Friend vs. Friend Part IV: Hope Still Remains

The outlook didn't bode well for the remaining Z warriors. Gotenks kept Olibu and the Grand Kai busy while Piccolo and Pikkon had more than their hands full with the berserk Leviathan. Gotenks spewed forth his Kamikaze Ghosts, which chased the hapless fighters around before exploding. Luckily Grand Kai and Olibu escaped without any major damage. Leviathan tore through Piccolo and Pikkon with amazing speed, knocking both exhausted warriors across the broken landscape. He didn't relent, and picked up Pikkon by the leg and twirled him around before releasing him, sending him crashing into Piccolo's fallen body.

Gotenks powered up a ki blast and fired it toward the bearded Kai, but he disappeared before impact. Gotenks looked up and saw the Kai's finger streak into view. Gotenks screamed in pain and clutched his eye where he was poked. Disoriented, he was unprepared for Olibu, who leg-sweeped him off his feet. The two fighters jumped on Gotenks, punching, kicking and gouging for all they were worth!

Piccolo gruffly threw Pikkon off of himself as a bolt of pure black energy streamed toward him. Pikkon landed hard, but was out of the way of the attack. Piccolo had barely enough time to flip over the attack and his back became scorched from the searing heat of the explosion. His breath escaped his lungs as Leviathan appeared in front of him and almost punched through his chest! Blood and spit spewed forth from his mouth as he collapsed. He raised his head and saw Leviathan's crushing fist towering above him, ready for the killing blow. Time appeared to slow down for Piccolo as he saw the fist come down. He closed his eyes and winced, cursing the fact that he'd be out of the battle and unable to help. Pikkon speared Leviathan from behind, knocking him off-balance and his fist crashed in the ground next to Piccolo. The concussive shockwave from the force of the blow still sent the Namek flying.

Gotenks screamed and energy shot forth from his body knocking the warriors off of him. Hundred of small balls of energy exploded in all directions from Gotenks. Olibu and The Grand Kai juked, dodged, and swatted them away, but Gotenks was standing now and their advantage was lost. Gotenks continued to scream and his aura exploded around him. His hair began to glow as the ground shook with his power. His hair grew long and his transformation was now complete. Super saiyan Gotenks was now third level and he smiled arrogantly at the two wide-eyed warriors who lined up against him.

Dende ran from his hiding spot and ducked as a huge chunk of rock sailed over his head. "I'm running out of places to hide," he cried aloud.

His eyes darted frantically about in search of a new place of safety, but most of the terrain had been leveled from the constant fighting and the places that would afford modest protection was too close to the action for his liking. In a flash, the ground in front of him disintegrated, and he stopped himself just in time from falling into a massive dark crater that wasn't there a second ago. He leapt backward and he felt the heat above his antennae, as a stray ki blast sailed not even an inch above him! Dende had suppressed his power level in order to hide himself more from the combatants, but now things were getting too dangerous. He scanned the area and found a small outcropping of rocks away from both areas of the fighting and he ran toward it, silently uttering prayers for his continued safety.

"Blast you, Dende! Where are you," Vegeta growled as he scanned the ground looking for the young Namek.

He searched out with his ki, but he came up with nothing. A cold feeling boiled in the pit of his stomach, offering opinions and ideas of the fate of the Namek to Vegeta. He glanced around looking for fallen bodies and noticed Tien's dead body near where The Grand Kai and Olibu were fighting Gotenks.

"Shit! That's not good," he cursed. He searched around but couldn't find Dende's body or 18's for that matter.

Vegeta made sure to stay far away from the fighting, and his bad arm throbbed, sending spike of pain coursing through his body. Videl's breathing was shallow and sporadic at best, and if he didn't find Dende soon, she'd die from the injuries that she had already suffered. Vegeta didn't have the energy to give to her, as he had to struggle to keep his own ki stable. He hadn't felt this exhausted since Kid Buu beat his ass all over the place those few years ago! As if to drive the point home, he felt his ki fluctuate and he started to fall from the sky. He was able to collect himself and stabilize his ki before they hit the ground. He grunted in pain as Videl slipped from his grasp, and he caught her with his dead arm. Quickly scooping her up in his good arm he flew down to the ground.

