Chapter 7
For some odd reason I woke up this morning, feeling strangely bogged down with the weight of worry. With worry I didn't know, but it was definitely there. I wiped my hand through my hair, as little clips of the dream came rushing into my head like a tornado hitting a house.
Those little shots of Videl crying over her mother...so disturbing and so real that I almost could see it right before my eyes. The racked, bloody mother, eyes glazed over in a death stare...
The thoughts were sickening me. And the bad thing about it is, is even though it was a dream, it was so real and shocking, that I could barely think of anything but it. My head was hurting from it, pounding in a vicious manner. I could feel my temples throbbing back and forth, up and down.
I got out of my bed, straightened out my shirt and pajama pants, and stretched. It made my head hurt worse when I stretched, but it calmed down after I laid my arms by their sides. I looked and saw that the television was off.
That was creepy. The television was supposed to be on...then I looked around my room. It was pretty clean, despite a few cluttered items here and there...but no cookies and milk. There weren't even crumbs, or an empty glass.
I was starting to feel scared, only out of reason that maybe that dream was real. That maybe I might've not dreamed going into one of those...what did he call them? A subway system for the universe is what I got from it. But I was definitely a bit knocked around. Unless...Unless I dreamt getting the cookies and milk as well. And going and turning off the television...Yes, I must've done that.
Well, I walked out of my room; almost warily, as I knew my mother wouldn't be up until 7:30 at least. My breathing was unusually rigid and unstable. The hallway was tinted a dark, gloomy gray, looming and grainy to the eyes. I slipped down the hall to my brother's room, since I checked on him almost every time he didn't get up before me.
I creaked his door open, and looked inside. My head hurt. It must've been causing me to have my imagination get the best of me. There was something sitting near Goten. I couldn't tell what it was. But I sensed from it a thick aura of trickery and deceit clouded so much that I could not tell what it was.
It had to be the headache. The... "thing" was peering at my little brother with silent blue eyes, and it was shrouded in some kind of black liquid.
My brother was in danger! I had to help him! But there was something keeping me back; almost making me feel helpless standing there, frozen stiff in a headache induced fear, almost tangible physically to me.
I almost jumped out of my skin when I felt something poke my back. I reeled back and jumped around, smacking my head on the top of the doorframe as I did so. My heart thumped quickly, and did so even more when I adjusted my vision to see that it was Videl. Little clips of seeing her cry over her mother's dead body flipped in my head.
"Woah, Gohan, I'm not gonna kill you. Calm down," She yawned out, stretching. I sighed, but then was startled again that I had lost focus on the thing that might be hurting Goten.
And now, it begins.
The creature wasn't there. No trace of it what so ever- no ki trail, no kind of spiritual vibe from where it stood. And damnit, my head hurt...
"Uhh, Gohan? Is there something in your brother's room?" Videl asked me, trying to peer over my shoulder.
"Uhh, well...I saw something sitting next to him," I stuttered as I crept in to investigate further.
"You must be seeing things, Gohan. I don't see anything in here, other than a few creepy looking stuffed toys," She whispered, both of us careful not to wake Goten up.
"I'm serious! I could feel his ki. It felt nasty, Videl. Pure, intoxicated evil, is what it felt like," She looked at me kind of weird.
"Gohan? Are you alright?" She asked me. No, I wasn't, thanks very much.
"Err, I'm fine. I've just got a headache. It might be messing around with my senses. I think I'll just go take some Advil...or something," I trailed off, looking under Goten's bed to see if it may have crawled under there. It was probably futile thinking this, seeing as I would notice its ki. But what the hell, you know?
I checked around Goten's bed a little more, never really taking note that Videl was scrutinizing me over in a corner. After many failed attempts to find it, I finally gave it up. It must've been the headache. I never really got headaches, so I wasn't exactly used to them.
"Err...Okay. I'll just go get some Advil. What're you doing up so early?" I asked Videl as we walked out into the hallway, Videl silently shutting Goten's door on the way out.
"I heard a lot of walking around out here. It woke me up, so I went out to see what it was. But now I'm not even sleepy anymore, thanks to you," She gave a mock sense of sarcasm, that I immediately picked up on.
"Sorry for breaking your beauty sleep," I rolled my eyes, and walked down the staircase. I could hear her make the noise when someone sticks his or her tongue out behind me. I smiled, and walked into the kitchen, suddenly feeling a lot better...
I walked over, not even seeing the table, and grabbed a bottle of Tylenol out of the medicine cabinet. I took about two or three pills, and then put the bottle back. My head throbbed a bit, but I figured I would be okay.
...Until I saw the cookies and milk sitting on the table. That's when I thought I would throw up, and in fact, I did. I ran over as quickly as I could, trying not to heave as I went, and feeling that rushing gut feeling wrench up into my mouth. I regurgitated nothing but stomach acid and a few pieces of snacks into the sink, feeling myself being emptied and weak afterwards. It stunk to high heavens, and I dared not look at it. I felt that nasty taste and the stinging in my throat and nose as I bent over the counter, my headache throbbing to its full intensity.
It was still snowing outside, and after a while of leaning over the sink, trying to get myself recollected, I was again hit with a blow of surrealism- the throw-up flickered from dark red to its normal state constantly. I coughed with a growl, feeling weak in the knees. Maybe since I had just thrown up (which I'd only done once for real-any other time it was blood from slight internal bleeding,) and it was so shocking to me, that's why it looked like blood that was flickering.
But it was so real, the blood hallucination. I couldn't think very straight; all I knew was that the dream was real, and that I was hunched over in my kitchen, having just thrown up all over the place. And for what? For realizing that I had seen a woman brutally shot to death, and then seeing her daughter crying over her dead body, with blood getting on her hands as she rocked her dead mother.
