Chapter Thirty-six: Me and Shingala
Max and Gokuu entered Balance Valley station. Cedric, Borneo, and Erik met them on their way to the Blackstone One.
"You kids finally made it," Cedric said. "We were gettin' worried about you three."
Borneo placed a hand on his hip. "How'd everything go?"
Max explained what happened.
Erik whistled. "Crest is dead, Lin took his place, and Monica was captured. That's a lot. How're you gonna get her back?"
"Lin said we need to restore Veniccio. That way, Luna Lab'll come back. The scientists there should be able to help us go 10,000 years into the past, to Griffon's time, assuming that's where she is."
"We should hurry then," Borneo said. "We'll get the train started up. Just hold tight for a few." He, Cedric, and Erik ran inside the Blackstone One's front car.
Max and Gokuu sat in an empty car toward the back of the train.
Max looked out the window. He did not pay attention to his surroundings. I didn't think I'd hit her so hard earlier. I didn't mean to. If I hadn't, this wouldn't have happened. I have no idea what he's doing to her. He growled and pounded his fist against the window, cracking it.
Gokuu took notice. "Hey, what's wrong? You still worried about Monica?"
"Yeah."
The train began to move. The scenery became a dark gray blur.
"We'll restore Veniccio real quick. I can even go through the dungeons by myself and just grab the Geostones without fighting. The monsters always take a liking to me, so they shouldn't mind."
Max smiled. "That'd help. Thanks, Gokuu."
Gokuu settled into the seat, creating creases. "It was really my fault, y'know. I was right next to her on that ship. If I hadn't looked at the Moon Crystal, I would've never turned into an ape, and I wouldn't have scared those bad guys back to Griffon's time."
"You wouldn't have had to go down there to save her in the first place if I hadn't hit her that hard during our fight. This whole mess would've never started."
"No, Griffon started it all. He attacked Palm Brinks for no reason. Did anyone in Palm Brinks do anything to him?"
Max shrugged. "Not that I know of."
"So it's not your fault. If I had to fight someone who was brainwashed, I woulda done the same thing. I think anyone woulda."
"Yeah. Griffon really showed us how much he hates humans these past few days." Max stared at the seat in front of him. "The whole time I was protecting Lin from the flames, I couldn't help but glance at Monica and Gaspard fighting. After I destroyed a flame, I would look up and watch for a sec. My mind was on protecting Lin and protecting Monica, even though I couldn't protect them both."
A moment of silence passed.
Gokuu stood. "I gotta go to the bathroom." He ran to the door and slid it open. Gerald stood in the doorway, his arm outstretched as though he were about to open the door.
"Excuse me." Gerald walked past Gokuu.
"Uh-huh." Gokuu left the car.
Gerald walked to Max's seat. He looked at the crack in the window and then at Max. Max stared at his lap, his hands clenching, biting his lip.
"Did you do that?" Gerald nodded toward the crack.
"Yes, Father."
Gerald sat next to Max. "Cedric told me what happened. Do you feel like it was your fault?"
"Yes. Gokuu tried to make me feel better by telling me it was Griffon's fault, but I still feel so guilty."
"Look at me."
Max did so.
"Your life was in danger that evening. If you hadn't hit her, you would be dead right now."
"I know, but now—" He cut himself off. He could not think about the worst outcome. "How are Gokuu and I supposed to fix everything without her?"
"You're a smart young man. Combine that with Gokuu's strength, and you two will be able to do it."
Max smiled. His father's compliments were few and far between. When he did compliment him, Max would etch the compliment into his memories to cherish it.
His smile diminished. "Father, if something like this happened to Mother, what would you do?"
Gerald replied quickly. "I would go to the ends of the earth for her. But, right now, that's not possible."
"'Not possible?' What do you mean?"
"You'll find out soon enough." Gerald's eyes moved to the floor and became half-lidded. His eyebrows arched upward, and he mumbled, "I haven't seen your mother since the day she left."
Max blinked. His mouth opened, and then he closed it. He stared at his lap. So, all this time, Father hasn't seen her, either. I asked him, complained to him every day about her, but he was probably hurting, too. Maybe even more than me.
He looked at Gerald. "When I find Mother, I'll make sure that you two meet again."
"I'd appreciate that very much." Gerald placed his hand on Max's shoulder. "Listen, I know what happened both to your mother and Monica is tearing you up inside, but—look at me—you will find them, and you will save Monica. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Father." He paused. "Thank you."
A small smile appeared on Gerald's face, and he nodded. "You're welcome."
Shingala roared as he walked toward the cliff.
