Chapter Five: Explanation

"She likes you, I saw her looking at you!" Goten teased lightly, looping widely around his friend. He liked looping, especially when it annoyed Trunks, who was flying straight ahead with a look of irritation and embarrassment on his face. "Are you blushing?" he laughed, which only caused his friend to turn a deeper shade of crimson.

"No I'm not," Trunks grunted.

"Yes you are!"

"I'm not! And we're home anyway."

Goten glanced down and descended to Capsule Corp. Today had been a good day! They had been in the park all day, hanging around and looking at pretty girls. The weather had been very pretty, so the park was very crowded. And more people… meant more girls! They had eaten ice cream till their bellies had practically burst, the sun had been warm, and some girls were very sneakily trying to glance at them, cautiously flirting. Yup, this day had been great so far! Best part was that he got to stay at Capsule Corp tonight to eat, and Bulma had promised to order spare ribs for them. Goten simply adored spare ribs. He'd have to be home at bedtime, since they had to go to school tomorrow, but bedtime was still hours away, and they'd have plenty of time to enjoy themselves.

"Goten?"

Goten landed on the front yard and looked at his friend. "What's up?"

"Don't you feel that?" Trunks gestured to his house.

"What?" He was already replying when he felt it, too. "It feels like there are two of you. As if there's another Trunks in the house. That's weird."

Trunks frowned. "That's impossible!"

"Let's go in and check it out!" He tried to feel around for a bit, and noticed not only the whole Briefs family in the building, but his father as well. "My father's here too, it'll be ok."

"I guess…"

They entered the building reluctantly, to find everyone in the living room. Including Trunks' mirror image, only a little older. The sight was indeed a strange one to behold, and Goten was confused for a bit. What was going on here?

"Who are you?" Trunks accused the other lavender-haired young man in the room. He was sitting on the counch, Bra on his lap, flanked by Bulma and Goku. Vegeta was standing nearby, his arms crossed in his usual way, frowning.

Two pairs of blue eyes locked, but the Trunks on the couch quickly tore his gaze away and studied the carpet. "I'm… you. From three years in the future."

For what must have been the first time in his life, Goten saw his friend totally abashed and searching for words. "What? You're … me? You're Future Trunks?"

The older Trunks looked up for a bit and smiled weakly. "Well, not the one from the Androids timeline." Goten noticed how terrible he looked. The boy from the future was sickly pale and looked as if he had just survived a holocaust. His eyes, shadowed by dark rings, were glittering as if he had a high fever, too-bright with unshed tears, hollow as if he had experienced things Goten couldn't even imagine. And Goten had seen a lot during the fight with Majin Buu. "Why are you here?" he asked.

"Sit down," Bulma gestured at them. "I think this is a story for us all to hear." She observed the boy from the future with an odd soft look on her face. "Do you feel up to it to tell us your story?"

"I suppose so." Future Trunks absently stroked Bra's hair and kept studying the carpet. He was very pointedly avoiding anyone's eyes. Goten wondered why he looked so pained, but then figured he probably wouldn't be here for fun. Something bad must have happened where he came from. Just like the other Future Trunks they had told him about. It wasn't the same one, though, he said as much. So he came from their future? Their own timeline, a few years ahead of them? Goten shook his head, he hated paradoxes. No one should mess with time traveling, he decided. It would save a lot of headaches. He tried to listen intently to Trunks, as the boy opened his mouth to speak.

"I… I come from the future. Not just to warn you, but… I fled."

Goten saw Vegeta's eyes flash, but the Saiya-jin prince kept his silence after a hard stare from Goku.

"I fled because… there was nothing left for me. You see, in the future… everyone's dead."

"Everyone?" Bulma and young Trunks echoed at the same time.

Future Trunks did not look up. Goten saw his eyes fill with tears. Wow, he had never seen Trunks cry. He always said crying was for fools and weaklings, and he always acted tough even when things got really bad. Since this Trunks came from their future… and they were basically the same, Goten began to understand the scale of the disaster Trunks must have seen. "Me too?"

