(AN: Oh good Kami. Page 96? *sighs* I had to work quickly on this chapter, knowing you all would kill me
if I didn't. But I swear. This is the last chapter before I leave to Europe. I leave on the third of July, people!
Anyway, in this chapter there is romance romance romance! And, as the titles states. many mysteries
are revealed, and many questions are answered. And, by the way, I had planned this from the beginning
(for once everyone in the story actually let me tell them what to do *grins*), so even if I was answering
your prayers, I was going to even before I heard them. And now I'll let you read the story, which y'all (hey,
I'm Southern, I can say y'all) are probably dying to devour. He he. Also, thanks for wishing me good luck
on the trip! Ja, and enjoy! ~AC)
Chapter Eighteen: Mysteries Revealed
Gohan moved forward until he was pressing Trunks into the wall. The lavender-haired man watched in a
mixture of shock and fear as, for a moment, Gohan's eyes flashed emerald and the tips of his hair glowed
gold. Then the older half Saiya-jinn apparently calmed down, because his hair and eyes returned to their
normal ebony. Gohan's eyes blazed with a dizzying mixture of emotions Trunks couldn't even begin to
define.
"Now," Gohan repeated, "about my daughter."
"Y-yes, sir?" stammered Trunks, still dangling in the son of Goku's grip.
"I believe you were about to kiss her, were you not?" growled the older man, raising a surprised
eyebrow. The son of Vegeta weakly nodded, cringing at the flash of green that shone in Gohan's eyes for
a split second. "Why?"
Trunks stared at Gohan in astonishment. How was he supposed to answer that?
"I-I," he stammered, frantically searching his mind for an acceptable answer. Finally he gave up,
and told the half Saiya-jinn the truth. The truth that he had attempted to hide from himself.
"I... love her."
****************************************************************************************************************
Bra didn't think she had punched Goten that hard. However, apparently she had, for he was still choking.
After a couple more minutes of hearing his ragged gasps, and feeling the walls press in on her,
she worriedly questioned, "Goten, are you okay?" Finally, Goten spoke.
"Y-you're claustrophobic?" he wheezed. Then, amazingly and foolishly, he chuckled. Bra blinked.
So that's what he had been choked up about. He had been trying not to laugh.
"I," Bra said slowly, "am going to kill you." Goten stopped laughing.
Of course, Bra's well-aimed kick also helped end his chuckles.
****************************************************************************************************************
"Finally!" Mirai exclaimed as Marron stopped her march. The woman glared at him for a moment,
then turned to open a door.
"Remember," she said slowly, her face grim, "this a secret only known between three people.
Four, counting you."
"Who?" asked Mirai, stepping into the room. What he saw made him completely freeze, unable
to hear anything, even when Marron replied.
"Doctor Bulma, myself, Li-Won Kun, and you."
Mirai continued to stare, his mouth agape. Behind him, Marron silently smirked.
****************************************************************************************************************
Goten leaned against the door, wincing as he gasped for breath, his entire body in pain.
Through gritted teeth, he muttered, "Did you have to kick THERE?"
"Oh, did I kick you there?" he heard Bra sweetly question, sounding innocent. Goten scowled as
the pain slowly began to subside.
"This time," he said solemnly, glaring at Bra's shadowy form in the darkness, "I am going to kill
YOU."
"Go ahead and try!" laughed the girl, and Goten lunged.
****************************************************************************************************************
Goku slowed his pace so that Pan caught up with him. The Saiya-jinn smiled mischievously down at his
only grandchild, who smiled back.
"So, you and Trunks have become friends?" he asked, sounding innocent. Pan flushed, and
looked away, breaking their locked gazes.
"Yes," she mumbled, looking at the wall as she walked.
"Close friends?" Goku persisted in his questioning.
"Yes." Her word was a mere whisper, but the crimson of her cheeks told the truth. His
granddaughter had fallen for Vegeta's son. Hard.
****************************************************************************************************************
"You... love her?" Gohan repeated the young half Saiya-jinn's words, raising an eyebrow. "I
sincerely doubt that." He watched the lavender-locked young man bristle, and inwardly smirked. Let's see
if he could get the boy riled up enough to tell the truth.
"I do!" Trunks declared hotly, glaring at the older man. "It's just that I'm too old for her, and I don't
know what to do!" Gohan's eyes narrowed. Foolish words. Gohan knew his daughter had fallen head over
heels for the boy. He had seen that love-struck look in her eyes. If Trunks didn't follow his heart, he was
going to break hers. And that wouldn't do. That wouldn't do at all.
"Now, Trunks," he said softly, a cold smile forming on his lips, "I think I do know what you should
do..." Trunks stared at him warily, with the look of a trapped animal.
"What's that?" he cautiously asked. Gohan tightened his grip on the young man's dark blue shirt,
and his smile widened.
"Now, listen closely," he said, and began to speak his low, dangerous words.
****************************************************************************************************************
Bra was suddenly trapped, firm, strong hands fastened onto her shoulders.
"Oi!" she growled, kicking out at the dark form. "Get away, Goten!"
"You may have started it, but I'm going to end it," the dark-haired half Saiya-jinn declared,
laughing goofily. His grip tightened, and Bra yelped, scrambling backwards until her back was pressed up
against-
Towels?
"What the hell?" she declared, twisting her head to peer blindly at the towel-like objects.
"Towels?"
"What are you talking about?" Goten questioned, sounding puzzled. His grip relaxed slightly as
Bra, amused, informed him that they were in a towel closet.
