Chapter II
The wind whistled and howled through the dark streets. Not another sound could be heard anywhere. Lights in every symmetrically perfect house lining the roads were out. Not a single stray cat or dog lurked in the alleyways. Gohan, Trunks, and Videl stood in the middle of Main Street. All the stores, movie theatres, and car lots were gone. The mall had been demolished and turned into more homes, every one identical to the one next to it. A dim light in the sky could be noticed, coming from where Town Hall was located. The three walked through the streets, observing what had changed. There were no cars to be seen anywhere. No street signs, no traffic lights. Just houses. Everywhere you looked. Houses. They walked until they came to Town Hall. It didn't look like town hall anymore. It had turned into a castle. Dark, gloomy, and creepy.
"Whoa…what happened here?" Trunks started to walk towards the building but froze when he sensed a great chill. "Something isn't right guys."
"Well duh." Videl said sarcastically.
"Can you feel it? It's just like someone injected liquid nitrogen into my veins." He said shakily.
"Yeah…I do now…" Gohan responded. "Strange." They looked around. It had become night since they were at Gohan's home. "I wonder if they got Goten…"
"I hope my mom is okay…" Trunks wondered aloud. "I think we should go see if Capsule Corp. is still standing. Let's go you two." Without another word they lifted into the air, putting distance between them and the creepy castle. In a few minutes they landed in front of a very battered, but still standing Capsule Corp. Trunks ran to the front door and opened it. There were lights on inside. "Thank God," he whispered, although he had an edgy feeling.
Videl and Gohan exchanged glances and Videl said to Trunks, "I think we're going to go to my daddy's mansion and see what's going on there. Okay?" Trunks nodded silently and they left.
He walked slowly into the main hallway. He looked in the living room. The TV was on, but there was nothing but static. 'Strange,' he thought, 'dad's usually sitting there watching it.' He crept quietly down the hallway, towards his mother's workroom. He heard small noises coming from within and he stood up straight. "Mom…" He stepped a little faster and stopped in front of the door. Trunks was about to enter, but he heard voices; unfamiliar voices of men. There were two of them. Then he heard one of them speak. He pressed his ear to the door and listened.
"Vegeta…Molukan Troop 24 is asking that you make an appearance at the castle. Lord Molukan would like a word with you to discuss our plans."
'Father…' Trunks held his breath. 'What the hell is going on?'
"What are you doing?! Finish it now bitch!" Yelled one man. Trunks heard his mother sob as one man hit her. He clenched his fist in anger.
"FINISH IT!" Yelled the other. "Or else you'll end up like everyone else under Lord Molukan's rule…or better yet, dead!" Trunks heard the hammer of a gun click.
"Please don't kill me," she begged quietly. "Please-"
They hit her again. She yelped in pain. Trunks growled under his breath. "It's done! Please, let me go!" She said, panicking.
"Ah, good," he heard Vegeta, "Lord Molukan will be very pleased. Now, with the capability to travel through time, Lord Molukan can travel back to when Kakarrot was still alive. And he shall have two great forces by his side." Vegeta laughed smugly. Trunks couldn't take anymore. He kicked open the door, knocking Vegeta onto the floor and the device out of his hand.
"Let my mom go!" He demanded.
"Trunks!" Bulma scrambled over to the fallen device and threw it to Trunks. She reached for his hand but suddenly there was a gunshot, and Bulma collapsed onto the floor.
"NO! You bastards!" The second man fired at Trunks and he caught the bullet in his fist. In a sudden rage of hate Trunks shot the two men with a ki beam, killing them instantly.
Vegeta crossed his arms and approached Trunks. "I am a loyal warrior and follower of Lord Molukan. You, young man, would make a great warrior. You now have two options. Join our forces, or perish right now, right here, with that slut you call your mother."
"Don't talk about my mother that way!" Trunks punched Vegeta in the face, knocking him down again. "Weakling!" Trunks ran over to his mother. "Mom, I'm so sorry I ever left you." He brushed her hair away from her eyes.
