Rights: All rights belong to Akira Toriyama, Toyotarou and Toei Animation

This is based on the manga cannon, so there may be some discrepancies with the anime.

WARNINGS: This story is very, very dark, with a large amount of violence, gore, and sexual references, including references to non-consensual sex.

This is the LAST chapter of this story. Please stay tuned for Vegeta's point of view (missing scenes, required reading for Destiny's Game), and a sequel awaiting beta editing which is actually longer than this story. I may have been a bit too enthusiastic about this story-line...

Things were incredibly confusing for Gohan. He was always being left out of things, forgotten and neglected as the main fighters dealt with the major problems and he continued to provide for his family (even though his family was admittedly rather rich). It was frustrating to always find out about things after the fact, even considering that he had been more active recently.

He had received some strange phone calls from Bulma lately.

To begin with, he had called her when he read the startling expose in his morning newspaper, spitting out his coffee on the tablecloth as his half-lidden eyes finally clued in to what he was seeing. She had told him then about Vegeta's idiosyncrasies, brainstorming with him about all of the changes and, on her part at least, ranting about her husband's unfaithfulness. Teasing the full story out of her, Gohan had not been so convinced. He prided himself on evidence and rationality, and knew that the facts were simply not conclusive enough. The lipstick was damning, but not unexplainable – Gohan himself had been on the receiving end of a cosmetic makeover a few years previously, courtesy of two very amused young boys, one of which he was unfortunately related to.

And neither of them had particularly matured since then.

He had then heard that his mother had received similar news, had told his father, who had then exacted revenge on Vegeta, kicking him into the undergrowth and leaving him there.

Gohan thought that was uncalled for, and he was vindicated when he received a phone call from a very flustered Bulma who retracted her allegations, but continued to be suspicious of her husband for his undisclosed whereabouts. Gohan wasn't sure what to make of it all, but thought the truth would be more innocent than Bulma feared.

And then Bulma had called about something else. She was still quarrelling with her husband about one thing or another, but this time their conversation regarded something entirely different. She wanted to invite a select number of people, not a large gathering (which wasn't Bulma's style since she liked size and fanfare), to a picnic of all things. For a new friend of theirs.

And this is where the negligence of fighters like Gohan came to the fore, because apparently, their universe had narrowly escaped complete erasure thanks to the timely intervention of this unknown individual.

Ternyp.

Ternyp, yet another saiyan by the sounds of things, now occupied the body of Gemuse, the fight with whom Gohan remembered vividly. And he had interceded for their sakes with the Omnikings, striking a deal so that if he managed to take one down, Universe 7 would be spared.

And he had done it. He had actually defeated Lord Zeno himself!

And that very afternoon Bulma had gathered a few friends to see off this powerful individual before he returned to his home planet.

Gohan wished they would keep him more up-to-date about things. He couldn't believe he had made some innocuous comments to Future Trunks about his time, only to be told later that the entire timeline had been erased. It made him seem so insensitive, when really, he ought to have been informed about the goings on.

At least he had been included in the fight against Moro.

There was that.

In accordance with Bulma's wishes for a small party (she considered Ternyp to not be the most social person, and didn't want to overwhelm him, apparently) Gohan was coming alone. He would have liked for Pan to have more time to play with Bra, since the pair seemed to be getting along rather well, but this wasn't the right time, he suspected. He really ought to just visit more often. Pan could use a friend, even if said friend was only a year old.

Gohan, prompt and punctual like always, was one of the first to arrive at the picnic spot. It was a marvellous choice by Bulma – a sweeping prairie of lush green grass bordered by a pristine forest. A stream meandered its way through the field bubbling merrily as it eroded the rocks on which it flowed.

Familiar faces were congregated not far away from this picturesque rendition of natural beauty, packed onto a few tartan picnic blankets. Vegeta was sitting with one knee up on the rug, both hands firmly around his daughter, who jigged up and down boisterously. Bulma was beside him, seeming fully reconciled with her husband, occasionally running a free hand down his arm or over his shoulders as she dived into the snacks. Trunks was attacking the food with vigour, mouth eviscerating the meagre collection and forcing the bystanding Panchy to re-fill the containers. Nearby, Dr Brief was bicycling around in circles, creating deep indents in the grass as he repeated his journey.

