A/N: Okay, guys, I'm back! For those of you who have just clicked on this story without reading anything else of mine, it's gonna be confusing unless you go in the following order: History of a Dark Saiyan, Redemption of a Dark Saiyan: Face the Past, Redemption of a Dark Saiyan: Faith in the Present, and then this one, Redemption of a Dark Saiyan: Hope for the Future. First one's really long, the others are pretty short. If you don't want to read the long one, you can just start at the first Redemption of a Dark Saiyan one, and pick up the rest from context clues. Kress is Gohan with a Saiyan name; Goten was turned into a Kai but looks the same, only with a white streak in his hair; and Pel is Bulma and Yamcha's daughter, the last true human in existence, and Goten's mate before he became a Kai. If you want the gruesome and painful details, read History of a Dark Saiyan. So, now you're more or less up to speed, on with the story!
(Oh, and because I know you're all going to ask, I wrote in History of a Dark Saiyan that Goten was, in fact, born with a tail. I'm aware that many believe this not to be so, but DBZ never really says one way or the other, and even if it does, the situation of his birth in this story was different than in the canon, so there could easily be a logical explanation for it. Most likely, however, in the normal universe, Goku probably confessed to Chichi since the Saiyan incident that he had been the one to kill his grandfather, and Chichi didn't want Goten to ever have to deal with that psychological trauma and had it cut off at birth. In History of a Dark Saiyan, Chichi dies in childbirth, and Bulma cuts off Goten's tail because everyone in the civilized universe seemed to be afraid of Saiyans, and they had had to stop a few times on the way to Namek (not a lot of notice for fixing up the ship, you know?). Anyway, just thought I'd clear that up, it's going to come up soon…)
Kress was finally starting to get the hang of living on Tech-Tech.
It hadn't been easy at first. In fact, at first, it had seemed nearly impossible. His first few nights here had been… well…
Maddening.
Prince Tarble lived on Tech-Tech, a world that was completely covered by one large city, that was designed like one large machine. It was a scientific work of art, really. On an intellectual level, Kress was in paradise.
Unfortunately, it was also inhabited by the Tech-Tech people, one of whom Prince Tarble was married to. They were short, pale, weak people with flat round heads, no hair, barely discernable facial features, and…
The smell…
Kress had done a valiant job of holding in every emotion as he entered Prince Tarble's home. He had found himself bowing to the Prince's mate, leaving his boots by the door, not growling at all when she came close or asked him a question. Prince Tarble had then introduced his seven children. They were all half the size of his mate (who was very small, smaller than Prince Tarble, who was already very short for a Saiyan), with short spiky black hair on top of their flat round heads. They had tails, and all looked exactly the same. They also wore no armor. Kress had looked to Prince Tarble questioningly, but the prince had explained that they had armor, just were not allowed to wear it in the house. He told Kress he trained all seven of his sons, and that they were much stronger than other Tech-Techs, and were almost as strong as he was. It helped Kress feel a little more at ease, and he was starting to relax a little.
Until it was time to eat.
Kress had tried calling to his brother, but Kai Goten had told him that he was busy with something very important, a mission from the Supreme Kai, and that he would tell him more information when he was finished. Kress had excused himself from meal time, and went to the room Prince Tarble's mate, Gure, had set aside for him. He tried to meditate, to calm himself, to do anything, but nothing was working. He was ready to tell Prince Tarble he had to leave the planet, when he sensed the prince enter his room.
"Kress. Something is troubling you," he said, closing the door behind him. He was standing not far away, his arms crossed, and Kress was reminded of Vegeta.
Kress scowled. "It isn't safe for me to be around these people. I need to go," he said finally, hating himself for his weakness, but knowing it was for the best.
Prince Tarble frowned. "Why? Kress, you've been nothing but polite, I don't see why-"
"NOW!" Kress said, his teeth clenched, as he glared at the small prince. "Take me back now!"
Prince Tarble's eyes widened for a moment, then he scowled, stepping forward. "Not until you tell me what the problem is," he said bravely. He was not that strong of a fighter by Saiyan standards, standards that Kress had long since surpassed. And yet, he did not flinch as he spoke to Kress. "That's an order," he added, his gaze determined.
