Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or its characters
Notes: Through a complicated method of copying and pasting am I able to write this message. My screwed up computer freaked out two weeks ago, and I haven't been able to get on-line since. Now it's kind okay, but there are still a few problems. For instance, the space and shift keys on my keyboard don't work, and AOL still crashes every now and then. But I won't bore you with the details. Here's the nineteenth chapter of TSE, which I finished before my keyboard went on the fritz.
Chapter Nineteen: Countdown
"There will be only momentary discomfort." - Seether
3:10 à 20 minutes until the eclipse
"Bra," Goku hissed, "get back."
Bra backed up, her anxious eyes focused on her father. After a few steps she turned around toward the wall and retreated back to Trunks, Goten, and Relena.
Vegeta took a step toward Goku, his black-gloved fist noticeably tightening around the sword's hilt. His gaze darkened as he brought the sword upwards, holding it over one shoulder with both hands. His legs were spread apart on the ground in a moderately wide stance for balance.
Goku's blue eyes flickered to Seether's confident gaze, then back to Vegeta's angry frown. He held up his hands. "Look, I don't know what Seether did to you, but you can't possibly think that I'm responsible for Bulma's death."
At the mention of his beloved mate's name, Vegeta's eyes narrowed even further and he flamed into Super Saiyajin, leaping at Goku with intense speed. He brought the blade around in an attempt to slash the taller Saiyajin across the stomach, but Goku caught the move in time to leap into the air, so the swipe of the sword severed the air beneath his feet. Goku landed back on the ground, and Vegeta thrust the sword towards his abdomen, Goku dodging the move by moving to the side. Vegeta then swung the sword in an outwards arc to slash his opponent across the waist, and Goku countered it by falling forwards on his hands and knees, causing the blade to only catch of few strands of his hair. Goku made his first offensive strike by kicking his leg out to the side and catching Vegeta in the back of the knee. The prince lost his balance and fell backwards, but instinctively went with the fall, landing on his back and flipping his legs over his head, bringing him back up into a standing position.
As Vegeta and Goku continued their raging battle under the feral and engrossed eye of Seether, Trunks, Goten, Bra, and Relena watched intently from the sidelines.
"When did Otousan get so fast?" Trunks asked, still trying his best not to move around much so not to aggravate his injuries.
"'Tousan is barely keeping up," Goten observed.
"Papa's going to win," Bra decided sullenly. "We're all going to die!"
"Will you stop that?" Relena snapped.
"Well, we might." Bra glanced at Seether. "That goddamn bitch! I'll kill her, I swear!"
"You can't do that if she kills you or if she takes over your mind," Trunks pointed out.
"Exactly!" Bra said, standing up. "Why the hell are we just sitting here?"
"Because I can't goddamn move without tearing open more of my skin!"
"Well, Goten and I are perfectly fine."
Goten's eyes widened. "What?"
"We will take care of Seether."
Goten stood up, and gripped Bra's shoulders. "Have you gone nuts? Didn't you see how she beat the kuso out of Trunks?"
"Thanks," Trunks muttered.
"We can't just sit here and do nothing, Goten!" Bra argued. "Look at your father! He's putting his life on the line for us like he always does, and we just let him, like cowards! Maybe if we injure her enough, we can break her hold on Papa."
"You do have a point..."
Relena stood up, no longer holding onto her injured arm. "You can't be serious, Bra! We still aren't even exactly sure how powerful she is! You'll be killed!"
Bra looked at Relena for a moment, then at Trunks, then finally at Goten.
Goten sighed, then nodded. "Well... let's go die then..."
Bra smiled at him and nodded. "Let's go."
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"You're not supposed to look directly at it," Gohan explained to Pan. "If you do, you could fry your retinas and go blind. You use two pieces of paper, one with a hole in it. You hold the one with the hole over the one without. The light shines onto the bottom paper, and when the eclipse comes, you'll see the shadow of the moon move across the circle of light, representing the sun, on the lower paper."