"Shingala, stop!" Pau ran toward him. "Don't get closer to the edge. If you do, the end of the cliff might break off."
Shingala hung his head down and whimpered. He slowly walked away from the cliff's brink until meeting Pau, who stood halfway between the cliff's edge and the large plateau leading to it.
"Come here."
Shingala lowered his head to Pau's level. Pau began to rub it.
"I know you like the view, but the last time you were over there, part of the cliff almost broke off. I had a time trying to pull you away before that happened. You were kinda running, too, so you almost ran me over."
Shingala released a sound resembling a laugh.
"We have to stay over here. We clear on that?"
Shingala nodded. Pau stopped rubbing his head, and he lifted it.
Pau took out a small, green ball. He pointed at the plateau behind them. "Let's play down there. It's much safer."
Shingala pointed his head toward the sun and roared in agreement.
Pau ran down the cliff. Shingala followed. Upon reaching the plateau, Pau began throwing the ball, Shingala catching it using his mouth. After some time, Pau said, "Ready for the big one?"
Shingala roared.
Pau began to wheel his arm. "This is your favorite part, isn't it? Get ready. And remember, don't go after it if it goes off the cliff or plateau. Got it?"
Shingala nodded rapidly, grinning.
Pau threw the ball. Shingala instinctively turned around and ran toward the ball, which flew toward the cliff's edge.
Pau sprinted toward him. "Shingala, no! Don't!"
Shingala kept running. Pau jumped toward Shingala, both arms outstretched. The ball fell off the cliff, to Ocean's Roar Cave. Pau grabbed Shingala's tail. Shingala, who was close to the cliff's edge, stopped and whirled around. The edge of the cliff broke, and Shingala and Pau fell, Shingala's head smacking the edge of the remaining rock, knocking him unconscious.
Monsters watched the two crash into the sand, debris falling around them. Some backed away while others stepped closer. Corsairs held up their cutlasses.
Pau, stuck under Shingala's fin, stirred. His eyes opened, and he looked at the monsters.
"Sh-Shingala." He crawled out of the fin and shook it. "Wake up. Monsters."
Corsairs, Gerons, and Fintols approached them.
Pau waved his hands in front of his face. "Wait, don't attack us. We fell down here by accident. We were playing with a ball, and it fell off the cliff, see, and—" He pointed to Shingala—"this Shigura came after it, I grabbed onto his tail, the edge of the cliff broke, and we both ended up down here. We're not humans, so we won't cause any problems. Could you just let us leave?"
The monsters stopped and looked at each other. They nodded. They smiled at Pau.
"Go ahead, as long as you don't take our treasure," a Corsair said.
"We don't need it."
Pau examined Shingala. He had a gash on his neck.
"Say, you guys wouldn't happen to have any medicine around here, would you?"
The monsters looked at each other, muttering.
A Fintol shook its head. "Sorry."
"Thanks anyway. We'll be going, then." He stared at Shingala. "Well, if I can get this big guy moving."
Shingala opened his eyes. His eyes widened, and he lifted his head to the sky and roared. The monsters covered their ears.
"Shingala, stop that. I know it hurts. Calm down, calm down." Pau rubbed Shingala's back. "I have some medicine at home. That should help."
Shingala lowered his head to look Pau in the eyes, his eyes twinkling with tears.
"Now, now, don't cry. C'mon, let's go home."
Pau grabbed Shingala's fin, and they began their walk home.
The train stopped. Max rammed his head into the seat in front of him while Gokuu slammed into the same seat. Max fell onto the floor, the world spinning. Gokuu slid onto his lap. He stood.
"Max, it looks like we're here. Get up. We gotta go save Monica."
Max's eyes lost their haziness, and he stood. "Right."
The car door opened, and Cedric walked to them.
"Sorry for the sudden stop. Looks like the railroad's broke. We can't go any farther."
Max looked out the window. "This looks like the place we need to be, anyway. Gokuu, let's hurry."
"Okay."
They ran past Cedric, out the train and the station, down the pier and onto the sand. Their shoes sunk.
When I get a chance, Max thought, I'll take my shoes off so I can really see what it feels like.
Max and Gokuu looked around. The ocean caught Max's eye. It was a lighter shade of blue than Palm Brinks' water and the sea surrounding Starlight Canyon's lighthouse. He could see to the bottom. Its tide washed the shore at intervals. He promised himself he would go in later.
They heard a cry to their right.
"Was that a monster?" Gokuu said.
"Dunno, but we'd better check. That might be where the Geostones are."
Max led the way into the cave from whence the cry came. A large blue creature's head pointed to the ceiling, its face scrunched up, and a Moon Person faced it, holding his hands toward its long neck.
