A Marriage of Convenience
When the Dark Kingdom forces, led by Queen Beryl had burst into the room she and Gohan were in, Serena had no time for doubts or to pause. Using instincts she didn't even realise she had, she concentrated and using the power of the brooch that was ever around her neck, transforming her outfit into the one which denoted her magical power and for a split second, felt a little self-conscious at revealing her outfit considering this was the first time anyone besides her mother and the other Princesses had seen it. She tried to overlook it before Gohan leant over and whispered "That's what you're wearing?"
Rolling her eyes Serena hissed back "At least mine's got style. You're just wearing your regular outfit!" Indeed, Gohan was wearing a simple variant of his regular outfit of a silk shirt and trousers which appeared quite mundane compared to Serena's winged, multi-coloured dress.
"Well excuse me for not thinking to put on a sparkly outfit in the event of being invaded. Should I get everyone to wait five minutes while I go get changed?" Came Gohan's retort, actually forgetting about the problem at hand as he prepared to lapse into an argument.
"Don't take that tone with me!" Serena snapped "Just because my outfit's a little… extravagant means you can insult it?"
"I can when you insult mine!"
Before Serena could make any further reply, a blast of magical energy was shot right between them, forcing them to dodge backwards with Gohan doing a back flip and facing the crowd opposite with a growl coming from his throat. Serena also dodged and flipped around, holding her sceptre tightly and glaring at Queen Beryl who looked fully into the depths of madness by now "Enough of this foolishness!" She almost screamed "Both of you will die and I will tear this World apart!"
"But why?" Gohan asked "Can't you just…?"
"Just what boy?" Queen Beryl sneered "Make peace? You foolish little half breed freak! This goes beyond what you can comprehend. There are forces at work here you couldn't even begin to comprehend. And neither will you, when I'm done, you'll be on your knees begging for death!"
A small ball of energy suddenly grew in Serena's hands, the magic sparking wildly in her hands as the fear she began to feel making it hard to concentrate "Just you try you hag!" Serena shouted "We can beat you!"
Dark lightning crackled from Queen Beryl's fingers, the sound making Gohan flinch as it reminded him of his brief captivity under Babidi's torture. The sneer on her face was enough to make anyone shudder, her face contorting into a grotesque mask "Oh no you won't little girl. I think I'll have you flayed alive while your dear cuckolded husband watches. And then, his torture will begin."
Unable to take the pressure anymore, Serena let loose with her magical attack, aiming straight for Queen Beryl herself. Barely even flinching, Beryl stretched out an arm as the sphere got close and swatted it aside, causing it to strike three of her own soldiers, killing them within a second with a bright flash of pure energy. Both Serena and Gohan gasped at the display at such strength the Queen had shown "You weak little fool." She said, triumph resonating in her voice "Don't even believe you can come close to my power. You stand no hope of victory. Surrender now and your deaths shall be without the true amount of agony I can truly create."
A mere glance that lasted for only a second was all the confirmation both needed with what they thought "You want us?" Gohan said "Come and get us."
That was all Queen Beryl needed in order to finally snap with her patience. With a voice which showed her descent into insanity, Queen Beryl cried out the order "Kill the girl! But I want the boy alive! He will answer only to me!"
And with those words, the several hundred Dark Kingdom soldiers surged forward, too afraid of Queen Beryl to hesitate for one moment as they struck. The attack was chaotic and undisciplined, the crowd fighting with each other almost as much as they were trying to fight Gohan and Serena. The two defenders sprung into action with Gohan leaping in front of Serena before striking those directly in his path with a blast of energy from his hand, obliterating several of them on the spot. He then dived straight into the fray, using his power to keep up his speed and strength.
Serena paused for a moment, realising that despite everything, Gohan's first instincts were to protect her and other people other than himself. Inspired by that thought, she decided to do likewise and leapt into battle, swinging her sceptre and unleashing a stream of energy which struck at the oncoming soldiers. The fight started fully as Gohan and Serena fought back to back, Gohan relying on his pure strength and energy to fight while Serena used her magical abilities to see off the threat. The ensuing clashes resulted in explosions littering the room, tearing apart the walls as the blasts hit them.
