Trunks looked at Ryoko, and the three crowded around the couch. She was talking in her sleep.
"Trunks? Gohan? Videl?" She paused. "Hello?"
"Has she ever done this before?" Videl asked. Gohan shrugged.
"She told me once that she used to talk in her sleep." He said.
"Yeah, but her voice sounds…hollow. When someone talks in their sleep, they moan it." Videl said.
"Kotori? How did you get here?" She said. They listened to her, Gohan laughing a little. "Where is everyone?" She had a confused look on her face. "What do you m-" Her face twisted into a look of terror, and Gohan wasn't laughing anymore. "What did you do?!" She screamed. "Where's Gohan and Videl?!" She was crying, and she let out a scream of terror.
"Ryoko! Wake up!" Trunks cried.
"I wonder what she's dreaming about." Videl wondered.
"She was having a bad dream last night, too. That her skin was falling off and she said it felt…real." Trunks said.
"Why did you do this?!" Ryoko screamed, tears rapidly running down her face. Ryoko screamed again, but this time in pain, and her hand grabbed her arm.
"Ryoko!" Trunks cried, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her. Her eyes snapped open and she screamed, jumping up, still holding her arm.
"Ah!" She screamed. She removed her hand from her arm, and everyone stared in terror at what was there.
There was a gash in her arm, bleeding profusely. Ryoko stared at her hand that was covering it, blood all over it.
Gohan dashed into the bathroom and took out a first aid kit. They cleaned her arm, then rapped it.
"What happened?" Videl asked, worried for her friend.
"I- I had a dream that Kotori killed you all." She said, looking at all of them with wide eyes. "Then he came after me." She groaned. "But he would never do that, he would never harm anyone!" Videl looked at Gohan.
"Kotori had called, right before you came back." Gohan said.
"Do you think Kotori gave you those dreams?" Trunks asked, but Ryoko didn't get to answer. Someone was knocking on the door.
Gohan answered it, and everyone was surprised to see Kotori.
"How did you get here?" Videl asked, her hands on her hips. Kotori blinked.
"I- uh, flew." He said. Ryoko's eyes widened.
"Th-that's what he said…" She started, but they all knew that she didn't have to finish the sentence.
"Ryoko, I need to talk to you." He said. Ryoko shook her head and backed up.
"No, no! Get out of here! Now!" She cried.
"What?" Kotori asked, acting innocent.
Ryoko suddenly doubled over, grabbing her head and moaning.
"Ryoko?" Trunks asked, kneeling next to her. "What's wrong?"
"My head…ah!" She cried.
"Look out!" Gohan cried, jumping in front of everyone. A large energy blast went through the wall and hit Gohan, sending him through the opposite wall and outside.
"Gohan!" Videl and Trunks cried. Ryoko lifted her head, and looked at the figure standing before them.
"I have finally found you, Ryoko."
9
"Who are you?!" Trunks cried, his arms protectively around Ryoko. The attacker's skin was red, and he had two horns on the top of his head. He was wearing blue pants and a white cape, and had a black mustache.
He stuck out his hand, attempting to shoot another blast, but Trunks (holding onto Ryoko), Videl, and Kotori jumped out of the hole in the wall and joined Gohan in the air. The invader flew out and stood in front of them. He put a hand onto his chest and smiled evilly.
"I am Deborah, the Demon King." He said. "I have been sent here to see you, Ryoko."
Ryoko had recovered from her attack, and was floating next to Trunks.
"What do you want?" Ryoko asked. He grinned.
"You." He said, and then looked offended. "Don't tell me you have forgotten me?" He chuckled. "Well, then I'll make you remember." He sent a chi blast at Gohan, and he went crashing into the ground.
"Gohan!" Ryoko and Videl cried. Videl dashed to his side. Trunks clenched a fist and flew at Deborah. Deborah grabbed a sword out of thin air, and Trunks flew right into it. His jaw dropped, and a small trickle of blood escaped it, the sword embedded into his stomach. Ryoko's eyes widened and filled with tears.
"Trunks!" She screamed. Trunks fell to the ground. Ryoko and Kotori were left in the air alone. "You monster!" Ryoko cried, she couldn't feel Trunks' life energy anymore.
She started screaming madly, uncontrollably. All the pain that she had ever felt was coming back to her, and her energy level went higher and higher.
Her screams ceased when a golden aura surrounded her, her hair golden blonde. Deborah frowned.
"I thought you were finally transforming." He said. "But you've only become a super saiyan. How boring." Ryoko flew at the demon king, and bombarded him with kicks and punches, missing every time.
"Ryoko!" She stopped and turned around, seeing her father.
"D-dad!" She cried. He threw her a bag filled with something.
"Give that to Gohan and Trunks, and then get out of here!" Goku cried.
"But- but we don't have all the dragon balls yet!" She cried.
"Leave them behind, I'll get the rest." He said. "No go!" Ryoko flew down to Trunks, and suddenly felt sick. She was never good with blood. She grinned when she saw that he was still breathing. He was sweating, and he looked like he wasn't going to last much longer.
She winced, and then pulled out the sword. Trunks groaned. She reached into the bag and smiled, senzu beans.
She gave one to Trunks, then to Gohan. They stood up, fully revamped. Ryoko smiled.
"GO!" Goku screamed. The teenagers, nodded, and took off into the air. A confused Kotori followed. Ryoko turned back to normal, not feeling too excited that she finally became a super saiyan.
"What did he mean, did I forget him?" She asked. They shrugged.
10
When Ryoko got home, she was feeling very tired. She hated sleeping, now. She avoided all questions from her family, letting Gohan answer them. She fell onto the living room couch, and fell asleep.
Ryoko woke to a terrible, electrocuting pain in her stomach.
The sword sent waves of electricity into Ryoko causing her body to jolt violently as Ryoko's eyes flung open and she sat up. She was in too much torture and to scream, but her mouth hung open in a silent one…the wound that the sword had created began to bleed profusely…as Ryoko gaped in confusion and shock at who had done this to her…
"Huh? What's going on?" Gohan said as he rubbed his eyes sleepily and was bewildered when he turned to see Ryoko. He had fallen asleep in the living room with her to make sure she didn't have any terrible dreams. She was sitting up, a sword embedded in her stomach, blood gushing from her wound, as waves of electricity were coursing through her. Her expression revealed the pain she was in, but Gohan wasn't sure what Ryoko was starring at, there was nothing in front of her.
Gohan jumped up and started calling for their parents.
"MOM! DAD! COME QUICK!" He yelled. His parents came down the stairs, and Chichi gasped loudly, seeing her daughter in such pain, she fainted.
"Ryoko!" Goku cried, running to her side. He was afraid to touch her, afraid that he would get electrocuted.
"Don't pull it out!" Gohan cried.
"But she's getting electrocuted!"
"If you do, she'll bleed to death!" Goku pressed her teeth together and groaned, not sure what to do.
"What's going on?" Asked a sleepy Goten, walking in. He was fully awake when he saw his sister. "Ryoko! What's happening to her?!"
"Go get Bulma!" Goku yelled to Gohan. Gohan jumped up and ran out of the house.
Trunks awoke to screaming and pounding on the door. He got up, his mother and father also up.
"Who is making that blasted noise?!" Vegeta yelled.
"It's- Gohan." Trunks said.
"Please! Bulma! Help!" Gohan cried, pounding on the door. "It's Ryoko!" Bulma and Trunks dashed to the front door. Gohan was standing there, shaking, and eyes wide.
"Please, Bulma, we need your help."
Bulma nodded and followed the boy back to his house, Trunks with him. Vegeta strolled after them, curious to see what all the commotion was.
"What happened?" Trunks asked. Gohan shook his head.
"We don't know." Gohan said. "I think she's dying." Trunks' eyes widened. They ran into the house, and into the living room. They stepped over an unconscious Chichi.