"The things I have to do for you kids," he muttered under his breath.

Piccolo batted away the energy blast and sent it back to Leviathan, who took it full in the chest. The energy exploded, leaving Leviathan's chest smoking, but showing no other appreciable damage. Where the hell's Dende, he thought. Leviathan came at him; energy balls glowed in each of his hands. Piccolo stood his ground and charged up for his Special Beam Cannon. He fired it off before Leviathan got to him, striking the beast in his upper arm and drilled right through him, but he kept coming. Before Leviathan got to him he was engulfed in flames from Pikkon's Thunder Flash. Piccolo judged the trajectory and crouched down as Leviathan slowed, but still came at him. He waited until the monster was almost on top of him and the monster brought his hands down, intent on smashing Piccolo between his energy attacks. Piccolo leapt and kicked upward as Leviathan brought his hands down. He timed it perfectly as Leviathans hands came together first, but Piccolo wasn't there. Piccolo's foot connected on the monster's chin with such force that it knocked him back a step. Piccolo somersaulted in mid-air and pivoted his center of balance as he spun. He extended his other leg and kicked Leviathan on the side of his face. Shifting all of his weight he pivoted to the other side and connected with a kick on the other side of his face, sending Leviathan reeling. Pikkon caught the creature while he was flying, and tossed him up high into the sky. He spread his hands out and sent a massive ray of energy at Leviathan. The ray hit him on the way down and the sky lit up with the force of the explosion. Leviathan crashed to the ground in a heap, and got up to his knees painfully.

Gotenks ducked and blocked a flurry of kicks and punches from Olibu. The Grand Kai joined in too, attacking Gotenks from behind. The diminutive super saiyan tried to work his way around to get both combatants in front of him, but their years of training kept him off balance. Finally, Gotenks got under Olibu's defenses and backhanded him away. The Grand Kai capitalized and pounded Gotenks to the ground. Blurring, Grand Kai appeared above Gotenks and grabbed him by the hair and hoisted him up over his head and slammed him, drilling him deeper into the ground. Kai backed away, spending precious seconds to catch his breath.

Dende watched the battles from behind his new hiding spot. He watched as Gotenks got up and engaged The Grand Kai, who was very fatigued. Dende saw Olibu get into the mix, but Gotenks power held them at bay. He moved over to the other side of the outcropping and watched Piccolo and Pikkon gaining the upper hand against Leviathan. For the briefest second, he held out with the hope that they could actually beat him. However, his hopes were crushed as he saw Leviathan grab Piccolo and Pikkon in his hands and smashed them repeatedly into the ground. The battle was getting worse, and he forced himself to look away. His danger sense kicked in as he heard the sound of footsteps coming from the other side of the outcropping.

Vegeta landed next to a group of rocks and gently leaned Videl against them. Her ki was dangerously low, and she had trouble breathing. He opened her eyes and saw that they were heavily dilated. He gently ran his hand over her stomach and up her chest, using more of his depleted ki to discern the extent of her injuries. She tensed and moaned in pain as he came to a damp spot on the left side of her stomach. He withdrew his hand and blood covered it. It took Vegeta a full second to realize that the blood wasn't his.

"Damn! You stupid baka! Why didn't you tell me you were injured so bad?"

Dende heard Vegeta's outburst and immediately went around the outcropping. "Vegeta," he cried.

"Dende," he exclaimed back in shock. "Where were you? Never mind, Videl's dying!"

Dende's eyes widened as he looked over her injuries. It was bad, really bad! He turned to Vegeta, "Help me get her to the other side of the rocks, we'll have more protection there."

