Back to it! Sorry for the long update, has been a very draining month from helping a friend in need.
So now Gine is on her own and must get her stuff together before leading the Dragon Team again. How will she accomplish this? Let's find out!
Based on MasakoX's What If series "What if Gine went with Goku to Earth?", but a retcon with some changes of my own on how I think the story would have went down had Goku's mother escaped planet Vegeta with him.
DISCLAIMER: The following is a fan-based work of fiction. Dragonball Minus, Dragonball, Dragonball Z, Dragonball Super, and Dragonball GT are all owned by FUNimation, Toei Animation, and Akira Toriyama.
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CHAPTER 36: DIVINE INTERVENTION
The tranquility of the desert was shattered when the cliffside exploded in a spectacular shower of rock and debris. Dust blew everywhere, and from it a shadow emerged to reveal Gine huffing and puffing. She looked haggard and filthy, her gi torn in several places. But she didn't care, her eyes were too wild with unrestrained rage.
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Her feral scream echoed across the desert, releasing an enormous amount of energy that blew away the dust and caused an earthquake that collapsed the surrounding hills. She was certain that her power output could be felt by anyone who was ki sensitive from anywhere on the planet, but she didn't care about anything right now. She was too angry. Angry at herself for hurting her family, angry at Kami for lying to her, angry at Chi-Chi for denying Little Gohan his potential, angry at Kakarot for going behind her back, angry at the Saiyans coming their way to kill them all, angry at everything! DAMN IT ALL!
Gine sent herself rocketing towards the next giant boulder that had the misfortune of being in her path. It exploded upon her hitting it, raining fragments of granite all over the place. But it wasn't as impressive a display as the last rock she blew up, and she was just more exhausted from the effort. But she had to keep fighting. So she flew towards an outcropping of boulder fields, punching each rock as if they were stone sentinels standing as affronts to her, mocking her for her failure to control herself.
She slammed her fist into each rock, shattering some into piles of rubble, some only webs of cracks or breaking off pieces of them. Gine cried out in frustration and sobbed with each strike, and getting more tired with every blow. Finally at the last rock, Gine only buried her fist into the boulder, but it did not shatter. Her fist came out with her knuckles bloodied and raw.
Gine's rage boost finally exhausted her ki reserves and she fell to the dirt on her knees, her sobs turned to hiccupping sounds. Then she was silent, too numb to be angry anymore, and no longer having the strength left to cry. She just starred blankly at the ground like the sorry case she was, spent from the anger flowing through her veins. She was so tired... and she found that oddly a good thing. For that all lasted less than a few seconds.
She took deep but ragged breaths to calm herself down, feeling the fresh air giving her a headache by releasing all the tension from her body by breathing out. She winched as the pain finally made itself known, and her knuckles stung something fierce. At least she could feel again.
She slowly pushed herself back up onto her feet and walked back to camp, tending to her bleeding hand by wrapping a torn piece of her gi around her hand as make-shift gauze.
"That was good." She said to herself.
Later in the evening, Gine sat alone against a rock and in front of the fire that made up what she called her little camp in the desert. It was just her and the firepit she dug at whatever spot she found convenient. No capsule house or any other comforts of civilization, not even a sleeping bag. Out here, she felt back to her roots as a Saiyan surviving on the alien worlds she was supposed to conquer. Living by fires and cooking whatever she could find. But she wasn't here to conquer, except her own emotions.
She starred into the flames, silently chewed some meat of wild game she caught and cooked over the fire, one of many she roasted just to get through dinner with her Saiyan appetite. Finishing it, she laid back further and draped her hands across her belly. She had already loaded up on fresh water she gets from a spring nearby, and was quite full. The desert night was a pleasant temperature, so she didn't feel too warm or too exposed to the elements to seek better shelter. So to wind down, she lost herself in the trance of the dancing flames, her mind blank and tranquil at last.
It had been a few weeks since she came out here. Hoping that solitude in the desert would help her reign in her spirit before she could return to her family and friends. So far, her progress was somewhat promising.
Gine at first tried meditating off of the cliffs to help quiet her soul, but found that her roiling emotions were too much. She would then go off to try and train by herself, hoping the physical act of practicing her fighting forms would help. But her solo sparring sessions would get immersive, punching air furiously as if she was fighting those whom her anger projected at the moment.
It was not helping her if she was holding herself back. Until she reminded herself that she was all alone out here for hundreds of miles in every direction. All of this space to have time to herself to try and sort her emotions out however she saw fit. So she could do whatever she wanted without prying eyes or judgement. So she did what any Saiyan would do when they let out their bottled up emotions: fly into a blinding, all consuming rage.