But Ternyp was the individual who most drew Gohan's eye.

He was dressed alike to his prince, seated beside him bedecked in similar white boots, tipped with gold, and a navy spandex suit, plus a white breast-plate atop a sky-blue surcoat. An ebony tail the colour of the crest atop his head rested by his side, curling in on itself as he spoke. He looked far healthier than when Gohan last seen him, robust and muscular underneath his contour-hugging uniform. Nothing like the skeletal figure Gohan had crossed fists with so ineffectually over a month before.

"Hello, everyone," the younger male greeted as he dropped amid the gathering, "It looks like I'm the first here."

"Yep, you sure are," Bulma grinned at him, standing as Vegeta nodded in acknowledgement, "It's good to see you."

She gave him a quick hug, her smile like sunshine.

"I don't believe you've met Ternyp here?" she gestured to the extra saiyan, who rose at the introduction.

"I have not," Gohan stuck out his hand, "Gohan."

But Ternyp merely stared at the proffered appendage until Vegeta informed him, "You're supposed to shake it."

"Ah," Ternyp acknowledged, grasping Gohan's hand and pumping it enthusiastically.

Bulma snorted.

"Not…ah, not quite that much," Gohan chuckled.

"Oh."

"Have a seat, Gohan, and tuck in," Bulma invited, dropping down and snatching a cracker before her son turned his eye to it. Vegeta transferred his child to one hand in order to follow suit, causing the girl to babble unintelligibly.

"Mmm…" Gohan enjoyed a stick of celery, turning to the new saiyan in curiosity.

"So, Ternyp, right? How did you come to be inside Gemuse's body?"

Bulma gave Vegeta a look as Ternyp replied, his voice and demeanour an exact contrast, "The Prince brought the body to me and…well, to be honest, it requires a death in proximity to transfer the soul back to the First One's body. I was him in a past life, you see and –"

"Wait, death?"

Both Ternyp and Vegeta dropped their eyes.

"You don't mean…?"

"The Prince dealt the killing blow, yes."

"What?!" Gohan's eyes bugged, staring at Vegeta in horror.

"I consented to it," Ternyp continued, "since suicide is so frowned upon in my culture. Death in a duel is far more acceptable, so we took that route."

"I see." Despite the necessity of the actions for their survival, the thought of it still made Gohan feel sick.

Fortunately, Krillen chose this very moment to break the tension, dropping down beside Bulma on her fine picnic blanket, eyeing the snacks with undisguised yearning.

"Hey, Krillen!" Bulma chirped, utterly unfazed by the notion that her husband had committed another murder. Gohan had never been able to comprehend her easy-going nature when it came to her spouse's activities. He had a fairly forgiving demeanour himself, but he had been expecting some sort of fall-out between them after Vegeta's decision to throw everything he cared about away for the sake of power. But no, Bulma stuck fast to her husband, which Gohan supposed was just as well as far as the Earth's safety was concerned. He wasn't sure what an emotionally stunted and unpractised Vegeta would have done in those days if he felt his family was lost to him.

"Hi, I'm Krillen," the bald man was introducing himself to Ternyp, who nodded in acknowledgement, stating his own name.

"Well, that certainly sounds saiyan," Krillen commented, a grin eating at his cheeks, which faded as both Ternyp and Vegeta continued to look confused. Gohan supposed that something about their translation chips meant that the implications of their naming system and its relationship with Earth vegetables remained unknown to them.

"Right, well anyway, it's good to catch up," Krillen rubbed his head as he sat, "My, Bra's sure grown hasn't she?"

"Yep," Bulma smiled merrily, "She'll be taller than her father in no time."

"Hey!" Vegeta bristled, "I'm not that short!"

"Da!"

"Don't worry, Vegeta," Bulma patted her husband's shoulder, "I'm sure she'll still look up to you."

"You're the same height as me," Vegeta mumbled as Ternyp wondered aloud whether he ought to be offended, given he was in the same situation vis-à-vis his prince.

