Chapter 10 is up and ready. Hope you like it. This will have a little
romance and humor involved.
Alex Damioh: I'm so happy. I didn't think people actually read my disclaimer. Well, BEHOLD:
Disclaimer:.. um.I'm still too lazy.
Goten: Hmmm. That's not fair; you promised.
Alex Damioh: Well, let me see you try!
Goten: okay. * A grand stage appears and flashing, bold letters that read Disclaimer above Goten's head* Disclaimer: *it echoes in the hall, orchestra starts playing music* The Author of this story does not own DBZ, Sailor Moon, neither any of it's characters. They were used without permission. DBZ belongs to Akira Toriyama and Toei Animation and Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Takeuchi and Toei Animation as well. Thank you. *An audience cheers*
Alex Damioh: I never get a stage or an audience. (
Goten: I guess it's 'cause I'm adorable. ^_^ Welp, I better get back.
Chapter 10: The Return Of Tuxedo Mask
Gohan, Videl and the rest of their group had just returned from their search when the team including Goku and the others had landed. They were stunned to see them injured and exhausted.
"What happened? We felt your ki levels rise, but we were too far away to do anything." Gohan said as he and Videl landed. Videl had run into Gohan during the search for Darien, and was fingering a thin gold band on her finger nervously.
She and Gohan had an announcement to make.
"We found Darien and the Messenger. The Messenger's been taken care of, by the way. And we seem to have picked up another one of these." Piccolo said, jerking his head to indicate Zoisite and rolling his eyes at the last word. "This is Zoisite. He says he's the guardian of ice and another one of Darien's royal guard."
"He said that he was testing Darien before he saved him." Goku added as he handed a sleeping Marron to Krillin. "I still don't understand what's that about? Do you, Darien?"
"Sorry Goku, I'm just as clueless as you." Darien spoke.
"Darien, don't put yourself down like that. No one's that clueless." Vegeta said smugly. He looked at Goku. "Besides the obvious, I mean."
"GOTEN!" a shrill voice called. The assembled fighters turned to see Chichi run up to Goten and hug him. After he was deemed sufficiently squeezed, she turned her attention to Darien and subjected him to the same treatment. They were both spared the force of Chichi's normal treatment since she hugged both of them with her right arm only. She was carrying something with her left.
"Goten, Darien; are you two all right?" she asked earnestly.
"Yeah." Darien said.
"Yeppers!" Goten chirped.
"Are you sure?" she asked. Her left arm shifted.
They both nodded.
BAM! BAM!
She pulled her left hand back and revealed to them her frying pan, which somehow managed to have survived the explosion. She banged them both squarely and unsparingly on the head in one smooth motion. Darien hissed through his teeth and grabbed his head, trying not to scream. Goten rubbed his head and gave a tiny "Ow!". The Z- senshi took a step back, out of the fear that Chichi might hit them.
"Running away like that! Really, Goten, this is something I would expect from your brother. And you, Darien! Do you have any idea how worried everyone was? What with all those winged beasts coming around to kill you! I swear; this is what comes from fighting every moment you aren't sleeping or eating! I knew having you trained was a bad idea!" she shouted. She then turned to the others. Several of them tried to make themselves look smaller.
Fortunately for those involved, Gohan quickly changed the subject. "Hey Dad? Now that Darien's safe and all, how about we get some explanations out of Jedeite and Zoisite?"
"Hey, yeah! All right, you two! We have some questions to ask and you're going to answer them, see?" Goku said, putting on a very bad imitation of a gangster's voice. Everyone sweadropped.
"You're a disgrace to all Saiya-jins, do you know that?" Vegeta said. Goku laughed and placed his hand on the back of his head.
"We want you to answer some questions. We want to get things clear so we know who Darien is and why the 'Light' wants to kill him." Gohan explained.
"And if we don't want to answer your questions?" Jedeite said, slowly.
"Then we proceed to beat the living daylights out of both of you." Vegeta must have found this statement highly amusing.
Jediete looked around. Vegeta probably wasn't going to let this go, and it didn't seem as though anyone else was willing to stop him. Zoisite seemed to be thinking the same thing.
"All right, fine. But we can't answer everything, even if you DO beat us up. Sorry. Orders from above. You know."
"'Orders from above'? Who?" Piccolo asked.
"Queen Gaea of Earth."
Piccolo looked as though he'd been slapped. The impact of that statement wasn't lost on Darien, either. "Who's Gaea?" he asked.
Piccolo looked at him. "She's the queen of Earth. She's also your mother." Piccolo said. Darien looked at Piccolo as if for the first time.
"Correction: She was the Queen of Earth and she was Darien's mother." Jedeite explained.
Piccolo turned and glared at him. "What do you mean 'was'?" He demanded.
Jedeite sighed sadly while Zoisite pretended to be fascinated by the stars in the sky behind him, trying to hide the tell-tale watery buildup under his eyes.
"What I mean is, Gaea is no longer among the living. She died August 5, when Darien was 6." Jedeite said. He didn't' want to be the one to say this.
"What are you talking about? You just said that you take orders from her." Piccolo raged. What were they trying to pull?
"That does not stop her, obviously. We've been in contact from her from Elysion for months." Jedeite said, understanding his anger.
Piccolo's eyes widened in shock, rage, and sadness. Darien was shocked and sad, too. He never knew his mother, and now any hope of knowing her was gone. The Z- senshi tried to look sympathetic. Vegeta didn't say a word, as usual, but Darien noted the slight change in posture and general softening of the features.
"How did she die?" Darien asked. "Did she die honorably in battle? Was she murdered? Did her friends betray her, or...?"
"She went into a mental breakdown and was killed from inside her brain. According to the reports, they claimed she used her powers to kill herself this way. When they found her body, they found her ears bleeding and an expression of pure horror." Jedeite said. This time he seemed fascinated by the stars as well. The subject of his Queen was never a happy one for him.
"What? Why?" Piccolo asked. Why would Gaea kill herself? From his dream and what little he remembered, he knew Gaea loved life.
This time, Zoisite answered that. "She couldn't do it anymore. She couldn't live the life she was given. Following what fate and destiny put in front of her, being queen at the age of 13, trying to end an age-old war with the Lunarians, being married to a man she hated, and having a child that was not her husband's, which would result in a child's death, especially if the child was half-demon. It was too much for her. Piccolo, please do not see her as a coward. She was a wonderful queen, a fine warrior, a compassionate mother, and a good friend, at least according to my father, who served under her."
Piccolo's face remained stone-like. There was no way he was going to break down and cry in front of everyone. He'd be damned before he let anyone see him like this.
"Wait a minute!" Vegeta started counting in his head. "Didn't you also die that day?" Vegeta said, looking at Piccolo. Piccolo's eyes widened. He did die on that day.
"Um. Am I missing something?" Jedeite asked.
"14 years ago, we were fighting the Saiya-jins who decided to come to our planet to use the dragonballs to wish for immortality. Such a thing would've resulted in the destruction of the universe. They had already killed Yamncha, Chaotzu, Piccolo and Tien. Since Piccolo was connected to the dragonballs, they were useless, and we had to travel to the planet Namek, and..." Bulma sighed, "Well, we really don't have time to tell you the whole story. But Piccolo died, and then he got brought back to life".
"Oh." Jedeite said. "That's strange. That Piccolo would die the same day that our queen would."
"I don't think it's that strange." Gohan said. "Zoisite, what time did Gaea die?"
Zoisite made a yellow paper appear. "According to the reports, she died at 3:16 pm."
"Do any of you know, what time Piccolo died?"
Bulma blinked. "Um, Gohan, the odds of anyone knowing the exact time as to when Piccolo died would be..."
"3:15 pm." Vegeta said.
Everyone looked at him.
"What? I can't take pride in my work?" He shrugged. Zoisite looked vaguely nauseated.
"So she died one minute after you, Piccolo."
"What's your point?" Piccolo asked.
"Piccolo, if you loved her enough to have a child with her, most likely you have a telepathic link with her like you have with me. So, she may have known about your death when it was cut off."
"So, most likely she killed herself because of me." Piccolo said, now getting it. "Its my fault she's dead."
"No it isn't," Zoisite said sternly. "Her death was bound to happen. She was proud if being a princess, but loathed her husband and the other sailor scouts. Her husband, Lord Reginald, made her life as miserable as possible by never being there for her and never respecting her skills and abilities. And despite the fact that the Earth was no longer at war with the moon, the sailor scouts refuse to trust her in any way and always reminded her where she stands with them. Her only true friend was Queen Serenity, but that friendship wasn't enough to save her. Kind of ironic, because they were mortal enemies since birth. Strange, huh? Your only friend should have been your sworn enemy."
"Not that strange." Goku said, looking at all his friends.
Vegeta rolled his eyes.
"Still, it could have been avoided." Piccolo said, sadly.
"Alas, the gods giveth and the gods taketh away" Zoisite sighed.
Jedeite decided to change the subject, seeing that it was depressing everybody. "So, what are dragonballs and how come you had to go to another planet to bring them back?"
Krillin explained. "There are seven dragonballs, you have to collect them from all around the world to call upon the Eternal Dragon to get your wish. The dragonballs, however, are useless if the creator of the dragonballs is dead. That was the case with Piccolo; who was once one with Kami; who created them. When he died, so did Kami and the dragonballs were inactive. So we went to Piccolo's home planet, Namek, so we could use the bigger and better dragonballs. We brought Piccolo back and our dragonballs were active again."
"I see." Jedeite said, not quite getting it. Zoisite sort of got it.
"I understand. The dragonballs are like the talismans the Sailor scouts have. They grant your heart's desire as well as others' if they wish it. Darien has one as well."
Krillin blinked.
"What are the 'Sailor scouts'? You mentioned them once or twice." Yamcha asked.
"Female warriors. In our dimension, we have a queen on each planet, even Earth. The females of the royal lines had a lot of power, and it was very rare to see a male born in the family. The women got their power from the planet they were born on or rule. The gods themselves gave them their powers and talismans. The sailor scouts are the most powerful warriors in the universe. And the strongest one was Darien's betrothed, known as the moon princess, later queen of the stars or Sailor Cosmos, although originally as Sailor Moon."
"Female warriors! What is the universe coming to?" Vegeta muttered.
"If that's true, then what about Darien?" Bulma asked.
"Like I said, it's very rare to see a male in the family. Darien was a bit of an oddity, actually. Possibly it had something to do with being half-demon?" Zoisite said.
"That's another thing, how was Darien born?" Yamcha said.
Jedeite blinked, then grinnned. Then he made Barbie and Ken doll appear. "Well, Yamcha, when two people meet and fall in love, they decide to..."
"We know how babies are born, but how was Darien born?" Yamcha said, hotly.
"........Please specify." Zoisite said, frowning.