"I know," Pan replied. "You already said that about a trillion times." She looked around at all the people who were attending the eclipse party in Satan City Park. "Wow. There sure are a lot of people... a lot of weird-looking people."
For every person dressed in the casual jeans and t-shirt, there were at least two other people dressed in strange outfits they had concocted in their homes. Even though some were just in the park to see the event, many others had taken to the words of the fanatics that had traveled to the city to warn of the events that the total solar eclipse would bring.
The people who were worried about the religious implications were gathered around priests that had actually come to the park to relieve anyone of sins they had committed. Others just gathered in groups and prayed to God that they would be saved, and sometimes a couple might break from the group for a moment to ask a passerby if he or she wanted salvation. These folk were usually seen wearing white robes that the ministers were selling; heck, if the world didn't end they would still make a profit.
If a person wasn't worried about going straight to Hell that very day, they were adorned with much odder outfits than the religious fanatics. These people were those who were ready to welcome the extraterrestrial beings they expected to come at the moment of the eclipse and take them aboard the mother ship. It is hard to say where this idea originated from, but it had spread enough to cause many to don outfits that were made entirely out of tinfoil, required one to covered their body in green body paint, or other apparel that was equally unique and odd.
"Look!" Pan exclaimed, pointing to a normally clothed group in the crowd. "There they are!"
"Pan, wait!" her father called as she pushed through the swarms of people towards her destination.
Pan met them under a large oak tree. "Hi, Obaasan!" she greeted her grandmother. Then, to the others, "Any fun so far?"
"Oh yes!" Chi-Chi said, in a furious tone. "LOTS of fun."
"'Tousan and Goten haven't shown up, I suppose," Gohan said, joining the group with Videl.
"No, they haven't, and your otousan is going to get it when he comes back home, believe me!" Chi-Chi turned away, folding her arms, mumbling something about testing out her new frying pan.
"I can't believe Goku isn't here," Krillin contributed. "He loves this stuff."
"So does Goten," Marron agreed.
"I don't really see the big deal," Eighteen said. "Can't we go shopping instead?"
"We already went shopping today!" Krillin pointed out.
"Yeah, but I think I might get that jacket after all..."
Pan looked around. "So... is Trunks coming?"
Marron shrugged. "I don't know. We could never get in contact with him or the rest of the family."
"Feh." Pan pouted. "It's no fun without everyone here..." She caught Marron's look. "Not that you guys aren't fun!" She laughed nervously, putting her hand behind her head.
Marron smiled and rolled her eyes. "I know what you mean."
"I'm surprised that Piccolo-san came," Gohan mentioned.
"Piccolo?" Marron and Pan repeated in unison.
Gohan pointed behind the two girls. They turned around, and shrieked when they saw that the tall green Namek was right behind them, arms folded and eyes fixed on Gohan.
"So Goku isn't here?" He continued at Gohan's nod. "There's something wrong."
"He seemed perfectly healthy the last time I-"
"Not his health, Gohan," Piccolo interrupted. "There's just something wrong... I have a bad feeling about today, and your father missing doesn't make me feel any better."
"Missing?" Chi-Chi spoke up, eyeing Piccolo. "What do you mean?"
"Even though Goku always forgets to tell everyone where he goes off to train, you've probably scared the crap out of Goten enough for him to remember he should at least leave you a note," Piccolo explained, ignoring Chi-Chi's huff at his remark. "Plus, I can't sense Goku's ki anywhere..."
"Neither can I," Gohan put in, "but maybe he's just too far away."
"Since when does Goku go halfway around the world to train? Besides, I can't find Vegeta or Trunks' ki either. Doesn't that seem a little weird to you?"
"The Briefs family is on a trip. It must be somewhere far away."
"Who says they're on vacation?"
"Trunks' secretary," Marron said. "I spoke to her myself. She said that Trunks and his family were on vacation and he wouldn't even disclose the location to her for sake of privacy."
