Author's note:

Hey everyone!

First of all let me thank all for the reviews! I have NEVER got more than about six reviews for four chapters but now I'm getting more than ten for four! I love you all so much *sniff* this is all thanks to you guys. The usual rate for my other stories is, like, one review for every hundred chapters… shows what a bad author I am :( but I promise I'll work on my writing so I can satisfy everyone better! Oh, and if you are reading this and haven't reviewed, please make a contribution… please? *sweet, innocent smile* I'm getting a bit desperate with the lack of reviews! Am I really that bad? *quivering of lip and teary eyes*

Second of all, when you have read the seventh chapter (not up yet, I know) you will find that I have added a mysterious character named Sindor. I have five original characters in this story; Marty whom you have known since chapter one, and Cleo, Kat and Mary whom you'll get to know later- and Sindor. I mentioned the first four in the disclaimer of chapter one, but I forgot about Sindor! When you get to chapter 7- or if you want to, right now- go back to chapter one and read the disclaimer over again, I've replaced the chapter so it is added with useful information about Sindor which you'd probably like to read, but the rest of the chapter especially the story has not been in any way altered, so don't worry about that.

Thanks again! Sorry for the long note :)

Luv, Fëaruin

Power, Deception, Lies

Part V

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Marty, all of a sudden, rose in protest as the others left the table.

"I'm coming too," he said flatly, in a calm yet stern voice that sounded curiously odd to the others, as they whirled around suddenly to look at him.

Videl sighed. "Marty… we can't let you come with us. Who knows what's out there, what's happened to the others. And we might not even know whether this is just some joke they're playing on us that is really not funny at all, or if there really is something wrong," she turned her gaze away from his unreadable face, looking directly at the others instead. "Besides, you've just recovered, and it's best if you rest at home to get your energy up."

"No!" Marty protested again. A few strands of his brown hair fell over his eyes, his perfect mouth now angry, and his eyes slightly sad. His poetic soft voice, still gentle and sanctified, had a hint of despair in it, and he looked at them with a merciful gaze that tore at their hearts. "Please, Goku… Videl… let me come. I may not have remembered anything since I had come, since that monsoon, but I do remember that all of you have been like a family to me ever since, making up well for the one which maybe has been permanently buried in my memory. These missing villagers are my family too. Let me help you."

Goku sighed, his nose wrinkled in dilemma, as he turned to the others and used his telepathy to speak to them. 'I was thinking we could fly… it'll save us time… but if Marty comes, we can't carry him. We'll have to use our cruiser bikes, and that way we won't be fast enough to catch up to Chi chi.'

"If we use Nimbus…" Gohan suggested, careful to keep his voice into a low whisper.

"…Or Icarus…" Videl added.

Eighteen and Goku looked at each other and sighed. Eighteen turned back to the two young ones and said, "why are you making these suggestions? I don't even think that Marty should come."

'His request is tearing at my heart, Eighteen,' Goku explained telepathically. 'It's true that we have treated him like our own family member, and this is just a passionate plea to pay back for what we have done. Just let him come. Nimbus won't let him down, he can stay in the air and keep safe.'

Eighteen groaned disapprovingly. "Oh, fine. But I don't want to see you hurt, Marty. The second you push yourself too far, I am going to tell Nimbus to take you home straight away."

"Thank you," Marty smiled genuinely, a thankful light glistening in his soft eyes. He pushed the wooden chair back, and followed them to the front door, where Gohan made a sharp whistle that almost shattered all their eardrums.

"Nimbus!" he yelled, gesturing at something absent towards him.

Marty was confused; although he had heard everything that the others had said, no matter how soft they whispered it (except for Goku's telepathic speech). He didn't know who or what a Nimbus was, and he was expecting something completely out of the possibilities of the Universe, something mortally impossible. And he was right. His eyes widened in awe and confusion, as he beheld a little yellow cloud floating towards them, veering around the sky above them and finally stopping gently in front of the five figures that stood at the door.

"Whoa…" he murmured tenderly, still in shock from what he had seen. Goku smiled at his awe, and placed a large hand on the youngster's shoulder.

"Climb on. Don't be afraid; Nimbus will never drop you."

Marty turned his head, and looked at Goku's eyes shining with wisdom. He smiled the familiar smile, flawless and beautiful, that they had not seen in a while, walked away unintentionally from the hand on his shoulder, and turned around to sit on the cloud as if he was about to mount a horse like a noblewoman instead of straddling it. He lowered himself down gently onto the cloud, and suddenly fell through it like it was never there, as if it were a hologram. Marty moaned in pain as he lay beneath the cloud, as Videl and Eighteen rushed to help him up.

"What happened?" Marty asked with a cracking voice as if he were upset by betrayal, painfully rubbing his shoulder. "You said that Nimbus would never drop me."

Goku stared wide-eyed at Marty, and then at the other three. 'I thought Nimbus would only refuse riders who are not pure,' he commented telepathically, very shocked and confused.

"That's what I thought too," Gohan muttered, as he helped brush the dirt and grass off Marty's lap. There was a small silence as Eighteen, Gohan and Videl tended to Marty as if he were a solid-fleshed idol to worship, and afterwards they all stood in a semicircle, with Nimbus in the center, trying to decide what to do.

"There's probably something wrong with Nimbus…" Videl faltered, as she stood exactly where Marty was before, leapt up into the air and landed seated on the soft cloud, straddling Nimbus. "Yep… there's something wrong. Nimbus is fine with me."

"You suggested Icarus before," Eighteen said with a rush. "Let's try. We don't have much time. It'll be nightfall before we know it."