"Piccolo is asexual. He can't have children. In fact, Piccolo shouldn't even have felt love for Gaea." 18 stated.
"Oh." Jedeite said.
"............."
"............."
"Hey Zoi, What's 'asexual'?"
The Z- team fell over.
Zoisite sighed. "It means that Piccolo is neither male or female. Nameks make children by egg-laying."
"Oh, well, how was Darien born, then?" Jedeite said, scratching his head.
"That's what we're asking you!!!" the Z-senshi shouted.
"We assumed that it was done, naturally." Jedeite said, looking just as confused. "We didn't even know that Darien was Piccolo's son until Machalite told us."
"Who's Machalite?" Darien asked.
"He's our leader and friend. He has been watching over you."
"Then I wish to meet him." Darien said.
"You can't. Not until you've proven yourself to him." Zoisite said.
"That's another thing. Why should Darien prove himself to get your loyalty?" Tien asked.
Zoisite shook his head. "I'm afraid we can't answer that question."
"Okay, I've got one. Why did Piccolo find Darien in his forest without any clothes or anything?" Chichi asked.
"Because Queen Gaea knew that Piccolo would be there to find him, and his clothes didn't fit anymore so they disappeared." Jedeite answered.
"What? My mom abandoned me? Why?" Darien said, looking very hurt.
"No, Darien. She didn't abandon you, she just left you in your father's care until you pass..." Jedeite was violently elbowed in the side by a peeved-looking Zoisite.
"Until he passes what?" Goku asked while helping Jedeite off the floor.
"Nothing." Zoisite said quickly.
"No! Not "nothing"! Until he passes what?" Piccolo said angrily.
"Sorry, we are not at liberty to say." Zoisite answered.
"Okay," Tien interrupted. "Can you at least tell us why Darien is six years old when he should be in his twenties?"
"That we can tell you. You see; Darien was, last time I checked, twenty years old."
"WHAT!" They all shouted, but not as loud as Darien.
"Yes, but her majesty saw to it that Darien was trained in this body." Zoisite said. "Her majesty also wanted to make sure that Darien had a happy childhood."
"What do you mean a 'happy childhood'? Didn't Darien have a one?" Chichi asked.
"Not exactly, no. After Gaea died, Darien's life went downhill from there. He was always alone because everyone was too busy to talk to him. His stepfather was even worse on him and would jump at the chance to attack him verbally. We don't know whether it was because he hated his wife enough to take it out on him or somehow he suspected Darien wasn't his son. But he saw to it that Darien's life was as miserable as possible. He did not gain any friends until the he was 16. That's when he met," Jedeite made a little twirl and bowed. He made his goofiest smile ever. "ME! Oh, and the others." He said tilting his head at a sweat- dropping Zoisite. "After Gaea's death, Serenity made an offer to the king that to solidify the alliance between the Earth and the Moon, the prince, Darien, and princess, her daughter, of both kingdoms would marry. I don't doubt that she wanted to help Darien as well."
"Oh my." Chichi said. She grabbed Darien in a tight hug as if to absorb all the terrible memories away from him. Despite it being full- force, Darien didn't even acknowledge the hug.
"After Darien was betrothed to Serena, his life improved from there, because he fell in love with her, so much so that she meant more to him than his life. He has even proven it on occasion. They would have lived happily ever after. But unfortunately, fate did not smile at us that day. That evil bitch Queen Beryl, ruler of the negaverse, had captured us, the royal guards. We were brainwashed to betray our prince and take over the moon kingdom. The battle was hopeless. Not only did we kill the legendary Sailor scouts, but also we killed our Prince, Endymion and moon princess Serenity. Just when the negaverse would have killed us all, the Queen Serenity used the Imperial silver crystal to trap the negaverse and reincarnated us all to the future in our earth. So we all became reborn again as humans. Unfortunately, once again, it did not sit well with Darien."
"Don't tell me Darien's human parents were cruel to him as well." Yamcha said
"No. Darien's parents loved him very much, but they didn't last long. On the fifth of August, they were going for a family drive. Unfortunately, Darien's parents were thrown off the road and killed. Darien survived, but his parents weren't that lucky. He had lost his memories from the crash. He spent his childhood in the orphanage. The children tormented him and he had almost no friends, so when he left the orphanage at the age of eighteen, he was antisocial. In fact, he made Vegeta look positively gregarious."
Chichi tightened her hug on Darien as if she feared she might lose him to a life of cruelty. Piccolo was just as stunned. He knew what it was like to live all alone and have no friends, but that was mostly self- imposed, and had changed a lot in the last four years. Darien had been on his own for twelve years. It's a wonder he turned out so well.
"Darien's parents died on the 5th, the same day you and Gaea died. That's just a coincidence, right?" Bulma asked, hoping deeply it was.
"No. I'm afraid not. In fact, Darien, there's something you should know about your parent's car accident." Zoisite said.
Darien looked up. "Yes?"
Zoisite walked up and kneeled down so that he looked Darien right in the in the eye. He brushed a few strands of his hair aside tenderly. "It wasn't an accident. It had been done on purpose."
Darien felt his body grow cold. On purpose?
Zoisite looked at him sadly, close to tears. He had to tell him quick or he'll break down soon. "You are now aware of the Light's presence. Well, they had been your enemy since you were born. Your parents were trying to take you to a nice family drive to town. But on the way there, they had been taken over by the 'Light'. They drove off the street and off a cliff. It was a fifty-foot drop, would have killed you if you were an ordinary human. Good thing you weren't. At the last second, you made a shield around your body. It saved you. But in the process, you were blasted out of your car and fell head-first on the ground, where you awakened in a hospital, orphaned."
Darien was stunned for a second. "The 'light' took over them, how?" he asked.
Jedeite spoke. "Ever wonder how messengers are born? The 'light' has a special technique called 'purifying'. It causes the victim to be completely filled with what they consider purity, discarding all "darkness" in them. They become so pure that if they see any sin, they become berserkers and destroy it, all in the name of the 'light'. That's what happened to your parents. They were convinced that you were evil they tried to kill you, they didn't care if it took their lives, too."
The Z-senshi were appalled. It never occurred to them that the Messengers were victims of the light, too. It wasn't right that the only way of handling them was a fight them to the death.
"But that doesn't answer my question." Bulma said, breaking the silence.
"Well, you see, they chose that day to attack because it was the only time in his entire lifetime that his mother's ghost wouldn't protect him."
"His mother's ghost?" she said, her eyes wide.
"Yeah, Darien was always watched over by his mother. The royalty of Earth have traditionally been linked to some guardians of the afterlife, and she was able to keep him safe from harm and send him dreams of the past until he gained his powers as guardian of the Earth. She loses all powers for one day and can't see the living world on August 5th. The day she died. For one day, all danger is opened for Darien. That was all the 'light' needed." Jedeite said.
Chichi seemed to be making headway in the hugging-Darien-to- death department. "Aaaacckkkkkk!!!!!!! Can't breathe..."
"There's something else you should know about this." Zoisite said, nervously.
But Darien had already figured it out. "August 5th is my birthday, isn't it?"
Jedeite and Zoisite looked at each other, more than a little surprised. Finally, they nodded. Darien sighed. He should have known. His parents, past life or present, would die on his birthday and live him alone. 'I must have been born on a bad sign.' He thought.
Vegeta's eyes widened. He remembered who the 'light' was now.
"I think I know a bit about these the 'light' that you don't. I happen to have met them." Vegeta said.
All eyes were on Vegeta, just the way he liked it.
"You do? How is that possible? We don't even know anything about them. The 'light' became inactive before we were even born. We don't even have them in our history books." Zoisite exclaimed.
"Well, the Saiya-jins fought them. They were a nightmare. Fought might not have been the right word. They constantly tried to convert everyone they came in contact with. All of them, obsessed in bringing peace to the universe, only their idea of peace is to have everyone under their control. Some of them were capable of purifying an entire planet at once. Strong warriors who allowed themselves to be purified had their powers amplified and become eternally young. Then they serve the 'light' for all eternity. Those who can't fight are merely put under control by the 'light'. They cannot fight back when attacked, unless ordered to. Completely submissive to beings of higher power. Totally "pure-hearted"." Vegeta spat out the last words.
"What are you so upset about? It sounds like a conqueror's dream come true. You could have easily ruled them. Isn't that what you always wanted?" Tien said.
Vegeta snarled. "It isn't a dream come true. In fact, it's an insult. Do you have any idea as to how humiliating it is to come to a planet, expecting a fight, expecting to conquer and win, only to face an entire plane of people who could care less about their lives? They didn't even scream when they died. Like they had no soul left. Every time we come to a planet recently visited by the 'light', the whole population died without so much as a "Don't." It was sickening."
He continued, crossing his arms in front of his chest and closing his eyes as if trying to keep himself from lashing out. "The messengers of the planet were worse. I remember when I first met one. I was fifteen years old and I was my first solo-purging mission on a planet. Not only are they tough to beat, but also they have an annoying habit of preaching during a fight. 'Vegeta, patience is a virtue.' 'Vegeta, treat all life with respect.'" Vegeta mimicked cruelly " 'Vegeta, perhaps if you allowed the eternal 'light' to claim you, you might be enlightened.' It was that last comment that pissed me off. It was probably what made me angry enough to successfully beat him. I still don't remember a more satisfying kill. Their preaching would sicken even Frieza. I must have blocked it out of my memories. That must be why I didn't recognize the 'Light' sooner."
The Z-senshi didn't know whether to feel sorry for Vegeta or point and laugh at his face.
"The 'light' situation became worse and worse. In fact, Zarbon and Dodoria refused to go to any planet recently infected by the 'light'. Even the Ginyu forces, whom are normally hired to do dirty jobs, flatly refused. They just couldn't stand them. The 'light' even had the nerve to give us an ultimatum: Accept purification or be destroyed. Well, it was a terrible war, but we Saiya-jins came out on top. They swore we would all be destroyed." Vegeta turned his head to his side. "Bastards. Sometimes I wondered if they knew what would happen, or caused it."
"It sounds to me like the 'light' have a Messiah complex. But if they're after evil, why are they after Darien?" Zoisite said.
"The 'light' are after evil and any being with any evil background. Being the son of a demon king has got to be one of the things in their list of 'not pure'." 18 pointed out.
"Then why aren't they after me? I'm the demon king, after all." Piccolo said.
"Yes, and I'm a Saiya-jin Prince. They should be after Kakarrot and me as well. They must know something about Darien that really disturbs them." Vegeta pondered.
"But what could they know?" Jedeite asked.
"They might know about what Darien could do. The 'light' has the uncanny ability to see the future." Vegeta said.
"What do they think Darien is going to do?" Chichi asked.
"We'll have to ask them." Vegeta said, nonchalantly.
Yamcha snorted. "Yeah right. We'll just find one and ask it to tell us their plans. I'm sure they'd be happy to tell us how to kill them, too."