"Well, at least towels are soft," commented the dark-haired man. "It could have been a broom
closet."
"Broom closets have things other than brooms, baka," Bra snapped, and aimed a slap towards
what she thought was his forehead. Her hand connected with something that wasn't his head. Goten
yelped in pain, one hand releasing her shoulder to grab at his face.
"Ow! My nose!" he whimpered, and Bra could sense his glare even through the darkness. The
azure-haired girl shrugged.
"Sorry..."
****************************************************************************************************************
"We have to go find them!" Rayne yelped, dancing from one foot to the other.
Dende raised an eyebrow. "Do you even know who they are?" The girl shrugged.
"Only by reputation," she said, still bouncing with excitement. She grabbed the tiny kami's hand.
"Gohan told me all about them. Let's go!"
"Shouldn't we tell Goku and Gohan and..." Dende's words trailed off with a sigh as Rayne happily
bolted in an eastward direction, dragging the Namek behind her.
****************************************************************************************************************
"You, dear Trunks, are going to do exactly as I say. Or rather, as Pan says. If she wants to be
with you, so be it. I'm not going to stop my daughter from doing something she wants. I must warn you
that if you should EVER make my daughter cry, be prepared to face the consequences. If, however, she
doesn't want to be with you, you are to leave her alone and never bother her again. If you do..." Gohan let
the threat hang ominously in the silent room for a moment, then released the man and turned to exit. He
paused, and turned slightly to speak one last thing to the lavender-haired man.
Trunks had slid to the ground, a dazed look on his face. One hand was absently attempting to smooth his
rumpled shirt, to no effect, the other running a hand through his messy hair. Gohan smirked slightly.
"By the way," he added, "is it just me, or is something happening between my brother and your
sister?"
****************************************************************************************************************
Goten stared through the darkness, trying to make out Bra's face. She had been silent for quite some
time. Too quiet.
"Bra?" he asked cautiously. "Are you planning to hit me again?" The daughter of Bulma didn't
answer. Instead, an odd, ragged gasp filled Goten's ears. Goten blinked. Was she crying or something?
"B-Bra?" he repeated. "Are you okay?" This time, Bra did reply, and her words were choked and
stuttering.
"I-I hate being scared of the dark, I h-hate being trapped in a closet, I hate b-being claustrophobic,
and I hate you!" Goten flinched at her venom.
"I-I'm sorry," he said weakly, and waited the by-now familiar swat.
****************************************************************************************************************
Dende and Rayne jogged side by side, racing down the streets towards their far-off destination.
"Are you sure we shouldn't tell anyone about this?" the Kami timidly suggested.
"We'll find them on our own," was Rayne's firm answer. Dende sighed.
"Can we at least walk?" he pleaded.
"Later."
"Please?"
"If you keep bothering me, no."
"I'm the Kami of Earth. You can't boss me around."
"Watch me."
"I'll- I'll bring the wrath of the weather down upon you!"
"Not if you want to get wet."
"Shut up."
****************************************************************************************************************
"I think that Goten has a crush on Bra. But I'm not sure about Bra. She seems to hate your
brother's guts, no offense," Trunks weakly replied, slowly standing. He managed a weak smile, thankful
that Gohan hadn't blasted him.
Gohan smiled. "No problem. If she truly doesn't like him, then he'll get over it."
"Hopefully," Trunks murmured under his breath.
"Now," Gohan said, draping a comrade-like arm around Trunks's shoulders, "let's go find Goten
and Bra."
"Who knows," Trunks said with a smirk. "Maybe they're making out in a closet... Erase that."
Gohan raised an eyebrow, but couldn't help but smile.
"Do all young men have dirty minds?" he questioned.
"Probably," Trunks replied with a shrug, then added hastily, "But I don't think about that sort of
thing when I'm with your daughter, sir."
"Good. Keep it that way."
****************************************************************************************************************
"Oh. My. Kami," Mirai finally whispered, staring in awe. "It's a- it's a-"
"Teleportation ship," Bulma finished with a both proud and weary smile. "I've been secretly
working for years on it. Marron's been helping me gather parts. Since Li-Won is an expert on black hole
theories and lightspeed and the like."
The teleportation ship was amazing. It looked large enough to fit at least a dozen adults, with gleaming
metal the color of silver. There were no wings, but it reminded Mirai of a gleaming airplane. The ship had
been carefully built, for he could spot no flaws in its outer shell.
Li-Won looked up with an exhausted smile; the boy hadn't slept for two days.
"It can travel several lightspeeds in a minute or so," he softly informed the shocked half Saiya-jinn.
"We merely need your opinion on whether it will work or not."
"It looks... great," Mirai murmured, moving towards the ship. "How do you open it?"
"Simply say the password," said Marron, a dimple appearing as she smiled. "Doctor Bulma
thought of it." The doctor, to Mirai's amazement, blushed slightly.
"What's the password?" questioned Mirai curiously.
"Watashi no mirai, watashi no nozomi," Bulma said softly. "My future, my hope."
Mirai nodded. How fitting.
****************************************************************************************************************
"A-are you afraid of the dark?" Goten hesitantly questioned, rubbing his aching head.
"What do you think, stupid?" sneered the teenage girl. Goten puzzled over their situation for a
long moment, and slowly thought of a plan. The young man began to smile.
"Bra..." he said coaxingly.
"What?" she asked crossly.
Still smiling, he said softly, "I've got a surprise for you."
