Chapter 12
Yet again, I've decided to make the chapters shorter. This is so I can update quicker than I normally do. Hopefully, it will work! I really don't like not updating for a whole week!
Oh yeah, I made a mistake in the last chapter. Konban wa doesn't mean 'Good night,' it means 'good evening,' at least I think so! Can anyone who knows how to speak Japanese very well please correct me on that? Anyway, I am very sorry for that error, and hopefully I won't do that again in the future.
As I always say, I don't own DBZ and I'm not making any money from writing this fic. I do own Bodu, however, and any new characters, places, etc.
And, oh yeah, please R&R!
As soon as Gohan opened his deep, ebony eyes, he felt sensational.
The sun was shining brightly, its warmth soothing to anything that it touched. The light of the sun was so strong and bright, that it had crept up inside the cave enough to illuminate the two bodies that slept there.
Not even the wisp of a single cloud showed itself in the bright, cerulean sky. The sky seemed so large and never ending when there were no clouds; so far away that it would take a million years to reach the end of it, and to find oneself in space.
The birds were singing joyfully. They were so joyful that their voices could wake anyone who was even a mile away, or further. But they would not have to worry about the ones who still slept out of hearing range of their beautiful songs, because there were birds whistling their tunes almost all over Chikyuu-sei.
The air smelled fresh. It was as if the planet had just been born, and filled with the cleanest air that anyone could possibly dream about. A slight wind blew the trees and plants, creating more of the precious oxygen that Chikyuu's many inhabitants needed.
Beside Gohan was his Totochan, who was still sleeping peacefully, despite the birds' deafening carols. His heart laughed and his face gave a visible smile as he noticed that, wondering when and how Goten had become such a sound sleeper. Maybe the past couple of days and its events had been the cause.
Unexpectedly, all of the sleeping tension in his body reawakened as he relived the past week. The terrific feeling that he had once felt; physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually, disappeared in an instant. It was replaced with dread and even fear, as he thought of the new enemy. The enemy who had been stronger than all of his friends.
He then remembered his nightmare from the night before. It had caused him to have an upsurge of adrenaline, which he had experienced after waking up. As soon as he had fallen asleep though, it had drifted away. But now, it was back, and with a vengeance.
Gohan's body twitched with restlessness, eager to do something to get rid of the feeling. He didn't want to sleep any longer, nor did he want to stay on the ground, which now felt like it was as hard and cold as iron. He stood up slowly trying to sur press the urge to leap up onto his feet because of his eagerness, not wanting to wake his still sleeping Totochan.
Surprisingly, no sign of vertigo permeated his mind as he stood, gazing at the trees that towered above the small cave. His heart was beating rapidly, and his breaths were short and exasperated. He walked out into the full light of the sun. His eyes darted around nervously, searching for something out of the ordinary. But he found nothing.
The adrenaline was pumping throughout his body so strongly now, that it was causing him to tremble. He clenched his fists and brought them in close to his sides, thinking that it would rid himself of the adrenaline. But it didn't.
A strange thought entered his mind, a thought that he only experienced rarely. The urge to fight. To shed blood.
He didn't know why he was getting these horrible pressures, because it was not like him to actually want to do such horrific things. It was completely out of character.
He was in a bad mood now, and he knew it. How can I have such a peaceful awakening, and then suddenly be in such a bad mood?! He screamed inside his head, his body now trembling even more. He wanted to punch something, or someone. Oh kami, he wanted to do something!
Gohan looked back over his shoulder at the cave, and a sudden idea filled his mind. Goten is probably going to be hungry when he wakes up. I'll have to make breakfast for both of us before I begin my search
Instead of feeling unease at the thought of 'the search,' he felt excited. It must have been his restless body who was thinking such bizarre thoughts. Deep inside his soul, he knew that when he found the enemy that he was seeking, he would be anything but excited.
He wanted to just ignore having breakfast, his stomach making no signs or sounds of disagreement. He just wanted to find his new enemy. But, it would be foolish to do so, and would probably end up doing more worse than good to both he and his Totochan.
Oh well. As long as he had something to do, maybe the powerful feeling of restlessness that invaded his mind and body would go away.
He walked back to the cave, deciding he should wake up Goten and tell him where he was going.
Goten yawned as he sat, staring at the trees outside the cave. He had tried to find something interesting about the trees, but there was nothing. They were just tall plants that, from when they were a tiny sapling, would never move at all.
He knew that his Niichan was fishing, or something like that, and wouldn't take too long. But he was still only young, and five minutes to him -- for that was how long Gohan said he would be -- seemed like forever.