"Pay no attention to them," Gohan snagged a line of frankfurts as he spoke, "those two insult each other all of the time. It's like a game to them."

"Fights are not an uncommon part of the saiyan mating ritual," Ternyp considered, making Gohan blush.

"They better not be about to do that here."

"Credit the royal line with some discretion," Ternyp objected, "A prince is hardly going to lower himself to adopt the habits of the lower classes."

"You mean saiyans did that in public?"

Ternyp gave Gohan a long look, before considering the young female and still juvenile male in their presence, Trunks appearing rather interested in the conversation he was eavesdropping on.

"I am not going to answer that," he evaded.

"Right."

Bulma continued to tease her husband about various 'defects' making him redden and stutter, hampered in his responses by the child held securely in his hands. Trunks guffawed at his father's discomfort, Ternyp simply looking confused as most of the meanings and references went over his enormous head of hair.

"I have to show you the photo of that, Krillen," Bulma remarked to her other guest as Vegeta stammered out his protests.

"Come on, you looked adorable," she cajoled.

"I am not adorable!"

"Yeah, you are, honey. Plus you owe me."

"You should have seen his face when Grandma kissed him," Trunks was telling Krillen, "It was priceless. I wish I had gotten a photo."

"Why is everyone picking on me today?" Vegeta lamented to the clear sky, looking down at his daughter in search of a friendly face.

"You're not to take after them, understand?" he instructed the toddler.

"Da!"

"That's right, you're going to support your father, aren't you? Not participate in the rest of the family's mockery."

"Are they usually so disrespectful towards you?" Ternyp asked his prince.

"Unfortunately, yes."

"My condolences."

Gohan managed to wrangle Ternyp back into a conversation about his saiyan heritage, comparing the developmental trajectories of full-blooded versus part-blooded saiyans. He had been astonished to learn that their prince had flown at only two days old, giving rise to the popular belief that he would be the one to liberate the saiyans from their captivity. Ternyp had been surprised, he said, when Vegeta told him that another, Raditz's brother, a low class saiyan no less, had been the one to do the deed.

"That's my Dad for you."

"Your father?" Ternyp blinked.

"Oh, sorry. Goku, or maybe you know him as Kakarot, is my father."

"I see. I had wondered about your heritage, but I wasn't sure how to raise the subject. Your father, is he coming?"

"He was supposed to, yes," Gohan could still sense his father in proximity to his mother, "but he's never been known to be punctual."

"Ah. Raditz was the same. It led to…unfortunate consequences, given the disposition of our commander."

"Unfortunate consequences?"

"I'd rather not elaborate."

It was another ten minutes until Goku arrived, tardy despite his ability to teleport. He appeared in a shirt and trousers, looking strange in such casual clothing, rubbing his hand behind his head as he apologised.

"Sorry, sorry," he laughed, "I guess I lost track of time. Chichi was nagging me."

More introductions were made, Ternyp commenting how alike Goku looked as compared with his father, prompting a lengthy discussion on Bardock. Vegeta had even added his own two cents, though he had been just a child when Bardock perished along with the vast majority of his species. Apparently, the bond between Bardock and Gine had been unusual amongst the saiyans, and both had been ostracised because of it, though they held steadfast to the emotions within them that their language lacked a name for.

"My father," Goku began, "was he a good man?"

Ternyp's gaze softened, "I cannot answer that both because I am not certain what you mean by 'good' and because most of what I know about him is hearsay. It is true that I have met him, but I would not say I could make an accurate judgement of his character. From what I heard, he was a good a'hij. Whether you would consider him a good 'man', I know not."

"Oh, okay. What about my mother?"

Ternyp shook his head, "I had very little to do with her, I'm afraid."

"Oh," Goku's face fell, before he perked up characteristically, "oh well, I have the family I need right here."

"Kakarot, your wife and other son aren't even present," Vegeta reminded him.

"I mean on Earth!" Goku hastily corrected himself. He seated himself momentarily, beginning to tear through the snacks, Bulma and Panchy hurriedly refilling them as Goku ate with reckless abandon. Gohan knew exactly why they had chosen to bring five knapsacks worth of food with them, but wasn't sure if even that would be enough.