That's what made me sick. I was scared, now; I was so frightened and confused over what it all meant that I fell over and was sitting down in the floor of the kitchen, glancing around and feeling for ki to get my mind off of things. There was that damn flickering again, the flickering of the lights. My breathing was heavy, ragged.
I coughed, and refused to move, just because I was so engulfed in my state at that point that I didn't even know I could move. I could still smell the vomit from here...and the flickering was helping to intensify my fear. Fear of what, I'm not sure. But I think something was there that shouldn't be.
I started to convulse, and I think I went into a small state of shock; oh, where was Videl!? I was so scared then! The room was turning into itself, and darkening, and darkening...I needed someone to help me! I felt sick and empty! Where was my mommy? I was so scared!
I backed into the corner of my cabinets, crunched up. There were things here that were evil and menacing, and made me feel disgusting and empty on the inside. I was crying in fear of what I was seeing, and there was just this thing about the room that made it horrible. I couldn't get up to flee from the place, for I was in shock, and from this shock I was helpless.
All I could do was sit there and cry from the evil presence that I felt, the room feeling to twist and contort to the evil.
"Gohan," I heard a distant voice call to me, but I was barely in tune to it.
"Gohan?" Now the voice had a questioning accent to it, and I hid myself more.
"Gohan!" The voice wailed out, and I scrunched down as much as I could, feeling like a little mouse cornered by a cat. I felt something grip me, and I reeled back, but I felt so weak that I was unable to pry myself from it. I gave up quickly, not sure what to do. Tears and the twirling room clouded my eyesight.
There I felt something embrace me that was warm and comforting, but I was like stone, and I almost felt hypnotized by fear. I couldn't focus my ki to anything but the evil presence I felt.
"Gohan...Gohan speak!" I could hear so far away, so distant and quiet to me. But I understood. I was so scared that the only thing I could do was mutter out a few words. I don't even remember what they are. But now...Now I wasn't sure what I was seeing or hearing. There was a black...thing with menacing blue eyes and the golden numbers 3:16 inscribed on its forehead, coming towards me with a pistol in its left hand. Why would I be afraid of a pistol? The whole notion of it seemed absurd, seeing as if a bullet hit me it would just bounce off; but I was scared out of my mind.
The thing was standing right up next to me, its gun pointed in between my eyes. My breathing was no longer heavy, or ragged; rather, it was calm and soothed. But I held my breath, as I heard the clicking of the hammer being pulled back on the gun as the thing pulled the trigger. I braced myself-for what reasons unknown to me- and when I heard the blast ring out, everything flickered, then contorted and twisted. The creature was gone, now, and the kitchen was twirling inward to a black hole, and then...silence. The only thing here was the kitchen, the black hole, and I.
I wanted to be near someone! Someone who could help me get rid of these things infesting me with their evil auras! Someone who actually understood who I was! But there was none but one person to do that. And I had no idea where she was, but I could feel her spirit close to me. I don't know...
"Gohan! Gohan, please say something!" My mind felt a rushing sensation, and the black hole sped toward me at an alarming speed, and I thought it would engulf me, but it did not. It passed through me, and I'm guessing it must've disappeared after that. The kitchen was normal, now- not a single scratch to its surface. And what's odd, I felt nothing when the black hole went through me. Absolutely nothing. No tingle. No sense of "hey, I'm going through a black hole" kind of deals. It was just there to my eyes, and no more.
"Gohan! Gohan! Oh my God, he's almost catatonic..." I could hear someone say almost clearly, but at that point my head still pounded with beat only matched by the greatest of drums. But, I could see my hands and feet, and I could feel like I was alive and not in some kind of odd dream.
Then, blackness surrounded me, enveloped me. I couldn't since anything, but I could feel everything that was happening. I could feel that warmth that was holding me leave me. I felt so cold and distant again. I shivered and convulsed, and I think I might've thrown up again, just out of pure fright and loneliness. Then I felt the warmth come back, holding on to me tighter than ever. I loved that warmth. I could still think, and it made me think of Videl. That comforted me.
"What's wrong with him? Why is he acting like this?" I heard a shrill voice wail, and I perceived it to be my mother's. Don't get me wrong, I love my mother...but man, she can have such an annoying voice sometimes.
"Stop yelling..." I was able to mumble out although I couldn't see anything. There was a little bit of silence.
"Gohan...? Gohan, what's happening to you? Can you hear me?" I heard someone's voice ask me. It sounded reassuring...calm, affectionate. I blushed.
"I saw a man in a white suit," I mumbled, and I felt myself smile. I saw a man in a white suit, and I heard him tell me things that are important.
"Gohan, what did this man do to you?! You're sick, Gohan! We need to get you to the hospital, okay? Your mother has called Bulma to come and pick you up," I loved hearing her voice.
"He...did nothing, he told me important things," I told her. I was out of it. I didn't really think about what I was saying.
"Gohan..." I heard the girl's voice say my name slowly, sadly. I frowned.
"Why are you sad?" I asked her, and then stared into blackness, waiting for an answer.
"It's because...you're..." I frowned harder. I felt sadness permeating off of her as if it were water coming from a fountain.
"There's nothing to be sad about...the man said...Larry said..." I mumbled...and mumbled more. I felt something wet pitter-patter on my head. My head hurts...
"My head hurts...I took medicine for it...but it's not working..." I said.
"Medicine...Which medicine did you take, Gohan?" I heard the voice urgently ask me. I could tell she was worried sick. I thought it was the Tylenol. I took the Tylenol.
"Tylenol...I took the Tylenol..." I may have raised a shaky hand at the bottle that had been opened on the counter. But I am still not sure.
"Gohan...how many did you take?" The voice asked again, and I would've gotten tired of the annoying questions had it been from a different voice.
