Author's Note:
I now have a schedule! Every Tuesday is when the next chapter of Crossroads will be released. Monday is A Whole New Enemy. Wednesday is Youngest Among Us, and I'll have a new Selection / DBZ crossover. It's where all the males in DBZ fight for Chi-Chi's hand in the Selection.
Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ!
CHAPTER ELEVEN:
Gohan was strolling around the gardens at the tournament. This place was simply gorgeous - the gardens were prettier than any other that Gohan had ever seen! His Mom's had been simply stunning, but these were amazing. He couldn't even begin to describe the shades of all the different colours as he strolled nervously. Gohan had been to nervous to eat, while his father was stuffing his face. Goku hadn't noticed him leave, and Gohan didn't know that Pikkon and Celeste were following him. For some reason, the older fighters were quite interested in the young half-Saiyan hybrid.
Gohan sighed, stopping at a particular large bunch of flowers that carried on for miles. "I'm sorry, Dad." he mumbled. Celeste extended her hand, using her telepathic abilities. Gohan fell to the ground as Celeste forced her way into his mind. He clutched at his head, screaming in agony. His ki rose rapidly, wavering between furious and terrified. In an instant, Goku was on the scene, kneeling by his son. Several of the other fighters had gathered around the boy, desperate to know what was wrong. Celeste narrowed her eyes and Gohan's resistance broke.
Suddenly, images popped out in a circle above the boy. Each one was a memory. The fighters watched in horror as Gohan was abducted. They watched his fights with Piccolo, his training, saw his emotions, saw his rage against Raditz. Saw him fight Nappa and prepare to die. They watched him as his neck was broken by Recoome, as his head was crushed underneath Frieza's foot. They saw him being forced to fight Cell, and finally... the disease.
Goku had a bitter taste in his mouth, horror aching through his chest as he instinctively placed a hand over his heart. Gohan was suffering. Not even he had suffered that much due to the disease, and... he hadn't died. Goku didn't die. Gohan did. In the memory, Gohan's eyes flew open as he screamed in agony, clutching at his chest. Piccolo, at his side, tried to comfort the boy, but nothing would stop his screaming. The view zoomed in, showing a close-up of Gohan's eye before delving into Gohan's mind. The boy was on his knees, beaten and bruised. His gi was ripped and torn, blood everywhere. He looked up, a bloody scar going from his temple, over his left eye, to his chin. He had golden, flaming chains circling his neck, wrists, and ankles. The flames intensified as Gohan turned into a Super Saiyan. Hidden, the screams of a nearly shattered soul were unheard by all. They always had been.
The images faded, leaving every fighter present shocked and horrified.
"What have you done?" Goku's voice was quiet. He was dead serious. He stood up, glaring at Celeste with dead eyes. "What have you done to my son, Celeste?"
"It's more of what YOU did to him!" Celeste shot back. "Didn't you see his memories?! Didn't you see that?! You tore your son apart! He was forced to choose between being himself and being what YOU wanted him to be! What have you done?!" she demanded, stepping forwards. "I was interested in your son because I saw flashes of that! You forget - I see flashes of people's pasts. I recognized those battles! I saw the one with Raditz, I saw what he saw, I felt what he felt, I heard what he heard! He heard you screaming as his ribs were crushed, he could only see the awful interior of the pod Raditz stuffed him in, I felt that inner power show itself-"
"Shut up."
Everyone was quieted as Goku's ki rose dramatically. His aura was red, completely furious. His hair flew up, flashing red for a moment before calming down. "We're getting ready for the tournament." Goku gathered his tiny son in his arms, cradling Gohan to his chest. Gently, he flew off, protecting his son against the high winds. He landed in the training facility, his face like stone. Every fighter got out of his way, moving before he reached them. Goku had changed since his son had come here - he had become much more serious, much more protective of this strange boy. He used to be super happy and joking around all the time, but he was deadly about protecting his son. Everyone got the message - 'touch him and you die'. To be honest, it was kind of creepy.
Goku sat down next to his son, waiting for his name to be called. Celeste was called out to fight, and Goku's fist tightened. He could only hope that he'd be able to fight her. She used a deadly tactic with her powers - she immobilised her victim and then forced him relive his worst moments. Goku wasn't sure what his worst would be. Or if it would even have to do with Gohan. The time Krillin was blown up by Frieza? He had no idea. He only saw one person break free from her grasp - Pikkon. The fighter accepted his mistakes, and forgave himself. That allowed him to brush the memories off, no sweat. Goku wasn't sure he could pull that off.
"Gohan versus Alfonse." the announcer droned. Goku quickly shook his son. Gohan sat up, rubbing his eyes and blinked.
"Dad, what-"
"Gohan, go fight! It's your turn!" Goku said. He ushered Gohan out of the training rooms and pushed him onto the ring. Gohan was startled, but nonetheless, waited for his opponent to arrive. Oh, it's Alfonse. The guy who tried to burn me. Gohan thought, then shook his head. No, I must forgive him. He deserves a second chance. Gohan took his stance, breathing in and out. His left leg was farther ahead than his right. His right hand was above his head, palm open to catch a punch. His left hand was guarding his middle, again, ready to catch a punch.
Alfonse immediately summoned the max amount of fire he could, throwing everything at Gohan immediately. From the stands, Goku cracked the metal railing he was clutching, scowling fiercely. Gohan flipped over the flames, quite literally feeling the heat. He wasted no time in getting close-ranged with Alfonse, reinforcing his palms with his ki. He pushed that straight into Alfonse's unguarded gut. The older man literally took a spike of ki right in the gut, where he had not been expecting it. He reeled backwards, coughing up blood. Electricity sparked throughout his body, crackling once it hit oxygen. Gohan stood and watched, waiting to see if Alfonse would continue the fight. Gohan winced as a particularly nasty bolt of lightning struck the ground. He ended Alfonse's misery by kicking the man into the opposite wall and knocking him unconscious.
