Two Sides
Chapter 4: The End

"Everyone inside! I think I finally found what we're looking for!"
The Z fighters and family quickly moved from living and piled into Bulma's cramped lab. Since Vegeta's prompt appearance, attack and exit only a few days beforehand, it had left them with innumerable worries an even more questions. One that had stood out among them though was the strange occurrence just before Vegeta broke Trunks neck; every single person present had experienced a blackout and memory loss. Once all the fighters had been brought back to full strength, Bulma had begun night and day testing on the Z fighters on everything from their physical strength and hand-eye coordination to their psychological state and emotional stability. But after four days, the tests had failed to show anything abnormal. Until now, that is.

"I think I've finally isolated whatever it is that caused that black out." Bulma informed the group, eyes still fixed on the huge super computer she was operating with the ease that most people handle a toaster.

"All you're blood work came back today and while your cell count, vitamin, mineral, chemical and pH levels are all normal, I've found something odd affecting your cells directly."
She hammered at a few keys as a huge video loop came to dominate the screen. On it seemed to be small red discs flying at incredible speeds, but with little speckles of grey covering a great deal of their surfaces.

"What we have here is footage out your red blood cells in a simulation of your circulatory system. And these things…" she zoomed in until the little grey specks began to look like steel shells with six legs. "…are nanites."
The Z fighters looked up in disgust at the hundreds of nanites on screen that infested each and every blood cell like some kind of mechanical colony. Those things were inside them.

"What're they doing there?" asked Piccolo.

"So far they seem to be some kind of remote triggered attack system. It's incredibly advanced; way beyond almost anything we can build on earth currently. While I'm not entirely sure what they're capable of exactly, I do know they serve at least 2 functions when activated."
She entered a few key strokes and the screen panned out until it showed a full representation of the human circulation system to scale.

"It seems that as they travel through the body when active, they release a neurotoxin that sends muscles into violent spasms and overloads the nerve system by increasing the amount of bio electricity given off, giving the feeling of being electrocuted while being torn limb from limb." She paused to let the boys absorb the information in stony silence.

"But they do their primary job once they reach the brain." Bulma pointed out the multiple blood vessels that ran to the brain, the area highlighting on screen. "Once they get inside, they attack the prefrontal cortex with a huge amount of electricity to destroy all the locally produced proteins."
When she realized she was receiving nothing but blank stares she sighed exasperatedly, clenching the bridge of her nose between here eyes, before elaborating.

"The prefrontal cortex is the sector of the brain primarily responsible for short term memory and motor control. If the proteins are destroyed, you're unable to store memories or control your limbs; so even if you were aware you were having a seizure, you wouldn't be able to fight it and you certainly wouldn't remember it."

"But that still leaves the Neurotoxin unaccounted for. If it's still in our system, how are we still standing?" asked Gohan.

"That what I thought too. But it seems upon deactivation, the nanites also release a neutralizing agent that converts the toxin to water and leaves no trace of its presence. But that's the only upside."

"So what do we do about them then? We can't just leave them inside our bodies until whoever is controlling them gets bored and decides to kill us. Can't we try and flush them out or fry them with a magnet?" pressed Gohan further.

"There's far too many of those things to remove on a cellular level and I'm afraid there might be a failsafe that if they're tampered with, they might activate and kill the host."
A beeping message appeared on the computer screen, drawing Bulma's attention away. She pressed a key and the machine began to print the message. Once it had finished, she tore off the sheet and quickly glanced over it, the lines in her face hardening the longer she stared at it.

"And the bad news doesn't end there." She stated grimly. "Just to be safe, I ran the tests on Trunks, Bra, Goten, Chi-Chi and Videl. All the results just came back positive for the presence of Nanites."
The air was heavy with silence. Bulma had essentially just handed them all a death notice. These things were inside each and every one of them and could kill them at any second. And they were powerless to do anything about it.

"So those are our options then?" asked Tien, bland and serious as ever. "Just sit here until we get electrocuted or until Vegeta comes back for seconds? Because I for one am not sitting around waiting until it's my turn to go. If I'm dying I'm doing it on my feet." The three eyed warrior promptly turned on his heel and went to leave the lab, but stopped short of the exit when he heard laughter.

It was Bulma, chuckling quietly away to herself. Tien didn't seem to be the only one at least somewhat perplexed by the outburst.

"Ah Tien, still as serious as the day I met you." Bulma sighed. "Don't worry boys; you'll all get your turn. If nothing else, I managed at least one productive thing from this research." She immediately began digging around in the drawers full of junk and spare parts that were all over the lab.

"There was one last thing I found out about the Nanites." She said while she continued rifling. "They work on encoded frequency that is almost impossible to break. But, to scramble your signal like that, you'd need a pretty high end scrambler and the origin of the broadcast relatively close by to avoid such a dangerous weapon being hacked or intercepted."
A smile suddenly blossomed across her face as she pulled out an old Dragonball Radar and held it up for the group to see.

