Sins of the Father
By NinjaWhisper
(premise and request by Charismatic Beauty)
Summary – A mysterious alien appears on Earth, set on targeting Vegeta. But, instead of hitting him directly with brute force, the villain decides to go through his son, Trunks. Why? Who is this villain? And better yet, how will Vegeta react when his own son declares him an enemy?
Chapter 2
The sky grew dark with occasional flashes of light. It would storm soon but Trunks kept flying, even though he had no idea where he was headed. He thought about stopping at the Son household, but for some reason couldn't bring himself to turn in that direction. Goten was an upbeat teen with little worry. Trunks didn't know if he could stand his jokes and smiles at the moment. Plus, there was Goku, who was attentive since getting back, even to Trunks who was not his son, a stark contrast to Vegeta's harsh training regime. There were times (when Goku instructed how to properly reel in a fishing pole or make a campfire) that Trunks actually wished he had Goku for a father instead. Goku was active in his sons' lives. He wanted to share in multiple areas, not just fighting.
Goku saw his two boys as worthy of showing interest, getting to know them as people. Trunks envied his best friend for having the opportunity to know something he never had. No . . . He would not visit Goten, not now. He needed to be alone.
Lightning and the crash of thunder came, followed by rain. Trunks wished he grabbed his Capsule Corp jacket on the way out. The battle suit was thin and the water soaked through. Trunks lowered atop a mountain cliff. Droplets slid down his hair and into his eyes. He shivered from the cold, but refused to turn back home. Instead, he sat down, cross-legged.
Trunks closed his eyes, intent on meditating the way Piccolo often did, but his mind would not shut off. Instead, he remembered how things used to be with Vegeta. As a child, he had a good relationship with his father. It wasn't that Vegeta changed. No, it was Trunks who changed. He'd been blinded by youth and idealism. Trunks had admired his father as a hero, a Saiyan champion; one of the good guys. Even after Vegeta became Majin and destroyed the bleachers at the tournament, Trunks did not see that his father was selfish. But now . . . Now he knew. He'd learned the truth.
That his father was part of an intergalactic tyranny. That he'd followed a monster. That he'd killed billions of people. As far as Trunks knew, Vegeta had never shown that he regretted it either.
The information about Vegeta's past transformed their relationship, distancing them; along with Bra's birth and Trunks's expansion of interests beyond training. As a teen, Trunks wondered whether any of his perceptions as a child was accurate. One question loomed before all. Had his father ever loved him?
He took in a long shaky breath, despite trying to deep breathe in a meditative manner.
One memory flashed in Trunks's mind that he always tried not to think about because it led to conflict. The only time Vegeta hugged him in his entire life. Trunks had been eight or nine at the time, and Buu already beat his father up because Vegeta's arm dripped blood and one pants leg had been ripped. He'd wanted to help his dad so badly. Vegeta told him to go away, that he had to do it alone. He'd told him to take care of his mother. And then he'd hugged him, told him he was proud, knocked him out . . .
Trunks stood up and hollered into the spray of rain. Dammit. He hated his father. He was angry at his father for going Majin and killing people in the stadium. He could never forgive his father for being part of Frieza's army and erasing whole populations. He was furious that his father sacrificed himself. That he'd let him down after Buu. He'd thought that his father would be different. That he'd be there. But he was the same. Still just as distant and shut off. All about Saiyan training and pride.
Worse of all . . . Trunks noticed his arms shook at his sides. Worse of all . . . He detested that his father had told him about who he'd been. A murderer and a villain, the complete opposite of that image that Trunks had held about his father for so long. He would have rather not known.
Why? Why would his father do that? It was like he didn't care. Some things should be kept in the past. But Vegeta told him everything. Even that he'd been responsible for Cell's perfect form. That he hadn't saved the plane when Trunks had been a baby because he hadn't cared. He said it all with a straight face, no remorse.
Dammit. His father wasn't worth his time. He never got anything back. Nothing but disappointment.
"You are exactly right, Vegeta is not exactly father material and he will never be what he is not."
Trunks startled at the voice but it could have been from the thump of thunder. He spun to see nothing but rock and sky. He turned. No one. For a moment he thought he caught black smoke but it might have been a trick of the eye.
"Who is there?" Trunks felt stupid talking to the air.
"Calm yourself, I mean no harm. I'm here to help you, Trunks Briefs." The voice was masculine and not too young or too old.
Trunks narrowed his eyes. "How do you know my name?"
"I know everything about you."
Trunks shivered, feeling as if something cold brushed against his left leg.
"I know that your father hurt you. I know that you don't feel loved. I can help you get revenge."
"Revenge? You're crazy. I'm out of here." Trunks prepared to lift off but he felt pulled back like a magnet.
"Wait! Tell me what is on your mind. Tell me your disappointment and agony."
"I'm not telling you anything!" Trunks shouted. He considered going super to break free.
Icy wind rushed past the side of his face. Flashes played in Trunks's mind. He saw his father beat Goku. He saw his father standing like stone as a plane fell from the sky. He saw his father as he allowed Cell to gain power from the androids. He saw him going Majin. He saw these things, although he hadn't been there, followed by the devastated and forlorn reaction of his mother at the Tournament and after Vegeta's death.
One small, childlike voice battled against the visions. Papa is a hero now. But grown-up Trunks knew the truth. The voice and the images illuminated the reality of his father. His father was selfish, uncaring, and greedy for supremacy. Nothing had changed.
Vegeta was not human, even though he'd lived on Earth for years; an alien who had never learned the importance of morality or kinship. Aloof and distant.
Inner little Trunks cried. Big Trunks relaxed his shoulders and smiled. The mist swam and swallowed them both.
AN – I'm sorry this took so long. I had some writer's block but now I have it planned.