Piccolo snorted. "There's something wrong here... I can feel it. Doesn't anyone else find it odd that the Vegeta and his family are missing around the same time as Trunks and Goten? Something bad is going to happen."
"Oh, you're just paranoid," Gohan suggested.
"Just stay alert," Piccolo warned him. "The feeling got worse only when I came here."
"Excuse me, sir!"
Every looked down to see a little girl tugging on Piccolo's cape, looking up at him with big, awed eyes. In her brown hair she wore silver antennae that bobbed up and down when she cocked her head, and covering her body was a silver bodysuit with little silver boots.
"Where did you get your costume?" she asked, still in wonder. "It looks so real!"
Piccolo looked back up at Gohan, rolling his eyes. "What is with all these lobotomized people?" He sighed. "I'm going to keep watch from somewhere more secluded. Remember: be on guard." With that he walked off, disappearing into the crowd.
The little girl watched him go, then looked at the rest of the group. "What show is he supposed to be from?"
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The pair of half-Saiyajins moved cautiously along the walls of the cavern to avoid the battle between Goku and Vegeta. Bra and Goten kept their eyes on Seether, making sure her attention was still focused on the skirmish in the center of the stone room. They slowly slid behind Seether's throne, where they planned to make a surprise attack. After glancing at each other once, both leaped upwards above the throne, Bra powering up and Goten turning Super Saiyajin. Once hovering in the air they aimed their palms downwards and prepared to unleash their strongest attacks.
Before they could make a move, however, Seether suddenly leaped up and grabbed both of them by the throat without even turning around. Bra and Goten gasped in surprise and in the need for their oxygen. Seether floated back down to stand on her stone dais, holding her captives before her. Bra was trying to pry her hands off from around her throat and Goten was clawing desperately at her other arm.
"This is very cute," Seether said, looking from one struggling half-Saiyajin to the other. "You actually thought you could sneak up on me? Very cute indeed. I do wonder, though, exactly what you thought this would accomplish?"
Goten only gasped for air. Bra however, managed to work up some saliva and spat it into Seether's face.
"You impertinent little brat!" Seether exploded, tightening her fingers around the girl's neck and shaking her violently, so much that her spinal cord was on the verge of snapping.
But Bra's neck was saved by Goten, for when Seether's hold tightened on Bra, it loosened on Goten. Now that he could breath, he was able to send a large blast that hit Seether directly in the face. She cried out in shock and lost her hold on the two, who plopped ungracefully before the throne. Goten continued to fire blasts at the evil witch for a few moments, still lying on his back.
"Thanks... pant... Goten..." Bra said as she got up.
"No problem," he replied, also getting to his feet and still bombarding Seether at the same time.
"I think you have a big problem!" Seether yelled, emerging from the smoke and smacking Goten's blasts out of the way as she reached for him. She was unharmed, but her left sleeve had been torn away up to her shoulder. She quickly gripped the young man by his golden hair, lifting him into the air where he flailed around in distress. She brought her other hand back, arching her fingers so that her black nails stood out like daggers, and prepared to impale them into Goten's face.
"No!" Bra protested, jumping onto the arm of the rock chair and grabbing Seether's arm, holding it back with all the strength she had.
At that point it was a struggle between Bra and Seether as the woman tried to yank her arm from the girl. Goten wriggled around in the air, trying to pry the hand from his hair.
Trunks and Relena could only watch the two battles going on in the cave. Trunks was still trying to get up and contribute to the fight despite his massive injuries that Seether had previously inflicted on his body. Relena was trying to get him to sit down, which was hard since she couldn't use physical force because it would cause him more pain.
"Trunks! Settle down!" Relena insisted.
"Are you kidding?" Trunks replied, now sitting on his knees. "Look at them! Seether is mauling them!" He pointed to the three across the cavern. Seether had just swung Goten right into Bra, causing the two to fly into the wall and crumple to the floor in a heap. Now she was advancing on them.
"What do you expect to do in your condition?"