Vegeta nodded and picked her up in his good arm, paying careful attention not to aggravate the wound on her side. When they got around the rocks he laid her down gently on the ground. Dende took over and began examining Videl. Vegeta leaned against the rocks and watched the rest of the battle unfold before him. His saiyan instincts were at odds with his tempered nature. Even though he had a family, he still relished the thought of combat, and that fact was compounded as his son was brainwashed into working for the enemy, and his wife was a captive of that enemy. He clenched his good fist in frustration as he watched Leviathan stomp on Piccolo. His blood boiled with rage as Olibu took a ki blast point blank from Gotenks. He wanted to jump out there and help the others; he still had one good arm left! But he had used too much energy in the fight against Goku. And he was forced to use more to save Videl's life. He turned to Dende.

"Well? What's taking so long?"

Dende didn't look up at him; he was still deep in concentration.

"Hey!"

Dende shook, surprised from Vegeta's outburst, but he quickly collected himself. He shook his head at Vegeta's insistent stare. "It's bad Vegeta, I don't know if…"

"Don't say it," he warned, glaring at Dende. "Do what you can. If you need more energy, I will supply it."

Dende didn't like the look Vegeta was giving him, but he had to face reality. "It's not that, it's that her injuries are so severe I don't know if my…"

Vegeta cut him off with a raised clenched fist. "Get started Dende," his voice was emotionless and yet still carried the threat that was Vegeta behind it.

Dende knew that tone and he knew that he was treading on dangerous ground. Even injured as Vegeta was, he would make short work of himself if he didn't comply with his wishes. Sighing, he gathered his healing power into his hands and placed them against her stomach. Videl grimaced as he began the healing process.

"She's strong for a human," Vegeta remarked, the threatening tone in his voice was gone, it almost sounded reassuring to Dende. "Possibly the strongest there is." Vegeta turned away from Dende and leaned back against the rocks. He watched the battles for a few moments before continuing, "If things were different, she would've made a powerful saiyan warrior. Who knows, she might have even unlocked the secret of becoming a super saiyan by this time in her life."

Dende said nothing, concentrating all of his formidable healing powers to the task at hand. Vegeta stared out across the ruined landscape, no longer a participant in the battle for Earth, but now just a spectator. He watched the battles as they happened, unable to do anything about it.

Piccolo almost fainted from the force of the blow from Leviathan. The behemoth kept coming back, no matter how many times he and Pikkon took him out. Leviathan lifted him above his head and threw him on top of Pikkon. The two warriors tumbled to the ground in a heap. Pikkon was unconscious, and Piccolo was swiftly following in Pikkon's footsteps. He struggled to get up, but ever muscle in his body rebelled against him. He heard Leviathan growl behind him that turned into a yell. He felt a massive surge of energy growing behind him. He guessed that Leviathan was creating a large energy ball and his suspicions were confirmed as he saw the reflection of the light off of Pikkon's body. Forcing his body to move, he grabbed Pikkon and blurred into super speed. They reappeared high above Leviathan, but the force of the large explosion nearly knocked them from the sky!

"Comin' through!"

Piccolo dodged as The Grand Kai sped past him; Gotenks hot on his heels. Olibu followed, but he looked almost as beat up as Pikkon did.

"Wha…what the hell?" Pikkon said as he regained consciousness.

"This isn't working," Piccolo stated gruffly. "We're going to have to try a new tactic."

"I'm all ears," Pikkon said, shaking his head clear of the cobwebs.

Piccolo turned his head and stared at Pikkon, scowling. Pikkon saw his gaze and met it.

"What?"

The old Kai shifted this way and that, but Gotenks matched him move for move. Turning around suddenly, The Grand Kai sent a large green ball of energy at Gotenks. Gotenks was coming at him too fast to dodge the attack and took it face first. The explosion did something unexpected; it caused Goten and Trunks to separate. The saiyan kids stared at The Grand Kai in astonishment. He returned the look, as he wasn't expecting that. Then he remembered the time they could spend fused and realized that their time was up. The old Kai smiled as he blurred above Goten and elbowed him into unconsciousness. Olibu appeared next and did the same to Trunks. The children sailed to the ground, out of the fight.

"Now comes the hard part," The Grand Kai said to Olibu. They both turned their eyes to the ground where Leviathan stood…waiting for them.

"What a stroke of luck!"