"Exactly." Vegeta said sharply "One of the things those infected by the 'light' can't do is lie."
"Oh." Yamcha said.
"Well, I guess that answers some of the questions. So what do we do now?" Goku asked.
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to start training again. These 'Light' guys are bad news." Krillin said.
"Agreed. Bunch of hypocrites. Peace to the universe indeed." 18 said.
"I'll have to go harder on you in your training, Darien. So we'll have to move to my cave." Piccolo said.
"Now, hold on there. I can understand more training, but what about his schooling with me?" Chichi demanded.
The Z-senshi groaned. Here it comes!
"You're right, Chichi. He'll still have classes with you."
If Piccolo started stripping in front of everyone singing, "I'm too sexy for my body", he would not have gotten a more shocked expression from his friends. Even Chichi thought Piccolo needed to lie down.
"Darien is going to be king of Earth one of these days. To do that, he has to be intelligent. I'm not educated in some levels, so I'll need you to broaden his mind." Piccolo said, ignoring the fact that everyone was moving away from him in fear. "And besides, it was because of his studying with you that he was able to save us today."
"Oh. Okay, that sounds reasonable. Oh, wait, Gohan, didn't you want to tell us something?"
Gohan blinked. "Oh, yeah, but I'm not sure if it's a good time, you know, with everything happening to Darien." Gohan said in a sheepish smile.
"It's okay. I'm fine." Darien said with a smile. Gohan sighed. He'll have to tell them sooner or later.
"Well... Videl and I are going to get married." He said. As if to emphasize their point, Videl showed them her engagement ring. The group was quiet. Chichi stared at her son for several seconds. Then she exploded.
"Getting married? But you haven't even finished school yet! You can't get married!" Chichi yelled.
"But mom, I love her. Besides, I have enough credits to put me in a good college and we'll live off campus." Gohan argued.
"No, forget it! I want you to marry and have children, but not now! You have to go to school, get a job, make some money and buy a home first!" Chichi shouted.
"I don't think they have a choice, Chichi." Goku interrupted "I'm starting to think... that, well.."
"What is it?!?" Chichi screamed, causing Piccolo and Darien to wince. Vegeta smirked.
"So that's what it was. A Saiya-jin's nose never lies, and mine says that Gohan has been at Videl's house for a biology lesson, but not one from a school book."
Chichi was staring at Videl with a look that would scare even the devil. "You," she said in a deadly voice, pointing at Videl. "You corrupted my baby. PREPARE TO DIE!!!!!!!!!!!!" She screamed as she chased Videl with her frying pan, attempting to get a good whack at her.
'I knew we should have told my dad first.' Videl thought.
"Mom, please, calm down!" Gohan shouted after his mom. When they finally managed to calm her down, she decided to accept the wedding.
"All right! You two can get married. But on two conditions: I want you to work extra hard at school, Gohan, so you could support Videl and yourself."
"And two?" Videl asked.
Chichi smiled. "I want lots of grandchildren to play with."
Gohan and Videl fell down, twitching.
"Now, we have to prepare for the wedding, we need a wedding planner." Chichi said.
"OH! OH! OH! I could do it. I was supposed to plan the wedding between Prince Endymion and Princess Serenity way back when, and not for no reason!" Zoisite gushed.
"Yeah, you WHINED until...." Jedeite was viciously elbowed again in his still-sore ribs.
"This will sharpen my skills. I'll design the most beautiful wedding ever, no charge. I'll make the decorations, the wedding invitations, get the orchestra, the works." Zoisite said, ecstatically. This has been his dream come true. 'And maybe someday, I can plan mine and Ami's wedding.' Just the thought of it brought tears to his eyes. 'It will be the most beautiful wedding in the whole universe.' He had a mental image of him in a white tuxedo and Ami in a satin white dress with a tiara and veil on her head, holding white roses.
"All right, Zoisite. You can come to Capsule Corp. tomorrow and plan from there," Bulma said. "We can have the wedding at the Hoshino temple."
"Sounds good to me. We'll have to go shopping for a wedding dress. And for Gohan's tuxedo, of course." Chichi added.
"But mom, I can't stay for long, as the "Great Saiyaman" I must protect the city." He said in a deep heroic voice.
"Sorry, Gohan. But as the groom, you are needed. So the world will be out of Saiyaman and Saiyaman2 for a day or two, what's the worst that could happen?" Bulma said.
Gohan thought about this. He imagined a world filled with chaos. He shuddered.
"Well, we have to get going. See you guys tomorrow." Darien said.
"Yeah, see ya!" Jedeite said, trying to follow Piccolo.
"Where are you two going?" Piccolo said, raising an eye ridge.
"With you of course." Zoisite said.
"Not on the lookout tower. Freeloaders are unacceptable." Actually, Piccolo just found Jedeite unacceptable.
"WHAT? You're not taking Darien without protection. He needs us." Zoisite said as he grabbed Darien in a tight hug. Piccolo rolled his eyes. Wonderful, one guardian was lazy and the other was clingy. And there's still two more coming.
"Forget it! You guys will have to find some other place to stay." Piccolo said as he pulled Darien away from them.
"It's all right, guys. I'll be fine. The Lookout tower is a safe place and my dad will protect me." Darien said, diplomatically.
They hesitated. Then agreed. "Very well, Prince Darien. We will see you tomorrow." Jedeite said, formally.
They flew off.
"Now, where are we going to stay?" Jedeite said.
"Ummm. Mister Zoisite," Goten said as he pulled at Zoisite's pants. "What about the ice cream?"
"That's right! I promised you ice cream, didn't I?" Zoisite said, putting his hand on his left cheek in faux surprise.
"Yeah!" Goten and Trunks said.
"All right! To the ice cream shop!" He said, cheerfully. He picked both of them up and placed them each on his shoulders, then he took off in the air.
Jedeite looked at Chichi pleadingly. She sighed. "All right! You and Zoisite can stay at my house until you can find a permanent residence. Bu you'll have to help around the house. Like Piccolo, I don't accept freeloaders either."
"I guess we should be heading home." Yamcha said. "Give us the invitation to the wedding tomorrow." With that, he and the other flew off.
"We'll have to go, too. Marron, honey; Wake up." 18 said, sweetly. Marron stirred in her father's arms when she heard her mother's voice. She looked up and smiled.
"Mommy! Mommy! Guess what? Darien kissed me on the lips."
"HE DID WHAT?!!!"
At the Lookout tower, Darien sighed in his bedroom. With all the things that were going on, he barely had time to think of Gohan's wedding. The Sons hadn't blamed him, the rest of the group were nothing but sympathetic to his situation, and now they had at least a basic idea of what they were up against.
But he still felt like there was something wrong here. He had a distinct feeling that Jedeite and Zoisite had just hinted at what was really going on. There were some things they wouldn't tell him. Changing into his pajamas, he climbed into his bed and fell asleep. Once again, he started to dream.
Darien stood there, staring at the fire surrounding the house. He heard humans screaming inside. 'Oh God! Someone's in there.' He ran straight at the house only to be grabbed from behind by Piccolo Daimio. He smiled and gestured at the rest of the scene. Darien saw a group of people in white clothes displaying obvious joy at the picture they'd created. Burning next to the house was a tall wooden cross. The Klu Klux Klan. Someone jumped out one of the lower-story windows.
"That's me, you know, before Kami rejected me. I was just wandering around, trying to find my place on this wretched planet. I was getting tired, so I just snuck into a farmhouse and slept there. The owners of this house were a black family. If memory serves me, the family consisted of a father, a pregnant mother, and three kids, none of whom were more than fourteen years old. They were having dinner, as I recall, when they were attacked. I wouldn't have minded this at all if I wasn't there at the time trying to sleep. Ahhhh, look at what I'm going to do next." He said with a smile.
The young Namek stood up and snarled at the intruders. He was enraged. NO! He was furious! How dare they! Darien could feel the hatred emitted from his body. He powered up to his maximum peak and started to make a ki-ball. Darien's eyes widened. He turned his head at the KKK, who were petrified.
"GET OUT OF HERE! HE'S GOING TO KILL YOU ALL!" Darien screamed. They may be immoral bastards, but they didn't deserve to die like that. Not like this.
"Oh, they can't hear you, Darien. This is a memory, remember?" Daimio said, his eyes shinning with amusement.
Darien watched them all get torn apart. He watched them all scream and try to escape, but the namek wasn't allow it. None of them survived more than five minutes. Darien could smell the blood they shed, and hear the gurgle of their last breaths. Darien heaved all over his shoes. Daimio, on the other hand, had a sickening smile on his face. He kneeled forward and rubbed Darien's back to make him feel better. Darien had a distinct feeling he was mocking him.
"Admit it, Darien. This kind of thing is satisfying. You know as well as I do that they deserved it." Daimio said.
"It does not!" Darien snarled. But it was half true. Part of him was disgusted by this, yet the other part of him agreed with it.
Daimio smiled. "You're lying through your teeth. That's good. Demons are good liars as well. I'm starting to think that you're not completely hopeless."
"I'LL NEVER BE A DEMON!"
"But you are one. And not just any demon, a demon prince. You should be proud of your heritage. You will make a fine soldier of destruction." He laughed evilly and disappeared in front of him.
"I'M NOT LIKE YOU! I'LL NEVER BE LIKE YOU! NEVER! DO YOU HEAR ME! NEVER!"
"Never! Never! I'll never be like you! Leave me alone!" He mumbled in his sleep. He squirmed and kicked at his sheets feverishly. Piccolo looked down at the boy. Darien's mumbling, no matter how soft, had woken him up. Piccolo could guess what he was dreaming about without reading his mind. He had gone through the very same thing in his youth. He growled angrily. How dare Daimio use his son as a weapon against the world! He would have sworn some more, but Darien needed him now.
"Darien, wake up. You're having a nightmare." Piccolo was about to shake him awake. The minute he touched Darien's shoulder, Darien sat straight up and wrapped his arms around Piccolo's neck, attempting to strangle him.
"Darien!" Piccolo choked. Darien suddenly realized he was awake. He released Piccolo.
"Piccolo? What are you doing here?" he said, not realizing his eyes were glowing red.
"You were having a nightmare. You okay?"
"Yes." Piccolo raised an eye ridge skeptically. "No."
Piccolo sighed. He was new to this father thing. He had no clue how to treat children with nightmares. Even when he was training Gohan, he would call him a weakling for crying over a nightmare. He had a feeling that calling Darien a weakling now would have a bad effect on him. He wished knew more about how to raise children. His father's memories on the subject of children mostly consisted of ways to kill them. Nail's memories were completely useless and everything Kami had known was far too vague, only telling him that they should be raised with as much love as possible. Not that it wasn't helping him. He looked down at Darien. He was shaking in cold sweat and his breathing was still shallow.