"Two...two tablets...two deer...." I cried with fright as I saw in my mind the spear headed creature that had the numbers 3:16 inscribed on its head. I felt the warmth tighten around me when I wailed out, and I was comforted a little.
"It's going to be okay, Gohan. Bulma's going to be here soon...soon, Gohan..." I felt that warmth tighten around me more. I was still scared. I knew my eyes were open, but all I saw was black. Why? What could possibly have caused me to get this sick?
~~`~~`~~
That evening, I felt a lot better. I must've fallen asleep waiting for Bulma to come and take me to her hospital. She's the only real doctor I could ever trust, only because of her advanced knowledge of the Sayain body and things surrounding it.
"What happened to me, Bulma?" I asked her as she was looking into my eyes with that tiny flashlight. She flicked it off and put it in her breast pocket.
"Well, Gohan, the only thing that I can tell from it is that you might've had some kind of seizure. But I don't know what caused it," She pondered, as I saw her take out that nasty cold instrument.
"But first, I'm going to run a few breathing tests. Videl told me your breathing sounded like you were suffocating," Well, I could've gathered that.
"Okay, breathe deep for me, please," I breathed in deep, and I absolutely hated that instrument. It felt really cold, almost like dry ice.
"Breathe out," I did as I was told, and this continued while she placed them on different sections of my chest and back for about a minute. After what seemed like an eternity, she put the vile thing over her neck, seeing no more use for it. Thank God.
"Your breathing seems normal...Do you still have a stomach ache?"
"No. I just feel really hungry," I said, and my stomach replied with a ravenous growl. I laughed a little bit, as did Bulma.
"Gohan, can I be quite serious with you?" She asked me.
"Uhh...sure. I guess," I stuttered, and was nervous at what she was going to ask me.
"You were mumbling about a man in a white suit the entire time you were in the helicopter. You kept on repeating that he had given you some information. Was that just part of the seizure, or did you really see a man in a white suit?" Oh, thank God. I thought she was going to ask me about my relationship with Videl.
"Well, about a night or two ago I met a man named Larry while I was going to Videl's house..." I was wondering whether I should tell her the whole story or not...
"Umm...that night I had a dream. A really weird dream."
"Was this when you came over and used my telescope?"
"Yeah. Anyways, I had a really weird dream about him, and all these unusual things. It's one of your regular, 'I have no fucking idea what's going on' kind of dreams," It was okay for me to curse in front of Bulma. She didn't mind at all.
"I see. You know, sometimes those dreams are trying to tell you something," Bulma said to me.
"Sometimes they've got a lot of metaphorical meaning to them. One thing could mean another. Are you sure you ever even met this man named Larry?"
"Of course I'm sure! He even let me into...Umm..." I stalled. Bulma looked at me weird.
"Bulma, you believe in God, right?" I asked her quietly, almost as if it were blasphemy to say such a thing-which is sad, you know?
"Yes, despite all I've seen and heard, I still believe in God. Why?"
"Well...last night, I couldn't really get any sleep, so I decided to go and get myself a snack. Well, when I was down there, I noticed that it wasn't snowing out on the patio. And, uh...I went to go check it out. And then something happened. Everything turned blue, and there were lights all around me...and I was suddenly in a tunnel full of lights."
Bulma stared at me with a graining suspicion. I stopped for a moment, and looked away from her.
"It's okay Gohan. You can go on."
"Well, I walked down the tunnel for a while, since I was really interested in what it was...And then, um... Larry showed up. Out of nowhere. And he told me that several others like it connected the tunnel throughout the universe. That's what he said, at least. He also said that God created the tunnels, and they could be used as portals to look through time."
"He did tell you that you couldn't change time, right? Because I've done a lot of research on it."
"I know you have. You made a time machine for Trunks in an alternate universe. I know. Anyways, he showed me around the tunnels, and then told me I had to do something." I skipped the part with the shooting. It was too gruesome.
"What did he tell you to do?"
"As far as I can tell, it's something really important. But he wouldn't tell me. He only told me that it could mean life or death."
"Hmm.This is odd. Are you sure this happened, Gohan? Are you absolutely positive it wasn't a dream?" She sounded skeptical.
"Yes, I'm absolutely sure. I could feel the wind, the heat, the cold...I was definitely awake. But when everything was over, there was a big white flash and I woke up in my bed, like it was a dream. But there were so many things that had told me that it had actually happened, that it couldn't have been."
"Then why did you have a seizure? Sayains like yourself don't have those unless they're put under extreme duress or worry."
"Well, I had a nasty migraine when I woke up. And I just all around didn't feel good."
Bulma pondered upon this for a while, pulling up a rolling chair to sit in.
"Now, last night you were in a time-tunnel, correct?"
"Yes, I was."
"It might be that since you've entered in to a place where so much information is being passed through, that when your brain gathered it, it had something of a system crash when you woke up. That could be one reason for it. Also, since it is a "Passage of God", it would probably have put a lot of weight on your psychological and spiritual being to be in such a sacred place."
"That's possible. In fact, that might have been. But why such a delayed reaction to it?" I asked.
"Hmm...I don't know. I might have to run a few more tests on you to figure this out. But for now, it looks like you're fine. But, I'm going to have to inject you with something." I squealed. Both my father and I hated needles.
"Oh, don't worry, Gohan. I'm just going to insert this nano-particle into you so I can study how your body reacts for a few weeks."
"That's not what I'm worried about..." I whimpered. Bulma took out a long needle from a cabinet that was to her waist, and filled it with a greenish yellow liquid from a container on the wall. I cringed in discomfort.
"Oh, don't be such a pussy. I know you've taken more pain than this," Bulma rolled her eyes, and gave it a squeeze test.
"That's not the point. I just don't like tiny sharp things going into my body like that," Gahh, barely anyone does. You'd have to be a masochist to actually like it.
