"In The Future"
Chapter 26: If I Don't, Who Will?
"Pan's in trouble."
Those were the first words that came out of Vegeta's mouth when he was conscious. He was the first one, in fact, to come to. Maybe it was because he could sense Pan's ki signature easier than anyone else's. It simply leaped out at him; something that could never be ignored or put aside.
He could barely even make out where he was as he uttered the words. Everything was blurry and unfamiliar.
"Vegeta, you're awake," said a new voice.
An unfamiliar voice—at least for the time being. The sound of the voice sounded strange and reverberated cacophonously. He realized that he lay on his stomach and so began slowly to pick himself up. At least he could move—although his muscles did feel a little strained.
"Don't move too quickly," said the same strange and echoed voice.
Vegeta, of course, ignored the advice. When he finally did make it to his feet, the world seemed to be moving all on its own accord. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he beheld the blurry, spinning world.
"Vegeta, are you alright?"
Vegeta finally turned his head to where the voice was emitting despite his currently blurred vision. The image before him gave little insight into who was talking to him.
"Your name," Vegeta spoke finally.
"You mean you don't know who I am?"
The echoing from his voice was bothersome to Vegeta. "Just tell me your name," he said with slight annoyance.
"It's Shenron."
"Shenron?" Vegeta said turning to him fully.
Now he had a mental image from his mind to match up with the unfocused one before him. It was as if everything began working again. The past events began to connect with the recent ones. He and Goku must have completed the fusion successfully. Gogeta must have defeated Cain. The fusion time must have ended and here he was.
"You do know me, right?" Shenron asked slowly.
"Yes, I do," Vegeta answered back offhandedly.
"How do you feel?"
That was a question that Vegeta never felt comfortable answering and he usually responded with something clever or snide. This time he gave no response at all. Instead he turned towards where he sensed Goku's ki to see how he was faring. As his vision began to clear, he could also make out his friend who had not woken at all. If anything, he appeared to be peacefully asleep as if he was dozing instead of completely unconscious. He must not have sensed the danger that encircled both Bra and Pan.
"Shenron, how long have they been fighting Goten and Gohan?"
Shenron instinctively knew who the "they" that Vegeta was referring to was. "Awhile, but trust me, Gogeta was top priority. Cain has the ability to infect people—
"Why am I not surprised? They'll always be someone out there who specializes in forcing others under their will."
Vegeta, of course, spoke from experience with Frieza coming immediately to mind.
"That seems to be the case—now however, you'll be the one putting an end to it this time. Some time before Cain died, he must have sent Goten and Gohan to Earth to finish his life's dream. He must not have expected any worthy opposition especially after also infecting Gogeta."
"So…Gogeta was infected," Vegeta said thoughtfully, "How was anyone able to hold him back?"
"You don't remember?" Shenron asked.
Vegeta shook his head, "I can only guess what's happened since the fusion."
"But you're usually able to remember, right?"
"For the most part, but I rarely ever remember the specifics."
"And now?"
"Nothing. It's almost as if…"
"As if what?"
"Nevermind. It's not important. There are more pressing matters."
"Yes, I know, but let me caution you. Gogeta was infected. There's no way in telling if it has also transferred to you or Goku. You may appear to be fine, but it may still be lurking. Don't overwork yourself."
"Shenron, I'll do what I have to; nothing more, nothing less."
"Let me go with you. Oden will look after Goku."
Just as Shenron mentioned Oden's name, Vegeta finally made eye contact with him. Oden had opted to stay silent the entire time preferring to observe Vegeta from afar and evaluate just who he was. Vegeta was just as Oden had pictured him; confident to the point of cockiness and rather brusque in behavior. Vegeta's eyebrows furrowed a little more than usual—he didn't like what he saw in Oden.
"You stay here, Shenron. I don't think I would trust Kakarot's life to the likes of Oden."
"What do you plan on doing then?" Oden said speaking for the first time. There was more than a little indignation in his voice. "Committing suicide? Fighting Goten and Gohan with no help at all will be the end of you."
"You seem so sure of my failure," Vegeta said quoting Piccolo. "It doesn't make much difference to me," he said turning.
"Remember, Vegeta, be careful. If you begin to feel anything out of the ordinary, stop what you are doing immediately."
"This infection," Vegeta began still turned away from both Oden and Shenron, "Is it a lasting effect."
"The going theory is that one has to be purified in order to eliminate it permanently. However, when Cain was defeated by Gogeta, everyone in Otherworld who was infected was cured. Goten and Gohan must have already been sent to Earth before this happened."
"I see."