"Say, Ternyp," Goku spoke up around a mouthful of food, making Bulma grimace, "do you want to spar?"

"Kakarot, are you crazy?!" Vegeta balked, child stirring from her rest against his stomach.

"What?"

"He has more power in one of his fingernails than you possess in your entire body!"

"I know that. But I still want to fight him."

"You're insane. Certifiably insane. Bulma, call the local psychiatric institution for an immediate appointment."

"Oh, come on, Vegeta. It's just a spar. Don't you want to?"

"Credit me with a little sense."

"Didn't you spar with Beerus? He's way less likely to hold back than Ternyp, here."

"Am I allowed any say in this?" Ternyp commented in an aside to Gohan, who shrugged, remembering Bulma's complaints about Goku's insistence on fighting Monaka.

"Ternyp is both more powerful than Beerus, and less experienced in his body. Additionally, Beerus' planet is sturdier and I mind much less if it were to be damaged. This is a nice field, Kakarot. It hasn't done anything to you."

"We could always go somewhere else," Goku pressed.

"This is a nice planet."

"We won't be that bad, I promise. Come on, please!"

"Keh Gresh, if I may interject?" Ternyp interjected.

"Certainly," Vegeta allowed magnanimously, not commenting that he had done just that.

"I would not be averse to a light spar with Kakarot, perhaps in the upper atmosphere of this planet."

Vegeta sighed, "Very well, but be careful."

"I will, Keh Gresh, there is no need to be concerned."

"Yes!" Goku did a little dance, crinkling the rug on which he stood, Gohan failing to comprehend the insatiable need to fight which drove saiyans. After hearing that Ternyp had confronted Lord Zeno and, well, he didn't exactly win but he did manage to take him down, Gohan was not in the least bit interested in a sparring session with the saiyan deity. Some training, a lesson, perhaps, but actual combat (even light combat), definitely not. He had enough sense to know that was a bad idea, and surprisingly, Vegeta seemed to feel the same way. Still, there was no reasoning with Goku.

"Say, Vegeta," Krillen began as the two other full-blooded saiyans took to the skies, "I don't recall Nappa referring to you like that."

"Nappa was a poor excuse for an advisor and for a member of our species. He knew me from birth and, as counsellor to my father, viewed me as some sort of perpetual juvenile. Although he obeyed my commands, he saw me as more of a general than a prince, in spite of my heritage."

"Oh," Krillen subsided.

"This is fulfilling all of your fantasies, isn't it?" Bulma teased, "Finally having someone address you by your title. How you must have longed for this kind of respect."

"Oh, shut it," Vegeta groused.

It was another half-hour before Goku and Ternyp returned, the former ruffled, with ripped clothing and a mass of light bruising. Ternyp, on the other hand, was completely unfazed, with no signs of exertion or injury on him as he touched down beside his prince.

"He's really amazing, Vegeta," Goku gasped, still trying to catch his breath, "You've got to train with him."

"No, I don't," the other saiyan objected, turning his face away.

"Oh, come on, just because I beat you the other day—"

"That is irrelevant!" Vegeta objected hotly.

Ternyp raised his eyebrows, asking his ruler, "He bested you?"

Vegeta blew out a breath, "This should be hardly news to you. I told you about who defeated Frieza, didn't I?"

"Even so," Ternyp trailed off, giving his prince a look of concern.

"Leave it," Vegeta dismissed, hunching his shoulders.

So Goku had managed to close the gap which had emerged between him and the other saiyan, and emerged on top once again. Gohan imagined that it must have rankled Vegeta no end to discover that his best efforts were no match for the effects of Goku's training. To have finally overtaken his inferior only to find himself outdone once again, lesser.

Yes, that must be terribly frustrating.

Ternyp squatted next to the prince, the pair exchanging words in low voices.

"His father was also a saiyan well above his station—" Ternyp began to caution.

"I said leave it, Ternyp," Vegeta hissed back, "This is a completely normal situation and it doesn't bother me in the slightest. I have grown accustomed to it."

"Nevertheless…" Ternyp gave his prince a look of concern, wondering, as Gohan did, the effects these losses, these failures had on Vegeta's mental health and self-confidence.