"Wonderful. What, are you going tell me that you've figured a way out of this stupid closet?"
Goten sighed, and shook his head. Clenching his fists, he began to power up.
"Goten- what're you-" Bra began, then gasped in shock as, with a loud growl, Goten's eyes
blazed emerald, and his dark hair turned gold.
"Now you don't have to be scared of the dark," Goten said proudly as his glowing golden form
illuminated Bra's surprised face.
****************************************************************************************************************
"Where are they?" Goku sighed as Gohan and Trunks joined them.
Pan shrugged. "They'll show up somewhere..." She faltered in her words as they all sensed
through their bracelets that Goten had gone Super Saiya-jinn.
"What on Earth-" began Pan, but Goku had already begun to pelt in the direction of Goten's ki.
Frowning, the other three followed him.
****************************************************************************************************************
Capsule Corporation had been very near the outskirts, for Rayne and Dende quickly reached it. By then,
the Kami was panting. He eyed the human girl with annoyance. She wasn't even out of breath.
"How did you get so fit?" he demanded, causing Rayne to smile.
"Since the Android Army was always chasing me, Gohan thought I should be able to run for long
amounts of time. He made me stay in shape. So, I may not be powerful in the ki department, but I'm
strong in endurance."
"Lucky," growled Dende, and Rayne laughed as they entered the forest outside the city.
****************************************************************************************************************
Bra felt unexpected tears rise in her eyes as the small closet glowed with golden light. She tried to
speak, but failed. After a moment, she managed a weak smile.
"T-thank you," she whispered. Goten's lips curved in a smile.
"Anything for you, Bra," he said, his emerald eyes soft. Once again, Bra's heart unexpectedly
twisted. Without thinking, she took one step towards him. They were instantly face to face.
Goten blinked, then smiled goofily. "Do you think I should blast the door open? Or would your
mother get mad at me?"
"Whatever you want," she replied, and impulsively hugged him. Goten stiffened in her embrace,
then slowly returned the hug. Bra felt the corners of her lips curl in a smile as Goten's ki warmed her.
Maybe he wasn't so bad after all. Neither noticed the door open, until a voice spoke.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" an amused voice commented, and the two quickly
turned to see Pan, a delighted smirk on her face. Trunks poked his head over Pan's shoulder, and
chuckled.
"I told you they were making out in a closet, Gohan- Ow!" Trunks yelped as Bra pulled from
Goten's arms and punched him in the arm.
"We were hugging, baka," she snarled. "Hugging as friends. We were not making out."
"Unfortunately not," Goten mumbled, then added quickly, noticing Bra's hand rising, "Just
kidding!"
"I'm sure," muttered Trunks, and this time he ran as Pan, Bra, and Goten's arms shot out to
punch him.
****************************************************************************************************************
"I think it'll work," Mirai said slowly as he sat in the first seat of the teleportation ship. "But there's
only one way to find out, isn't there?" He smiled wickedly, raising an eyebrow towards the other three.
"Hold on," Bulma said quickly, beginning to frown, "it could mess up, and we might get trapped in
between, and then where would we all be?" Mirai smirked.
"That's why you three aren't coming," he declared softly, and with a gentle movement of his hand,
sent a ki blast towards their feet. The three leapt back in shock, and fell in a tumble of limbs out of the
ship.
"Watashi no mirai, watashi no nozomi," Mirai said softly, and the door slid shut with a quiet click.
"Mirai!" he heard Bulma shout, but ignored the woman's cries. His finger hovered over the button
Bulma had said would send him to the destination they had agreed upon.
The President of Capsule Corporation smiled, his eyes glowing with excitement.
"This is going to be fun," he said, and his finger pressed the button.
And then he was gone, along with the ship.
****************************************************************************************************************
Goten, Bra, Trunks, and Pan stood facing Gohan and Goku. Rubbing his forehead, Goku began with their
plan that O'Dell had already begun to put into action.
"As you all saw from Pan's demonstration, women with Saiya-jinn blood in their veins can go
Super Saiya-jinn." He sighed, looking directly at Bra and Pan. "I know you two won't enjoy hearing this,
but, unfortunately, because of a gene in the blood, you can only go to Super Saiya-jinn level one."
"What?" Pan yelped, as Bra scowled, and growled, "Stupid sexist Saiya-jinn genes!"
"That's okay. I can't go SSJ2 either," Goten pointed out, and the two girls kicked him. "Ow!"
Never mind..." Goku smiled slightly, and continued.
"Still, becoming Super Saiya-jinn would be helpful in our fight against the androids-"
"Say, who created the androids anyway?" questioned Goten curiously. "You never told us."
Gohan sighed, and spoke.
"A man called Dr. Jaku. He was a rival of Gero's, and ended up stealing the beginning works of
Gero's attempts at building androids. Unfortunately, he was even more brilliant that Gero himself.
Although it took him forty years to perfect the androids, instead of the twenty or so it took Gero, he
created androids even greater than Cell."
"What happened to him?" Trunks wanted to know. Gohan smirked slightly.
"The same thing that happened to Dr. Gero. He was murdered by his own creations." The older
half Saiya-jinn sounded extremely pleased with that fact.
"May I continue?" asked Goku, sounding amused at his son's tone of voice.
"Of course, Otou," Gohan said, with an nod of his head. "Go ahead."
****************************************************************************************************************
Rayne's body had finally worn down: She was walking. Dende walked beside her, watching the human girl
closely.