"It's not over by any means yet, Pikkon. We still got Leviathan to deal with."

"My head's clear enough for another round, how about you?"

Piccolo clenched his fists, forcing the soreness and agony out of his mind. "We've got to take him down hard and fast."

Olibu and The Grand Kai flew over to them. "Good work," Piccolo stated. "But our troubles are far from over."

"Where's the other little green dude? I could use a bit of that healing touch he's got."

"I don't know, Grand Kai," Piccolo replied. He focused his ki, searching for Dende's signature. "I found him. He's…"

His eyes widened in horror! "No! Come on! We got to help him! Follow me…hurry!"

Vegeta cursed under his breath. Leviathan was coming this way! He turned back to look at Dende, who was sweating against the strain of his task. "How much longer?" he demanded.

"I don't know," Dende strained.

"Well, we're going to have company here very soon."

Vegeta had been gathering his strength during the time Dende was healing Videl. He surmised that he could go super saiyan for a few minutes but that was it. Then he would be totally helpless, and he knew that he couldn't generate enough energy to beat back Leviathan in super saiyan form. If he were at full power, it wouldn't be a problem thanks to his year of training in a day in the Room of Spirit and Time. But now, in his diminished state he wouldn't last two seconds against him.

"How is she doing?" he called back.

"It's still not good, Vegeta! Her wounds aren't closing!"

"Damn! How long?"

"Maybe half an hour, probably more. I'm having problems just keeping her stable!"

Vegeta sighed. Half an hour! His eyes met Leviathan's who still advanced. He looked back at Videl. Her face was contorted in pain, and she twitched and convulsed as Dende tried to keep her alive. He looked back out across the ruined terrain. "Do the best you can, Dende. I'll try to buy you some time."

Dende nodded, but didn't say anything. Vegeta stepped out from the outcropping, and began walking toward Leviathan.

Leviathan grinned through broken teeth. His one good eye gleamed as he slowly made his way to the weaklings he picked up who were hiding. Now the one called Vegeta stepped out to challenge him. "How long do you think you're gonna last, saiyan?" he taunted. Vegeta didn't reply but steadily advanced. His face was grim which pleased the behemoth. He didn't have any hope, and Leviathan's specialty was crushing hope, and then heads and bodies.

Piccolo and the others blurred into existence next to Vegeta. Leviathan stopped his advance and scowled. Vegeta turned toward the others. "Videl's dying. He's doing his best to heal her, but he needs time."

"We'll give him as much time as he needs," Pikkon said as he glared at Leviathan. "I'm not through with that monster yet!"

"Go back to Videl," Piccolo commanded to Vegeta, "you've done your part. We'll do ours."

Vegeta nodded, "Thanks."

"I'll go with him," The Grand Kai stated. "I've got some techniques of my own that should help Dende with his healing."

Piccolo nodded and turned to Leviathan. "All right! Let's do this!"

Vegeta and The Grand Kai watched as Piccolo, Pikkon and Olibu charged Leviathan. "Let's go, old man. Videl's waiting." The Grand Kai nodded and they turned and walked back to the outcropping of rocks.

The three warriors engaged Leviathan with punches, kicks, and ki blasts. The creature blocked the attacks and sent in a few strikes of his own, but the others dodged and blocked. Olibu grabbed the creature's legs as Pikkon struck Leviathan headfirst in the chest like a torpedo. As Leviathan fell back, Piccolo grabbed the sides of his face and charged his hands with electricity. Olibu let go of his legs and flipped out of the way as Leviathan crashed to the ground. Pikkon hovered above him and sent his Thunder-Flash Attack at him. The creature was engulfed in fire as Piccolo used his Special Beam Cannon again and again at the bulk of the monster. Leviathan screams were louder than the sounds of the explosions. Olibu followed up with a massive ki attack of his own blowing up the ground, sending shards of fused glass and debris out everywhere.

Vegeta and the Grand Kai walked around the outcropping of rocks where Dende was still hard at work healing Videl. Vegeta leaned against the rocks looking on with concern. The Grand Kai appraised Dende's work and then cracked his knuckles. "Ok, let's see what I can do to help."