"You were one of the last to die, Goten. The Fusion broke apart because you died and I was close to dying. Marron saved me with a sensu… but she…" His voice sounded really strained now. A lonely tear slid over his cheek. "She died too," he whispered. "I could not save her. She should have been the one to go back, not me…"

Bulma hugged him and shared a look of understanding with Goku, who nodded solemnly. "I think that's about enough for today, young man," she said. "I'll get you some sleeping drugs and you are going to sleep. You're spent with exhaustion and grief. We'll hear your story later."

"No," he protested weakly, trying to pry himself out of her embrace. "I have to finish this, otherwise I'll never be able to tell you."

"When did this happen?" Vegeta asked.

"It's been five days."

No wonder he's crying, Goten thought. It's so recent… He tried to imagine seeing his parents and brother and Trunks dying with no dragonballs to revive them, but his imagination was sorely lacking. Somehow the dragonballs had always been an option, a way of survival. Without the dragonballs… it would all be over. He tried to imagine his family and friends dying horrible deaths and no way to ever see them again and found his throat painfully tightening. He could imagine vividly why Future Trunks was so upset. He wondered what his friend would think of all this; Trunks looked as if he saw hell freezing over. His face was a mixture of awe, shock and some other emotions Goten couldn't name.

Future Trunks was talking again. "…they came out of nowhere. Before I knew it, Capsule Corp was nothing but charred ground, Gohan was dead, Piccolo gone, and Goten and I fused to try and put up a fight. It was useless. We didn't even come near laying a scratch on them."

"Could you tell me a little more about those silver guys?" Goku asked carefully. He looked up at Vegeta. "You never heard from them before either."

Vegeta shook his head and scowled. "Wouldn't I have said so if I had? I'm as surprised as you all are. I've never heard from guys dressed in silver. They sound like pansies but since they kicked all of our asses, I suppose they're not. Is it some kind of armor or are they naturally born that way?"

Trunks looked up briefly. "I'm rather sure it's armor. It's a shield against anything: kiblasts, hits, punches, everything. Nothing can touch them… It's as if it makes them immortal. Unable to wound. It even shields them mentally. I wasn't able to sense anything from them: exhaustion, frustration, nothing…" He met his father's gaze, blue eyes briefly gleaming with challenge. "You try fighting something like that."

Vegeta met his son's eyes calmly. "I believe you."

"Do you think they're cyborgs, or do you think their armor is artificial?" Bulma squeezed her son's shoulder reassuringly. She kept her voice low and soothing, Goten noticed. She was trying to put Future Trunks at ease.

"I am not sure, but I think it's artificial. They wore it like armor. It was something in their stance, their way of moving. And they all looked exactly the same. I do not think a race can create all of its beings as alike as they were. They were with five of them, and all mirror images of each other. They all… they were all alike." He spoke no more, obviously at loss for words. Bra touched his cheek and snuggled against him, showing her affection in her own way. Future Trunks looked oddly grateful, but the silence stretched.

Vegeta's voice startled everyone. "How strong are you?"

"What does it matter?" Trunks' eyes could have bored a hole in anything they looked at. "It wasn't enough. It's never enough. It was only enough to make me turn tail and flee."

"Tell me, brat."

"Super Saiya-jin 3. I achieved it after... after Marron died."

Goten heard his friend's gasp and saw him look at his future counterpart in awe. They exchanged a look of surprise, but stayed quiet. These matters were for adults; they were not supposed to have an opinion in such affairs. Oh certainly, if there would be a fight, they'd be included, but Bulma had often told them to leave the thinking to the adults until they came of age. Goten thought it was unfair; Trunks was already fifteen, and he was fourteen, they could think just as well as any adult! Yet he respected Bulma too much to voice his opinion anyway. Besides, Vegeta would probably beat him up over it.

"Congratulations, brat," Vegeta told him. "Since strength didn't help you; how come you survived?"