"Darien? Why don't you come outside with me? You might feel better." Piccolo offered.
Darien looked up; his eyes were still red, yet they held innocence. If Piccolo didn't know any better, he would have sworn that he was looking at a demon-born innocent. He climbed out of bed with and followed Piccolo out. As he walked, he heard Dende snoring in his room. He had felt bad for knocking him and Popo out. He made a mental note to do something nice for them tomorrow. As soon as they left the building, Darien felt the cool air hit his hot forehead. The red eyes subsided and he started to breathe easier. They just stood there at the edge of the tower. Darien sat at the edge and kicked his legs. Darien looked at Piccolo, who was staring straight ahead. Darien knew he wanted to talk, but Piccolo wasn't going to break the silence first. Darien made a small cough to get his attention.
"Something you would like to say, Dad?" He was getting used to calling Piccolo that. Piccolo looked at him. Darien looked at him expectedly. Piccolo sighed again. He better get this out of his head now.
"You never answered my question, Darien. Why didn't you tell me you had Daimio's memories the first time you got them?" Piccolo asked softly, looking at Darien's eyes. Darien gave him a rueful smile. He should have seen that coming.
"I'm sorry, Dad. It's not that I don't trust you. It's just that.....well...you see... It's complicated to explain."
"You thought that I would treat you like a threat and turn against you." Piccolo said. "You didn't tell me this because you assumed that I was going to see you in a different way, and not a very good way at that."
Darien was surprised. Piccolo understood it better than he himself did. "I'm sorry, Picco... I mean, dad. I'm really, really sorry."
Piccolo smiled and kneeled. "Suck it up, kid. If I were in your shoes I'd probably have done the same thing too. You did the right thing to hold back at first."
"Really?"
"I'm not sure why you attacked Goku this morning, but it would be a good idea to keep you two separate until we teach you how to control your demon. That's why after we move to the cave, you won't be around them for long."
"I understand."
"No more hiding secrets, okay?"
"I promise."
"Good. Now scoot." he said good-naturedly.
Darien, for the first time today, was really happy. He ran back to his room. Piccolo smiled after him and shook his head.
"I'm getting way too soft these days." He muttered. He sat down meditating, all the while doing that, he never noticed the translucent image of a female teenager in a black and white sailor fuku, smiling and crying all the same time behind him.
The next day, Piccolo snapped out of his meditation and walked up to Darien's room, only to find it empty. He then realized that Darien's ki was nowhere to be felt. He walked out to see Mr. Popo watering plants.
"Popo? Where's Darien?" Piccolo asked.
"Oh, Mr. Darien woke up early to help around the Lookout. He said it was the least he could do after he left Dende and me unconscious. Mr. Vegeta flew in and told him Bulma wanted him to try out his tuxedo. When Darien told him he was going to get intense training, Vegeta wanted to see how strong he was now by sparring with him in the gravity room."
"What? Vegeta? Sparring with Darien? We're talking about the same Vegeta that wouldn't fight with anyone but Goku? He's sparring with my son?" Piccolo asked with wide eyes.
"Yes. He seems to have grown rather fond of Darien." Mr. Popo smiled.
"Well, he's going to grow fond of my fist when I get my hands on him! He's got some nerve to come here and take MY son." He shouted. He jumped off the lookout tower and flew straight down to Capsule corp., grumbling all he way there.
Meanwhile, at Capsule corp., "But Zoisite, I look silly." Goku whined. Zoisite had managed to make an appointment with a priest to do the wedding. He had hired security guards to make sure that no one interrupts the wedding, for some reason. He scheduled for a supermarket to send in fresh fruits and vegetables for the buffet and Jedeite was somehow roped into doing the cooking. Now he was making sure that everyone's suits fit them perfectly. And Goku's whining was making that hard.
"This is your son's wedding. You must look the part and ...what is that smell...? JEDEITE! THAT'S NOT THE ROAST, IS IT?"
"Not the roast." Goku said softly, his eyes shiny with tears. It was then that Piccolo made his entrance.
"Goku, where's Vegeta?" Piccolo panted.
"Hi Piccolo! What's up?" Goku said, cheerful again.
"Vegeta kidnapped Darien!" Piccolo shouted.
"Really? I just saw Darien. He seemed very happy. They just went to the G.R. to spar. He also said he had a video tape of you to show him."
"That damn prince is a bad influence to Darien. Darien might pick up his bad habits. I don't need another Vegeta."
Goku smiled an amused smile. "You know Piccolo, I seem to recall Chichi saying that you were a bad influence to Gohan."
"That's different. I'm no longer evil, with Vegeta, you never know. Besides," he lifted his nose up and turned his head up. "I think I was a wonderful example to Gohan in his youth."
"Ha!" Chichi laughed as she walked past them. Zoisite walked out of the kitchen covered in soot with a look of despair.
"Chichi! Jedeite is ruining everything, can you cook for a while?" He looked desperate.
"Of course." She walked into the kitchen She pushed a sooty Jedeite out of the kitchen. She then sprayed him with a fire extinguisher.
"Piccolo, you're just in time for your suit." Zoisite grinned. Goku grinned as well. So, he didn't have to suffer himself.
"Heh, forget it. You're not going to catch me in those suits. I'll come to the wedding in a cleaner gi, thank you very much." He said.
"But the best man must wear a suit. It's tradition."
"I am not going to wear..... Wait, best man?" Piccolo was stunned, and flattered.
"Yes, I want you to be my best man." Gohan said as he came in with his white tuxedo on. It was difficult, but Zoisite managed to brush his spiky hair all the way back.
"Gohan. I'm touched." Piccolo said, a slight blush on his face. Gohan smiled the "Son" grin. It was then that Vegeta came out.
"You!" Piccolo growled at Vegeta.
"Why hello, namek. I'm surprised to see you here." Vegeta smirked.
"Where's Darien?" Piccolo demanded.
"He left with Trunks and Goten. They decided to act as replacements for Saiya-baka." Vegeta sneered.
"Replacements?" Piccolo and Goku asked. They looked at Gohan. He smiled sheepishly.
"Well, you see, with Saiya man out of the picture, I need someone to take over for now." He said putting his hand behind his head. He clapped his hands. As if on cue, Goten came out in a chibi Saiya man outfit. Trunks came in an old Saiya-jin armor and a cape. Vegeta smiled proudly at his son.
"Now that's a superhero's outfit." Vegeta commented.
"But where's Darien?" Piccolo asked earnestly. As if to answer his question, a rose landed near his right foot. Everyone looked up and saw a boy in a tuxedo and black cape. He had a top hat and a mask on his face. A guitar could be heard playing. He smiled and jumped off the stairs.
"I am Tuxedo mask." He stated. Piccolo stared at him.
"What are you wearing?" Piccolo said in shock.
"Oh this? Jedeite said I used to defend Earth this way in my world. Pretty snazzy, huh?"
Piccolo smacked his head. How could this happen to him? First he lost Gohan to this superhero madness, and now Darien? Was Dende doing this to torment him?
The doorbell rang. Zoisite answered it. It was Krillin. "Hey guys! I hope I'm not to late." Krillin said good-naturedly. Everyone said his or her hellos.
"Hey, Krillin, Where's MarRRRRRRRRROOONNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!" Darien screamed the last part when something tackled him on the waist and slammed him on the ground. He looked up to see Marron in a white dress and her hair down and curled at the tips.
"HI DARIEN!" she said cheerfully.
"Hey Marron. What's up?" he asked as casually as he could, catching his breath.
"Nothing. Darien, could you get me a kitten? I saw one in Satan city Pet shop. It's got green eyes, white fur, and a pretty pink ribbon." She asked sweetly.
"Marron, come on. You already have four puppies at home that are eating us out of house and home. And stop asking Darien to buy stuff for you." Krillin said.
"It's okay, Krillin, I don't mind if she asks me for stuff." Darien said. He pulled out a red rose. "Pour toi, mademoiselle." He said in a perfect French accent. Marron giggled and blushed. She took the rose and kissed Darien on the cheek. Goten and Trunks looked at each other in disgust and most of the adults with the exception of Vegeta and Piccolo, thought it was cute. It was then that 18 walked in. she saw the exchange.
"You! You Casanova!" she shouted and stamped toward him.
"MOMMY, NO!" Marron shouted and grabbed her mother's skirt. Krillin ran and grabbed 18 by the waist.
"I promise you two minutes." Krillin said.
"Um, guys let's get out of here, I think I hear danger calling." Darien said.
"We're off! Toot, too, tuuuuuuuuuuu!" Goten went. Hey flew off as fast as they could.
"Don't forget the kitten!" Marron shouted after.
Poor Darien! Will he ever escape 18?
Is Piccolo going to get he hang of being a parent?
Is Gohan going to regret hiring Zoisite?
Find out on Chapter 11 of "His Path".
Hmmmmmm, apparently, I've gotten into making longer chapters. Okay, folks! On the next chapter of His Path, Darien, Trunks and Goten fight a terrorist group. Meanwhile, The wedding has commenced and Gohan forgot Goten was the ring bearer; will he make it in time? Huh? Machlite and Nephlite find something wrong? OH WOW! We get a glimpse from the future!
Hint of upcoming chapter: "The 'Light' is now considered the least of Darien's worries."
Alex Damioh: I can't wait for the wedding! It seems that kami has been going around the world. Maybe we could make a book like Where's Kami and stuff.
Dude: That's a dumb idea.
Alex Damioh: *ignores last comment* Anyways, we have a special guest for today. Bring out Vegeta.
Dude: We only have 20 seconds so lets make it quick.
Alex Damioh: *drags Vegeta out of the green room* If you cooperate then you could leave after the interview. Now, first question.
Dude: What's your full name?
Vegeta: Vegeta, saiya-jin no ouji.
Alex Damioh: What's your favorite movie?
Vegeta: Earth movies are stupid.
Dude: If you don't answer we'll say you like something like Titanic because it made you cry like a baby.
Vegeta: Fine. I like I Know What You Did Last Summer because I enjoy laughing at the humans, their mistakes, and their horrible deaths.
Alex Damioh: O.O
Dude: Do you ever want more kids?
Vegeta: No, I already have a brat and a little angel.
Alex Damioh: What's your favorite ice cream flavor?
Vegeta: I don't eat ice cream. They're fattening and go to your hips.and they're too cold.
Alex Damioh: Last but not least, who's your little buddy?
Vegeta: Kakko.wait a minute! How dare you ask the prince of all saiya-jins such a question!?! I HAVE NO LITTLE BUDDY AND NEVER WILL HAVE ONE!
Goku: Aaaaaw.
Vegeta: -.- What are you doing here, Kakkarot?
Goku: Listening. I'm the sound guy. (
Vegeta: Hmmph. I'm leaving. *Flies out of the studio letting the backdrop fall showing a small, dirty apartment*
Alex Damioh:..Well, I'll see ya in the next chapter!