"I said not to move it."
The creature lowered its head onto the floor, its eyes closed. Its body rose and fell steadily.
The Moon Person turned toward Max and Gokuu. "What do you want? I'm a bit tied up right now."
Max noticed that the creature had a gash on its neck. "Sorry, but we're looking for the area monsters are in. We need to pick something up from there."
The Moon Person raised its eyebrows. "You humans? Well, it's none of my business. To the left of my cave, you'll see a narrow shoreline. Follow that shoreline, and you'll start seeing monsters."
"Thanks a lot. Gokuu, let's go."
"Hold on."
They faced the Moon Person. He rubbed medicine on the blue creature's gash. He stopped.
"Of course human medicine won't work. Damn it." He threw the jar of medicine across the room. "Hey, could you do me a favor?"
"Actually, we're a bit tied up ourselves," Max said. Gokuu nodded.
"Since you're going out there anyway, could you go through Ocean's Roar Cave until you get to Shigura Village? They might have some medicine that can help Shingala. I'm guessing you two can fight your way through monsters."
"Yeah," Gokuu said. "We did at all the other places."
"Thanks a lot. I'm Pau, by the way. This is Shingala. He's a Shigura that turned up here lost about a month ago."
"I'm Maximilian. Nice to meet you."
"I'm Son Gokuu."
"So there are a lot of other Shigura that look like Shingala in this village, right?" Max said.
"Yes. Every year, the Shigura migrate from the south to live on these shores. I think Shingala got split up from the tribe. He took a liking to me, and I've kinda taken a liking to him, so I kinda haven't gotten around to taking him back to the village. He wouldn't be able to get there now, anyway, with this cut and all. He had a hard enough time just getting from Ocean's Roar Cave back here." Pau scratched the back of his head. "I didn't mean to do all that talking. You'd better get going."
"Alright. We'll see you in a bit with that medicine." Max ran out the cave, Gokuu following. They turned toward the shoreline Pau spoke of.
"Hey, Gokuu!"
Max and Gokuu turned around. A boat carrying a man with short, black hair; two bald males; a blue-haired girl; an animal with blue fur; and a pig sped toward the shore. Two males wore the same orange uniform Gokuu wore.
"Hey, that looks like Kamesennin and them." Gokuu ran toward the boat. He met it at the shoreline. Max stopped next to him, his mouth open, looking over the people and two animals inside.
The younger of the bald males jumped out the boat. "Hey, Gokuu, long time no see." He grabbed Gokuu's hands, and they danced in a circle.
"Yeah, yeah, I haven't seen you in ages." Gokuu's grin reached both ears.
They released their hands from each other.
The black-haired boy walked to Gokuu and slapped Gokuu's hand as Buruma, the older bald male, and the pig climbed out of the boat.
The blue creature floated close to Gokuu's face. "How've you been?"
"Great. I'm on a whole new adventure right now with Max."
The pig pointed at Max using his thumb. "That Max?"
Max's eyes widened. Wow, both of those animals talk. I guess that makes them monsters.
"Sure is," Buruma said. "He's the one who helped save me from those monsters that came to my house."
Everyone, save Gokuu, introduced themselves to Max, and Max introduced himself to everyone, save Gokuu.
"What're you guys doin' here?" Gokuu said.
Yamcha grinned. "To train for the next Tenkaichi Budoukai, of course. There are supposed to be a lot of tough monsters in Ocean's Roar Cave."
Gokuu turned to Buruma and Oolong. "What made you guys wanna come? Are you entering the tournament, too?"
Buruma rubbed against Yamcha, and Yamcha blushed. "Since he was coming, I decided to come, too."
"I don't have anything to do, so why not?" Oolong gestured to Kuririn, Yamcha, and Muten Roushi. "These guys'll protect me. And with you here, Gokuu, I won't get even a little scratch."
"What about Lunch?"
"Lunch is keeping my hut intact," Muten Roushi said. "My turtle's there to keep her from sneezing. You've stayed off Kintoun like I said, right?"
Gokuu placed his hand on the back of his head. "I used it a few times, but they were emergencies. People were in trouble. And, some other times, I forgot."
"I can forgive the emergencies, but you can't forget. It's absolutely essential that you stay off Kintoun. If you don't, your training won't work."
"'Kay. I won't forget again. I won't even use it for emergencies."
Muten Roushi nodded. "Good. Now, you said something about an adventure. Are you talking about Griffon?"
Max looked at Muten Roushi. "So, you know about him."
"Yes, I've seen the destruction Griffon's caused. But he left my Kame House alone."