Shenron and Oden watched as Vegeta took off into the air. The identical twins watched with two completely different expressions—Shenron's face was passive as usual while Oden's face wore a mask of utter irritation.
"I always thought you were the overcautious one," Oden said with crossed arms, "You sent him out to catch his death."
"I see you've joined the ranks of 'under estimators'. Vegeta will do just fine. He is, by the way, the only person present now who can purify others. The same as he did for you, he'll do for Goten and Gohan."
"The same as he did for me," Oden repeated with little enthusiasm.
"One would think you would be quite thankful towards someone who saved you."
Oden glared at the other and then looked towards Goku. "What are we going to do with him?"
"Well, the only thing we can do—take him to your place."
"My place," Oden said with a grimace, "Fine, but you're carrying."
"If you insist."
When Shenron knelt down to Goku, he noticed that his ki level was steadily rising. Shenron checked his pulse and knew that Goku was on the brink of consciousness.
"Hey, what's taking so long?" Oden asked with impatience, "Let's go already."
"Wait, Oden, I believe that—
Shenron stopped in midsentence when he saw Goku's eyes open.
"Ah, Shenron…?" Goku groaned.
It was funny how Goku recognized Shenron immediately upon waking unlike Vegeta. Perhaps one could take into account that Goku had allowed himself to rest longer.
"What happened? Where am I?" Goku asked with genuine curiosity.
"A lot has happened, Goku, too much to explain to you thoroughly at such a short notice. Vegeta has already taken off to take care of Goten and Gohan."
"Goten and Gohan? What are they doing here? Am I dead?"
"No, you're alive and well."
"I don't know about the well part."
"What do you mean?"
"I, uhh, I don't know—I just feel kind of weird. How was Vegeta doing?"
"One can never tell. He seems alright for the most part. But, it's you I'm most concerned with."
"Why's that?"
"Nice going, Shenron, Vegeta just left—he could have `helped` Goku and that would have been the end of it," Oden said cutting in.
"What are you talking about?" Goku asked Shenron's look-alike.
"We can't be sure if that's the case," Shenron said back to Oden.
"I'll give him one minute tops—he's not even close to being as strong as Gogeta."
"Oden, that's enough—
"Shenron, what's going to happen to me?" Goku asked.
Shenron was slightly surprised that Goku had understood the gist of what Oden was implying. "You may be infected by Cain—or you may not."
"Infected by Cain? Isn't he the guy who was terrorizing Otherworld," Goku said standing up.
"Yes, the very same—Gogeta took care of him."
"By taking care of him, you mean killed him?"
Shenron nodded to him.
"I guess we didn't have a choice. He must have been evil through and through."
"Doesn't make much difference to me," Oden said, "Seems like he was just asking for it."
"So you're Shenron's brother," Goku said looking at Oden, "Remember me from before?"
"You're talking about when you were about to lose a fight against me, but Shenron came in to stop it?"
"You thought I was about to lose? I barely got started," Goku said honestly, "That was when he came in to stop the fight."
Once upon a time, Oden and Goku had met each other. This happened before he had arrived on Earth again and before he had known of Oden's true ambitions to destroy Earth. In the years that Goku had traveled with Shenron on his back, he had seen a great many places and people. Oden happened to be one of them. This was the main reason Goku had been able to help Vegeta pinpoint his location in the first place.
"Right, Goku, whatever makes you feel better," Oden said back.
"You know, you remind me of somebody," Goku said.
"Oh? And who's that?"
"Promise you won't get mad?"
"Oh just say it."
"Vegeta, or at least the one I knew long ago—
"You're comparing me to him. You're just asking for a fight, aren't you?"
"Funny, I don't remember asking for a fight," Goku responded as he scratched his head in confusion.
"Don't act stupid—you know what I mean."
"Yep, definitely like Vegeta."
Goku knew an attack was coming and caught the fist just in time. Oden looked at him with a surprised expression—Goku hadn't even remotely appeared to be prepared for any attack.
"You know, you can really wound up hurting someone like that." Then Goku released the fist.
"That's what I plan on doing."
"Oh, really?" Goku said with a seemingly genuine surprise, "How do you plan on doing that if you can't even land one punch?"
Goku knew that he was just edging Oden on—but it was just so easy to do. Oden seemed so transparent and uncomplicated that Goku—if he wanted to—could lead him on to doing practically anything. He didn't particularly feel like fighting at the moment, but something about Oden ticked him off a little too easily.
Oden attacked him just as Goku thought he would. Goku knew that Oden wasn't going to land an attack and set out to make sure of it. Goku concentrated all his attention on evading. Now Goku knew how Vegeta had been able to defeat Oden eventually—he was so predictable. The only thing that had made him powerful was the power itself. There was nothing remotely impressive about anything Oden threw at him—or maybe Goku had seen and been in too many fights and was not so easily impressed by other opponents. Perhaps Oden's predictably reflected Goku's mastery in all things combat.