"T-Trunks…don't worry about me…" she gasped for air and tried to speak again. "Take this…go back, and make it right…" she shuddered and drew her last breaths.
"I love you mom." Trunks took the device in her hand and ran out of the room, avoiding Vegeta. 'What happened to father, he's so weak…' he thought as he dashed out of Capsule Corp. and into the air. His mind raced and he flew faster and faster, towards where Gohan and Videl went. He saw them up ahead, still flying. In a blast of furious energy, he quickly caught up to them.
"What's up? Your mom there?" Gohan asked. Trunks looked down. He told the whole story. Videl looked shocked.
"How could Vegeta give in to something like that? I thought-"
"It's just like when he gave into Babadi and became Majin." Trunks sighed. "He only wants more power. But unfortunately, he has surrendered his power. He's so weak right now. I could touch him with a finger and he'd probably fall over."
"I'm sorry man," said Gohan sympathetically, "all of this is so hard to believe. We've been gone for two years, and this has happened. I'm pretty sure we could have prevented it too…Dammit."
"Gohan, stop hating yourself for it. It's not your fault." Videl tried to comfort him but it was almost pointless. She sighed, "baby…please don't feel bad."
"Look, isn't that where the mansion used to be?" Trunks pointed.
They stopped. "Great, just great. More houses." Videl frowned. "I'm sure daddy's alive though, knowing him, he's too afraid to resist them. He's probably a zombie like all the rest of them."
"Yeah, probably. Hey babe, why don't we go to that underground club? You think there may be free people down there?" Gohan said to try and lighten the mood.
"Maybe." They now kept their comments short, neither of them really wanting to talk about anything. They flew silently to a mountain right outside of Satan City. The secret entrance to the underground was hidden in a cave. They walked into the cave, carefully avoiding sharp stalactites that fell from the ceiling of the cave. Strangely, they seemed to fall only when someone passed under them. Then they would recoil back to the ceiling of the cave and wait for unsuspecting trespassers. They walked deep into the cave watching for more traps, avoiding one every time. They soon came to a solid steel door. There was a button and a speaker outside the door. The three shrugged at each other and Trunks pushed the button. There were a few moments of silence then a voice came over the intercom.
"Who is it?" Said a boy, he sounded to be about fifteen.
"My name is Trunks Briefs, and I'm here with Videl Satan and Son Gohan." Trunks waited for an answer.
"How do I know you aren't one of Molukan's freaks?" asked the boy suspiciously. "How did you find this place? And how did you escape the traps?"
"We are too good for them, I guess." Scoffed Videl.
"Please hold." There was a minute of silence then the door opened slowly to reveal several people, some kids, some in their late teens, pointing guns at Gohan, Videl, and Trunks. They put their hands in the air and walked forward slowly. "State your reason for being here."
"We came here to find survivors of Molukan's attempt to rule the world. Plus, we have nowhere else to go. We've been in space for two years, and we just arrived today. My mother was shot," Trunks paused. He took a deep breath and continued, "Her name was Bulma Briefs. She worked for Capsule Corporation. My father has been turned into one of them. This is my best friend Son Gohan, and his girlfriend Videl Satan."
"The Videl Satan?" Asked the one who answered the intercom, and he slowly began to lower his weapon. "Wow…"
"BEAN!" The boy immediately snapped to attention and raised his gun again.
"Sorry sir." Said the boy, sniffling.
The group parted and a boy, about sixteen stepped forward. He looked familiar to Gohan. His hair was short and he was dressed differently from all of the Goths and Freaks surrounding them. He was dressed in a fighting gi. An orange and blue fighting gi…
He approached Gohan slowly. He looked up at him. Gohan raised an eyebrow. "Brother?" Tears came to the boy's eyes. "Is it really you Gohan?" Gohan drew in a sharp breath.
"Goten…you escaped?"
"Yes…" He quickly wiped his tears when he realized the whole group was staring at him. "How are you Trunks, Videl?"