"And my city," Buruma said. "Those places Gokuu and I went before he started training with Muten Roushi were left alone, too."
Max placed his hand in his chin. "As far as I know, Griffon only leaves something alone when there's something important there." He lifted his Atlamillia. "Like my Atlamillia. He didn't destroy my hometown of Palm Brinks because he knew it was somewhere there. He's after this and Gokuu's Dragonball."
Everyone stared at him.
"I'll explain what's happened so far. Gokuu, you should go pick up the Geostones."
"Right." Gokuu ran into Ocean's Roar Cave, a cloud of dust trailing, and Max began his explanation.
Pau rubbed Shingala's head. He's been quiet ever since those two left. Thank goodness. I'm not sure how much longer I could've taken his crying.
Shingala lifted his head and roared.
"What's wrong? Is it the cut?"
Shingala ran toward the entrance.
"Wait, where are you going? Stop!" Pau jumped and grabbed Shingala's tail. Shingala swung it, throwing Pau through a crate and into the wall. He fell facedown.
Shingala left the cave. Pau scrambled up and then ran toward the cave entrance.
Max was hardly halfway finished when Shingala ran out of Pau's cave.
Buruma backed away. "What is that?"
"That's Shingala, a Shigura," Max said. "B-but I don't see Pau with him. I thought he couldn't move. Maybe he heard one of the Shigura calling him, and he's heading where it is." Max looked at the raised eyebrows behind him. "Sorry, I'll finish explaining later."
Yamcha took a battle stance. "Should we do something?"
Max shrugged. "Dunno. I'll go see Pau and ask him about it."
As Max ran toward Pau's cave, Shingala entered Ocean's Roar Cave. Max met Pau halfway.
Pau panted. "You gotta help me. Shingala, he's…" Tears welled up in his eyes.
"We saw." Max nodded toward the group behind him. "What happened to him?"
"I dunno. He just got up all of a sudden and started running out. I tried to stop him, but he threw me off. That's the first time he's ever hurt me on purpose. We have to go after him." He shook his head. "But he's too fast for me."
"If Gokuu were here, he'd probably be able to catch him."
Kuririn raised his hand. "I'll do it. I've trained with Gokuu, too, and I can run almost as fast as him."
Max smiled. "Thanks a lot."
"Thank you so much," Pau said. "Stay safe. There are monsters in the place Shingala headed."
"That's why we came in the first place." Muten Roushi turned to Kuririn. "Will you be able to handle the monsters by yourself?"
Kuririn pounded a fist on his chest. "Of course. You can count on me." He ran onto Ocean's Roar Cave's shore, dust trailing him.
He ran through the shore, his speed knocking monsters down. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a blue mound moving down. He turned and ran toward Shingala, who ran down sand stairs and into a cave.
He slowed. How am I supposed to take him back?
Yells came from behind. He looked. Monsters ran after him, and he sped up.
I probably made them angry since I knocked them all down earlier. I don't have time to fight them.
Kuririn ran to the top of the stairs, jumped on the ground, and ran toward Shingala. After closing the gap, he jumped onto Shingala's neck. Shingala shook his neck.
"Whoops. Guess I-I jumped too m-much." Vomit surfaced in his mouth, and he covered his mouth with one hand. I think I'm gonna be sick.
The monsters' yells grew louder.
He opened his mouth and let the vomit splash on the ground. "Gotta hurry, gotta hurry. What do I do?" He stared at Shingala's head for some moments. "I think I have a plan. I sure hope this works."
Kuririn jumped off Shingala's neck and flipped in front of Shingala's head. He kicked it, twisting Shingala's neck so that he looked at the monsters behind him. Shingala roared as Kuririn landed on his feet. Shingala fell. He slept, his body rising up and down.
Looks like that did it. Kuririn walked to Shingala's tail and grabbed it. After taking two steps toward the stairs, he stopped. A Corsair, Geron, and Fintol stood in front of the stairs. He dropped the tail.
He grinned and scratched the back of his head. "H-hey, guys. Look, I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to knock all of you down. I thought I was running so fast that you couldn't see me. I was actually really hoping that you wouldn't be able to recognize me. Funny how things happen, right?" He laughed.
A Corsair threw its cutlass toward Kuririn. It landed in the sand next to him, quieting him.
Kuririn bit his lip. "Guess it's not very funny."
The Geron jumped toward Kuririn, its leg extended. Kuririn glanced behind him. Shingala remained asleep. Kuririn jumped toward the Geron. Their legs clashed. They separated, landing on the ground.