"Can we talk about something else?"

"Actually," Ternyp redirected, "I am considering departing soon. My home planet is a substantial distance away and I would rather arrive before my body clock determines it is time to sleep."

"I see," Vegeta whispered, idly stroking his sleeping daughter's hair, "It has been nice having you around. We will miss you."

"I shall be sure to visit," Ternyp reassured him.

Vegeta stood, shifting Bra onto his hip as he addressed the assembled friends, face set in its usual grave expression in spite of the adorable accessory.

"Everyone," Vegeta drew their attention with his commanding tone, "Ternyp has expressed his desire to depart."

"What? Already?" Goku whined, disappointment marring his features.

"It is a long way to the Planet of Death," Ternyp explained, making the group pale.

"The…Planet of Death?" Gohan questioned.

"It is where I live," Ternyp explained, as if there wasn't anything the matter with that. Gohan supposed stranger things happened in his life.

"So, you want to leave before it gets dark?" Goku asked.

"Kakarot," Vegeta sighed, rubbing his forehead with his free hand as Ternyp's lips twitched, "he will be traveling in space."

"And?"

"And the relative position of this field vis-à-vis the sun will have no bearing on his journey."

"If you say so," Goku nodded sagely, probably not understanding the sophisticated words Vegeta was using. He hadn't received a proper education, and refused to take adult classes in spite of his wife's insistence. How he had received a drivers' licence was beyond Gohan's comprehension.

"Well, Ternyp," Bulma, along with the rest of the guests, stood to see their companion off, "It's been a pleasure to host you. I hope…I hope that Beerus leaves you alone."

"As do I," Ternyp replied solemnly.

"Bye, Ternyp," Krillen waved, not having anything else to say because the two had only met at Ternyp's farewell picnic. Gohan was in much the same situation, his previous encounter with the puppeted Gemuse notwithstanding.

Ternyp gave everyone a light smile, gentle and compelling, before he turned to his prince.

"Keh Gresh, ki'th. Detso Woi." He dropped down on one knee, hand clasped to his breast as he bowed his head. Vegeta, for his part, made the same movement with his arm and nodded his head, but did not kneel.

"Ki'th, Ternyp. Detso Woi."

There was certainly a warrior-like tone to the language, sounding almost guttural in its inflections. Gohan wondered yet again at the meaning of those words, most likely a simply farewell. It made him feel curiously disconnected from his own heritage, not even recognising such basic words as 'no' and 'goodbye'. But it also made him feel extremely privileged to be able to listen to the very last native speakers of the saiyan language converse.

He hoped that Vegeta would find a way to immortalise the tongue before it was lost forever as time swallowed up the last remaining saiyans.

"Compensating for something, honey?" Bulma whispered to her husband.

"I'm sorry?"

"You must have wanted someone to kneel before you for a long time now."

Gohan wondered what it must have been like for Vegeta to meet another saiyan who did not revere him, did not address him by his title nor bow to him. Meeting Goku would have been an enormous blow to his pride, and likewise the attitude of the people he now called, well, Gohan supposed he thought of them as 'friends'. But they all tended to forget that Vegeta was legitimate royalty.

This must have been a drop of cool water in a desert for the unrecognised prince.

As these thoughts occupied Gohan's mind the saiyan deity turned away, striding a few steps from the gathering before turning his face to the sky. Without any fanfare or powering up, he took off abruptly, form streaking through the air into the atmosphere at speeds faster than Gohan had ever witnessed before. He had a feeling that would be almost a leisurely setting for the one who faced Lord Zeno.

Within moments Ternyp was a speck in the bright, blue afternoon sky. Gohan was slightly disappointed to see him leave after so little interaction, miffed at Bulma for not informing him earlier about the additional saiyan who was temporarily calling Earth home. He would have liked more time to get to know the man, to learn about him and the parts of saiyan culture which Vegeta was too young or to regal to know about. Perhaps he might even have sought some tips and techniques from him regarding combat, even if he were sensible enough not to challenge him to a spar, no matter that he seemed to have held back satisfactorily with Goku. And maybe Ternyp, unlikely to be subjected to a translation chip given the fact that he had the body of a god from eons past, would have been able to teach him a little of the language.