Gohan nodded in agreement, the same lines of worry set upon his flushed cheeks. He turned his face upwards, taking a deep breath and yelling from the bottom of his stomach, "ICARUS!"

'What now?' Marty thought to himself, as he ran his eyes across the sky, expecting another cloud that would jest him like Nimbus apparently had. Instead, he heard a distant barking, sounding slightly like a seal. He followed the cry to a tree in the distance, although not far away, and was startled out of his focused state when a purple dragon-like horned creature burst out of the leaves, flew whimsically towards them in the speed of a rocket, and landed with a loud crash next to Nimbus which flew away at that instant.

"Aww, Icarus," Gohan laughed, stroking his little friend's head lovingly. "You scared Nimbus away."

For that comment, Gohan received a playful bark, which echoed into the horizon and devoured all silence.

Gohan knew what he had to do, as he received a glare from Videl. "Icarus, will you take Marty? We want to go to check a few places around, and he can't fly."

Icarus barked again at Gohan, and finally turned his eyes upon Marty. It was not understood for a few minutes what they had been doing, for the silence filled the atmosphere again as Icarus and Marty pierced each other's eyes. Suddenly, it all became crystal clear, as a low growl which had originally been too low-pitched for them to hear suddenly became audible. The four Z warriors gasped and laid their eyes upon Icarus in shock, and then upon Marty's slightly afraid form.

Marty did not understand what was happening as he backed away unwillingly, although trying his best not to show his new family that he was afraid. A slight shudder ran down his spine as Icarus continued to stare intently at him with the low growl that tore at his mind, and suddenly flying away as quickly and mysteriously as he had come.

The four Z warriors that stood at Marty's side were beyond shock. They did not know what to make of this. Looking at Marty, he was obviously pure. His face was perfect and flawless, his every move tender and his voice soft and gentle, even with a breathtakingly yet unintentionally seductive hint at times. He had obviously easily taken a place in their hearts, and seeing Nimbus reject him was something they did not expect. Why, Marty was probably the most pure boy in the world! With his amnesia, he was probably a stray prince hunting in the woods or so forth when the monsoon unexpectedly carried him away! That might explain the outfit he wore when he first came into their lives; heavenly white, all over, matching the crystal purity of his face, although torn and splattered with blood and mud. And Icarus; what was wrong with Icarus? He was a sweet little creature, friendly and eternally playful. But why not today? Why not with Marty, who would obviously steal the hearts of every living creature that set eyes upon him?

Goku shook his head, and decided to leave that thought for another day. "Come on, everyone. Let's just take the cruiser bikes. You can ride with Gohan, Marty…"

"A cruiser bike?" Marty suddenly intervened nervously. "Well, you see, I don't really know… I've never ridden such-"

Videl looked at him rather worriedly, but also curiously. "How would you know? You've lost your memory, Marty. And cruiser bikes aren't really that primitive…"

"I don't know," Marty shook his head, a genuine expression carved into his eyes. "I can't remember anything. But I don't feel like I've ever ridden one of those."

"Well, it's not as if you're going to fall off, sweetie," Videl took his hand, leading them to the back of the village, in the shelter of a small gazebo where all their vehicles were stored and kept safe. "You're gonna ride with Gohan. Just hold on to him and you'll be fine."

"Well… if you say so," Marty agreed nervously. He watched the others leap up and land softly onto their bikes, and Gohan gesturing at him to climb on behind. Marty hesitated for a while, before he gathered up the courage, reminding himself that he'll live only once, and should try everything once. He grinned playfully at Gohan, who grinned back, and he climbed on behind the young University student, his arms encircling Gohan's waist.

"All right, Marty," Gohan encouraged, as the others already veered away onto the road. "Hold on tight."

Marty nodded, and was surprised that from his unrealized standards he had managed to find riding this new vehicle fun. He suppressed the urge to cheer and embarrass himself, for they were out to do something important, not to parade around the rocky dirt road on cruiser bikes like fully licensed acrobats.

Gohan turned his head back, and was surprised to see that Marty did not worry that his eyes had left the road. "How are you back there, friend?"

"Wonderful!" Marty smiled a sweet smile that melted Gohan's heart, although unusually having to raise his voice a little to be heard over the noise of the wind that they passed with such a high velocity.

"That's good!" Gohan laughed. "And to think that you were so reluctant a while ago. We're quite a bit behind the others, so would you mind if I speed up a little, or would you be more comfortable at this speed?"

"I'm fine, Gohan," Marty grinned with an accepting shine in his eyes. "Go ahead and accelerate if you wish. Videl is right; I feel quite content, and I do not believe that I will fall off. Besides, believe it or not, I find this ride quite exhilarating."

Gohan gave Marty a mischievous look, who raised his eyebrow whimsically. Then they both burst into laughter, and Marty's grip around Gohan's waist tightened as he turned his eyes back to the dirt road and accelerated, sending their hair flying like hunting birds behind them.

Suddenly Gohan was forced to stop when he noticed the others slow down, dismount their bikes and race off to the side of the road. A sudden brake next to the grass almost catapulted Marty into a tree, if it were not for his arms around Gohan's waist.

"Please inform me the next time you plan to do that," Marty mumbled, as he got off slightly shuddering from the sudden brake. Gohan laughed softly and apologetically, and Marty smiled a forgiving smile that was tender and caring, as they both climbed off Gohan's bike and headed towards the others.

As they set their feet upon the grassy field that bordered the dirt road, they noticed that the others were standing next to a group of trees approximately fifteen meters away. Their voices were low and all faces slightly worried, as they talked to someone whose face was all too familiar to Gohan.

"Piccolo!" Gohan yelled excitedly, as he jumped and ran over to where his friends were, leaving Marty confusedly behind.

To be continued…