Her boost was easily tapped into from all she had to let out, and the first release nearly wiped out the entire valley with a powerful explosion of energy. Then she would fly outward in any direction, imagining she was fighting Kami, Kakarot, the Saiyans, or whoever made her upset, letting out her rage by smashing whatever was in her way. After a while, the desert she was in became littered with craters, rocks blown to smithereens. Now it resembled a post-apocalyptic war zone.
While it did nothing to solve the roiling emotions she had and why she was doing this, it slowly numbed her to the pain and anger until it could barely fuel her power for a short time as it just did. What used to be a planet-shaking release, was now exhausted from just punching a few rocks, Gine found that now it was easier to focus. After a few more times of just cutting loose, she believed that she could burn out her pent up anger, and be able to meditate again. THEN the real work could begin. Although she was looking forward to not being rendered senseless from just wailing on rocks, she had to admit that doing so had felt really cathartic.
But she had some apprehensions still. Gine wasn't sure if the meditation would work since her rage had also blotted out a lot of it's intricacies that being friends with Kami would help her succeed. But with how her anger towards him had purged any good associations with him no matter how beneficial, Gine struggled to remember the details of how to pull through on how to realign her mind, body, and spirit again. It wasn't just a matter of closing your eyes and letting your mind go blank, for there were deeper things she had to do to bring things into focus. And she couldn't remember them, nor would her anger allow it since she exacerbated it from her rage spree. Gine hoped she could rediscover the means to do it again, less it would require to ask Kami himself how to do it again. But whether out of pride or anger, she didn't feel ready to see him again. Nor would she want to until after she got her emotions under control. Last time, it took Kakarot to step between her and the Guardian to stop her from killing him. If she saw him again, she wasn't sure what she would do.
But she had to rediscover how to bring herself back into focus again. The future of Earth and everyone she held dear depended on it. She will find a way. Somehow...
Feeling her eyelids getting heavy, Gine decided to turn in for the night. Whatever the stakes, she could always address them tomorrow.
She laid down in the dirt and rolled onto her side, curling up next to the fire to feel it's heat. This was a far cry to the simple comforts she had grown used to back at Mount Paozu, but Gine thought that the simplicity of just roughing it in the wild sometimes had it's charm if one wished to be alone. And this planet certainly was safe to be alone anywhere, so she couldn't ask for anywhere else she'd rather be to just be with her thoughts and feelings.
After a while, the fire died down to embers, and Gine rolled onto her back to look up into the moonless night sky. Although she knew that the band of hundreds of billions of stars that stretched from horizon to horizon held the horrible extent of the Frieza's galactic empire, and all the terrible things heading this way, she had to admit that the galaxy looked beautiful from down here planet-side.
Perhaps she was too tired to remember if she closed her eyes or not, but Gine noticed when all the stars in the sky suddenly faded out at once, as if a black cloak had been draped over the dome of the heavens. A minute later, it was gone and the stars returned as if the cloak had been lifted.
Huh... that was weird. Was her last thought before drifting to sleep.
The next day, Gine was trying to meditate before her morning routine. Her eyes were closed, trying to clear her thoughts and feelings one more time before she would have to give up and let out her emotions again. But she couldn't, her mind was too preoccupied with wondering how everyone back home was doing, and how her temporarily leaving them has affected them, which inevitably led her to sliding down the path of self-hatred. She was running out of places to blow up, and had to find a way to-
Her eyes shot open and her train of thought screeched to a stop. Someone was coming her way.
Gine stood up quickly, scanning in the direction she felt the ki signature approaching from. But there wasn't anything there on the horizon. She could sense it was coming from afar, heading directly towards her at high speed. The energy she felt was comparable to that of someone like Tien or Chi-Chi, but it wasn't them or anybody else she knew. Yet it somehow felt familiar...
Above! Gine looked up and saw it. High in the air, a contrail was racing across the blue sky, an unknown figure flying below the speed of sound. It then arched it's flight path towards her, falling from miles high.
She crouched into her Turtle fighting stance, ready to face the unknown visitor. The figure became fully visible when he stopped his freefall just inches above the ground, then touched down lightly on his toes a few yards in front of her.
Gine blinked in confusion when she recognized his species, but not the individual.
"A Namekian?" She said under her breath.
The visitor smiled as if he heard her. He was very tall, clad in a white gi and pointed brown slippers. He had bright, vibrant green skin that made him look young and strong. The look in his eyes showed no malice or ill-intent toward her at all. In fact, his eyes looked gentle and kind. Nothing like the evil gaze of the only other Namekian clad in battle gear, King Piccolo, she had seen. He was sealed away. However, he did have some resemblance to Kami, the only other Namekian she knew. But he was old and decrepit, not like this specimen, and his energy was different. This had to be a newcomer. But... she also couldn't shake off how familiar it felt.