"They left me for death twice," Trunks said. The corner of his mouth twitched, a bitter look forming on his face. "I guess I was just lucky, or unlucky. The battles seemed to last forever, though. The last battle especially. I was so enraged that I could have gone on for ages. I wanted to avenge… you all. It was fatigue that wore me down at the end. And resolve, I suppose. I… it all seemed so useless in the end."

"I'm sure you fought bravely," Goku said, laying his hand compassionately on the demi-Saiya-jin's shoulder. "You did well, Trunks."

"I cannot imagine you came so far on their mercy. Tell me, brat, was there anything else? Tell me the whole story!"

And so Trunks told them everything from the beginning. How he and Marron arrived too late and they had seen the destruction of Trunks' family, Goku and Capsule Corp. How the other Z-fighters had been killed one after another. How they had sent Marron for Dragonballs and sensu, Gohan, Goten and Trunks the last ones alive. Gohan had died to cover Marron's escape, bravely giving his life for her mission.

Sounds like something my brother would have done, Goten thought, his stomach clenching with emotions he could hardly name. He felt depressed beyond belief as he kept listening. He felt tension radiate from everyone else in the room. Tension, compassion, and downright pain. They all shared Trunks' grief. Little Bra was sobbing softly. She had always understood too much for her age. Poor Bra. If only she were younger or less smart. Ignorance is bliss… Yet there was no way to protect her from this story. It would be upon them soon enough, Goten supposed. He felt nauseated.

Trunks voice was rapidly losing all emotion as he told the story, his eyes going blank as if he was shutting his mind off, telling about someone else's experiences.

He told them about Goten and Trunks forming a last-ditch effort in fusing into Gotenks, and how their collective ass had been kicked. "When the Terror saw the fusion unravel, he left us. He must have thought we were both dead. Actually, as the fusion tore out of each other and we fell, I thought the same. Goten was dead and I knew myself to be dying. I blacked out, only to awaken by sensu, and Marron telling me we were the last ones left."

It was strange to hear about your own demise, Goten thought. Strange and oddly painful. It gave him a sense of dread and foreboding doom. Future Trunks had fled into the past, but wouldn't the silver guys come here, too? In three years? And if they were so strong, wouldn't they die all over again? The nausea only deepened.

Future Trunks continue to describe how they survived the following days by keeping a low profile, and how they had discovered the Time Machine… and in turn had been discovered by a Silver Terror. He told how he had tried to convince Marron to use the Time Machine, "But she would not listen. I was fighting desperately, trying to get the Terror away from me, but then I… sensed it being distracted and curious. I was too shocked by the fact that I felt him to react. And he… it was only one blast. She died instantly. Probably hardly knew what hit her. I…"

"Tell me more about that!" Vegeta's demand came so suddenly that everyone jerked up from their instinctive cringing state of being. They had all been so moved by Trunks' story that Vegeta's voice came like a cold shower. The Saiya-jin Prince seemed to be unimpressed, listening with only cool, professional detachment.

Future Trunks was at a loss for words for a moment, obviously jerked back to reality. "What do you mean?" he asked at last.

"You sensed its distraction. How come? Did you feel it before? Why only now? Tell me more about that."

Goten saw his father also shift his position to listen more attentively. Why was this so important? Why would his father and Vegeta made such a point about feeling their opponent? He never … wait, that was not true. He always worked with the emotions and awarenesses he felt from his opponent during a fight. This explained why neither he nor Trunks usually managed to land a punch or a kick while they were sparring. Goten thought it was because they knew each other so well. They had been friends forever, sparring was as natural as jesting or talking. It was something they had done countless times before. Yet, if one of them came up with a new technique or a new way to attack, the other always anticipated. Was this that mental thing Vegeta and Future Trunks were talking about? And didn't they speak about a mental shield? Funny, he never regarded fighting that way before, it had always been instinctive. That's what you get when you leave the thinking to the adults, he thought ironically, yet tried to listen attentively to the conversation as well.