"Let me see your arm, Gohan. I have to disinfect the injection spot first," She instructed me, although I don't know why since I already knew the procedure. I reluctantly pushed my arm out, and let her dab it with a cotton ball and some kind of disinfectant (I think alcohol).
"Okay, try not to brace your arm, or you'll snap the needle. These things are hard to replace," I twitched a bit, and tried to stay as calm as possible. I wouldn't be so worried if Bulma weren't so violent about it. I turned my head away as I felt a nasty sharp pain that was thrust into the middle of my arm come and go quicker than a flash. It wasn't that bad, but its bark is worse than its bite.
"There, you see? Nothing bad. Now then, I want you to be careful not to do anything extremely strenuous, because it could potentially throw my monitors off, and the ki that goes through your veins would probably destroy the nano-probe. So no Super-Sayain stunts, okay?" I grunted in annoyance as she placed a small bandage on my arm. I was supposed to have a good training session with Piccolo this week, too. I guess I'll have to tell him that I can't make it.
"Fine. Now will you let me go?" I mumbled with ever growing annoyance.
"No, I've got a few more things to ask you." Oh, just wonderful. I wonder if the next thing she'll be asking me is if I'm going out with Videl!
"What's your situation with Videl?" Oh, damnit!
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, do you just like her, or are you two,"
"Woah! No, I'm pretty sure it's nothing like that. We're just good friends,"
"Well, that's not what I saw this morning. From what I saw when my crew and me got here, she was a nervous wreck. She was almost as bad as you were," Woah...That doesn't seem like her. Why would she be so worried over me...?
"You want me to continue? You look a little knocked," I blinked a bit, and nodded.
"Okay...Well, Videl was sitting right next to you, and almost tore one of my employee's head off because he was "hurting you". Which was probably okay to think since you were screaming out something and twitching pretty badly."
"Ack, I didn't know I was that far off. Are you sure that it was just a regular seizure?"
"Well, yes and no. That's why I put the nano-probe in you. Anyways, your mother had already fainted on Goten's bed. Goten...Oh, brother, you guys need to send him to school soon. He thought you were asleep and having a bad dream," It felt like a bad dream.
"I think my mom was planning to send him to this elementary school in a town nearby next year."
"Well...You were just acting strange, Gohan. You had us all worried, especially Videl. She was running around in the mansion, nervous as hell as my crew and I were helping to get you better. She even asked Vegeta for a cigarette, just to calm her nerves. At least that's what Trunks said," Videl smoking a cigarette seemed really unnatural for me to think. I think that she must've just been in a wild state of panic.
"You revived real quick, Gohan. By the time you were getting proper oxygen, you had practically jumped out of it like you were sleeping. Which is why it worries me so much. I hope this doesn't cause problems at your school."
"Well, I guess that's what the nano-probe's for. But I'm sure I'll be fine. Besides, I don't think I can get much worse. You know how hard it is to kill me psychologically in the first place..." Bulma had done extensive mental testing on my brother and I, focusing a lot on how our brainwaves reacted to pain and duress under many elements.
"It's just better to be careful, sometimes Gohan. Okay, you can get out now. Videl's been waiting out there for about an hour." I blushed severely. I can't believe Videl cared for me this much. But then, I also knew she'd probably hide it...But then, what does that mean? Would it mean that she really doesn't? Or is she just swelled up with so much pride that she can't ever really show it?
I jumped off of the small bed, and stretched a bit. Bulma got up and opened her door, leading both of us out of the medium-sized room and into the hallway. I looked to my left to get out of the hospital wing, and there I saw Videl, halfway asleep in a waiting chair. I could almost feel the smile Bulma made behind me as she brushed by my back and walked to my right. Videl looked so peaceful and serene, I couldn't bear to wake her.
I went and sat down in a chair next to hers, and gently-very gently- tried to coax her. I smiled as she finally awoke, and she sat up straight in her chair, and cracked her neck. The first thing she said was, "Are you alright?"
"Well, on all accounts, Bulma says it was just a bad seizure."
"A seizure? I don't know, it seemed like more than that..." She mumbled. You know, when you wake up from a nap, you always seem like you've wasted a bit of your life away when you wake up, and that's why you feel so groggy.
"That's what she says. I trust Bulma, though." If you didn't, you'd...probably die.
"Did she give you an injection? I noticed there was a band-aid on your arm." I glanced down at my right arm, and kind of shrugged.
"Yeah. It's a little nano-probe that she put in me so she could monitor what goes on in my body for a few weeks. The worst part is, is that I can't even train or do anything with my mentor until the stupid thing in here dies," I complained, and Videl felt my dread.
"I know how you feel. When I broke my leg a few years ago, I was almost bored to death because I was stuck at the house watching television and playing video games. I had absolutely nothing to do."
"God, if I could tell you how many times I've been stuck in my room studying about math when I was ten years old, you'd feel like you were cooped up yourself." Videl gave me a little stare of awe, which was kind of...Errm...
"Hey, I know! Let's go get some food. I'm starving, and I bet you're hungry, too." That about snapped her out of the stare.
"Umm, okay. Man, even when you faced the throngs of Death, all you ever think about is food," Videl rolled her eyes, and both of us got up and made our way to one of the kitchens...which would take a while by just walking, since it's about a 3 blocks-worth walk.
God, Bulma needs to get a smaller house.
A/n: God, I need to update sooner. But don't blame me, blame my friends who've been spending two nights each over here, then me going to Six Flags, then me being a lazy bastard...wait...damn it...
Okay, I hope you like this LONG chapter, (okay, it's only 11 pages...EGH!) And I can assure you, something nasty is gonna happen to that poor nano-probe in the next week (of the story.)
Please keep those reviews up, (especially Psycho and Psycho Ann, who I basically rely on to keep this thing updated at least every two weeks.)
I love ya guys! Peace!