He looked around at the ruined landscape. "There is a better way to sort out your feelings than just destroying the desert, Gine."
Gine recoiled in shock. How did this Namekian know her? Was he spying on her? Was he telepathic like Kami or Piccolo, and could read her thoughts?
She resumed her fighting stance. Either way, she wasn't convinced yet that he was not a threat.
"Who are you?" Gine demanded.
The unknown Namekian looked at her. "Don't you recognize me?"
"Should I?" She snapped back.
He sighed. The Namekian squared up to her, leaving himself open and defenseless. "Look closely, Gine. It's me, the one who taught you how to shield your mind from probing, and how to realign your mind, body, and spirit."
Gine was growing more irritated at his cryptic answering, and how dare he probe her mind into the personal struggle she was going through! She wanted to blast him on the spot, but his posture and ki still showed he meant no harm to her. So she restrained herself.
She squinted at the intruder, examining the look in his eyes... then her own went wide when she finally recognized him, and the familiar insignia on his gi that she missed.
"Kami?!" She said in astonishment.
The Guardian of the Earth nodded with a chuckle. "That's right."
Gine dropped her guard and stepped closer, examining him up and down in disbelief.
"But... how? What happened to you?" She stammered.
Kami smiled. "I had gathered the dragon balls, and last night, I made a wish for my body to be restored to it's physical prime, when I was a couple hundred years younger."
The memory of seeing the stars disappear the night before seemed to click into place for Gine. This was the third time she had seen the result's of the Eternal Dragon's power, but seeing what Shenron's power can do never ceased to amaze her.
He brought up his fists and threw punches into the air, as if testing out his regained speed and agility. Gine had never seen Kami throw a punch himself aside from his possession of Hero, and he seemed rather pleased or even jubilant than he could do so.
"It's been so long since I have been able to practice techniques in my own body again. I remember every technique by heart, but it's strange to have to relearn your physical limits all over again. I wondered if this was how-"
"Why are you here?" Gine cut him off.
Kami was surprised at her breaking this introspective moment of his. The shocked expression on her face had worn off, and was now replaced with an accusing frown.
"Even if you look different, you still got a lot of nerve showing your face around me."
He felt the sting in her voice. It was clear to him that she still had not forgiven him about Raditz, and this was the first time they had seen each other since that day. But now was not the time to address that with her just yet. Despite the hurt feelings, he had a purpose for being there.
"I came here to find you. I wanted to..." He paused, trying to think of what to say next. He was worried how this conversation was going to turn out if he didn't choose his words carefully.
"To apologize for your deception?" Gine answered bitterly, her tail twitched angrily.
"Among other things..." Kami said slowly, then looked her in the eye. "I came here to tell you that I want to help. I wish to fight alongside you and your friends against the Saiyan invaders."
That was not what Gine expected to hear, and her anger temporarily subsided.
"You want to help us?" Gine repeated.
Kami nodded. "Yes."
Gine looked away. She supposed it would explain why Kami wished for youth. But it left her with one question:
"Why?" She asked.
Kami raised an eyebrow, as if Gine didn't understand such an obvious statement. "Because I thought you could use a hand, and it's the right thing to do." He answered.
Gine shook her head. "That's not what I meant. As in: why are you helping us now? Why not against Piccolo? Or any other time Earth was in danger before? What's so different about this threat that you decided to intervene personally?"
Kami sighed and looked off into the distance. "Because... you were right, Gine. I am useless."
Gine was surprised by his depreciative answer.
"For three hundred years, I have watched this world suffer through war, famine, plagues, and every calamity you could imagine. I could not lift a finger to alleviate any of that suffering on it's people. Then Piccolo, a being whom I had created, brought life on Earth to the brink of extinction and I still did nothing. It was only through a miracle that he was locked away. And when you and Kakarot came along, I realized something... what kind of Guardian am I if I had to let beings who were not from this world do my job for me? I mean, there you two were: having saved the planet from it's greatest threat, one which was my doing to begin with, and standing before me having any request granted to you, and all you two wanted was to protect what you cared about: your home here on Earth."
Kami walked to to the edge of the rock they were standing on, looking out towards the horizon. He chuckled sardonically. "You know, as much as a blow that was to my pride, I admit that you and your son would have been far better Guardians than I ever could."
Gine raised an eyebrow, not sure whether to be flattered by how worthy her and Kakarot's deeds were, or insulted by Kami's defeatism.
"After the last time we saw each other..." He forced himself to talk though the lump forming in his throat when he thought of that painful day when Raditz arrived. "...When I realized that I was doing more harm than good by not being able to help you against the Saiyans, and only caused you pain because of my duty even though you were my friend, I have decided that enough was enough. I can no longer sit by idly while mortals like yourself stand alone between Earth and certain destruction. And if it costs me the mantle of Guardian, then so be it."