Future Trunks looked off in the distance for a moment, trying to recall and gather his courage to tell. "Even though I was reaching into a dead end all the time during my fighting, I suppose unconsciously I kept trying to touch the mind of my opponent. It's something I've always done, part of the way I fight." He looked up at the past version of his father, who nodded slightly, and continued. "I don't know where it came from. My surprise was what destroyed everything, basically. Suddenly, I *felt* what the Silver Terror was thinking, its emotions and reactions. I am still not sure if it let me, or rather if I had a breakthrough at some point. I had fought with rage and desperation, maybe I managed… that would be…so ironic…" He quickly wiped a hand over his eyes and obviously tried to steel his voice and composure. He failed. "If the break in the mental shield meant Marron's death, I'll kill myself!"

"I'm sure it was not like that, Trunks," Bulma said soothingly. "Vegeta just wants to look at all the possibilities." She looked up sharply at her mate. "Don't you, Vegeta?"

The Saiya-jin Prince snorted. "Of course. I don't really look forward to the prospect of meeting my end at the hands of some silver-clad idiots."

"I think none of us does, Vegeta," Goku said. "Let Trunks continue his story."

And so he did. He told about Marron's death, and was in tears by the time he described how he had escaped his reality and went into the past. "And that's how I got here. I don't know why the Terror let me live. Maybe to mock me or it left me to die. I suppose I would have, if not for the Time Machine and the sensu. I came here to warn you… but I do not want to go back," he whispered and looked up to the past version of his mother. "There's nothing left there for me. Can I stay here?"

"Of course you can," Bulma said warmly. "I'll get you some tea, and then we'll put you in bed to sleep as much as you need."

"Who will inform the others?" Goku asked. "I do not really think Trunks feels like telling the story again."

"We will!" Goten piped up, glad to do something useful. "We can call a meeting on Master Roshi's island tomorrow, or something, after school. Then we can tell the rest, and decide what we're going to do. Isn't that a good idea?" He looked at his friend, who was sitting next to him, bleakly studying the carpet. He had a nagging suspicion that Trunks felt horrible about facing his future counterpart like this. He didn't blame him. Maybe he needed some time away from Future Trunks to regain his senses.

When the adults agreed and Bulma went into the kitchen, he went after her to ask. Bulma shot him an odd look. "How perceptive of you, Goten. You might be just right. I'll call your mother to ask her permission, but it's fine with me." She looked up when her son walked into the kitchen. "Hello dear, how do you feel about all this?"

"Awful," Trunks rasped.

"You can stay at my place tonight if you want to," Goten said. He tried to imagine the inner turmoil his friend must feel, but had actually no idea. He'd have to talk about it with him tonight. Or maybe tomorrow. It would be alright, he thought, as Trunks agreed with his plan. It had to be.

~That night…~

Trunks stared at the familiar ceiling of his own room, trying to find some peace in his mind. Some part of his mind was trying to pretend that everything was all right, that this was his own room and that Capsule Corp was still standing. If he used a bit of imagination, he could pretend everything was still all right, that he was in his own bed in his own timeline, that his family was still alive. He tried to, but it did not work. He also tried to sleep, but that failed, too.

Of course he couldn't sleep, what had they expected?

Seeing his family alive and well had been bittersweet and terribly unreal. He found himself at odds with what had happened; his mind had trouble accepting the past few days while he could clearly see his father, mother, Bra, Goten and Goku sitting with serious faces in his own living room. With serious faces, but living, breathing, alive to the core of their being. It was almost enough to ignore the fact that Bra was too young, and that his mother still had her aqua hair reaching her shoulder blades, tied in a loose braid as  not to tickle her while she was working.

Yet the worst was facing the younger versions of his best friend and himself, somehow. He did not know why the image of a seventeen year old Goten was so much clearer in his mind than that of an eleven year old Bra, but it simply was there. Facing himself was weird beyond belief. It was as if he was watching some old home video's of himself, remembering faintly how he thought at that age, how he reacted, yet at the same time completely different and alien to him. Looking in his own eyes was… unnerving, to say the least. He was glad that the other Trunks stayed with Goten for a bit, just to let him get used to the idea. And everyone else as well, naturally.

