Chapter 3: Big Apple, Big Problems
Aphrodite led Goku to the streets of Broadway in search of a specific eatery that she knew the Saiyan would be well-acquainted with fairly fast. Located off the coast of New York's very own Hudson River, a small diner known as Tom's Restaurant stood with red neon letters presenting its namesake. Nothing about the location seemed particular special to Goku, but he didn't bother to say anything since any type of food was acceptable by his standards. However, what did bother him was the fact that Aphrodite, a woman he barely even knew, was latching onto his hand like a lifeline.
"I don't think you need to drag me around anymore. I can walk just fine." Goku reminded the goddess in minor irritation, his arm starting to ache from the constant pulling. Aphrodite darted her eyes in line with his as she opened the door, smirking amusedly.
"We're already here, so does it really matter? Besides, I like holding your hand." Aphrodite stated playfully, pulling down her shades to give him a knowing wink. Goku, surprisingly embarrassed, looked in the opposite direction and retched his fingers free anyways. Aphrodite pouted childishly at this loss of physical contact and gracefully sat down in one of the diner's many booths. Goku did the same and plopped himself down onto the seat facing hers, cautiously perusing what Tom's Restaurant had to offer in terms of basic hospitality.
"I usually don't go to restaurants like…well, this, but I figured it would be a nice, quick place to talk and eat without delay." Aphrodite explained considerately, gesturing to the entire facility as if it was a personal insult to her beauty-centric, healthy lifestyle. A waitress walked towards the two wearing a black work apron and white long-sleeved shirt. She gave somewhat of a stink eye at Goku's inappropriate entire, but regained her professionalism in the next moment.
"Hi, welcome to Tom's Restaurant. Would you folks like something to drink first or do you already have an idea of what to order?" The waitress asked politely, bringing out a pad of paper to write down their orders if need be. Goku distractedly scanned the entire menu's list of meals and narrowed his eyes as if he was in a deep state of concentration. While the Saiyan thought things through, Aphrodite kindly smiled and handed back hers.
"I'll just have the Greek Salad. Want to keep my figure, y'know?" Aphrodite informed matter-of-factly, both hands motioning to her fit stomach and hips. Goku, a theoretical lightbulb going off in his head, nodded affirmatively and set it on the table.
"Have you decided?" The waitress inquired patiently, already jotting down Aphrodite's personal choice of foreign cuisine.
"Yep! I'll have the whole menu please!" Goku naively proclaimed in a much more upbeat tone. Upon this outrageous request, the waitress comedically face-faults in disbelief while Aphrodite sweat-drops. Various pieces of silverware and fine china unceremoniously crash to the ground upon Goku's request being heard by the diner's poor cooks.
"C-could you run that back to me one more time, sir?" The waitress demanded in a listless state of denial, struggling to get back up from her reactionary fall.
"Well, all of the food seemed so good that I couldn't imagine choosing just one of them. So, then I thought, why not get everything? Seems like a win-win to me!" Goku obliviously elaborated his foolhardy thought process, not taking into account how much this would cost to cook, eat, and pay for. The waitress, completely gobsmacked, slapped herself in the face a few times to see if she was dreaming before placing a hand on her sweaty forehead.
"C-coming right up…I'll be back to check on you…hopefully…" The waitress stammered in growing dismay, shakily marching back to the kitchen. Upon departure, muffled shouts of panic echoed off of the walls of Tom's Restaurant, each chef not entirely certain they had enough supplies to satisfy Goku's monstrous appetite. During this escalation of shared worries, Goku and Aphrodite awkwardly stared at each other, both hoping that the latter would start up some conversation.
"So, you're a goddess, huh?" Goku broke the silence with an attempt at easing his suspicions of the very woman who got him into this mess. Aphrodite took off her blue sunhat and set it aside, letting her artificially created black hair flow backward.
"Yes, the goddess of love and generally, anything else romance related. I and my fellow gods were originally worshipped by a people known as the Greeks thousands of years ago." Aphrodite answered truthfully with a cliff-notes summary of her and the other Olympians' basic origins.
"Huh, strange. You look around my age." Goku noted confusedly, adjusting his sitting position to inspect every corner of Aphrodite's practically flawless body. Both pleased by Goku's offhand compliment and unintentional examination, Aphrodite's face visibly flushed and she shyly started playing with the bangs of her hair.