Kress fought to calm himself, fought not to make this prince, these people, more victims for his conscience to deal with. He closed his eyes. "These people… the Tech-Tech. I didn't know… what they were called, but… I've encountered them before," he said, swallowing hard.
Prince Tarble nodded, starting to understand. "You mean, you've killed them before," he said knowingly.
Kress opened his eyes, glaring at the prince. "No. You think… you think I blasted them away or something…" he said, his hands shaking, sweat forming on his brow. "You don't understand…"
"Then make me understand," Prince Tarble said, taking another step towards him. "What happened?"
Kress turned away in shame, clenching his fists. "Frieza… he had figured out we planned to overthrow him," he said shakily. "He summoned Prince Vegeta… and…" Drops of blood began dripping from Kress's clenched fists, where his nails dug into his palms, but he ignored it. "When Vegeta returned, he was… he was changed. Mad. He killed my uncle, Raditz. That… that was when he started training me…" he said, teeth clenched. "He… he starved me. I was only allowed to eat…. my victims," he whispered, his lip curled. "He treated me… he made me… into an animal. I… started to think like an animal. I…" He shuddered, turning his head farther away. "These people, your people. I… I ate them. A colony of them. They were… intoxicating," he hissed, swallowing hard. "Do you see why you need to send me away? How… how can I sit here, and be fed by your family… when I used to hunt their kind down and eat them alive? How can you think I'm no danger to them, when I know what they taste like?!" he spat harshly.
Prince Tarble regarded him silently for a long moment before he spoke. "Because you're not an animal," he said, his voice soft but stern, causing Kress to look at him, surprised. "You're a Saiyan. We use our instincts, but we are not controlled by them," he said, frowning. "Kress, you told me you killed my brother. You did it without trying, didn't you? How difficult was it?" he asked.
Kress swallowed, confused by the change in subject. "He… he was weakened by Frieza's torture…" he said, defending his former prince.
"How difficult was it?" Prince Tarble asked again, his gaze never leaving Kress's.
"I… not difficult. I didn't intend… I was powering up, and…" Kress said, and Prince Tarble cut him off.
"You killed Vegeta accidentally, by powering up," he said, scowling. "My brother and I had our differences, but I know he was a better man than the one who trained you," he said. "He would never have been stupid enough or weak enough to die the way he did, and he would never have been cruel enough to do what he did to you," he said. "The man who trained you was not my brother. He was a shadow, a creation of Frieza's, and not worthy of any more of your memories! So, tell me, Kress, will you let Frieza's minion get the best of your mind? Does Frieza's poison remain in you still? Will you let him defeat you, even after you ripped him to pieces?!" he demanded.
Kress had never thought of that. He was stunned, speechless, as Prince Tarble turned and left. He was still sitting there when Prince Tarble returned, this time with a large tray of food, which he laid on the table in Kress's room. "The next time we have a meal, you will come get your own," he told him, in no uncertain terms. "And then, the time after that, you will eat with us. You will not eat my mate or my children. You won't eat anyone, on this planet or any other. Do you understand?" he asked.
Kress swallowed, then nodded. "Y-yes, my prince," he said softly.
Prince Tarble left, closing the door behind him.
Outside the door, Gure pulled him to the side, speaking softly. "You are so mean to him, my husband," she scolded him.
Prince Tarble blushed. "It's just how Saiyans talk to each other. I'm his prince, I have to be a little mean," he said. He frowned slightly. "Kress has had a very hard life. He needs a firm hand, to help him find his way. Anything less than that, he would take as an insult, or worse, a threat to his strength," he explained.
Gure sighed. "I do not understand your ways, my husband, but I will do my best to support you. You don't think he will eat the children, do you?" she asked, worried.
Prince Tarble shook his head, smirking. "That would be like admitting defeat. And a Saiyan never does that," he said, bending over to kiss Gure above the eye, a very tender spot for the Tech-Tech. "Now, we should probably make sure the children aren't eating each other," he said, causing Gure to giggle as they returned to the dining room.
