Author's Note: This would've been up sooner if I hadn't been busy playing Final Fantasy VIII for the past week. It's my first FF game ever, and I'm hooked. But it's HARD . . . a LOT harder than I thought it would be. Anyway, it's not like it's been three weeks, right? * Wink wink *

Didn't read this over either. Sorry.

Hey, what's all this crap about fanfiction writing becoming illegal? Just because some anime folks from Japan announce that they don't like it doesn't mean it's gonna be outlawed or something. They can't do that. (I don't think.) I'm sure that they have no control whatsoever in the American government, so I'm not really concerned. Besides, imagine all of the protesters marching up to Capitol Hill if they really did! Just for the record, I don't own DBZ either.

II. Dark Passions

*~* Chapter Thirty Two *~*

Finding Videl

The Supreme Kai stared in shock as Asento faded away, taking Videl with him. He squeezed his eyes shut and sighed heavily, searching for Videl's ki.

He couldn't find any trace of it.

Gohan stared blankly at the spot where Videl had stood just seconds ago. He, too, realized that he could not feel Videl's ki ANYWHERE and snapped. He let out a primal, very scary growl and whirled on the Supreme Kai. He clenched and unclenched his fists, trying to calm himself down. "You . . . you . . . this is all your fault!!" he shouted.

Everyone but Goku and the Supreme Kai stepped back out of fear and surprise.

"You convinced her to do this!!" Gohan roared, loosing control of his rage. As he screamed his lungs out, he began to accent to SSJ2. "She's gone because of YOU!!!!! I'm going to KILL you-!!!!"

"GOHAN!!" Goku cried, grabbing hold of his son tightly before he could attack Shin. "This is the SUPREME KAI you're talking to! I KNOW you're upset, but calm down and watch your mouth!!"

"CALM DOWN????!!!! CALM DOWN?????????!!!!!!!!!!!!" Gohan demanded. He powered up completely, startling Goku and causing his father to loose grip and stumble back. There was a bunch of bright lights, strong winds and ground shaking. Throughout it all, he continued to shout. "VIDEL IS GONE AND YOU WANT ME TO CALM DOWN?????!!!!!!!!"

Shin raised an eyebrow. When he gets mad, he GETS MAD . . . "Gohan," he said softly, "Gohan, listen to me. I made a promise to Videl, that no harm would come to her, and I plan to stay true to the promise."

Everything slowly settled down and the Z-Fighters took another big, cautious step away from Gohan. His eyes narrowed, but he didn't say a thing.

"I didn't force her into this. She made her own decision, Gohan, to take part. You have to understand that."

It was quite clear to everyone that Gohan DIDN'T understand. He STILL looked angry, he STILL looked murderous, and no one dared to approach him. "You don't know anything," Gohan rasped out. "You don't care about Videl! You just USED her, and now she's in danger! That freak could rape her, kill her, torture her . . ."

Shin bravely took a step forward. "I understand that, Gohan. But you're wrong, I DO care about Videl. She's a very special person, with a good heart. You two have more in common than you realize." Another step forward. "I will do all I can to save Videl and keep her from harm." Another step forward.

Gohan sized him up and grunted, "Don't get any closer! Stay away from me."

Shin wisely stopped. "Gohan-"

"That's enough!" shouted Goku. "Excuse me, Shin, but Gohan, loosing control IS NOT going to help us find Videl any time soon! So just relax, calm down, and don't do anything rash, okay?"

Gohan turned to his father and pinned a glare on him. Goku looked startled, then gulped. Ouch. Well, can't say I didn't try . . .

Suddenly, a barrage of energy blasts came from up above, raining down on Gohan. He roared in surprise and fell to the ground.

Everyone looked up. Vegeta was hovering overhead, hitting Gohan continuously. "Don't just stand there, Kakkarot!! GET HIM!!!" he shouted as he fired some more.