For some odd reason I woke up this morning, feeling strangely bogged down with the weight of worry. With worry I didn't know, but it was definitely there. I wiped my hand through my hair, as little clips of the dream came rushing into my head like a tornado hitting a house.
Those little shots of Videl crying over her mother...so disturbing and so real that I almost could see it right before my eyes. The racked, bloody mother, eyes glazed over in a death stare...
The thoughts were sickening me. And the bad thing about it is, is even though it was a dream, it was so real and shocking, that I could barely think of anything but it. My head was hurting from it, pounding in a vicious manner. I could feel my temples throbbing back and forth, up and down.
I got out of my bed, straightened out my shirt and pajama pants, and stretched. It made my head hurt worse when I stretched, but it calmed down after I laid my arms by their sides. I looked and saw that the television was off.
That was creepy. The television was supposed to be on...then I looked around my room. It was pretty clean, despite a few cluttered items here and there...but no cookies and milk. There weren't even crumbs, or an empty glass.
I was starting to feel scared, only out of reason that maybe that dream was real. That maybe I might've not dreamed going into one of those...what did he call them? A subway system for the universe is what I got from it. But I was definitely a bit knocked around. Unless...Unless I dreamt getting the cookies and milk as well. And going and turning off the television...Yes, I must've done that.
Well, I walked out of my room; almost warily, as I knew my mother wouldn't be up until 7:30 at least. My breathing was unusually rigid and unstable. The hallway was tinted a dark, gloomy gray, looming and grainy to the eyes. I slipped down the hall to my brother's room, since I checked on him almost every time he didn't get up before me.
I creaked his door open, and looked inside. My head hurt. It must've been causing me to have my imagination get the best of me. There was something sitting near Goten. I couldn't tell what it was. But I sensed from it a thick aura of trickery and deceit clouded so much that I could not tell what it was.
It had to be the headache. The... "thing" was peering at my little brother with silent blue eyes, and it was shrouded in some kind of black liquid.
My brother was in danger! I had to help him! But there was something keeping me back; almost making me feel helpless standing there, frozen stiff in a headache induced fear, almost tangible physically to me.
I almost jumped out of my skin when I felt something poke my back. I reeled back and jumped around, smacking my head on the top of the doorframe as I did so. My heart thumped quickly, and did so even more when I adjusted my vision to see that it was Videl. Little clips of seeing her cry over her mother's dead body flipped in my head.
"Woah, Gohan, I'm not gonna kill you. Calm down," She yawned out, stretching. I sighed, but then was startled again that I had lost focus on the thing that might be hurting Goten.
And now, it begins.
The creature wasn't there. No trace of it what so ever- no ki trail, no kind of spiritual vibe from where it stood. And damnit, my head hurt...
"Uhh, Gohan? Is there something in your brother's room?" Videl asked me, trying to peer over my shoulder.
"Uhh, well...I saw something sitting next to him," I stuttered as I crept in to investigate further.
"You must be seeing things, Gohan. I don't see anything in here, other than a few creepy looking stuffed toys," She whispered, both of us careful not to wake Goten up.
"I'm serious! I could feel his ki. It felt nasty, Videl. Pure, intoxicated evil, is what it felt like," She looked at me kind of weird.
"Gohan? Are you alright?" She asked me. No, I wasn't, thanks very much.
"Err, I'm fine. I've just got a headache. It might be messing around with my senses. I think I'll just go take some Advil...or something," I trailed off, looking under Goten's bed to see if it may have crawled under there. It was probably futile thinking this, seeing as I would notice its ki. But what the hell, you know?
I checked around Goten's bed a little more, never really taking note that Videl was scrutinizing me over in a corner. After many failed attempts to find it, I finally gave it up. It must've been the headache. I never really got headaches, so I wasn't exactly used to them.
"Err...Okay. I'll just go get some Advil. What're you doing up so early?" I asked Videl as we walked out into the hallway, Videl silently shutting Goten's door on the way out.
"I heard a lot of walking around out here. It woke me up, so I went out to see what it was. But now I'm not even sleepy anymore, thanks to you," She gave a mock sense of sarcasm, that I immediately picked up on.
"Sorry for breaking your beauty sleep," I rolled my eyes, and walked down the staircase. I could hear her make the noise when someone sticks his or her tongue out behind me. I smiled, and walked into the kitchen, suddenly feeling a lot better...
I walked over, not even seeing the table, and grabbed a bottle of Tylenol out of the medicine cabinet. I took about two or three pills, and then put the bottle back. My head throbbed a bit, but I figured I would be okay.
...Until I saw the cookies and milk sitting on the table. That's when I thought I would throw up, and in fact, I did. I ran over as quickly as I could, trying not to heave as I went, and feeling that rushing gut feeling wrench up into my mouth. I regurgitated nothing but stomach acid and a few pieces of snacks into the sink, feeling myself being emptied and weak afterwards. It stunk to high heavens, and I dared not look at it. I felt that nasty taste and the stinging in my throat and nose as I bent over the counter, my headache throbbing to its full intensity.
It was still snowing outside, and after a while of leaning over the sink, trying to get myself recollected, I was again hit with a blow of surrealism- the throw-up flickered from dark red to its normal state constantly. I coughed with a growl, feeling weak in the knees. Maybe since I had just thrown up (which I'd only done once for real-any other time it was blood from slight internal bleeding,) and it was so shocking to me, that's why it looked like blood that was flickering.
But it was so real, the blood hallucination. I couldn't think very straight; all I knew was that the dream was real, and that I was hunched over in my kitchen, having just thrown up all over the place. And for what? For realizing that I had seen a woman brutally shot to death, and then seeing her daughter crying over her dead body, with blood getting on her hands as she rocked her dead mother.