"If you guys can give me a little time, I can jury rig the Dragonball Radars to locate the source of the signal and hopefully we can find whatever is controlling these things and Vegeta with it."

"Why don't we just find the Dragonballs and ask Shenron to get the Nanites out of our bodies?" asked Krillin.

"It's too risky." Answered Goku. "Whoever this is, they're too dangerous as they are. I they ever learned about the Dragonballs existence, it could spell the end of more than just our lives. It could mean the whole Earth and farther still. We can't take the risk of alerting them."
"Bulma, how soon can you have the radars ready to use?" said Goku, immediately switching his attention without break.

"At a push, within the hour."

"Perfect. Gohan I want you to go home, get Goten, Chi-Chi and Videl and bring them here. They'll be coming with us where we can keep an eye on them. If the Nanites activate, you, Goten and me are more likely to recover from it. We can't take the chance that they might be seriously injured while we're gone. Yamcha, you do the same for Trunks and Bra. We'll get in and hit as hard as we can, no holding back."
The two boys took off without question, leaving the rest of the Z Fighters to prepare for the impending battle. Tonight they were taking their bodies back, or die trying.

True to her word, Bulma's work had taken her only fifty or so minutes to fix the Dragon Radar to track the broadcast signal rather than the Dragonballs. With all their families either present of hidden safely away, the mismatched bunch consulted the radar showing their destination to be about 500km north-west of their position. Without a moment's hesitation, they flew off at the highest speed the humans could manage, with Bulma, Bra and Chi-Chi tagging behind in a Capsule Corp issue jet.

It wasn't long before their destination started coming close and with it; a foul and rancid odour filled the air that made the fighters gag and their eyes sting. Once their final stop was no more than an easy 10km away, the sky suddenly began to fill with ominous dark clouds, tinged with green on their edges and looking like they were ready to burst.

"Huh, not exactly the most pleasant place is it?" remarked Krillin to Gohan, looking down at the reeking marshes that sped by below them.

"I'm not surprised really. Videl and I learned this place used to be a centre for Chemical Weapon Development when we were in high school. Apparently some big accident turned it into a quarantine zone. It looks like time hasn't done it any favours though."

"Guys, we're here!" came a call from the front. The troupe pulled to a stop, leaving them hovering a hundred or so feet above a large, black rectangular building. No windows, no doors and no grids for ventilation. And that also meant to entrance and no exit.

"So what do we do know?" asked Yamcha. "We can't exactly go in.

"We blow it to Kingdom come, that's what we do." answered Piccolo dryly. "And we end our problems with one shot."

"Sounds good to me." Replied Goku.

"Videl, do you mind going back with Mom and Bulma?" Gohan asked. "If this works, the explosion is gonna be big. And don't forget to cover your eyes. It's gonna get bright too."

"Sure."
Videl drifted back to the stationary, hovering jet and relayed the request for room to Bulma. The azure haired woman backpedalled the jet several hundred meters before setting it down on the most solid patch of ground she could find.

"Okay guys get ready!" Called Goku, powering up into a Super Sayain. Gohan, Goten and Trunks followed his example as the air began to vibrate from the rising energy of the nine warriors. Picking out a single point in the centre of the building, everyone began to take aim at that point, balls of energy being focused into palms and fingers to deliver the blast that would hit like a nuclear bomb.

"Everybody fire on my mark!" yelled Goku. "3! 2! 1! FIRE!"
The air exploded in a huge shockwave as all the pent up Ki was released in the huge tidal waves of attacks, the beams of light seeming to carve their way through space itself.

"KAMEHAMEHA!" Goku, Gohan and Goten yelled in unison, their beams colliding and mingling to create and almighty titan blast, far greater than anything they could have made on their own.

"SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!"

"SPIRIT BALL!"

"DESTRUCTO DISC!"

"DODON RAY!"

"TRI-BEAM CANNON!"

"FINISH BUSTER!"

An immediate piercing light flashed from the point of connection, so intense, that to look can it could cost you your eyes. After the flash there was a moment of intense heat, followed by an almost surreal silence. But the silence didn't last as the explosion fired off, toppling trees and stripping top soil off the ground for miles. Even the clouds directly above were blown away to reveal a brief flash of fading evening sunlight before the vacuum began to pull all the wreckage back into the epicentre of the attack, dragging tonnes upon tonnes of debris and waste onto the building.
The attack had only lasted a few seconds, but its effect would be seen on the land for much time to come. The effort of not only performing the deep, but resisting the fiery forces that had attempted to hurl them around had left them thoroughly exhausted. Panting in mid-air, they waited for the dust cloud to settle so they could inspect the extent of the damage. But to their everlasting horror, the murky clouds settled to reveal that the building was not only standing, but totally unharmed.

