~Soul Stalkers~

            Disclaimer: I stole this unoriginal disclaimer from someone else, who stole it from someone else, who stole it from someone else, who stole that from Funimation, who stole that from Toei, who stole that from Akira Toriyama… Why did Akira have a disclaimer? ………. Oh, and if you're going to use my disclaimer, please add me to the list. Domo Arigato.

            A/N: This chappy is a load of background information, worked into the plot. It is vital for the story, you'll need this information.

~Chapter Two~

            A tall man sat in a large black throne, and sparkling blood-red liquid dripping from where his clawed hands rested. He rested with an all-knowing smirk on his face. He wore tight black leather pants, and a black tank top, pulled taut against his chiseled body. His shirt had a red substance stained down the center, and he wore chains around his arms and neck. His hair was a dark black color, with red tips, which accented his dark eyes, and gleaming red pupils. His shirt had large holes in the back, where black wings were resting against his body. While folded, his wings were no wider than two feet, and no taller than three feet, but spread, these wings reached twelve feet across, and had teal and red shimmers that shown under the light.

            "Transform, you know you can't remain like that in this realm forever," the man's voice was low and rough, but with a humorous tone affecting it. As he laughed, you could see his fangs.

            The determined woman remained on the floor below him, on her hands and knees, wisps of her short black hair covering her piercing blue eyes. Her body was bare, a single towel cast to the side. She wasn't very tall, and she was extremely thin, but with a single look at her, one could tell she was powerful. Yet even as the scene progressed just seconds, her form began to become morphed. One could hear the cracking of stiff joints, and the sudden horrifying sound of tearing flesh. Her eyes were flushed with the pain of fighting the transformation, yet it was all in vain. Her body grew longer, her hair was lengthened, and gained blue streaks to it, and she even gained clothes as though she were wearing them forever. The torn black shirt just barely clutched to her large breasts. The even shorter black skirt showed off everything and more, serving almost no purpose at this point, except as a technicality. Claws and fangs grew from there respective places, but the most miraculous change was the wings that raised themselves from her body. A spectacular twenty-three feet across, red, black, and blue mixed splendidly to form an amazing color combination as they were folded. Claws protruded from each angle on her newly acquired limbs.

            "Much better," the man pronounced. "I've heard some disturbing news… I'm not sure whether to trust it or not. Rumors have been going on, that you've deserted your prey, and even, say the bolder rumors, fallen… In love with him. Now, I know you're too smart for that, right? Of course. But then again, what was that you were muttering in the shower?" he wandered down to the woman, who had yet to move from her spot, "You know the price for treachery woman…"

            "I'm not being treacherous, bastard… You know that we have to get them to fall in love with us before we can attack," She spat verbal venom toward him.

            "Hai, but then, why, exactly, would you give up a chance to go out with this boy? Surely the relationship would progress much faster then?"

            "Shizuka ni, Akuma… I'm tired of you. I shall be getting back to my prey-" She was cut off by his hands around her waist, and mouth on her lips as though she were his property.

            "But Videl, dear, seeing you in that shower, it reminded me of a few years ago. We had fun that night, didn't we?" Akuma whispered.

            "Actually, if I remember correctly, I was chained to a wall with a piece of Katchin shoved in my mouth as you impregnated me."

            "Ah, but you are such a rare find, a half Akurei-jin, and you know the rights of passage. And you presented me with my healthy child, just as the requirements state, did you not?"

            "Hai, fucking bastard, I gave you your fucking child," Videl replied.

            Akuma rocked her body close to his own, despite her attempts to pull back. "I never knew a hybrid could look so sexy, and then you came along, and all of a sudden, I find myself in a fit of passion in your name, Videl."

            "I don't care what you want right now, these are precious moments I could be spending making that prey of mine fall in love. I have to leave," and with that, she twisted out from his arms and took two steps backwards, walking through an invisible wall.

* * *

            She appeared in the shower, which had now run even colder. She turned it off, no longer in her transformed state, and dressed in a sports bra and capris for bed. Her body still ached, but she found strength enough to walk, if only for that. 'Gohan, I don't get how you can't see it. I can't let you fall in love with me… It would be like your own suicide. I can't let that happen to you; not because of me. Piccolo can see it; he knows something. Listen to your sensei Gohan; stay away from me,' she thought. 'As much as I'd just love to die to save him, I can't… I'd never be able to forgive myself if something happened to Trunks or Goten. If I left, I know something horrifying would happen to them.' "Why must I be cursed with Akurei-jin blood?!" she yelled.

            A lone figure, levitating out her window heard this exclamation of her heritage; "Akurei-jin. Of course, she'd have to be Akurei-jin. Not any easy race like the Daemons, she's an Akurei-jin. Why is she so unhappy with this? Is she feeling…Remorse?"

            Feeling another presence, Videl looked up to her window, then wandered out to the balcony. "I can feel you out here Piccolo, and if you can sense me at all, then you know my secret."

            Silence held thick for a few more minutes, but at length, the Namek landed on the other edge of the balcony, revealing himself. "You aren't after Gohan, are you?" Piccolo asked.