Goku wasn't using much energy, but Oden seemed to be tiring. Was it really that easy to defeat Oden? Goku doubted it despite himself. At some point, Oden was going to find a way to land a hit. When that was going to happen was the question. Going this long without one scratch was not something that often happened to Goku. In fact, Goku began brainstorming all the ways Oden could cut through his methodical defenses. But Goku had never been particularly good at multitasking—especially when it came to fighting and thinking about something else at the same time. It was a distraction, but Goku often found himself doing it. Maybe this was why Oden finally did land a fist. It caught him on the side of the face; nice and firmly.
Goku was sent sailing through the air as Goku was unwilling to stop himself in midair—it wasn't worth it. When Goku landed onto the ground, Oden wanted impatiently for Goku to rise and retaliate. Except, nothing happened.
"Don't tell me it only takes one hit," Oden taunted, "I should have known as much."
As he made a crash landing into the ground and intended to climb quickly back to his feet, something internally stopped him. Even as he heard Oden's taunting voice, he hesitated. That strange feeling that he had felt since he had first awakened, had not left him. Instead, it had gradually increased in intensity. There wasn't anything remotely painful about this new feeling—it was simply odd. He thought he might suffocate in its strengthening grasp if he paid any attention to it, but now it was too noticeable to ignore.
He used his arms to push himself back up and that was when his world began to rotate uncontrollably around him. He felt powerless to rectifying the situation. In his attempt to, he closed his eyes so that he wouldn't see the confusing images before him. But that same strange feeling was still threatening to strangle him in its powerful hold. He wanted desperately to make sense of this foreign feeling. Was it anger, sadness, emptiness? Or maybe it was all three of these things wrapped into one. Yet he couldn't truly understand it—it was something that Goku had never dreamed of being privy to. Not that he was entirely curious about what this feeling was, but it seemed to be calling to him, wanting to bubble to the surface. "Why not let it?" he found himself thinking.
He was so concentrated on figuring out what was happening to him internally that he didn't realize what was happening to him externally. His strength was decreasing rapidly the more he dwelled on this alien feeling. He hadn't realized that soon he wouldn't have much to think about once his strength left him completely.
Gogeta had almost literally suffocated himself trying to hold back what would inevitably come if nothing was done about the situation. The infection had been full-fledged then, but now it was diluted and nearly harmless. It was a silent killer now and able to creep painlessly into its wearer's mind. The infection itself was something Shenron had never thought of it being—pure, unaltered evil. It had always been thought of as some controlling influence created by Cain, but instead Cain hadn't created anything—it was simply an insertion of evil. Cain only wanted chaos and evil was the only way to bring about such behavior.
Goku couldn't possibly fathom what this strange feeling was—he had never been touched by evil before and it was impossible for him to point it out even as it stared him in the face. He knew, of course, what evil could do. Externally, he had seen it constantly. He equated evil with destruction, anger, and chaos, but this was different. Now that he felt it, it wasn't nearly as black and white as it used to be. He never once imagined using such words as devotion, love, and tolerance to describe something as negative as evil. It was confusing and undecipherable, was it right or wrong? Was this evil that masqueraded as his friend and voice of reason, something to turn a deaf ear to? Or could he trust it unfalteringly?
The answer was clear when he opened his eyes again and saw Oden in the distance. The first thing he wanted to do was to kill him. Oden was already traveling down the wrong path. He reminded Goku of Vegeta for a reason—Oden was a loose cannon who would eventually turn to a life of destruction just as Vegeta had. The fact that Oden had little or no substance to Goku, told him that he would be unable to make a change even if he wanted to.
Even from a distance, Shenron could tell that there was something wrong. He started to fly towards Goku's still form, but suddenly Goku shot through the air with added urgency. It was almost too fast for Shenron to catch and Oden missed it completely. Before Oden knew it, he was being pounded over and over into the ground. Oden found himself pinned down with a constant manic force of punches.
Goku stopped for a moment as he noticed Oden was slipping into unconsciousness and a pool of blood just beginning to develop. Oden looked up in that small moment into the crimson eyes of Goku. He struggled to escape Goku's grasp, but it was futile.
"Oden—you're dead."
Shenron caught Goku's death blow before it struck. "Listen, Goku you don't want to do this."
Goku turned to the new voice and Shenron stepped back in realization.
"You must have a death wish as well."
