Nightlife

Disclaimer: I don't own the DBZ story or characters. AU ideas and original characters however are another story…no pun intended.

NOTE: - Set just after the Cell Games

Chapter 1

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Gohan opened his eyes and looked around. There was mist all around him. He looked down and saw through the fog that he was standing on some sort of path.

'Is this another nightmare?' He thought. His heartbeat sped up at the thought. Warily he looked carefully around once more, on guard for any sudden attack.

Ahead of him his eyes picked out a faint glow. Instinctively he started heading for the light. An overwhelming urge to reach it overtook him and he started to run.

As he got closer he made out a door, seemingly imbedded in thick white fog. There was a chair beside the door, on a small porch, with an old man slumped in it. He had a cap pulled down over his eyes, and appeared to be sleeping.

The light was coming from a little lamp hanging above the man, beside the door. Above the door Gohan could make out one word in black lettering. Nightlife.

Tentatively he stepped up from the path onto the porch.

"Evening Gohan." A rough yet soft voice said, drawing Gohan's attention sharply to the old man. He tipped his hat back slightly to look at him with shrewd eyes. "Well go in. Go on." He urged, before resettling his hat and presumably going back to sleep.

Speechless Gohan obeyed. He twisted the shiny black door handle and opened the door.

Loud music and flashing lights assaulted his senses. With a startled cry he slammed the door shut again.

"What is this place?" He asked the old man.

"A club." The old man grunted from under his cap. "You're a little young but you've just as much right to be here as some of the older folks." He yawned and settled back once more into his chair.

Gohan looked nervously at the door, not sure if he really wanted to go in. The music hurt his ears and the lighting made it hard for him to see properly.

"You'll get used to it. Maybe even get ta like it." The old man murmured.

It didn't seem like he had much choice. Gohan took a deep breath and opened the door again. Shielding his eyes with one arm he stepped inside. The door swung shut behind him.

Outside the old man started to softly snore.

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More than a little bewildered Gohan looked around the club called Nightlife. His eyes were adjusting to the crazy lights and he could pick out a bar, and tables positioned around a packed dance floor.

'This certainly is a weird dream,' he thought, making his way around the edge of the dance floor. He peered out into the crowd of dancers, but couldn't make out anything more than a blur of faces and bodies. He did however realise that not all the people here were human.

"Strange." He muttered, inching past a table of beings laughing and shouting drunkenly.

He eventually made his way all the way round to the bar. Just up ahead of him was a short person arguing with one of the barmaids.

As he got closer he realised that the short person was in fact a girl who looked to be around his age. She was the only other kid he'd seen so far. Perhaps she might be able to give him some answers.

"For the last time Kat you're underage! I'm not permitted to give you anything even resembling an alcoholic drink! Get over it already."

"What's the point of being allowed into a club if a girl can't even get a drink?!" The girl, Kat, argued.

"You want a drink? I can give you orange juice, lemonade, creaming soda, water, even milk! Take your pick."

Kat made a sound of disgust and turned her back on the barmaid. The woman made a gesture of wringing the girl's neck before going back to her job.

"Um hi." Gohan ventured nervously. Kat glanced at him once, and then turned to look at him full on.

"Hi! I haven't seen you around here before. What's your name?" She asked brightly.

"I'm Son Gohan." Gohan replied politely, bowing in greeting. Kat blinked, un-used to such a response.

"Well I'm Katina, but you can call me Kat." She held out her hand and Gohan grinned, shaking it.

"You can call me Gohan." He replied.

"Heavens, we're being overrun with children!" The barmaid exclaimed, having just looked up.

"Oh yes, a total of two in the whole stupid club." Kat retorted.

Ignoring her the barmaid asked Gohan, "Would you like a drink dear?"

"Um, can I have water please?" Gohan replied.

"A kid with manners!" She exclaimed. "You could learn a lot from this young man Miss Kat." Kat just rolled her eyes.

Looking around nervously Gohan just had to ask the question that was plaguing him, even if it was stupid and all a dream.

"Is this going to be another nightmare?" He asked the barmaid, hoping the question didn't trigger an appearance by Cell or some other ghost from his past.

"No sweetheart. This is where strong people like you go to escape nightmares." She replied, handing him a glass of iced water.

Gohan's eyes widened in surprise. "This is all real?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes."

"But you hafta be something real special to get here." Kat put in. "Whatcha do?"

"Do?" Gohan blinked, mystified.

"Yeah do." Kat said, rolling her eyes. "The only people who get into here in the first place hafta have done or be doing something important for their world that weighs them down during the day, but at night they can party it off. See?" 

"Um, well I guess I saved the world." Gohan blushed at the stupidity of that comment. But he'd never really thought about it from that point of view before. Always he would look at what he hadn't done, or failed to do. Like he failed his father.

Kat laughed. "You're not serious!"

"Yes I am. I killed an android called Cell who was going to destroy the planet." Gohan replied.

"No way! Which planet is this again?"

"Uh, Earth." Gohan answered.

"Earth! I live near Earth! I didn't know it'd been threatened though. Which country do you come from?"

"I live in the 439 mountain district." He replied.