"Oh my God." Bulma said. Goku was standing over Ryoko.
"Bulma, what do we do?!" Goku cried. Bulma ran to her.
"Take out the sword, then we must quickly fly her to Capsule Corporation." She said.
Goku nodded, then pulled out the sword. Ryoko screamed, but it came out in a gurgle, blood coming out of her mouth and flowing down onto her shirt. Goku grabbed onto her and Bulma, getting ready to do instant transmission. Gohan, Goten, and Trunks also grabbed on, and within a matter of seconds, they were standing in front of Trunks' grandparents.
"Oh, my!" Mrs. Brief cried, seeing the bloody mess of Ryoko. Goku held her in his arms, and ran after Bulma who was racing to her lab.
"Lay her on this table." Bulma commanded, throwing off random things that had been placed there previously. Goku laid her down as gently as he could.
Ryoko's body was cold, and she was sweating. "She's coming down with a fever, she's lost a lot of blood." Ryoko groaned, squeezing her eyes shut. She was shaking. Bulma looked at Trunks and Gohan.
"You two had better get out of here." Bulma said. "This is going to get messy." Trunks shook his head.
"No, I'm not leaving." He said.
"Get out now! You'll only distract me!" She put on a pair of gloves, and Trunks didn't move. "It's going to be okay, honey, you'll be alright." Bulma looked at Goku. "A piece of the sword is still inside her stomach." Goku looked on helplessly as Bulma used her tools to take out the small piece of sword left inside her stomach. She grabbed a cloth and put it on Ryoko's stomach, then opened a draw and pulled out another cloth, and wrapped it around Ryoko. Her eyes closed, and her breathing was heavy.
"We need a blood donor." Bulma said. "It has to be either Gohan, Goten, or Trunks, a half saiyan."
"I'll do it." Gohan said. "I'm her brother." Bulma nodded.
"Me, too." Trunks said. "She needs a lot." Bulma nodded again.
Bulma went into another drawer and pulled out two needles. Gohan and Trunks extended their arms, and Bulma took blood from Gohan first. She injected it into Ryoko, then did the same with Trunks. She stepped away from her, and threw the needles away.
"We should leave her alone, now." Bulma said.
"No." Trunks said. "What if she has a bad dream again?"
"Trunks is right." Gohan said. Bulma shook her head.
"Someone doesn't get a sword in their stomach from a dream." She said. "Someone attacked her." Goku moaned and walked out of the room, they stared at the door for a moment, but then Trunks looked at Gohan, then they both looked at Bulma.
"Bulma…" Gohan started. "When we were looking for the dragon balls, Ryoko had a bad dream that her friend attacked her. We were all standing over her, and a cut appeared on her arm out of nowhere." Bulma looked at Ryoko.
"Well, someone's got to be doing this to her." She sighed. "You're right, someone should stay in here at all times. That attack almost killed her. She's not as strong as you all are." She turned around and grabbed an elastic from a counter and tide her hair back.
Goku looked up at the sky and took a deep breath in. He closed his eyes.
"Kai…why did you choose her?" He asked no one. He opened his eyes. His eyes reduced to slits. "Leave her alone, Ryuukaze."
"What are you doing?" Gohan asked. Bulma was sticking all kinds of wires to Ryoko's head.
"Monitoring her brain waves." Bulma said. "Maybe something is taking her ethereal body to another dimension and hurting her there. With this, I can see what's happening to her." She turned to her computer and started typing. Symbols, numbers, and letters appeared on the screen.
"I'll take the first watch." Trunks said.
"And I'll keep you company." Gohan said, smiling at Trunks. Trunks smiled back.
"You go sleep, mom." Trunks said. Bulma nodded.
"If this starts beeping, get me." Trunks and Gohan nodded as Bulma walked out of the lab.
"What do you think is going on?" Gohan asked. Trunks shrugged.
"I'm guessing that that guy that attacked us has some kind of psychic power and is attacking Ryoko in dreams." Trunks responded.
"But why Ryoko?" Gohan asked wearily. Trunks again shrugged.
Ryoko immediately recognized the room as the living room. Someone was sitting in a chair, their back to her and facing the wall. She recognized him as Trunks, and started walking over to him. He stood up, and revealed a horrifying sight.
The front of his muscle shirt was torn, and half of his face's skin was missing. He was coughing up blood, which was spilling down onto his chest. His chest's skin was bubbling and melting away, revealing his ribs and lungs. He coughed, his ribs rattling.
Ryoko stood, transfixed from fright, as Trunks came toward her with a clawed, bone hand. His claw grabbed her throat, and started tearing it, ripping away her skin, exposing her trachea and other internal throat organs.
"Gohan, go get my mom." Trunks said, the computer beeping loudly. Gohan ran out of the room, and Trunks stood by Ryoko's side.
Soon, Gohan, Bulma, and Goku ran into the room, and all four of them stared in horror at Ryoko. Her neck was starting to bleed, and her skin was being ripped out, and she cried out, "Trunks?! What are you doing?!"
"Ryoko, wake up!" Bulma screamed. Ryokos eyes opened, and she looked at all of them. Her neck was only bleeding slightly.
Bulma wrapped her neck up, and then sighed.
"This needs to stop." She said.
"Ryoko? Are you okay?" Goku asked. Ryoko nodded.
"My stomach doesn't hurt anymore." She said in amazement.
"Of course it doesn't." Everyone turned to the doorway to see Vegeta leaning against the frame. "You're a saiyan. Wounds as bad as those heal quickly."
"Well, that's a relief." Bulma said. Ryoko put her hand to her throat.
"In my dream, Trunks was ripping my throat out." She said tonelessly. "And when I woke up, my neck was bleeding."
"Did you have a dream that you were being stabbed?" Gohan asked. Ryoko shrugged.
"Kind of. I woke up and saw my dad…standing in front of me." She said, shaking her head. Goku frowned.
11
Two months passed, and the dreams had been going on steadily. Not as bad as a sword in her stomach, but pretty bad. She'd wake up with all kinds of gashes and wounds all over her body.
Presently, Ryoko was at the Satan High School dance. The dance had just started about a half an hour ago, and Ryoko was talking to a couple of her friends, Trunks standing shyly behind her. Because of Trunks shyness, he had not managed to get to meet many of the students at SCS, and Ryoko, Gohan, and Videl were his only real friends. But tonight, all the males in Ryoko's family had gone off on some training thing for the weekend, and her mother was visiting relatives. Ryoko was sad that her brother wasn't attending the first dance, but she soon got over it.
Standing in the shadows behind Ryoko and the giggling girls, Ryoko noticed that Trunks' eyes were on someone in front of her. She looked, and saw Kotori and some other boys coming towards them, some of the most popular boys in the school.
"You give it to him!" One whispered to Kotori. Kotori was holding a large box, and he was trying to suppress a smile.
"Here you go, Trunks. Since we all missed your birthday." Kotori said. The other boys were laughing. Ryoko eyed them, knowing that they were up to something. Trunks didn't seem to notice, seeming as he had just recently started high school and did not know the cruelty of some students.
"Uh, thank you." Trunks muttered, blushing lightly. Ryoko stood close to Trunks, eager to see what his gift was. He started to unwrap it, slowly. He pulled off the wrapping paper, then opened the box and his face turned bright red, along with Ryoko's. The other boys only laughed.
Inside the box was all sorts of things that would make anyone turn red. Bad magazines, objects, pictures… Also, there was a paper that read 'have fun with Ryoko!'
Ryoko was embarrassed, but also very upset with Kotori, who was cracking up.
Trunks closed the box and put it in the garbage, and walked out of the auditorium and into the men's bathroom.
"Ha! Did you see him blush?!" One of the boys cried. Ryoko, infuriated, grabbed Kotori by the ear and pulled him outside. The cold air made Ryoko's face feel hot, and she suddenly became aware of the light, making her wounds visible.