Queen Beryl had no reaction to any of this, she watched calmly as the fighting went on, keeping a cool and steady gaze on events. Her effect was noticeable as the Dark Kingdom soldiers, though outmatched, continued to attack as they still feared her much more than they did Gohan and Serena. The attacks were often suicidal charges, the attacker lunging at Gohan Serena only to be sidestepped and then blown to Oblivion with a counter-attack. It took some time and casualties before several remembered they could respond wit their own magical and energy attacks.
This added more and greater danger for Gohan and Serena as they had to dodge the projectiles while still trying to dodge the melee attacks desperately. Gohan managed to keep one step ahead until one soldier, a woman that looked a great deal like the Harpies of legend, dove at his face, trying to scratch his eyes out with her claws. Gohan stumbled back, his hands raised in defence as the soldier clawed at him. A sudden burning sensation struck his arm and he dived to the floor as he tried to gain his bearings, rolling towards the wall as he felt blood start to drip down his arm. A large cut had been made on his arm just below his shoulder. Thankfully, it was only skin deep but the blood still flowed from the after effects of the magical attack.
Grimacing slightly, Gohan forced himself to overlook the pain as he went back into battle. He knew that this battle would likely end with the death of either the entire Dark Kingdom Army or him and Serena were lying dead on the ground and that he had to give it his all. Well… not entirely his all. The ability to Ascend was still within him, he could feel it lying there, waiting to explode at a mere whim. He forced himself to bottle it up though, forcing himself to stay as he was, knowing that he couldn't control himself if he did so. The destruction of Metaria had shown that he could not control the true power he could wield. And rather than risk having the Moon Kingdom destroyed, Gohan had decided to keep his power level down, despite his fears of losing the fight and his life.
The battle continued to rage as Gohan strove to keep his power under control, fighting back the urge to Ascend and strike down all of his foes in one blast. On her end, Serena was having another difficulty as she struggled to keep herself from exhausting her own energy. She had been training greatly these last few weeks but aside from the brief fighting during the initial raid on the Palace, she had not been in a battle where her life was on the line. She was expending too much energy too soon in this battle as she struck at her enemy's. Although she didn't realise it and continued to attack the soldiers hitting them with all her might, obliterating all in her path and taking down many of them.
Screams filled the air and the smell of burning and blood soon came to the notice of Serena and Gohan, the area around them becoming littered with the fallen and wounded. The walls around the room had been blown to pieces in the fighting; leaving what remained now staring out onto the Palace gardens which themselves were being gradually destroyed as some shots went wild, destroying the structures and churning up the ground, the title 'War zone' could not have been more appropriate in describing it.
Debris was flung throughout the remains of the room as Gohan and Serena continued their battle, the latter flagging slightly as her energy drained at a frightening rate. The crucial point came when Serena, having thrown one last attack at a foe, collapsed to her knees, overcome with dizziness and losing her strength.
"SERENA!!" Gohan yelled as he saw her fall. Abandoning his fight with another opponent, he literally flew to her side, throwing a powerful attack at those surrounding Serena, driving them back. He landed at her side and put a protective arm around her, thinking the worst had happened "Are you alright?!"
"I'm fine… Gohan." Serena managed to say, her weakness still remaining, compounded by a light headedness that had come from the huge amount of energy she had used up "I… just need a… breather." Serena managed to take a few breaths before finally realising something was amiss "Gohan… why aren't we being attacked?"
It took a brief second for Gohan to realise what Serena had said and he quickly turned his gaze upwards to see that the Dark Kingdom soldiers had indeed stopped their attack, pausing around what remained of the walls room as they hissed and glared at the two young warriors. Looking at Queen Beryl, Gohan could see why. She had raised her hand in a gesture that stopped her minions dead in their tracks. Her eyes blazed with a savage look of inhuman triumph as she stepped forward. Gohan physically shook as the look seemed to pierce his very soul but he regained his composure as he returned the look with a glare of pure hatred.
"Well isn't this a pretty sight." She said, her voice oozing with sarcasm and venom "The traitor, comforted by another traitor. I wonder what you would call such a thing. Irony perhaps?"
"It's called friendship you witch!" Serena managed to snap out from her weakened state "We're fighting for each other and we won't fall. Not to you!"
"We shall see you foolish girl. I can see this battle has left you weakened, the idiotic mistake of a weakling in combat. But you…" She turned to Gohan, that disturbing look in her eyes never fading "You're still going strong. You would have made an admirable servant. As things are, you'll merely be a wretched corpse."