He turned back to Gine. "I hope you understand that I did what I had to do because of my duty as Guardian, but I should have also realized that there are times when the rules of divine intervention must be... bent."
Gine stood there silently for a long moment, digesting everything Kami said.
"This won't change anything between you and me." She said as a statement.
Kami looked to the ground. "I know. But even if you never wish to speak to me again, I will make it my duty to help you regardless."
She studied Kami for a few moments before speaking again.
"Alright then. If you think you can help, show me what you can do."
Kami looked at her quizzically. "Show you?"
"Yes." Said Gine, she crouched into the same fighting stance she was in moments before.
"I've never seen you fight in your own body before, so I want to see how well you can do in a fight against a Saiyan like me. So, show me."
It took a moment for Kami to finally understand, but then he felt dread.
They both knew she was far stronger than him, so what was the point of this challenge if she was going to beat him? To humiliate him? Or was this going to be her way to try and turn him away? Or worse, would she accidentally, or purposely, try to kill him again? There was no telling.
But he was in no position to argue with his former student. If he truly wanted to help after everything that has happened between them, it would have to be on Gine's terms.
"Very well then. I guess it seems only fair." Kami conceded.
Gine grunted sardonically in response, "Glad you think so."
He brushed off the snide remark and bowed respectfully to her before taking the crane fighting stance. Gine starred him down intently, and the Guardian of the Earth felt himself gulping nervously.
Gine seemed to notice his nervousness and said, "Don't worry, Kami. Despite all my inklings and right to kill you, I won't do that. This is purely a sparring match, if that is what you are thinking."
Kami felt some amount of relief, but also the underlying contempt still burning within Gine. She still felt as angry and unforgiving to him as before. And she had some satisfaction in being able to return the favor of reading her mind with calling him out on his own emotions.
"Good to know." Was his curt reply. For all the bad blood between him and Gine, at least he wasn't going to die today... he hoped.
Gine nodded. "Come at me when you're ready."
Feeling more resolve, Kami tightened his stance and charged up his ki. It swirled within him like a whirlpool, and was released like a geyser as he let out an increasing scream and energy he had not felt in over two hundred years. It felt so good to be strong again!
At full power, he went forward in a flying leap to Gine...
Kami did not know what happened next for it all happened in a blur, but after a few seconds of moves exchanged where despite him showing his excellent technique, he was overpowered utterly and ended up on the ground unconscious. He reawakened after a minute to see Gine starring down at him, she looked unimpressed.
"Not even five seconds." She said flatly to the flabbergasted Namekian. Sure he was young again and knew his techniques, but he was pathetically weak compared to her.
"You barely lasted against me, and I didn't even want to kill you. But the Saiyans will. You wouldn't last a millisecond against them. I'm afraid there isn't much help you could offer aside from just getting yourself killed."
Kami felt his resolve get crushed by her words.
"Thanks for the offer, but no thanks. Now leave me in peace." She said before walking off, leaving the Guardian laying there on the ground feeling utterly despondent.
Was he really going to be brushed aside just like that? All of his heartache and soul-searching for naught?
Kami struggled to sit up. No, not like this. Even if he felt he deserved this humiliation, a part of him refused to just let himself be sidelined.
"Wait!" He called out to Gine. She heard him and stopped, but did not turn around to face him.
"You still need help trying to sort out your emotions, right? Well since I taught you how to meditate, I can help you find your way again."
Gine wheeled around, her glare livid. "You dare offer your help to fix the anguish YOUR lie about my son had caused me?!"
Kami caught his tongue for a moment. She was right. How could he be so hypocritical as to help her through emotional damage that was his doing? No amount of meditation training would fix that, especially if the injustice was his own. She would need to see it from the way he saw it... or more appropriately, how Fortuneteller Baba saw it...
He sighed, realizing that there was only one thing left now that he could do. He didn't want to, for this could definitely cost him the Guardianship for sure if King Yemma ever found out. But if he wanted to regain Gine's trust, he would have to undo the damage. As he said himself: Sometimes he might have to bend the rules a little.
"I know... and I wish to help you by telling you why I lied." Kami said hesitantly.
That got Gine's attention. "Really?"
"Yes." Said Kami as he stood back onto his feet and brushed himself off. "And I don't mean 'because it was my duty' kind of explanation. I mean: the real reason why I helped Fortuneteller Baba withhold Raditz's whereabouts. If anything, to explain myself and provide you with at least some closure."
Gine was not fond of his choice of some closure. Like, what did that even mean?
Slowly, Gine walked back to Kami. Whatever her reservations, at least now she was being given the chance to hear a real explanation.