"Those are the perks of immortality, darling! I will forever be as gorgeous as the very day I was born." Aphrodite boasted confidently, fondling the groomed streaks of her raven hair. Goku, tired of each answer leading to even more convoluted questions, decided to utilize a technique he hasn't done since the trip to Namek so many years prior.
"Stay still for a second." Goku cryptically ordered, softly resting a firm hand on Aphrodite's head. The love goddess squirmed a bit in discomfort, not expecting Goku to willingly get so close to her a second time.
"G-Goku, what are you…?" Aphrodite's discomforted question was unheard by the Z-Fighter as a large amount of memories and thoughts spread from her mind to his. Due to Krillin not having a lifespan nearly as big as Aphrodite's, Goku inwardly convulsed from the sudden intake of images being transported to his slightly infantile brain. He could see everything from Aphrodite being born in response to a mix of Ouranos' severed genitals (which actually happened) and excess seafoam to inadvertently causing the Trojan War by making Paris fall in love with the already married Helen of Troy. Goku, much to his shocked appalment, also saw Aphrodite forcibly married off to Hephaestus, Greek god of craftsmanship, and her constant affairs with other men thereafter, most prominently the war god Ares. Along with some glimpses of multiple demi-children residing in a heavily forested summer camp and Mount Olympus hovering over the Empire State Building he just walked out of, Goku finally gained more details about his forced teleportation from a glimpse at Aphrodite viewing many of his past fights on a materialized screen, even ones from as far back as the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai! Highly nerve-wracked from this display, Goku caught sight of him and Aphrodite doing something R-rated in her bed before jerking his palm away from the goddess's head in utter terror!
"Gyahhhh!" Goku screamed frightfully, almost hyperventilating from exhaustion and sensory overload. Other customers in the diner slightly turned their heads around in bewilderment, but went back to their own conversations from lack of interest. Aphrodite, now understanding what Goku just did from her repeated viewings of the Saiyan warrior's adventures, bites her bottom lip in fear of what he might discern from seeing such "questionable" circumstances.
"T-that last one…w-why were the two of us in bed doing—" Goku tentatively stuttered, eyes widened to full capacity. Before Goku could blindly blabber on about her darkest thoughts, Aphrodite's places a hand on Goku's mouth in desperation.
"N-nothing! I-I mean…n-nothing important for you to know about at least. Heh heh…" Aphrodite excused nervously, darting her shrunken green irises from left to right in embarrassment. Still clasping Goku's mouth shut, Aphrodite looked at him darkly in played up offense.
"Now, when I remove my hand, promise me that you will keep an open mind and ask one question at a time? Ok?" Aphrodite scolded the frantic Saiyan resolutely, almost pleading for him to not think differently of her for what was just witnessed. Goku nodded slowly in agreement, allowing for his speaking privileges to be given back.
"How much did you see?" Aphrodite sighed sadly, crossing her arms and legs in discomforted unrest. Goku crossed his arms as well and glared profusely at her in expectant elaboration.
"Enough to know that I'm not the first one you've been "interested" in. How much have you seen about my life?" Goku hissed angrily, feeling violated by the fact that a person entire universes away from his own was practically stalking him for who knows how long.
"Y-you promised to keep an open mind!" Aphrodite whined hurtfully, disheartened (and, admittedly, a bit turned on) by Goku's stone-cold scowl. The other customers, waiters, and chefs rigorously preparing Goku's "lunch" all awkwardly try to drown out the heated argument as best as humanly possible.
"I did and I will, but you promised to give me an explanation and so far, you haven't said anything of importance. So, please, tell me how you've been able to view my fights." Goku asked again in a much calmer tone, keeping his temper under control for safety purposes. Aphrodite sighed heavily and reached into her handbag, pulling out two drachma that could be converted into normal dollar bills via the Mist.
"On Olympus, we possess a form of communication called Iris Messages. With the help of Iris, the Greek rainbow goddess, she can project play-by-play images of any location based on the amount of gold coins users hand over as tribute. If given more than average, entire alternate dimensions can be accessed at will, including yours." Aphrodite informed in all seriousness, holding the ancient currency closer to Goku's eyes, so he could see it properly.