"Not even a scratch!" exclaimed Piccolo in disbelief. "What the hell is thing made of?!"

"Look there!" yelled Krillin, pointing at the far side of the building.
The Z fighters could see where Krillin had pointed, there appeared to be one of his destrco discs hovering in mid-air, but its progress was being impeded by a small patch of green glass that seemed to be floating with it. Testing to see if this wasn't just coincidence, Goku fired off a single Ki blast at the building. Just before the golden orb could strike the structure, it suddenly smashed into a section of green glass that appeared from nowhere an exploded on impact.

"Damn, it must have some kind of energy shield." Said Goku. "We wasted all that energy for nothing."
But almost as if triggered by his words, a section of the front of the building suddenly retracted and slid to the side, creating an entrance.

"Um, guys? Did, we win?" asked Krillin, somewhat perplexed and not sure if he really wanted a contradiction.

"No, it's obviously a trap." Said Piccolo. "If we go inside, we're essentially hanging a dinner bell around our necks."

"But we have no other choice Piccolo." Retorted Goku. "We can't destroy this thing from the outside, so we'll just have to go inside to destroy the transmitter and take whatever risks come with it."

The gang of fighters touched down and prepared to enter the almost cavernous entrance to the buildings, but stopped when they heard the thudding of feet coming their way. Looking back, they could see the women racing over to them as fast as their legs would carry them.

"Where… do you think… you're going?" panted Videl, the first one to reach the Z fighters.

"We're going inside." Replied Gohan. "We think it would be safer for you and our moms to stay outside."

"What?!" yelled Videl outraged. "Gohan, I'm a grown woman! I can take care of myself and I don't need you to be making decisions for me concerning my health!"

"Videl…" began Gohan, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't you 'Videl' me!" she snapped, batting his hand off. "I'm not sure if you've realized, but I have as much of a right to get this bastard as you do. Those… things are inside me too and if they can kill me at any given moment, then I want to look their creator in the eye and let him know he can't break me!"
After a moment of tense silence, Gohan reached out and pulled her into a tight hug, holding her still.

"That attitude." He sighed, whispering into her ear. "That's the reason I love you." Releasing the hug, he gave her an assuring smile that she gladly returned. "That and those eyes."

"Gohan…" she blushed. "Not here. Your parents are over there."

"Well, that should give us about ten foot head start when mom notices."

"Stop." She giggled, pushing him away playfully.

"Okay you two, enough. We need to go in now." But despite the situation, everyone could see Goku was trying to keep the smile off his face and stop Chi-Chi from going ballistic. Truthfully, the couples' simple, honest and playful relationship was certainly a good morale boost. Suddenly, the task ahead didn't seem quite so insurmountable. The group filed through the huge open doorway, not even feeling the energy shield that only a few minutes ago had easily repelled their most powerful attacks. The second the last of them set foot inside the threshold of the behemoth structure, the door slid closed instantly with a damning BOOM. Nobody even attempted to try and open it. They all knew that they were now in the Vipers nest and pretty soon, they'd be facing the fangs. Silence and darkness pervaded them in all directions. Goku powered up into Super Sayain as quietly as he possible could to provide some light for them to see by. His golden light seemed to grow cold as it reflected dimly off the dead greyish black of the walls. Without a word, they began to walk. Like a single candlelight in a huge abyss, they wandered the almost never ending parade of hallways, the only sound to hear the clacking of their feet as they rebounded hollowly off the stone floor. The atmosphere of the building was suffocating, each person feeling like they'd been smothered in an extra layer of skin. Goku even had to stop himself a few times when he found he was unconsciously reaching up and rubbing his chest, trying to ease the feeling of paranoia and breathlessness brought on by the darkness. Despite the fact that there was only one path, it somehow felt like they were lost, in some way having been swallowed by a gigantic beast without ever realizing. But as they continued, Goten spotted something. At first it looked like just another dull reflection of his dads light, but the shape seemed too definite, not blurred at the edges. And as Goku kept walking, the reflection didn't move or waver; it remained fixed.

"There's an exit!" yelled Goten, scaring the living daylights out of the group from his sudden outburst of noise. Backpedalling to the turn they'd missed, everyone saw exactly what he was on about.

"Good work Goten!" said Goku, giving him an affectionate pat on the head. "Alright, let's go."
But as they began to walk, it seemed that the door was not close as they had first anticipated. The small rectangle of light soon revealed itself to be a gargantuan gateway that opened up into a square room which was easily big enough to hold an entire house, maybe even a small apartment building, still made out of the same dead, dull stone. But as Goku set foot over the threshold, a huge gate came hurtling out of the roof as break neck speed. Piccolo, the fastest to react, immediately grabbed as many people as he could and yanked them back out of the crushing reach of the door as Goten pulled Trunks into the large room as Gohan did likewise with Videl. The heavy seal slammed shut but Goku still scrambled at its base, trying to get some leverage to prise the thing open, but there was none. The floor met the wall perfectly and was as smooth as glass.