Giving Serena a reassuring look, Gohan then stood up, determination etched on his face as he faced Queen Beryl before getting into a fighting stance "You won't see that Beryl. I'll fight you till you fall and I won't give up. You want me dead? Come on then, you will not find me helpless." Gohan gave a backward glance to Serena "Find somewhere to restore your energy; I'll hold her off till then." Turning back to Queen Beryl, he prepared his defence, this time, not letting her leave his steady gaze.
Serena looked at Gohan, still amazed at the lengths he was prepared to go for her despite everything that had happened. She almost stayed by his fight but realised that in her current state her ability to fight was greatly lessened. Knowing the sense in the suggestion, Serena stepped back behind some rubble, taking a deep breath before she went about the task of regaining the energy that had been spent.
After making sure that Serena was shielded, Gohan started to power himself up, knowing that this would be a difficult battle. In return, Queen Beryl raised her sceptre and black lightning shot out, striking the ground just in front of Gohan's feet, causing him to step back. The lightning eased off as Beryl stepped closer "Now then mongrel, you will taste my true power…" She hissed as bolts of lightning once again shot out of her sceptre, aimed directly for Gohan. Diving to one side, the young boy managed to dodge the attack and quickly sent one attack of his own in reply.
A wave of the hand was all it took for Queen Beryl to swat the attack aside, not caring as it struck her own soldiers as had happened before. The depleted ranks of Dark Kingdom soldiers skulked as the fight between the two began, not daring to interrupt or flee lest the wrath of Queen Beryl struck them down. Knowing that in this regard at least he was safe, Gohan lunged straight at Beryl, wanting to close the distance so his advantage in hand-to-hand combat would tell. This was stopped short as a Beryl through up a magical wall which Gohan crashed against, causing him to crumple to the floor as he felt the impact.
"This is the might which destroyed Metaria?" Queen Beryl taunted as Gohan got to his feet "How pathetic you really are child." She shot several magical blasts at Gohan, each one a dark red laced with black that went at an incredible speed, aimed directly for the boy. Twisting and jumping at an incredible rate, he managed to avoid each and every one of the blasts, throwing his own attacks to deflect a few with an explosion. When he stood back up, his face still full of that determination which showed his unwillingness to back down "Well, well." Beryl said as she pointed her sceptre towards Gohan "That wasn't too bad. Now try this!" She yelled, her sceptre showering the room with dark lighting bolts, striking all around, missing Gohan by the slimmest of margins.
The attack proceeded to tear the room further apart, leaving gashes in the stone walls, craters in the floor and bringing down large sections of the ceiling. Gohan twist and turned, firing his own attacks at Queen Beryl as often as he could only for them to hit the barrier she had set up harmlessly. In response, Beryl created more lightning, filling what seemed the entire room with her attack, her determination to kill Gohan overriding all her other senses. The young boy tried his best but eventually, even Gohan's speed was unable to keep him from dodging forever and one bolt of lightning struck him dead on in the chest.
For that single moment, Gohan knew what true agony was as he was suspended in mid-air, the dark magic which powered the lightning soaring through him, spreading throughout his body as incomprehensible pain shot through his body, feeling as if every single nerve ending on his body was being assaulted by the hottest of flames. Unable to fight back, Gohan could only scream as his entire World was focused on the pain that coursed through him. He was reminded of the torture he had suffered from Babidi's hands although, much to his disbelief, this was even worse. The only thing Gohan was able to recognise aside from the pain was Queen Beryl's mocking laughter, only encouraged by Gohan's uncontrollable agony.
After what seemed like eternity, blackness consumed Gohan as he passed out from the pain. Queen Beryl frowned at this, thinking her vengeance had been cut short, at least for now anyway. Queen Beryl flung her hand and Gohan was sent crashing into what remained of the wall, his unconscious form bouncing slightly as it hit the ground. With Gohan seemingly out of the way, Queen Beryl turned to where Serena had hidden. Her voice called out to the girl, both taunting and terrifying at the same time "Come on out Princess, your friend has fallen; surely you want to join him? You wouldn't want to abandon him, not again."