Alex Damioh: I'm so happy. I didn't think people actually read my disclaimer. Well, BEHOLD:
Disclaimer:.. um.I'm still too lazy.
Goten: Hmmm. That's not fair; you promised.
Alex Damioh: Well, let me see you try!
Goten: okay. * A grand stage appears and flashing, bold letters that read Disclaimer above Goten's head* Disclaimer: *it echoes in the hall, orchestra starts playing music* The Author of this story does not own DBZ, Sailor Moon, neither any of it's characters. They were used without permission. DBZ belongs to Akira Toriyama and Toei Animation and Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Takeuchi and Toei Animation as well. Thank you. *An audience cheers*
Alex Damioh: I never get a stage or an audience. (
Goten: I guess it's 'cause I'm adorable. ^_^ Welp, I better get back.
Chapter 10: The Return Of Tuxedo Mask
Gohan, Videl and the rest of their group had just returned from their search when the team including Goku and the others had landed. They were stunned to see them injured and exhausted.
"What happened? We felt your ki levels rise, but we were too far away to do anything." Gohan said as he and Videl landed. Videl had run into Gohan during the search for Darien, and was fingering a thin gold band on her finger nervously.
She and Gohan had an announcement to make.
"We found Darien and the Messenger. The Messenger's been taken care of, by the way. And we seem to have picked up another one of these." Piccolo said, jerking his head to indicate Zoisite and rolling his eyes at the last word. "This is Zoisite. He says he's the guardian of ice and another one of Darien's royal guard."
"He said that he was testing Darien before he saved him." Goku added as he handed a sleeping Marron to Krillin. "I still don't understand what's that about? Do you, Darien?"
"Sorry Goku, I'm just as clueless as you." Darien spoke.
"Darien, don't put yourself down like that. No one's that clueless." Vegeta said smugly. He looked at Goku. "Besides the obvious, I mean."
"GOTEN!" a shrill voice called. The assembled fighters turned to see Chichi run up to Goten and hug him. After he was deemed sufficiently squeezed, she turned her attention to Darien and subjected him to the same treatment. They were both spared the force of Chichi's normal treatment since she hugged both of them with her right arm only. She was carrying something with her left.
"Goten, Darien; are you two all right?" she asked earnestly.
"Yeah." Darien said.
"Yeppers!" Goten chirped.
"Are you sure?" she asked. Her left arm shifted.
They both nodded.
BAM! BAM!
She pulled her left hand back and revealed to them her frying pan, which somehow managed to have survived the explosion. She banged them both squarely and unsparingly on the head in one smooth motion. Darien hissed through his teeth and grabbed his head, trying not to scream. Goten rubbed his head and gave a tiny "Ow!". The Z- senshi took a step back, out of the fear that Chichi might hit them.
"Running away like that! Really, Goten, this is something I would expect from your brother. And you, Darien! Do you have any idea how worried everyone was? What with all those winged beasts coming around to kill you! I swear; this is what comes from fighting every moment you aren't sleeping or eating! I knew having you trained was a bad idea!" she shouted. She then turned to the others. Several of them tried to make themselves look smaller.
Fortunately for those involved, Gohan quickly changed the subject. "Hey Dad? Now that Darien's safe and all, how about we get some explanations out of Jedeite and Zoisite?"
"Hey, yeah! All right, you two! We have some questions to ask and you're going to answer them, see?" Goku said, putting on a very bad imitation of a gangster's voice. Everyone sweadropped.
"You're a disgrace to all Saiya-jins, do you know that?" Vegeta said. Goku laughed and placed his hand on the back of his head.
"We want you to answer some questions. We want to get things clear so we know who Darien is and why the 'Light' wants to kill him." Gohan explained.
"And if we don't want to answer your questions?" Jedeite said, slowly.
"Then we proceed to beat the living daylights out of both of you." Vegeta must have found this statement highly amusing.
Jediete looked around. Vegeta probably wasn't going to let this go, and it didn't seem as though anyone else was willing to stop him. Zoisite seemed to be thinking the same thing.
"All right, fine. But we can't answer everything, even if you DO beat us up. Sorry. Orders from above. You know."
"'Orders from above'? Who?" Piccolo asked.
"Queen Gaea of Earth."
Piccolo looked as though he'd been slapped. The impact of that statement wasn't lost on Darien, either. "Who's Gaea?" he asked.
Piccolo looked at him. "She's the queen of Earth. She's also your mother." Piccolo said. Darien looked at Piccolo as if for the first time.
"Correction: She was the Queen of Earth and she was Darien's mother." Jedeite explained.
Piccolo turned and glared at him. "What do you mean 'was'?" He demanded.
Jedeite sighed sadly while Zoisite pretended to be fascinated by the stars in the sky behind him, trying to hide the tell-tale watery buildup under his eyes.
"What I mean is, Gaea is no longer among the living. She died August 5, when Darien was 6." Jedeite said. He didn't' want to be the one to say this.
"What are you talking about? You just said that you take orders from her." Piccolo raged. What were they trying to pull?
"That does not stop her, obviously. We've been in contact from her from Elysion for months." Jedeite said, understanding his anger.
Piccolo's eyes widened in shock, rage, and sadness. Darien was shocked and sad, too. He never knew his mother, and now any hope of knowing her was gone. The Z- senshi tried to look sympathetic. Vegeta didn't say a word, as usual, but Darien noted the slight change in posture and general softening of the features.
"How did she die?" Darien asked. "Did she die honorably in battle? Was she murdered? Did her friends betray her, or...?"
"She went into a mental breakdown and was killed from inside her brain. According to the reports, they claimed she used her powers to kill herself this way. When they found her body, they found her ears bleeding and an expression of pure horror." Jedeite said. This time he seemed fascinated by the stars as well. The subject of his Queen was never a happy one for him.
"What? Why?" Piccolo asked. Why would Gaea kill herself? From his dream and what little he remembered, he knew Gaea loved life.
This time, Zoisite answered that. "She couldn't do it anymore. She couldn't live the life she was given. Following what fate and destiny put in front of her, being queen at the age of 13, trying to end an age-old war with the Lunarians, being married to a man she hated, and having a child that was not her husband's, which would result in a child's death, especially if the child was half-demon. It was too much for her. Piccolo, please do not see her as a coward. She was a wonderful queen, a fine warrior, a compassionate mother, and a good friend, at least according to my father, who served under her."
Piccolo's face remained stone-like. There was no way he was going to break down and cry in front of everyone. He'd be damned before he let anyone see him like this.
"Wait a minute!" Vegeta started counting in his head. "Didn't you also die that day?" Vegeta said, looking at Piccolo. Piccolo's eyes widened. He did die on that day.
"Um. Am I missing something?" Jedeite asked.
"14 years ago, we were fighting the Saiya-jins who decided to come to our planet to use the dragonballs to wish for immortality. Such a thing would've resulted in the destruction of the universe. They had already killed Yamncha, Chaotzu, Piccolo and Tien. Since Piccolo was connected to the dragonballs, they were useless, and we had to travel to the planet Namek, and..." Bulma sighed, "Well, we really don't have time to tell you the whole story. But Piccolo died, and then he got brought back to life".
"Oh." Jedeite said. "That's strange. That Piccolo would die the same day that our queen would."
"I don't think it's that strange." Gohan said. "Zoisite, what time did Gaea die?"
Zoisite made a yellow paper appear. "According to the reports, she died at 3:16 pm."
"Do any of you know, what time Piccolo died?"
Bulma blinked. "Um, Gohan, the odds of anyone knowing the exact time as to when Piccolo died would be..."
"3:15 pm." Vegeta said.
Everyone looked at him.
"What? I can't take pride in my work?" He shrugged. Zoisite looked vaguely nauseated.
"So she died one minute after you, Piccolo."
"What's your point?" Piccolo asked.
"Piccolo, if you loved her enough to have a child with her, most likely you have a telepathic link with her like you have with me. So, she may have known about your death when it was cut off."
"So, most likely she killed herself because of me." Piccolo said, now getting it. "Its my fault she's dead."
"No it isn't," Zoisite said sternly. "Her death was bound to happen. She was proud if being a princess, but loathed her husband and the other sailor scouts. Her husband, Lord Reginald, made her life as miserable as possible by never being there for her and never respecting her skills and abilities. And despite the fact that the Earth was no longer at war with the moon, the sailor scouts refuse to trust her in any way and always reminded her where she stands with them. Her only true friend was Queen Serenity, but that friendship wasn't enough to save her. Kind of ironic, because they were mortal enemies since birth. Strange, huh? Your only friend should have been your sworn enemy."
"Not that strange." Goku said, looking at all his friends.
Vegeta rolled his eyes.
"Still, it could have been avoided." Piccolo said, sadly.
"Alas, the gods giveth and the gods taketh away" Zoisite sighed.
Jedeite decided to change the subject, seeing that it was depressing everybody. "So, what are dragonballs and how come you had to go to another planet to bring them back?"
Krillin explained. "There are seven dragonballs, you have to collect them from all around the world to call upon the Eternal Dragon to get your wish. The dragonballs, however, are useless if the creator of the dragonballs is dead. That was the case with Piccolo; who was once one with Kami; who created them. When he died, so did Kami and the dragonballs were inactive. So we went to Piccolo's home planet, Namek, so we could use the bigger and better dragonballs. We brought Piccolo back and our dragonballs were active again."
"I see." Jedeite said, not quite getting it. Zoisite sort of got it.
"I understand. The dragonballs are like the talismans the Sailor scouts have. They grant your heart's desire as well as others' if they wish it. Darien has one as well."
Krillin blinked.
"What are the 'Sailor scouts'? You mentioned them once or twice." Yamcha asked.
"Female warriors. In our dimension, we have a queen on each planet, even Earth. The females of the royal lines had a lot of power, and it was very rare to see a male born in the family. The women got their power from the planet they were born on or rule. The gods themselves gave them their powers and talismans. The sailor scouts are the most powerful warriors in the universe. And the strongest one was Darien's betrothed, known as the moon princess, later queen of the stars or Sailor Cosmos, although originally as Sailor Moon."
"Female warriors! What is the universe coming to?" Vegeta muttered.
"If that's true, then what about Darien?" Bulma asked.
"Like I said, it's very rare to see a male in the family. Darien was a bit of an oddity, actually. Possibly it had something to do with being half-demon?" Zoisite said.
"That's another thing, how was Darien born?" Yamcha said.
Jedeite blinked, then grinnned. Then he made Barbie and Ken doll appear. "Well, Yamcha, when two people meet and fall in love, they decide to..."
"We know how babies are born, but how was Darien born?" Yamcha said, hotly.
"........Please specify." Zoisite said, frowning.
"Piccolo is asexual. He can't have children. In fact, Piccolo shouldn't even have felt love for Gaea." 18 stated.