"Okay. You peaked my interest. So, why did you lie to me about Raditz?" She asked, trying not to sound bitter.
Kami was silent before saying, "That... is a question for Fortuneteller Baba herself."
He closed his eyes for a moment, then a voice spoke from behind Gine.
"You rang?"
Gine jumped at the sudden appearance of the very short witch floating on her crystal ball.
Baba eyed Gine worryingly. "Hello, Gine."
Gine unconsciously felt her fists clench. "YOU!"
"Before you hurl yourself at her, Gine..." Said Kami. "Know that I have summoned her here for a reason."
"And a very unwise one if you ask me." Baba remarked.
Gine looked to Kami and back to Fortuneteller Baba. "What's the meaning of this?"
Kami looked at her seriously. "Gine, I need you to trust me on this. I swear to you that the reasons for my actions will be made clear now that Baba is here, for the best way to explain why we did what we did would be to show you."
Gine was confused. "Show me?"
Fortuneteller Baba then spoke up. "You realize that if you do this, Kami, you are seriously jeopardizing your position as Guardian if King Yemma ever learns of this. For this is a direct violation of Divine Law for deities to show the future to a mortal."
"I know, Baba." Said Kami. "Believe me that I have been wrestling with that dilemma for too long. But I am will to take the risk if it means saving the Earth."
Baba sighed defeatedly. "Very well then." She turned to Gine. "Go ahead and place your hand on my crystal ball."
Gine looked nervously at the iridescent sphere.
"It's not going to hurt you, Gine. You just need to make physical contact with it so I can show you the visions." Said Baba.
"Visions?" Gine asked.
Baba nodded. "Yes. Visions that I had ever since you and Kakarot arrived at the Lookout. They foretold of Raditz's arrival, and many other possible outcomes of that day."
"And what does this have to do with why you both lied to me?" Gine asked.
Kami looked her in the eye, thinking long before he spoke. "It has more to do with what would have happened if we told you the truth instead."
Now Gine was really confused. "What?"
"That's right." Baba answered. "Your eldest son's arrival was more important than you realize. It was a pivotal moment in time that had repercussions throughout the universe, a catalyst for greater things to come. It's a moment that must have been handled carefully or else dire things would have happened. I shall show you what that future would have been if you knew he was alive."
Gine was very intrigued now. So, not only did Kami and Baba have the ability to see the future, but could see multiple futures? The implications of such an ability were too profound for Gine to think about, not to mention the existential paradoxes that came with it. But, they knew exactly what would happen if they told her that Raditz was alive? And to show her was bad enough for a god to get in trouble over?
This was definitely fascinating, and was all the permission she needed to give to Baba to proceed.
"Alright." Said Gine.
She placed her hand on the smooth surface of the crystal ball. Baba hopped off and placed her hands on it as well, then closed her eyes and started chanting. Gine stood there, starring into the ball and waiting for something to happen.
At first there was nothing, after a few moments a whirl of fog stirred within the crystal ball...
The pupils of Gine's eyes shrunk to dots as she felt what was like a bolt of lightning traveling up her arm from the crystal ball and into her brain. Her vision went dark, followed by an explosion of color as the crystal ball opened up to her in her mind's eye...
It was indescribable, but the closest word Gine could approximate to it would be: overwhelming. It was a flood of sights, sounds, smells, and other sensations that flooded her consciousness as it connected with the ebb and flow of time through the crystal ball, and Fortuneteller Baba's consciousness connected to it as well, linked with Gine's as if they were one...
Not only could she see what Fortuneteller Baba saw from her own perspective, but all of her emotions, and all five hundred years of memories. Gine saw everything. From the foggy beginnings of a young sister of Master Roshi learning the arts of magic, to meeting Kakarot with her four fighters from the Otherworld, and to the day when they arrived at the Lookout eight years ago. To Gine's breakdown, and from Baba's point of view when she spoke with Kami in private about her dire warning.
But what stuck to her was the sincere guilt that Baba truly felt for withholding the knowledge that a grieving mother's child was alive. It struck Gine hard, the guilt was so unbearable she felt like crying. But the vision was only just beginning...
Something like a kaleidoscope of fractals appeared before her, showing two different streams that flowed like water from one central stream, a river representing time and the forking of two possible futures, and in each future containing two more possible ones forking out, and two more forking out in them, and on continuously, infinitely splitting the flow of time with every conceivable difference.
One branch of fractals which they were in right now, downstream from the main fork of the central timeline, showed where they were now (which was now the main timeline), and the other was another future that branched from the point of divergence: the decision to tell her or not about Raditz. And the other branch was the future they did tell her that Raditz was alive...