"Well, you're not doing anything!"
Relena bit her lip, feeling totally useless, which was what she was at the moment. So far she hadn't contributed anything to the fight. She glanced at her watch, seeing that there were only ten minutes until the eclipse. "What do you want me to do? I'm only human!"
"Well, you're stronger and smarter then most humans... What about your aura sensing ability? Can't you use that somehow?"
"I've tried..."
"And...?"
"From what I can tell by her aura, Trunks," Relena said, looking at him with terror in her eyes, "we're screwed."
Back at the battle between the two full Saiyajins, Goku had just barely dodged another swing from Vegeta's sword. Before Vegeta could attack again, Goku let loose a barrage of ki blasts at him. They hit their target, creating large puffs of smoke that hid Seether's knight from view. Goku brought up his arms, holding the heels of his hands together as he announced one of his trademark assaults.
"KA... ME... HA... ME..."
But the time it took Goku to power up his attack cost him as Vegeta emerged from the cloud, sword in hand. Before Goku could react in time, Vegeta struck him in the arm, creating a large gash below the shoulder.
Goku cried out in surprise and pain as the evil energy that possessed the blade surged through his body, rapidly decreasing his energy. He quickly pulled back, the point of the sword removed from his flesh, but his energy did not seem to return to him. The sudden loss of strength was dizzying and Goku fell to his knees, dropping out of Super Saiyajin. His right hand clutched his wound, and crimson blood seeped in between his fingers, running in warm streams down his arm. Goku glanced at the wound and then back up at Vegeta who towered over him.
Goku wanted nothing more than to get away, to not be so close to the man who wanted to kill him under the influence of the evil she-devil who was attacking Goten and Bra, but his energy was still seeping from him. It was leaving him as quickly as his blood oozed from the slash in his arm. He couldn't move; he was suddenly too tired to. He couldn't even hold his head up.
Vegeta brought the tip of his sword, covered with some of Goku's blood, under the fellow Saiyajin's chin, tilting his head upwards. Goku's vision wavered a little, but after a second he could see his rival very clearly: the iron grip on the hilt of the sword, the serious line of his mouth which would have been a smirk if the situation had been different, the his hazy, spellbound eyes.
"Now you die," Vegeta said monotonously, preparing to impale the blade through Goku's throat.
Bulma woke up sprawled in the dirt and her body aching. She got up slowly, resting on her hands and knees as she waited for her headache to dissipate. She rocked backwards so that she sat on her butt, and looked herself over to evaluate her injuries, surprised to find that she only had bruises and cuts and torn up clothing instead of broken bones.
She stood up, leaning against the side of the tunnel trying to think of what she should do next, when the sound of blasts and yells finally registered in her ears. That's when she also noticed that tunnel was not hollowed out from dirt; she was resting on stone. Listening to the noises again, Bulma could distinguish the voices of those of the people she knew, the people she had been racing all through these tunnels to be reunited with.
Her eyes widened. She'd found them! Finally, after days of being alone in this abyss, she had found Trunks, Bra, Goten, Goku and Relena!
Bulma raced towards the sounds, those sounds that were so wonderful to her ears despite the warnings of danger within them. The sounds that got louder and louder as she ran down the tunnel, her boots thudding against the rock beneath her feet. She dashed around a corner and found herself at an entrance to a large cavern.
And she could not believe the sight within.
Vegeta, clad in ebony armor, stood before Goku, who was kneeling helpless in front of him clutching his bleeding arm. In Vegeta's hands was a gleaming sword, the bloody point under Goku's chin, barely puncturing the skin of his throat.
"Now," Bulma heard her husband dully say to her lifelong friend, "you die."
"NO!" Bulma screamed, running into the tunnel. "Vegeta, don't!"
As she stopped a few feet from him, afraid she would somehow provoke him to shove the blade through Goku's throat, she saw Vegeta stiffen. His foggy eyes widened, the haziness disappearing, and he slowly turned his neck to look at her. His mouth opened ever so slightly in amazement. The sword began to waver, the point brushing against Goku's skin, scratching against the flesh, but not forcefully enough to draw blood.
