Italics: Vegeta's rather brief and sudden contact with his own spirit

"In The Future"

Chapter 29: Vegeta's Bluff

Try as he might, Goku could not convince Pan to come with him to the Lookout. In the end, Goku was forced to leave Pan to her own devices as he went off to do something about the abandoned, dreary looking Lookout. He had done nothing to it yesterday and decided that it was either now or never to put some kind of effort into making it halfway decent.

Pan was convinced that Vegeta would return soon and so she kept a vigil out for him. Not to mention that she cleaned out several doggy bags in anticipation. Her thoughts never once drifted to her three newborns--Vegeta Jr., Golyn, and Ariel. They were the least of her worries.

She tried for a few minutes to interest herself in TV, but after flicking through the channels, she quickly turned it off.

"Vegeta, don't you dare get yourself into trouble."

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This was something that only he could possibly do. The idea had come to Vegeta when he first felt Cain exit his body. Cain was in fact a separate entity that only had and ephemeral attachment to Vegeta--it wasn't a permanent connection. Vegeta was convinced that with some manipulation he could rid himself of Cain. If he concentrated hard enough, he could pinpoint where that darkness hid. The only thing he wasn't sure of now was how to use his cleansing ability in such a sophisticated way. Unfortunately, there was no rule book that Vegeta could refer to when he wanted to learn the specifics of how to use certain abilities.

Grudgingly, he almost regretted not taking Elder Kai's suggestion of taking the time to truly understand what exactly these new powers he had acquired were and how to properly use them. Now he was forced to go on mere gut feelings., but such methods had an unstable foundation. He was bound to miss something and inadvertently screw things up to the point of no return. It was a chance that Vegeta was willing to take.

For some reason, at this point in his life, he had no trouble putting the sake of the world over his own life. Was it because he thought less of himself than in previous years? Vegeta hoped not. Maybe it had something to do with his age. By this time, life was nothing new to Vegeta, he didn't cling to it as tightly as perhaps Pan thought was proper. It didn't mean that he cared less for her, it was just that he was beginning to think he had overstayed his welcome. What gave him--a once destroyer of worlds--the right to live for so long; to finally come to a place in his life where there was really no need to worry? He thought perhaps if he shared such revelations with others and become responsible for other's wellbeing, he wouldn't feel so guilty about winning so much good fortune.

Vegeta landed somewhere on a large, abandoned island--one that he was familiar with because he would often come there in moments of extreme anger and he needed to destroy something. The forest that had been there before was nearly nonexistent as if shrinking back in the face of Vegeta's intense anger. He sat down casually on the sand where the swishing of the water was most audible. It was odd that a place that symbolized anger and turbulent emotions could bring such peace to him now. Perhaps it was the mere fact that he knew he wasn't the same person from before that made this island special in his mind. There was nothing like a place that was living proof of his flaws to make him feel that much more appreciative of what he had achieved since then.

Pan was just going to have to wait a while longer as Vegeta's bright golden eyes gazed at the ever moving ocean. He couldn't allow her to interrupt his thoughts because he knew he would be hard-pressed to think of anything else.

What he needed at that moment was to clear his own mind completely--no distractions. Though he could sense Cain for the most part, Cain was putting all his energy into becoming completely undetectable to Vegeta. Vegeta was fully aware that Cain knew exactly what he was planning to do--there were no secrets between them. Similarly, Vegeta knew what Cain was planning to do. Though at first this little development would seem like an advantage, it really wasn't. It was like he was being forcefully pulled into a dark water and some invisible force was keeping him from returning to the surface where there was light. Vegeta no longer wanted to be privy to Cain's disturbing thoughts, but there was no real way to ignore it altogether. Cain knew this; so did Vegeta.

But darkness was nothing incredibly new to the Saiyan Prince which was why he closed his eyes at this point. It was a familiar environment; even more so than a world filled with vibrant color. There were no distractions now, only a world devoid of color. He felt himself traveling to a different place, but at the same time knowledgeable of the fact that he sat in the same spot.

If only he could find Cain. Where exactly was he hiding? All around he looked there was only darkness and he felt as if he was going nowhere until he came upon a doorknob that stood out from everything else. It was bright and gilded and practically beckoned for him to turn it. Somehow, with a hand that there but not, turned the doorknob and was greeted with a contrastingly white environment.