"Oh." Jedeite said.
"............."
"............."
"Hey Zoi, What's 'asexual'?"
The Z- team fell over.
Zoisite sighed. "It means that Piccolo is neither male or female. Nameks make children by egg-laying."
"Oh, well, how was Darien born, then?" Jedeite said, scratching his head.
"That's what we're asking you!!!" the Z-senshi shouted.
"We assumed that it was done, naturally." Jedeite said, looking just as confused. "We didn't even know that Darien was Piccolo's son until Machalite told us."
"Who's Machalite?" Darien asked.
"He's our leader and friend. He has been watching over you."
"Then I wish to meet him." Darien said.
"You can't. Not until you've proven yourself to him." Zoisite said.
"That's another thing. Why should Darien prove himself to get your loyalty?" Tien asked.
Zoisite shook his head. "I'm afraid we can't answer that question."
"Okay, I've got one. Why did Piccolo find Darien in his forest without any clothes or anything?" Chichi asked.
"Because Queen Gaea knew that Piccolo would be there to find him, and his clothes didn't fit anymore so they disappeared." Jedeite answered.
"What? My mom abandoned me? Why?" Darien said, looking very hurt.
"No, Darien. She didn't abandon you, she just left you in your father's care until you pass..." Jedeite was violently elbowed in the side by a peeved-looking Zoisite.
"Until he passes what?" Goku asked while helping Jedeite off the floor.
"Nothing." Zoisite said quickly.
"No! Not "nothing"! Until he passes what?" Piccolo said angrily.
"Sorry, we are not at liberty to say." Zoisite answered.
"Okay," Tien interrupted. "Can you at least tell us why Darien is six years old when he should be in his twenties?"
"That we can tell you. You see; Darien was, last time I checked, twenty years old."
"WHAT!" They all shouted, but not as loud as Darien.
"Yes, but her majesty saw to it that Darien was trained in this body." Zoisite said. "Her majesty also wanted to make sure that Darien had a happy childhood."
"What do you mean a 'happy childhood'? Didn't Darien have a one?" Chichi asked.
"Not exactly, no. After Gaea died, Darien's life went downhill from there. He was always alone because everyone was too busy to talk to him. His stepfather was even worse on him and would jump at the chance to attack him verbally. We don't know whether it was because he hated his wife enough to take it out on him or somehow he suspected Darien wasn't his son. But he saw to it that Darien's life was as miserable as possible. He did not gain any friends until the he was 16. That's when he met," Jedeite made a little twirl and bowed. He made his goofiest smile ever. "ME! Oh, and the others." He said tilting his head at a sweat- dropping Zoisite. "After Gaea's death, Serenity made an offer to the king that to solidify the alliance between the Earth and the Moon, the prince, Darien, and princess, her daughter, of both kingdoms would marry. I don't doubt that she wanted to help Darien as well."
"Oh my." Chichi said. She grabbed Darien in a tight hug as if to absorb all the terrible memories away from him. Despite it being full- force, Darien didn't even acknowledge the hug.
"After Darien was betrothed to Serena, his life improved from there, because he fell in love with her, so much so that she meant more to him than his life. He has even proven it on occasion. They would have lived happily ever after. But unfortunately, fate did not smile at us that day. That evil bitch Queen Beryl, ruler of the negaverse, had captured us, the royal guards. We were brainwashed to betray our prince and take over the moon kingdom. The battle was hopeless. Not only did we kill the legendary Sailor scouts, but also we killed our Prince, Endymion and moon princess Serenity. Just when the negaverse would have killed us all, the Queen Serenity used the Imperial silver crystal to trap the negaverse and reincarnated us all to the future in our earth. So we all became reborn again as humans. Unfortunately, once again, it did not sit well with Darien."
"Don't tell me Darien's human parents were cruel to him as well." Yamcha said
"No. Darien's parents loved him very much, but they didn't last long. On the fifth of August, they were going for a family drive. Unfortunately, Darien's parents were thrown off the road and killed. Darien survived, but his parents weren't that lucky. He had lost his memories from the crash. He spent his childhood in the orphanage. The children tormented him and he had almost no friends, so when he left the orphanage at the age of eighteen, he was antisocial. In fact, he made Vegeta look positively gregarious."
Chichi tightened her hug on Darien as if she feared she might lose him to a life of cruelty. Piccolo was just as stunned. He knew what it was like to live all alone and have no friends, but that was mostly self- imposed, and had changed a lot in the last four years. Darien had been on his own for twelve years. It's a wonder he turned out so well.
"Darien's parents died on the 5th, the same day you and Gaea died. That's just a coincidence, right?" Bulma asked, hoping deeply it was.
"No. I'm afraid not. In fact, Darien, there's something you should know about your parent's car accident." Zoisite said.
Darien looked up. "Yes?"
Zoisite walked up and kneeled down so that he looked Darien right in the in the eye. He brushed a few strands of his hair aside tenderly. "It wasn't an accident. It had been done on purpose."
Darien felt his body grow cold. On purpose?
Zoisite looked at him sadly, close to tears. He had to tell him quick or he'll break down soon. "You are now aware of the Light's presence. Well, they had been your enemy since you were born. Your parents were trying to take you to a nice family drive to town. But on the way there, they had been taken over by the 'Light'. They drove off the street and off a cliff. It was a fifty-foot drop, would have killed you if you were an ordinary human. Good thing you weren't. At the last second, you made a shield around your body. It saved you. But in the process, you were blasted out of your car and fell head-first on the ground, where you awakened in a hospital, orphaned."
Darien was stunned for a second. "The 'light' took over them, how?" he asked.
Jedeite spoke. "Ever wonder how messengers are born? The 'light' has a special technique called 'purifying'. It causes the victim to be completely filled with what they consider purity, discarding all "darkness" in them. They become so pure that if they see any sin, they become berserkers and destroy it, all in the name of the 'light'. That's what happened to your parents. They were convinced that you were evil they tried to kill you, they didn't care if it took their lives, too."
The Z-senshi were appalled. It never occurred to them that the Messengers were victims of the light, too. It wasn't right that the only way of handling them was a fight them to the death.
"But that doesn't answer my question." Bulma said, breaking the silence.
"Well, you see, they chose that day to attack because it was the only time in his entire lifetime that his mother's ghost wouldn't protect him."
"His mother's ghost?" she said, her eyes wide.
"Yeah, Darien was always watched over by his mother. The royalty of Earth have traditionally been linked to some guardians of the afterlife, and she was able to keep him safe from harm and send him dreams of the past until he gained his powers as guardian of the Earth. She loses all powers for one day and can't see the living world on August 5th. The day she died. For one day, all danger is opened for Darien. That was all the 'light' needed." Jedeite said.
Chichi seemed to be making headway in the hugging-Darien-to- death department. "Aaaacckkkkkk!!!!!!! Can't breathe..."
"There's something else you should know about this." Zoisite said, nervously.
But Darien had already figured it out. "August 5th is my birthday, isn't it?"
Jedeite and Zoisite looked at each other, more than a little surprised. Finally, they nodded. Darien sighed. He should have known. His parents, past life or present, would die on his birthday and live him alone. 'I must have been born on a bad sign.' He thought.
Vegeta's eyes widened. He remembered who the 'light' was now.
"I think I know a bit about these the 'light' that you don't. I happen to have met them." Vegeta said.
All eyes were on Vegeta, just the way he liked it.
"You do? How is that possible? We don't even know anything about them. The 'light' became inactive before we were even born. We don't even have them in our history books." Zoisite exclaimed.
"Well, the Saiya-jins fought them. They were a nightmare. Fought might not have been the right word. They constantly tried to convert everyone they came in contact with. All of them, obsessed in bringing peace to the universe, only their idea of peace is to have everyone under their control. Some of them were capable of purifying an entire planet at once. Strong warriors who allowed themselves to be purified had their powers amplified and become eternally young. Then they serve the 'light' for all eternity. Those who can't fight are merely put under control by the 'light'. They cannot fight back when attacked, unless ordered to. Completely submissive to beings of higher power. Totally "pure-hearted"." Vegeta spat out the last words.
"What are you so upset about? It sounds like a conqueror's dream come true. You could have easily ruled them. Isn't that what you always wanted?" Tien said.
Vegeta snarled. "It isn't a dream come true. In fact, it's an insult. Do you have any idea as to how humiliating it is to come to a planet, expecting a fight, expecting to conquer and win, only to face an entire plane of people who could care less about their lives? They didn't even scream when they died. Like they had no soul left. Every time we come to a planet recently visited by the 'light', the whole population died without so much as a "Don't." It was sickening."
He continued, crossing his arms in front of his chest and closing his eyes as if trying to keep himself from lashing out. "The messengers of the planet were worse. I remember when I first met one. I was fifteen years old and I was my first solo-purging mission on a planet. Not only are they tough to beat, but also they have an annoying habit of preaching during a fight. 'Vegeta, patience is a virtue.' 'Vegeta, treat all life with respect.'" Vegeta mimicked cruelly " 'Vegeta, perhaps if you allowed the eternal 'light' to claim you, you might be enlightened.' It was that last comment that pissed me off. It was probably what made me angry enough to successfully beat him. I still don't remember a more satisfying kill. Their preaching would sicken even Frieza. I must have blocked it out of my memories. That must be why I didn't recognize the 'Light' sooner."
The Z-senshi didn't know whether to feel sorry for Vegeta or point and laugh at his face.
"The 'light' situation became worse and worse. In fact, Zarbon and Dodoria refused to go to any planet recently infected by the 'light'. Even the Ginyu forces, whom are normally hired to do dirty jobs, flatly refused. They just couldn't stand them. The 'light' even had the nerve to give us an ultimatum: Accept purification or be destroyed. Well, it was a terrible war, but we Saiya-jins came out on top. They swore we would all be destroyed." Vegeta turned his head to his side. "Bastards. Sometimes I wondered if they knew what would happen, or caused it."
"It sounds to me like the 'light' have a Messiah complex. But if they're after evil, why are they after Darien?" Zoisite said.
"The 'light' are after evil and any being with any evil background. Being the son of a demon king has got to be one of the things in their list of 'not pure'." 18 pointed out.
"Then why aren't they after me? I'm the demon king, after all." Piccolo said.
"Yes, and I'm a Saiya-jin Prince. They should be after Kakarrot and me as well. They must know something about Darien that really disturbs them." Vegeta pondered.
"But what could they know?" Jedeite asked.
"They might know about what Darien could do. The 'light' has the uncanny ability to see the future." Vegeta said.
"What do they think Darien is going to do?" Chichi asked.
"We'll have to ask them." Vegeta said, nonchalantly.
Yamcha snorted. "Yeah right. We'll just find one and ask it to tell us their plans. I'm sure they'd be happy to tell us how to kill them, too."