"But if you could examine any world you like, what made mine so special?" Goku inquired in specific concern, nonchalantly resting his hands on the table. Aphrodite's red lips twitched upward in a warm smile and she rested her own hand on one of Goku's affectionately.
"You." Aphrodite simply replied; her pure green eyes half-lidded in loving sincerity. Goku gulped down a building lump in his throat and glanced down at his securely held appendage confusedly. Aphrodite's smile grows even bigger as she closes her eyes in reminiscence, holding the other hand over a beating heart.
"Throughout the many generations I've been alive, I have never settled for one man over any other. Sure, there was Ares, but even he couldn't satisfy me enough to stop me from visiting the mortal world to build new relationships. However, no matter how many children I mothered or men I slept with, there was always something missing that I could not fathom. Something that made me feel alone even in the company of those who desired my beauty." Aphrodite listlessly admitted, a few longing tears falling from her closed eyelids. Goku felt as if he was in extremely unfamiliar territory with this conversation, but decided to continue listening. The distressed goddess tightened her hold on Goku's hand as she discussed further.
"As a goddess, I knew full well that other deities existed in some other dimension or plane of existence. So, since the men of my own birthplace could not properly represent what I was looking for, I resorted to Iris Messaging as a proverbial gateway to alternate universes of all sorts. After examining one ruled by Japanese shinobi and another dominated by superhuman pirates, I stumbled onto a "channel" depicting your fight with Prince Vegeta." Aphrodite recalled fondly, images of Goku's Kaio-ken technique playing on inside of her head. Goku himself also remembered said confrontation, noticeably smirking in response at how far he and his rival have come over the years.
"You were just so…so intriguing to me. You held strength far greater than the most powerful of Greek heroes, yet always took time to improve from before through training. Fighting was your greatest passion in life, yet you still battled against planetary threats for the safety of your friends and family. You sacrificed yourself twice for those specific reasons and it moved me to tears! This lack of ego and selfishness made you irresistible in ways I could have never possibly imagined! It singlehandedly reignited the passion that was lost years ago!" Aphrodite praised in unsuppressed admiration, moving her hand to softly cup Goku's cheek. Goku winced a bit, but looked more weirded out once she started rubbing that specific part of his face.
"That's why I needed to transport you here, my Goku. I couldn't bare to live any longer without meeting Earth's sworn protector and the Legendary Super Saiyan himself." Aphrodite sweetly cajoled, moving her face in close proximity with Goku's as she continued to caress. The possessive "my" stated right before his name brought back even more strained flashbacks of Chi Chi, so he ceased Aphrodite's caring rubs and placed her hand back down on the counter.
"I…I d-don't know what to think of this. It just seems too crazy to believe." Goku said in baffled speechlessness, nervously scratching the back of his head. Aphrodite looked hurt by the denial of her touch, but realized that Goku would need time to warm up to her and this foreign environment.
"Will that elevator from before be able to bring me back if I wish to leave?" Goku muttered in dire search of confirmation that he wasn't entirely stuck here. Aphrodite, not particularly familiar with the elevator's functionality as her "husband" would be, fondled her hair a bit and tried to think of a response that wouldn't seem pessimistic.
"It's hard to say. The Empire State Building elevator is a dimensional transporter, but traveling far distances can drain its energy considerably. Who knows how long it will take to fully recharge again?" Aphrodite gravely admitted, trying her best to keep Goku from losing too much hope. With this knowledge, a stressed Goku rested his head on the table and exhaled disappointedly.
"Well, I guess I'm stuck here." Goku grumbled irritably, a homesick expression already plastered on his moody visage. Aphrodite placed a hand on his shoulder sympathetically, inwardly making a mental note to check on the elevator's current condition when given the chance. Suddenly, the two's waitress huffs and puffs as she sprints out of the kitchen doors, looking completely deprived of all motivation.
"Y-your meals are ready…" The waitress suspired exhaustively, holding onto her knees, so she wouldn't be conked out unconscious. She dropped off Aphrodite's Greek Salad and then signaled for her fellow coworkers to file in. Upon command, each chef, dishwasher, and waiter/waitress marched out with entire mountains of plates. At the sight of multiple Deluxe Double Cheeseburgers, Turkey Wraps, and Hot Turkey Sandwiches, Goku jets up from his slumped over position and drools like an excited bulldog.
