Disclaimer: I own the characters Anaya (ah nah YAH), Tulsi (tul SIGH), Mint, Rue (RU) and Cassia (CASH ah). I do not own the other Dragonball Z characters.
Chapter Eleven – Truth Unveiled
Capsule Corporation : Present 10:02am
Bulma sat at her computer accessing the files that Lita had cataloged the day before. Perfect. The final touches have been made. I think I'll be able to finish building it today. Someone bursting through the doors interrupted her thoughts. Bulma looked up to see who the visitor was.
Lita was in a pant, "I'm so sorry ma'am. I overslept and had to rush to finish my chores and…" "It's ok," Bulma interrupted. "Besides I was going to give you the day off." "Really? How come?" Lita asked trying to recover her breathing. "Because Mirai Trunks asked me to. He said ya'll have plans today to go site seeing." Lita was a little confused but went along with it, We did want to go site seeing…we didn't make plans though. "And," Bulma continued, "You seem to be getting little to no sleep ever since you got here, or so Mirai Trunks tells me. What's going on? I want to know what you're hiding, including why you were able to hear Vegeta's thoughts." "Umm…" Lita began. Here goes nothing…
Lita opened her mouth as if going to say something when there was a knock on the inner lab door. Darn! Every time I try to tell her there's an interruption… Lita took a seat at one of the tables that were in the lab. A little annoyed by the interruption Bulma made her way to the door quickly. She opened it and was greeted by Anise along with four men. "Yes?" asked a curious Bulma. "Mrs. Briefs, Lita has some guest here to see her." Bulma looked over the four men eying them suspiciously, each were dressed in formal business attire consisting of a white or light blue collared shirt and black pants. One was wearing a leather jacket and the other a trench coat, the other two wore neither and appeared very muscular. "And, who might you be?" Bulma asked directing her question at all of them. The one wearing the long trench coat responded, "We are investigators looking for this woman." He held up an image in Lita's likeness for her to see. "Why are you looking for her?" "She's wanted and we need to take her in." Bulma's eyebrows furrowed, What…what is she wanted for? But before she could ask the question in mind, one of the men had already pushed their way past her and entered the lab.
They all walked towards Lita who was seated and in deep thought, not paying them any attention. Bulma remained by her computer waiting to see what was going to happen.
Sensing that someone was watching her, Lita snapped out of her ponderings and looked up. Upon seeing the man in the trench coat, she bolted up from her chair. Her mouth was partially agape and her eyes wore fear in them. Lita found it hard to form words or move for that matter. The man in the trench coat smirked upon her apprehension, "So, we've finally found you." Lita looked towards Bulma whom seemed to not want any part in the events that would occur. She returned her attention to the man before her trying to mask the look of fear with that of anger. "How did you find me?" she asked staring down the man with an intense glare. "I'll have to say it wasn't easy, but the lady at the hospital proved most helpful." Dammit! She swore to herself. "With a little pressure she was also kind enough to give me your home address. But when we arrived there, you were no where to be found. So we had to do a little more digging. We found out that your mail was being forwarded to this address, and well that brings us here." How could I be so careless… the look of worry returned to Lita's face.
Due to the heated discussion that was going on between Lita and the men, Bulma had managed to slip out unknowingly when they began talking. She ran to a nearby room and paged Vegeta and the boys of the event that was taking place. She also asked them to come through the front of Capsule Corp, given that the inner door to her lab was at the men's backs. They could easily get the upper hand if things got out of hand. Afterwards, Bulma made her way back to her lab and slipped in again.
"When we last met things weren't very pleasant if you recall. Now just be a nice little girl and surrender quietly." Lita stared angrily, "On a cold day in Hell," she retorted. The man smiled again, "I knew you'd say that. You know, you're just making my job easier," he replied reaching in his trench coat. He drew the gun quickly pointing at Lita's head. Bulma was shocked by what was going to happen, Vegeta… Lita's mouth drew tight and her fists clenched, "I thought I was wanted by that madman alive." "Of all people you would know that he's been dead now for a while. Now my orders are to simply kill you. Pity, such a waste." Lita took a step back, eyes wide with horror. She closed her eyes tightly as a shot rang out and she felt like something had knocked the wind out of her. She could hear the sound of grunts and groans. Lita opened her eyes and saw that Mirai Trunks was looking back towards the group of men who were now being pummeled by Vegeta, Trunks and Goten with little effort.