"Exactly." Vegeta said sharply "One of the things those infected by the 'light' can't do is lie."
"Oh." Yamcha said.
"Well, I guess that answers some of the questions. So what do we do now?" Goku asked.
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to start training again. These 'Light' guys are bad news." Krillin said.
"Agreed. Bunch of hypocrites. Peace to the universe indeed." 18 said.
"I'll have to go harder on you in your training, Darien. So we'll have to move to my cave." Piccolo said.
"Now, hold on there. I can understand more training, but what about his schooling with me?" Chichi demanded.
The Z-senshi groaned. Here it comes!
"You're right, Chichi. He'll still have classes with you."
If Piccolo started stripping in front of everyone singing, "I'm too sexy for my body", he would not have gotten a more shocked expression from his friends. Even Chichi thought Piccolo needed to lie down.
"Darien is going to be king of Earth one of these days. To do that, he has to be intelligent. I'm not educated in some levels, so I'll need you to broaden his mind." Piccolo said, ignoring the fact that everyone was moving away from him in fear. "And besides, it was because of his studying with you that he was able to save us today."
"Oh. Okay, that sounds reasonable. Oh, wait, Gohan, didn't you want to tell us something?"
Gohan blinked. "Oh, yeah, but I'm not sure if it's a good time, you know, with everything happening to Darien." Gohan said in a sheepish smile.
"It's okay. I'm fine." Darien said with a smile. Gohan sighed. He'll have to tell them sooner or later.
"Well... Videl and I are going to get married." He said. As if to emphasize their point, Videl showed them her engagement ring. The group was quiet. Chichi stared at her son for several seconds. Then she exploded.
"Getting married? But you haven't even finished school yet! You can't get married!" Chichi yelled.
"But mom, I love her. Besides, I have enough credits to put me in a good college and we'll live off campus." Gohan argued.
"No, forget it! I want you to marry and have children, but not now! You have to go to school, get a job, make some money and buy a home first!" Chichi shouted.
"I don't think they have a choice, Chichi." Goku interrupted "I'm starting to think... that, well.."
"What is it?!?" Chichi screamed, causing Piccolo and Darien to wince. Vegeta smirked.
"So that's what it was. A Saiya-jin's nose never lies, and mine says that Gohan has been at Videl's house for a biology lesson, but not one from a school book."
Chichi was staring at Videl with a look that would scare even the devil. "You," she said in a deadly voice, pointing at Videl. "You corrupted my baby. PREPARE TO DIE!!!!!!!!!!!!" She screamed as she chased Videl with her frying pan, attempting to get a good whack at her.
'I knew we should have told my dad first.' Videl thought.
"Mom, please, calm down!" Gohan shouted after his mom. When they finally managed to calm her down, she decided to accept the wedding.
"All right! You two can get married. But on two conditions: I want you to work extra hard at school, Gohan, so you could support Videl and yourself."
"And two?" Videl asked.
Chichi smiled. "I want lots of grandchildren to play with."
Gohan and Videl fell down, twitching.
"Now, we have to prepare for the wedding, we need a wedding planner." Chichi said.
"OH! OH! OH! I could do it. I was supposed to plan the wedding between Prince Endymion and Princess Serenity way back when, and not for no reason!" Zoisite gushed.
"Yeah, you WHINED until...." Jedeite was viciously elbowed again in his still-sore ribs.
"This will sharpen my skills. I'll design the most beautiful wedding ever, no charge. I'll make the decorations, the wedding invitations, get the orchestra, the works." Zoisite said, ecstatically. This has been his dream come true. 'And maybe someday, I can plan mine and Ami's wedding.' Just the thought of it brought tears to his eyes. 'It will be the most beautiful wedding in the whole universe.' He had a mental image of him in a white tuxedo and Ami in a satin white dress with a tiara and veil on her head, holding white roses.
"All right, Zoisite. You can come to Capsule Corp. tomorrow and plan from there," Bulma said. "We can have the wedding at the Hoshino temple."
"Sounds good to me. We'll have to go shopping for a wedding dress. And for Gohan's tuxedo, of course." Chichi added.
"But mom, I can't stay for long, as the "Great Saiyaman" I must protect the city." He said in a deep heroic voice.
"Sorry, Gohan. But as the groom, you are needed. So the world will be out of Saiyaman and Saiyaman2 for a day or two, what's the worst that could happen?" Bulma said.
Gohan thought about this. He imagined a world filled with chaos. He shuddered.
"Well, we have to get going. See you guys tomorrow." Darien said.
"Yeah, see ya!" Jedeite said, trying to follow Piccolo.
"Where are you two going?" Piccolo said, raising an eye ridge.
"With you of course." Zoisite said.
"Not on the lookout tower. Freeloaders are unacceptable." Actually, Piccolo just found Jedeite unacceptable.
"WHAT? You're not taking Darien without protection. He needs us." Zoisite said as he grabbed Darien in a tight hug. Piccolo rolled his eyes. Wonderful, one guardian was lazy and the other was clingy. And there's still two more coming.
"Forget it! You guys will have to find some other place to stay." Piccolo said as he pulled Darien away from them.
"It's all right, guys. I'll be fine. The Lookout tower is a safe place and my dad will protect me." Darien said, diplomatically.
They hesitated. Then agreed. "Very well, Prince Darien. We will see you tomorrow." Jedeite said, formally.
They flew off.
"Now, where are we going to stay?" Jedeite said.
"Ummm. Mister Zoisite," Goten said as he pulled at Zoisite's pants. "What about the ice cream?"
"That's right! I promised you ice cream, didn't I?" Zoisite said, putting his hand on his left cheek in faux surprise.
"Yeah!" Goten and Trunks said.
"All right! To the ice cream shop!" He said, cheerfully. He picked both of them up and placed them each on his shoulders, then he took off in the air.
Jedeite looked at Chichi pleadingly. She sighed. "All right! You and Zoisite can stay at my house until you can find a permanent residence. Bu you'll have to help around the house. Like Piccolo, I don't accept freeloaders either."
"I guess we should be heading home." Yamcha said. "Give us the invitation to the wedding tomorrow." With that, he and the other flew off.
"We'll have to go, too. Marron, honey; Wake up." 18 said, sweetly. Marron stirred in her father's arms when she heard her mother's voice. She looked up and smiled.
"Mommy! Mommy! Guess what? Darien kissed me on the lips."
"HE DID WHAT?!!!"
At the Lookout tower, Darien sighed in his bedroom. With all the things that were going on, he barely had time to think of Gohan's wedding. The Sons hadn't blamed him, the rest of the group were nothing but sympathetic to his situation, and now they had at least a basic idea of what they were up against.
But he still felt like there was something wrong here. He had a distinct feeling that Jedeite and Zoisite had just hinted at what was really going on. There were some things they wouldn't tell him. Changing into his pajamas, he climbed into his bed and fell asleep. Once again, he started to dream.
Darien stood there, staring at the fire surrounding the house. He heard humans screaming inside. 'Oh God! Someone's in there.' He ran straight at the house only to be grabbed from behind by Piccolo Daimio. He smiled and gestured at the rest of the scene. Darien saw a group of people in white clothes displaying obvious joy at the picture they'd created. Burning next to the house was a tall wooden cross. The Klu Klux Klan. Someone jumped out one of the lower-story windows.
"That's me, you know, before Kami rejected me. I was just wandering around, trying to find my place on this wretched planet. I was getting tired, so I just snuck into a farmhouse and slept there. The owners of this house were a black family. If memory serves me, the family consisted of a father, a pregnant mother, and three kids, none of whom were more than fourteen years old. They were having dinner, as I recall, when they were attacked. I wouldn't have minded this at all if I wasn't there at the time trying to sleep. Ahhhh, look at what I'm going to do next." He said with a smile.
The young Namek stood up and snarled at the intruders. He was enraged. NO! He was furious! How dare they! Darien could feel the hatred emitted from his body. He powered up to his maximum peak and started to make a ki-ball. Darien's eyes widened. He turned his head at the KKK, who were petrified.
"GET OUT OF HERE! HE'S GOING TO KILL YOU ALL!" Darien screamed. They may be immoral bastards, but they didn't deserve to die like that. Not like this.
"Oh, they can't hear you, Darien. This is a memory, remember?" Daimio said, his eyes shinning with amusement.
Darien watched them all get torn apart. He watched them all scream and try to escape, but the namek wasn't allow it. None of them survived more than five minutes. Darien could smell the blood they shed, and hear the gurgle of their last breaths. Darien heaved all over his shoes. Daimio, on the other hand, had a sickening smile on his face. He kneeled forward and rubbed Darien's back to make him feel better. Darien had a distinct feeling he was mocking him.
"Admit it, Darien. This kind of thing is satisfying. You know as well as I do that they deserved it." Daimio said.
"It does not!" Darien snarled. But it was half true. Part of him was disgusted by this, yet the other part of him agreed with it.
Daimio smiled. "You're lying through your teeth. That's good. Demons are good liars as well. I'm starting to think that you're not completely hopeless."
"I'LL NEVER BE A DEMON!"
"But you are one. And not just any demon, a demon prince. You should be proud of your heritage. You will make a fine soldier of destruction." He laughed evilly and disappeared in front of him.
"I'M NOT LIKE YOU! I'LL NEVER BE LIKE YOU! NEVER! DO YOU HEAR ME! NEVER!"
"Never! Never! I'll never be like you! Leave me alone!" He mumbled in his sleep. He squirmed and kicked at his sheets feverishly. Piccolo looked down at the boy. Darien's mumbling, no matter how soft, had woken him up. Piccolo could guess what he was dreaming about without reading his mind. He had gone through the very same thing in his youth. He growled angrily. How dare Daimio use his son as a weapon against the world! He would have sworn some more, but Darien needed him now.
"Darien, wake up. You're having a nightmare." Piccolo was about to shake him awake. The minute he touched Darien's shoulder, Darien sat straight up and wrapped his arms around Piccolo's neck, attempting to strangle him.
"Darien!" Piccolo choked. Darien suddenly realized he was awake. He released Piccolo.
"Piccolo? What are you doing here?" he said, not realizing his eyes were glowing red.
"You were having a nightmare. You okay?"
"Yes." Piccolo raised an eye ridge skeptically. "No."
Piccolo sighed. He was new to this father thing. He had no clue how to treat children with nightmares. Even when he was training Gohan, he would call him a weakling for crying over a nightmare. He had a feeling that calling Darien a weakling now would have a bad effect on him. He wished knew more about how to raise children. His father's memories on the subject of children mostly consisted of ways to kill them. Nail's memories were completely useless and everything Kami had known was far too vague, only telling him that they should be raised with as much love as possible. Not that it wasn't helping him. He looked down at Darien. He was shaking in cold sweat and his breathing was still shallow.
"Darien? Why don't you come outside with me? You might feel better." Piccolo offered.