"Don't your feet hurt?" he questioned. Rayne raised an eyebrow.
"Yes," she said, shrugging. "But, as you said, we're almost there."
"Almost there," Dende echoed her words, feeling long-forgotten hope beginning to stir. For once,
the Kami of Earth actually smiled. "Just another mile or two."
"So, if we walk, only thirty minutes or so," said Rayne thoughtfully. Dende's smile widened.
"Only if you're incredibly slow," he teased. "I'd say, twenty minutes or so." Rayne shrugged once
more, smiling.
"Whatever you say," she replied.
****************************************************************************************************************
"Anyway, we need all the firepower we can get, so I went to Kami's Lookout, and was pleased to
note that what I was looking for still worked. Have any of you ever heard of the Hyperbolic Time
Chamber?" Goku questioned. All four frowned.
"Isn't that the place where you can get a year's training in a day?" Goten said with a thoughtful
frown. When Goku nodded, the other three looked at him in surprise.
Goten made a face. "I heard something about that when our parents were talking about the Cell
Games."
"If I may continue, what Gohan and I had planned was for you four to spend a couple days in the
Hyperbolic Time Chamber," Goku informed them abruptly, and they all stared at him.
"Sounds fun!" Goten finally declared, then smirked, nudging Trunks with is elbow. "Who trains
with who?" Gohan raised an eyebrow at his brother's words.
"Why, you and Trunks, and then Bra and Pan," he said, causing Goten to groan.
"Trunks is going to beat me up!" the half Saiya-jinn whined, and this time it was Trunks who
smirked.
"Most definitely."
"Oi!" Bra suddenly protested. "Why can't we go first? Women first, you know." Gohan and Goku
glanced at each other, sharing a look. Goku finally grinned.
"You can go first if you want to," he declared with a smile.
"Good," said Bra and Pan in unison, while Goten and Trunks groaned.
****************************************************************************************************************
Li-Won, Bulma, and Marron stared in horror at the now empty room.
"D-do you think it worked?" Marron questioned weakly. Bulma leaned on Li-Won's shoulder,
looking stricken.
"I hope so," she whispered, bowing her head so that the other two wouldn't see her tears. "For
Mirai's sake."
****************************************************************************************************************
"Let's go!" Goku cheerfully announced, and held out his hands towards the two female part
Saiya-jinn. Bra and Pan accepted his hands, and the three disappeared instantly.
"I wish I could do that," Trunks, Goten, and Gohan sighed at the same exact time. The three
blinked, then grinned at each other.
"So, want to go get something to eat while we wait? It's a whole day, you know," suggested
Goten. Gohan shrugged.
"Sure," he said, and ushered the two from the room. "I think there's some food left over from
breakfast." Goten grinned.
"Yes!" Suddenly Goten frowned. "Say.... Gohan."
"Nani?"
"Why can't you use Mystic to destroy all the androids?" The younger man looked up to see
Gohan's smile had faded to a scowl.
"That damn Jaku managed to create something in the androids that will steal my energy if I go
Mystic. Don't know why the asshole didn't create it to steal Super Saiya-jinn power, but oh well. It was
good for our side. But if I try to go Mystic, I'm out of the fight for weeks, so I never use it."
"Kuso," Goten commented, frowning. "That completely sucks." Gohan managed a small smile,
sad though it was.
"It certainly does. Now, let's get something to eat..."
****************************************************************************************************************
They had finally made it. Rayne grinned impishly at her comrade as they walked down the pebbled
walkway. The small cottage was almost completely hidden by moss and overgrown plants. Rayne noticed
several flowers that weren't weeds, and smiled slightly. Someone had once grown a garden here.
"Ready?" whispered Dende, snapping her from her musings. Rayne blinked, and cocked her head
towards the short Namek.
"Maybe," she said softly back. "You?" Dende frowned slightly, and shrugged. The human girl
took his green hand in hers, and smiled reassuringly.
"Let's go meet the saviors of lost souls," she whispered, smiling once more. That had been
awfully poetic. Dende summoned up a weak smile for her.
"Let's," he replied quietly, and, hand in hand, the two walked up the lane.
Rayne cautiously knocked on the wooden door. There was silence from within the cottage. Pursing her
lips, she knocked again, louder this time.
"Hello?" she called, knocking once more. At last, they heard footsteps, moving towards the door.
Then the wood moved away from her fist, and a tall figure towered in the doorway.
"Who are you?" the man demanded, eyeing them scornfully with icy, pale blue eyes. "I highly
doubt you're androids, here to kill us." The tall man looked no older than twenty-three or so, though Rayne
knew he was much older than that. Jet-black hair fell to his shoulders, parted at the middle. He wore a
look of arrogance that Rayne had so often seen on Morris's face. Her eyes narrowed. She'd give him the
benefit of the doubt, but if he even acted once like Morris, she was out of there.
"I'm Rayne Sirec, She Who Cries," she said calmly, meeting his gaze squarely.
"And I'm Kami," said Dende softly. "Kami of Earth."
The dark-haired youth raised an eyebrow, but stood aside to let them in.
(AN: Another cliffhanger! And you all will have to wait until August at least to find out what happens next.
This time I mean it! I cannot write ten pages in on day! Can you guess who the person at the door is?
*smirks* Probably. I'll explain who the person is, and why only that person and another can resurrect the
dragon balls. It's very cool and original, I hope. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Oh, and I'm sure
y'all are wondering if Mirai is alive or not... *smirks* You'll see... Page 103! Good Kami! Well, ja! ~AC)
if I didn't. But I swear. This is the last chapter before I leave to Europe. I leave on the third of July, people!