That night, Kress stayed up again. He knew two nights in a row of no sleep were bad, but he'd gone longer. Besides, Kai Goten would return at some point, and he would be able to sleep again.
Pathetic, he thought to himself. I'm using Goten as a crutch. Just like I used the energy absorber, he thought, frowning. There had to be a way to keep himself from destroying everything around him while he was asleep, a way that did not involve snuggling up next to his brother like some… cub.
And then his door opened.
A short, pale face with black spiky hair peered at him from impossibly tiny eyes, and Kress clenched his jaw. Not food, not food, not food he repeated to himself in his mind. "What do you want?" he asked gruffly, needing the cub to go away.
Prince Tarble's son… which one was this? They all looked alike to Kress… He just stood, blinking at him. "Your light kept me up," he said, his voice high pitched, grating on Kress's nerves. "Why aren't you sleepin', Mr. Kress?" he asked.
Kress growled low in his throat at that. "I'm not tired," he lied, scowling.
The cub cocked his head, a movement that was made more pronounced by the flat shape of it, and frowned. "You're tired, you got dark eyes like Papa gets," he said, pointing. He smirked. "It's 'cause you're all alone, isn't it?" he asked.
Kress frowned. Were these people telepaths like the Yardrat? "What are you going on about?" he asked, trying to sound as intimidating as he could so the cub would leave.
He could see from the cub's demeanor that there was no chance of that happening.
Kress narrowed his eyes. "Go away," he told the cub directly. The cub did not move. Kress growled. "Leave me alone!"
The cub responded by entering the room completely. He then did the unthinkable; he crawled into Kress's bed next to where he was meditating.
Kress glared at the little cub… thing. He was snuggling up next to him, his tail wrapping around Kress's arm.
Kress swallowed hard.
He wasn't sure when he fell asleep. All he knew was, when Prince Tarble woke him up, the little cub was wrapped protectively in Kress's arms.
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That was a month ago.
Now Kress was in Prince Tarble's training room, wearing a personal gravity generator, sparring with the prince. The gravity generators made them equal, with Kress's being set well above Prince Tarble's. The two were sparring in their base forms, having agreed to no energy attacks beforehand; while the force field protecting this room was highly advanced, it would not stand up to Kress's energy attacks at his level.
Prince Tarble was close to becoming a Super Saiyan, Kress cold tell. And Kress…
He was close to something big. He just didn't know what.
'Gohan, can you hear me?' a voice called in his mind. Distracted, Kress dropped his guard, allowing Prince Tarble to slug him across the face. He smirked at the prince, and dropped him with a kick.
"Goten, kinda in the middle of something," he grunted, earning a raised eyebrow from Prince Tarble, who was just about to rush at him.
'Oh, I see, at first, it's 'Goten, come get me,' and now you're too busy…' came Kai Goten's snide response, and Kress sighed, glancing at Prince Tarble, who gave a patient nod.
"I take it the mission went well?" Kress asked, grabbing a towel as the prince did the same.
'Depends on your definition, but I think it went as well as was possible. Are you ready to go after the capsule?' Kai Goten asked.
Kress groaned inwardly. "Yeah. The Yardrat Council is ready for a prototype model, so they can duplicate the technology according to the parameters I laid out," he said.
'Kay, didn't understand any of that, but… I'm ready when you are,' Goten said, laughing.
"My prince," Kress said, "I need to disappear for a while, to get the capsule from an alternate universe," he said.
Prince Tarble raised an eyebrow. "The alternate universe where my brother is still alive?" he asked curiously. "May I come along?" he asked.
"Goten? That won't break any rules will it?" Kress asked, knowing his brother was already treading a fine line as it was.
'Ha! After what I just went through, North Kai owes me one. Just promise nothing bad happens to Prince Tarble, and he can come along,' Goten replied.
Kress gave the prince a nod. "Grab on," he said, holding out his arm, which the prince took. Suddenly, there was a hand on Kress's shoulder, and the two of them were pulled backwards, and out of existence.