There were many hallways, turns, and intersections but soon something caught his eye; a black strip on the floor that started from a nearby hallway and followed the corridor into the distance. With a short inspection of the sight, he placed a "hand" on it and felt a material that was akin to rubber. Starting from the tip, the black material began to whiten and a medium pace it began to overtake the ebony ribbon. His vision followed the odd phenomenon down the hall, up several stairs, taking a few left and right turns, down a few more stairwells until it ended at a glossy white wall. From the end of the black--now white strip; a small crack crawled midway up the wall. Before this could be scrutinized any closer, Vegeta found himself looking at the same placid scene from before--a pleasing combination of blue skies adorned with white, puffy clouds and lazily moving waters onto a glistening shore.

He had returned to reality suddenly, but he was just as quickly aware of another sinister presence.

"You! What have you done?!" came Cain's angry voice.

His eyes turned to the voice immediately, but he knew already who it was. When he stood up in response to Cain's angered tone, he also realized how incredibly weak he was at the moment. Exactly how much ki was consumed in his endeavor to separate himself from Cain? Never did Vegeta suspect that it would take such a substantial amount of his already subpar ki level. Cain didn't have to know such details however.

"I've done what I've set out to do," Vegeta said stating the obvious. Why not? The question had seemed rather elementary.

Cain growled at his effrontery, "So now you think you've won--

"I have," Vegeta interrupted, "Unless your plan has suddenly become elaborate in the span of a few seconds."

"Maybe it has," Cain said defiantly.

"Face it, Cain. There's nothing else you can possibly do. Suppose I let you off quietly? If you renounce yourself and relinquish all the energy you have stolen from others over the past few centuries, I won't kill you today and for however long you keep your end of the deal."

Cain was momentarily speechless. He had expected insults, threats, and an overall sense that he was going to die in a few miliseconds, but he was not prepared for mercy. "Vegeta…I--this is very unlike you…"

"The offer doesn't last very long. I'm already having second thoughts."

"Wait, you act as if I can't defeat you if I tried. Your ki has obviously been compromised from that stunt you just pulled."

"You care to test your theory, Cain? Although, I know it goes against your entire being to do something that isn't reasonably guaranteed to succeed. You and I both know how misleading my ki signature is--you have no idea of what I am capable of."

"I also know how you like to bluff."

"You also know how I take advantage of my opponent's tendency to underestimate me."

Cain was beginning to second guess himself. Vegeta was underestimated almost as much as he liked to bluff--or at least this was what he had gleaned from Vegeta's mind while he had still inhabited him.

"My patience grows thin," Vegeta said as he watched Cain contemplate his proposition. "You either die now or later."

"Later? Do you plan on coming to finish the job at a later date even if I do agree to your terms?"

"No, but that's how most villains work. You give them a chance and they'll eventually turn around and do the same thing."

"Rather judgmental coming from a person like you."

"It would be judgmental if I had never been in your shoes before--take it as a token of wisdom or ignore it; it makes no difference to me."

"Alright," Cain said slowly, "I renounce myself."

He approached Vegeta in slow, measured steps and held his hand out to him. Cain knew just as well as Vegeta what was meant by "relinquishing his power". By simple physical contact, Vegeta was able to extract any energy that wasn't rightfully his which would, in turn, return Cain to the ki level of a typical Namekian. It was a technique that was similar to what Goku did when he was gathering energy for a Spirit Bomb, but in a more specialized form.

"You've made the right choice," Vegeta said when he was finished.

"In your eyes perhaps," Cain said grudgingly.

"Whatever beef you had with Guru has long since lost its importance. He's long dead."

Vegeta knew, at least, that Cain had been harboring some kind of hatred for Guru and eventually his entire race for unknown reasons. The Namekians revered Guru as their savior and father, somehow Cain hadn't shared their beliefs.

"I don't intend to go back," Cain stated plainly as he turned from Vegeta. "You have what you wanted."

Cain took off into the air and out of Vegeta's sight. Vegeta continued to look at where Cain had disappeared thoughtfully and then sighed--that was close. There was no doubt that from all the energy that Cain had accumulated over the years, Cain would have been able to wipe the floor with him. He felt an almost unparalleled surge of energy flow through him. He sensed the familiar ki signatures of the long dead Z-fighters and suddenly flashes of memories came back to him--the unpleasant ones of their ultimate defeat. But there was one image that always came back to haunt him in his dreams every now and then: Oden with his sickeningly smug expression splattered with blood that was not his own. Vegeta, despite himself, shook his head as if to make such disturbing depictions fade away forever. Surely there was something less brutal, more constructive to think of?