"Vegeta?" Bulma said softly. "What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Bulma?" The name was only a whisper through Vegeta's lips.
"Yes..." She took a few more steps toward him, one hand slightly reaching out to her husband. "Vegeta, what are you doing?"
The sword then began to tremble more violently, and Goku finally scrounged up some energy to move away before his throat got torn to pieces, falling backwards to sit on his rear. There was a loud clattering clang as the sword dropped from Vegeta's hands to the ground, and then he fell forward onto his knees, holding the sides of his head and crying out at the sudden presence of a raging pounding inside his skull.
"Vegeta!" Bulma ran to his side, kneeling down. She draped one arm across his back and held his cheek in the other, trying to help the pain go away.
Goku watched from where he sat, relief overcoming him from Bulma's fortunate entrance. He wearily smiled at the embrace, and promptly lost consciousness, falling backwards onto the granite floor.
Leaning against the wall, Trunks could only gape at the appearance of his mother. "She's... she's alive..."
The same could be said for Relena who sat by him, only she was too shocked to speak.
Across the cave, Goten and Bra were also at a loss for words at Bulma's return. Seether's onslaught having stopped at this momentous event, they could only lean against the wall in bewilderment, tears forming in Bra's eyes.
A certain dark-haired villainess, however, seethed at the sight of her pet's mate's return. How could it be? The blue-haired bitch was supposed to be dead. DEAD. And here she was, bruises and cuts here and there and plenty dirty, but perfectly fine! And now she was coddling Vegeta, who was...
Seether's eyes narrowed further as she realized that at his mate's return, Vegeta was remembering everything that had truly happened, and that the rush of memories was causing the pain in his skull. Normally, he might have passed out from the sensory overload, but with all the energy Seether had fed him, he would be able to sustain it.
And have plenty of energy to turn on me with, she thought. Well, that wouldn't happen! Turning away from Bra and Goten, who were still mesmerized by Bulma's arrival, Seether slowly began to move towards her knight and his mate, the shadows of her bangs cloaking her gleaming grey eyes.
The pain wracking in his head finally vanished, leaving Vegeta wide-eyed and gasping for air. He became aware of the arms around him, letting his arms lower and turning to see Bulma's concerned expression. One arm rose again, his hand cupping her dirt-smeared cheek as he stared into her eyes, making sure her form, her touch, the sound of her breathing were not some cruel illusion.
Bulma was getting more worried by the moment. Vegeta was so pale, with dark circles under his eyes. His breathing was labored, and he could barely hold himself up. And why was he looking at her like that? Like he was seeing a ghost...
Seether stopped her approach in the center of the cavern, casting her hand outwards and scarcely furrowing her brow in concentration...
After realizing that, yes, it was her, it was Bulma- his mate, his wife, the love of his life, and a thousand other names he may by chance refer to her as only in his thoughts. Vegeta's eyes closed halfway. Bulma blinked when the hand on her cheek moved downwards and seized her chin, slowly pulling her face closer to his...
Abruptly, Vegeta burst into screams as purple electricity was suddenly being ripped from his body. Bulma cried out as the energy surrounded him, pulling back as the hand on her chin began to burn her skin. Vegeta's head was thrown back as he howled, eyes squeezed shut, and then he was leaning forward and flattening his hands against the ground. Bulma tried to reach for him, but the crackling energy kept her at bay. Bulma glanced behind her husband and finally noticed Seether for the first time, her eyes widening and then narrowing in anger when she realized who it was.
Seether drew the energy she had supplied Vegeta with back into her own body, the violet forming a stream from his body to her palm, letting out a satisfied sigh at the sensation. Her eyes met Bulma's and she smirked, seeing instantly where Bra got her fire from. Returning her gaze to Vegeta, she slightly concentrated once again, and the purple energy wrapped around Vegeta. She continued to absorb the energy, at the same time pulling the prince toward herself, laughing at Bulma's yelling for her to let him go.