"That helped cheer you up!" Aphrodite giggled happily as she took a delicate bite of her salad. Goku greedily rubbed his hands together and immediately dug into each meal, devouring everything on sight in a matter of seconds. The staff of Tom's Restaurant couldn't bare to watch the massacre take place and tried to turn away in disgust.
Back in Aphrodite's Temple…
Ares was not a very pleasant individual to say the least. Tending to wear a biker jacket reminiscent of the T-800's, the self-proclaimed god of war and violence sported a black crewcut with large sunglasses of the same color. These glasses concealed a pair of pupils that resembled atomic explosions instead of the usual irises, representing his lust for all forms of gratuitous violence. Underneath his jacket, Ares wore a bulletproof vest that could shapeshift into a large Imperial Gold shield at will when combat is possibly at hand. His face was also aligned with a wide array of battle scars that served as visual reminders of each conflict he has been involved in since birth. Marching up to his millennium-long girlfriend's doorstep in large combat boots, Ares clenched his teeth in growing ire.
"This is like the 5th damn time I've been stood up! Where the hell is she?!" Ares fumed to himself irritably with a metal baseball bat and hunting knife clasped tightly in his hands. He positioned himself close to the large door and loudly knocked on it about three teams, hoping for an answer after weeks of neglect. After a moment of prolonged, Ares resorted to what he is best known for and knocked the door down with a forceful swing of his bat. Once a proper entry point was created for him, Ares made himself at home and scavenged through her living quarters.
"Aphrodite? Are you here, babe?" Ares shouted out concernedly, unveiling the covers of her bed and poking his head into each of the godly domain's bathrooms. After he was about to move onto another portion of the temple, Ares caught sight of the mirror Aphrodite used to get herself ready every morning. Suspicious, the war god shuffled over to the desk and inspected her typical beauty products. He was surprised to see that Aphrodite already used them sometime earlier, locks of multi-colored hack coiled around the tufts of her brush.
"She left already?" Ares muttered to himself in growing disbelief, praying for the unfortunate meatsack that dared to touch his beloved sex goddess. He examined a used container of red lipstick before taking a good look at his reflection in the enchanted mirror. Sporting a thinking position, Ares looks from left to right in search of any unsuspecting bystanders before uttering a command.
"Show me where Aphrodite is." Ares ordered hesitantly, unsure if the artifact would work for anyone other than its owner. To his luck and relief, the mirror shifted appearance to display the current location of both Goku and Aphrodite, said Saiyan still relentlessly chowing down on his lunch plate after plate while the love goddess watches enjoyably. Ares, at the sight of Aphrodite attempting to make herself presentable for someone other than him, frowns deeply and morphs his baseball bat into a highly imposing spear surging to life with divine power.
"That bastard! Who does he think he is taking what was already mine to begin with?!" Ares seethed with unbridled rage, the mushroom clouds residing in each pupil growing to even greater volumes of devastating destruction. Not bearing to look at the mirror for another second, Ares notices the fountain near Aphrodite's bed is still brimming to life from prior usage. He reuses some drachma hidden in its waters and, to his growing annoyance, is greeted by projected images of Goku's home dimension and the events of Dragon Ball Z. With the sudden revelation that the orange-clad weirdo seemingly courting his woman was under a completely different jurisdiction of gods, Ares smirked evilly and polished the blade of his hunting knife. The fact that Aphrodite's new boy-toy could actually put up a decent fight made this whole debacle so much more interesting.
"Hmph, so this alien punk likes to fight, huh? Well, I'll give him a fight he'll never forget. That's for sure." Ares sneered anticipatedly, wanting to put this spiky-haired Bruce Lee wannabe back in his place…literally! He carelessly slashed away the Iris Message at breakneck speeds and then walked out the door. Afterwards, he went off to relay the news to his dad: Zeus, the Greek god of lightning, himself.