Anyway, in this chapter there is romance romance romance! And, as the titles states. many mysteries
are revealed, and many questions are answered. And, by the way, I had planned this from the beginning
(for once everyone in the story actually let me tell them what to do *grins*), so even if I was answering
your prayers, I was going to even before I heard them. And now I'll let you read the story, which y'all (hey,
I'm Southern, I can say y'all) are probably dying to devour. He he. Also, thanks for wishing me good luck
on the trip! Ja, and enjoy! ~AC)
Chapter Eighteen: Mysteries Revealed
Gohan moved forward until he was pressing Trunks into the wall. The lavender-haired man watched in a
mixture of shock and fear as, for a moment, Gohan's eyes flashed emerald and the tips of his hair glowed
gold. Then the older half Saiya-jinn apparently calmed down, because his hair and eyes returned to their
normal ebony. Gohan's eyes blazed with a dizzying mixture of emotions Trunks couldn't even begin to
define.
"Now," Gohan repeated, "about my daughter."
"Y-yes, sir?" stammered Trunks, still dangling in the son of Goku's grip.
"I believe you were about to kiss her, were you not?" growled the older man, raising a surprised
eyebrow. The son of Vegeta weakly nodded, cringing at the flash of green that shone in Gohan's eyes for
a split second. "Why?"
Trunks stared at Gohan in astonishment. How was he supposed to answer that?
"I-I," he stammered, frantically searching his mind for an acceptable answer. Finally he gave up,
and told the half Saiya-jinn the truth. The truth that he had attempted to hide from himself.
"I... love her."
****************************************************************************************************************
Bra didn't think she had punched Goten that hard. However, apparently she had, for he was still choking.
After a couple more minutes of hearing his ragged gasps, and feeling the walls press in on her,
she worriedly questioned, "Goten, are you okay?" Finally, Goten spoke.
"Y-you're claustrophobic?" he wheezed. Then, amazingly and foolishly, he chuckled. Bra blinked.
So that's what he had been choked up about. He had been trying not to laugh.
"I," Bra said slowly, "am going to kill you." Goten stopped laughing.
Of course, Bra's well-aimed kick also helped end his chuckles.
****************************************************************************************************************
"Finally!" Mirai exclaimed as Marron stopped her march. The woman glared at him for a moment,
then turned to open a door.
"Remember," she said slowly, her face grim, "this a secret only known between three people.
Four, counting you."
"Who?" asked Mirai, stepping into the room. What he saw made him completely freeze, unable
to hear anything, even when Marron replied.
"Doctor Bulma, myself, Li-Won Kun, and you."
Mirai continued to stare, his mouth agape. Behind him, Marron silently smirked.
****************************************************************************************************************
Goten leaned against the door, wincing as he gasped for breath, his entire body in pain.
Through gritted teeth, he muttered, "Did you have to kick THERE?"
"Oh, did I kick you there?" he heard Bra sweetly question, sounding innocent. Goten scowled as
the pain slowly began to subside.
"This time," he said solemnly, glaring at Bra's shadowy form in the darkness, "I am going to kill
YOU."
"Go ahead and try!" laughed the girl, and Goten lunged.
****************************************************************************************************************
Goku slowed his pace so that Pan caught up with him. The Saiya-jinn smiled mischievously down at his
only grandchild, who smiled back.
"So, you and Trunks have become friends?" he asked, sounding innocent. Pan flushed, and
looked away, breaking their locked gazes.
"Yes," she mumbled, looking at the wall as she walked.
"Close friends?" Goku persisted in his questioning.
"Yes." Her word was a mere whisper, but the crimson of her cheeks told the truth. His
granddaughter had fallen for Vegeta's son. Hard.
****************************************************************************************************************
"You... love her?" Gohan repeated the young half Saiya-jinn's words, raising an eyebrow. "I
sincerely doubt that." He watched the lavender-locked young man bristle, and inwardly smirked. Let's see
if he could get the boy riled up enough to tell the truth.
"I do!" Trunks declared hotly, glaring at the older man. "It's just that I'm too old for her, and I don't
know what to do!" Gohan's eyes narrowed. Foolish words. Gohan knew his daughter had fallen head over
heels for the boy. He had seen that love-struck look in her eyes. If Trunks didn't follow his heart, he was
going to break hers. And that wouldn't do. That wouldn't do at all.
"Now, Trunks," he said softly, a cold smile forming on his lips, "I think I do know what you should
do..." Trunks stared at him warily, with the look of a trapped animal.
"What's that?" he cautiously asked. Gohan tightened his grip on the young man's dark blue shirt,
and his smile widened.
"Now, listen closely," he said, and began to speak his low, dangerous words.
****************************************************************************************************************
Bra was suddenly trapped, firm, strong hands fastened onto her shoulders.
"Oi!" she growled, kicking out at the dark form. "Get away, Goten!"
"You may have started it, but I'm going to end it," the dark-haired half Saiya-jinn declared,
laughing goofily. His grip tightened, and Bra yelped, scrambling backwards until her back was pressed up
against-
Towels?
"What the hell?" she declared, twisting her head to peer blindly at the towel-like objects.
"Towels?"
"What are you talking about?" Goten questioned, sounding puzzled. His grip relaxed slightly as
Bra, amused, informed him that they were in a towel closet.