Gohan eventually shook off the blasts and sped up towards Vegeta to attack him. M. Trunks launched into the air and powered up, followed by Goku. They grabbed Gohan and pulled him back towards the ground. Vegeta circled around the struggling boy, then firmly placed the side of his hand to Gohan's neck, pressing down VERY hard. He stilled, then passed out.

*~*

Goku entered the hotel with Gohan's limp body slung over his shoulder with the others following behind him. Chichi and Bulma, who were pacing around in the lobby, looked up when they come in.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO MY BABY?!!!!!" Chichi shouted, once she'd spotted Gohan. "WHO DID THIS TO HIM?!! WHERE'S VIDEL?!"

"He's just fine, Chichi," Goku reassured her. "Let's take him upstairs to rest, then I'll explain."

Everyone followed Goku up to his hotel room, where he placed Gohan down on the bed. He then explained the night's events to Chichi and Bulma.

First, Chichi looked horrified, then angry. "What are you all doing to FIND her?! I want her found!!"

"Well do all we can," Shin promised.

"Good." Chichi growled. "Now for MY job . . . those two little boys are in a heap of trouble . . ."

*~*

"You can't take that, Goten!" hissed Trunks, tossing a duffel bag onto the tiny cot reserved for Goten in Chichi's hotel room. "It's way too big, baka!"

Goten pouted and clutched Mr. Snuggles the giant teddy bear to his chest. "Aww, come on, Trunks! I can't sleep without him!!"

"NO!! It'll only slow us down. Hurry up and pack the rest of your stuff." Trunks hesitated. "Oh, and Goten?"

"Yes?"

"Remind me to beat you up later for screwing up our deal with Shin."

"HEY!"

The two little boys had viewed the scene where Videl had been kidnapped for the second time, and figured that, by now, everyone knew that they'd been in on the plan the whole time. Now they were planning to run away, so as not to get blown to bits by a furious Gohan or fussed out by their moms.

The younger boy quickly shoved some clothes into his bag and checked again to make sure that he hadn't forgotten something. "Okay, I'm done!"

"Alright. Let's go." Trunks pushed open the window and flew out, Goten following him.

"Say, Trunks . . . how long are we gonna have ta be runaways?" wondered Goten.

"I don't know. Until everyone forgets, I guess."

"Forgets . . . but that could take a while! How are we gonna eat?"

"We're Saiyans, baka. We'll deal!"

"And where do you two think you're going?"

The boys stopped in mid flight and turned around to come face to face with Piccolo. They glanced at each other and gulped. Had Piccolo been there when things went wrong?

"Let ME handle this," Trunks whispered. "Ah, Mr. Piccolo! We're just . . . out for a late night fly!"

Piccolo looked them over. "What's with the bags?"

"Food!" cried Trunks. "You know us Saiyans . . . always hungry!! Haha!!"

"Yeah . . . right. Anyway, has something been going on? I felt Gohan's ki fly off the charts . . ."

Trunks looked nervous. This was just great. Now, once Piccolo got back to the hotel and spoke with his father and the others, he'd probably tell them that he and Goten had been trying to escape earlier, and then point out the exact direction in which they'd flown . . .

"Oh!" exclaimed Goten. Trunks glared at his friend.

Not AGAIN . . . "Shutupshutupshutup . . ." he hissed.

"Shin's plan to have Videl kidnapped didn't work- she's with the bad guys right now- so we're runnin' away so Gohan won't knock our blocks off," Goten finished happily.

Trunks slapped Goten on the back of the head. "YOU IDIOT!!! WE'RE RUNNING AWAY!!!! YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO TELL ANYONE!!!"

" . . . oops . . ."

Piccolo frowned and grabbed the two little Saiyans. "You two better come with me and tell the others everything you know . . ."

"Awww . . ."

Piccolo flew back to the hotel with the two boys still beneath his arms and entered the window from which Trunks and Goten had escaped earlier. Unfortunately, they weren't the only ones there- just about half the gang was already there, discussing their next move. Gohan was lying, still unconscious, on his parent's bed with Chichi hovering over him, making sure that he was still breathing.