Prince Tarble looked around, feeling rather ill. "That was… unnerving," he said, getting his bearings.
Kress grunted. "Takes a while to get used to," he said.
"Ha!" Kai Goten said from behind them, as they both turned to face the saiyan-made-kai. "Don't let Gohan fool you, Prince Tarble, he still complains every time. Not sure what the big deal is, it's just a minor reality shift, your molecules just need to reorganize themselves, that's all," he said with a shrug.
Prince Tarble raised an eyebrow at that, suppressing a laugh. He still wasn't sure what to make of the Kai, he looked and acted so… well… mortal? He knew from things Kress had told him that the Kai was once half-saiyan, and half a type of alien called 'human', like Kress himself. Though, the two brothers could not be any more different. Kress behaved like any battle-hardened Saiyan warrior, though sometimes Tarble suspected it was nothing more than extremely thick armor, protecting someone who was actually kind and caring, and quite intelligent. Kai Goten, on the other hand, acted nothing like a Saiyan, except in those rare moments when he did for his or Kress's benefit.
The planet they would be going to, this 'Earth', was where the two men came from, the planet of the humans, and Tarble was certain it would be interesting. And not just because he would get to see an alternate version of his brother.
"Thank you for allowing me to come," Prince Tarble told Kai Goten. "I hope it's not too much trouble," he said.
Kai Goten grinned. "Like I told Gohan, North Kai owes me one. This'll be our first trip there on purpose, though, so try to stick together, and I'll try not to scatter everyone's atoms all over creation, okay?" he said flippantly.
Kress growled at that, but Prince Tarble had another question. "If I may ask, Kai Goten… why do you keep calling Kress 'Gohan'?"
Kai Goten shot his brother a look. Kress pointedly looked away. "Gohan…" Goten said warningly, causing Kress to sigh heavily.
"Gohan was the name my father gave me when I was born," Kress grumbled, glaring at Goten.
Prince Tarble frowned at that. "Why would your father name you that?" he asked, concerned.
Kress scowled. "Because he hit his head on a damn rock when he was a kid, and lost all of his memories, and the human who found him was named 'Gohan', which in their language doesn't mean 'mewling wounded beast'!" he spat angrily. "So, when my uncle found me, he took pity on me and gave me a real name, which I've used practically all my life, but my brother somehow thinks it's a bad thing, and insists on calling me a name that I hate!" he said, his fists clenched.
Kai Goten's eyes widened, and he snapped his fingers. "Oh, that reminds me!" he said, "Dad said he wants an apology when you go back. A human apology," he said, backing away slightly at Kress's glare.
"Father wants an apology from me?!" he hissed.
Kai Goten crossed his arms, and scowled. "Not our father, the alternate universe version, and you owe one to both!" he said darkly. "Even you admitted to me that what you did in the alternate universe was wrong. You almost destroyed their planet! And all for your anger at someone else! You remember human apologies, I know you do. You will go to Son Goku first, and then you may go see Bulma and Vegeta," he said, crossing his arms. "And just to make sure you do, I'm coming with you," he said, eyebrow raised.
Kress growled at that, then turned away. "Forget it. We don't need the capsule that badly, I think I remember enough-"
"You're going," Prince Tarble said, his arms crossed as well, and Kress shot him a glare, which Tarble matched. "Or have you forgotten your responsibility to our universe? Saiyans don't apologize with words, we apologize with actions. It just so happens that this 'human apology' is necessary for your saiyan apology to what's left of the universe you tried to destroy. So, get on with it!" he said fiercely.
Kress met his glare for a long moment, then looked down. "Yes, my prince," he grumbled, and looked at Goten. "Let's get this over with," he said.
Kai Goten blinked at the exchange. He had hoped that Prince Tarble would be a good influence on Kress, but he had never expected them to get along like this. He would have to inquire of the Saiyan Prince how his brother had done in the month he was away. He felt like he missed something important…
"Okay, this way, then," he said, and led the way down the corridor. He stopped at a blank wall, and gazed at it. "Take us to the alternate Earth that Gohan fell into last time," he said to the wall.