"No, I—
With a flick of Goku's wrist, he shot out a ki blast so concentrated and pointblank that it made its way cleanly through his chest, heart, and out again through the shoulder blade. Shenron fell to his knees in utter amazement.
"Not much of a challenge," Goku said with a grin.
Goku still had Oden pinned to the ground and Oden was only barely conscious. When he sensed Shenron's life signs slowly ebbing away, he struggling with added passion under Goku's grip.
"Be still," Goku ordered, "Make this easier on yourself." Goku placed his bare palm firmly onto Oden's face as he said this. "It'll all be over soon."
Oden's cries were muffled when Goku finally unleashed a burst of energy that both ended his life and made Oden's head nonexistent. After he was finished, Goku climbed slowly back to his feet. His eyes looked to the sky as he felt for the next significant ki signature.
Bra was barely alive by the time Vegeta had arrived and he quickly turned the tides of the fight. Pan was breathless and nearing her breaking point when Vegeta come in the nick of time.
It wasn't often that Pan had the chance to watch Vegeta fight. He made it seem almost too easy as if it was simply a routine. Each opponent took maybe two to three punches from Vegeta to knock out. Pan watched with amazement. To think that at one time she had wanted to spar with him—he was completely out of her league.
Pan wondered what he was doing as he bent down and touched first Goten then Gohan with white glowing hands. "Umm, Vegeta...?"
"Why did you involve Bra?" Vegeta interrupted Pan's wondering questions.
"I'm sorry, but I needed the help as you can see. We can't all be a world class fighter like you."
"But she wasn't ready. What if she had died?" Vegeta asked standing up.
Pan looked down at the two fallen warriors curiously and wondered what he had done to them—they had been acting rather strangely lately. Then suddenly realization came to her.
"Can you heal her?" Pan ventured.
"No," he said as he finally turned to her, "But I can give her some of my energy."
Pan was unprepared for what she saw when she finally saw Vegeta face to face again in what felt like ages. She expected to see those graying, cloudy eyes that she had grown accustomed to. Instead, these eyes were foreign. She was met with shining, golden pupils. Vegeta noticed the confused expression on her face and knew that there was something wrong.
"Vegeta, your...eyes—what happened to them?"
To Pan, Vegeta had been the most perfect being she had ever come in contact with. Everything about him from his appearance to his personality seemed flawless. Now things had changed. The image of Vegeta that she had dreamed about for so long was now just a memory. This was Vegeta now whose curious eyes were completely foreign to her. Now, however, they seemed to darken.
"I'm sorry, Pan, but a lot has happened since we last met." Vegeta didn't know exactly what was wrong, but he felt that he had to say "I'm sorry".
"I know...it's almost as if I don't know you anymore."
"Is that so?" Vegeta said approaching Pan until he was only a hairsbreadth away, "You're the only thing that's been on my mind—I was hoping that we might meet on different terms than this."
He was close enough for her to study his face—not that it helped her understand things any better. "Vegeta, I..."
"What is it?" Vegeta asked looking intently at her.
Pan closed her eyes and turned away from him. Then she felt him grab her wrist. It was the same touch, he still had the same kind of warmth. He forced her to turn him once again.
"You look confused, Pan. Why is that? Nothing between us has changed unless, of course, you have."
It started out as an embrace, but somehow they found each others' lips and Pan found that she couldn't stop. And she began clawing at him feverishly; he began to do the same. It was Pan, though who pushed the other to the ground. And she became a lioness pouncing on its prey. His clothes were a mere impediment. When she was close enough to smell him, she shivered joyously—she loved his scent, it seemed to arouse her even more.
"Pan...wait—have you no constraint," Vegeta moaned, "We're...in the open..."
"Oh, shut-up—didn't you just say I've always been on your mind? Well, here I am."
Then Pan heard no more protest as she peeled off his skin tight clothing, but it was made even more difficult as she couldn't stop devouring his flesh. She wanted his pants off immediately, but when her hands slid down to that area, he stopped her.
"What are you—celibate?" Pan asked angrily.
"No, someone's coming. Get off of me," Vegeta ordered as he tried unsuccessfully to push her off, "Don't you sense Kakarot?"
"So? He'll see us and then turn around if he knows what's good for him—who cares?"
"I care—that's who," Vegeta came back as he finally de-clawed her.
Vegeta sat back up again and noticed that his shirt lay torn into unsalvageable pieces—there was nothing he could do about that. Perhaps he could claim to Goku—if he asked—that his fight with Goten and Gohan had been surprisingly epic...
"Oh, I get it, you're still ashamed of this relationship," Pan accused.
"That's not it at all—Kakarot already knows. He was even there when you conceived. What is there to be ashamed about?" Vegeta said rather roughly.