She looked on as the four men lay on the group unconscious. She looked at Mirai Trunks who was still holding her around her torso and arms, "Thank you." Mirai Trunks turned his attention to her and let go of her form, "What happened?" Bulma strolled up to them, "That's exactly what I want to know too. Who were those guys and what did they want with you?" Lita looked at Bulma for a second then at Vegeta, Trunks and Goten who were finishing with tying up the men. She exhaled and looked at Bulma once more, "I wanted to tell you earlier, before they came in that is." Vegeta and the boys had finally made their way over to join in on the conversation. Vegeta decided to lean against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest.
Lita looked at the group standing in the middle of the room and walked past them towards the table once more indicating for everyone to have a seat. Bulma along with Mirai Trunks, Trunks and Goten took a seat at the table while Lita stood before them; Vegeta remained in his position against the counter standing. Lita looked at each of the intense glares she received and thought a moment before she began. "I know you're all wondering what those guys wanted…Ever since I was little I had this gift, or curse. Every night when I go to bed, I would have dreams about people's last moments before they died. And when I woke up in the mornings, there would be a news broadcast of another killing that took place the night before. I told my dad about it at first and word got out around the family that I was having visions or something." Bulma thought for a moment, "Who is your family? I don't recall seeing it in your file when you first came here." This girl is familiar but how…? Complying with Bulma's question Lita answered, "My parents are Tulsi and Mint Cassia." Bulma's eyes went wide, "Wait, you don't mean King Cassia do you?" Lita looked down and nodded. Bulma slammed her hands on the table, "Ha, I knew I recognized you from somewhere. My father took me when I was twenty one to do business with your dad. You were very little then so that's why I barely recognized you."
Everyone looked from Bulma then to Lita, "Is that true?" Mirai Trunks questioned. Lita looked up and nodded silently. "Wait, so doesn't that make you a princess?" Goten asked hardly believing. "Yes," Lita answered quietly. "So then, you're name isn't Lita Annatto is it?" She looked at Mirai Trunks seeing the angry look in his eyes. "My actual name is Anaya Cassia." "So, why don't you want anyone to know your real name?" Trunks wondered. Lita sighed, "I am next in line for my father's kingdom. My uncle wants his son to rule instead of me. And he was determined to find a reason for me to be ruled out. When the issue of my visions came about, he accused me of being the one responsible for those countless people's lives. He said that I was killing them with my mind. My father wanted to disprove his theory, but didn't know how. My uncle Rue, came up with suggesting this well know scientist and doctor to help me. His name was Dr. Gero," Lita spat out Gero's name.
"That man never quits does he," Bulma said raising her arms briefly before crossing them. Mirai Trunks frowned upon hearing his name again. "Who's Gero?" Trunks asked. "He's the jerk that's been causing all the issues with the androids." Lita gave Bulma a questionable look, but nodded in understanding that Gero is a horrible person. "Well, I went to this Gero for about three years. He found that my mental psyche was off the charts. After a while, my dad got impatient with the lack of progress. Gero finally told my dad that I wasn't killing people, but he wanted to study me further, alone. My dad of course was outraged by his proposal and left, taking me with him. After a few more years when I was fifteen, I asked my father to attend public school which required me to move away. He eventually agreed to it and I moved to Northern City to attend high school there. On my sixteenth birthday, the attendants that moved with me were all murdered in front of me. I was scared out of my mind and tried to get away from one of the men that was grabbing me. But I wasn't able to escape; they took me to Gero where he experimented on me for about a week. Gero had ordered one of his men to detain me and move me to one of his tanks he had lined up. I saw a woman in one of the tanks who looked like she'd been through torture. I don't know what happened afterwards, one minute the guy grabbing me was pulling me by the arm and the next he wasn't moving on the ground. I used that opportunity to escape Gero's lab and have been running ever since. I later found out that they were working for my uncle along with Gero. They later managed to catch up with me my first year in college and killed my roommate while I was away, which was in East City. So I moved to the Capitol to finish college, and just recently came here."