Kat laughed. "Okay, but of which country." He gave her a blank look. "Continent?"

"The main one." Gohan answered.

Kat gave him a dubious look. "There are eight continents, unless my geography teacher's on drugs or something."

Now it was Gohan's turn to look sceptical. "No, there's one and a whole chain of archipelagos on the western side."

They looked at each other for a few moments, trying to work out if the other one was just being stupid. After a while of neither backing down Kat declared,

"Different dimension."

"Must be." Gohan agreed. There was another silence. "So, what have you, er, accomplished, to be here?" Gohan asked, wanting to find a new conversation topic.

"No idea." Kat replied.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I haven't done it yet. I asked Bert once and he said that he was letting me in 'cause of what I will be and do, which is apparently good enough that I can be here now." She answered

"Who's Bert?" Gohan asked, taking a sip of his drink.

"The old guy out the front. You would of seen him on the way in."   

Gohan nodded. "So how did I get here then?" Kat shrugged.

"You fell asleep." The barmaid answered for her. "But you're only here in spirit, your body is still fast asleep in your bed at home."

"In spirit? Is this the otherworld?" He asked, slightly alarmed.

"No," the barmaid reassured him, "this place is sort of somewhere in between the living plane and the otherworldly plane. A person is closest to this plane when they're asleep, but only the chosen few are allowed to go that bit further. You'll probably think this all a dream in the morning. I know Kat for one forgets it all during the day."

"And how could you know that?!" Kat demanded.

"Because every single night you come up to me and say, "Cool place!" and I offer you a drink as is my job and you say, "Martini, shaken, not stirred. Arrgh!"

Gohan covered his smile at the obviously aggravated barmaid with one hand. Kat shrugged off the damning evidence, turning to rest her elbows on the bar top.

"So, whatcha wanna do then?"

"Huh? I don't know. I only just got here." Gohan pointed out.

"True." Kat answered, blowing some hair out of her eyes. "Are those your pyjamas?" She asked with a smile, looking him up and down.

Gohan looked down at his loose t-shirt and gi pants. "Uh, yeah." He laughed, rubbing the back of his head.

Kat grinned. "C'mon. I know what we can do!" She jumped down from the high bar stool, and ran off, disappearing into the crowds of partying people. Gohan twisted around in surprise, trying to see where she'd gone.

A few seconds later she reappeared, grabbed his wrist, and sharply pulled him off into the depths of the club.

Unnoticed by all, the barmaid stopped wiping the small section of bench she'd been absently rubbing a cloth over for the past three minutes. Turning her back on the noise and tumult of the Nightlife club she picked an opalescent stone out of a non-existent pocket and gently rubbed her thumb over it.

"Fate?" She murmured. "He's here. They're together."

"I know." A soft voice sighed, seemingly coming from the very air around her. "Thanks Destiny, he should be able to keep her darkness under control. Still, do you suppose you could keep an eye on them for a bit? Nudge them a little if you have to. I'm a little concerned with another pair at the moment."

"Sure mum. Don't you neglect papa now." The being known as Destiny replied.

Fate answered with a light laugh. "You know me better than that. One more thing, watch the manager. He'll be making some decisions in…oh, I suppose six years. They're important."

"Understood." Destiny said, cringing slightly. Six years. That would be cutting it thin. But Fate hardly ever asked for favours from her. She had a reason; she always did. But still…six years wasn't very long.

"I'll send my messenger to remind you if you like." Fate said, knowing of Destiny's other commitments.

"I didn't know you had a personal messenger." Destiny replied, smiling at the thought.

"He's not ready yet. But by then he'll be home from the trip long enough to be bored. And boy, do I have work for him then!"

Destiny laughed. "Can't wait to meet him. And thanks."

"No, thank you." Fate replied.

Destiny replaced the stone from where it had come from and sighed. "Maybe I should think about a vacation. Sure did wonders for mum." She laughed to herself. "Course I wouldn't be here if it weren't for that little experiment."

Much amused by her contemplations Destiny casually slipped free of the restrictions of that singular dimension, and dropped into a different plane and time of another.

Hot breath on the back of her neck made her turn around. "Hello Shenron." She smiled, resting her hand on his muzzle. "Time to meet your new Guardian."

"What was wrong with Bert?" His deep grumble reverberated around the large cavern.

"He was tired. He has a much less demanding job now." Shenron snorted, unhappy with this change in routine. "Oh don't be a baby. Come now, I'm sure you'll come to like him." Destiny promised, heading off.

Shenron petulantly told her that he doubted that, as he followed along behind.

"Shenron I love you but if you don't cooperate I'll be forced to do something unpleasant. We don't have much time you see." She sensed he'd stopped following and turned to stare up into his baleful glowing red eyes.

"Give him a chance?" She asked, putting on her most winsome expression.

The Eternal Dragon of Earth sighed, making Destiny's hair blow out back behind her. "Fine." He grumbled.

Destiny flashed him a brilliant smile. "Thankyou Shenron." She said, knowing how much that one phrase pleased him. He didn't get to hear it often.

"Now don't you try to walk all over him." Destiny continued walking. "He may look like a kid but you'd be surprised..."

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