The Namek placed Goten and Trunks onto their feet, and they scurried away into a corner, trying to pretend as if they weren't there.

Goku looked up and smiled in relief. "Piccolo! It's a good thing you showed up. We need some help."

"Goten told me everything that happened," said Piccolo, "so you can skip the explanation." He glanced over at the bed. " . . . I guess he didn't take it very well . . ."

Mirai Trunks snorted. "THAT'S an understatement."

"We need a plan of action," said Shin quietly. "And soon."

Goku nodded. "Yeah, before he sucks her dry."

Vegeta sighed heavily. "Which, you all should realize, he could be doing at this EXACT MOMENT."

Shin hesitated. "Not . . . exactly . . ."

Piccolo looked suspicious. "What is it now?"

"There are certain . . . limitations to all of this. He cannot drain her completely dry in one sitting, and he cannot absorb her energy right away. He must wait three whole days before he can inject it into himself- there's no way around that," explained the Supreme Kai. "So, assuming that he's drained her by now, we still have some time to find her before he acts."

"Not MUCH time," mumbled M. Trunks.

"The problem is," said Goku, "is that we don't know WHERE to start. We've already tried feeling for her ki, and there's no sign of it anywhere. With no clues, it's going to be hard finding her."

Shin looked over at Gohan, then asked, "Exactly HOW hard did you hit him, Vegeta?"

The Saiyan Prince scowled. "Does it matter?"

"He and Videl are in love, and they may have already formed a bond together. Maybe he could help us find her." Shin walked over to the bed, only to receive a heated glare from Chichi. "It's alright. I won't hurt him." He placed a hand on the boy's forehead. Gohan . . . Gohan . . . it's time to wake up. Come on, Videl needs you.

Gohan stirred a bit.

We need your help finding her. The sooner you wake the better.

His eyes slowly fluttered open. The minute he caught sight of Shin, he growled fiercely. "YOU!! What do YOU want?!!"

Goku spoke up before Gohan could explode again. "Gohan, can you feel Videl's ki?"

Gohan closed his eyes and searched. " . . . no. Not a thing."

Piccolo swore. Things weren't looking good. He couldn't help but feel a bit guilty- after all, he'd know about the plan. But how could any of them have known that things would go wrong?

Gohan groaned and flopped back on the bed, placing a pillow firmly over his face. He didn't feel right without Videl being near, without being able to feel her ki. He already missed her, and began to think back to the good times they'd shared. The dance . . . teaching her how to use her ki . . . having her live at my place . . . her birthday party . . . her . . . birth . . . day . . . pa . . . par . . .

He suddenly jumped up off of the bed, flinging the pillow half way across the room, smacking Vegeta in the face with it. THIS could be the solution to their problem . . . they could find Videl and the space ship!!

"BOY, WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!!" roared Vegeta angrily.

"I'VE GOT IT!!!!!!!! I'VE GOT IT!!!!!!!" shouted Gohan eagerly, practically jumping up and down.

Goku looked confused. "Got . . . what?"

"THE SOLUTION!!!!!!! WE CAN SAVE VIDEL AND FIND THE SHIP!!!!!!!! IT'S PREFECT!!!!!!!"

M. Trunks raised an eyebrow, getting a little agitated. Did he have to be so damn loud . . .? "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!!!!!!! TELL US ALREADY!!!!!!!!!"

Gohan settled down and blinked several times. "Huh? Oh, oh, yeah! No need to get mad! I was just remembering something I gave Videl for her birthday."

Vegeta looked ticked. "What in the HELL does any of THAT have to do with THIS?!"

"Wait a minute Vegeta," said Goku. "Hear him out."

"Well," continued Gohan, "like I was saying. I got Videl this . . . this . . . THING for her birthday. A necklace made of some sort of rock . . . now what was it called? Ah . . . that's not important. Anyway, the rock is supposed to be magical. She can contact me through it."