Lita stopped for a moment to allow the others to take in everything. She could see that there were some unanswered questions on their minds. Bulma was the first to speak, "So, you can read people's minds?" "It's never happened before…" she said glancing over to Vegeta's position. Vegeta unfolded his arms and made his way over to Lita, grabbing her arm roughly. "Agh," she winced under his tight grip which happened to be where the bandage was. "Father, what are you doing?" "If ya'll hadn't noticed, this girl is capable of killing people with her mind. You ever stop to think that maybe she's working with whoever that new energy belongs to?" Everyone looked at each other weighing the possibilities in their minds. Bulma stood up and walked over to Lita, "Are you involved with Chi-Chi's disappearance?" Lita just stared at Bulma trying to think of what she was talking about. "Do you mean that woman with the black hair that was attacked?" Goten and Trunks stood up quickly from their chairs, "You hurt my mom?" Goten asked a little angry. Lita stared at him for a second, "What, no. I don't even know your mom, or that woman that was attacked. I only saw her and that other figure in my mind. I don't know what happened afterwards cause I passed out." "What if you're controlling that monster with your mind?" Trunks asked. Lita opened her mouth about to speak, but wasn't sure if it were true or not. My abilities are getting stronger…that much I know. Could I be capable of creating a creature that kills people? What am I…? "I don't know…" she managed.
An angry Vegeta was pulling Lita by the arm heading towards the outside door. "Vegeta, where are you going?" came from Bulma. Vegeta turned around, "This girl is not to be trusted, so I'm taking her to the Namek. Mirai Trunks, you're coming with me. Boys, you stay here got it." Both boys nodded in unison. Mirai Trunks met up with Vegeta and Lita. Vegeta shoved Lita towards Mirai Trunks, which he grabbed hold of Lita's arm.
Mirai Trunks looked into Lita's eyes which appeared seemingly confused and scared. He forced himself to tear away from her gaze and pulled her along following Vegeta. Vegeta powered up slightly and took to flight at top speeds. Lita was watching unbelieving what she saw. "Hang on," Mirai Trunks instructed. He wrapped his right arm around Lita's waist and took off as Vegeta had. Shock and disorientation took over Lita as they took flight. She held her breathe and wrapped her arms around Mirai Trunks' neck tighter. "Uhh…not too tight, I have to breathe ya know." Lita's head turned to his and she loosened her grip a little. Mirai Trunks couldn't help but see that the bandage on her arm in front of him was seeping blood. He sighed to himself, That's right, she did hurt herself last night. And I was too upset with wanting to know more about her to care. I didn't even offer to help her… Mirai Trunks brow drew together as shame overtook him. He glanced at Lita's face seeing that her eyes were closed tightly and she was biting her bottom lip. "You can relax, I won't drop you." This caused Lita to open her eyes, "Are you guys going to kill me?" Mirai Trunks was a little baffled by the question, "No, why would we kill you?" "Cause your father doesn't seem too pleased with me. And I have no idea where you're taking me." Mirai Trunks looked to his father, "I'll make sure that nothing happens to you." He looked to Lita again, "You have my word." Lita managed a smile but was still uneasy about everything that's just happened.
Am I the cause of all of this? "Do you think I'm the reason for that creature showing up?" Mirai Trunks thought for a second, "I don't think a person as nice as you is capable of such evil. But I do think that you're linked to this somehow, in a good way." Lita smiled, I really hope he's right.
Otherworld : Now
"King Kai, what do you mean we're doomed!" Gohan tried. "Is that woman causing trouble again? What is it King Kai!" Goku added. King Kai still wore the frown upon his face, "I was told that the Supreme Kai will explain everything. You two should get going," he announced gravely. Goku frowned, What could it be? "Gohan, lets get going." Gohan looked at Goku a little bewildered, "But dad…" "The Supreme Kai has something to tell us. Better not keep him waiting." Realization struck Gohan, I was still caught up in the we're doomed thing… "Right dad." Goku teleported he and Gohan to the Planet of the Kais.
"King Kai, what did you mean by we're all doomed? Surely Goku and the others can fix it?" Gregory tried to reassure. "No Gregory, this time, there's nothing we can do."