"Aw, you have to admit, that was funny!" Kotori cried.
"No it was not!" Ryoko screamed. Kotori winced, and his laughter ceased. "Why did you do something like that?! You knew it would upset Trunks!"
"Yeah, so?" Kotori asked, bravado written clearly all over his face.
"Kotori, we have gotten in some stupid fights over the years. But this one you purposely hurt Trunks, and you hurt me, too." She sighed. "I thought you were my friend, but I guess not." She turned to leave, but Kotori grabbed her arm.
"Wait, I'm sorry."
"Why did you do it?" She asked, looking at him. Kotori and some of the other boys had teased Trunks sometimes during school, but never this bad. Kotori looked at his feet, his face engulfed in shadow.
"I was…"
"You were what?" Ryoko spat. Kotori looked at her and blushed a little.
"I was…jealous, okay?" He asked. Ryoko blinked, her face the normal, tan color, and it softened.
"What do you mean?" She asked her voice weak and trembling.
"I'm jealous of your boyfriend, Ryoko." He said sternly.
"You…mean you…?"
"Yeah, I love you." He said, his eyes dropping to the side.
"Kotori…I loved you for so many years, why didn't you ever tell me?" Ryoko cried out, holding back fighting tears.
"Because I always thought that you were better than me!" He cried. "I've been waiting for someone like Trunks to come along so that you'd fall in love with him and then maybe when you had someone, I'd stop caring about you!" He shook his head, "but it's even harder, now. It's hard for me to see you and Trunks together all the time, and the worst thing is, you're so perfect together."
"Aw…Kotori…" Ryoko moaned. She was saddened that he had loved her all along, yet happy that he never told her because she found someone as perfect as Trunks.
"I waited too long to tell you…" He said, tears filling his eyes. He jumped into the air. "At least you're happy; you'd have Trunks any day rather than me." He flew away, leaving her alone to cry.
12
Fifteen minutes later, Ryoko went back into the gym, only to find that Trunks was still hiding in the bathroom. She didn't feel like facing the people in the gym, so she stood at the bathroom door, and tapped lightly.
"Trunks…" She said quietly, her voice cracked from crying. He didn't answer. "Come on, let's go home." The door opened slowly, and a still red Trunks came out. He went through the door and quickly took into the sky, Ryoko soon following. She stopped about halfway to their houses. Trunks stopped next to her. The tears were crawling back to her eyes, not just because Kotori had loved her all along, but because she knew what he was feeling, how much pain her was in, because Ryoko had felt that pain all of her life.
"What's wrong?" Trunks asked quietly. Ryoko started to sob again, and a surprised Trunks wrapped his arms around her to comfort her. "Ryoko?" Ryoko looked up at him, her eyes red and puffy. He sighed. "I don't know if this is why you're crying, but I know how to stop the dreams, or at least help."
"How?" Ryoko asked. He shook his head.
"I'll explain later. Come on, let's go to your house." Still holding her, Trunks flew them back to her house.
When they got there, they went into the house. Trunks closed and locked the door, and turned to Ryoko.
"It's called a saiyan bond. In it, we are totally connected, which means we can read each others minds, memories, and be in each others dreams." He said with a smirk. Ryoko smiled, in spite of all that had happened that night. He again blushed a little; his face had gone back to the normal color when they first arrived. "But…to obtain it…you have to…well…" He turned even deeper red, and Ryoko also blushed a little, but shook her head.
"Don't say it, you'll pass out from blushing so much." She said. Trunks nodded, still blushing.
"Do…you…want to? I mean, so the dreams will go away, or I can be there to help you." He said nervously. Ryoko laughed lightly.
"Well…yeah. Who knows what could happen in one of those dreams. I woke up with a sword in my stomach…and I almost had my throat ripped out." She said. He nodded, and then gulped.
13
Ryoko opened her eyes, seeing that she was in some kind of room which was made of all mirrors. A mirrored ceiling, walls, and floor. It was different than what she had ever dreamed before.
"It this it?" Trunks asked, and Ryoko was surprised to see that he was standing next to her, normal. She smiled when she remembered the saiyan link.
"No. It's usually in a different place every time. This room could change into something else, or something will happen here." She said. It was a little scary, seeing herself all over the room. A sharp pain ran up her wrists, and was shocked to see that they were opened again, blood pouring out. She was breathing heavily, and hoping that the gashes wouldn't spread through her body again.
"What?" Trunks asked, seeing the horrified look on Ryoko's face, but then a horrific expression also spread onto his face, along with pain. Ryoko looked down at his leg. From the knee down, his left pant leg was being ripped off, and then fell to the floor. A very deep, blood gash was spreading down it, exposing his bone. Ryoko winced, and felt like she was going to vomit.
Trunks gasped loudly as the bone was ripped out of his leg. He fell, and a pool of blood started spreading across the mirror.
"Trunks!" Ryoko cried, running to and kneeling beside him. She held her wrist, which didn't seem half as bad as Trunks' leg. He groaned loudly. "Oh, Dende, I hope you don't wake up without a shin bone." He groaned again.
Laughter echoed across the room, and Ryoko stood up. She knew that Trunks was defenseless right now, so she was on her own to protect herself and him. She looked around the room, and didn't see anyone.
The next thing that Trunks knew, he was in a forest, alone, and with a shin bone. He was standing up, but out of relief, he sat down on the ground and sighed.
"This is what Ryoko has been dealing with? Man…" He said, and then looked around. "Ryoko?" He called. Trunks continued crying Ryoko's name as he searched for her. As he walked forward, he noticed a man, leaning against a tree. What's that guy doing out here in the middle of nowhere?
"That's specifically what I was going to ask you..." Said the teal haired man, with a glint in his yellow eyes.
"What?! How...you...you read my mind?" Shouted Trunks, but then his voice turned into a mock. "I guess if you can read minds, you don't have to ask me what I'm doing out here then!"
"That's true. Looking for the woman that you love?" The man smiled.
"Yes."
"Do you want her back, Trunks?"
"If you've taken her, I swear I'll...." The man shook his head.
"I haven't taken her." He stepped aside, and Ryoko fell forward, as if she was inside the tree. She stood up, and then rubbed her head. She saw the man, and jumped up and stood next to Trunks. "See? I won't take her, I'll kill her."
"Not while I'm around." Trunks said. The man laughed.
"You can't do much without a bone." He said, and with a wave of his hand, Trunks fell, his shin bone gone again. The man laughed. "Come on, Ryoko, try and make me sorry."
Ryoko lifted her hands and put them together, entwining her fingers, and then pointed them at the man, "Baad Angarru!" She cried, the chi blast that she had created on her own. A pink blast rushed toward him, and he laughed. Ryoko did the same technique again, but as a super saiyan.
"Come on, Ryoko! You know that you have more power than that." He said. "Fine, I'll let you wake up." A small smirk spread across his face. "See you tomorrow."
Ryoko quickly sat up, in her room again. She was breathing heavily, and looked at Trunks. His eyes were also open, and he was examining his leg.
"It hurts, but its fine." He stated. Ryoko smiled. That's good, she thought. "Yeah, I know."
"What?"
"You just said 'that's good'." He said, looking at her blankly. She blinked, and then laughed.
"The bond. That's why you heard what I just thought." She said, and then realized how different things felt. She felt like her and Trunks were…one person, had one mind. She could feel what he was feeling, hear what he was thinking.
"Wow, it's weird." Trunks said, looking around as if to see something differently. He lay down again, putting his arms behind his head. Ryoko looked out the window, and saw that the sun was just rising. Ryoko looked at him, and only then did she understand how truly awful his past was, now seeing it through his eyes. His father and all of his friend dying, seeing his world be torn apart, and seeing his best friend and master, dead.