That's what made me sick. I was scared, now; I was so frightened and confused over what it all meant that I fell over and was sitting down in the floor of the kitchen, glancing around and feeling for ki to get my mind off of things. There was that damn flickering again, the flickering of the lights. My breathing was heavy, ragged.
I coughed, and refused to move, just because I was so engulfed in my state at that point that I didn't even know I could move. I could still smell the vomit from here...and the flickering was helping to intensify my fear. Fear of what, I'm not sure. But I think something was there that shouldn't be.
I started to convulse, and I think I went into a small state of shock; oh, where was Videl!? I was so scared then! The room was turning into itself, and darkening, and darkening...I needed someone to help me! I felt sick and empty! Where was my mommy? I was so scared!
I backed into the corner of my cabinets, crunched up. There were things here that were evil and menacing, and made me feel disgusting and empty on the inside. I was crying in fear of what I was seeing, and there was just this thing about the room that made it horrible. I couldn't get up to flee from the place, for I was in shock, and from this shock I was helpless.
All I could do was sit there and cry from the evil presence that I felt, the room feeling to twist and contort to the evil.
"Gohan," I heard a distant voice call to me, but I was barely in tune to it.
"Gohan?" Now the voice had a questioning accent to it, and I hid myself more.
"Gohan!" The voice wailed out, and I scrunched down as much as I could, feeling like a little mouse cornered by a cat. I felt something grip me, and I reeled back, but I felt so weak that I was unable to pry myself from it. I gave up quickly, not sure what to do. Tears and the twirling room clouded my eyesight.
There I felt something embrace me that was warm and comforting, but I was like stone, and I almost felt hypnotized by fear. I couldn't focus my ki to anything but the evil presence I felt.
"Gohan...Gohan speak!" I could hear so far away, so distant and quiet to me. But I understood. I was so scared that the only thing I could do was mutter out a few words. I don't even remember what they are. But now...Now I wasn't sure what I was seeing or hearing. There was a black...thing with menacing blue eyes and the golden numbers 3:16 inscribed on its forehead, coming towards me with a pistol in its left hand. Why would I be afraid of a pistol? The whole notion of it seemed absurd, seeing as if a bullet hit me it would just bounce off; but I was scared out of my mind.
The thing was standing right up next to me, its gun pointed in between my eyes. My breathing was no longer heavy, or ragged; rather, it was calm and soothed. But I held my breath, as I heard the clicking of the hammer being pulled back on the gun as the thing pulled the trigger. I braced myself-for what reasons unknown to me- and when I heard the blast ring out, everything flickered, then contorted and twisted. The creature was gone, now, and the kitchen was twirling inward to a black hole, and then...silence. The only thing here was the kitchen, the black hole, and I.
I wanted to be near someone! Someone who could help me get rid of these things infesting me with their evil auras! Someone who actually understood who I was! But there was none but one person to do that. And I had no idea where she was, but I could feel her spirit close to me. I don't know...
"Gohan! Gohan, please say something!" My mind felt a rushing sensation, and the black hole sped toward me at an alarming speed, and I thought it would engulf me, but it did not. It passed through me, and I'm guessing it must've disappeared after that. The kitchen was normal, now- not a single scratch to its surface. And what's odd, I felt nothing when the black hole went through me. Absolutely nothing. No tingle. No sense of "hey, I'm going through a black hole" kind of deals. It was just there to my eyes, and no more.
"Gohan! Gohan! Oh my God, he's almost catatonic..." I could hear someone say almost clearly, but at that point my head still pounded with beat only matched by the greatest of drums. But, I could see my hands and feet, and I could feel like I was alive and not in some kind of odd dream.
Then, blackness surrounded me, enveloped me. I couldn't since anything, but I could feel everything that was happening. I could feel that warmth that was holding me leave me. I felt so cold and distant again. I shivered and convulsed, and I think I might've thrown up again, just out of pure fright and loneliness. Then I felt the warmth come back, holding on to me tighter than ever. I loved that warmth. I could still think, and it made me think of Videl. That comforted me.
"What's wrong with him? Why is he acting like this?" I heard a shrill voice wail, and I perceived it to be my mother's. Don't get me wrong, I love my mother...but man, she can have such an annoying voice sometimes.
"Stop yelling..." I was able to mumble out although I couldn't see anything. There was a little bit of silence.
"Gohan...? Gohan, what's happening to you? Can you hear me?" I heard someone's voice ask me. It sounded reassuring...calm, affectionate. I blushed.
"I saw a man in a white suit," I mumbled, and I felt myself smile. I saw a man in a white suit, and I heard him tell me things that are important.
"Gohan, what did this man do to you?! You're sick, Gohan! We need to get you to the hospital, okay? Your mother has called Bulma to come and pick you up," I loved hearing her voice.
"He...did nothing, he told me important things," I told her. I was out of it. I didn't really think about what I was saying.
"Gohan..." I heard the girl's voice say my name slowly, sadly. I frowned.
"Why are you sad?" I asked her, and then stared into blackness, waiting for an answer.
"It's because...you're..." I frowned harder. I felt sadness permeating off of her as if it were water coming from a fountain.
"There's nothing to be sad about...the man said...Larry said..." I mumbled...and mumbled more. I felt something wet pitter-patter on my head. My head hurts...
"My head hurts...I took medicine for it...but it's not working..." I said.
"Medicine...Which medicine did you take, Gohan?" I heard the voice urgently ask me. I could tell she was worried sick. I thought it was the Tylenol. I took the Tylenol.
"Tylenol...I took the Tylenol..." I may have raised a shaky hand at the bottle that had been opened on the counter. But I am still not sure.
"Gohan...how many did you take?" The voice asked again, and I would've gotten tired of the annoying questions had it been from a different voice.
