Chapter I: The Temple of Shenron

Gohan was blasted back once more by the guardian of the mysterious pyramid. "I'll tell you once more… stay back, old man!" shouted the guardian. Gohan got up and dusted himself off. His white mustache twitched in the early morning breeze of the Next Dimension. Gohan had led a full life, and it showed; he was an old, dead man now; still upright and strong, but shaped by age and the wisdom that comes with it. His still spiky hair was gray, and he had grown a bushy white mustache.

He stood before a huge pyramid that was rumored to be the resting place of an ancient riddle… a riddle that could provide another clue to Goku's whereabouts. The thought of spending eternity without his father still pained Gohan, as did it pain his mother, Chi-Chi. In this pyramidal structure, The Temple of Shenron, Gohan could consult the essence of Earth's once-dragon, Shenron, and learn where to look for Goku.

Chi-Chi stood back and watched as her son fought a losing battle against the guardian of the pyramid. She smiled to herself, though. This guardian, however powerful he may have been, had no idea of the power that lay hidden inside of Gohan. Age too had affected her before she had passed on into the next dimension. Unaffected, however, was the youthful spark that remained perpetually within her eyes. Despite her long gray hair and somewhat wrinkled face, she would never give up her devotion to her family or her child-like energy.

The guardian stepped back as Gohan stepped forward and prepared to speak. "You have no idea what you are up against," said the half-Saiyan in his now raspy voice. "I understand you have a reason to guard this temple. It would be foolish to let those who are unworthy enter, but please understand; I was a defender of the Earth. I am the Gohan who defeated Cell."

The guardian laughed. "You certainly don't fight like that Gohan! My name is Garuda and I have watched over the Earth and its Dragonballs for as long as I can remember. I witnessed that epic battle between Gohan and Cell… and if you were Gohan as you claim, you would have no trouble proving yourself worthy by defeating me!" The slender guardian took another step towards Gohan. Garuda was slender and tall, like Gohan, but he had a pinker tone of skin than an ordinary human, and wild orange hair. At his side was a whip that he had used since he had to defend the Earth in its initial days of terror, but he had not needed to use it against Gohan yet… his energy blasts seemed to be enough to keep the warrior at bay.

Gohan nodded. "If you question my power, you will regret it; trust me."

"I am not afraid of you!" Garuda shouted to his opponent. "I cannot allow the Temple of Shenron to be infiltrated by an evildoer!"

"Friend," Gohan warned again, "I do no wish to fight you. We have fought for a common cause; the well being of the Earth. Please let me rest now… I am weary and I have not seen my father in centuries. All I wish is to locate him."

"I would never let you through!" Garuda said. "If you were really Gohan, then you would've turned Super Saiyan by now… and if you were really Gohan, THEN I'd let you through in the blink of an eye. But I will stop you in any way I must… and so far, stopping you has not been much of a challenge."

"Super Saiyan, eh?" Gohan smiled. "You want to see a fancy lights show; be my guest." He let out a mighty cry and began powering up. The very foundation of the ground shook as Garuda toppled over and Chi-Chi grabbed a nearby tree.

A golden aura formed around the old man, turning his hair and mustache gold and his eyes a pale green. "Is this what you wanted to see, Garuda?" asked the half-breed.

Garuda smiled. "Yes, definitely. You are indeed Gohan. I can tell. You are not afraid to show your power, and use it, if necessary… but you also try to avoid conflict in favor of peace. You would make Goku proud still."

Gohan stopped his flow of energy and his Super Saiyan status faded, returning his gray hair and brown eyes. "So I may proceed?" he asked.

"But of course," said Garuda, bowing to him. "I wish you luck in your search for your father. He'd be happy to see you." Garuda stepped aside and motioned for Gohan to step into the temple. Gohan began a slow ascent up the narrow stairway with Chi-Chi close behind him.

At last, the mother and her son reached the great doorways of the Temple of Shenron. Gohan paused for a moment to examine the ancient manuscripts that had been inscribed upon the great entryway. Gently, as if to caress the door, he laid his hand upon the seal that bound the doors together, and melted it away with a small energy blast, as to break the seal but not harm anything otherwise.

Gohan and Chi-Chi entered into the temple, the inside of which was rather small. There were seven pedestals and a large dome in the ceiling, in which there was painted a picture of Shenron that had obviously faded throughout the millennia. Upon each pedestal sat a dragonball.

Gohan smiled to himself. He knew that he had won. "Well, mom," he began, "This is it."

Tears appeared in Chi-Chi's eyes, and she shed them slowly. "Well," she said, in her refined tone of voice, "It's about time."

Gohan approached a small indented circle in right before the pedestals, apparently, the proper summoning position. With a firm look of resolution that seemed to be carved into the living flesh of his face, Gohan boldly moved onto the elevated circular platform.

"Hear me, O Dragon…" he began, speaking softly at first but his volume increasing with every word, "Hear my command! From Thy vast eternal knowledge, I summon Thee to draw forth the answer to the question that plagueth me for a millennium! Hear my cry, O Shenron!"

The Dragonballs began to resonate, and each one glowed brightly. Each ball shot a beam of light out from its encrusted stars, and the Eternal Dragon took shape, each scale matching perfectly with its painted counterpart on the ceiling.

Shenron breathed heavily, and began to speak, his voice piercing every pore in Gohan and Chi-Chi's bodies. "Thou hast awakened me from my slumber. What seeketh thou, from My vast banks of knowledge? Speak now, mortal, lest thy question be scattered to the Four Winds, to thither be answered."

"I thank Thee," Gohan recommenced, "I thank Thee, O great and powerful Dragon, that Thou mighst honor a lowly mortal such as myself. I ask of Thee that Thou answerest a question; a question which I hath long sought the answer to. Certainly, Thou knowst my father, Goku of Earth, the being who at one time had fused with You! I ask Thee, what hath become of Goku? I long to see him again, yet his whereabouts be unknown to my humble mother and I!"

Shenron growled. "Know thy father well; I hath, but not now. Methinks that what hath happened to Goku of Earth is beyond My control… beyond even My knowledge. I apologize, honorable Gohan, but thy question is unanswerable, for even I in My awesome power know not of the long-lost Goku."

Chi-Chi's smile faded into a frown, and tears formed in her eyes; this time tears of sadness. "No… I waited so long…"

Shenron's gaze turned to Chi-Chi. "Fear not, o honorable Chi-Chi, wife of Goku, for I will tell you this: thy husband is closer than thou mighst think. I now bid thee farewell… I sleep until the next traveler cometh."

With that, Shenron dissipated into beams of light, which were collected once again into the Dragonballs from whence they sprang. Disheartened, Gohan took Chi-Chi by the hand, and they walked out of the temple, each step seeming like a mile.

As they stepped past the mighty steps of the Temple of Shenron, Garuda looked on, perched high above the ground in a small crevice in the temple wall. He sensed their failure, and he too, became upset. "Oh great Goku…" he said to himself, "Your family needs you… and me! If only I could see you fight again." With that, Garuda returned to his long sleep until the next unwary traveler dared approach the Temple of Shenron.