Ryoko shook her head, as if trying to shake away the memories. She lay down, and fell back to sleep.
Ryoko woke again to the sound of the phone ringing, and picked it up.
"…hello?" She asked groggily.
"Hi…" Ryoko groaned.
"No."
"What?"
"You're not coming over today…"
"Why not?" Mai asked.
"Because I'm tired!" Ryoko cried.
"Please? I'll come over later! I haven't seen you in a long time!" Ryoko sighed, and looked at the clock.
"Whoa! It's one in the afternoon!" Ryoko cried. "Uh, Mai, come at like, two. Bye." Ryoko hung up and jumped out of bed. Trunks sat up and rubbed his eyes.
"What?" He asked. Ryoko opened her drawer and started pulling out clothes. Trunks blushed deeply; Ryoko still didn't have anything on. She didn't need to tell him what was wrong, because Trunks quickly understood that the day was Sunday and her parents and brothers were to be home at one thirty.
Trunks also jumped up and started pulling on clothes, and Ryoko, fully dressed, was doing her hair. When she finished, Trunks pulled on his last boot and sighed.
"You'd better go." Ryoko said. Trunks nodded, standing up. Ryoko smiled and hugged him. "Thanks, Trunks. For being there." He smiled and nodded, hugging her back.
"No problem." He said. Ryoko kissed him lightly and quickly, then they said their goodbyes and he left.
15
Ryoko sat down on her front lawn and sighed loudly. Of course, Mai had arrived around one fifteen, and Ryoko was waiting for her parents to come home.
"Can we go to Gohan's today?" Mai asked, sitting down next to Ryoko. Ryoko looked at her, and then laughed.
"You don't know, do you?" She asked, amusement clearly heard in her voice. Mai looked back at her.
"Know what?" Before Ryoko could answer, her father and brothers landed on the front lawn in front of the girls. Mai surprised, leaned back and supported herself with her hands.
"Hey, Ryoko." Goku said happily. "Have a good weekend?"
"Yup." Ryoko said, smiling.
"Hi, Mai." Gohan said. "Are you sleeping over tonight?" Mai nodded. "Cool." Gohan, Goten, and Goku went into the house.
"What's going on?" Mai asked, dumbfounded.
"Well, at my birthday party, I found out that Goku and Chichi were my real parents, so they moved into my house with me that day and my other parents…um, I think they moved to Italy." Ryoko said like it was no big deal. Mai's jaw dropped.
"You mean you live with Gohan?" Mai asked. Ryoko nodded.
"Yup, he's my brother." She said. "We're twins."
"That's not fair! I wanna live with Gohan!" Mai cried. "What else happened?! You haven't called me in such a long time!"
"Well…you already know that Trunks and I are together." Mai sighed angrily and nodded. "Well, I found out that Kotori has loved me for who knows how long." Ryoko said a bit more quietly. Mai sighed and threw up her arms.
"Of course! You live with Gohan, Trunks is your boyfriend, and Kotori likes you! Can your life get any better?!" She cried. Ryoko looked at the sky and laughed lightly.
"My life isn't as great as you think." She said. Mai gave her a blank stare.
"Oh really? How?" She asked. Ryoko stood up and pulled her shirt up a little bit, revealing a deep gash, which had already had started to heal but still looked pretty gruesome. "How did you get that?!" Ryoko sat back down and told Mai everything, about how she was a saiyan, how Trunks was the future, how Mr. Satan never really saved the Earth, how her brother did, and all the other things, and told her lastly about the dreams.
"So that's how my life isn't so great." Ryoko said. Mai stared at her, not sure if she believed her friend. But Ryoko proved that it was true by showing Mai the Baad Angarru, and then she believed her.
"I still can't believe that you live with Gohan." She said. "I didn't bring pretty pajamas!" Ryoko chuckled.
"You won't need pajamas after I'm through with you." Said a voice from above them. Ryoko jumped up and looked at the sky, seeing the man that had attacked Trunks and her in the dream. The man had dark, olive green skin and a black hairstyle that looked similar to a mow hawk, and was wearing some kind of old, layered clothing.
"Who are you?" Ryoko cried, more quietly than she intended. She was terrified, now seeing that man in real life.
"Who am I? Have you forgotten?"
"Deborah?"
"Do I look like that weakling?" He asked. Ryoko stepped back, which was useless since the man was in the sky. Gohan, Goten, and Goku ran out.
"Ryuukaze!" Goku cried. 'Ryuukaze' laughed.
"So, at least you know me, Goku." He said. Vegeta and the two Trunks also came out.
"What's going on here?" Vegeta asked.
"Come on, Goku, fight me! Protect your daughter!" Ryuukaze cried. Goku stood still. "Fine, then I'll just kill her now." Ryuukaze extended his hand, and a large amount of energy starting flying at Ryoko, but before it even came close to her, a Super Saiyan level one was blocking the attack, completely unharmed. "Oh good, one down, three to go."
"Trunks!" Goku cried, turning towards them. "Take Ryoko in the back yard, and hold her back!" He screamed. Trunks nodded, and pulled Ryoko into the back. "You too, Vegeta!"
Vegeta, feeling Goku's new awesome powers, grunted and followed his son, Gohan, Goten, and a crying Mai. All Vegeta had on his mind was wondering how Goku was so strong if he was only in the first super saiyan stage. Ryoko seemed kind of in a daze, staring forward at nothing.
When they were all back there, a normal Goku landed, breaking Ryoko's daze.
"Where did that guy go?" She asked. Her father sighed.
"He said that he was going to be back." Goku said.
"Kakarott, what did you do?" Vegeta asked. "Tell me now!"
"You're so rude!" Mai cried, calming down.
"I'm not rude." Vegeta said. "It's just that you're insignificant." Mai pouted and folded her arms. Vegeta grabbed Ryoko away from Trunks and held a hand to her head. "Show me now or I'll blast this girls' brains out!" Goku groaned, but nodded.
"I will, but Trunks, like I said, hold her and do not let her go." Goku looked at Trunks, then Gohan. "No, never mind, Gohan, you hold her."
"But dad-"
"Do as I say, son." Goku said, seriously. Gohan nodded and grabbed his sister. Goku sighed, and then turned into a super saiyan. Actually, it was exactly the same as a super saiyan, except on his forehead, he had a golden headpiece with three jewels in it, and lightly there were some symbols engraved into it.
"What the hell is on your head?" Mai asked, a bit amused. Ryoko had the same, blank, dazed look on her face, and her eyes looked hollow.
"Gohan, let me go, I'm fine." She said, a little tonelessly.
"But dad said to hold you…" Gohan said, confused.
"I said let me go!" She screamed, and Gohan, Vegeta, Trunks, and Mai were knocked back with her increasing energy. Ryoko stood, and then looked back at the four. "Oh, um, sorry." She said, and Gohan got the idea that she really wasn't. Trunks' face hardened.
"You're not Ryoko." He said. Ryoko laughed.
"My, my, how did you know?" She asked. Goku groaned.
"Oh no…" He murmured.
The girl who was not Ryoko looked around, and sighed, looking weak. She gave a slight smirk to Goku, then fell to her knees, and soon after, the ground. Color returned to her face. Trunks and Gohan approached her cautiously, then deciding that it was her again, lifted her off of the ground. Goku returned to normal.
"Let's bring her to Capsule Corp., we're not safe here." Goku said. "We'll use instant transmission." Gohan and Trunks nodded, putting a hand on Goku's shoulders. "Come on, Mai." Mai ran over and put her hand slowly onto the space between Goku's shoulder and neck.
"What did I get myself into…?" She asked herself angrily.
"You coming, Vegeta?" Goku asked. Vegeta snorted.
"I can fly on my own, Kakarott." He spat. Goku smiled and nodded.
