Chapter 4: More Secrets, and A New Tail

Neroh managed to talk Gohan into staying over, since she didn't want any more Bynkahs attacking him, plus he was really the only person that had ever befriended her. She let him have her bed and she made herself a bed on the floor next to the fire. It was a peaceful night, but neither of them could get to sleep.

"I've been meaning to ask you something- this planet has a moon, right?" asked Gohan.

"Yes. Two of them, actually. And it's a full moon every two days. Tonight it's the Mossy Moon. Wanna go see it?"

Gohan sat bolt upright. Was she crazy? One look at that moon and it's goodbye Neroh, goodbye Reikagia and goodbye to going home!

Neroh noted the look on his face and laughed.

"Oh, you needn't be anxious about transforming, if that's what's worrying you."

"Huh? How come?"

"Because Saiyans can't transform in the light of the Mossy Moon. Kagi-jins can though. I've never understood it myself, really."

Gohan let out a deep sigh. Panic over… Suddenly another cause for concern arose.

"But what about you, Neroh? I mean, you're half-Saiyan, half Kagi-jin! Won't you transform?"

"Not if I'm wearing my suppressant band!" She said blithely.

"What's a 'suppressant band'?" he quizzed.

"I'll show you."

Neroh got out of her bed and walked over to a small bedside cabinet. She opened the drawer and took out what looked like a two-inch long band of gold, and on its top half was two lime rectangular jewels, held together by a thin removable piece of silver. She clipped this strange contraption onto the base of her tail, and then grabbed Gohan's hand, yanked him out of his bed and pulled him over to the window.

"Look at the moon Gohan." She said.

Gohan still didn't want to look at the moon. Everywhere he had been there was a full moon, and it just spelt trouble: he had almost trashed Earth and Namek on a couple of occasions, and he wasn't about to do the same here. Even though he trusted her words, it still made him uneasy. He decided to take a quick peek to keep her happy- and when nothing happened, he slowly opened his eyes.

"There! Didn't I tell you? Isn't the moon beautiful?" She grinned, resting her head in her hands, her tail swishing softly behind her.

Gohan looked at the moon closely- it was very green, and yes- it was beautiful.

"You know, this is a novelty for me, being able to look at a full moon without the worry of flattening everything in sight!"

Neroh took her gaze away from the moon and looked straight at Gohan.

"Can't you control your ultimate form at all?"

"Uh, not exactly…" he said sheepishly.

"Well, you're going to have to learn to, seeing as the Ramana Festival is coming up a month from now. You told me you would be on this planet for some time, so I'm sure you'll be here to take part in it. If you don't mind me asking- where is your tail?"

"Erm, it kinda got ripped out when I was a kid…" said Gohan slowly.

"Ooo… ouch! Don't you ever miss it?"

"Sometimes…"

"Well then, you'll need your tail to take part in the festival. Follow me, Gohan."

He followed Neroh to a potion cupboard that was hidden behind a sheet of cloth. She picked up a large tub that contained a white paste and sat it down on the table. Gohan looked pointedly at her.

"What are you gonna do, mould me a clay tail?" he asked, a little sarcastically.

Idiot…thought Neroh. "No! Just take a handful of that stuff and rub it onto your stump, then you'll see what it does!"

Gohan did as he was told, after Neroh excused herself so he could get some privacy. After a few minutes, he called her back.

"Right, what do I do now?" he questioned.

"Cut a hole in the back of your pants. The tail grows at a considerable speed, so it's best to have a neat hole it can grow out of, rather than bursting out and ripping the back of your pants in the process!"

"Good point."

He did as she suggested, and sure enough, a lovely golden brown tail immediately emerged from the hole. Gohan admired his new tail- it had been so long ago since he last saw it…

"Thanks. I really appreciate it!" he beamed.

"Hey, don't mention it! Now you've got your tail back, you'll be able to visit Okri-nama City tomorrow. People would have made a joke out of you if you didn't have a tail. It is against the rules of both races to remove your tail unless it was diseased, or you committed a crime and got it cut off as a punishment. Tails must be re-grown again using the Re-gen paste- that's the stuff you used."

"I see. Have you ever had your tail removed, so that you could walk without it?" he asked.

"No. It's not the same for Kagi-jins as it is for Saiyans. The weakness is similar," she answered, flicking her tail from side to side. "But it's far worse for a Kagi-jin. If they ever got their tail cut off, they could never walk or fly again unless they used the Re-gen paste. Unfortunately that was something I had inherited, along with my hair and tail color."

"Oh… what a bummer…" said Gohan.

Neroh unclipped her suppressant band, put it back in the drawer and hopped back into her bed.

"We'd better get some sleep now, if we are going to Okri-nama!" she reminded.

"Right."

Gohan got back into his bed and settled down as best as he could, since now that he had a tail, he was finding it hard to lay on his back. It wasn't long before they eventually got to sleep, and Gohan was having a dream about learning how to control his transformation, the upcoming festival and fighting and defeating Artek for Neroh. After all, he owed it to her, for all the things she'd done for him…

Neroh, on the other hand, was having a nightmare. She dreamt that Artek had risen from the Flames Beneath to seek her out, using his years of stored energy to rip the seal within Tak Xenath apart. She was at his mercy once again, but this time he did not let her go freely, and he destroyed her living body so that she could suffer an eternity of torment in his hands.

She shivered in her sleep- yet another restless night was made for the young half-breed…

~tbc~

Cool! Adult Gohan has a tail again! It's a pity he didn't have his tail when he was an adult from the Babadi saga onwards… he would have looked mental! (Yes, I'm aware that fully-grown Saiyans cannot grow their tails back by themselves- what I mean is that he should have had his tail left on after the moon was blown up by Piccolo. Sure, people would have called him a freak at High School, but they would have to have the guts to say it to his face, wouldn't they?)

Ja Ne!