But none of that was to be, the tiny dot which was their saviour vanishing from sight entirely, leaving them staring at an empty sky.

"Bye-bye," Bra waved enthusiastically into the cosmos.

This seemed to stir everyone out of their individual musings, bringing them back to the picnic, and the last dregs of food remaining. There was a small scuffle over these, with Goku emerging victorious and Trunks second, triumphantly clutching a handful of lolly snakes as his father pouted, hampered by the girl in his arms which he had not let go of for the duration of the gathering.

"Vegeta," Gohan shuffled closer to the saiyan, eating his meagre takings as if they were a delicacy, "you can put her down, you know."

"Have you ever seen a small child drown, Gohan?" the prince asked, throwing him for a loop.

"Er, no."

"I have," he replied stonily, "and I am not prepared to let go of her near a body of water."

"But Vegeta," he wondered when this had happened, "you can easily sense her if anything does go wrong."

"I know, but…" he sighed, unable to finish the sentence.

"Say, honey," Bulma sidled over to them, a coy expression on her face, "what say we pack up and leave?"

"That…sounds fine?" Vegeta answered hesitantly.

"Good, because you still owe me big time, mister, and I can think of a few ways to put your new abilities to use."

"I don't understand," Vegeta confessed, looking like he very much wanted that state of affairs to continue.

Bulma gave Gohan a wink, leaning in to whisper something into her husband's ear. He blanched, cheeks blooming like fresh, red roses, as if someone had applied far too much blusher to his cheeks. His wife giggled at the reaction, pinching one scarlet cheek, causing him to redden even further.

"V—vulgar," he muttered, shaking his head vigorously, "so vulgar."

"You know you love it," she winked at him.

"I have no interest in such things!" Vegeta protested vehemently, "None!"

"Er, Bulma," Gohan was regretting his unfortunate positioning, "have you and Vegeta sorted everything out?"

"Yes, we have. And Vegeta here is paying me back for his lack of trust."

Vegeta mumbled in the direction of his daughter's head.

"Aren't you, dear?"

"Yes," Vegeta answered like a well-trained husband.

"Well, that's…good," Gohan responded doubtfully, "I...ah, should probably get going. I have my own wife and daughter to look after."

He was glad that Vegeta and Bulma had settled whatever was wrong between them, but he wanted no part in their reconciliation. Tuning out their bickering as they decided who would wrap the blankets, and whether Bra could be safely left to her own devices for a whole one second, Gohan said his farewells to the other guests.

"We should meet up more often," Krillen commented as they shook hands, "I only seem to see you when a crisis comes up."

"What about Bulma's birthday parties?"

"They're a crisis in and of themselves," Krillen chuckled.

"I suppose. It was good to catch up with you."

"And you."

Trunks gave him a strange 'knuckle-bump' manoeuvre in farewell, telling him that he needed to bring Pan around more often to distract Bra. He definitely needed to do that. He couldn't believe how out of the loop he had gotten as far as the Brief family was concerned. That needed to change.

"Bye, Dad."

"Bye, son," Goku replied, "You keep up your training, alright?"

Actually, Gohan had been hoping with the addition of one powerhouse in the form of Gemuse, he would not be needed in the fighting line up and could safely concentrate on his studies. But he wasn't about to tell his father that. Goku had never understood Gohan's ambitions, and he doubted that would ever change.

He could still hear Bulma and Vegeta squabbling good-naturedly as he took to the skies, heading off in the direction of his home. After a long day with friends, he was looking forward to some quiet time with the family (although nothing was ever quiet where his father-in-law was concerned).

"Goodbye, Gohan!"

A/N This chapter was inspired by the Australian classic, Picnic at Hanging Rock, by Joan Lindsay.

Also r.e. Vegeta's height – I'm not sure how tall he is vis-à-vis the other characters, and it does seem to vary (sometimes he appears taller than Bulma, sometimes the same height, particularly if they are yelling at each other). Not as much as Krillen's height varies though, in the Super anime.