Chapter 3- A Tight Grip
Gohan ripped off a bit off his left pant leg to make a wrap for Krillen's arm. They had to make some sort of bandage to clot the blood. As Gohan wrapped the crimson fabric over the wound, Krillen watched Gohan carefully. He seemed extremely weakened to the fact his ki had decreased. But he didn't let on though. Krillen felt the worry beginning to darken his heart. Did he not realize?
"Krillen? Maybe I should carry you. I don't want to risk you fainting," Gohan offered.
Krillen was quite bewildered at this suggestion. He bit his lip harder then necessary. Gohan should have been more worried about himself. Krillen felt suddenly as though he was facing Goku again. It made his heart bleed to think such thoughts.
"I'm fine, Gohan," Krillen said softly.
Gohan crossed his arms across his chest and gave Krillen a scowl no doubt inherited from his wild Mother.
"Come on, Krillen. I know you are in need of medical attention. You're in bad shape. I'll carry you."
Krillen watched Gohan carefully. Was Gohan aware of his own condition? Or was he blinded by Krillen's injury? Krillen couldn't understand it. He finally gave up to Gohan's pestering. He climbed onto Gohan's back, wrapping his one unharmed arm about Gohan's neck. Gohan took off at amazing speed skimming over the cold ocean waters below them. Krillen's worries didn't lessen though. Instead they grew. Gohan could go a lot faster then this, even with a load on his back…
"Ha! Look! Land straight ahead!" Krillen cried happily, "Finally!"
"About time. I was getting tired," Gohan smiled wiping some sweat off his face.
Krillen blinked in shock. Since when did Gohan ever get tired except when he was training himself? No one could wear Gohan down in a chase. Krillen tried to shake the thought from his mind. He was bothering him too much.
Gohan was fine…
Gohan landed on the soft sand of the beach and carefully lowering Krillen down too. Gohan smiled and stretched out his arms, "Let's walk to the medic quarters. I want to stretch out my legs."
No sooner had he said this, did he freeze. His eyes darted through the darkness of the buildings about them. Krillen followed his example by getting into fighter stance. Gohan gritted his teeth and sunk into his own fighter's stance. Out of the shadows stepped about twenty shi at least. All of them were armed with their powerful guns or with their power levels. Gohan backed into Krillen as Krillen backed into him. Their backs together they watched in horror as the Shi stepped towards them. Leading them were two familiar faces. Ogama and Ichi.
"How did you find us?" Krillen shouted in anger, "We got rid of the tracker!"
"Easy." Ichi smiled, "This was most likely the course you would have taken. You wouldn't come to the closest shore, you would have to fly south. We knew you needed to get to a Med Center. The southern one is the closest to the beach... And it's closed at sun down, which you would need to treat two rebels. We knew we would end up running into you here."
"Argh! We'll you're not getting us alive! Are they?" Krillen shouted, "Gohan?"
Gohan's eyelids drooped slightly. It seemed as he fighting hard not to faint. Krillen was in shock, "Gohan! Gohan wake up buddy! We need you!"
Gohan tilted and fell onto of Krillen. Krillen caught Gohan carefully shaking his friend to wake up.
"His energy was all used up on getting the tracker out of you and transporting you here. Which was exactly what we intended him to do," Ogama smiled cleverly. "He is too weak to do anything to us now. It's all you, Krillen. All alone."
"No…"Gohan whispered faintly, "Run… Leave me."
Ichi turned to the shi behind her, "Capture them. Make sure the bald one isn't harmed."
Krillen took a step back. If he ran right now he might not be captured. But he couldn't leave his friend's side. Goku's son. Humanity's only hope.
"No… Krillen," Gohan whispered again.
The Shi army surrounded them. Krillen tried to fight but they overwhelmed him and grabbed him from behind. Krillen got sight of a female Shi trying to hold a still fighting Gohan. Gohan managed to free a hand. Krillen reached out for it. His fingers just barely wrapped about Gohan's wrist.
"No," Gohan cringed as the Shi tried to pull them apart. "I won't leave you, Krillen!"
Krillen could only nod for his good arm was in so much pain for holding onto Gohan. They could hear the Shi army struggling to sort out the confusion. Ichi's voice was shouting over the yells to tear them apart.
Gohan's and Krillen's hands were slowly slipping away from each other. Gohan squeezed Krillen's hand harder. Krillen could tell Gohan was losing it. Well, at least Gohan tried. Maybe it was fated to be this way.
"I'll meet you in the afterlife, Gohan," Krillen said sadly.
"Not yet!" Gohan cried, "Please! Krillen!"
Krillen's fingertips slowly slipped down Gohan's palm. Sweat beaded down Gohan's face more then ever now. His body couldn't take this much pain. But he refused to let go of his only family left.
Almost…slipping…almost…
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!" Gohan screamed startling the Shi army about him.
Even Krillen's eyes widened. Gohan's hair lifted upwards. Golden sparks formed about him as if in some dance. Gohan's eyes shimmered with traces of blue. Suddenly, in a flash a bright yellow light, Gohan's eyes faded into a deep cerulean. His hair shot upwards and melted into a shimmering gold. Gohan's muscles grew abruptly and his strength returned but 100x enhanced. Krillen's jaw dropped. The Shi guards that were holding Gohan up were suddenly losing their grip on the boy.