"Chi-Chi!" Goku yelled, pounding the side of his fist on the door. "Guys, are you okay in there?! C'mon answer me!"

"I'd stop that pounding if were you. If you thought that door fell fast, then you'll be surprised how quickly the rest of the ceiling can come down."
Heads turned collectively to see Vegeta standing there, smug as ever.

"You!" snarled Goku.

"Me." Smirked Vegeta.

"Vegeta, just let us past." Gohan tried to reason with the elder Sayain. "Or better yet, take us to whatever is doing this to us. If we work together, we can all get out of here alive."

Do not listen to them Vegeta. Make any attempt to help them and they will suffer.

"I'm not here to be your tour guide runt." Spat Vegeta. "I'm here to keep you back. Now, either fight and amuse me as long as you can or play dead and don't waste my time."

"Dad…" Trunks began.

"Shut up boy!" yelled Vegeta. "Look at you, turned into a snivelling coward, hiding behind the backs of those who are not of your kin! At your age, I would have taken any opportunity to kill my father!"

Good Vegeta, continue. Make him hurt.

"You're a disgrace to your race, your heritage and most of all, me."

"Enough!" yelled Goku, stepping in the way of the proceedings. "You've had your time to reconcile Vegeta, but now we're going to end this!"

The temperature in the room suddenly spiked as Goku's hair stood straighter, completely clearing his face save for a solitary strand of hair. Arcs of lightning began to crackle and rage around his body, melting the stone they struck while Goku stared Vegeta down with murder in his eyes.

"Not a bad parlour trick Kakrot. But…" Vegeta's body was suddenly swallowed in light as his hair turned a blinding gold, his forks of lightning firing off his own body, countering Goku's in mid-flight, like deadly premonition of the battle to come. "…but far from unique."

"EAT THIS!"
Goku shot forward, Ki balled in his fist, striking Vegeta as his punches exploded on impact. Goku got in two lucky shots before Vegeta threw up his defence, deflecting the punches away to avoid the explosions. Suddenly countering, Vegeta threw a volley of backhand strikes; all of them were deflected, but were followed off by a powerful right hook that Goku scarcely dodged before Vegeta tore a huge block out of the wall. As Vegeta pulled back his fists, he saw two large shards of stone buried in his knuckles. Tensing his fist, the stone slid out without his even touching it. Without hesitation, he barrelled back into his assault, throwing a left hook that turned into a grab before pulling Goku in close and hammering hard with his right elbow. Goku just managed to hold up against the elbow strikes, but a sly knee to the stomach made his drop his hands and open up to the last elbow strike that sent him slamming into the wall. Vegeta went for a forward kick, but Goku countered with his own foot, throwing Vegeta off balance as Goku landed a donkey punch on the side of Vegeta's throat. Goku went in for another blow but Vegeta batted his attack away, countering with a stream of punches coming from the sides at the rate of machine gun fire. Goku was holding his defence solid until Vegeta slipped inside the guard he'd been drawing wider and wider until his shoulder slammed into Goku's stomach, rocketing up and burying him in the ceiling. Goku hadn't so much as hit the ceiling though before a two footed kick struck Vegeta in the face, send him hurtling back to the ground. When Vegeta looked back up, he was caught by a blinding light that stunned him for a moment. When his vision finally returned, Goku's hair was cascading down his back in hue golden spikes, his eyebrows were gone and his expression was as hard as granite.

"I'm done playing Vegeta." He growled. "I intend to end this, this minute. You can give up or I'll destroy you. Your choice."

You're not fighting seriously Vegeta. Use all your power; it's the only way to save them. You know what will happen if you don't.

There was dead silence save for the constant rushing of air caused by Goku's aura until Vegeta began to cackle. He laughed smugly and sadistically as he pulled himself back onto his feet, never breaking eye contact.

"It never ceases to amuse me how you always expect me to submit Kakrot. And most times, I admit, I'd be better off if I had."
A sudden roar shout ripped from Vegeta's throat as wave after wave of pressure pushed out from his body. The air rippled and vibrated, suddenly gaining the taste of static and metal. The light around Vegeta's body intensified, forcing Goku and the other to shield their eyes. The thus far sturdy rock began to crack and break under the strain of Vegeta's power output, but the moment his yells reached a shrieking, deafening climax did chunks explode out alongside an impossible strong flash of light. When the light finally subsided, Vegeta's hair had reached his ankles in spiked, blonde bangs. His eyebrows were gone, his muscles were pumped and his face was set in an expression of utmost confidence.

