"Aw, he dodged it!" Kurilin yelled, looking up at Nappa as he panted above them. "We were too late!"
Below the fireworks, Raimi clenched her fist, and smiled at how strong she felt. No wonder he had such an ego. Such power was heady, and corrupting. She closed her eyes, and took a deep breath, already planning the one thing she could do for her comrades.
"Oh, yes, you are very special, and one way or another, we are taking you back with us. You will be a nice addition to the team..." Vegeta told her. She looked over her shoulder at him and shook her head, laughing at his puzzled face.
"Keep on believing that I would ever join the planet trade. I'd rather die myself than become a slave, to you or your boss. And I'll will take you with me to hell if necessary, Vegeta. After all, I am a Saiyan too, and I want to win, no matter the cost of victory. Now then, we are missing all the action..." She turned back to the drama before them, acting like they were at a sporting event; in a way they were. Raimi looked over at Gohan.
"I'm sorry guys, I just froze..." Gohan sniffed, still scared. Raimi sighed tolerantly. It wasn't surprising, when one remembered that Gohan wasn't quite six years old. The parties still on the ground looked up at the three warriors hanging in the sky, waiting.
"So, you thought you'd get away with that, eh? You guys just shortened your life spans!" Nappa said, his voice getting louder and angrier by the second. Kurilin and Piccolo got ready, recoiling slightly from the angry giant. Tien was still trying to stand, but seemed to still be too exhausted. Nappa eyed him and laughed.
"I'll kill you all at once now...prepare yourselves!" he chuckled. His eyes swept over all of them, stopping on Gohan. They all looked at the child, who shivered in embarrassment at such scrutiny.
"Ah, Gohan...". Kurilin sighed.
"Ooohh; that kids smarter than I thought!" Nappa chuckled. Raimi strode over to where Tien lay. She heard Piccolo sigh and say Gohan's name. Vegeta laughed; he'd never trust anyone else to help him, or expect a child to fight. These Earthlings were fools in his eyes.
"All right, let's get down to business. This shouldn't take too long for just the two of you" Nappa said.
"Nappa, don't forget about the Dragonballs," Vegeta called.
"That's right, I gotta keep enough strength in the Namek so he can talk!"
"Man Piccolo, you dog, he thinks you're the only one who knows about the Dragonballs. Lucky Bastard!" Kurilin said.
"Yeah, well I don't think it's going to matter too much in the end, Kurilin." Piccolo smiled grimly.
"Yeah, I guess you're right..."
"Yeah! Now what do you say we attack, before he powers up again!" Piccolo said, and Kurilin nodded. "You're familiar with the Shishin no Ken technique aren't you? Then let's do it, both of us" Nappa looked puzzled as Kurilin and the Namek groaned, straining, and then duplicated themselves twice each, so three versions of each man hung in the air.
"Wow, cool!" Vegeta said, reluctantly impressed. He had never seen this one before.
"Yeah, isn't it?" Raimi agreed. She was puzzled by the selection of this attack, since each figure had only one third the power of the original. But Piccolo always seemed to know what he was doing, so...
The six forms yelled and leapt into an all out assault on Nappa, hammering at him for all they were worth. However, Nappa was blindingly fast, and began to beat them back. He pounded all six of them down to Earth; the two forms re-integrated, leaving Piccolo and Kurilin winded but not beaten.
Gohan ran to Piccolo when he hit the ground, but Piccolo pushed him away. The boy shrank back, sniffling.
"I'm sorry, please Piccolo..." he said.
"I have no time to baby-sit Gohan. If you can't help, go home to your mother. Kurilin, now!" He and Kurilin flew back toward the waiting Nappa.
Gohan watched them go, wrestling with his fear. Raimi watched him, smiling at the fact that he had forgotten to be scared in his concern for his Sensei. They both heard Tien as he moaned behind Gohan. The warrior had dragged himself over to the bottomless hole, but was totally exhausted. Raimi and Gohan went over to him. Raimi knelt and rested a hand on his shoulder. They all looked up at the pair of defenders facing Nappa in the air.
