake now. "What's going on?"
"We're going on a training trip, kid," Raditz informed him, completely ignoring the panicked woman at his side. "I'll take you to a place where you can get strong, just like your father wanted."
"G-Goku said that?" Chi Chi asked, believing this was all a trick her brother in law was using to take Gohan with him.
"Tell your mother what your father wanted, boy," the Saiyan urged. "Did you forget what he told you before he died?"
Gohan, somewhat confused by waking up in his uncle's arms and by her mother's obvious distress, hoped that telling her the truth would help calm her down. "Daddy said that I had to be stronger than him."
"I'm the only one left who can properly train him," Raditz assured. "We're leaving, kid; say goodbye to your mother because you won't see her for a long time."
"I-I won't see mommy?" the boy babbled.
"Not until you've gotten strong enough." the soldier said as he started walking again. The boy struggled and tried to get away, but Raditz simply grabbed Gohan's tail and robbed him of any desire of escaping.
Chi Chi was at a loss, she couldn't think of a way to keep her son with her at home. She couldn't fight that man, he was just too strong and too fast. But she didn't want to lose her only son! Was she supposed to beg that monster not to take her child away? He wouldn't listen to her! What could she do?
If you don't want to be separated from him you should come with us, if you dare of course.
He'd told her those words just minutes before. He had given her the only solution available to this situation. She couldn't stop him or talk him out of it. The only choice she had was to go with him.
"Wait," she called, reaching for his shoulder again. He turned to look at her with an annoyed expression, but she did not falter. "I'll go with you."
"I didn't think you would," the Saiyan admitted with an apparently satisfied smile. "It seems you're not just pretty, but have guts as well."
"What did you just say?"
Raditz did not answer her, he simply smirked and darted an arm around her waist, quickly taking off before she could repeat her question.
0-0
The flight had been very short, less than a minute if she had to guess. They had landed in front of a spherical device unlike anything she had seen before; he had called it a Space Pod when she'd asked about it, and had also ordered her to wait until he finished programming the course to a planet named Hipra.
Chi Chi had almost lost it then. The implications of this, both for Goku and the soldier in front of her were so big and frightening she had decided to put them aside before her mind went into overdrive. The idea she had married an alien, a Saiyan according to the long haired warrior, and bore him a son kept lurking in the back of her mind, though.
Needing something to keep her mind away from thoughts she had no idea how to handle yet, the princess focused on looking at Gohan, who was hardly moving at all. The soldier still held her child by the tail, keeping him weak and defenseless. She had offered to carry him while he worked, but he had refused and had not spoken again since then, almost ten minutes ago.
She observed him work for a few minutes more, sitting inside that strange 'Space Pod' while pressing buttons and muttering things about the numbers the small screen inside the pod showed him. It was interesting, she noted, how he kept Gohan comfortable using only his left arm while at the same time keeping his tail inside his fist.
The man... she frowned then, realizing she had never asked him for his name. Not that she wanted to know, she hadn't wanted to know after what he did to her. Now, however, things had changed. She had chosen, for the sake of her son, to go with this man. Knowing his name was necessary so she could curse him properly for all the things he had done and would probably do.
"Hey," Chi Chi called. "What's your name?"
"The pod's ready," he announced from his seat inside it, not answering her question. "Are you coming or not?"
The widow looked at the small shuttle and felt a burst of fear invade her. If she entered that machine she would leave her world, probably forever. She would never see her father or visit the Ox Kingdom again. Then her eyes settled on her child, still on his uncle's arms and the fear vanished. Gohan was all that mattered, with Goku gone, there was nothing else binding her to this world or to her old life.
Her eyes never leaving Gohan, she marched inside the pod and sat on the lap of the alien soldier.
"My name is Raditz, by the way." the Saiyan whispered in her ear as he sealed the shuttle and allowed her to hold her son at last. "Sleep well, Chi Chi, if you can."
"Sleep? I don't…" Goku's widow could not finish her sentence, for the space pod's hibernation system activated, forcing her into a state of suspended animation.
Once the small shuttle's sensors detected all its occupants were hibernating, it started its engines and blasted off with tremendous speed, leaving behind the planet it had sit still for decades and vanishing into the vastness of space.
0-0
An aero-car adorned with the Capsule Corporation logo landed in a clearing close to the only house in Mount Paoz. A young woman and man got off the vehicle immediately, and made their way to the house without a word. Bulma had not waited for Roshi and Krillin to return from Korin's tower; feeling too desperate for information about her friend's whereabouts, she had called Yamcha instead and asked him to accompany her to Mount Paoz, hoping to find Goku there or to at least talk to his wife to see if she knew something they didn't.
She, however, did not expect to find this.
"It's impossible," She whispered as her strength failed her and cold seemed to spread all over her. She would have fallen on her knees had Yamcha not held her. "It just can't be possible."
"I… can't believe this… it must be a joke," the former desert bandit agreed, feeling as cold as the woman he held.
They had found the stone covered grave outside the house, and read the name on the board marking it: Son Goku.
Struck by the dead of her oldest and best friend, Bulma Briefs could not stop crying.
-End-
Notes:
Very special thanks go to YourSweetSinner for allowing me to continue her story.
This story does not end here (But at one point I did consider making it a one-shot). More chapters will come, detailing the trials and tribulations of Chi Chi's and Gohan's life with Raditz.