It was a bit after one o'clock when the door to Vegeta's family's room quietly opened. The count slid in and closed the door. He wasn't the same any more. His eyes were burning and his face was a lot paler. The count stopped and looked around – or sensed? Then he sneaked to Trunks's bed and looked at the kid. The eight-year-old Saiyan was asleep.
"You poor innocent child," the count whispered. "After I've reached my destination you'll never get such a peaceful sleep any more. If you will survive."
He turned around and went to Vegeta. Even in sleep the man was frowning a bit. But he was breathing calmly and seemed totally undisturbed
"Who the hell are you?" the count quietly asked. "You're stronger than most people that have reached the castle. Oh well, the better for us – we should get a lot of energy from you! But first…" He went to the other side of the bed and looked at Bulma.
"Perfect," he whispered. He opened his mouth exposing a pair of long sharp vampire fangs, leaned over and bit…
Or actually…
Before the man could understand what was happening he was pushed against the wall with steely fingers squeezing his throat. The count looked up and saw a pair of very angry eyes. The eyes that were known in many parts of the universe.
"So, you really are a blood-sucker." Vegeta's voice was cold. "But you're not as smart as most of them. Didn't your mommy ever teach you not to mess with the prince of the Saiyans?"
The creature gasped. "The…the prince of the Saiyans? That means you are…you are that Prince Vegeta?"
Vegeta grinned. "A bright one, aren't you."
Bulma sat up and touched her throat. "Now that was scary," she said. "I could almost feel the white fangs pushing themselves into my blood…"
"Both you and Trunks have had way too much TV," Vegeta remarked.
The door opened and Goku's family came in.
"Everyone OK?" asked Goku.
"The count tried to kill Mum but yeah, nothing much happened," Trunks explained.
"Where's the countess?" asked Vegeta, still holding the count by his throat. The man had stopped breathing a while ago but he was still alive – even too alive.
Gohan pushed the old lady into the room. "Right here," he said. "Can you imagine? We thought that they were a nice old couple. But look at them." The Darkshores didn't look the same any more. Their eyes were glowing; their ears were a bit longer and had sharp tips just like Piccolo's; they were both hissing and showing their long vampire teeth.
"Who are they?" Chichi asked.
"It's a long story," Gohan replied. "It started five hundred years ago when these creatures were sent out of the Hell because they refused to obey the rules."
"No shock there," Vegeta commented. "This place really is a hell. Did you know that they make everybody brush their teeth every single morning? Before breakfast."
"So anyway," Gohan continued, "they were sent here into this region and told to live here for eternity. They stayed here and there was no problem for a while. But then…You see, they are a race of non-dead creatures. They're not vampires as Vegeta said, but they're very close to them. They are called Day Vampires. They don't mind daylight, they don't hate garlic and a wooden stick doesn't hurt them. They need blood to survive, of course, so they started robbing people from the nearby villages. A Day Vampire's bite doesn't kill or turn you into one of them. It just sends you down to another dimension, empty and lifeless like a desert but alive."
Bulma looked at the couple. "You were gonna do that to us too, right?" The countess hissed, it was good enough for an answer.
Gohan went on. "The vampires mixed with the local aristocratic family, the Darkshores, and soon they were all evil. The local people were scared but there was no one who could have defeated them."
"Let me guess." Trunks hopped out of the bed. "And then someone came and he was strong enough to do the job?"
"Only one attack in this universe is strong enough to annihilate our whole race," the count suddenly said. "Curse him! He did it all by himself. He is the only creature in this world that possesses the power to form that great attack – the strongest one anyone had ever seen. My wife and I were the only ones to survive and since we have no children, our race will die with us. But we will live forever. He is not coming back. He thinks that we are all dead. So nothing will threaten us any more." He burst into laughter. "Only he is strong enough to kill us but he won't return. I don't think he's even alive any more."
"Gohan?" Goten asked.
Gohan nodded. "It happened nearly two hundred years ago. The person who killed the race really was the strongest one back then."