He kept his ears peeled, waiting for any sound or sign that would tell him that Gohan was back. But the only thing that his senses could pick up was the horribly loud singing of the birds. He was already becoming so bored now that his eyelids were beginning to droop. As his conscious mind began to float away into the land of slumber, he was jolted by a sudden voice.
"Hmm, did I really take that long, Goten? I thought I was only gone for five minutes!" Gohan said, with a cheerful smile plastered across his face. He had an awfully large fish dragging along on the ground behind him.
The younger demi Saiya-jin smiled back in response and cried excitedly, "Yay! Breakfast!"
Just as Gohan had hoped it would, his fishing had cleansed his body of all the tension and adrenaline that had built up within it. He was now in as good a state of mind as he had been when he had awoken to the sounds of the birds, and the fulfilling breakfast that he had just eaten made him feel even more enlightened.
Both he and Goten had finished their breakfast. Their Saiya-jin stomachs were very content. They had washed their hands and faces at the stream that they had visited so often over the past two days. The icy cold water was pacifying as they splashed its glittering liquid onto their faces, washing away any small signs of fatigue that they had still been bearing.
Gohan looked to his Totochan and asked, "Are you ready to go, Goten?" He tried not show any evidence that he was beginning to feel melancholy. He knew that he would have to take his Totochan somewhere safe, and leave him there until He actually didn't know when he would be able to see him again. That musing was only adding to the sadness that he was already feeling. The sadness that was wrapping its cold cloak around his soul.
It had been so small, so hardly recognizable, that Goten began to think that it wasn't real. But he had heard that small note of unhappiness that had come out with his Niichan's voice. He began to feel as if Gohan's mournfulness was fluttering around, looking for somewhere to land, until it finally landed on him. His eyes flashed with despair at something unknown, as he asked, "Where we goin', Niichan?"
His Totochan's words had been the ones that he had not been wishing to hear, and now that he had, it caused his heart to feel heavy. He gave up trying to conceal his true feelings; his shoulders beginning to droop and his raven eyes casting their glance to the ground. He sighed as he said, "I have to take you back to Kami's Palace. Back to Okaasan. There's nothing else I can do."
Goten gasped as those words were spoken. Tears began to fill his eyes, but he shook his head and cried, "Iie! I don't want go back to Kaasan! I won't see you again! She won't let!"
Gohan knew that his Totochan wouldn't be happy with his decision, but he knew that it was for the best. His voice lowered until it was only a soft whisper, "I can't take you with me, Goten. It won't be safe, and as long as I know that you are with Okaasan and the others, then I can search for the new evil without having to worry about you being in any danger."
The younger half Saiya-jin could no longer hold his tears, and they slowly began to fall. His lips were trembling as he whispered back to his Oniichan, "But What if you get hurt?" He tried to say something else, but no sound escaped from his lips. Finally, he managed to shout as loud as he could, "I don't care! I go wit you!"
Gohan's eyes narrowed angrily as he answered back, "You are not going! You will stay with Okaasan, and will not follow me!"
Goten's courage slipped away as he began to sob. He tried not to, but he couldn't help it. He was feeling as if he was being torn away from his Niichan, and that he would never be allowed to even think about him again.
His Niichan's angry glare vanished as he smiled at Goten. I can never be mad with Goten, and don't think that I ever will be. His eyes, they're just so Full of innocence. "Gomen nasai, Goten. I didn't mean to shout at you. But I just don't want you to be hurt. You will be safe with Okaasan, and I promise that I will come back as soon as I can."
Something about Gohan's words was reassuring to the young child, and he decided to listen to him. He looked down at his own feet and replied quietly, "All right. I'll stay wit Kaasan."
Gohan held out his hand to Goten. Goten accepted, and almost laughed as his Niichan lifted him up and rested him on his shoulders.
"Hang on tight, Goten! You will be one of the first children to have a piggy back ride in the air!" Gohan laughed silently at his own idea. It reminded him of those times when his Tousan used to give him piggy back rides while riding on Kinto'un. Instead of bringing him sadness as thoughts of his Tousan usually did, that cherished memory filled him with new hope and strength.
Goten giggled also at his Niichan's joke. He had decided to forget for now about having to be separated from Gohan. Goten wanted to make sure that he had as much fun with him as possible, before they would have to go their separate ways.
Slowly ascending from the ground, Gohan began to fly towards the heavens with his Totochan laughing happily on his shoulders. They were both like a young child being flown away by his guardian angel.