"Good." They both said in awe.
They all proceeded to walk down the main corridor.
"I'm glad I found you Goten. So, are you like the boss of this place?"
"Yes, but it wasn't easy. I had to prove I was the best leader. And of course, I'm the strongest one here. Don't forget I'm a super saiyajin. That scared the shit out of these people. So here I am, leader. And everyone's too afraid to overthrow me. Isn't that great big brother?"
"Awesome Goten, it must feel great being so popular." Videl exclaimed. "I know what it feels like!" she said jokingly.
Goten smiled warmly. "You guys sure fit in here…look at you! Jeeze Gohan, I never thought I'd see the day when you'd rebel. Always 'momma's little boy'." He smirked.
Gohan poked Goten in the back. "You'd be surprised."
They stopped in front of a door. Goten entered a code into the keypad and the door opened. "This is your room guys. The entry code for the door is JL185. Don't forget it. See you guys tomorrow."
"Wait a minute," Trunks said crossly, "there is only one bed."
"I know…figure something out." With that, Goten teleported away.
"Wow, he learned teleportation. Awesome." Gohan commented.
"Trunks, you sleep on the floor. Come on Gohan." Videl pulled Gohan into the room and pushed him on the bed. "We'll take the bed."
Trunks frowned and glared at Gohan. Gohan shrugged. "I hope we have pajamas at least." Trunks investigated the room. He walked over to the dresser and opened it. Inside was one pair of pajamas. "Just great…Guys! There is only one pair!"
"That's okay, we don't need anything." Videl chimed in. Trunks groaned because he knew he would not get much sleep tonight. He knew what was coming. Just having Videl and Gohan in the same building meant trouble. And by trouble that meant they didn't care who was around anymore, they just went at it. Trunks changed into his pajamas and sat in a corner, distant from Videl and Gohan. They had already stripped of their clothes and were madly at work. Trunks sighed and fell into an uneasy sleep, dreaming of his mother.
The wind whistled and howled through the dark streets. Not another sound could be heard anywhere. Lights in every symmetrically perfect house lining the roads were out. Not a single stray cat or dog lurked in the alleyways. Gohan, Trunks, and Videl stood in the middle of Main Street. All the stores, movie theatres, and car lots were gone. The mall had been demolished and turned into more homes, every one identical to the one next to it. A dim light in the sky could be noticed, coming from where Town Hall was located. The three walked through the streets, observing what had changed. There were no cars to be seen anywhere. No street signs, no traffic lights. Just houses. Everywhere you looked. Houses. They walked until they came to Town Hall. It didn't look like town hall anymore. It had turned into a castle. Dark, gloomy, and creepy.
"Whoa…what happened here?" Trunks started to walk towards the building but froze when he sensed a great chill. "Something isn't right guys."
"Well duh." Videl said sarcastically.
"Can you feel it? It's just like someone injected liquid nitrogen into my veins." He said shakily.
"Yeah…I do now…" Gohan responded. "Strange." They looked around. It had become night since they were at Gohan's home. "I wonder if they got Goten…"
"I hope my mom is okay…" Trunks wondered aloud. "I think we should go see if Capsule Corp. is still standing. Let's go you two." Without another word they lifted into the air, putting distance between them and the creepy castle. In a few minutes they landed in front of a very battered, but still standing Capsule Corp. Trunks ran to the front door and opened it. There were lights on inside. "Thank God," he whispered, although he had an edgy feeling.
Videl and Gohan exchanged glances and Videl said to Trunks, "I think we're going to go to my daddy's mansion and see what's going on there. Okay?" Trunks nodded silently and they left.
He walked slowly into the main hallway. He looked in the living room. The TV was on, but there was nothing but static. 'Strange,' he thought, 'dad's usually sitting there watching it.' He crept quietly down the hallway, towards his mother's workroom. He heard small noises coming from within and he stood up straight. "Mom…" He stepped a little faster and stopped in front of the door. Trunks was about to enter, but he heard voices; unfamiliar voices of men. There were two of them. Then he heard one of them speak. He pressed his ear to the door and listened.