"Well, at least towels are soft," commented the dark-haired man. "It could have been a broom
closet."
"Broom closets have things other than brooms, baka," Bra snapped, and aimed a slap towards
what she thought was his forehead. Her hand connected with something that wasn't his head. Goten
yelped in pain, one hand releasing her shoulder to grab at his face.
"Ow! My nose!" he whimpered, and Bra could sense his glare even through the darkness. The
azure-haired girl shrugged.
"Sorry..."
****************************************************************************************************************
"We have to go find them!" Rayne yelped, dancing from one foot to the other.
Dende raised an eyebrow. "Do you even know who they are?" The girl shrugged.
"Only by reputation," she said, still bouncing with excitement. She grabbed the tiny kami's hand.
"Gohan told me all about them. Let's go!"
"Shouldn't we tell Goku and Gohan and..." Dende's words trailed off with a sigh as Rayne happily
bolted in an eastward direction, dragging the Namek behind her.
****************************************************************************************************************
"You, dear Trunks, are going to do exactly as I say. Or rather, as Pan says. If she wants to be
with you, so be it. I'm not going to stop my daughter from doing something she wants. I must warn you
that if you should EVER make my daughter cry, be prepared to face the consequences. If, however, she
doesn't want to be with you, you are to leave her alone and never bother her again. If you do..." Gohan let
the threat hang ominously in the silent room for a moment, then released the man and turned to exit. He
paused, and turned slightly to speak one last thing to the lavender-haired man.
Trunks had slid to the ground, a dazed look on his face. One hand was absently attempting to smooth his
rumpled shirt, to no effect, the other running a hand through his messy hair. Gohan smirked slightly.
"By the way," he added, "is it just me, or is something happening between my brother and your
sister?"
****************************************************************************************************************
Goten stared through the darkness, trying to make out Bra's face. She had been silent for quite some
time. Too quiet.
"Bra?" he asked cautiously. "Are you planning to hit me again?" The daughter of Bulma didn't
answer. Instead, an odd, ragged gasp filled Goten's ears. Goten blinked. Was she crying or something?
"B-Bra?" he repeated. "Are you okay?" This time, Bra did reply, and her words were choked and
stuttering.
"I-I hate being scared of the dark, I h-hate being trapped in a closet, I hate b-being claustrophobic,
and I hate you!" Goten flinched at her venom.
"I-I'm sorry," he said weakly, and waited the by-now familiar swat.
****************************************************************************************************************
Dende and Rayne jogged side by side, racing down the streets towards their far-off destination.
"Are you sure we shouldn't tell anyone about this?" the Kami timidly suggested.
"We'll find them on our own," was Rayne's firm answer. Dende sighed.
"Can we at least walk?" he pleaded.
"Later."
"Please?"
"If you keep bothering me, no."
"I'm the Kami of Earth. You can't boss me around."
"Watch me."
"I'll- I'll bring the wrath of the weather down upon you!"
"Not if you want to get wet."
"Shut up."
****************************************************************************************************************
"I think that Goten has a crush on Bra. But I'm not sure about Bra. She seems to hate your
brother's guts, no offense," Trunks weakly replied, slowly standing. He managed a weak smile, thankful
that Gohan hadn't blasted him.
Gohan smiled. "No problem. If she truly doesn't like him, then he'll get over it."
"Hopefully," Trunks murmured under his breath.
"Now," Gohan said, draping a comrade-like arm around Trunks's shoulders, "let's go find Goten
and Bra."
"Who knows," Trunks said with a smirk. "Maybe they're making out in a closet... Erase that."
Gohan raised an eyebrow, but couldn't help but smile.
"Do all young men have dirty minds?" he questioned.
"Probably," Trunks replied with a shrug, then added hastily, "But I don't think about that sort of
thing when I'm with your daughter, sir."
"Good. Keep it that way."
****************************************************************************************************************
"Oh. My. Kami," Mirai finally whispered, staring in awe. "It's a- it's a-"
"Teleportation ship," Bulma finished with a both proud and weary smile. "I've been secretly
working for years on it. Marron's been helping me gather parts. Since Li-Won is an expert on black hole
theories and lightspeed and the like."
The teleportation ship was amazing. It looked large enough to fit at least a dozen adults, with gleaming
metal the color of silver. There were no wings, but it reminded Mirai of a gleaming airplane. The ship had
been carefully built, for he could spot no flaws in its outer shell.
Li-Won looked up with an exhausted smile; the boy hadn't slept for two days.
"It can travel several lightspeeds in a minute or so," he softly informed the shocked half Saiya-jinn.
"We merely need your opinion on whether it will work or not."
"It looks... great," Mirai murmured, moving towards the ship. "How do you open it?"
"Simply say the password," said Marron, a dimple appearing as she smiled. "Doctor Bulma
thought of it." The doctor, to Mirai's amazement, blushed slightly.
"What's the password?" questioned Mirai curiously.
"Watashi no mirai, watashi no nozomi," Bulma said softly. "My future, my hope."
Mirai nodded. How fitting.
****************************************************************************************************************
"A-are you afraid of the dark?" Goten hesitantly questioned, rubbing his aching head.
"What do you think, stupid?" sneered the teenage girl. Goten puzzled over their situation for a
long moment, and slowly thought of a plan. The young man began to smile.
"Bra..." he said coaxingly.
"What?" she asked crossly.
Still smiling, he said softly, "I've got a surprise for you."
"Wonderful. What, are you going tell me that you've figured a way out of this stupid closet?"