"But this time, I won't be."
Closing the distance between them instantaneously, Vegeta began pounding away at Goku with everything he had. It was obvious whatever training Vegeta had undergone during his disappearance had finally given him an edge over Goku, and now that they were both Super Sayain 3, the transformation seemed to have only widened that gap.

"Guys, dad's getting creamed out there! We gotta help him!" yelled Goten before powering up and heedlessly rushing into the unfolding battle.

"Goten, wait!" Trunks barrelled straight after his friend.

"Trunks, Goten stop!" Gohan bellowed, trying to get them to come back, but afraid to leave Videl vulnerable during such an intense battle in such close quarters.

"Gohan I'll be okay!" Videl shouted over the incredible cacophony of noise. "Go help your family!"
Still reluctant, but determined none the less, Gohan shot into the fray to try and find the boys before dealing with Vegeta. He found them hammering away uselessly at Vegeta's exposed back, their blows not enough to even draw his annoyance.

"You two, use the Fusion Technique!" Gohan shouted. "I'll keep Vegeta busy and take the heat off dad! And hurry!" The two boys nodded their affirmation before backing up to get the space they needed. Gohan transformed to Super Sayain 2 and hammered Vegeta as hard in the stomach as his legs would allow him. The reaction the elder Sayain gave was not as satisfactory as Gohan would have liked, but it was taking the heat off his father.
"C'mon Vegeta! If you're as tough as you say you are prove it! Try and beat the kid that stopped Freiza when you couldn't!"

That one hit home. Vegeta immediately dropped Goku and rushed Gohan like a wild animal. No fighting logic or tactics. Just raw strength and brutal force that was almost impossible to match. The two boys had set up their space and were exactly five steps from the centre in both directions.

"Ready?"

"Ready!"

"Fuuuu…" they called, moving in perfect sync. "…sion. HAH!"
Their finger touched and a brilliant flashed swallowed their beings. Just a second later, an older boy of larger stature was standing where they had been and he was a Super Sayain 3.

"The Hero of Justice is back! Super Gotenks!" he cheered throwing up a peace sign. "Now let's get down to business."
He immediately flew straight at Vegeta at breakneck speed, head-butting him straight from the offset; leaving an exhausted and beaten Gohan to collapse on the ground. The young, fused Sayains put up a good match, but with his greater size and strength, Vegeta was slowly winning through.

"Galactic Donuts!" yelled Gotenks, throwing his signature energy ring. But the pose and presentation of the attack had given Vegeta more than enough time to dodge and swoop back in to smash Gotenks head first into the wall. Now unconscious, the fusion failed and Gotenks separated back into Goten and Trunks.

Good, now finish the job Vegeta.

Panting heavily, Vegeta stalked his way back towards Goku's prone form, ready to end the long running rivalry.

"Oh no you don't!" The call came out of nowhere, much like the kick to the head that accompanied it. If he had not been so preoccupied, Vegeta would have easily just stood against such an attack without feeling it. But being so tired and focused, Videl's kick caught him at just the right angle to make him stumble. But the second punch he braced against as she hit him straight on the cheek. It felt like punching lead to her. The pain in her hand soon became a minor complaint to the pain in her throat and the pressure in her head as Vegeta choked the life out of her.

"No… more… DISTRACTIONS!" he yelled, slapping her backhanded across the room. Gohan woke in immediate response to the loud WHACK, opening his eyes just long enough to see Videl finish her flight across the room before sliding to a stop. Panic gripped his chest as he staggered up, heedless of wounds or fatigue and ran the few dozen meters to her.

"Videl, can you hear me?" he asked, lifting her head gently. "C'mon it's me, Gohan. You have to wake up now." But the small streams of blood dribbling from both her mouth and ears only escalated his panic along with her refusal to respond. "Please wake up. Come on Videl, you can't do this. Remember what I told you earlier? About me loving you? I meant it…"
Her eyes were open now, but they were dark, not responding to the faint light he was giving off.

Oh, this is wonderful Vegeta! I couldn't have asked for a better show.

"Don't go…" he whispered, a single tear sliding down his face and coming to splash down on her cheek. "I… I just want to hear your voice…"

"Done crying runt?" mocked Vegeta. "If you like I can help you join her in the next life."

"You…" Gohan said deadpan, rising slowly to his feet. The air began to rage around him; his soul feeling like it was being swallowed by a raging inferno. His Ki was rising uncontrollable. He could feel it slipping. Soon, it would be gone. "You… YOU!"