M. Trunks shook his head and sighed heavily. He approached his friend and placed a hand on his forehead. "Are you feeling alright? Maybe Vegeta hit you a little TOO hard. You're saying that Videl can contact you through a magical rock? Are you hearing yourself?"

Gohan swatted his hand away. "I know what I'm talking about!"

Vegeta was just about to make a smart mouth comment when Shin spoke up. "Was this rock, by any chance, called chalcedony?"

"Yeah! That's it!"

Shin smiled. "Well, then! Everything is different now!"

Piccolo cleared his throat. "Are you saying that the rock Gohan gave Videl has real magic? It really works?"

"If it's real, then yes. And, assuming that it's real, and that Videl had it on when she was kidnapped, and that she'll think to use it . . ."

"Um . . ." squeaked Goten from the corner. "I think she was wearing it. She had it on this morning, I saw it."

Trunks nodded too. "I saw it too!"

"Now what?" wondered Goku.

"Now we wait."

*~*

When Videl first opened her eyes, the only thing she could see was darkness. She blinked rapidly and looked around. Damn . . . I can't see a thing! She waved her hand in front of her face. Nothing.

Videl, with no idea where she was, didn't dare move. What if she happened to roll off of whatever she was lying on (which she assumed was a bed because it was so soft) and just kept . . . falling? She shivered a bit, thinking about what could be out there.

"Hello?" she croaked. "Ah . . . anyone there?"

There was no answer.

Well, Videl, either you can sit around here for the rest of eternity, or you can be brave and fell around. She hesitantly stuck her hand out in front of her, secretly hoping that nothing would jump out of the darkness and chomp off her limb. There was nothing in front of her, just air. "Hell . . ." She carefully rolled over, then felt behind her and sighed in relief.

A wall.

She sat up, keeping one hand on the wall and scooted over to the edge of the bed. Videl flattened herself against it and reached on hand down. "YES!!"

So there was a floor.

She climbed down off of the bed and walked along the wall, feeling for a door or a window of some sort. Her fingers felt along the rim of something hanging on the wall, then her body collided with a big object on the floor, and as high as her waist. She stumbled in the dark, her hands clutching onto the thing on the wall to keep her balance. One of her fingers slipped and she hit a button of some sort.

Shit . . . I hope that wasn't the 'self-destruct' button!

She sighed in relief when nothing appeared to be happening. Gotta be more careful . . . Videl began to move around the tall object on the floor when she stumbled over her own feet and fell forward, onto the object. This time, her hand fell onto several buttons as she tried to keep herself from falling over. DAMN, DAMN, DAMN!!!

A faint whizzing sound filled the room, and the thing hanging on the wall was illuminated, it's light filling up the whole place. A few lights on the ceiling came on, too. Videl looked around- she was in a plain old regular room. Okay, maybe not regular. She'd never seen some of the objects in the room before, and everything was painted weird, bright colors and designed with extravagant patterns. She turned back to the thing she'd bumped into. It was some sort of control panel, and the thing on the wall was a big flat screen.

Her eyes moved to a door on the other side of the room. She was just about to run over to it when a bunch of static appeared on the screen, accompanied by the usual loud noise. "Damn! How do you turn this thing off?!" She began to hit button after button, trying to at least turn down the volume or something. She didn't want anyone to rush into the room and find her. Videl slammed her hands down out of frustration . . . and the door slid open. She gapped for a while, then rushed over to it.

Only to have it close in her face.

"WHAT THE HELL?!!!" She ran back over to the control panel, glaring down at it. Think! What buttons did I push?! There were symbols all over the panels, written in a different language. Probably in the Saiyan language. Now, which one say's 'open' . . . this one looks good. She hit a bright blue button and turned to look at the door. Nothing happened.