The Corsair sprinted toward him. The Fintol rolled toward his legs. The Corsair jumped to him and slashed its cutlass. Kuririn caught it by the blade.
Kuririn eyed the Fintol, lifted the Corsair by its cutlass, and threw it into the wall, sand falling on it. The Fintol knocked Kuririn down. Kuririn stood and backflipped toward the Corsair.
The Corsair stood and threw its cutlass. The blade buried itself into the back of Kuririn's head.
Kuririn jumped. "Yee-ou—" His head slammed into the ceiling. He fell facedown in front of Shingala.
M-my head… He gurgled into the water on the floor. Maybe if I stay down, they'll think I'm dead and go away. Just be patient.
He remained motionless for some minutes. Then, the Corsair withdrew its cutlass from the ground. It stood in front of Kuririn's head. It grabbed its cutlass' hilt and pulled.
Kuririn gritted his teeth and scrunched his eyes. Stay quiet.
The blade began to come out. Kuririn squeaked. The Corsair stopped. It motioned to the other monsters, and they surrounded Kuririn. The Geron lifted Kuririn's head. Kuririn appeared to be dead, and it dropped his head.
Ow, ow. Be careful with me, damn it.
The Corsair yanked its cutlass out. Kuririn lifted his head and yelped, grabbing the spot where the cutlass had been. He opened his eyes and looked at the Corsair, Geron, and Fintol glaring at him. He chuckled.
Kuririn saw flashing red lights as the Geron smashed its legs on the top of his head. His vision blurred.
He stood. "C-c'mon, guys. Hasn't my head been through enough abuse today?" He blinked twice, and he saw clearly.
The Geron kicked his stomach. Kuririn doubled over. The Fintol rolled into Kuririn's legs, knocking him onto his back. The Corsair slashed its cutlasses, and parts of his clothes fell off, revealing red lines.
Kuririn stood and then flipped over the monsters, landing away from Shingala. He sprinted toward them. "I'll finish this quickly."
He slid around the Geron and Fintol and punched the Corsair rapidly. The Corsair fell to the ground and disintegrated. Kuririn blew on his fists.
The Fintol rolled toward Kuririn. When it was close, Kuririn grabbed it with both hands and threw it into the Geron. They crashed into the wall, the Fintol on top. Kuririn jumped to the wall and kicked the Fintol, creating a dent. He landed. He jumped and kicked, and sand fell on them.
Kuririn smashed the Geron's head, which poked out above the Fintol's body, with his fist. Before he could land, the Geron's leg reached around the Fintol and slammed into Kuririn's crotch. Kuririn clutched his stomach. He fell on his back, curled into a ball, and scrunched his face.
"Why do these things only happen to me?"
The Fintol and Geron slid off the wall, onto the ground. Kuririn jumped onto his feet.
"It's payback time." Kuririn sprinted toward the Geron. When he came close, he outstretched an arm, crushing the Geron's face using his fist. He kept running, the Geron attached to his fist. Its head smashed into the wall. He punched and kicked it until it disintegrated.
He turned to the right, facing the Fintol. "Looks like it's just you and me, buddy."
He clasped his hands and jumped toward the Fintol, his hands lifted overhead. The Fintol rolled behind Kuririn, waiting for him to land.
Shingala picked up his head and roared. He glanced at Kuririn and the Fintol and then began to run away.
Kuririn watched Shingala. "Hey, don't run!" He staggered upon his landing and fell backward on top of the Fintol. The Fintol rolled out from under him, and Kuririn fell. He stood as the Fintol turned around and spun toward him. He clasped his hands and swung his fists onto the Fintol's shell, cracking it and burying the Fintol into the sand. It disintegrated.
Kuririn ran in the direction Shingala had run. A silhouette with spikes on top came into view. Kuririn slowed. The silhouette brightened. Gokuu ran toward him, carrying three glowing oval-shaped rocks. They skidded to a stop.
"Did you see a giant blue sea dragon?"
"You mean Shingala? Yeah, I saw him. I thought it was kinda weird that he was running even though that cut hurts him when he moves."
"He ran away from home, and I'm trying to catch him. Problem is, I don't know where he went."
"I'd go after him with you, but I'm supposed to be collecting these"—Gokuu held up the stones—"to save Monica. But Shingala was running through this hallway. He didn't turn, so you can still catch him."
Kuririn sighed. "I hate to go back like a loser, but I don't think I can handle any more of those monsters on my own. I'd better go back and get the others to help."
He turned and began to run to Veniccio, Gokuu following. As they ran, Gokuu said, "Hey, what happened to your head?"
A light blush appeared on Kuririn's cheeks. "None of your business."