"Vegeta…Molukan Troop 24 is asking that you make an appearance at the castle. Lord Molukan would like a word with you to discuss our plans."
'Father…' Trunks held his breath. 'What the hell is going on?'
"What are you doing?! Finish it now bitch!" Yelled one man. Trunks heard his mother sob as one man hit her. He clenched his fist in anger.
"FINISH IT!" Yelled the other. "Or else you'll end up like everyone else under Lord Molukan's rule…or better yet, dead!" Trunks heard the hammer of a gun click.
"Please don't kill me," she begged quietly. "Please-"
They hit her again. She yelped in pain. Trunks growled under his breath. "It's done! Please, let me go!" She said, panicking.
"Ah, good," he heard Vegeta, "Lord Molukan will be very pleased. Now, with the capability to travel through time, Lord Molukan can travel back to when Kakarrot was still alive. And he shall have two great forces by his side." Vegeta laughed smugly. Trunks couldn't take anymore. He kicked open the door, knocking Vegeta onto the floor and the device out of his hand.
"Let my mom go!" He demanded.
"Trunks!" Bulma scrambled over to the fallen device and threw it to Trunks. She reached for his hand but suddenly there was a gunshot, and Bulma collapsed onto the floor.
"NO! You bastards!" The second man fired at Trunks and he caught the bullet in his fist. In a sudden rage of hate Trunks shot the two men with a ki beam, killing them instantly.
Vegeta crossed his arms and approached Trunks. "I am a loyal warrior and follower of Lord Molukan. You, young man, would make a great warrior. You now have two options. Join our forces, or perish right now, right here, with that slut you call your mother."
"Don't talk about my mother that way!" Trunks punched Vegeta in the face, knocking him down again. "Weakling!" Trunks ran over to his mother. "Mom, I'm so sorry I ever left you." He brushed her hair away from her eyes.
"T-Trunks…don't worry about me…" she gasped for air and tried to speak again. "Take this…go back, and make it right…" she shuddered and drew her last breaths.
"I love you mom." Trunks took the device in her hand and ran out of the room, avoiding Vegeta. 'What happened to father, he's so weak…' he thought as he dashed out of Capsule Corp. and into the air. His mind raced and he flew faster and faster, towards where Gohan and Videl went. He saw them up ahead, still flying. In a blast of furious energy, he quickly caught up to them.
"What's up? Your mom there?" Gohan asked. Trunks looked down. He told the whole story. Videl looked shocked.
"How could Vegeta give in to something like that? I thought-"
"It's just like when he gave into Babadi and became Majin." Trunks sighed. "He only wants more power. But unfortunately, he has surrendered his power. He's so weak right now. I could touch him with a finger and he'd probably fall over."
"I'm sorry man," said Gohan sympathetically, "all of this is so hard to believe. We've been gone for two years, and this has happened. I'm pretty sure we could have prevented it too…Dammit."
"Gohan, stop hating yourself for it. It's not your fault." Videl tried to comfort him but it was almost pointless. She sighed, "baby…please don't feel bad."
"Look, isn't that where the mansion used to be?" Trunks pointed.
They stopped. "Great, just great. More houses." Videl frowned. "I'm sure daddy's alive though, knowing him, he's too afraid to resist them. He's probably a zombie like all the rest of them."
"Yeah, probably. Hey babe, why don't we go to that underground club? You think there may be free people down there?" Gohan said to try and lighten the mood.
"Maybe." They now kept their comments short, neither of them really wanting to talk about anything. They flew silently to a mountain right outside of Satan City. The secret entrance to the underground was hidden in a cave. They walked into the cave, carefully avoiding sharp stalactites that fell from the ceiling of the cave. Strangely, they seemed to fall only when someone passed under them. Then they would recoil back to the ceiling of the cave and wait for unsuspecting trespassers. They walked deep into the cave watching for more traps, avoiding one every time. They soon came to a solid steel door. There was a button and a speaker outside the door. The three shrugged at each other and Trunks pushed the button. There were a few moments of silence then a voice came over the intercom.
