Prelude to Terror
by Chris Henry
*****************************************************************************
"Cacarote!"
Vegeta stood looking over the abyss, astounded by the power that he had just felt manifesting his mind and every part
of his body. It almost made him go limp to even think that such a force existed. A sayian that not only could rival him,
but one that could kill him in an instant without even having to think about it. It made the sayian prince feel sick from the
inside-out.
"Cacarote! Where the hell are you?! Show yourself now or you'll be sorry!"
The idle threat didn't get any response, and Vegeta stamped his foot on the damp ground below him. The force of his frustration
almost caused the planet below him to shudder. It had been five months now since Vegeta had left Earth in search of Goku, and his
didn't look as if it was going to bear fruit anytime soon. He had come close so many times, his senses had brought him to the places
that he could feel the Super-Sayian's power, but everytime he had come anywhere close his rival had evaded him. It was as if Goku
just didn't want to be found.
Vegeta looked to the darkness around him, and he turned to walk back to his spaceship, which stood around fifty meters from
where he stood. As he walked his anger subsided, and he tried to think of what he could next. What could he do? Cacarote just wasn't
going to meet him, he gathered that now. The saiyan warrior damned himself. Why couldn't he have stayed alive against Furiza? Vegeta
would have been able to witness the transformation himself, and then he would have known the secret.
The door opened to the spaceship, and Vegeta walked inside. He now smelt the wretched odour coming from himself, and so he made
his way to the bathroom. He took off his clothes and turned the tap on to run the bath. Vegeta turned and looked at himself in the mirror, and
sighed sliently to himself. He looked a complete mess. His eyes were bloodshot, his face was ragged beyond belief, and he no longer saw the
feared warrior in himself anymore.
"Chasing another man all over the galaxy... what have I become but a shadow?"
He stepped into the bath, and sank almost lifelessly into the foaming water.
************************************************************************************
"YAMCHA!!!!!!"
Bulma's screams were answered with muttering from outside the door, and then the entry of Yamcha himself. His appearence had changed now,
his hair was a lot shorter and smarter than the wild look he had taken on before. Bulma in the meantime had ditched the style she had worn in
Namek, claiming it gave her too many bad memories when she looked in the mirror, to which Oolong had replied that if Bulma was to look in the
mirror bad memories were inevitable whatever her hairstyle was. He couldn't walk straight for a week after that quip.
"What is it now Bulma?" Yamcha sighed. He already knew what the problem was.
"Where the hell is my car?! I told you to bring it back this morning!"
Yamcha braced himself for the oncoming barrage of abuse that he was going to get.
"Well... I sort... of... crashed it..."
The fear rose inside Yamcha, for he saw the look in Bulma's eyes. It was a look he had feared since he had first met the young girl, a look that
simply said, "You have five seconds to live."
"you... did... what...?"
"I...crashed it... but hey, it was only a car right! I'll get you a new one, and we'll get the insurance payout, so it's ok, and..."
"YAMCHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
The warrior took a step backwards.
"Yamcha... just... shut up for one second... you crashed MY car?"
He looked down at his feet and sighed.
"Yeah..."
"Alright. Get out right now."
Yamcha wasn't going to hang around, and he did what Bulma wanted. She sighed to herself and sat down on the floor below her. The car had been
a present from her father, the first car she ever had, and now that jerk had demolished it. Bulma resolved there and then to never let any fighter of
any kind take anything that belonged to her again. Suddenly the phone that was in her pocket started to ring, and she put it to her ear.
"Hello?"
"Hello Bulma? It's me."
The voice over the phone was her father's, and it sounded a lot more serious than usual.
"Hey Dad, what's up?"
"I don't know. You have to get over here right away Bulma. We've picked up a transmission from space that was being sent to another ship. Both are
approaching Earth."
"What was the transmission Dad?"
Dr.Briefs sighed to himself.