Planet of the Kais
Kibitoshin greeted Goku and Gohan upon arrival, "Ah, you made it." "Hey Kibitoshin and Old Kai. We were told that you have something to tell us?" Goku said getting to the point. "Yes we do," Kibitoshin responded. "Hmph, we don't have anything to tell them." "Elder! Whatever do you mean?" "I seem to recall a deal that hasn't been met yet. I was promised a kiss!" Kibitoshin looked on dumbfounded, "Elder you can't be serious! We don't have time for that." Goku folded his arms, "Well a promise is a promise." Gohan looked at Goku questioningly, "You're seriously going to ask Bulma to kiss him?" "She has to, the fate of everything depends on it." Both Gohan and Kibitoshin were baffled. Kibitoshin objected, "Elder, time is running out. We have to tell them what's going on." "Do what you want, but I demand my kiss." Kibitoshin sighed out of frustration, "Goku before I tell you, we should include all of your friends as well. They could help come up with a solution if there is one." Goku frowned, "I don't know what all of this is about, but ok." "I'll go with you to explain everything. We shall return later to devise a plan." Goku nodded and brought his fingers to his forehead.
Kami's Lookout : Present 10:40am
Vegeta and Mirai Trunks carrying Lita touched down at the tower. To Lita's surprise it was a rather short trip. Piccolo sensing the trio's arrival was already on his way towards them, with Dende following behind. Lita saw the two green men approaching, Wow…if they aren't aliens then I am a normal human being. Her attention was averted when she caught sight of a figure that had given her nightmares on a number of occasions. She began walking backwards as if he were going to attack at any moment. Mirai Trunks noticed her actions, "What's wrong?" Lita stared blankly at the figure before her, "It's Majin Buu…"
By now Piccolo and Dende have met up with Vegeta and company and over heard the newcomer, as did Vegeta and Mirai Trunks. Vegeta turned to Lita and grabbed her arm again, "What do you know of Majin Buu girl?" Lita looked at him as if he had grown a third eye, "He…he killed all those people. How can you forget something like that?" Piccolo raised an eye brow, "How is it you still remember Buu?" Lita turned her attention to Piccolo, "That sorcerer showed a demonstration of Buu's powers. When he ate all those people." Piccolo was shocked to know that the Dragon's wish had not affected the girl.
"Namek, this is why I brought her here. She knows too much. And she can read people's minds and kill them." "We don't know that for sure," Mirai Trunks corrected. "Piccolo, Lita here has great mental abilities. For a while now she's been seeing people's death in her dreams. And just recently, she was able to hear Father's thoughts." "How do we know she isn't another one of Gero's pawns?" Vegeta interrupted. "Slow down Vegeta, what are you talking about?" "What Father means is that Lita was telling us that her uncle lead Gero to her. And before Gero had time to experiment on her she escaped, right?" asking Lita for confirmation. Lita nodded in response, "She's managed to avoid Gero and her uncle's henchmen until this morning." Piccolo was in deep thought about the information he had just received.
Lita spoke up, "I know my powers are growing, but I don't think I'm the cause of that evil woman attacking," trying to convince herself. "So let me get this straight," Piccolo started, "You can see people right before they die in your mind?" "Yes," Lita confirmed. "So I'm correct to assume that you've seen Chi-Chi's death as well?" "If you mean that woman with the black hair and purple dress then yes. But I don't know what happened to her actually, I passed out before she died. So I'm assuming that she is dead." "Why did you pass out?" Dende inquired. "Cause the presence she gave off, and her power was way too much for me. The same thing happened with Majin Buu. I saw all those people being swallowed and I blacked out. When I came to, I heard people celebrating." "Wow, so you missed a lot about Majin Buu," Dende finished. "Could that be why the Dragonballs had no effect on you?" Piccolo asked more to himself then the others.
Just then, Goku, Gohan and Kibitoshin appeared out of thin air startling Lita. Goku looked over the bunch, "We have some news that everyone's gonna want to hear." Goku noticed Lita for the first time, "Hi," he greeted. "Goku, we were just learning of Lita's past." "Oh?" Goku asked. Piccolo explained everything about what he was just told with the help of Mirai Trunks. Also, information about Buu's treachery was explained in full as to address a question that Mirai Trunks wanted to know more of. The result of the discussion still left some questions unanswered about Lita's abilities and her ties to the events that had taken place. Kibitoshin was taking in everything and applying it to the information that he withheld.