            Again, silence. Finally she spoke; "Hai, I am after him… I suppose… I don't understand, but instead of making him fall in love with me, I fell in love with him. That's a treachery that one pays with eternal torture, along with their loved one."

            "I know a bit about the Akurei-jin, but almost nothing about you. What, exactly, makes you so special?" Piccolo asked.

            "You don't know? Haven't you realized that my otousan's not an Akurei-jin? My mother was, but while hunting her prey, she fell in love with my otousan, and had me. I'm a hybrid…"

            "But, I was under the impression that the Akurei-jin hunted hybrids."

            Videl sighed. "We do, any mixed race, any hybrid, no matter how small the ratio of their races may be. That's why we never sent anyone after Goku, or Vegeta. But Goten, however, has been targeted by none other than my own daughter," Videl whispered.

            "Goten was targeted? How is it that you have a daughter? Actually, I withdraw the question," Piccolo retracted the question on an afterthought.

            "Iie Piccolo, it wasn't some love story. All the female Akurei-jin are slave-bound to Akuma, and at the age of ten are forced to mate with, and present a child to, him. Her name is Iruni, and, although, I'm her okaasan, I'd like nothing more than for her to drop dead. All of these feelings will get a person killed in my race, and now Akuma is on to me."

            Piccolo stood there, pondering for a moment. "And yet, you don't mind that it will be your death if you continue on the path your on now?" he asked.

            "I don't care what happens to me, I just want you guys safe."

            "Are you going to tell Gohan at some point, or will you wait until it's too late?" he asked, matter-of-factly.

            "I won't wait until it's too late! I just don't know how to tell him that I'm his Soul Stalker!" Videl cried.

            "Why are the Akurei-jin called Soul Stalkers, anyways?" Piccolo inquired.

            "Well, basically, we're given a target the second we're born, and learn to read their thoughts, follow them, hear whatever they say, and eventually, we force them into love with us, and use their souls as nourishment. Sick, isn't it?"

            Piccolo stared, dumbfounded for a few more minutes. "I don't know if you can sense it Videl, but something's stirring in your realm, and I think it's because of you. I suppose we'll be seeing some new enemy soon?" he asked.

            "I don't know Piccolo… That's not up to me. But Time's moving, and we'll soon find out what Akuma has planned. It's big whatever it is."

            Piccolo nodded and turned to leave. "Just don't wait until it's too late, Videl."

            Videl wandered back to her room, only a bit worse for the wear. Collapsing on her bed, she began to try and heal her tired body. She lay there for a while, not thinking, until she thought she felt an odd spike in the energy around the earth. It passed not long after, and Videl was left to sleep, although not well, as her night was filled with fitful dreams of Gohan and Akuma, a battle to the death.

* * *

            "Miss Videl, you really should get up…" Came an airy voice to interrupt her dream. There was no light to shine through her eyelids as usual though. "I thought it best not to open the curtains, as you don't sleep in much, and that boy's been out there on your balcony since before six. He came to the door inquiring as to your condition around eight, but he's been out there much longer than that."

            Videl heard none of these words, for as soon as she heard of a boy on her balcony, she tore about the room to dress herself. The senile maid didn't seem to notice, and continued on about the good-mannered boy who waited until after dawn to ring the bell. The elderly lady didn't even mind that she was pushed from the room before she'd finished her lecture. Videl ran to the windows and threw the balcony door open to greet Gohan, as he'd been waiting for hours.

            "What are you doing here?" she yelped.

            He was instantly taken aback by her lack of anger in her response. "Waiting?"

            "Since Six?! What in God's name could have possessed you to do that?! I'm not moving until noon usually!"

            "Videl, I wanted to apologize. I was out of line to ask you to go out with me. We're good friends… I shouldn't… I shouldn't try to mess that up," Gohan said, giving a listless smile.

            "You lost sleep over me, didn't you?" she asked, grinning.

            "Only one night, but, hai… You could put it that way."

            "Well, I have an apology to make as well. I should have been more up front with you as to why I said no so quickly. But it still doesn't feel quite like the right moment to tell you anyways. I think I'll just kind of know when it's the appropriate time. Now simply isn't it. Can you just take that for now? I'll tell you everything, I just need to sort some things out first."

            "Why do I get the feeling this is gonna be more than a little family secret?" Gohan asked.

            "Well, not quite the whole family… But, never mind," Videl suddenly turned, and Gohan imitated her actions, and they each stared off into the distance. "Did you feel that?"

            "Hai."

~Capsule Corp~

            Vegeta spent another late night training, and was only now waking. He felt slightly pissed about something, but he had so many things and people he was pissed at, he couldn't keep track of them all. Bulma appeared to be outside with her okaasan, somewhere near the gardens, and Trunks was…That was weird… Maybe he was a bit too tired. He sensed two of his sons; although, one of them did feel incredibly weak. Then it hit him. That other Trunks, the one from the future! Why would he be here? And why was he so weakened?

            Bulma's scream could be heard around the entirety of the Capsule Corp Complex. "Oh Shit! TRUNKS!"

~Videl~Z~