She saw herself and the forms of Kami, Baba, and Kakarot take shape in the future where she had been told the truth. Raditz was indeed alive, somewhere out there in the vast expanse of space, still serving under Frieza's rule. Gine in that future, would be overjoyed at the news and then her joy would turn to horror at the realization that her son was doing unspeakable things in the tyrant's name. She would scramble to gather the dragon balls. The future showed that she would triumph in her effort quickly, and have them brought to the Lookout. It would be there where Shenron would be summoned, and Gine, in an emotionally charged plea, would wish for the dragon to bring her firstborn son from wherever he was to right before her.
"YOUR WISH IS GRANTED." Shenron's words would boom as his eyes glowed an eerie red. Meanwhile, on the other side of the galaxy, Raditz, whilst being debriefed by Lord Frieza after finishing purging a world alongside his comrades Prince Vegeta and General Nappa, would have vanished before their very eyes in a flash of light. In that same instant, Raditz would reappear before Gine, transported successfully to Earth...
Another fractal appeared at this very moment, creating two possible futures from this branch. But even within Gine's mind's eye, she could feel her heart singe with horror when she saw that in both futures after this one event and in all their infinite variables of the two, she had doomed them all...
The first one showed Raditz's reaction to being magically transported to Earth to his mother's open arms. Having just finished exterminating a world, Raditz's Saiyan bloodlust was still running high. With the shock of having been ripped from Frieza's throne room to see his weak and pathetic mother, which he had assumed was long dead, very much alive, his reaction was... not good. In fact, he would have proceeded to kill her.
After only a moment's hesitation for the shock of seeing her wear off, Raditz would have blasted his mother on the spot with a powerful release of pink ki. She did not even have time to scream, nor time to ponder why her own child would do this to her. Gine in her mind's eye screamed, feeling the pain from the searing heat and wondering how could this be. But she knew already. He was a Saiyan warrior kidnapped to a strange place, and familial ties meant nothing to him if he perceived them as a threat. She did not train with Kakarot in the time chamber, they would not be strong enough to stop Raditz then, and he did not care about them. Their strength after he arrived in the main timeline, eight years after this, stopped him from acting on his Saiyan impulses, only then did he grow fond of them.
With his mother reduced to ashes, Raditz in this future went on to kill a horrified Kakarot, despite her youngest son's best efforts to defend himself. The same fate that befell her would claim him as well, then Kami, and then the Lookout would have been destroyed in a titanic blast of ki as Raditz finished them off.
They did not properly prepare for his arrival, and in her haste to bring Raditz to Earth, Gine had instead brought upon Earth's destroyer. Raditz, confused at where he was and seeking a way back, would proceed to eradicate all life on the planet without remorse. Only doing so to find a way back to Frieza, killing anything that got in his way...
The fractal rewound like a tape in reverse, then played again at the fork to show the second future. Here, Raditz's to reaction to them was far less volatile. Despite his killer instincts telling him to obliterate everyone in sight, Gine would somehow either reason with him or he would be over overcome with emotion that the reunion with his long lost family somehow goes peacefully. There would have been tears and much rejoicing. Gine would have felt a happiness unlike any she felt before. It would seem like she had achieved a great good, but Gine in her mind's eye saw that her counterpart in this timeline would have inadvertently doomed Earth also...
Raditz's former companions, and their lizard overlord, Frieza, would no doubt have witnessed his jaw-dropping disappearance. They will definitely want to know what happened to him. Perhaps Raditz's scouter would still have a hot mic, and her explaining to him where is would reveal Earth's location. Failing that, one possible outcome showed them tracking his scouter's final location before being discarded would tell them also. If not, another future showed how the news of Gine's and Kakarot's survival would cause Frieza and his minions to review lost records of Saiyan pods stolen and launched before planet Vegeta's destruction.
One way or another, in all possible variants of this second timeline, Earth and it's Saiyan fugitives would not remain hidden from Frieza for long. He would send his forces to the blue planet to either collect Raditz or make an example of him, for the galactic emperor did not let the crime of desertion stand in his army. Gine and the defenders of Earth would put up a valiant fight against the invasion, perhaps they may even repel the first wave of his lower ranking troops. But then Frieza would just send entire battalions next, or his most elite warriors, or he himself would come to finish the job. No matter how much Gine and gang prepared, they would all be annihilated. She, her sons, and their handful of martial artist friends were no match against Frieza descending upon them with the might of his entire empire behind him. Gine, everyone she cared about, and all life on Earth would have been destroyed. Her wish to save Raditz would have meant nothing...
The vision then pulled all the way back to the moment Baba and Kami wrestled the decision to tell Gine about Raditz. Here, she saw the branch that showed the possible future of what would happen if they did NOT tell her. The timeline they were in now...