"If I may, I'd like to tell everyone of the new threat. But first, it would be best if everyone hears." Agreeing, Goku wasted no time in teleporting to gather the others who were training diligently around the tower. Not long afterwards, everyone gathered around Kibitoshin. Lita recognized someone, "You're the woman that Gero held captive." Eighteen realizing that the girl was addressing her turned in her direction. "What do you mean?" Eighteen asked wanting to know more.
"Sorry to interrupt, but we'll continue that discussion later. I have some foreboding news." "Great," Seventeen said cynically. "The universe is unraveling. It's being swallowed up by darkness." "Huh!" lots of voices echoed in disbelief. "It's at the edges of the universe now, but everything is being erased from existence. This surge is moving inward erasing everything in its path. Not even the Dragonballs will be able to stop this." "How long do we have?" Krillin asked not wanting to know the answer. "In a matter of four more earth days it will have reached the Planet of the Kais. That will be the last remaining planet in existence." "You gotta be kidding me!" Tien voiced. "How long do we have here on Earth?" Krillin clarified. "It should be here in about a day and a half from now." "What…" was all Krillin could manage. "And it will have devoured Namek in two days and almost all of the Spirit Realm in three. I'm sorry, but the only thing that I can do at this point is to allow everyone to stay on the Planet of the Kais until something is resolved." "Is there a plan?" Videl wanted to know. "Well, that's what I wanted to discuss with everyone, if a plan even exists. If everyone can, please gather all your belongings that may be useful later," Kibitoshin finished.
"Well, everyone pretty much did that already," Yamcha explained. "Wait," Mirai Trunks remembered, "We still have to collect the Dragonballs just in case." "Ah, you're right," came from Goku. "I'll go get it Goku besides, mom will want to pack some stuff as well. That way you guys could plan some more." Goku nodded in agreement. "Can I come with you," Lita asked feeling a bit uncomfortable around the unfamiliar group. Mirai Trunks nodded, "Yeah of course." He noticed that the bandage she wore was seeping even more then before. "Hey, you should really change your bandages." Lita looked at her bandage and realized that they indeed needed changing. "Here, follow me."
Mirai Trunks led Lita away from the group towards the building. Eighteen had also followed them as far as the building, waiting for them to return.
After a few twists and turns of the hallway, they reached the kitchen area where first aid supplies were easily located. Mirai Trunks took it upon himself to dress her wound and re-bandaged it with a firm yet gentle tie. "There," he announced. Lita smiled, "Thanks." The two sat there for a few moments until Lita broke the silence, "So, now what do we do knowing everything's gonna end soon?" Mirai Trunks frowned at the question, "Well, are you still up for that tour of the city?" Lita smiled broadly at the question," Sure am." "So let's get going then. But first we need to stop by Capsule Corp and tell mom what's going on, and get the Dragon radar." "Dragon radar?" Lita asked. "Oh, yeah you haven't seen the dragon have you? Well the Dragon radar is a device my mom invented that locates the Dragonballs. And once we find all seven Dragonballs, you can call forth Shenron the eternal dragon. And he will grant you a wish; except Dende upgraded it so now he can grant two wishes." "Sounds neat. I would die at a chance to see the dragon." "We'll look for them together then." Lita beamed, "Ok." "Well we should get going." "K," Lita nodded.
Upon exiting the main entrance of the building, Lita heard a call from behind, "Hey!" Lita and Mirai Trunks turned around to see Eighteen walking up to them. "You said something before about me being in Gero's lab?" "Yes," Lita began, "When his henchmen captured me, I saw you in one of the tanks. You were in this green goo or something and it looked like you were beaten and bruised all over. There were tubes everywhere and you had a bunch of cuts and stitches. I don't know what happened to you…but I'm sorry I couldn't help." Eighteen thought for a minute, "Did you see my brother Seventeen as well?" She point in his direction so that she could put a face to the name. Lita looked over Seventeen's appearance, "I've never seen him before now," Lita informed. She turned back to Eighteen, "Sorry I can't be of more help to you." "It's fine," Eighteen said, "Thanks anyway though." With that, Eighteen was walking back towards the group. Lita frowned a bit, I didn't even help her…If we live through this, I'm going to help her with whatever she's searching for. "We should get going."