With an outrageous battle cry, he launched himself bodily at Vegeta, sinking a punch deep into his chest. The sheer ferocity of the punch snatched the breath out of his lungs, but Gohan didn't even give him the time to draw breathe. He fired of a punch to the left catching him in the head and then another from the right. And from the left. And then the right. Left. Right. Left. Right. Left. Right.
A flurry of attacks that increased in intensity and speed every second, striking Vegeta with such speed, he barely had time to flinch from one punch before another bashed him in the opposite direction. Suddenly stopping, Gohan front kicked Vegeta straight into the opposite wall, embedding him in the rock as he rose into the air, a pair of viscous Ki reserves building in the palms of both his hands.

"HAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
A blindingly fast volley of energy blasts pounded the wall where Vegeta lay stuck, sending tremors rumbling across the floor and walls. The combined motion and noise was enough to rouse Trunks back to consciousness, leaving him awestruck to his still numb brain at the incredible display of power he was witnessing.

"Goten, wake up!" he called, trying to shake his friend awake. "There's something wrong with Gohan!"
The younger Sayain stirred uneasily, but still woke.

"Ugh Trunks, why'd you wake me so early? It's not even…" but he stopped dead the moment he saw Gohan going berserk in mid-air. "Trunks, what happened?!" He yelled, suddenly wide awake.

"Gohan's lost in rage Goten. And there's no way to stop him until he's had enough." The two younger Sayains looked up to see a bruised and bloodied Goku, back to his normal state, holding himself uncomfortable above them with Videl across his shoulders,

"Dad, you're okay!"

"No time to celebrate Goten. We need to stay out of Gohan's way or he may well attack when he's like this." He ushered the boys on, avoiding the explosive radius of Gohan's attack.

The volley suddenly ceased fire as Gohan pooled all his remaining energy into his palms before crushing the two Ki reserves together, forcing them to grow and combine into one concentrate ball of energy. Raising his arms to his forehead, preparing an attack he hadn't performed in years, but now filled with anger and malice beyond imagination.

"MASENKO…HAAAAAAAAH!"
Gohan fired his beam straight into the heart of the erupting sphere of light he'd trapped Vegeta inside. The ball of light hungrily swallowed up his attack, growing larger and brighter before sinking to a surging blood red and erupting outwards with such heat and pressure, the oxygen in the room immediate burnt up, and the walls collapsed in from the force of the ensuing vacuum. As the rubble came in and struck him from all directions, dust filling the air, Gohan finally snapped back to reality. Where was his dad? Where was Goten? And Videl… Oh god…

"Videl! Dad! Goten!" he yelled, flying down and furiously scraping at the rubble. "Can you hear me?! I'm coming for you!"
But a few feet away, an especially large slab of rock slowly turned over to reveal Goten and Trunks pushing holding it up with Goku keeping Videl's body shielded with his own.

"Dad!" Gohan yelled, rushing over to the ragtag group. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. And Videl's fine too."

"But I saw Vegeta-" began Gohan.

"It didn't kill her. Just unconscious and a heavy concussion. Goten still had the Senzu beans with him so he was able to take care of our injuries. She'll be out for a while, but she's not in danger."

"Goku! Oh thank goodness you're okay!"
Goku barely had time to glance sideways before a flying Chi-Chi came sailing through the air and flying tackled him with a hug so hard, he hit the floor. After about three seconds of hugging him tightly though, she noticed all the blood on his body and recoiled in shock.

"What happened to you?!" she gasped, before her attention flitted to her two sons, both equally caked in dirt and gore as their father. "What did you let happen to them?!" She shrieked, immediately fussing over her boys.

"Mom, we're fine." Said Goten. "I dad and me had a Senzu bean so we aren't hurt at all." He held up the brown cloth sack filled with the hard green pellets. "Once Gohan has one, he'll be all better too."
Chi-Chi was at least contented that they weren't hurt, but equally she couldn't be entirely sure considering the amount of fresh blood was still covering them. But they weren't the only ones receiving a motherly smothering as the rest of the Z fighter made their way into the rooms through the shattered walls.

"Trunks, look at you! Are you sure you're okay?" Bulma cooed, holding Bra with one arm and Trunks with the other.

"I'm fine mom." He assured. "Goten gave me a Senzu bean, so I'm good as ever. See?"
He went to push away and do a flurry of punches, but halfway through his arms failed him. Senzu beans may heal near death injuries, but there had yet a bean to be created to cure tiredness. Trying to cover up his failed attempt to show he was okay, Trunks gave his mother the biggest grin he could manage, hoping she would forget where he'd brought the conversation.

But good times didn't last though, as another pile of rubble split apart to show Vegeta rising from the ground, like a zombie rising from the dead; in more ways than one. There was barely a patch of his skin left that wasn't bloodied or burnt from Gohan's attack. His gait was unstable and slumped and it looked like he'd lost the use of one of his arms. But he was still standing; and he was not giving up. But he wasn't the main sight the Z fighters were interested in. Behind Vegeta stood a towering contraption of steel and glass, like an hourglass that crackled with lightning within a short range. The machine seemed to be awash with sand that glowed with green light and shifted of its own accord, but flowed upwards instead of down.