"I don't know; you tell me. You're the only one who seems to have a problem with anything."
Vegeta stood up then, "Aren't triplets enough for you? You want to add another one on that list," he explained, "Look at where we are for Kami's sake," he proclaimed, "We're in the middle of nowhere—we're out in the open, everyone can see us—
"Who's 'everyone'?"
"I don't care—it's indecent!"
Then Pan laughed as Vegeta glowered at her, "Well, looks like you learn something new every day. Who would've known that under all that macho exterior—you're really just a 'nice
guy'."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Vegeta asked puzzled.
Pan grinned, "Next you'll tell me that you prefer marriage before sex."
"Marriage doesn't much matter to me," Vegeta said settling down to her level again, "I guess marriage is one of those human phenomena I'll never really understand."
Pan was relieved to hear this because she didn't know how much longer she could hold back her desires.
"As long as we're bonded," Vegeta finished.
Then Pan gave him an irritated look, "And what does that mean? Is it some kind of ceremony?"
"No--
"Do I have to bite you or something?"
Vegeta's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "No--
"We have to draw blood from each other?"
"Pan, no, that all sounds very...barbaric. Did you honestly think Saiyans went around biting each other anytime someone wanted sex?"
"Well...kinda."
"Where did you even get that from?"
"Well, ever since I heard that Saiyans had tails...my imagination just went away from me."
"It did. Maybe we were a 'little' technologically challenged, but we weren't living out of caves."
"Alright, alright, I get it now—I was just a little misguided."
"A little."
"Give it a rest already," Pan said exasperatedly. "So what is bonding?"
"It is when you know with unfaltering certainty that you love one another and that you would never dream of betraying the other."
"No ceremony?"
Vegeta shook his head.
"No strange rituals?"
"None."
"So, do you think we're bonded?"
"Pan, I think we're well past that."
"So do I."
"I want everything to be special with you. This spur of the moment anytime, anywhere sex doesn't suit you."
"Isn't that how it always is—unless you want to start planning this out."
"No, you're right, you can't plan something like this out—it has to be special."
Pan looked at him curiously.
"I'll tell you when it is, but I'm almost sure I won't have to, you'll already know."
"Now you're speaking in riddles."
"Don't worry yourself about it—it's not rocket science."
"Right," Pan said sticking a tongue at him
Vegeta shook his head at her childishness.
"Hmph, so it's just Pan and Vegeta," came a new voice.
Vegeta looked up to the menacing form of Goku and then he stood up.
"Kakarot, the infection must have gotten to you."
"What are you going on about? I feel better than ever."
Vegeta's hands began to glow brightly as he prepared to drive off the evil that flowed stronger and stronger through Goku's veins. "No, you don't, Kakarot—you're only lying to yourself."
"Oh and suddenly you think you have the authority to tell me how I feel."
Vegeta crept closer to Goku. "Of course I do," Vegeta said with a grin, "You must not know me very well."
Goku finally noticed Vegeta's approach and he backed away slowly, "Get away from me—you must think I'm some kind of idiot."
"Stand still—I mean no harm."
"You want to kill me, don't you?"
"If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it long ago."
"You want me dead. You're jealous of me. You've always been jealous of me."
"Not anymore."
"You've killed before with no remorse—what's so different now; you're that same person."
"No, I—just stand still."
"No, I will not."
"Listen, I know how it feels—
"You don't."
"I do," Vegeta said forcefully, "I remember how it feels—how it led me to doing things that even now I regret, how it fooled me into thinking that what I was doing was somehow justified."
Goku was quiet for a moment, "But look at you now."
"Yes, look at me now since you feel so inclined to. I no longer feel the need to prove myself every passing minute. I've dropped out of that ridiculous 'who's stronger' game with you. I don't have that constant nagging feeling that I'm doing something terribly wrong. I don't have to deny myself the actual truth about things. I'm not being attacked every night by reoccurring nightmares. The world itself doesn't look half as dreary and cold as I once thought."
"You've become weak. How can you even live with yourself and still claim to be a Saiyan?"
"Everyone makes mistakes, Kakarot, and it looks like you've made one."
"Stay back!"
"Ignore it, Kakarot. Deep down, you want to be rid of this feeling. I'm sure you regret ever succumbing to it."
"Ignore what, silly man. Who I am? This is who I truly am—and I don't think you can handle the harsh truth. I'm going to do what I should have done ages ago—kill you. A guardian protects his people, Vegeta."
"Well," Vegeta began, growing weary of the losing conversation, "You weren't able to do it before—why should this time be any different? No one's going to come to your rescue once you start losing."