"Two...two tablets...two deer...." I cried with fright as I saw in my mind the spear headed creature that had the numbers 3:16 inscribed on its head. I felt the warmth tighten around me when I wailed out, and I was comforted a little.
"It's going to be okay, Gohan. Bulma's going to be here soon...soon, Gohan..." I felt that warmth tighten around me more. I was still scared. I knew my eyes were open, but all I saw was black. Why? What could possibly have caused me to get this sick?
~~`~~`~~
That evening, I felt a lot better. I must've fallen asleep waiting for Bulma to come and take me to her hospital. She's the only real doctor I could ever trust, only because of her advanced knowledge of the Sayain body and things surrounding it.
"What happened to me, Bulma?" I asked her as she was looking into my eyes with that tiny flashlight. She flicked it off and put it in her breast pocket.
"Well, Gohan, the only thing that I can tell from it is that you might've had some kind of seizure. But I don't know what caused it," She pondered, as I saw her take out that nasty cold instrument.
"But first, I'm going to run a few breathing tests. Videl told me your breathing sounded like you were suffocating," Well, I could've gathered that.
"Okay, breathe deep for me, please," I breathed in deep, and I absolutely hated that instrument. It felt really cold, almost like dry ice.
"Breathe out," I did as I was told, and this continued while she placed them on different sections of my chest and back for about a minute. After what seemed like an eternity, she put the vile thing over her neck, seeing no more use for it. Thank God.
"Your breathing seems normal...Do you still have a stomach ache?"
"No. I just feel really hungry," I said, and my stomach replied with a ravenous growl. I laughed a little bit, as did Bulma.
"Gohan, can I be quite serious with you?" She asked me.
"Uhh...sure. I guess," I stuttered, and was nervous at what she was going to ask me.
"You were mumbling about a man in a white suit the entire time you were in the helicopter. You kept on repeating that he had given you some information. Was that just part of the seizure, or did you really see a man in a white suit?" Oh, thank God. I thought she was going to ask me about my relationship with Videl.
"Well, about a night or two ago I met a man named Larry while I was going to Videl's house..." I was wondering whether I should tell her the whole story or not...
"Umm...that night I had a dream. A really weird dream."
"Was this when you came over and used my telescope?"
"Yeah. Anyways, I had a really weird dream about him, and all these unusual things. It's one of your regular, 'I have no fucking idea what's going on' kind of dreams," It was okay for me to curse in front of Bulma. She didn't mind at all.
"I see. You know, sometimes those dreams are trying to tell you something," Bulma said to me.
"Sometimes they've got a lot of metaphorical meaning to them. One thing could mean another. Are you sure you ever even met this man named Larry?"
"Of course I'm sure! He even let me into...Umm..." I stalled. Bulma looked at me weird.
"Bulma, you believe in God, right?" I asked her quietly, almost as if it were blasphemy to say such a thing-which is sad, you know?
"Yes, despite all I've seen and heard, I still believe in God. Why?"
"Well...last night, I couldn't really get any sleep, so I decided to go and get myself a snack. Well, when I was down there, I noticed that it wasn't snowing out on the patio. And, uh...I went to go check it out. And then something happened. Everything turned blue, and there were lights all around me...and I was suddenly in a tunnel full of lights."
Bulma stared at me with a graining suspicion. I stopped for a moment, and looked away from her.
"It's okay Gohan. You can go on."
"Well, I walked down the tunnel for a while, since I was really interested in what it was...And then, um... Larry showed up. Out of nowhere. And he told me that several others like it connected the tunnel throughout the universe. That's what he said, at least. He also said that God created the tunnels, and they could be used as portals to look through time."
"He did tell you that you couldn't change time, right? Because I've done a lot of research on it."
"I know you have. You made a time machine for Trunks in an alternate universe. I know. Anyways, he showed me around the tunnels, and then told me I had to do something." I skipped the part with the shooting. It was too gruesome.
"What did he tell you to do?"
"As far as I can tell, it's something really important. But he wouldn't tell me. He only told me that it could mean life or death."
"Hmm.This is odd. Are you sure this happened, Gohan? Are you absolutely positive it wasn't a dream?" She sounded skeptical.
"Yes, I'm absolutely sure. I could feel the wind, the heat, the cold...I was definitely awake. But when everything was over, there was a big white flash and I woke up in my bed, like it was a dream. But there were so many things that had told me that it had actually happened, that it couldn't have been."
"Then why did you have a seizure? Sayains like yourself don't have those unless they're put under extreme duress or worry."
"Well, I had a nasty migraine when I woke up. And I just all around didn't feel good."
Bulma pondered upon this for a while, pulling up a rolling chair to sit in.
"Now, last night you were in a time-tunnel, correct?"
"Yes, I was."
"It might be that since you've entered in to a place where so much information is being passed through, that when your brain gathered it, it had something of a system crash when you woke up. That could be one reason for it. Also, since it is a "Passage of God", it would probably have put a lot of weight on your psychological and spiritual being to be in such a sacred place."
"That's possible. In fact, that might have been. But why such a delayed reaction to it?" I asked.
"Hmm...I don't know. I might have to run a few more tests on you to figure this out. But for now, it looks like you're fine. But, I'm going to have to inject you with something." I squealed. Both my father and I hated needles.
"Oh, don't worry, Gohan. I'm just going to insert this nano-particle into you so I can study how your body reacts for a few weeks."
"That's not what I'm worried about..." I whimpered. Bulma took out a long needle from a cabinet that was to her waist, and filled it with a greenish yellow liquid from a container on the wall. I cringed in discomfort.
"Oh, don't be such a pussy. I know you've taken more pain than this," Bulma rolled her eyes, and gave it a squeeze test.
"That's not the point. I just don't like tiny sharp things going into my body like that," Gahh, barely anyone does. You'd have to be a masochist to actually like it.