"That thing is full of Nanites!" Bulma yelled, pointing at the shifting sand material.

"Destroy it now!" Yelled Goku, winding back to fire the Kamehameha, but he and every other immediately dropped to the floor the moment the words left his mouth. The horrible red lightning enveloped their bodies as the seizures took hold of their bodies, their eyes rolling back in their heads as inhuman cries tore from their throats.

I warned you Vegeta. If you had only done as I asked. Now, you have doomed them all.
A soft sizzle was heard in the air as the cloaking layer dissolved off the protective bubble, revealing the man, if that's what you could call him, inside. Doctor Raichi, brilliant Tuffle scientist and sworn enemy of the Sayains, floated gently a few feet above the ground, his feet tightly wound together. The man's blue pallor and single glowing red eye were made look ever more monstrous as he stared coldly at the Z fighters writhing in agony among the rubble.

"Worthless monkeys." His voice spat, without his lips ever moving. "Squirming in the dirt as you should be."
The doctor turned to leave, but halted when he saw Vegeta blocking his path.

"Move."

"No."

"What was that, impudent cockroach?" he asked cruelly, lifting up a small silver cylinder, giving it a slight squeeze that made the already tortured humans and Sayains give another involuntary shriek of pain.

"Let. Them. Go." he said through gritted teeth.

"And if I do not? You hardly pose a threat to me, especially in your current state."

"REALSE THEM IMMEDIATELY!" Bellowed Vegeta, Ki exploding out, but Raichi did not flinch. "I have done everything you demanded of me! I have slain innocents, killed my kin and sacrificed my body to protect your infernal contraption! WHAT IS IT YOU WANT FROM ME?!"

"What I want?" asked Raichi, sound almost on the verge of laughter, but quickly switched to dark and serious. "What I want is to have you experience the pain and fear my race felt every moment as you hunted us down and exterminated us like vermin. What I want is to see you have everything stripped away from you as you did to us! I want to see your dreams of ultimate power and nature of a lonesome warrior come back to haunt you, to destroy that foolish Sayain pride that cost us Tuffles our lives! I want Justice! I want Revenge! And I will have mine…"
Raichi paused for a moment, Vegeta seeing he was making an effort to move. Slowly, agonisingly, Raichi's face muscles pulled back his lips into a snarl before them drew back into a twisted mockery of a grin, exposing dead, rotten gums and black stubs of teeth.

"And last of all I want you see the horrible deaths of all those your care about in agonising detail. By your hand or mine! You can end their suffering now or let their pain drag on for days until their brains finally melt inside their skulls! With every cry and plead for mercy, you will know it was you who cursed them to this fate and when your mind is broken and you long for death, I will keep you alive long enough to realize that had you not been a coward and killed yourself to prevent my plan being set in motion; you could have prevented their suffering! And then and only then… will I grant your wish."

The words seemed have shamed Vegeta. Hollowed him. He stared numbly at the ground, refusing to look up, but still speaking up.

"You're right Raichi, at heart, I am a coward. But…" he suddenly ran straight for the nanites machine and leapt at it. He immediately collided with an energy shield, but he didn't get pushed back. Letting his anger fuel him, he exploded into Super Sayain form and pushed harder than he'd pushed in his life. Inch by agonising inch, he drew closer to touching the machine; the pained cries of his comrades spurring him on. His finger made contact and suddenly his whole world was swallowed in fire. Nanites rushed through his veins, flooding his system, heading straight for his brain. The energy shield finally pushed him back, but the electricity stayed with him. It was inside his body now, slowly crippling his muscles and deadening his senses. But he had one final job to do. Fighting his way to his feet, he tottered his way over to Raichi, never breaking his line of sight.

"…I will not be beaten." He gritted out. "You may have sought to…ugh….destroy my race and end the life of all Sayains once, but eventually, it wasn't enough? I've known such hate…. I had owned it. Lived by it."
Vegeta forced himself to take another step, weakening rapidly, but refusing to fall to his knees.

"You needed our physical suffering as well, but that wouldn't do. Every drop of Tuffle blood we had spilled… we would pay tent times for; not just with our bodies… but our hearts." He panted heavily, exhaustion snatching the words from his mouth and his head, but he wasn't stopping.

"That's why you needed me. Someone who was weak willed and… p-prone to persuasion. Someone like Kakrot would die sooner than cause any harm. But not me… the ex-killer of worlds. Someone who could make his victims suffer… without moving a finger. A brilliant plan."
He was no more than an arm's length from Raichi, standing just outside his protective bubble.