Goten sighed, and shook his head. Clenching his fists, he began to power up.
"Goten- what're you-" Bra began, then gasped in shock as, with a loud growl, Goten's eyes
blazed emerald, and his dark hair turned gold.
"Now you don't have to be scared of the dark," Goten said proudly as his glowing golden form
illuminated Bra's surprised face.
****************************************************************************************************************
"Where are they?" Goku sighed as Gohan and Trunks joined them.
Pan shrugged. "They'll show up somewhere..." She faltered in her words as they all sensed
through their bracelets that Goten had gone Super Saiya-jinn.
"What on Earth-" began Pan, but Goku had already begun to pelt in the direction of Goten's ki.
Frowning, the other three followed him.
****************************************************************************************************************
Capsule Corporation had been very near the outskirts, for Rayne and Dende quickly reached it. By then,
the Kami was panting. He eyed the human girl with annoyance. She wasn't even out of breath.
"How did you get so fit?" he demanded, causing Rayne to smile.
"Since the Android Army was always chasing me, Gohan thought I should be able to run for long
amounts of time. He made me stay in shape. So, I may not be powerful in the ki department, but I'm
strong in endurance."
"Lucky," growled Dende, and Rayne laughed as they entered the forest outside the city.
****************************************************************************************************************
Bra felt unexpected tears rise in her eyes as the small closet glowed with golden light. She tried to
speak, but failed. After a moment, she managed a weak smile.
"T-thank you," she whispered. Goten's lips curved in a smile.
"Anything for you, Bra," he said, his emerald eyes soft. Once again, Bra's heart unexpectedly
twisted. Without thinking, she took one step towards him. They were instantly face to face.
Goten blinked, then smiled goofily. "Do you think I should blast the door open? Or would your
mother get mad at me?"
"Whatever you want," she replied, and impulsively hugged him. Goten stiffened in her embrace,
then slowly returned the hug. Bra felt the corners of her lips curl in a smile as Goten's ki warmed her.
Maybe he wasn't so bad after all. Neither noticed the door open, until a voice spoke.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" an amused voice commented, and the two quickly
turned to see Pan, a delighted smirk on her face. Trunks poked his head over Pan's shoulder, and
chuckled.
"I told you they were making out in a closet, Gohan- Ow!" Trunks yelped as Bra pulled from
Goten's arms and punched him in the arm.
"We were hugging, baka," she snarled. "Hugging as friends. We were not making out."
"Unfortunately not," Goten mumbled, then added quickly, noticing Bra's hand rising, "Just
kidding!"
"I'm sure," muttered Trunks, and this time he ran as Pan, Bra, and Goten's arms shot out to
punch him.
****************************************************************************************************************
"I think it'll work," Mirai said slowly as he sat in the first seat of the teleportation ship. "But there's
only one way to find out, isn't there?" He smiled wickedly, raising an eyebrow towards the other three.
"Hold on," Bulma said quickly, beginning to frown, "it could mess up, and we might get trapped in
between, and then where would we all be?" Mirai smirked.
"That's why you three aren't coming," he declared softly, and with a gentle movement of his hand,
sent a ki blast towards their feet. The three leapt back in shock, and fell in a tumble of limbs out of the
ship.
"Watashi no mirai, watashi no nozomi," Mirai said softly, and the door slid shut with a quiet click.
"Mirai!" he heard Bulma shout, but ignored the woman's cries. His finger hovered over the button
Bulma had said would send him to the destination they had agreed upon.
The President of Capsule Corporation smiled, his eyes glowing with excitement.
"This is going to be fun," he said, and his finger pressed the button.
And then he was gone, along with the ship.
****************************************************************************************************************
Goten, Bra, Trunks, and Pan stood facing Gohan and Goku. Rubbing his forehead, Goku began with their
plan that O'Dell had already begun to put into action.
"As you all saw from Pan's demonstration, women with Saiya-jinn blood in their veins can go
Super Saiya-jinn." He sighed, looking directly at Bra and Pan. "I know you two won't enjoy hearing this,
but, unfortunately, because of a gene in the blood, you can only go to Super Saiya-jinn level one."
"What?" Pan yelped, as Bra scowled, and growled, "Stupid sexist Saiya-jinn genes!"
"That's okay. I can't go SSJ2 either," Goten pointed out, and the two girls kicked him. "Ow!"
Never mind..." Goku smiled slightly, and continued.
"Still, becoming Super Saiya-jinn would be helpful in our fight against the androids-"
"Say, who created the androids anyway?" questioned Goten curiously. "You never told us."
Gohan sighed, and spoke.
"A man called Dr. Jaku. He was a rival of Gero's, and ended up stealing the beginning works of
Gero's attempts at building androids. Unfortunately, he was even more brilliant that Gero himself.
Although it took him forty years to perfect the androids, instead of the twenty or so it took Gero, he
created androids even greater than Cell."
"What happened to him?" Trunks wanted to know. Gohan smirked slightly.
"The same thing that happened to Dr. Gero. He was murdered by his own creations." The older
half Saiya-jinn sounded extremely pleased with that fact.
"May I continue?" asked Goku, sounding amused at his son's tone of voice.
"Of course, Otou," Gohan said, with an nod of his head. "Go ahead."
****************************************************************************************************************
Rayne's body had finally worn down: She was walking. Dende walked beside her, watching the human girl
closely.
"Don't your feet hurt?" he questioned. Rayne raised an eyebrow.