Mirai Trunks lifted Lita off of her feet earning a gasp from her. Lita instinctively wrapped her arms around Mirai Trunks' neck and the two took off. Wanting to show off a bit, Mirai Trunks flew downwards at full speed. As the ground got closer, Lita began to panic. At the last minute, Mirai Trunks darted from the ground, causing Lita to bury her head in Mirai Trunks' shoulder. Mirai Trunks smiled at her action "It's Ok, you're safe." Lita worked up the courage to look again. They both skimmed over a lake and Lita could feel sprays of water on her face. They then took to the sky flying through the clouds. The feeling of it all was remarkable to Lita. "So, how are you able to fly like this?" "All of us use our inner Ki to make us fly. We also use our Ki for other things like creating blasts and stuff." "What's Ki?" she wondered. "It's kinda hard to explain…every organism has it. I guess it's your body's energy to put it simply. Will have to show you it sometime." The two continued on taking in the landscape as if it were seen for the first time.
Capsule Corporation : Present 11:20am
Bulma tried to keep herself busy. She was working diligently on her new machine putting the finishing touches on it. "And one more twist and…there," she exclaimed as she finished her task. "Yes, I've finished. I thought it'd take longer though." Bulma pulled herself from under the machine expecting the work. "Now to add it to the ship I've been working on." Bulma looked towards the unconscious men who were now stirring a bit, I really hope Vegeta and the others get back soon.
As if reading her thoughts, Mirai Trunks and Lita walked through the door. "Wow, that was fast," Bulma acknowledged. Mirai Trunks walked towards Bulma, "Hey mom, I have some disturbing news." "Great, what could be worst then what's been happening thus far?" Mirai Trunks led Bulma to the far edge of the lab to tell her everything that was discussed at the tower. Lita however couldn't help but notice that the men were waking up.
Lita made her way over to the man in the trench coat, "Where is my uncle?" "I'm not telling you anything." Lita was a bit agitated to say the least, Wish I knew how to read people's minds willingly.
"So, where's my dad?" Trunks pointed out. "He's still at the tower with the others." Goten was debating on whether he should talk to Lita, he just wanted to know if his mom was ok. Trunks turned his attention to the men on the floor, "I wonder what they want us to do with them?" For once Lita had wished that these men suffered like the countless people she witnessed before had. I guess they can rot here…everything's going to come to an end anyway. Trunks gave another blow to the head of the two conscious men just in case they were to try something. Shocking words could be heard from across the room, I take it Mirai Trunks has already informed her of what's going to happen. I just hope that there's a way to save everything.
After a short while, Mirai Trunks and Bulma made their way towards Lita and the boys. Trunks noticed that Bulma seemed a little upset, "What's wrong mom?" Bulma could only stare for a few minutes, "Boys go get my mom and dad, we all have to meet the others at the tower. And bring some stuff to keep you company." "Ok," Trunks frowned. "Come on Goten." Both boys left the lab without another word. "Sorry about before," Bulma directed her comment to Lita. "Oh, it's nothing. I would be concerned too." "Well mom, can you be sure to take the Dragon radar with you when you leave?" Bulma nodded, "Ok, have to add this new engine I've been working on to my ship first, then I'll leave." "You mean the ship outside?" "No," Bulma nodded, "I made a bigger ship that could hold up to twenty people on it. With this new engine, it'll have the ability to travel through time as well as space." "Cool," Mirai Trunks commented. "I guess I'll call Vegeta or Goku about what to do with these guys before I leave." "Ok, well mom, me and Lita are going sight seeing, never had a chance to before." Bulma couldn't help but smile, "Well you two have fun," Bulma said with a wink. Mirai Trunks chuckled nervously, "Thanks." Lita bowed in agreement.
The two left Capsule Corp. to visit the sights of the city. Bulma made her way to the back yard of Capsule Corp. to release the space ship capsule to finalize her work.