What would it be like for them to be faced with certain doom, again? The situation he had presented to them was even bleaker than the one Future Trunks had told them about, almost two decades ago. The similarities with the first (the other?) future timeline were still nagging at him, but he figured it was not important right now. He was here now, and he had done all he could do for today. For now it would be wise to catch some shuteye. Sighing, he rolled over on his side, and doubled his efforts to get some sleep.

***

Bulma was half asleep when two icy cold hands suddenly slipped under her blankets and grabbed her waist, surprising her with the chill. "Thanks, Vegeta," she murmured sleepily. "Come in bed, so you can warm up a little."

A throaty chuckle and a cold body pressing against hers announced that it was indeed her husband sneaking into her bed. "You're nice and warm," he commented contently.

"You're not," Bulma pointed out, but snuggled against him anyway. "Have you been sitting outside all that time?" That idiot. Even though the spring air was warming up, the nights were far too cold to sit outside in a tank top and shorts.

"I have been training, and I had to cool off," he shrugged. He was warming up quickly, Bulma noted. Which was a good thing, because she hated to be cold in her own bed.

"It's been a weird day." It was almost a reply on what he meant; he had gone training not because his workout of the day had been interrupted, but to order his thoughts and to work off the negative emotions that had been plaguing him since Future Trunks had entered their timeline. Bulma could feel it faintly; it was eating at him as it was eating at her. The image their future son had sketched was so horrible that it left her disturbed and faintly nauseated all day. She had not felt like this since Buu's arrival, and she hated every second of it. "I don't like this one bit."

"Me neither," Vegeta admitted gruffly. "I like the idea of a challenge, but what the future brat told us no one will survive the encounter. Especially that mind block of them keeps bothering me."

Faintly surprised he was thinking aloud, Bulma laid her head on his chest and asked: "I saw you hammering on that fact, yet isn't it more important to check where they come from and what they want out here?" She paused for a moment. The fact that those monsters had not even told them what was happening, no announcement at all, and slaughtered all those millions of people seemed somehow… unethical to her. It was unfair, so useless to die and not even know what for.

"They obviously want our death. I don't care why," Vegeta blazed.

"I think it's really important though. If we know their reasons, we might know something about them that will be crucial for their defeat," she countered, her fingers trailing lightly over his stomach.

He sighed and glared at the ceiling. "I know that. Their weakness will be their minds, I guess. It will take the edge off them. Trunks seems a capable mental communicator. I cannot believe I never noticed that before… We should train."

"Physically or mentally?"

"Both. Especially the latter."

"If you do not mind, I'd like to do research on them. The Silver Terror, I mean."

"Why are you asking my permission?"

"I was toying with the idea of going into space, ask around for some details."

He jerked up in bed, causing her to bounce off him. "What a preposterous idea, woman! You have no idea what's going on up there!"

"That's what I'd need you for. You know your way around in Frieza's former empire."

"Out of the question," he said coldly. His whole body seemed to freeze up in anger.

"Relax, Vegeta, we'll talk about this later."

"Like hell we will."

She smiled in the dark and snuggled against him, acting on a sudden urge to be close to him. "I know better things to do right now."

Vegeta chuckled and kissed her. "Now you're talking."

***

Pale moonlight seeping through the curtains illuminated Goten's room softly.

Goten was sitting up in his blankets with his back against the wall, frowning on the sleeping form of his best friend. Trunks was sweating and making whimpering sounds, constantly trashing around on his stretcher. He had never been a quiet sleeper, Goten knew, but it was obvious that his friend was having a hard time tonight. He was having nightmares; stress and tension seemed to radiate around him.
Goten wondered whether he should wake Trunks up, but he figured that in that case Trunks wouldn't be able to sleep tonight anymore. It was a small miracle he had fallen asleep in the first place actually; Goten felt less disturbed than Trunks must be, and he was unable to sleep at all. A quick glance at the digital clock next to his bed told him it was after 3 am: far past bedtime, his mother would say. As if he cared; sleeping might be worse than waking... he wasn't exactly looking forward to nightmares.