For all this time, Serena had been hiding away, gathering her energy for an attack against Queen Beryl herself. She had stayed in a kneeling pose, her hands clasped together as she concentrated only on gathering her strength. Concentration which had almost broken when she had heard Gohan's screams. Serena had almost dashed out to help Gohan there and then but the realisation that her efforts would be wasted unless she could get the energy to make this attack prevented her from going. It all relied on one shot Serena wasn't even sure if she could make…
Impatient with Serena's silence, Queen Beryl sent an attack at the rubble she was sitting behind, disintegrating it on the spot, leaving Serena completely undefended "Now, now Princess, don't die on your knees. At least show some dignity that's supposed to come from your station in life. At least the boy went down with some pride." Serena did her best to ignore the taunts, trying desperately to gather her power for that one attack she had to make.
Mistaking Serena's silence for weakness, Queen Beryl raised her hand in a dramatic gesture, starting to gather her own magic attack. A surge of black, formless energy appeared over Queen Beryl's head, twisting and churning into a shape that soon became apparent as a long blade, the shape and length of the blade of a long dagger, black in colour as it gained solid form. The spike pointed itself directly at Serena, glimmering evilly in the light as its tip appeared to aim right for our heart.
"I'd have loved to have you screaming for mercy under my torture." Beryl said to the kneeling Princess, still gathering whatever power she could, her time running desperately short "But I'm afraid I can't stay too long lest we're eventually overrun by numbers. All I shall need is your corpse and that should be enough to break the mongrel's mind. And the satisfaction of killing one of the Moon Kingdom's Royal Family is far too much to withstand. Goodbye Princess, remember in your final moments how you failed to even defend yourself and your friend because of your cowardice."
Because of Queen Beryl's sheer stubborn mindedness on simply wanting to kill Serena and Gohan, she had overlooked the gathering magic in Serena's hands, her hands glowing brightly as the attack powered up. But even now, it wasn't complete; the completion of it so very close, all she needed was a few more seconds in order for it to take place… The power of the attack was going to be immense; she needed it to make sure she could overcome all of Queen Beryl's defences and destroy her evil once and for all.
In one sudden second, the power which Serena had struggled so long to obtain was there, her attack ready to be thrown. Her eyes finally looked beyond her fingers and turned to Queen Beryl, before her body drained of all warmth in horror of what was approaching. The spike that Queen Beryl had conjured up was now flying directly at Serena, its sharp edges seeming to aim for her body directly. Paralysed on the spot with terror, it seemed as if all Serena could do was wait for her end to come. The attack grew closer and closer until it seemed as if it was all over…
One thing managed to drag Serena back to reality with a start. A shadow blurred across her vision, from one side to the next. It was so fast that she couldn't even see what had happened. She blinked in surprise and when she opened her eyes, the blade of magic which had been thrown at her was now gone, as if it had disappeared completely. It had surprised Queen Beryl too as she actually gaped in shock. She actually paused as she wondered what had happened, which was what Serena had been praying for.
Reaching back with her arm, she swept it forwards, the magical build up being released in one smooth oval shape, aimed straight for Queen Beryl. The attack was blinding in its brightness, the sheer power emanating from it being overwhelming to all present. It moved at such speed that Queen Beryl was unable to move an inch before it was upon her. The attack struck her dead on in the chest, only allowing her to give one final furious scream of defiance before Oblivion overcame her. The attack continued straight through the ashes were what remained of Queen Beryl, ploughing through the already depleted ranks of the Dark Kingdom soldiers before finally exploding mid-air, destroying most of what remained of the Dark Kingdom soldiers in an earth-shattering blast.
When the dust settled and the sounds from the attack finally died down, the remaining survivors who had so long been under the terror of Queen Beryl paused as they stared at Serena in fear and awe. The attack had torn apart not only the soldiers themselves but a large section of the Palace, the corridor which had once led to Gohan's room now standing wide open to the air, letting the afternoon shine into what remained of the Eastern Wing of the Palace. Serena's pose remained, her face set, her arm still remained in its pose from where she had thrown her attack at Queen Beryl. Not a single move was made by anyone as all were rooted to the spot.