"Suit yourself." He said, then they disappeared.
"Trunks? Gohan? Videl?" She paused. "Hello?"
"Has she ever done this before?" Videl asked. Gohan shrugged.
"She told me once that she used to talk in her sleep." He said.
"Yeah, but her voice sounds…hollow. When someone talks in their sleep, they moan it." Videl said.
"Kotori? How did you get here?" She said. They listened to her, Gohan laughing a little. "Where is everyone?" She had a confused look on her face. "What do you m-" Her face twisted into a look of terror, and Gohan wasn't laughing anymore. "What did you do?!" She screamed. "Where's Gohan and Videl?!" She was crying, and she let out a scream of terror.
"Ryoko! Wake up!" Trunks cried.
"I wonder what she's dreaming about." Videl wondered.
"She was having a bad dream last night, too. That her skin was falling off and she said it felt…real." Trunks said.
"Why did you do this?!" Ryoko screamed, tears rapidly running down her face. Ryoko screamed again, but this time in pain, and her hand grabbed her arm.
"Ryoko!" Trunks cried, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her. Her eyes snapped open and she screamed, jumping up, still holding her arm.
"Ah!" She screamed. She removed her hand from her arm, and everyone stared in terror at what was there.
There was a gash in her arm, bleeding profusely. Ryoko stared at her hand that was covering it, blood all over it.
Gohan dashed into the bathroom and took out a first aid kit. They cleaned her arm, then rapped it.
"What happened?" Videl asked, worried for her friend.
"I- I had a dream that Kotori killed you all." She said, looking at all of them with wide eyes. "Then he came after me." She groaned. "But he would never do that, he would never harm anyone!" Videl looked at Gohan.
"Kotori had called, right before you came back." Gohan said.
"Do you think Kotori gave you those dreams?" Trunks asked, but Ryoko didn't get to answer. Someone was knocking on the door.
Gohan answered it, and everyone was surprised to see Kotori.
"How did you get here?" Videl asked, her hands on her hips. Kotori blinked.
"I- uh, flew." He said. Ryoko's eyes widened.
"Th-that's what he said…" She started, but they all knew that she didn't have to finish the sentence.
"Ryoko, I need to talk to you." He said. Ryoko shook her head and backed up.
"No, no! Get out of here! Now!" She cried.
"What?" Kotori asked, acting innocent.
Ryoko suddenly doubled over, grabbing her head and moaning.
"Ryoko?" Trunks asked, kneeling next to her. "What's wrong?"
"My head…ah!" She cried.
"Look out!" Gohan cried, jumping in front of everyone. A large energy blast went through the wall and hit Gohan, sending him through the opposite wall and outside.
"Gohan!" Videl and Trunks cried. Ryoko lifted her head, and looked at the figure standing before them.
"I have finally found you, Ryoko."
9
"Who are you?!" Trunks cried, his arms protectively around Ryoko. The attacker's skin was red, and he had two horns on the top of his head. He was wearing blue pants and a white cape, and had a black mustache.
He stuck out his hand, attempting to shoot another blast, but Trunks (holding onto Ryoko), Videl, and Kotori jumped out of the hole in the wall and joined Gohan in the air. The invader flew out and stood in front of them. He put a hand onto his chest and smiled evilly.
"I am Deborah, the Demon King." He said. "I have been sent here to see you, Ryoko."
Ryoko had recovered from her attack, and was floating next to Trunks.
"What do you want?" Ryoko asked. He grinned.
"You." He said, and then looked offended. "Don't tell me you have forgotten me?" He chuckled. "Well, then I'll make you remember." He sent a chi blast at Gohan, and he went crashing into the ground.
"Gohan!" Ryoko and Videl cried. Videl dashed to his side. Trunks clenched a fist and flew at Deborah. Deborah grabbed a sword out of thin air, and Trunks flew right into it. His jaw dropped, and a small trickle of blood escaped it, the sword embedded into his stomach. Ryoko's eyes widened and filled with tears.
"Trunks!" She screamed. Trunks fell to the ground. Ryoko and Kotori were left in the air alone. "You monster!" Ryoko cried, she couldn't feel Trunks' life energy anymore.
She started screaming madly, uncontrollably. All the pain that she had ever felt was coming back to her, and her energy level went higher and higher.
Her screams ceased when a golden aura surrounded her, her hair golden blonde. Deborah frowned.
"I thought you were finally transforming." He said. "But you've only become a super saiyan. How boring." Ryoko flew at the demon king, and bombarded him with kicks and punches, missing every time.
"Ryoko!" She stopped and turned around, seeing her father.
"D-dad!" She cried. He threw her a bag filled with something.
"Give that to Gohan and Trunks, and then get out of here!" Goku cried.
"But- but we don't have all the dragon balls yet!" She cried.
"Leave them behind, I'll get the rest." He said. "No go!" Ryoko flew down to Trunks, and suddenly felt sick. She was never good with blood. She grinned when she saw that he was still breathing. He was sweating, and he looked like he wasn't going to last much longer.
She winced, and then pulled out the sword. Trunks groaned. She reached into the bag and smiled, senzu beans.
She gave one to Trunks, then to Gohan. They stood up, fully revamped. Ryoko smiled.
"GO!" Goku screamed. The teenagers, nodded, and took off into the air. A confused Kotori followed. Ryoko turned back to normal, not feeling too excited that she finally became a super saiyan.
"What did he mean, did I forget him?" She asked. They shrugged.
10
When Ryoko got home, she was feeling very tired. She hated sleeping, now. She avoided all questions from her family, letting Gohan answer them. She fell onto the living room couch, and fell asleep.
Ryoko woke to a terrible, electrocuting pain in her stomach.
The sword sent waves of electricity into Ryoko causing her body to jolt violently as Ryoko's eyes flung open and she sat up. She was in too much torture and to scream, but her mouth hung open in a silent one…the wound that the sword had created began to bleed profusely…as Ryoko gaped in confusion and shock at who had done this to her…
"Huh? What's going on?" Gohan said as he rubbed his eyes sleepily and was bewildered when he turned to see Ryoko. He had fallen asleep in the living room with her to make sure she didn't have any terrible dreams. She was sitting up, a sword embedded in her stomach, blood gushing from her wound, as waves of electricity were coursing through her. Her expression revealed the pain she was in, but Gohan wasn't sure what Ryoko was starring at, there was nothing in front of her.
Gohan jumped up and started calling for their parents.
"MOM! DAD! COME QUICK!" He yelled. His parents came down the stairs, and Chichi gasped loudly, seeing her daughter in such pain, she fainted.
"Ryoko!" Goku cried, running to her side. He was afraid to touch her, afraid that he would get electrocuted.
"Don't pull it out!" Gohan cried.
"But she's getting electrocuted!"
"If you do, she'll bleed to death!" Goku pressed her teeth together and groaned, not sure what to do.
"What's going on?" Asked a sleepy Goten, walking in. He was fully awake when he saw his sister. "Ryoko! What's happening to her?!"
"Go get Bulma!" Goku yelled to Gohan. Gohan jumped up and ran out of the house.
Trunks awoke to screaming and pounding on the door. He got up, his mother and father also up.
"Who is making that blasted noise?!" Vegeta yelled.
"It's- Gohan." Trunks said.
"Please! Bulma! Help!" Gohan cried, pounding on the door. "It's Ryoko!" Bulma and Trunks dashed to the front door. Gohan was standing there, shaking, and eyes wide.
"Please, Bulma, we need your help."
Bulma nodded and followed the boy back to his house, Trunks with him. Vegeta strolled after them, curious to see what all the commotion was.
"What happened?" Trunks asked. Gohan shook his head.
"We don't know." Gohan said. "I think she's dying." Trunks' eyes widened. They ran into the house, and into the living room. They stepped over an unconscious Chichi.