"I won't lose—I hardly ever lose, leastly against you. You won't have the benefit of pity from me this time—
"Of course not because Kakarot has turned a new leaf and grew an imaginary backbone. Evil doesn't suit you—it just makes you stupid."
"Die!"
Vegeta was unprepared for the instant assault. He had been so set on trying to get close enough to Goku that actually attacking was the last thing on his mind. And Goku came quick and hard. Vegeta's defense that he had managed to put up was demolished quickly. Goku's fist thrust into Vegeta's gut with such astonishing force at some point that Vegeta could hardly keep himself from growing completely unconscious.
"Vegeta, when are you going to fight back!?" Pan called to him from the ground.
In fact, for a few moments, Vegeta had grown limp and Goku used this moment to swing him around in a circle to gain momentum and then propel him head first into the ground. This was promptly followed by a few ki blasts that Vegeta had no hope of dodging.
Vegeta was slow at climbing back to his feet and Pan helped him despite the fact that she knew he probably wouldn't want it.
"What gives, Vegeta? You're just going to let him get all the hits?"
"That's not my intentions, but…"Vegeta gave a critical eye to the hovering Goku, "He's just too fast."
"Then turn Super Saiyan."
"And what's going to happen then, Pan? Kakarot will do the same and we'll be right back where we started. If I can't defeat him in this form, then there's no point in powering up—it'll be a complete waste of energy."
"Well maybe you could wear him down."
"You wear him down," Vegeta retorted.
"Vegeta, now you know I can't do that!"
"No, you can't."
"Hey! You two done discussing how you're going to die against me? I hope you've said your goodbyes. You won't see each other in after life—I'll make sure Vegeta gets what he deserves."
It was Vegeta this time who started the assault. Pan watched with crossed arms as Vegeta's offense quickly turned back to defense. She had seen him easily take on Goten and Gohan—what was so different now? Why couldn't Vegeta work the same magic on Goku?"
"Can you at least get more than two hits?!" Pan shouted angrily.
"I'm trying, woman!" Vegeta cried back equally as angry from above.
This was, of course, when Goku placed a nice, solid one on the side of his face and sent him flying back. Vegeta caught himself at once exactly at the same moment his hands began illuminating. When Goku came close enough, Vegeta lunged at him, but Goku dodged a little too quickly for Vegeta to react and change his course. In a slicing motion, Goku's hand came down on Vegeta's exposed back and Vegeta plummeted back to ground level. As before, Goku sent out another barrage of undodgeable ki blasts towards Vegeta.
"Vegeta!" Pan cried urgently. She was already by his side.
"Just as I suspected," Goku said smugly, "He's a weakling. Yet another example of his vast incapabilities."
"Oh, shut-up, Grandpa. If you weren't so juiced up on that energy that's clearly not yours, he would've had you and you know it!"
"Big words coming from a little girl who can barely call herself a Saiyan."
Pan heard Vegeta groan, but he made no motions in getting up. She squatted down to his level then, "You okay? You gonna` show Goku what you're made of?"
Then Goku laughed, "Stop babying him, Pan. He's through."
"Maybe that's true, but someone has to stop you," said a new voice.
Pan looked behind herself and saw that it was Gohan—the same Gohan that had been beaten rather easily by Vegeta a few moments ago.
"So now you want to share the same fate," Goku proclaimed, "Do yourself a favor and leave the fighting to those who really want to."
"Dad, this isn't you talking—I know it."
"Then why don't you come and do something about it."
There was something in Gohan's eyes, Pan noted. The blind anger that she had seen before was no long there—crimson pupils were now replaced with two black coals. Perhaps it was determination or maybe it was just plain desperation, either way, he seemed as if he really was going to do something. Even as Pan quickly went over the hard facts in her mind, she still felt some kind of hope that Gohan would be able to make a difference. For a moment, father and daughter locked gazes—Pan was startled by what she saw in her father; a certain fierceness that had not been there before. It had indeed been years since she had seen him alive, this only made that fact concrete. She realized that they hadn't spoken in years and still yet they were silent to each other's presence.
Pan moved out of his way to allow him a clear path to Goku and Gohan's penetrating gaze returned to his father. She watched as Gohan dashed at Goku and then as an intense battle ensued. With a sigh, Pan sat down beside a sprawled Vegeta and watched as Gohan fought Goku with equal fervor.
"I don't get it. How can my dad come out of nowhere and fight Grandpa on equal terms?"
"Because that's just Gohan," came a muffled voice of Vegeta.
Pan looked over to Vegeta a little startled, "Vegeta?! You were awake this whole time?"