Vegeta also felt Gogeta's ki; a rather eerie feeling. It felt more like a complete stranger, enigmatic and undeniably powerful. He imagined that Super Saiyan V Gogeta must have been quite impressive, but somehow he had no inclination to ever want to meet him (if it were possible) and he was certain that Goku shared the same sentiment.

So many different kinds of energy had all at once, at some point, existed within Cain--Vegeta would not have been able to withstand an all out attack from him, but Cain had believed Vegeta's bluff. His sense had been blinded from the fact that he thought he knew Vegeta's M.O.(*Modus Operandi) and Vegeta used this confidence and made it work for him.

Vegeta knew that a lot had been at stake when he realized that he alone couldn't defeat Cain. Who else could have? Not Goku. Vegeta knew that even one wish could put him into an increasingly weakened state. Not Pan. Super Saiyan or not, she was no match for Cain. Not Bra. She was a complete novice when it came to combat. Not 18. It wasn't as if she could have been increasing her power by training over the years--she was an android and wasn't too much stronger than a Super Saiyan. That was the level she would always remain.

Cain's plan had been rather full proof and he probably would have succeeded in his quest for total chaotic domination. He was determined and he had spent most of his life planning for this kind of end. Would he so easily change overnight? Vegeta doubted it completely. He'd have to keep an eye on Cain for a few weeks before he could risk leaving Cain to his own devices. The simple thought of having to tail Cain wherever he went or whatever he did drew another sigh from the Saiyan Prince. Perhaps it would be better to think of things when he didn't feel both tired and hungry all at once. Everything sounded exhausting and impossible at this point. The technique he had used to absorb Cain's stolen power did not allow him to make use of the energy in anyway; a minor setback. Vegeta didn't know quite why this was so, but there was nothing much he could do for it now. He'd have to ask Goku about it later. Right now, he had a few things he wanted to do before he went back to his distraught Pan, but there was one thing he needed first--food.

Vegeta flew closely to the water until he reached the populated mainland and then he went on foot from there. Not only was he cautious about letting the general public witness his abilities, he was also running too dangerously low on energy to do anything as reckless as flying about the city in broad daylight.

At the present moment, he was in the Coastal City. This meant that the common food here was seafood. Already Vegeta's canine-like nose detected boiled shrimp, grilled scallops, well-seasoned lobsters, calamari, fried fish and practically everything else that was considered seafood. His nose drew him to a vendor that had a wide variety of fishes. Glad that he somehow always had his credit card, he ordered ten of everything. At first he was met with an astonished look, but soon the vendor was busy fixing up the order; Vegeta knew that money could pacify any disagreements. Patience not being one of his strong suits, he crossed his arms in silent anticipation completely ignoring a growing mob of people waiting to get their orders taken. No doubt Vegeta was drawing a lot of attention to himself, but it was nothing that bothered him very much. As he watched the vendor, he felt something tug at his leg. Instinctively, he looked down and saw that it was a boy--a boy that looked half-starved and on the verge of tears.

"Please, mister, can I have some of your food?"

There was something oddly familiar about this boy, but Vegeta hadn't the slightest clue why. Was Alzheimer's finally setting in?

"What's your name kid?"

"Robby."

That did little to disprove the fact that Vegeta felt that he already knew him. It was rather infuriating. He hated not remembering something that he thought he should already know.

"Robby, see that table over there," Vegeta said pointing, "Wait for me there."

"Alright," the boy nodded.

The first thing that Robby had noted of Vegeta was his strikingly white hair and strange colored eyes. Such traits had reminded him so much of Gogeta that he had chosen to walk up to him despite his initial fear. But there was something else about Vegeta that made him frustratingly familiar, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what it was. Maybe it was his demeanor. Not that Vegeta acted quite as mysterious or out of place as Gogeta, but the same kind of confidence radiated from him. But these were silly thoughts--Gogeta was dead, Shenron and Oden had seen to that. He'd never see him again. In fact, he'd never see anyone again. Oden had abandoned him again and for the first time he felt utterly lost and alone. There had been nothing in the refrigerator or shelves to eat so he had taken to the streets. Surely someone could spare a little boy some food? But nobody did. Through the night, he had made his way to Coastal City where he might have a better chance at nabbing something to eat. He would walk up to someone who was just ordering food and ask for some of it. It hadn't worked at all until he came upon Vegeta who Robby had spied ordering a substantial amount of food. Now he sat patiently at the before mentioned table.

He had enough time then to let his mind wander and almost automatically his mind came back to this one phrase: "…to exist as two instead of one." It was something Gogeta had said at least four times. What exactly did that mean? Was there some type of cloning involved here? Was there really two Gogetas out there and only one of them had been destroyed? Nothing was quite adding up. He couldn't think of a reason Gogeta would want to clone himself or if he had been able to do such a thing in the short time he was here.