"Oh my God." Bulma said. Goku was standing over Ryoko.
"Bulma, what do we do?!" Goku cried. Bulma ran to her.
"Take out the sword, then we must quickly fly her to Capsule Corporation." She said.
Goku nodded, then pulled out the sword. Ryoko screamed, but it came out in a gurgle, blood coming out of her mouth and flowing down onto her shirt. Goku grabbed onto her and Bulma, getting ready to do instant transmission. Gohan, Goten, and Trunks also grabbed on, and within a matter of seconds, they were standing in front of Trunks' grandparents.
"Oh, my!" Mrs. Brief cried, seeing the bloody mess of Ryoko. Goku held her in his arms, and ran after Bulma who was racing to her lab.
"Lay her on this table." Bulma commanded, throwing off random things that had been placed there previously. Goku laid her down as gently as he could.
Ryoko's body was cold, and she was sweating. "She's coming down with a fever, she's lost a lot of blood." Ryoko groaned, squeezing her eyes shut. She was shaking. Bulma looked at Trunks and Gohan.
"You two had better get out of here." Bulma said. "This is going to get messy." Trunks shook his head.
"No, I'm not leaving." He said.
"Get out now! You'll only distract me!" She put on a pair of gloves, and Trunks didn't move. "It's going to be okay, honey, you'll be alright." Bulma looked at Goku. "A piece of the sword is still inside her stomach." Goku looked on helplessly as Bulma used her tools to take out the small piece of sword left inside her stomach. She grabbed a cloth and put it on Ryoko's stomach, then opened a draw and pulled out another cloth, and wrapped it around Ryoko. Her eyes closed, and her breathing was heavy.
"We need a blood donor." Bulma said. "It has to be either Gohan, Goten, or Trunks, a half saiyan."
"I'll do it." Gohan said. "I'm her brother." Bulma nodded.
"Me, too." Trunks said. "She needs a lot." Bulma nodded again.
Bulma went into another drawer and pulled out two needles. Gohan and Trunks extended their arms, and Bulma took blood from Gohan first. She injected it into Ryoko, then did the same with Trunks. She stepped away from her, and threw the needles away.
"We should leave her alone, now." Bulma said.
"No." Trunks said. "What if she has a bad dream again?"
"Trunks is right." Gohan said. Bulma shook her head.
"Someone doesn't get a sword in their stomach from a dream." She said. "Someone attacked her." Goku moaned and walked out of the room, they stared at the door for a moment, but then Trunks looked at Gohan, then they both looked at Bulma.
"Bulma…" Gohan started. "When we were looking for the dragon balls, Ryoko had a bad dream that her friend attacked her. We were all standing over her, and a cut appeared on her arm out of nowhere." Bulma looked at Ryoko.
"Well, someone's got to be doing this to her." She sighed. "You're right, someone should stay in here at all times. That attack almost killed her. She's not as strong as you all are." She turned around and grabbed an elastic from a counter and tide her hair back.
Goku looked up at the sky and took a deep breath in. He closed his eyes.
"Kai…why did you choose her?" He asked no one. He opened his eyes. His eyes reduced to slits. "Leave her alone, Ryuukaze."
"What are you doing?" Gohan asked. Bulma was sticking all kinds of wires to Ryoko's head.
"Monitoring her brain waves." Bulma said. "Maybe something is taking her ethereal body to another dimension and hurting her there. With this, I can see what's happening to her." She turned to her computer and started typing. Symbols, numbers, and letters appeared on the screen.
"I'll take the first watch." Trunks said.
"And I'll keep you company." Gohan said, smiling at Trunks. Trunks smiled back.
"You go sleep, mom." Trunks said. Bulma nodded.
"If this starts beeping, get me." Trunks and Gohan nodded as Bulma walked out of the lab.
"What do you think is going on?" Gohan asked. Trunks shrugged.
"I'm guessing that that guy that attacked us has some kind of psychic power and is attacking Ryoko in dreams." Trunks responded.
"But why Ryoko?" Gohan asked wearily. Trunks again shrugged.
Ryoko immediately recognized the room as the living room. Someone was sitting in a chair, their back to her and facing the wall. She recognized him as Trunks, and started walking over to him. He stood up, and revealed a horrifying sight.
The front of his muscle shirt was torn, and half of his face's skin was missing. He was coughing up blood, which was spilling down onto his chest. His chest's skin was bubbling and melting away, revealing his ribs and lungs. He coughed, his ribs rattling.
Ryoko stood, transfixed from fright, as Trunks came toward her with a clawed, bone hand. His claw grabbed her throat, and started tearing it, ripping away her skin, exposing her trachea and other internal throat organs.
"Gohan, go get my mom." Trunks said, the computer beeping loudly. Gohan ran out of the room, and Trunks stood by Ryoko's side.
Soon, Gohan, Bulma, and Goku ran into the room, and all four of them stared in horror at Ryoko. Her neck was starting to bleed, and her skin was being ripped out, and she cried out, "Trunks?! What are you doing?!"
"Ryoko, wake up!" Bulma screamed. Ryokos eyes opened, and she looked at all of them. Her neck was only bleeding slightly.
Bulma wrapped her neck up, and then sighed.
"This needs to stop." She said.
"Ryoko? Are you okay?" Goku asked. Ryoko nodded.
"My stomach doesn't hurt anymore." She said in amazement.
"Of course it doesn't." Everyone turned to the doorway to see Vegeta leaning against the frame. "You're a saiyan. Wounds as bad as those heal quickly."
"Well, that's a relief." Bulma said. Ryoko put her hand to her throat.
"In my dream, Trunks was ripping my throat out." She said tonelessly. "And when I woke up, my neck was bleeding."
"Did you have a dream that you were being stabbed?" Gohan asked. Ryoko shrugged.
"Kind of. I woke up and saw my dad…standing in front of me." She said, shaking her head. Goku frowned.
11
Two months passed, and the dreams had been going on steadily. Not as bad as a sword in her stomach, but pretty bad. She'd wake up with all kinds of gashes and wounds all over her body.
Presently, Ryoko was at the Satan High School dance. The dance had just started about a half an hour ago, and Ryoko was talking to a couple of her friends, Trunks standing shyly behind her. Because of Trunks shyness, he had not managed to get to meet many of the students at SCS, and Ryoko, Gohan, and Videl were his only real friends. But tonight, all the males in Ryoko's family had gone off on some training thing for the weekend, and her mother was visiting relatives. Ryoko was sad that her brother wasn't attending the first dance, but she soon got over it.
Standing in the shadows behind Ryoko and the giggling girls, Ryoko noticed that Trunks' eyes were on someone in front of her. She looked, and saw Kotori and some other boys coming towards them, some of the most popular boys in the school.
"You give it to him!" One whispered to Kotori. Kotori was holding a large box, and he was trying to suppress a smile.
"Here you go, Trunks. Since we all missed your birthday." Kotori said. The other boys were laughing. Ryoko eyed them, knowing that they were up to something. Trunks didn't seem to notice, seeming as he had just recently started high school and did not know the cruelty of some students.
"Uh, thank you." Trunks muttered, blushing lightly. Ryoko stood close to Trunks, eager to see what his gift was. He started to unwrap it, slowly. He pulled off the wrapping paper, then opened the box and his face turned bright red, along with Ryoko's. The other boys only laughed.
Inside the box was all sorts of things that would make anyone turn red. Bad magazines, objects, pictures… Also, there was a paper that read 'have fun with Ryoko!'
Ryoko was embarrassed, but also very upset with Kotori, who was cracking up.
Trunks closed the box and put it in the garbage, and walked out of the auditorium and into the men's bathroom.
"Ha! Did you see him blush?!" One of the boys cried. Ryoko, infuriated, grabbed Kotori by the ear and pulled him outside. The cold air made Ryoko's face feel hot, and she suddenly became aware of the light, making her wounds visible.