Mount Olympus's Throne Room
The Hall of the Gods was the largest room in all of Mount Olympus and Zeus's personal domain. Standing around the size of Madison Square Garden, all meetings dealing with both god and mortal affairs were held in this very section of the entire palace. Each of the 12 Olympians had separate thrones designed to their likeness that were aligned in a wide U shape. In the center of this hall, a massive hearth designed by the virgin goddess, Hestia, resided as a connecting source of warmth. Up above, a blue ceiling displayed the night sky with each of its respective constellations. Said aforementioned King of the Gods was seated in a platinum throne sporting small lightning bolt symbols, thinking of what he should do to prepare for the Titan Army's next attack and the impending rise of his vengeful father, Kronos.
"The winter solstice is upon us and I am uncertain what course of action would be best suited for stopping father's return. What to do…" Zeus discerningly mumbled the many scattered thoughts going on inside of his head, repetitiously stroking his long black beard. He wore a striped business suit with a red tie to match, accentuating the uniquely colored electric blue his eyes appeared to resemble. His hair was tousled along both shoulders, sparks of electricity haphazardly flying about in one instant and dissipating within the very next.
"Lord Zeus! Urgent news from the Empire State Building!" shouted a nymph in somewhat formal attire compared to what the rest of her species usually wore. Due to towering over said follower, Zeus rested a hand on his cheek in impatience and shrunk down to increase the chances of hearing her properly.
"What's wrong now? Is the elevator broken again?" Zeus groaned expectantly, wanting to keep himself from any possible distractions right afterwards. The nymph, fumbling over herself in the presence of such an imposing figure, carefully thought her choice of words before responding.
"Well, yes actually, but there's something else about the elevator that needs to be attended to at all costs." The nymph pleadingly assured the hot-headed sky god. Zeus massaged his tired eyes and pointed a massive finger at the nymph in warning.
"Out with it, girl! What is the issue here?!" Zeus demanded to know as his entire body was electrified with building sparks. The nymph's pretty face paled considerably in fear, but remained determined to spread the news.
"Phyllis saw a man with spiked black hair walk out of the elevator this morning. He wore an orange-blue martial arts uniform and claimed to not know where he was despite showing up in the Empire State Building itself. Does that seem kind of suspicious to you?" The nymph repeated the information given to her over the famous New York skyscraper's phoneline. Zeus, never seeing a person particularly dress like that in the thousands of years he was alive, narrowed his eyes in comprehension until a shock-ridden epiphany ruptured to life in his everlasting subconscious.
"Wait, if this oddly dressed man didn't know where he was, then…t-that could mean…" Zeus choked over his own words, believing the worst possible outcome was upon him.
"You'd be right, dad. He's from another world." Ares spat regretfully; his teeth jarred down in restrained bloodlust. Zeus and the nymph gasped in stunned dismay, realizing the reason for Goku's sudden arrival in the elevator.
"Ares…Do you know who caused this?!" Zeus grilled demandingly, each spark surrounding his throne erupting into high voltage bolts of lightning. Ares growled to himself in annoyance and pointed to the direction of his lover's temple.
"It was Aphrodite. She must have been looking for an interdimensional booty call and transported him here." Ares enviously elucidated, mentally making plans as to how he would torture Goku for this injustice. The nymph, predicting what was about to go down before it even happened, scurried away to spread word to other mythical creatures living on Olympus.
"Tell your mother to assemble the other gods and goddesses! We'll have to deal with Aphrodite when she comes back." Zeus ordered authoritatively, grabbing hold of his Master Bolt mid-conversation. Ares, about to do as his infuriated father instructed, was interrupted by the god of lightning one last time.
"Tell me, son. Do you know this…this alien's name?" Zeus glowered darkly, his pupils completely radiating with glowing blue electricity at this point. Ares turned around to look back at the youngest son of Kronos and leered scornfully.
"Son Goku." Ares exclaimed in pure hatred, already wanting to claim Goku as his next intended target. With that, a new meeting between the Olympian gods and goddesses was about to be arranged sooner than initially anticipated. It's focus? To decide between either sending Goku back home or, worse, eliminating him.
*Hi, Doodleboy565 again! Sorry if this chapter seemed a bit too short, but I thought it would be a good lead-in to the next chapter which will have a lot more content and descriptions. Artemis and her hunters might also be introduced, so that could be fun. So, expect future chapters to be longer than this one and the previous two. As always, leave a favorite, follow, and/or review to tell me what you think. See you soon! :)