Robby's thoughts were interrupted when a plate of untold amounts of food was placed in front of him. He glanced around the heap saw that it was the man from before.

"Well, are you waiting for it to get cold first?" Vegeta asked the kid.

Robby shook his head and dug into the plate he was given. He probably wasn't going to finish it, but when he looked up and noted Vegeta's several plates, five were already empty. Startled, Robby stared for awhile, but then went back to his food before Vegeta could notice his gaze. Robby had his fill soon after and Vegeta made sure that the rest of Robby's food didn't go to waste.

"Where's your parents?' Vegeta asked when all the plates were made bare.

"Mom is dead, Dad is gone," Robby answered simply.

"So you don't have a home."

Robby shook his head, "Dad left me before, but this time he left me with nothing to live off of. I'm really thankful for your kindness."

"Kindness?" Vegeta asked slightly surprised, "One look at you and anyone would have taken pity on you."

"No, not really. You're the first."

"I really am getting soft," Vegeta said standing up, "Listen, kid, I feel as if I should know you, but I seem to have forgotten. Is there something you're not telling me?"

"No," Robby said slowly. So he felt it too, that growing sense of familiarity. As they stood and looked at one another, that sense became undeniable. "You remind me of Gogeta," Robby said finally.

It was like everything slowly began to make sense as a look of realization came over Vegeta's features, "Gogeta? How do you know him?"

"By chance really. I saw him walking and he needed my help--he needed a place to stay."

The only thing Vegeta was sure of was that he must have met Robby while fused with Goku. That would explain how he somehow knew him but didn't. He still couldn't remember anything when it came to Gogeta, but at least some part of him knew Robby.

"Well, Robby, I suppose I'm indebted to you."

Robby was confused, "Why's that?"

"You did help Gogeta, right?"

"Yeah, but Shenron and Oden--they killed him."

"Killed him?" Vegeta asked with surprise.

Robby nodded, "They disappeared with Gogeta so they could fight. I don't know how they could've done that," Robby said with a little anger, "Gogeta was already weak."

"So he was infected just like Shenron said," Vegeta said almost to himself.

Vegeta remembered that upon waking that both Shenron and Oden had been there. They had appeared as if they had already been in a fight with someone else.

"You know Gogeta, don't you," Robby said in an accusatory tone.

"You could say that. Your father, where do you think he is now--I'll take you to him."

"You would?" Robby said with surprise, "You must be Gogeta's close friend."

"Very close."

"What if I said my father was Oden."

"I'd say you were lying."

"It's true--well, maybe not; he's not really my biological dad and he never married Mom, but he took me in when she died."

The problem with this development of Oden being his father was that Vegeta suspected that he was dead. Oden's ki signature was by now very familiar to Vegeta despite its tendency to mislead and it seemed to have disappeared from the face of Earth. Shenron was the same way.

That left Robby both fatherless and motherless. There was practically no one left to take care of him.

"Do you know of anyone else in your family?" Vegeta asked with just the smallest hint of desperation.

Robby shook his head no.

Then Vegeta mentally looked through his already short list of people he knew personally.

"I could stay with you," Robby said interrupting Vegeta's thoughts, "I promise I won't be a bother. I'll stay out of your way."

"No, you can't," Vegeta said with finality. He almost regretted it when he saw the hurt look on Robby's face. "Look, it's…not you." A single human child in a house of unpredictable Saiyan babies didn't seem like the ideal situation. "Come on, I think I know somewhere you could stay," Vegeta said holding out a hand.

"The orphanage?" Robby asked stepping back.

"No, I have something better in mind."

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AN: Yeah, I know, long wait. I've just been having so much fun this holiday. Unfortunately, it's back to homework and school…I wanted to put more into this chapter, but it was getting a little long. \Don't worry, the next one will be more exciting. So stay tuned. Still eyeing that conclusion for this story, but I want to get a little more Pan/Vegeta interaction.

Yay! Reveiws! I'm so overjoyed:

xzavx: See, there's nothing to be afraidof…yet. MHUHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Ahem, wow, where did that come from? ;)

listenserendiptiy: Don't worry, I do it all the time. I want to keep up with a story, but then I have all these other things to do at the same time. And yes, if Toriyama ever decided to do a post DBZ/GT series, I'd hope it'd be something like this. Just wishful thinking, though.

You actually want some tip from muaw? I'm so flattered.