Earth would not be in immediate danger, from either a scared Raditz or a vengeful Frieza. Here, in her ignorance of her eldest son's fate, Gine would be free from the burdens of preparing for a battle they would surely lose, thus safeguarding Earth for a time longer. She and Kakarot would get far stronger than a bitter Raditz would ever want to deal with. And in the end, Earth and it's inhabitants stood the best chance of survival. With Raditz arriving late, they would be ready to welcome him back. They would be more prepared to face the Saiyan threat, and in the depths of this possible future if they manage to defeat Prince Vegeta, a far greater threat awaits. It will not be faced on Earth, but on another world far away. Deep in space, and something to do with the galactic tyrant himself. And that was where the vision blanked out, and the future could not be peaked into any further...
Gine's hand pulled back from the crystal ball, the temporal connection was severed. The emotions she felt within the vision were still present, and just as intense. She was on the brink of sobbing from horror and despair.
Fortuneteller Baba looked at her sympathetically. "Now you know."
Gine walked some distance away, breathing raggedly. She knew that she was safe now, back in her own time, and was trying to calm herself down. But the images of all the futures she had seen, of all the different ways she and everything she cared about died, were still vivid in her mind.
Kami walked up behind her and watched her struggled to recompose herself. He said, "I'm sorry, Gine. Looking into the future is not something mortal minds like yours were meant to handle. But incredibly, you handled it quite well. So hopefully the effects you feel should wear off eventually."
Gine was too nauseous to listen to him. She bent over and placed her hands on her knees. She resisted the urge to vomit, but only just. She wondered how Kami or Baba, or anyone for that matter, could stand to see all the ways you could die and lose everything you held dear? And the knowledge that your fate could be set in unbreakable stone, no matter how hard you fought to change it. And now she had the knowledge that there was going to be something far more grave for her to face than just these Saiyans up ahead. She had a vague idea of what it might be, and was too terrified to want to think about it.
"So... there was no other way." She said finally through the lump in her throat.
Kami and Baba nodded together. "Correct." They said in unison.
"Raditz... there was nothing I could do without endangering Earth." Gine went on, her words sounding more like a horrified statement than a realization.
"Yes." Said Kami. "Raditz was instrumental for setting in motion the course of history to come, depending on what happened to him. If we had told you that he was alive, prematurely bringing him here would have meant the end of Earth. So Fortuneteller Baba picked the best possible future to save Earth by telling you that he was dead. To let him find his own way to Earth. I went along with that choice, to save the lives of billions of innocent people now, and possibly the lives of far more beyond."
By now, Gine had recovered. She starred off into the distant cliffs, deep in thought. Her shoulders sagged.
"I... I understand now." She said sincerely, but with reluctance. "I guess, if I were in the same position as you were... I might have done the same thing."
Kami placed a hand on her shoulder.
"It still does not make me feel any less guilty for causing you so much pain, Gine. As Guardian, I have to watch from above all kinds of suffering the people of Earth experience. As a telepathic being, the pain I feel from them is very real, as if it were my own. You were a mother grieving for your child, an anguish that no one should ever have to experience. And you were my student and my friend. That was a weight on my conscience I could not bear, not even for the lives of billions. I want you to know that I regret every minute I withheld the truth from you for the last eight years. And I will do all within my power to make it up to you."
Gine sighed as she considered Kami's words. What could she really say to that? He was right. In the grand scheme of things, bringing Raditz to Earth sooner would have doomed them all, no matter how bad she wanted to. Now that she knew that, who was she to say that she would not have done the same if it wasn't her own child if she could save an entire planet? Especially if she was forced to make that choice? Kami was placed into a no-win situation, and faced the consequences bravely rather than doom Earth out of guilt.
She saw Kami in a whole new light. As the Guardian of Earth, he wasn't just some impotent overseer, he had the responsibility to make a decision that anyone else would have rather killed themselves over rather than follow through. To make a difference at the cost of his own conscience. The opposing force of the evil and sadistic King Piccolo, Kami was an empathic being of all that was good and had to do for the greater good. It did not ease the guilt he felt for doing his job. How could she let herself not see that? Who was she to judge him?
Gine turned to look at him with a softened expression. "There's no need to be sorry, Kami. You were placed in a situation that only you could face, and I... Raditz and I... had to go along with it whether we liked it or not. As you had to."
Kami solemnly nodded. Then added, "If it's any consolation, Baba knew that Raditz would live long enough to make it here. Your son is very strong."
"Stronger than he himself realizes, I might add." Said Fortuneteller Baba.
That put a smile on Gine's face. Despite everything that happened, she was proud that Raditz made it through those all those years of hell to find his way to them. And to hear that he too truly had the protentional she and Kakarot had, was heartwarming. It reminded her of the same tenacity that Bardock had that got him through the most impossible of situations, something she admired dearly in him.
