Dark Side of the Son

Disclaimer- don't own it, won't own it, can't own it…and it's a non-profit work on top of that!

Note- I don't know if I mentioned this, but this takes place before Cell. And now you are thinking 'After Freiza, before Cell, and Goku's on Earth?' No, it's not possible in the ordinary DBZ timeline. This is to give you an idea of everyone's power levels, make sure there's only one pesky little half Saiyan running around (nothing personal against any of them) and only one truly colossal power- that's Goku, of course. So there you are. I changed the last part. You don't need to go back and read it; I'll tell you what happened. When Vegeta and Goku were fighting, they didn't fight as Super Saiyans, since only Goku can reach that level currently. My mistake. It's fixed now.

*****

Gohan pretended he didn't see his father slink out. He obviously had some thinking to do, alone. Gohan wanted to help, especially since he knew he couldn't. An old feeling of helplessness crept up on him, but he shook it away with an angry frown and shake of his head. Softly, he put his pencil down, closed the notebook, and walked to his window. No, he wasn't going to sneak out, not today. He merely wanted to close it. Though it was the end of Summer, the days felt more like Autumn.

Not to worry, you will be burning in wicked flame soon enough.

Shocked, Gohan looked up. Where had that thought come from? Paranoia was not helpful or comforting, and he didn't need it now. Resolutely, he closed his window, perhaps a little harder than he'd intended because one of the panes fractured- a tiny fissure that branched from one frame to the other.

Like my life- No, stop it!

Gohan silenced more senselessness with another flick of his head. Maybe schoolwork would be a good idea now. He needed to get his mind off the 'nothing' that was troubling him.

****

Vegeta turned his back on Goku and took off. Goku did the same. It was late- Chichi would be worried, not to mention Gohan. Yes, his son had been worried- bordering, Goku thought, on paranoia. One couldn't blame him, really, the kid had had a hard childhood. Of course, it was about to get harder…

Goku looked up and immediately wished he hadn't. The crescent moon, grinning down at him, burned in his eyes. He looked away quickly, but it was too late. His aura faltered, his path wavered, and the Saiyan plummeted. Goku had never fully lost control of his power, especially not his ability to fly. It was terrifying. He slid to a stop in semi-soft dirt, skidding backwards and creating a pillow of it under his neck and back. He didn't move, but lay still against his mound. He burned. The back of his gi was tattered. He burned. His back was scraped. He burned, and under the painful light of the stars, he slept and dreamed of fire once more…

*****

Vegeta kept his eyes firmly focused on the ground rushing away below him. He would not look up. He knew, far better than Kakarot, that the cycles of the moon could do strange things to a Saiyan, and half of him- the half he refused to listen to- blamed Earth's moon for these odd occurrences. He reached the Capsule Corp. and hesitated. Somehow after the quiet peace of the vale and the fight with Kakarot, these walls seemed confining. Suddenly, uncalled for, memories of Vegeta-sei rushed him. The palace- open, admitting nature, rather than shutting it out. It wasn't that Saiyans were nature buffs- most weren't. The nature of Saiyan was to challenge, and it showed even in their architecture. The royal palace was just one example. It challenged the winds and rains to enter: the Saiyans were not afraid of the nature that, according to lore, created them.

Suddenly, Vegeta knew what he needed to do. Earth was in a time of peace- he could leave. Get away from Earth. Away from Kakarot and his brat. Away from stifling walls. Away from Bulma.

Abandon Bulma?

No, that wasn't his plan. The thought only flitted across his brain for an instant and was gone. Vegeta knew he'd be back, some day. Besides, he was fairly certain Bulma wouldn't pine for him all too terribly. Vegeta turned away from the door and headed back around the compound to the Capsule launch pad.

The Prince had no trouble operating the capsule. He's seen enough space-ships in his time to know that they all operated on basically the same principals. In a lift-off that was louder than he would have liked, Vegeta lessened Earth's extraterrestrial inhabitation by one.

He began training immediately, and didn't plan to stop. Sleep brought on by exhaustion was dreamless; that much he knew.

********

"No…NO!" Goku burst into Super Saiyan. Fool. A deep voice taunted, then laughed. Goku felt his power being snatched from him, then possessed by it. The rest of the dream was familiar. Doom, gloom, death, destruction, madness, mayhem, and torment, not to mention what he was doing to the dream people. The horrors grew increasingly worse. Goku wanted to close his eyes, but they already were. It didn't stop him from seeing the burning buildings, frantic, hopeless people, and the girl he himself tossed aside having finished with her. He wanted to wake up- he needed to. But of course he wouldn't, couldn't, until the sun, his ally, returned.

********

I think it's a bit longer. If I don't get the next chapter out before Nov. 19, which is likely, happy anniversary to me and happy b-day to Ice ^.^ Little demon was born on that day…oh, maybe 2 years ago? Something like that. So toodles for now.

~mysticGohan33~