"Who is it?" Said a boy, he sounded to be about fifteen.
"My name is Trunks Briefs, and I'm here with Videl Satan and Son Gohan." Trunks waited for an answer.
"How do I know you aren't one of Molukan's freaks?" asked the boy suspiciously. "How did you find this place? And how did you escape the traps?"
"We are too good for them, I guess." Scoffed Videl.
"Please hold." There was a minute of silence then the door opened slowly to reveal several people, some kids, some in their late teens, pointing guns at Gohan, Videl, and Trunks. They put their hands in the air and walked forward slowly. "State your reason for being here."
"We came here to find survivors of Molukan's attempt to rule the world. Plus, we have nowhere else to go. We've been in space for two years, and we just arrived today. My mother was shot," Trunks paused. He took a deep breath and continued, "Her name was Bulma Briefs. She worked for Capsule Corporation. My father has been turned into one of them. This is my best friend Son Gohan, and his girlfriend Videl Satan."
"The Videl Satan?" Asked the one who answered the intercom, and he slowly began to lower his weapon. "Wow…"
"BEAN!" The boy immediately snapped to attention and raised his gun again.
"Sorry sir." Said the boy, sniffling.
The group parted and a boy, about sixteen stepped forward. He looked familiar to Gohan. His hair was short and he was dressed differently from all of the Goths and Freaks surrounding them. He was dressed in a fighting gi. An orange and blue fighting gi…
He approached Gohan slowly. He looked up at him. Gohan raised an eyebrow. "Brother?" Tears came to the boy's eyes. "Is it really you Gohan?" Gohan drew in a sharp breath.
"Goten…you escaped?"
"Yes…" He quickly wiped his tears when he realized the whole group was staring at him. "How are you Trunks, Videl?"
"Good." They both said in awe.
They all proceeded to walk down the main corridor.
"I'm glad I found you Goten. So, are you like the boss of this place?"
"Yes, but it wasn't easy. I had to prove I was the best leader. And of course, I'm the strongest one here. Don't forget I'm a super saiyajin. That scared the shit out of these people. So here I am, leader. And everyone's too afraid to overthrow me. Isn't that great big brother?"
"Awesome Goten, it must feel great being so popular." Videl exclaimed. "I know what it feels like!" she said jokingly.
Goten smiled warmly. "You guys sure fit in here…look at you! Jeeze Gohan, I never thought I'd see the day when you'd rebel. Always 'momma's little boy'." He smirked.
Gohan poked Goten in the back. "You'd be surprised."
They stopped in front of a door. Goten entered a code into the keypad and the door opened. "This is your room guys. The entry code for the door is JL185. Don't forget it. See you guys tomorrow."
"Wait a minute," Trunks said crossly, "there is only one bed."
"I know…figure something out." With that, Goten teleported away.
"Wow, he learned teleportation. Awesome." Gohan commented.
"Trunks, you sleep on the floor. Come on Gohan." Videl pulled Gohan into the room and pushed him on the bed. "We'll take the bed."
Trunks frowned and glared at Gohan. Gohan shrugged. "I hope we have pajamas at least." Trunks investigated the room. He walked over to the dresser and opened it. Inside was one pair of pajamas. "Just great…Guys! There is only one pair!"
"That's okay, we don't need anything." Videl chimed in. Trunks groaned because he knew he would not get much sleep tonight. He knew what was coming. Just having Videl and Gohan in the same building meant trouble. And by trouble that meant they didn't care who was around anymore, they just went at it. Trunks changed into his pajamas and sat in a corner, distant from Videl and Gohan. They had already stripped of their clothes and were madly at work. Trunks sighed and fell into an uneasy sleep, dreaming of his mother.