The peace was finally broken when the few survivors started to edge away from Serena, pure terror from witnessing the slaying of their leader finally motivating them to move. It took only a few seconds from their initial moves to break into an all out run, scattering in all directions in wordless fright. Within moments the entire area was clear of everyone apart from Serena and Gohan, the former collapsing to her knees outright as complete exhaustion came over her. She was completely drained, the attack having taken almost everything that was in her from her body. She could barely even remain the way she was, the thought of simply lying down and falling asleep for a century or two being highly tempting.
Serena almost let the blackness of sleep envelop her when she remembered about Gohan and she shot up in an instant, fear of his condition driving her awake. She twisted to look where he had fallen, desperate for any signs that he was alright. Much to her surprise, Serena saw that Gohan wasn't where she thought he would be the spot where he had been now standing empty. Fear gripping her, Serena turned and looked throughout the room, desperate to see where he was. And then she saw him, and was desperate to forget that she had ever looked.
The memory of Queen Beryl's attack vanishing suddenly made sense as the sight before her shook her very soul. The magic blade, thrown by Queen Beryl still remained, embedded in the chest of Gohan. Serena was rooted to the spot as the image burned into her mind. Lying on the floor, Gohan was perfectly still as the blade was stuck through his torso, the point of it going in deep into the area just below his heart. Finding energy reserves she didn't even realise she had, Serena pulled herself to her feet, managing to run forward to where Gohan was lying, her legs finally giving out when she reached him. Serena collapsed hard beside Gohan, her eyes brimming with tears as the realisation of what she was seeing hit her right in the heart.
"N-No… No… NO!!" Serena screamed, the sight of Gohan's wound making her fear the worst. Serena reached over and pulled Gohan so that he was facing upwards, revealing, much to Serena's surprise and joy, he was alive… barely "Gohan! Can you hear me?! Are you alright?"
Gohan's face seemed half closed, as if he was on the verge of falling asleep. His eyes were barely open and his lips were parted. It seemed as if he was barely even focusing on Serena until he managed to mumble out an answer "S-S-Serena… Is… Is it over?"
The voice, so weak and hesitant was like a beacon of hope to Serena, who refused to believe what her brain was telling her, that Gohan was surely dying "Yes Gohan! We've won! Y-You just try and relax and I'll go get some help." The forced joy in Serena's voice showed her strain, not wanting to believe for an instant that Gohan was truly dying.
Giving the faintest of smiles, Gohan spoke again "P-Please don't… Serena… I don't want… to die alone…"
"You won't! You won't die!!" Serena yelled, the previous terror was flooding back through her as reality came crashing down "You're going to live Gohan! I'll get you a Doctor and you'll live!" The sheer inability to continue with this lie forced Serena to break down, sobbing as she said "Please… live…"
It took a few seconds for Gohan gather what strength he could in order to speak. It was at this point that Serena oddly noticed that Gohan wasn't bleeding, the magical attack seemingly cauterising the wound with whatever energy sustained it. Gohan's voice pulled her from this musing as he said "I… I can't Serena… I'm barely… holding on… I'm just glad you're… safe…"
"Don't speak like that!" Serena said desperately, keeping her sobbing under control as she desperately struggled against what Gohan was saying "You can't just die Gohan! Not now! Not after everything that's happened! There's got to be something we can do!"
"I… I doubt it…" Gohan said, his voice barely above a whisper as his strength failed him "Serena… C-Can I ask… you a favour?"
"What is it Gohan?"
"T-Tell the others… Thanks for everything… My family… I love them… And Sas…ami… I'm sorry we won't be… together…" Those words cut Serena to the core and she knew that something had to be said.
"Gohan, before you… Before that, I'm so sorry, for everything. I should have told you about Darien from the start. If I had, none of this would have…"
Sobs that wracked her body prevented her from speaking further and Gohan looked Serena straight in the eyes as he said the last words she ever though she'd hear him say "Serena… you are my friend… I for…give… you…"
"But I've done so much! How can… Gohan?"
No answer was given to her question and as Serena took a moment to look close enough, she saw that Gohan's body was completely still. The realisation that he was no longer able to give any answer struck her hard. Despite everything, the victory over the Dark Kingdom now seemed pointless as her friend was dead. The shock completely overcoming her, Serena was only able to break down into tears as she kneeled by the body of her friend, the silence of everything around her only broken by her crying.
To be continued…
I would like to say that you might want to read the last two chapters I'm going to write before passing off any overly critical judgement on this chapter. Anyway, hope you enjoyed and read and review!