"Let me see your arm, Gohan. I have to disinfect the injection spot first," She instructed me, although I don't know why since I already knew the procedure. I reluctantly pushed my arm out, and let her dab it with a cotton ball and some kind of disinfectant (I think alcohol).
"Okay, try not to brace your arm, or you'll snap the needle. These things are hard to replace," I twitched a bit, and tried to stay as calm as possible. I wouldn't be so worried if Bulma weren't so violent about it. I turned my head away as I felt a nasty sharp pain that was thrust into the middle of my arm come and go quicker than a flash. It wasn't that bad, but its bark is worse than its bite.
"There, you see? Nothing bad. Now then, I want you to be careful not to do anything extremely strenuous, because it could potentially throw my monitors off, and the ki that goes through your veins would probably destroy the nano-probe. So no Super-Sayain stunts, okay?" I grunted in annoyance as she placed a small bandage on my arm. I was supposed to have a good training session with Piccolo this week, too. I guess I'll have to tell him that I can't make it.
"Fine. Now will you let me go?" I mumbled with ever growing annoyance.
"No, I've got a few more things to ask you." Oh, just wonderful. I wonder if the next thing she'll be asking me is if I'm going out with Videl!
"What's your situation with Videl?" Oh, damnit!
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, do you just like her, or are you two,"
"Woah! No, I'm pretty sure it's nothing like that. We're just good friends,"
"Well, that's not what I saw this morning. From what I saw when my crew and me got here, she was a nervous wreck. She was almost as bad as you were," Woah...That doesn't seem like her. Why would she be so worried over me...?
"You want me to continue? You look a little knocked," I blinked a bit, and nodded.
"Okay...Well, Videl was sitting right next to you, and almost tore one of my employee's head off because he was "hurting you". Which was probably okay to think since you were screaming out something and twitching pretty badly."
"Ack, I didn't know I was that far off. Are you sure that it was just a regular seizure?"
"Well, yes and no. That's why I put the nano-probe in you. Anyways, your mother had already fainted on Goten's bed. Goten...Oh, brother, you guys need to send him to school soon. He thought you were asleep and having a bad dream," It felt like a bad dream.
"I think my mom was planning to send him to this elementary school in a town nearby next year."
"Well...You were just acting strange, Gohan. You had us all worried, especially Videl. She was running around in the mansion, nervous as hell as my crew and I were helping to get you better. She even asked Vegeta for a cigarette, just to calm her nerves. At least that's what Trunks said," Videl smoking a cigarette seemed really unnatural for me to think. I think that she must've just been in a wild state of panic.
"You revived real quick, Gohan. By the time you were getting proper oxygen, you had practically jumped out of it like you were sleeping. Which is why it worries me so much. I hope this doesn't cause problems at your school."
"Well, I guess that's what the nano-probe's for. But I'm sure I'll be fine. Besides, I don't think I can get much worse. You know how hard it is to kill me psychologically in the first place..." Bulma had done extensive mental testing on my brother and I, focusing a lot on how our brainwaves reacted to pain and duress under many elements.
"It's just better to be careful, sometimes Gohan. Okay, you can get out now. Videl's been waiting out there for about an hour." I blushed severely. I can't believe Videl cared for me this much. But then, I also knew she'd probably hide it...But then, what does that mean? Would it mean that she really doesn't? Or is she just swelled up with so much pride that she can't ever really show it?
I jumped off of the small bed, and stretched a bit. Bulma got up and opened her door, leading both of us out of the medium-sized room and into the hallway. I looked to my left to get out of the hospital wing, and there I saw Videl, halfway asleep in a waiting chair. I could almost feel the smile Bulma made behind me as she brushed by my back and walked to my right. Videl looked so peaceful and serene, I couldn't bear to wake her.
I went and sat down in a chair next to hers, and gently-very gently- tried to coax her. I smiled as she finally awoke, and she sat up straight in her chair, and cracked her neck. The first thing she said was, "Are you alright?"
"Well, on all accounts, Bulma says it was just a bad seizure."
"A seizure? I don't know, it seemed like more than that..." She mumbled. You know, when you wake up from a nap, you always seem like you've wasted a bit of your life away when you wake up, and that's why you feel so groggy.
"That's what she says. I trust Bulma, though." If you didn't, you'd...probably die.
"Did she give you an injection? I noticed there was a band-aid on your arm." I glanced down at my right arm, and kind of shrugged.
"Yeah. It's a little nano-probe that she put in me so she could monitor what goes on in my body for a few weeks. The worst part is, is that I can't even train or do anything with my mentor until the stupid thing in here dies," I complained, and Videl felt my dread.
"I know how you feel. When I broke my leg a few years ago, I was almost bored to death because I was stuck at the house watching television and playing video games. I had absolutely nothing to do."
"God, if I could tell you how many times I've been stuck in my room studying about math when I was ten years old, you'd feel like you were cooped up yourself." Videl gave me a little stare of awe, which was kind of...Errm...
"Hey, I know! Let's go get some food. I'm starving, and I bet you're hungry, too." That about snapped her out of the stare.
"Umm, okay. Man, even when you faced the throngs of Death, all you ever think about is food," Videl rolled her eyes, and both of us got up and made our way to one of the kitchens...which would take a while by just walking, since it's about a 3 blocks-worth walk.
God, Bulma needs to get a smaller house.
A/n: God, I need to update sooner. But don't blame me, blame my friends who've been spending two nights each over here, then me going to Six Flags, then me being a lazy bastard...wait...damn it...
Okay, I hope you like this LONG chapter, (okay, it's only 11 pages...EGH!) And I can assure you, something nasty is gonna happen to that poor nano-probe in the next week (of the story.)
Please keep those reviews up, (especially Psycho and Psycho Ann, who I basically rely on to keep this thing updated at least every two weeks.)
I love ya guys! Peace!