"The message we picked up was addressed to a person named Cyrus. We're trying to deciper the rest of the message now, but from what we have it looks
as if we're in danger."
"What was the message?!"
"Troops disembark on arrival... prepare Earth for takeover... we will avenge."
Bulma gasped, and for a moment thought that she was going to lose her composure.
"...takeover... who are these guys...?"
"I don't know Bulma, but you'd better round up your friends. It looks like we're going to need them."
*************************************************
Krillin sat upon the edge of the sea with his hands behind his back, eyes closed and mind focused upon the world around him. He felt hardly anything except the wind around him, and the distant powers of the other Z Warriors. After the battle with Furiza he had been training himself as much as he could. He didn't want to be killed again, for after all if he was then the Dragonballs would be of no use to him at all. Even the Namekian dragon Porunga wouldn't be able to save him again.
Like a shot of electricity Krillin stood up and looked around him quickly. He had just felt a power, not much bigger than his own, in the area where he was.
"Hey, who's there?"
Suddenly a young boy stuck his head over the wall behind where Krillin had been sitting.
"Hey Krillin! What's up?"
"Hey Gohan!"
Gohan walked over to his friend. He hadn't seen Krillin in around a month... Chichi had really gotten serious with his studies as of late.
"How's it goin then Krillin?"
"Ok, I guess... I've been training pretty hard, so I'm getting stronger all the time! You never know, maybe someday I'll be able to beat your dad, huh?!"
The two laughed, but Gohan's laughter was a little denser than his friend's. He missed his father terribly, and he had been thinking of Namek constantly these days. He turned and looked up at the sky. It all seemed different to him. When Gohan was a child, the world was all he had, but now he knew that there was more. Something new for him to find perhaps.
A ringing sound came from Krillin's pocket, and he pulled out a phone to the surprise of Gohan. It was Bulma, and the conversation lasted for no longer than ten seconds. When Krillin put the phone down he put his hands on his knees, and turned around to his friend.
"You're not going to believe this..."
by Chris Henry
*****************************************************************************
"Cacarote!"
Vegeta stood looking over the abyss, astounded by the power that he had just felt manifesting his mind and every part
of his body. It almost made him go limp to even think that such a force existed. A sayian that not only could rival him,
but one that could kill him in an instant without even having to think about it. It made the sayian prince feel sick from the
inside-out.
"Cacarote! Where the hell are you?! Show yourself now or you'll be sorry!"
The idle threat didn't get any response, and Vegeta stamped his foot on the damp ground below him. The force of his frustration
almost caused the planet below him to shudder. It had been five months now since Vegeta had left Earth in search of Goku, and his
didn't look as if it was going to bear fruit anytime soon. He had come close so many times, his senses had brought him to the places
that he could feel the Super-Sayian's power, but everytime he had come anywhere close his rival had evaded him. It was as if Goku
just didn't want to be found.
Vegeta looked to the darkness around him, and he turned to walk back to his spaceship, which stood around fifty meters from
where he stood. As he walked his anger subsided, and he tried to think of what he could next. What could he do? Cacarote just wasn't
going to meet him, he gathered that now. The saiyan warrior damned himself. Why couldn't he have stayed alive against Furiza? Vegeta
would have been able to witness the transformation himself, and then he would have known the secret.
The door opened to the spaceship, and Vegeta walked inside. He now smelt the wretched odour coming from himself, and so he made
his way to the bathroom. He took off his clothes and turned the tap on to run the bath. Vegeta turned and looked at himself in the mirror, and
sighed sliently to himself. He looked a complete mess. His eyes were bloodshot, his face was ragged beyond belief, and he no longer saw the
feared warrior in himself anymore.
"Chasing another man all over the galaxy... what have I become but a shadow?"
He stepped into the bath, and sank almost lifelessly into the foaming water.
************************************************************************************
"YAMCHA!!!!!!"