"Raimi, we're just killing time for Goku, aren't we? We haven't got a chance against him..." Tien moaned. She looked at him and nodded sadly. He deserved the truth at last. She hated her inability to save these men, her partners, her friends from this pain, but she knew that the reward for this fight would be worth it for them.
"He can be beaten; but none of the three of you can do it and survive, Tien. Who wants to take the chance for nothing? And, even if you do succeed, there's still Vegeta...". Raimi said very softly. He sagged back into a faint for the moment. She stood over him, Gohan close behind her, and they watched the three in the sky waiting for the next round.
"Piccolo, if you have some killer attack up your sleeve, feel free to use it any time now." Kurilin said, smiling grimly. The Namek laughed ruefully.
"Wish I did, but I don't. Hey don't worry; we're not giving up yet. We'll make due with what we have. This guys' strong but he's a Cabbage Head. A baka like he is will surely make a mistake." Piccolo said, knowing full well that Nappa was listening and would get mad.
"Hey! Making fun of my name are you?! How rude!" Nappa snapped, and then engaged the pair in more fighting. Raimi looked over at Vegeta, noting his smug smile. She sighed and watched the action again. Suddenly, Nappa paused and howled as he powered up, making the wind pick up again. Now the three were shooting back and forth, their raised Ki destroying the granite cliffs when they got too close. The shower of rocks flying about started to wake Tien again. He looked up and started to speak to the ghost of his companion.
"Chauzu, I'll avenge you...then I'll join you, and we'll never be apart again..." He nodded, realizing what he had to do. He refused to believe Raimi's assessment of the situation. He could beat the huge Saiyan, and he would. It would be the last thing he ever did.
"Can we help you Mr. Tien?" Gohan asked.
"No, I've got it..." Tien said as he stumbled forward. "Raimi, tell the others not to wish me back, okay?" She nodded grimly, understanding that he wouldn't return without Chauzu, who could not be wished back anymore. Raimi held Gohan back when he tried to get to Tien. The boy looked up at her, and she shook her head, and pointed up. They both looked and saw the three combatants break off for a moment.
'Well, have you had enough yet?" Kurilin huffed as Nappa laughed. "Alright, this is your last chance, you'll be sorry!"
Tien shook his head and strode forward. He raised his fist defiantly, and began to power up hard.
"All right! It looks like it's my turn!" He called. Raimi stepped in front of Gohan, and warned him quietly to hang onto her. He was puzzled, until he noticed the immense power coming from Tien, whose body was shimmering with light, wavering before his eyes.
"Oh, boy!" He gasped, grabbing Raimi's leg. A fierce wind came from Tien as he pulled his entire Ki together for his Kikoho attack.
"All right...this one's for you, Chauzu!" Tien growled. "Ki Kung Blast!" He raised his hand and let fly the Kikoho. It raced up to Nappa, a bright golden light that enveloped the Saiyan. Gohan clung to Raimi as she braced against the force coming from Tien and the beam. Piccolo, Kurilin and Vegeta stared in amazement at it. But only Gohan could hear it when Raimi spoke, and his heart fell when he heard her.
"Good travels, Tien. You'll be together again now, Warrior..." Gohan gasped, looking up, not believing, and was relived momentarily when he saw Tien still standing. But Tien had put everything he had into that blast; he had nothing left, not even for ten more breaths. As the smoke cleared, Nappa was revealed, badly battered this time, his armor shattered. He was slightly cooked, and winded, but alive.
"Whoa, don't scare me like that!" Nappa exclaimed with admiration for the exhausted warrior.
"Ahhh, there's...no way!" Kurilin groaned, fear chilling his spine. He knew how that attack was as dangerous to Tien as it was to his intended victim.
"I know! This is insane!" Piccolo was finally getting desperate too now.
"I...I failed...She was right...Damn Saiyans..." Tien gasped, then fell. Raimi ran over to him, nearly toppling the clinging Gohan, and knelt by him, grasping his hand. He squeezed her fingers, and then went limp. Raimi bowed her head in sorrow, and heard Gohan gasp sadly behind her. She had fought hard for Tien's respect, and now his death hurt her more than she had thought it could. She looked up at Kurilin and Piccolo and shook her head.
Three down, four to go...