"Aw, you have to admit, that was funny!" Kotori cried.
"No it was not!" Ryoko screamed. Kotori winced, and his laughter ceased. "Why did you do something like that?! You knew it would upset Trunks!"
"Yeah, so?" Kotori asked, bravado written clearly all over his face.
"Kotori, we have gotten in some stupid fights over the years. But this one you purposely hurt Trunks, and you hurt me, too." She sighed. "I thought you were my friend, but I guess not." She turned to leave, but Kotori grabbed her arm.
"Wait, I'm sorry."
"Why did you do it?" She asked, looking at him. Kotori and some of the other boys had teased Trunks sometimes during school, but never this bad. Kotori looked at his feet, his face engulfed in shadow.
"I was…"
"You were what?" Ryoko spat. Kotori looked at her and blushed a little.
"I was…jealous, okay?" He asked. Ryoko blinked, her face the normal, tan color, and it softened.
"What do you mean?" She asked her voice weak and trembling.
"I'm jealous of your boyfriend, Ryoko." He said sternly.
"You…mean you…?"
"Yeah, I love you." He said, his eyes dropping to the side.
"Kotori…I loved you for so many years, why didn't you ever tell me?" Ryoko cried out, holding back fighting tears.
"Because I always thought that you were better than me!" He cried. "I've been waiting for someone like Trunks to come along so that you'd fall in love with him and then maybe when you had someone, I'd stop caring about you!" He shook his head, "but it's even harder, now. It's hard for me to see you and Trunks together all the time, and the worst thing is, you're so perfect together."
"Aw…Kotori…" Ryoko moaned. She was saddened that he had loved her all along, yet happy that he never told her because she found someone as perfect as Trunks.
"I waited too long to tell you…" He said, tears filling his eyes. He jumped into the air. "At least you're happy; you'd have Trunks any day rather than me." He flew away, leaving her alone to cry.
12
Fifteen minutes later, Ryoko went back into the gym, only to find that Trunks was still hiding in the bathroom. She didn't feel like facing the people in the gym, so she stood at the bathroom door, and tapped lightly.
"Trunks…" She said quietly, her voice cracked from crying. He didn't answer. "Come on, let's go home." The door opened slowly, and a still red Trunks came out. He went through the door and quickly took into the sky, Ryoko soon following. She stopped about halfway to their houses. Trunks stopped next to her. The tears were crawling back to her eyes, not just because Kotori had loved her all along, but because she knew what he was feeling, how much pain her was in, because Ryoko had felt that pain all of her life.
"What's wrong?" Trunks asked quietly. Ryoko started to sob again, and a surprised Trunks wrapped his arms around her to comfort her. "Ryoko?" Ryoko looked up at him, her eyes red and puffy. He sighed. "I don't know if this is why you're crying, but I know how to stop the dreams, or at least help."
"How?" Ryoko asked. He shook his head.
"I'll explain later. Come on, let's go to your house." Still holding her, Trunks flew them back to her house.
When they got there, they went into the house. Trunks closed and locked the door, and turned to Ryoko.
"It's called a saiyan bond. In it, we are totally connected, which means we can read each others minds, memories, and be in each others dreams." He said with a smirk. Ryoko smiled, in spite of all that had happened that night. He again blushed a little; his face had gone back to the normal color when they first arrived. "But…to obtain it…you have to…well…" He turned even deeper red, and Ryoko also blushed a little, but shook her head.
"Don't say it, you'll pass out from blushing so much." She said. Trunks nodded, still blushing.
"Do…you…want to? I mean, so the dreams will go away, or I can be there to help you." He said nervously. Ryoko laughed lightly.
"Well…yeah. Who knows what could happen in one of those dreams. I woke up with a sword in my stomach…and I almost had my throat ripped out." She said. He nodded, and then gulped.
13
Ryoko opened her eyes, seeing that she was in some kind of room which was made of all mirrors. A mirrored ceiling, walls, and floor. It was different than what she had ever dreamed before.
"It this it?" Trunks asked, and Ryoko was surprised to see that he was standing next to her, normal. She smiled when she remembered the saiyan link.
"No. It's usually in a different place every time. This room could change into something else, or something will happen here." She said. It was a little scary, seeing herself all over the room. A sharp pain ran up her wrists, and was shocked to see that they were opened again, blood pouring out. She was breathing heavily, and hoping that the gashes wouldn't spread through her body again.
"What?" Trunks asked, seeing the horrified look on Ryoko's face, but then a horrific expression also spread onto his face, along with pain. Ryoko looked down at his leg. From the knee down, his left pant leg was being ripped off, and then fell to the floor. A very deep, blood gash was spreading down it, exposing his bone. Ryoko winced, and felt like she was going to vomit.
Trunks gasped loudly as the bone was ripped out of his leg. He fell, and a pool of blood started spreading across the mirror.
"Trunks!" Ryoko cried, running to and kneeling beside him. She held her wrist, which didn't seem half as bad as Trunks' leg. He groaned loudly. "Oh, Dende, I hope you don't wake up without a shin bone." He groaned again.
Laughter echoed across the room, and Ryoko stood up. She knew that Trunks was defenseless right now, so she was on her own to protect herself and him. She looked around the room, and didn't see anyone.
The next thing that Trunks knew, he was in a forest, alone, and with a shin bone. He was standing up, but out of relief, he sat down on the ground and sighed.
"This is what Ryoko has been dealing with? Man…" He said, and then looked around. "Ryoko?" He called. Trunks continued crying Ryoko's name as he searched for her. As he walked forward, he noticed a man, leaning against a tree. What's that guy doing out here in the middle of nowhere?
"That's specifically what I was going to ask you..." Said the teal haired man, with a glint in his yellow eyes.
"What?! How...you...you read my mind?" Shouted Trunks, but then his voice turned into a mock. "I guess if you can read minds, you don't have to ask me what I'm doing out here then!"
"That's true. Looking for the woman that you love?" The man smiled.
"Yes."
"Do you want her back, Trunks?"
"If you've taken her, I swear I'll...." The man shook his head.
"I haven't taken her." He stepped aside, and Ryoko fell forward, as if she was inside the tree. She stood up, and then rubbed her head. She saw the man, and jumped up and stood next to Trunks. "See? I won't take her, I'll kill her."
"Not while I'm around." Trunks said. The man laughed.
"You can't do much without a bone." He said, and with a wave of his hand, Trunks fell, his shin bone gone again. The man laughed. "Come on, Ryoko, try and make me sorry."
Ryoko lifted her hands and put them together, entwining her fingers, and then pointed them at the man, "Baad Angarru!" She cried, the chi blast that she had created on her own. A pink blast rushed toward him, and he laughed. Ryoko did the same technique again, but as a super saiyan.
"Come on, Ryoko! You know that you have more power than that." He said. "Fine, I'll let you wake up." A small smirk spread across his face. "See you tomorrow."
Ryoko quickly sat up, in her room again. She was breathing heavily, and looked at Trunks. His eyes were also open, and he was examining his leg.
"It hurts, but its fine." He stated. Ryoko smiled. That's good, she thought. "Yeah, I know."
"What?"
"You just said 'that's good'." He said, looking at her blankly. She blinked, and then laughed.
"The bond. That's why you heard what I just thought." She said, and then realized how different things felt. She felt like her and Trunks were…one person, had one mind. She could feel what he was feeling, hear what he was thinking.
"Wow, it's weird." Trunks said, looking around as if to see something differently. He lay down again, putting his arms behind his head. Ryoko looked out the window, and saw that the sun was just rising. Ryoko looked at him, and only then did she understand how truly awful his past was, now seeing it through his eyes. His father and all of his friend dying, seeing his world be torn apart, and seeing his best friend and master, dead.