Pan watched as Vegeta detached himself from the ground and sat up beside her.
"Yes, because I enjoy having dirt rubbed in my face."
"Smart-ass," Pan muttered.
Vegeta ignored this completely. "Gohan's doing just fine on his own," he stated as he watched the duel.
"Doesn't that make you upset?" Pan asked.
"A little. Although, I wouldn't say I'm too envious."
"Why's that?"
"At least I don't have to wait until life and death situations to do anything worthwhile. Besides, if you've ever took note of Gohan's fighting patterns, there's a really big vulnerability that Kakarot will soon take advantage of."
"Well, my dad seems to be winning now."
"Trust me, Pan, this is just another classic 'Gohan outburst' that will end shortly and then we're back to square one. He hasn't been training so he won't be able to keep this up."
"So what do you plan on doing once that happens?"
Vegeta shook his head, "Do my best."
They looked up when they heard a sound like a missile and saw as Gohan zipped through the air with a loud crash.
"That soon?" Pan asked amazed.
"Not yet…I don't think."
Five ki blasts flew out towards Goku from where Gohan had landed and then the fight continued. Pan was mesmerized by it all. She was now witness to another impressive fight and the combatants moved in ways that she could only dream of imitating. All the advancements she had made in fighting seemed minuscule to the might of the two before her in the sky. These were the real protectors of Earth—she felt like a mere bystander.
She glanced over at Vegeta who had strangely become silent. Was he watching the fight in the same amazed silence as Pan? No, instead, he seemed to be in his own little world and perfectly motionless. Was that normal Vegeta behavior? Pan wasn't sure.
"So how much more longer?" Pan asked idly to draw Vegeta's attention.
"It's hard to…tell," Vegeta answered immediately, but with little interest.
"Well, of course it is; you're not even looking." Pan was surprised when she didn't get so much as a glare from Vegeta. "Hey, you're not scared, are you? It's okay if you are—you have a lot to lose."
"I'm not scared," Vegeta said simply.
"Then what is it?"
"Will you just be quiet for a moment," Vegeta said in a surprisingly irritated tone.
Despite herself, Pan obeyed and watched Vegeta curiously. She knew that he was clearly trying to concentrate on something other than the fight or her, but what was it?
Vegeta was not so much worried about how desperate his situation looked or how Gohan was nearing his end of usefulness. There was something else that was even more immediate: the incessant ringing in his ears that showed no signs of quieting. It had started a few moments ago. He knew Pan couldn't hear it, she had continued on in her regular way. All the other noises around him had begun to disappear until he could only hear that one siren.
"Vegeta, what's wrong?"
He didn't answer of course—there was only ringing. And then he felt as if he were falling as the earth beneath him parted and he fell into a dark abyss. He thought he might continue to fall for eternity until his fall was stopped by something hot and sticky. Vegeta didn't know what this substance was, but it was odorless. He struggled to pull himself out of it, but it was like quicksand and pulled him down constantly. His ability to fly or throw ki blasts was conveniently nonexistent. The more he struggled, the further down he went. There was nothing or nobody to hold onto. When his head went under it flowed into his nose and mouth and he began to swallow. His tongue tasted something like iron and knew that it was indeed blood. He tried to take a breath, but he kept swallowing the same fluid. Then he began to panic and writhe and then yell out.
"Vegeta, snap out of it, it's just a dream, open your eyes!" Pan cried urgently as she shook him violently. There was no response from Vegeta and Pan began to fear for the worst. "Not again!" Pan bawled, "Not again! Is this all that this relationship is destined to be? I can't see you for more than an hour before you're slipping away from me again? I'm not gonna' let you leave so easily."
She braced herself as she tried to build up enough courage to do what she was about to do next. Her hand came up stiffly and then she slapped him with all the power she could muster across the face.
"Oh, crap…maybe that was too hard."
Pan was sure she had broken something as he skidded over a few yards. She crawled over to him when he stopped. "Vegeta, are you okay?" Pan asked him softly, "Damn it, just wake up already or else I'll have to do it again."
"Wait, Pan—you've done enough."
Pan gave a relieved sigh and then grew angry, "What the hell was that, Vegeta!? You nearly gave me a heart attack!" Pan fumed.
Vegeta felt the side of his mouth as Pan went on fussing, sure enough there was blood. He looked at it with surprise and then finally turned towards Pan who immediately quieted.
"Umm, Vegeta…it's happening…"
"What's happening?" Vegeta asked curtly as she slowly stood up and began creeping away.
"Not you too," Pan said shakily.
"Stop speaking in riddles!" Vegeta snapped.
"I'm not. It's…you're…"
"And why are you looking at me like that?"