BUT, the 'tv' did stop fizzing, and instead of the static, it went totally black. Then, someone's face- a man's- appeared there. He appeared to be a Saiyan, because eof his dark eyes and unusual spiky hair. He also looked very important, as he was dressed in fancy red velvety material. Videl took a step back and gulmped. Oops . . .

The man looked her over and frowned. "Who are you? Some whore from earth? What did I tell my brother about whoring around?"

Videl gasped. "HEY!!"

"Well, he has good taste, as always . . ."

Before she could reply, the door slid open behind her and someone stepped in. She whirled around and glared at none other than the great price Rattai himself, dressed in a similar fashion with the guy on the screen. He grinned at her, then looked over at the screen. "Brother? What do you want?"

The other guy looked a bit angry. "What do I want? You whore here was the one who contacted me. What do YOU want?"

Rattai sighed. "Nevermind. This is all some big mistake."

"Very well. Anyway, what is taking you so long there? You should've been finished with earth by now."

"I know, but there were some things that I wanted to get first."

The man snorted. "Like the girl?"

"Yes. This girl, believe it or not, will help restore the Saiyan race to it's former glory, my brother! Now that I have her, I can proceed with the purging mission. I should be home in about two months. I suggest you prepare for the ceremony."

Rattai's brother shifted uneasily. "Sure. We are all eagerly awaiting your induction as our king, Rattai."

Videl snickered. From the look on the other guy's face, he was anything BUT eager. Well, well, well . . . it seems that our prince isn't very popular back home.

"I'm sure you are." He walked over to the panel and pushed a few buttons. The image of the man disappeared.

Videl stepped back as Rattai turned around to face her. "Stay away from the controls, do you understand?"

"Whatever. You're not going to get away with this, you know!! They'll find us, and Gohan'll rip you apart!" asserted Videl.

He just laughed. "Really? Gohan . . . that's your . . . what do you earth people call it? Oh, yes, your boyfriend. He's a Saiyan, just like the other men. He won't come to save you."

"W-what?"

"No one can feel your ki, darling. Not inside of this spaceship. You and I both know that he'll need your ki to find you."

Shit . . .

He walked up to her, his boots softly clicking on the floor. "Do you really think he cares for you? If he was a true Saiyan, and if he really cared for you, then he would've bedded and bonded with you by now."

A brief flash of confusion crossed Videl's face, but she wiped it off a second later. She raised her chin. "What makes you think that he hasn't?"

"I know he hasn't bedded you because we Saiyans can smell a virgin a mile away, girl. The scent is very intoxicating to an un-bonded Saiyan male such as myself."

"Un . . . bonded?"

He nodded and grabbed her arm. "Bonding. The way Saiyan males let others know that a woman belongs to them." He stroked the smooth, flawless skin of her neck. "There's no mark here, so he hasn't claimed you yet, and usually, bonding and bedding come hand in hand. Therefore, he doesn't care for you much."

Videl yanked herself away from him. "Bullshit! Things on earth are different! Sex doesn't equal love, and as for marks, I have no idea what the hell you're talking about, so leave me alone!"

Rattai just snickered.

"He DOES love me, I know it! Just fuck off, asshole!"

He growled and raised an arm to slap her, then decided against it. "No, no, no . . . can't have to future queen marred in any way."

"Future . . . queen?" Oh, hell.

"I'll leave you to think about that. I must prepare for the energy drain, so I'll be leaving." He went over to the door and it opened automatically for him. Videl huffed in disbelief. "Oh, and don't try escaping. I've got guards right outside the door. Goodnight." He left, the door closing behind him.

Videl wanted to break something. How was she going to get herself out of this one? No one would be able to find her with her ki being somehow masked. Videl began to pace, and her hand unconsciously slid to the place where Rattai had touched her neck. Eww . . . I don't want his disgusting hands anywhere on me ever again!! Yuck!!

She froze when she felt the chain around her neck. She pulled the stone from under her shirt and clasped it tightly. Gohan . . . I miss you . . .