Ryoko shook her head, as if trying to shake away the memories. She lay down, and fell back to sleep.
Ryoko woke again to the sound of the phone ringing, and picked it up.
"…hello?" She asked groggily.
"Hi…" Ryoko groaned.
"No."
"What?"
"You're not coming over today…"
"Why not?" Mai asked.
"Because I'm tired!" Ryoko cried.
"Please? I'll come over later! I haven't seen you in a long time!" Ryoko sighed, and looked at the clock.
"Whoa! It's one in the afternoon!" Ryoko cried. "Uh, Mai, come at like, two. Bye." Ryoko hung up and jumped out of bed. Trunks sat up and rubbed his eyes.
"What?" He asked. Ryoko opened her drawer and started pulling out clothes. Trunks blushed deeply; Ryoko still didn't have anything on. She didn't need to tell him what was wrong, because Trunks quickly understood that the day was Sunday and her parents and brothers were to be home at one thirty.
Trunks also jumped up and started pulling on clothes, and Ryoko, fully dressed, was doing her hair. When she finished, Trunks pulled on his last boot and sighed.
"You'd better go." Ryoko said. Trunks nodded, standing up. Ryoko smiled and hugged him. "Thanks, Trunks. For being there." He smiled and nodded, hugging her back.
"No problem." He said. Ryoko kissed him lightly and quickly, then they said their goodbyes and he left.
15
Ryoko sat down on her front lawn and sighed loudly. Of course, Mai had arrived around one fifteen, and Ryoko was waiting for her parents to come home.
"Can we go to Gohan's today?" Mai asked, sitting down next to Ryoko. Ryoko looked at her, and then laughed.
"You don't know, do you?" She asked, amusement clearly heard in her voice. Mai looked back at her.
"Know what?" Before Ryoko could answer, her father and brothers landed on the front lawn in front of the girls. Mai surprised, leaned back and supported herself with her hands.
"Hey, Ryoko." Goku said happily. "Have a good weekend?"
"Yup." Ryoko said, smiling.
"Hi, Mai." Gohan said. "Are you sleeping over tonight?" Mai nodded. "Cool." Gohan, Goten, and Goku went into the house.
"What's going on?" Mai asked, dumbfounded.
"Well, at my birthday party, I found out that Goku and Chichi were my real parents, so they moved into my house with me that day and my other parents…um, I think they moved to Italy." Ryoko said like it was no big deal. Mai's jaw dropped.
"You mean you live with Gohan?" Mai asked. Ryoko nodded.
"Yup, he's my brother." She said. "We're twins."
"That's not fair! I wanna live with Gohan!" Mai cried. "What else happened?! You haven't called me in such a long time!"
"Well…you already know that Trunks and I are together." Mai sighed angrily and nodded. "Well, I found out that Kotori has loved me for who knows how long." Ryoko said a bit more quietly. Mai sighed and threw up her arms.
"Of course! You live with Gohan, Trunks is your boyfriend, and Kotori likes you! Can your life get any better?!" She cried. Ryoko looked at the sky and laughed lightly.
"My life isn't as great as you think." She said. Mai gave her a blank stare.
"Oh really? How?" She asked. Ryoko stood up and pulled her shirt up a little bit, revealing a deep gash, which had already had started to heal but still looked pretty gruesome. "How did you get that?!" Ryoko sat back down and told Mai everything, about how she was a saiyan, how Trunks was the future, how Mr. Satan never really saved the Earth, how her brother did, and all the other things, and told her lastly about the dreams.
"So that's how my life isn't so great." Ryoko said. Mai stared at her, not sure if she believed her friend. But Ryoko proved that it was true by showing Mai the Baad Angarru, and then she believed her.
"I still can't believe that you live with Gohan." She said. "I didn't bring pretty pajamas!" Ryoko chuckled.
"You won't need pajamas after I'm through with you." Said a voice from above them. Ryoko jumped up and looked at the sky, seeing the man that had attacked Trunks and her in the dream. The man had dark, olive green skin and a black hairstyle that looked similar to a mow hawk, and was wearing some kind of old, layered clothing.
"Who are you?" Ryoko cried, more quietly than she intended. She was terrified, now seeing that man in real life.
"Who am I? Have you forgotten?"
"Deborah?"
"Do I look like that weakling?" He asked. Ryoko stepped back, which was useless since the man was in the sky. Gohan, Goten, and Goku ran out.
"Ryuukaze!" Goku cried. 'Ryuukaze' laughed.
"So, at least you know me, Goku." He said. Vegeta and the two Trunks also came out.
"What's going on here?" Vegeta asked.
"Come on, Goku, fight me! Protect your daughter!" Ryuukaze cried. Goku stood still. "Fine, then I'll just kill her now." Ryuukaze extended his hand, and a large amount of energy starting flying at Ryoko, but before it even came close to her, a Super Saiyan level one was blocking the attack, completely unharmed. "Oh good, one down, three to go."
"Trunks!" Goku cried, turning towards them. "Take Ryoko in the back yard, and hold her back!" He screamed. Trunks nodded, and pulled Ryoko into the back. "You too, Vegeta!"
Vegeta, feeling Goku's new awesome powers, grunted and followed his son, Gohan, Goten, and a crying Mai. All Vegeta had on his mind was wondering how Goku was so strong if he was only in the first super saiyan stage. Ryoko seemed kind of in a daze, staring forward at nothing.
When they were all back there, a normal Goku landed, breaking Ryoko's daze.
"Where did that guy go?" She asked. Her father sighed.
"He said that he was going to be back." Goku said.
"Kakarott, what did you do?" Vegeta asked. "Tell me now!"
"You're so rude!" Mai cried, calming down.
"I'm not rude." Vegeta said. "It's just that you're insignificant." Mai pouted and folded her arms. Vegeta grabbed Ryoko away from Trunks and held a hand to her head. "Show me now or I'll blast this girls' brains out!" Goku groaned, but nodded.
"I will, but Trunks, like I said, hold her and do not let her go." Goku looked at Trunks, then Gohan. "No, never mind, Gohan, you hold her."
"But dad-"
"Do as I say, son." Goku said, seriously. Gohan nodded and grabbed his sister. Goku sighed, and then turned into a super saiyan. Actually, it was exactly the same as a super saiyan, except on his forehead, he had a golden headpiece with three jewels in it, and lightly there were some symbols engraved into it.
"What the hell is on your head?" Mai asked, a bit amused. Ryoko had the same, blank, dazed look on her face, and her eyes looked hollow.
"Gohan, let me go, I'm fine." She said, a little tonelessly.
"But dad said to hold you…" Gohan said, confused.
"I said let me go!" She screamed, and Gohan, Vegeta, Trunks, and Mai were knocked back with her increasing energy. Ryoko stood, and then looked back at the four. "Oh, um, sorry." She said, and Gohan got the idea that she really wasn't. Trunks' face hardened.
"You're not Ryoko." He said. Ryoko laughed.
"My, my, how did you know?" She asked. Goku groaned.
"Oh no…" He murmured.
The girl who was not Ryoko looked around, and sighed, looking weak. She gave a slight smirk to Goku, then fell to her knees, and soon after, the ground. Color returned to her face. Trunks and Gohan approached her cautiously, then deciding that it was her again, lifted her off of the ground. Goku returned to normal.
"Let's bring her to Capsule Corp., we're not safe here." Goku said. "We'll use instant transmission." Gohan and Trunks nodded, putting a hand on Goku's shoulders. "Come on, Mai." Mai ran over and put her hand slowly onto the space between Goku's shoulder and neck.
"What did I get myself into…?" She asked herself angrily.
"You coming, Vegeta?" Goku asked. Vegeta snorted.
"I can fly on my own, Kakarott." He spat. Goku smiled and nodded.
"Suit yourself." He said, then they disappeared.