He sighed, trying to process what had happened today for what must be the millionth time. His mind returned to the point of the telepathy Vegeta had talked about: the intuitive reaching for other minds, the exchange of feelings. Could he do that, too?

Tentatively, he tried to reach out to Trunks, whose face was damp with sweat. At least, Goten hoped so; the dampness might also have been caused by tears. Kami, he hoped not. He tried to touch Trunks, his thoughts and compassion reaching out to his friend. If only he could console him and make him sleep more peaceful…

It lasted only a heartbeat.

Flashes of blood and failure and pain crashed over him, as if he was dunked into a pool of ice cold water. Flinching, Goten knew this was Trunks' nightmare. Kami, he knew Trunks had a vivid imagination, and that the story that his future counterpart had told him was horrid, but this… He tried to be steady and warm, and ultimately 'there' for Trunks.

I'm here for you Trunks, you won't fail, you're the best. We won't die. Don't worry, I am here. It will be alright.

The images snapped out of his reach, and Goten sighed half in relief, half in frustration. That had certainly not been a pleasant experience, yet he had been able to touch Trunks' mind, like Vegeta had deemed possible. He was so happy with his accomplishment that it took a while before he noticed that Trunks' breathing had evened, and his body had relaxed.

His friend was sleeping fitfully now, and more at peace than Goten had seen him in a while. It made him so happy he wanted to pounce upon Trunks and make him share in his happiness, but that probably wouldn't be smart.
Instead, he lay down in bed and tried to relax. Maybe he would be able to sleep a little before they had to go to school. He felt a lot better now.

***

Goku held the warm, sleeping body of his wife in his arms and refused to let go of her. ChiChi was lying with her head on his chest, her arm draped over his stomach. She was sleeping quietly and warm against him. He held her tightly, and tried to concentrate on only that, to block out any somber thoughts.

She had noticed his solemn behavior of course, and he had told her something about what happened today. She had been really sweet to him; hugging him every chance she got. Their lovemaking had been tender and full of love, and now she had fallen asleep in his arms. Kami, he loved her. If it really came down to it, she was always there for him. The idea of her death unnerved him more than he could ever say; she seemed so immortal, so real and steady in a world where everything changed.

He rose a little and kissed her dark hair. She smelt of rosemary and sweetness, and he breathed in deeply the scent of love and life.

He would take care of the problem, he promised her silently. They would save the day. They always did…didn't they?

***

Bra was sleeping the deep sleep of children, lying on her side, covers half on the ground. She had probably kicked them away in her sleep; her room was always too warm for her taste when she wanted to sleep. Aqua-colored hair covered her face and most of her oversized unicorn t-shirt. She looked very peaceful and extremely sweet, every parent's dream.

Only upon closer inspection an observer would see the puffiness of her cheeks and the reddish lines around her eyes that indicated weeping.

Even little Bra had not remained unaffected by her future brother's story. She had snuggled against him to calm him down, but his inner pain had touched her deeply. She had cried softly because her future brother was staring at the ceiling in the next room, brooding, tossing, turning. She did not understand everything that was going on, but she understood enough that there was trouble, accepting promptly that there were two versions of her brother now and that both of them were in pain. And she hated to see that.

Eventually she had fallen asleep, sleeping that deep sleep that only children that are really tired can obtain.

***

Tomorrow they would make plans and try and save the future… but tonight was saved for reflection and mourning. At dawn, they would grind their teeth and give it their best... they would begin their work and do what they did best: saving the world.

Until that time, they would be silently processing the new information and allowing themselves to be scared… very possibly for the last time in a long period of time.

A/N: Before we go on, I'd like to thank Sango for her beta-reading. She helped me catch a lot of stupid mistakes that non-english natives tend to make when they're writing in English. She had to tell me that the expression: 'to look as if you see water burning' does not exist in English, like it does in Dutch. It means that one is looking around with utter astonishment. Thanks, Sango!

~Lanfir Leah