*~*

"You go up to him!! He's YOUR brother!" hissed Trunks.

Goten looked scared. "NO WAY!!"

The two boys were still huddled in the corner, trying to gather up the courage to beg Gohan for forgivness. Goten's older brother looked very tense as he waited for Videl to contact him. Z-Fighters walked in and out of the room, checking up on Gohan to make sure that he wasn't drving himself crazy over the whole thing. Vegeta, Goku and M. Trunks had decided to stay by Gohan's side until any sort of word arrived. Piccolo flew into the window with Pikkon, the Supreme Kai and Kibito trailing behind.

"Anything yet, Gohan?" asked Shin gently.

"No," he said curtly, staring straight ahead.

Goten gulped. "Uh, uh! I ain't going! He'll blow me to bits!!"

"He wouldn't do that to his own brother, dufus! GO OVER THERE!!" Trunks shoved the younger boy forward. Goten hesiatantly walked over to his brother.

"Er . . . Gohan? Trunks and I are sorry for not saying anything til it was too late." Goten hung his head. "We're really sorry."

Gohan sighed. He couldn't stay mad at his brother for too long. "Ah . . . it's okay squirt. It's not your fault . . . nor Shin's or Videl. I didn't mean to get mad at you, or any of the others."

"C-can I have a hug?"

"Sure."

Goku smiled at the two. My boys are something else . . .

Chichi, who'd been standing in the doorway, shook her head. "Goten, don't think you're getting off that easily!! Get over here RIGHT NOW, young man! You too, Trunks!!"

The lavender haired little boy looked at his older self. "Ah, um, which one?"

"DON'T ACT CUTE!!! GET OVER HERE AND TAKE YOUR PUNISHMENT LIKE A MAN!!!" Chichi pulled the frying pan from behind her back.

Goku sank back in his chair and tried to look as if he weren't there. HE wasn't the one in trouble . . . thankfully . . .

Goten wiggled out of his brother's arms and screamed, "RUN TRUNKS!!! RUN!!" They darted out of the window, flying away. Chichi quickly left the room, planning to try to follow them.

Gohan just shook his head. He sat on the bed and cleared his mind. Come on Videl . . . talk to me!

Vegeta glared at Goku. "If your hound does anything to my brat, I'll come after you, Kakkarot! You need to keep her on a tighter leash!"

Goku grinned. "Chichi isn't a hound. She's just . . . aggressive."

"If her breasts weren't so big, I'd mistake her for a man by the way she acts and hollers," snickered Vegeta. M. Trunks began to choke and turned bright red. Oh, kami . . .

Goku jumped up. "Alright, now you've gone too far, Vegeta! Don't talk about Chichi like that!"

"Guys, shhhhh!!!!" exclaimed Gohan, getting all of their attentions. "I think . . . I think it's Videl!!" Videl? Videl, are you there?!

Videl gasped when she heard Gohan's voice in her head. She stared down at the rock in her hand. Oh, yeah!! This is great!! *~* Gohan, I'm here! *~*

*~* Videl! Thank Kami!! Are you okay? Are you hurt? *~*

*~* No, I'm fine! But the sooner you come get me, the better! Can you feel my ki now? *~*

*~* . . . YES!! I can!! Okay, hold onto that rock for a little while longer, until I can lock onto your location for sure. I'll tell you when you can let go. *~*

*~* Alright. Hurry. *~*

Author's Note: Here comes Gohan to save the day . . .or will he? I don't know . . . Ask me later . . .

ADVERTISING: 'Deep as You Go' by Klitch. It's a Digimon fic, Ken and Daisuke romance. Er. . . . a little weird, and heavy, but I like it! Give it a try

NEXT CHAPTER: Gohan and co. are on their way to save Videl and fight off Rattai. SURPRISE ATTACK . . . or not. Will the prince find out that they're coming? (Probably.) Will Gohan be able to defeat him and save Videl? (??????)