He kneeled on the other side of Videl and closed his eyes as he put his hands over her. His hands glowed with a soft golden light, and he got to work. Vegeta watched as Videl's moans of pain stopped and he heard the faint noises as her bones began mending back to their rightful places. He watched in amazement as the bruises and cuts on her body began to disappear.

The smoke cleared and Leviathan was on his knees. The warriors pressed their attacks and came at him at the same time. With great speed, Leviathan leapt into the air dodging their combined attacks. Ki blasts shot out from his hands that hit the warriors, tossing them around like rag dolls. He kept up the pressure as he continued to fire ki blasts, keeping the warriors pinned down. He blurred next to Olibu and kicked him across the terrain. He blurred again and appeared next to Piccolo, but the Namek was ready for him. Leviathan's punch nearly broke through his chest, but Leviathan had to deal with a large ki blast that was sent right into his face. Pikkon blurred next to Olibu and helped him up as Piccolo held his ground against the massive monster.

"I got an idea," he said to Olibu as he helped him up. "But, it will mean we'll be out of the fight."

"I'm listening," Olibu grunted as he wiped blood away from his mouth.

"Here's my plan…"

Piccolo kept his feet under him as he skidded backward from the force of Leviathan's latest blow. He waited until Leviathan came at him, and when he did, he ducked under Leviathan's crushing fist and grabbed his over-extended arm. Piccolo dropped, and pulled, using all of his strength and weight to launch Leviathan across the ground. Piccolo took his time as he got up, and he was breathing heavily. Sweat dripped from his brow and he felt his regenerative abilities give out. It was too much for him to take. He could feel his ki beginning to drop as fatigue overwhelmed him. He fell back to his knees and his arms were starting to fail supporting his own weight. He heard rocks moving and he had enough strength to lift his head up and look. Leviathan was up now, and he was coming toward him. Piccolo tried to stand, but he didn't have the strength. He saw the evil smile on Leviathan's face as he came up to him.

"All done, huh? Pity, I was just getting my second wind."

Piccolo forced himself to stand. "I'm…not through…yet!"

Leviathan smiled showing his broken teeth. "Good. I haven't had this much fun in a while. I'd prefer that my quarry fight back, I found it makes them feel better before they die."

"Shut up, and let's go," Piccolo growled as he got in a defensive stance.

Vegeta clenched his good fist as we watched the stare-down between Piccolo and Leviathan. It was maddening to just stand around and not be involved in the fight! He forced himself to look away from the fight, and he appraised the job that Dende and The Grand Kai were doing on Videl. He had to give the two of them credit, most of her injuries had disappeared and she was breathing normally.

"How much longer?"

"She's comin' along fine," The Grand Kai replied. "It won't be too much longer."

"Good."

He was still angry with her for putting herself in such jeopardy, but he couldn't blame her for trying. If Bulma were in the same position as Gohan, he'd probably do the same thing. He couldn't help but be impressed at her drive and tenacity. She was a lot like Goku in that respect, she never wanted to quit, no matter how high the odds were stacked against her. She was still reckless though, reminding him of himself years earlier. Well, he thought, having the qualities of both Goku and myself can make for a great warrior. I just hope you live long enough to reach your full potential.

Suddenly Videl's eyes fluttered open, and she bolted upright.

"Gohan!"

"Rest easy, girl," The Grand Kai said reassuringly.

"Where is he?" she pressed. "I have to get to him!"

She stood up and began to walk around the rock, but Vegeta stood in her way.

"You're not fully healed yet," Dende said angrily. "We need to finish what we were doing."

"I'm fine," she said, anger burning in her face. "I've never felt better. Now where's Gohan?"

"Listen to the Namek," Vegeta said softly. "We have to stick to the plan."

Videl glared at him, but his stare told her that there would be no further arguments. Reluctantly, she agreed. Dende got back to healing her as The Grand Kai stood up and walked over to Vegeta.

"You don't look so good yourself," he said. "Come here and I'll do what I can."

"Be quick about it," Vegeta snapped.