Bulma's screams were answered with muttering from outside the door, and then the entry of Yamcha himself. His appearence had changed now,
his hair was a lot shorter and smarter than the wild look he had taken on before. Bulma in the meantime had ditched the style she had worn in
Namek, claiming it gave her too many bad memories when she looked in the mirror, to which Oolong had replied that if Bulma was to look in the
mirror bad memories were inevitable whatever her hairstyle was. He couldn't walk straight for a week after that quip.
"What is it now Bulma?" Yamcha sighed. He already knew what the problem was.
"Where the hell is my car?! I told you to bring it back this morning!"
Yamcha braced himself for the oncoming barrage of abuse that he was going to get.
"Well... I sort... of... crashed it..."
The fear rose inside Yamcha, for he saw the look in Bulma's eyes. It was a look he had feared since he had first met the young girl, a look that
simply said, "You have five seconds to live."
"you... did... what...?"
"I...crashed it... but hey, it was only a car right! I'll get you a new one, and we'll get the insurance payout, so it's ok, and..."
"YAMCHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
The warrior took a step backwards.
"Yamcha... just... shut up for one second... you crashed MY car?"
He looked down at his feet and sighed.
"Yeah..."
"Alright. Get out right now."
Yamcha wasn't going to hang around, and he did what Bulma wanted. She sighed to herself and sat down on the floor below her. The car had been
a present from her father, the first car she ever had, and now that jerk had demolished it. Bulma resolved there and then to never let any fighter of
any kind take anything that belonged to her again. Suddenly the phone that was in her pocket started to ring, and she put it to her ear.
"Hello?"
"Hello Bulma? It's me."
The voice over the phone was her father's, and it sounded a lot more serious than usual.
"Hey Dad, what's up?"
"I don't know. You have to get over here right away Bulma. We've picked up a transmission from space that was being sent to another ship. Both are
approaching Earth."
"What was the transmission Dad?"
Dr.Briefs sighed to himself.
"The message we picked up was addressed to a person named Cyrus. We're trying to deciper the rest of the message now, but from what we have it looks
as if we're in danger."
"What was the message?!"
"Troops disembark on arrival... prepare Earth for takeover... we will avenge."
Bulma gasped, and for a moment thought that she was going to lose her composure.
"...takeover... who are these guys...?"
"I don't know Bulma, but you'd better round up your friends. It looks like we're going to need them."
*************************************************
Krillin sat upon the edge of the sea with his hands behind his back, eyes closed and mind focused upon the world around him. He felt hardly anything except the wind around him, and the distant powers of the other Z Warriors. After the battle with Furiza he had been training himself as much as he could. He didn't want to be killed again, for after all if he was then the Dragonballs would be of no use to him at all. Even the Namekian dragon Porunga wouldn't be able to save him again.
Like a shot of electricity Krillin stood up and looked around him quickly. He had just felt a power, not much bigger than his own, in the area where he was.
"Hey, who's there?"
Suddenly a young boy stuck his head over the wall behind where Krillin had been sitting.
"Hey Krillin! What's up?"
"Hey Gohan!"
Gohan walked over to his friend. He hadn't seen Krillin in around a month... Chichi had really gotten serious with his studies as of late.
"How's it goin then Krillin?"
"Ok, I guess... I've been training pretty hard, so I'm getting stronger all the time! You never know, maybe someday I'll be able to beat your dad, huh?!"
The two laughed, but Gohan's laughter was a little denser than his friend's. He missed his father terribly, and he had been thinking of Namek constantly these days. He turned and looked up at the sky. It all seemed different to him. When Gohan was a child, the world was all he had, but now he knew that there was more. Something new for him to find perhaps.
A ringing sound came from Krillin's pocket, and he pulled out a phone to the surprise of Gohan. It was Bulma, and the conversation lasted for no longer than ten seconds. When Krillin put the phone down he put his hands on his knees, and turned around to his friend.
"You're not going to believe this..."