All of a sudden, Gohan was the crowd favourite. He was lifted up on people's shoulders, cheered on, and all of a sudden, everyone had 'Go Gohan!' posters. Gohan shyly scratched the back of his neck, blushing furiously. The crowd "awwww..."'d and continued cheering the eleven year old on.
"Goku versus Pikkon." the announcer said. Gohan couldn't see very well over top of the crowd. He pouted, trying to jump up and down. From his Dad's and Pikkon's ki signals, they were really going all out! Op, and there was the Super Saiyan. Oh! Pikkon must be using some sort of special attack! Gohan jumped up again, catching a glimpse of it. Soon, the fight was over. Gohan was tired of being unable to see, and pushed his way through the crowd. He yelped at the states of the two older fighters, who were shaking hands. Gohan ran over with a senzu bean for both.
"Hey, thanks Gohan." Goku said, ruffling his son's hair. Pikkon merely bowed to thank the boy. Gohan smiled up at both of them.
"So, who won?" Gohan asked.
"We were both disqualified for touching the ceiling." Goku admitted, laughing and scratching the back of his neck. Gohan laughed along with him as the trio went to go sit down and continue to talk. Pikkon, after learning that Gohan was open to questions, started grilling the boy about his 'hidden power'. Gohan tried to answer best he could - to be fair, he didn't know most of this stuff. His power confused him.
"Gohan versus Celeste." the trio froze. Gohan gulped nervously, while Goku seethed, and Pikkon held Goku back from going out and murdering the announcer. Gohan nervously walked up to the ring, gulping. Celeste was standing there, her arms crossed. As soon as the bell sounded for them to start fighting, Celeste paralyzed Gohan and dug deep into his mind.
"Let's see how you really feel." she murmured. Gohan panicked, struggling and screaming. Goku was yelling as well, barely being held back by Pikkon. The link clicked, the dark background back.
Help me... the words turned into a scream. Mister Piccolo, HELP! Daddy, Mommy, ANYONE! GET HER OUT OF MY HEAD! Gohan's inner voice screamed, forcing a connection broke by death. His power snapped, the boy's physical form screaming in agony. Gohan's muscles bulged as blood shot out from his limbs and back. His eyes rolled back, screaming in terror. He was terrified of Celeste, of what she was doing to him. It was painful, excruciatingly so.
To be fair, there was no way Mister Piccolo could get here.
Boy.
They were dead wrong.
Piccolo had heard Gohan's call. He was desperate, anxious, and terrified for his student. He had threatened Popo and Dende until they agreed to open the portal for him. When Piccolo stormed into King Yemma's office, the link really clicked. Piccolo sensed the presence invading Gohan's mind and harming his boy. How DARE they. The Namekian hadn't felt this angry in a long time.
"MISTER PICCOLO!" Gohan screamed in agony, falling to the arena floor. Celeste clutched at her head as something attacked her. She withdrew from Gohan's mind and warily eyed the direction it had come from. A red crack appeared, like this world was made of glass and it was cracking. The crack widened, and with an awful shattering sound, there was a portal to King Yemma's office. King Yemma was cowering behind his desk, his judgement room burned. As the fighters of Otherworld stared, a burned piece of wood fell from the ceiling.
The Namekian strode through the opening. Everyone immediately went on the offensive - whoever this guy was, he was dangerous and seriously ticked off. He approached Gohan, who was lying still on the floor. He leaned down to the boy. The fighters tensed, believing that this stranger was going to harm the boy.
They were all surprised as he gently gathered the boy in his arms, closing his eyes and placing his fingertips on Gohan's head. The terrified aura that previously surrounded Gohan calmed, and was now full of peace and joy. Gohan opened his eyes and threw his arms around Piccolo's neck. Piccolo hugged Gohan close to him, closing his own eyes. Piccolo could feel the wet spots on his gi shoulders from Gohan beginning to sob in relief. Gohan's furry tail wrapped half-way around Piccolo's waist. Piccolo smiled through his own growing tears, incredibly pleased that Gohan trusted him with his biggest weakness.
"I'm always here for you, kid." Piccolo's gravelly voice sounded through the stadium. Not one other person was talking. "Always."
~Piccolo has managed to force his way through Otherworld to come to Gohan's aid. Will Piccolo be allowed to stay, or will he be forced away from his little boy?~
Holy reviews!
Guest: Thank you! I shall keep it up.
squichi: Dun dun dun indeed. *evil face* He does need to go, and Gohan made sure of that! Next chapter will focus on Piccolo and Pikkon, and their friendly little... hatred for each other.
daisukigohan: Have I managed to avoid Mr. Stick?
Jack905: There's still tons of fighting to go, don't worry!
Vanity: Well, that's a tough call to make. If I keep her alive, what will I do with her? You forgot - Goku and Gohan live in Otherworld. I'll be focusing on them, not what's going on on Earth. It doesn't matter if she's alive or not - she won't be used at all. She sort of just be... there. You know?
Guest: Thank you! :3
KingLuxion: Your sense of smell is quite accurate, my friend. *le evil face*
: He did grow his tail back! I really hope you enjoy my "typing away"! *le happy face*
Ky111: Yeah, that was the goal! Of course, we need to go through an emotion roller-coaster first, but we'll get there! The comment about his power is totally true. He'll work on it. Remember, all he remembers of those moments is killing or trying to hurt someone else. He's scared that he'll turn on his friends and family. Am I getting in-depth enough with emotions?
Dragon Queen Niji: Does this chapter live up to your expectations?
Question of the day:
Where the heck are emoji's when you need them?!