Darien looked up; his eyes were still red, yet they held innocence. If Piccolo didn't know any better, he would have sworn that he was looking at a demon-born innocent. He climbed out of bed with and followed Piccolo out. As he walked, he heard Dende snoring in his room. He had felt bad for knocking him and Popo out. He made a mental note to do something nice for them tomorrow. As soon as they left the building, Darien felt the cool air hit his hot forehead. The red eyes subsided and he started to breathe easier. They just stood there at the edge of the tower. Darien sat at the edge and kicked his legs. Darien looked at Piccolo, who was staring straight ahead. Darien knew he wanted to talk, but Piccolo wasn't going to break the silence first. Darien made a small cough to get his attention.
"Something you would like to say, Dad?" He was getting used to calling Piccolo that. Piccolo looked at him. Darien looked at him expectedly. Piccolo sighed again. He better get this out of his head now.
"You never answered my question, Darien. Why didn't you tell me you had Daimio's memories the first time you got them?" Piccolo asked softly, looking at Darien's eyes. Darien gave him a rueful smile. He should have seen that coming.
"I'm sorry, Dad. It's not that I don't trust you. It's just that.....well...you see... It's complicated to explain."
"You thought that I would treat you like a threat and turn against you." Piccolo said. "You didn't tell me this because you assumed that I was going to see you in a different way, and not a very good way at that."
Darien was surprised. Piccolo understood it better than he himself did. "I'm sorry, Picco... I mean, dad. I'm really, really sorry."
Piccolo smiled and kneeled. "Suck it up, kid. If I were in your shoes I'd probably have done the same thing too. You did the right thing to hold back at first."
"Really?"
"I'm not sure why you attacked Goku this morning, but it would be a good idea to keep you two separate until we teach you how to control your demon. That's why after we move to the cave, you won't be around them for long."
"I understand."
"No more hiding secrets, okay?"
"I promise."
"Good. Now scoot." he said good-naturedly.
Darien, for the first time today, was really happy. He ran back to his room. Piccolo smiled after him and shook his head.
"I'm getting way too soft these days." He muttered. He sat down meditating, all the while doing that, he never noticed the translucent image of a female teenager in a black and white sailor fuku, smiling and crying all the same time behind him.
The next day, Piccolo snapped out of his meditation and walked up to Darien's room, only to find it empty. He then realized that Darien's ki was nowhere to be felt. He walked out to see Mr. Popo watering plants.
"Popo? Where's Darien?" Piccolo asked.
"Oh, Mr. Darien woke up early to help around the Lookout. He said it was the least he could do after he left Dende and me unconscious. Mr. Vegeta flew in and told him Bulma wanted him to try out his tuxedo. When Darien told him he was going to get intense training, Vegeta wanted to see how strong he was now by sparring with him in the gravity room."
"What? Vegeta? Sparring with Darien? We're talking about the same Vegeta that wouldn't fight with anyone but Goku? He's sparring with my son?" Piccolo asked with wide eyes.
"Yes. He seems to have grown rather fond of Darien." Mr. Popo smiled.
"Well, he's going to grow fond of my fist when I get my hands on him! He's got some nerve to come here and take MY son." He shouted. He jumped off the lookout tower and flew straight down to Capsule corp., grumbling all he way there.
Meanwhile, at Capsule corp., "But Zoisite, I look silly." Goku whined. Zoisite had managed to make an appointment with a priest to do the wedding. He had hired security guards to make sure that no one interrupts the wedding, for some reason. He scheduled for a supermarket to send in fresh fruits and vegetables for the buffet and Jedeite was somehow roped into doing the cooking. Now he was making sure that everyone's suits fit them perfectly. And Goku's whining was making that hard.
"This is your son's wedding. You must look the part and ...what is that smell...? JEDEITE! THAT'S NOT THE ROAST, IS IT?"
"Not the roast." Goku said softly, his eyes shiny with tears. It was then that Piccolo made his entrance.
"Goku, where's Vegeta?" Piccolo panted.
"Hi Piccolo! What's up?" Goku said, cheerful again.
"Vegeta kidnapped Darien!" Piccolo shouted.
"Really? I just saw Darien. He seemed very happy. They just went to the G.R. to spar. He also said he had a video tape of you to show him."
"That damn prince is a bad influence to Darien. Darien might pick up his bad habits. I don't need another Vegeta."
Goku smiled an amused smile. "You know Piccolo, I seem to recall Chichi saying that you were a bad influence to Gohan."
"That's different. I'm no longer evil, with Vegeta, you never know. Besides," he lifted his nose up and turned his head up. "I think I was a wonderful example to Gohan in his youth."
"Ha!" Chichi laughed as she walked past them. Zoisite walked out of the kitchen covered in soot with a look of despair.
"Chichi! Jedeite is ruining everything, can you cook for a while?" He looked desperate.
"Of course." She walked into the kitchen She pushed a sooty Jedeite out of the kitchen. She then sprayed him with a fire extinguisher.
"Piccolo, you're just in time for your suit." Zoisite grinned. Goku grinned as well. So, he didn't have to suffer himself.
"Heh, forget it. You're not going to catch me in those suits. I'll come to the wedding in a cleaner gi, thank you very much." He said.
"But the best man must wear a suit. It's tradition."
"I am not going to wear..... Wait, best man?" Piccolo was stunned, and flattered.
"Yes, I want you to be my best man." Gohan said as he came in with his white tuxedo on. It was difficult, but Zoisite managed to brush his spiky hair all the way back.
"Gohan. I'm touched." Piccolo said, a slight blush on his face. Gohan smiled the "Son" grin. It was then that Vegeta came out.
"You!" Piccolo growled at Vegeta.
"Why hello, namek. I'm surprised to see you here." Vegeta smirked.
"Where's Darien?" Piccolo demanded.
"He left with Trunks and Goten. They decided to act as replacements for Saiya-baka." Vegeta sneered.
"Replacements?" Piccolo and Goku asked. They looked at Gohan. He smiled sheepishly.
"Well, you see, with Saiya man out of the picture, I need someone to take over for now." He said putting his hand behind his head. He clapped his hands. As if on cue, Goten came out in a chibi Saiya man outfit. Trunks came in an old Saiya-jin armor and a cape. Vegeta smiled proudly at his son.
"Now that's a superhero's outfit." Vegeta commented.
"But where's Darien?" Piccolo asked earnestly. As if to answer his question, a rose landed near his right foot. Everyone looked up and saw a boy in a tuxedo and black cape. He had a top hat and a mask on his face. A guitar could be heard playing. He smiled and jumped off the stairs.
"I am Tuxedo mask." He stated. Piccolo stared at him.
"What are you wearing?" Piccolo said in shock.
"Oh this? Jedeite said I used to defend Earth this way in my world. Pretty snazzy, huh?"
Piccolo smacked his head. How could this happen to him? First he lost Gohan to this superhero madness, and now Darien? Was Dende doing this to torment him?
The doorbell rang. Zoisite answered it. It was Krillin. "Hey guys! I hope I'm not to late." Krillin said good-naturedly. Everyone said his or her hellos.
"Hey, Krillin, Where's MarRRRRRRRRROOONNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!" Darien screamed the last part when something tackled him on the waist and slammed him on the ground. He looked up to see Marron in a white dress and her hair down and curled at the tips.
"HI DARIEN!" she said cheerfully.
"Hey Marron. What's up?" he asked as casually as he could, catching his breath.
"Nothing. Darien, could you get me a kitten? I saw one in Satan city Pet shop. It's got green eyes, white fur, and a pretty pink ribbon." She asked sweetly.
"Marron, come on. You already have four puppies at home that are eating us out of house and home. And stop asking Darien to buy stuff for you." Krillin said.
"It's okay, Krillin, I don't mind if she asks me for stuff." Darien said. He pulled out a red rose. "Pour toi, mademoiselle." He said in a perfect French accent. Marron giggled and blushed. She took the rose and kissed Darien on the cheek. Goten and Trunks looked at each other in disgust and most of the adults with the exception of Vegeta and Piccolo, thought it was cute. It was then that 18 walked in. she saw the exchange.
"You! You Casanova!" she shouted and stamped toward him.
"MOMMY, NO!" Marron shouted and grabbed her mother's skirt. Krillin ran and grabbed 18 by the waist.
"I promise you two minutes." Krillin said.
"Um, guys let's get out of here, I think I hear danger calling." Darien said.
"We're off! Toot, too, tuuuuuuuuuuu!" Goten went. Hey flew off as fast as they could.
"Don't forget the kitten!" Marron shouted after.
Poor Darien! Will he ever escape 18?
Is Piccolo going to get he hang of being a parent?
Is Gohan going to regret hiring Zoisite?
Find out on Chapter 11 of "His Path".
Hmmmmmm, apparently, I've gotten into making longer chapters. Okay, folks! On the next chapter of His Path, Darien, Trunks and Goten fight a terrorist group. Meanwhile, The wedding has commenced and Gohan forgot Goten was the ring bearer; will he make it in time? Huh? Machlite and Nephlite find something wrong? OH WOW! We get a glimpse from the future!
Hint of upcoming chapter: "The 'Light' is now considered the least of Darien's worries."
Alex Damioh: I can't wait for the wedding! It seems that kami has been going around the world. Maybe we could make a book like Where's Kami and stuff.
Dude: That's a dumb idea.
Alex Damioh: *ignores last comment* Anyways, we have a special guest for today. Bring out Vegeta.
Dude: We only have 20 seconds so lets make it quick.
Alex Damioh: *drags Vegeta out of the green room* If you cooperate then you could leave after the interview. Now, first question.
Dude: What's your full name?
Vegeta: Vegeta, saiya-jin no ouji.
Alex Damioh: What's your favorite movie?
Vegeta: Earth movies are stupid.
Dude: If you don't answer we'll say you like something like Titanic because it made you cry like a baby.
Vegeta: Fine. I like I Know What You Did Last Summer because I enjoy laughing at the humans, their mistakes, and their horrible deaths.
Alex Damioh: O.O
Dude: Do you ever want more kids?
Vegeta: No, I already have a brat and a little angel.
Alex Damioh: What's your favorite ice cream flavor?
Vegeta: I don't eat ice cream. They're fattening and go to your hips.and they're too cold.
Alex Damioh: Last but not least, who's your little buddy?
Vegeta: Kakko.wait a minute! How dare you ask the prince of all saiya-jins such a question!?! I HAVE NO LITTLE BUDDY AND NEVER WILL HAVE ONE!
Goku: Aaaaaw.
Vegeta: -.- What are you doing here, Kakkarot?
Goku: Listening. I'm the sound guy. (
Vegeta: Hmmph. I'm leaving. *Flies out of the studio letting the backdrop fall showing a small, dirty apartment*
Alex Damioh:..Well, I'll see ya in the next chapter!