"Gohan! You're Super Sayian!"
Gohan kept his gaze focused on Krillen still muttering the same things over and over to himself. Krillen guessed that he was having a hard time holding on to it.
"I won't let you go. I won't. I can't. I won't," Gohan muttered his sapphire eyes boring into Krillen's.
"Gohan! Listen to me!" Krillen cried. "Go to the Mountains. He will train you. I am sure of it!"
"Sir! Sir! What should we do?!" One of the Shi cried.
"Knock them out you fools," Ichi shouted.
Gohan felt something hard knock him in the back of his neck. His breath went hollow. He felt unpredictably numb. Right before he blackened out he saw Krillen hit the ground. His hand slipped back away from Krillen's. He was out before he hit the sand.
"Did you see him when he went all glowing?"
"Yeah. That was amazing. I haven't seen that since Goku."
"Well, he is said to be Goku's kid."
"You don't say?!"
The voices… they seemed so far away. His head hurt as if someone had hit him. It didn't make sense. Nothing made sense. He had a feeling he hadn't had anything that made sense for a long time…
"What about his friend?"
"Most likely sold. He's pretty strong for a human. He would make a rather valuable slave."
"He asked for it. Being friends with an alien. What was his name?"
"I think it was Krillen."
Gohan squinted at that name. Krillen? Sounded so familiar. He had the sudden urge to get up. Krillen was in danger… He had to save him. Did he? What was going on?
"Hey. I think he moved."
"Really? That's strange. He shouldn't be waking up this fast."
"Lets hurry up. I don't want him to wake up on us."
He? Why did they refer him as he? Didn't they know his name? What was his name? Gohan. Yes. That's it. Why didn't they call him Gohan?
"Here's good. Right here. This alley is good."
"It's a perfect dead end. He won't be able to escape."
Gohan felt himself being lifted off of someone's shoulders and thrown into the dirt. He coughed bitterly and tasted blood. He squinted opened his eyes. All he saw were strange shapes and colors. He gave his head a little shake as slowly everything came into focus.
He was indeed in a back alley. The wall was behind him and two strange men stood in front of him. Both were humans. One was a red head and the other was had a reddish brown hue to his hair. Both had their hair spiked and wore shi uniforms. Gohan sighed at the sight of them. Traitors…
"You know why you are here, alien?" The red head snapped.
Gohan glared at the man addressing him. The man took a step back startled,
"I have a name," Gohan hissed, "My name is Son Gohan. Do not call me that again."
The human traitors ignored him.
"You are to be executed. Right here."
"Then we leave your body here to rot in the rain," The other man laughed nervously.
The two man flinched as a boom of thunder crashed overhead. Gohan didn't move.
"You think you can kill me?" Gohan said. "Kill an alien?"
"If we have too," Both men said aiming at Gohan with their powerful guns.
Before the two humans could do anything, Gohan turned super sayian. He zapped behind the two men and took their guns. He twisted the two weapons into a twisted metal heap. It fell to the ground with a thump. Both men screamed in fear and ran past them. Gohan spun around and aligned the palm of his hand to their retreating backs,
"I didn't think so."
"He's on a rampage!" The voice shouted on the speaker to Lady Xiea's headquarters. "He's looking for his friend! Help us, Lady Xiea!"
Xiea pressed her index finger lightly on the end transmission button. She turned to her two right hand advisors. Ichi and Ogama. A small smile slipped across her young face.
"Let him kill a few more people," She smiled tapping her chin as if thinking it over. "He doesn't realize what he is doing at the moment. I am sure he will regret it later. Even if they are our soldiers."
"And then we should kill him?" Ichi offered.
"No." Lady Xiea grinned.
"But my lady!" Ichi gulped in horror. "The prophesy!"
"Stop being so superstitious," Ogama snapped. "I am sure Lady Xiea has other plans for Gohan."
"Yes," Xiea smiled, "I want to meet this child. I haven't seen him since we first arrived on this planet. I want to see if he is as much like his father as his mother said. If I recall she said that Gohan would kill me."
All three of them laughed chilling the room with their laughter…
"Krillen…" Gohan muttered slightly as he walked.
His eye lids drooped. He slipped in the mud and fell. He gripped the earth as if to attempt to return to his feet. His strength fled him. He knew no more…
"Lady Xiea," A voice called in.
Ichi clicked a few buttons on the tabbing board. The face of the secondary troop's General, Malo, fizzed into focus. His face was a stern as steel and twice as ugly. His matted white hair was placed on his head making him look like a extremely old man.
"Lady Xiea is taking in her meal," Ichi muttered. "What do you want, Malo?"
"We have captured the boy. He collapsed outside West Town. We're taking him in now."
"Good. Did you inform Ogama of his capture?"
"Yes. He arrived shortly after we found him."
"Great. Take him to the dungeons. I will inform Xiea of this news. She will be most pleased…"
To Be Continued