Piccolo stood his ground against his towering opponent. He didn't have the strength to move, even if he wanted to. Leviathan raised his fists and sent them down at the hapless Namek. Before he could connect, Piccolo disappeared. Leviathan looked around, but couldn't find him anywhere.

Piccolo, Olibu and Pikkon appeared high above the monster. Piccolo nodded his thanks to the others.

"We have a plan," Olibu said. Piccolo didn't say anything, waiting for them to continue.

"Do your Special Beam Cannon," Pikkon explained, "while Olibu and I give you all of our energy. It should be enough to take him out."

Piccolo looked over at the others. "You realize that will send you back to the Otherworld. You'll be out of the fight."

They nodded. "It's the only chance we got," Olibu replied.

Piccolo stared at them for a few seconds before nodding his head. "Okay, let's do it." He stared back down at Leviathan who was staring right back at him now. "It will take me some time to charge up since I'm so weak right now."

"Don't worry about it," Pikkon said. "Our energy should be enough to help you out."

The trio floated down to the ground, directly across from Leviathan. The space between them wasn't very far, but Leviathan made no movement.

"Ready to meet your fates? I tire of these games."

Both Pikkon and Olibu put a hand on Piccolo's shoulders. They closed their eyes and let their ki flow from them into Piccolo. He felt their life essences energize him and he smiled at the creature. ""We're not through yet!"

Leviathan gave him a quizzical look as Piccolo brought his hand up to his face, charging up for his attack.

"What are you doing?" Leviathan asked.

Piccolo's smile never left as he replied, "This!"

Piccolo's mass suddenly increased, powered by the other two warriors. His eyes glowed with the energy that he was given as the beginnings of his attack flickered to life on his fingertips.

Leviathan realizing what was happening and took a step back in shock. Clenching his teeth and fists, he charged. I'm only going to get one chance at this, he thought. He screamed as his aura powered up around him.

"SPECIAL…."

The trio got closer and closer in Leviathan's vision. He thought he saw Olibu disappear, but he didn't pay much attention to it.

"BEAM…"

He was almost upon them and then he saw Pikkon disappear as well.

"CANNON!"

Piccolo brought his finger forth, and pointed at the attacking creature. A beam as large as he was spewed forth and the follow up beam that wrapped around it drilled into the ground as it followed the straight beam on its course to destruction. Leviathan was too late to attack, but he did get his arms up across his face in time to try and dissipate the attack. The combined beams hit him square, and knocked him back as he tried to use his strength and force of will to counter it. Piccolo grunted as he put all he had into the attack, knocking back Leviathan even further. Both warriors grunted and strained each pressing to gain the advantage. Leviathan's massive arms struggled to block the attack, but it kept coming. Piccolo forced the beam to increase in intensity, adding a portion of his life force to it.

"Stupid Namek! I…can't…be…"

The ground below him buckled, causing him to lose his footing. A chain reaction started as his arms drooped out of place by not even half an inch. It was just enough for the Special Beam Cannon to drill itself through and strike the monster in the chest. Leviathan screamed as the energy exploded, causing earthquakes to rumble out with him at the center. Piccolo went flying as the force of the blast knocked him off his feet. He landed hard as unconsciousness overtook him. When the smoke cleared, Leviathan stood there, breathing heavily.

"I…I told you…*cough*…I…can't be…destroyed!"

Then he fell to the ground with a heavy thud. He was as unmoving as Piccolo.

"That'll do it," The Grand Kai stated as he took his hands off Vegeta's arm.

Vegeta flexed his formerly bad arm and was pleased with the results. His energy was nearly restored, but that was good enough for him. By the time they found the others he'd be up to full strength.

"Finished," Dende sighed as he took his hands away from Videl. He looked very tired, but none the worse for wear.

"Ready?" Vegeta asked as he looked at Videl.

"We have to find Gohan first," she said.

Vegeta nodded, "Very well."

The pair stretched out and took off back to where Gohan's body was.

"We'll help the others and get to ya as soon as we can," the bearded Kai yelled out as they left. "C'mon Dende, let's go."