Just then she felt Gohan's ki level dropping dangerously low.
"No!" Pan cried shaking her head. "If you don't defeat Goku, who will?"
"Pan, pull yourself together! You're not making any sense."
"The infection—it's gotten you too."
"What!?" Vegeta said sharply as a sudden spike of fear shot through him, "That can't be true."
"Your eyes, Vegeta! Look at your eyes!"
"Well, I can't right now, I seem to be short of a mirror," Vegeta came back with irritation.
"You're trying to trick me, aren't you? Stop acting like you don't know. I'm next, right? You're going to infect me next."
"Look, Pan," Vegeta began shaking his head, "I don't know if I'm infected or not, but I do know that Kakarot has to be stopped. You can continue this little charades at your own expense—it's of little consequence to me."
"Vegeta? Is it really you?" Pan asked uncertainly.
Before Vegeta could respond, however, Goku interrupted.
"Well, look who's joined the club. I knew it was just too enticing for you to resist."
"Keep dreaming, Kakarot."
"But it's clearly written on your face," Goku laughed, "You should join me—or join Gohan."
Then Vegeta grinned at the other, "Or maybe you should join me."
Pan didn't see Vegeta's lightening fast reflexes as he dropkicked Goku to the ground. She had to move out of the way as Goku landed.
"You're really going to fight me, Vegeta. I get it. You're trying to impress Pan. I know you're feeling the same things that I am yet you ignore it. Why?"
"I'm not ignoring anything. I'm doing as I see fit."
"Don't you feel it, Vegeta," Goku continued, "That overwhelming desire to create utter and complete chaos?"
Vegeta shook his head.
"You lie! Join me!
"I won't join you so you can stop begging already."
"No," Goku said slowly as he shook head, "I can't attack my comrade."
"That didn't stop you before."
"Now is different. You've seen the light and yet you still refuse to yield. We're the only two left—together we'd be unstoppable."
"The only two left?" Vegeta asked confused.
"Yes! Now do you see—I can't afford to kill you. Stand down and no harm will come to you."
Vegeta used this moment of vulnerability to move in on Goku. This time Goku didn't recognize the trick. He was too intent on making Vegeta join him because they were the last two infected beings. Goku had no idea how to infect others and he suspected that Vegeta didn't either.
"You know I can't stand down, Kakarot," Vegeta said finally. Now he was in range.
"Then I have no choice, but to—
Suddenly, Vegeta's arms wrapped around the tall Saiyan in a crushing embrace so that Goku couldn't escape. Vegeta had never tried to purify a fully conscious person before, but just as he suspected, it required more energy. Even then, Vegeta had not predicted what would happen next. While at first, only his hands glowed suddenly his entire body began to do so. His usual control began slip away just as Goku managed to pull away from his grasp though in apparent pain. Vegeta had not taken into account that he too was infected and Pan tackled the stiffened Prince onto the ground when she felt his ki surging out of control.
AN: Another long chapter indeed. I probably should have split this into two chapters and leave you with an even more frustrating cliffhanger than the one now. Anyways, didn't I tell ya there was going to be a "Gohan" moment, there may be some more Gohan later on, although he won't steal the show in such a Vegeta-centric fic.
I can't believe this; remember those "ZZZZZZZZ" I used to put across the page to indicate that I'm skipping to another scene? Now they've disappeared; at least on my computer screen. I guess I'll just put more space in between--I hope it won't be too confusing for you.
I literally leap for joy when I see them:
Bluebanany: Yep, I am seventeen—about to graduate high school. And thanks, I'm glad you liked the chapter. I'm sure you like V/P action—I haven't had them interacting for a while now—and this is a v/p fic.
cheche: Really? I hope you feel better.
xzavx: Woh, I barely understand what you're talking about now—killing Toriyama? Ummm…good luck with thatO.O. You asked how did Gogeta get infected? I'll just quote from my own story; this is what Gogeta had to say about that: "I was protecting the universe from disorder, but I was utterly tricked. Cain was a shape shifter and at some point he pretended to be Shenron. He wanted to poison my spirit above all else and he was granted his wish. He reveled in widespread turmoil and chaos—he wanted my help. Even as the trickster lay dying, he felt secure in the thought that his dream would come to pass. Shenron sent me back here to become two instead of one."
LazyRingo: Wow, I couldn't have said it better myself. By the way, Goku is Earth's Guardian and Vegeta is Otherworld's Guardian—well at least potentially at this point. Wow, you're a devoted reader; eight chapters is a lot considering that the last two were longer than usual. I'm honored you took the time.
Miss Loquacious: Oh thanks, I love compliments.