"Yes," she said, shrugging. "But, as you said, we're almost there."
"Almost there," Dende echoed her words, feeling long-forgotten hope beginning to stir. For once,
the Kami of Earth actually smiled. "Just another mile or two."
"So, if we walk, only thirty minutes or so," said Rayne thoughtfully. Dende's smile widened.
"Only if you're incredibly slow," he teased. "I'd say, twenty minutes or so." Rayne shrugged once
more, smiling.
"Whatever you say," she replied.
****************************************************************************************************************
"Anyway, we need all the firepower we can get, so I went to Kami's Lookout, and was pleased to
note that what I was looking for still worked. Have any of you ever heard of the Hyperbolic Time
Chamber?" Goku questioned. All four frowned.
"Isn't that the place where you can get a year's training in a day?" Goten said with a thoughtful
frown. When Goku nodded, the other three looked at him in surprise.
Goten made a face. "I heard something about that when our parents were talking about the Cell
Games."
"If I may continue, what Gohan and I had planned was for you four to spend a couple days in the
Hyperbolic Time Chamber," Goku informed them abruptly, and they all stared at him.
"Sounds fun!" Goten finally declared, then smirked, nudging Trunks with is elbow. "Who trains
with who?" Gohan raised an eyebrow at his brother's words.
"Why, you and Trunks, and then Bra and Pan," he said, causing Goten to groan.
"Trunks is going to beat me up!" the half Saiya-jinn whined, and this time it was Trunks who
smirked.
"Most definitely."
"Oi!" Bra suddenly protested. "Why can't we go first? Women first, you know." Gohan and Goku
glanced at each other, sharing a look. Goku finally grinned.
"You can go first if you want to," he declared with a smile.
"Good," said Bra and Pan in unison, while Goten and Trunks groaned.
****************************************************************************************************************
Li-Won, Bulma, and Marron stared in horror at the now empty room.
"D-do you think it worked?" Marron questioned weakly. Bulma leaned on Li-Won's shoulder,
looking stricken.
"I hope so," she whispered, bowing her head so that the other two wouldn't see her tears. "For
Mirai's sake."
****************************************************************************************************************
"Let's go!" Goku cheerfully announced, and held out his hands towards the two female part
Saiya-jinn. Bra and Pan accepted his hands, and the three disappeared instantly.
"I wish I could do that," Trunks, Goten, and Gohan sighed at the same exact time. The three
blinked, then grinned at each other.
"So, want to go get something to eat while we wait? It's a whole day, you know," suggested
Goten. Gohan shrugged.
"Sure," he said, and ushered the two from the room. "I think there's some food left over from
breakfast." Goten grinned.
"Yes!" Suddenly Goten frowned. "Say.... Gohan."
"Nani?"
"Why can't you use Mystic to destroy all the androids?" The younger man looked up to see
Gohan's smile had faded to a scowl.
"That damn Jaku managed to create something in the androids that will steal my energy if I go
Mystic. Don't know why the asshole didn't create it to steal Super Saiya-jinn power, but oh well. It was
good for our side. But if I try to go Mystic, I'm out of the fight for weeks, so I never use it."
"Kuso," Goten commented, frowning. "That completely sucks." Gohan managed a small smile,
sad though it was.
"It certainly does. Now, let's get something to eat..."
****************************************************************************************************************
They had finally made it. Rayne grinned impishly at her comrade as they walked down the pebbled
walkway. The small cottage was almost completely hidden by moss and overgrown plants. Rayne noticed
several flowers that weren't weeds, and smiled slightly. Someone had once grown a garden here.
"Ready?" whispered Dende, snapping her from her musings. Rayne blinked, and cocked her head
towards the short Namek.
"Maybe," she said softly back. "You?" Dende frowned slightly, and shrugged. The human girl
took his green hand in hers, and smiled reassuringly.
"Let's go meet the saviors of lost souls," she whispered, smiling once more. That had been
awfully poetic. Dende summoned up a weak smile for her.
"Let's," he replied quietly, and, hand in hand, the two walked up the lane.
Rayne cautiously knocked on the wooden door. There was silence from within the cottage. Pursing her
lips, she knocked again, louder this time.
"Hello?" she called, knocking once more. At last, they heard footsteps, moving towards the door.
Then the wood moved away from her fist, and a tall figure towered in the doorway.
"Who are you?" the man demanded, eyeing them scornfully with icy, pale blue eyes. "I highly
doubt you're androids, here to kill us." The tall man looked no older than twenty-three or so, though Rayne
knew he was much older than that. Jet-black hair fell to his shoulders, parted at the middle. He wore a
look of arrogance that Rayne had so often seen on Morris's face. Her eyes narrowed. She'd give him the
benefit of the doubt, but if he even acted once like Morris, she was out of there.
"I'm Rayne Sirec, She Who Cries," she said calmly, meeting his gaze squarely.
"And I'm Kami," said Dende softly. "Kami of Earth."
The dark-haired youth raised an eyebrow, but stood aside to let them in.
(AN: Another cliffhanger! And you all will have to wait until August at least to find out what happens next.
This time I mean it! I cannot write ten pages in on day! Can you guess who the person at the door is?
*smirks* Probably. I'll explain who the person is, and why only that person and another can resurrect the
dragon balls. It's very cool and original, I hope. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Oh, and I'm sure
y'all are wondering if Mirai is alive or not... *smirks* You'll see... Page 103! Good Kami! Well, ja! ~AC)