The young Namek tiredly got to his feet and followed The Grand Kai out.

Vegeta and Videl landed next to Gohan's unconscious body. Videl put her hand to his forehead and closed her eyes as she concentrated. A smile came to her lips. "He's back," she exclaimed. "I'm reading his ki signature and he's back to normal!"

"Good," Vegeta said back. "With luck, Dende and The Grand Kai will get here soon and heal him. But we don't have time to wait, we need to go."

"I told you I could do it," she remarked to him, her smile broadening. "There's some hope left after all."

"Humph! Stay focused Videl. It's going to get a lot harder from here on out, as we still haven't found out who's behind all this. If someone is able to command a creature like Leviathan, he must be strong indeed. Stay on your toes."

She nodded and they took off toward the entrance of the fortress.

Dalron stared at the viewscreen. They were so close to being defeated and yet they were able to bring a small victory from it. He still had faith in the controlling poison, and even if it didn't work he would deal with that eventuality as it came. He got up from his chair, dropping the popcorn bag as popcorn spilled everywhere.

"Get my sword," he commanded. "Post guards at every entry and exit! Prepare for combat!"

The underlings flayed about, getting his commands done. Another underling brought Dalron's sword to him, bowed, and went back to work. Dalron stared hard at the viewscreen as it focused in on Vegeta's image. Rage burned within him as his face came into full view. He drew his sword, and it gleamed in the artificial light of the command center. "Give them a clear path to the Detention Center but don't make it look too easy! I will be waiting for them there!" His aura flared to life and he disappeared, leaving his underlings to do his bidding.

Dalron reappeared in the large hall where the Detention Center was located. Alarm klaxons blared as he felt the fortress rumble and shudder as sounds of combat echoed throughout the place. They would be here soon, he thought. Suddenly he felt the presence of two warriors appear behind him. It was Goku and his son Gohan. Goku let go of Gohan and lowered his hand from his forehead. Dalron used his ki to search out theirs. Both warriors had the same stare of hate and rage and their ki's appeared the same. It seemed that the woman was wrong, he thought as he smiled. Gohan was still fully under his control as was the older saiyan. "You two will be with me when the enemy arrives. When they do, we will kill them, is that understood?"

"Yes, Master," both replied in unison.

Dalron stretched his senses and felt Leviathan's aura stir. He sent a mental command to him to hurry up and get here and leave the others to the robots. "Go get Leviathan," he commanded to Goku.

He nodded and used his Instant Transmission technique and barely a second later Goku reappeared with Leviathan.

"I had a clear shot on the Namek! He was down for the count!"

Dalron was used to his friend's rages. He raised his hands and waived off the mad creature. "Be still, my friend. Stay here with us and you'll get your chance. They'll be here soon."

Leviathan could barely contain his rage, but the look from Dalron quieted him. He had his sword drawn at his side and Leviathan hadn't seen that in years. He took his place behind his master with Goku and Gohan at either side of him and they waited…

A/N: Sorry for the length of the chapter, but I couldn't help it. The story's shaping up for its conclusion, which is about 5 or 6 chapters away at this point. I hope everyone's enjoyed it so far! If you have any questions or comments send me an e-mail or a review. If you have any ideas as well on what you'd like to see, tell me. I might be able to find some room for your suggestions.

Plug: Do you like Lion King? If you do, I've found a great story titled "The Dark Mile" by Whitestar14. Here's the story ID: 1157706. She's also got some DBZ stories as well. They're a bit different, but pretty good. You can find a link to her under my Favorite Authors, check it out; it's a really great story!

Next Chapter: Vegeta and Videl infiltrate the fortress in search of their friends. By the time they reach the Detention Center Goku, Gohan, and Leviathan will be there waiting for them. Dalron, the mastermind behind it all, will be there too and everything will be explained, leaving Vegeta at a crossroads. Can our two heroes muster the strength and resolve to defeat their enemies and save their friends? Oh yeah, and I'm throwing in some more plot twists that I think you'll enjoy. Find out what happens next chapter! See you then!