"But you relied on my pride and cowardice too heavily. I am no longer afraid, now that my death may… accomplish something. It is my pride that tells me to die like my forefathers; on my feet. You wanted us to die screaming Raichi… but I'll die smiling. You've lost!" Vegeta dropped to one knee, still grinning up at Raichi as he could feel the last of his energy leaving him. "What will you do now?"

Enraged beyond control Doctor Raichi brought back his hand to deliver a blow to finally kill the vermin of the Sayain race. And that second was all Vegeta needed. With his shield down, Vegeta leapt up and clamped his arms on to Raichi's frail body, the Nanite electricity surging into his body. The man began to scream and convulse, but Vegeta would not let go.

"You have a choice Raichi!" Vegeta yelled. "Kill me, my race and die with us or save yourself or become the coward and destroy the machine! Choose Tuffle!"
Vegeta's grip wound tighter, crushing the life out of Raichi as he was continuously electrocuted. His flesh was burning, his muscles disintegrating, but Vegeta would not let him go.

"CHOOSE NOW TUFFLE! LIVE OR DIE!"
Raichi was almost nothing but dust, but Vegeta wasn't far off that himself. He just had to hold on a little longer.

"CHOOOOOOSE!"

And like that, the pain stopped. Vegeta and Raichi crashed to the ground, gasping and trying to gulp down air. Raichi's old, mangles frame was near unrecognisable as humanoid, but his head was still spewing curses.

"Filthy monkeys! I will have you one day and I will split your skull and watch as your children dance upon your remains, you hear me you worthless slave!"

"Actually…" said Vegeta, his one good hand stopping in front of Raichi's face before a final burst of Ki disintegrated his head. "…it's Prince to you."

Slowly, very slowly the Z fighters began to regain consciousness. They didn't remember what had happened to them. They had tried to destroy the Nanites reserve and then nothing. Until now, that is. Trunks heaved himself unsteadily to his feet, hoping his mom and sister were okay. But instead he saw a sight that caught his attention much faster. Sprinting over to him, Trunks stopped just before the burnt husk that was left of Vegeta, pulling itself along by its one functioning arm. Raising his head, he was bloodied and scarred beyond measure, but still his father.

"Trunks…" Vegeta stretched out his arm to reach Trunks.

"Dad?" he said, taking a tentative step closer so Vegeta's fingers just brushed his face.

"Take care…" And with that Vegeta finally collapsed.

"Dad! "Trunks yelled, scooping his father up and trying to turn him over "SOMEBODY HELP ME!"
Without warning, Goku came bounding over, seeing Trunks cradling the burnt body of his father.

"Trunks, are you alright?" he asked.
The half Sayain couldn't speak a word. He managed a few sobs before he even tried to force himself to talk.

"I-I think he's gone… Like, really gone this time!" Trunks broke into a fresh batch of tears, letting them flow free and strong as Goku looked down at Vegeta. But the elder Sayain didn't weep. He laughed. He laughed a lot actually.

"Silly Trunks, he's just sleeping! Look, you can see him breathing." Goku pointed to the steady rise and fall of Vegeta's chest, still chuckling slightly at Trunks overreaction.

"Trunks, what's wrong?!" Bulma came running as fast as she could manage while holding baby Bra. "I heard screaming."

"We're okay Bulma." Smirked Goku. "Vegeta passed out and Trunks got a little shock is all."

"Well I'm not surprised, he looks exhausted." Commented Bulma before leaning down and placing a kiss as gentle as a butterfly on Vegeta's cheek. "Goodnight sweet prince. You've earned the rest."

"C'mon, let's get out of here."

Getting out was much simpler without an energy shield. It was a simple matter of blasting through the closest wall and simply flying home, the non-flyers and injured being carried.

"Hey dad?" Said Gohan, flying alongside his father, both of the carrying their female other half.

"Yeah?"

"With that Nanite attack, do you think we'll ever remember what happened in there?"

"I don't think so." Goku pondered. "But something tells me Vegeta did something when we needed it most and it saved us all."

"Do you think he'll remember?"

"He might. But he might not. I guess we may never know."

"Hmmm. Makes you think."

"Not when you're as hungry as me!" announced Goku cheerily. "C'mon, I wanna go home and get some Shu Pork!"

And they were right. When Vegeta awoke a number of days later he didn't remember what he'd done or said, but a strange feeling stayed with him. A feeling of new freedom. A feeling of calm and freshness. And a strange sense of… rebirth. He felt like a new person, his sleep no longer filled with the faces of the races he'd destroyed, now it was only of the new faces he'd come to hold as his own and be part of his life. For little did he know, in that selfless act, his pride of a murderer, turned to the pride of a protector; it had released him. That small speck of darkness that lay deep with his heart has shrunk to naught and he finally had what almost no other Sayain had ever experienced.

True Peace.