Alteverse Part 3
Okay, sorry it took so long to get this done (not that I expect many people to have cared unduly), but here it is at last. Like most of my work, it's not very good, but since some people have been asking for it…
Disclaimer: DBZ isn't mine. I'm not making any money off of this story. Please don't sue me.
Chapter 7
Piccolo couldn't decide exactly when things had gotten so wildly out of control. One moment, things had been going just as he had expected them to, and then… He shook his head. Right now, he wasn't exactly sure what was going on.
It wasn't a surprise for him to discover that "Goku" was really one of the Saiyajin. Like Chichi, he had been suspicious almost from the beginning; it was merely the dramatic way that the alien had revealed himself that had startled the Demon King.
Piccolo's fight had been going extremely well, the Saibaman providing little more than an invigorating workout for him… until he heard a bloodcurdling scream from behind him. Normally, he wouldn't have let it distract him – this was a battle, after all. Someone was bound to get killed eventually, though these sentimental humans would undoubtedly make a big deal over it – but the voice was one he hadn't recognized, and it had been accompanied by a stupendous surge of power.
The Saibaman had also been startled, and stopped to stare at the scene to Piccolo's rear. Too entranced by the raw power emanating from one of the other fighters, Piccolo indulged in one of his rare moments of stupidity, turning his back on the small green man to look.
What he saw was the newcomer, Goku, charging the Saibaman standing over the fallen Chichi, with a look on his face that was of an almost holy rage. The Saibaman was decimated and Chichi into his arms all within a heartbeat. But Goku's strength and obvious concern for the human female were not what Piccolo found most flabbergasting. Goku now had glowing, golden hair, and luminous green eyes in place of the previous black and black. He also seemed a bit larger. It was as if a physical transformation had taken place.
"Kakarott! What the hell is going on here?!" The short Saiyajin's voice cut through the romantic mood, which Piccolo hadn't noticed, and wasn't sorry to see go, as that was a question he'd like answered as well. He also noted the use of the name 'Kakarott', though for some reason, he couldn't quite think of the strange Saiyajin as anything but Goku. 'Ach,' he thought in grim amusement. 'I'm getting soft in my old age.'
Goku's face suddenly gained another of those sweetly embarrassed looks that had so bedazzled the humans earlier. "Vegeta, um, I think we have a slight problem." Even Piccolo could see that that was likely the biggest understatement of the year.
"A slight problem?" the short Saiyajin addressed as Vegeta asked in an incredulous tone, apparently at a loss for something better to say. "What do you think you're doing?! And what the hell happened to you?!"
Goku's expression became a little less sweet, and a little less embarrassed, instead acquiring a puzzled look. "What I'm doing is protecting my bonded mate." A wry grin flashed briefly across his face. "Or rather, my mate-to-be, but anyway... And as to what happened to me, I got mad." Seeing the giant Saiyajin's features darken as his little announcement went on, Goku's expression hardened, and he took a defensive stance over Chichi's unconscious form.
Vegeta also seemed to notice his larger companion's fraying temper and made a gesture with the clear meaning of 'Don't do anything!'. Gazing at Goku thoughtfully, Vegeta murmured, " 'Getting mad' doesn't really account for… your condition."
"Huh?" Now Goku sounded really confused. "What are you talking about, Vegeta?"
"You mean you haven't noticed?" Vegeta asked in a perfectly even voice, though Piccolo could sense signs of tension in the short alien. Goku could also apparently sense it, as he was suddenly intent on finding something in the wreckage that used to be Capsule City. Glancing around, he found what he was looking for. A piece of glass, still fairly large despite the destruction of the building it had once been a part of. Maneuvering the glass to get a good look at his reflection, he seemed ready to join Chichi on the ground from shock.
Everyone was silent for a few moments. Finally, Goku said quietly, with a small smile on his face, "Wow. I guess we didn't need the Dragonballs after all."
Piccolo didn't have time to completely absorb all of the implications of that, as the Saibaman he had been ignoring finally decided to attack. His last thoughts to himself were unprintable.
End Chapter 7
Grr… I'm sorry this is so short (though I get the feeling most of you are considering that a mercy…) but my muse has running screaming out of the country. (I think it was those death threats she got for giving me this idea.) Anyway, hopefully I can get her back soon, and get this fic over with. It's shaping up to be fairly long… -_-;