The back of Vegeta's armor hit her palm, and she dug her nails into the metal, holding him up. She finally stopped soaking up his energy, and Vegeta hung limply in her grip, half-conscious. She held Vegeta up so they were face to face, even though Vegeta's head rested against his chest.
"I said, let him go!" Bulma demanded, running toward Seether.
The temptress only cast her hand out once again, this time expelling a bit of energy that was forceful enough to send Bulma flying backwards into the floor. "Foolish woman," Seether laughed. "You really think that you, YOU, can stand against me?" She faced Vegeta once again, seeing that he was able to hold his head up. "Guess what, Vegeta-chan?" she said bittersweetly. "The eclipse-"
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"-is here!" a man with a microphone shouted to the swarms of people in the park. "A short period of darkness will occur in only seconds! Remember, don't look directly at it, or you may go blind!"
There was a low rumbling from the crowd in their excitement as they prepared to view the total solar eclipse, moving into the currently well-lit areas.
"Get ready for a once in a lifetime experience, 'Kaasan!" Gohan said cheerfully, not knowing how right he could be...
"We're going to countdown to total darkness!" the announcer yelled to the crowd as the moon crept across the sky towards the sun. "Ten!"
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Seether, with one hand already drilled into the back of Vegeta's armor, dug the nails of her other hand into his breastplate, purposely driving them deep enough so that they punctured the skin around Vegeta's heart.
"Don't worry, Vegeta-chan," she purred at the sight of Vegeta's wince. "There will be only momentary discomfort."
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"Nine! Eight!" The crowd began chanting along with the countdown.
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Seether began forcing massive energy into Vegeta's body, ignoring his agony-filled screams. The dark energy melded with the prince's, preparing to be conducted into the world above, to penetrate the minds of all the living creatures and remove their free will. Seether licked her lips, thinking of the power she would hold as the ruler of Earth, and the pleasure she would receive from the conduit who would be at her side.
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From his watching point, Piccolo's head snapped up, sensing the sudden surge of massive energy under the crowd's feet, and at the same time knowing that what it was too late for him or anyone to stop whatever demonic occurrence was about to take place.
"Seven! Six!"
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Thousands of thoughts raced through Relena's mind as she tried to think of something, ANYTHING, to stop this. They had come so close, they couldn't give up now! The whole planet was depending on them, even if the inhabitants didn't know it. If this continued, if Seether used Vegeta to force her will on the residents of Earth, all would be lost.
But what could she do? Nothing. That's what she could do, what anyone could do. All was lost. The Earth was doomed...
"Don't falter in your steps. I certainly wouldn't want this blade nicking me..."
Relena gasped, her eyes widening in realization.
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"Five! Four!"
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"Bulma!" Relena yelled from across the cave to the blue-haired woman, who was shaking Goku in a useless effort to awaken him. "The sword!" She pointed to the blade, which wasn't far from Bulma and Goku.
Bulma glanced from Relena's desperate expression to the blade with the black hilt, lying on the ground. She crawled over Goku and gripped the ebony shank, getting to her feet. She stumbled a bit; the sword was heavier than it looked.
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"Three! Two!"
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Bulma lifted the blade up, trying to get her balance. Then she ran towards Seether, the blade pointed straight towards the incubus who had her claws in her husband. Bulma's anger at the demonic woman consumed her; the thoughts of the monster taking her husband away, having her claws on him, and using him for her own purposes were making her blood boil. She screamed in rage, closing in on Seether...
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"One!"
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You like? I hope so. Well, chapter twenty, which is looking to be the last chapter, is almost done, but I can't finish it until we get another keyboard. We should have one in a couple days, though. My new scanner that I got for Christmas should be hooked up by too, so I may get some of my illustrations up on my site! Huzzah! See you all again in a couple weeks!