"He's a survivor. Just like his father." She said with pride.
Gine looked back up at Kami, realizing she felt a calm within her she hadn't felt since before Raditz arrived. Now she knew the truth, everyone was as safe as can be be, and the ill toward Kami was gone. There was still a turmoil in Gine, after all the things she had seen and the truths she had learned. But now she can at least think clearly again.
"Thank you for telling me the truth, Kami. I feel much better now... and I really appreciated it." She said sincerely.
There was a faint trace of a smile on his lips. "You are my friend, Gine... and thank you for showing me the error of my ways, and reminding me what it means to be a Guardian."
Gine smiled warmly, regarding him in a moment of understanding. "You're welcome. Though I do mean it. For figuring out how to stop being angry all the time by punching rocks was not getting me anywhere." She said, gesturing to her filthy appearance.
"No, it looked like it wasn't. Haven't I taught you anything?" Kami half-joked, earning a lighthearted chuckle from both of them.
Fortuneteller Baba coughed, breaking the moment of levity. "Well that's quite touching and all. But I believe my duty here is done. And now Kami, are absolutely sure you still want to join the fight?"
Kami regarded Baba with a serious look. "I do."
"And you also know that if you die, the dragon balls will cease to exist?" Baba asked.
Kami nodded somberly. "Yes, they would."
Gine felt apprehension clench at her heart. She had almost forgotten that little detail about the dragon balls, and it would definitely complicate things if Kami wished to fight in a real battle. If anyone died during the confrontation with the Prince and his henchman, and with no way to bring them back...
"Then you would know that I would strongly advise against you putting yourself in danger for the Earth. You are far too valuable to have on the battlefield." Continued Baba.
"I am aware of the risk. And it's one I'm willing to take." Said Kami in a serious tone.
"Then there's nothing more to say." Said Baba. Kami then turned back to Gine.
"Gine, with your permission, I request to train with you to get stronger, and to prepare for the Saiyans."
Gine felt odd at having her former master now asking her to train under her this time, and was glad that they had managed to settle things between them. But now that they were on good terms again, worry crept back into her for the well being of her now-again friend.
"You don't have to do this, you know." She said, trying to plead with him.
Kami regarded Gine with a gentle look in his eyes. "I know, Gine. By all rights I shouldn't. But you must understand that I have brought all this on myself. Now, I must answer for it. I understand your concern for me and the dragon balls. But I don't want to just stand by and have you or your friends put your lives in harms way to protect this planet for me anymore than I already have. As you told me yourself: If I can't help, then what good am I?"
Gine remembered saying those words to him when she wasn't in the best of emotional states, but could see where he was coming from. His guilt for having to sideline himself for so long because of his higher calling, and having others fight or even die in his place weighted heavily on him. Centuries of watching people die and not being able to put a stop to it? Just as she agonized over her own inability to not partake in mass murder while under Frieza's rule? Who was she to deny him a chance to make things right?
She sighed, and looked up at him an understanding smile. "Alright."
Kami's smile did not change, but the expression of his face glowed something that conveyed real happiness. "Thank you, Gine."
Gine rolled her head around, cracking her neck. "If we're gonna face Prince Vegeta together, then there's no time like the present to get your training started. So why don't you come at me again."
Kami raised an eyebrow. "Spar with you again now? Even though I barely lasted against you for a moment?"
"Yep." Said Gine as she did her stretches. "The fastest way to learn, right?"
He looked to Baba. She shrugged and just said, "Don't look at me, fighting is your field now."
Kami, instead of asking for help, just grinned like child. "I know... it's just, it has been a long time since I trained like this. Even if it feels like starting all over again, I must say I missed it. I feels exciting to be young and fighting again!"
He eagerly got back into stance. "Ready when you are, Gine."
Gine couldn't help but feel herself getting excited too. "That's the spirit!"
Even if they did not have enough time to get him as strong as she was, at least her problems had finally been addressed and they had another ally on their side. Plus there was some fun to see Kami's fighting spirit reawakened, a side she had never seen in him before...
"AAAHHHH!" Kami charged at her with a yell, and the two clashed again. This time, Kami lasted only a fraction of a second longer before Gine slammed him into the ground. But he did not give up. He got back on his feet and charged at her again, refining his technique and slowly getting better as the day went on. They both fought with purpose, with comradery, and with the past as far behind them as the desert sun setting on the horizon.
Whatever they will face in the future, they will face head on...
A/N: Although some readers might think this is a boring chapter, I actually had fun writing this. I really like trying to describe the physical world and sensations our characters are experiencing, and boondocking in the desert is one of my favorite things to do IRL. So I hope I could convey how it feels to just sleep under the stars in the middle of nowhere. Trust me, its an awesome feeling ^_^
Anyway, see you next time!