"But he's dead now?" Bulma asked.
"No." Gohan scratched his head. "Here's the big one. He's still alive – and not as strong as you probably think. As a matter of fact, compared to us he's a real weenie."
"Do you know him?" Chichi asked.
Gohan smirked. "I'll give you a tip. The powerful attack that wiped out the vampire race was called the Kamehameha."
Everybody's eyes turned very big.
"It was him? It was Master Roshi?!?" Bulma shouted. "That old pervert once saved the whole world?"
"He was very strong, of course," Goku said thoughtfully. "And the Kamehameha really is a powerful attack. But yeah, it's hard to imagine Master Roshi saving the planet. Or what?"
Goten nodded. "You said it. I was always wondering why he invented that attack. Who would have guessed…"
"Well…" Goku scratched his head. "Actually he invented it because he wanted to show off in front of his rival, you know, that Master Crane of whoever that was. Looks like it came in handy."
"I would love to stand here all night holding that creep by his throat, " Vegeta interjected, "but usually I tend to sleep a little before breakfast."
"Oh yeah, sorry Vegeta." Goku turned to the others. "What should we do with them?"
"A nice little Kamehameha would do the trick but I don't see a reason for destroying them," Gohan said. "After all, they want to live too. Just like us."
The count grinned. "Where do you expect to find a hero that would possess the Kamehameha? That would require an enormous fighting power. Even the Saiyans aren't strong enough to do it. And that Master Roshi who killed our race is too old now."
Vegeta grinned back at him, lifted him up and turned to the others. "Somebody make him shut up," he ordered, "or I'll do it myself and that won't be pretty."
Goku put his hands together and quickly formed a Kamehameha. "Happy now?"
The count gasped and tried to break free from Vegeta's hands. The countess screamed and started to run away but Gohan caught her. The wind was going wild and a storm tided on the lake as the two creatures were full of fear for their lives.
"It's impossible!" the countess cried. "Even the great race of Saiyans can't use the Kamehameha! Who are you?!"
Goku kindly introduced them. "Okay, pay attention. Vegeta and I are both full-blooded Saiyans. These two women are human. And those three kids, I mean the teenager and the little brats, they're all half-blooded Saiyans. By the way, my both sons can use the Kamehameha too so I think that you've misunderstood the whole theory."
"The great Saiyan race is dead," Vegeta added. "There are only two left – Kakarot and I. It looks like during living here in this forest for five hundred years you didn't get many newspapers here or what?"
"But this means… this means that you must be as strong as the legendary Super Saiyans!" The count was terrified.
"Stronger," Trunks corrected.
"Okay, Gohan, so you think that we should let these two bastards live?" asked Vegeta. "They don't bother me as long as they keep about two miles away from me. But the local people seem to have a real problem with them. Don't get me wrong, I don't care about them, but…"
"But you haven't killed anyone for ages and you would love to practice your wannabe-Kamehameha on them," Bulma said.
Goku turned to Vegeta. "You can really do the Kamehameha?" he asked with big interest.
The prince shook his head. "Nope, it's just an energy wave that looks like the Kamehameha. I thought that a new attack would be a nice exchange."
Goku chortled. "So how do you call it? Baby Final Flash?"
Vegeta frowned. "Ha-ha. Aren't you funny. You really crack me up. Anyway, we have two day vampires here and I want to sleep! If someone hasn't come up with a good idea in the next five minutes I'll kill them both and get back to bed, end of story!"
"Now hold your horses," said Bulma. "Gohan said that they were sent out of the Hell, right? I think that after five hundred years maybe they're willing to take them back. After all, everybody deserves a second chance. Remember your first fight with Goku? You wouldn't be alive tonight if he would have let Krillin kill you."
"I only did it because I didn't want Krillin to cut himself with the sword," Goku remarked.
"I don't see a difference," Vegeta said with a yawn. "They'll get to the Hell one way or another. My way is shorter. I don't hear any objections? Good." He started forming an energy blast.
"Vegeta, wait!!!" Bulma yelled. "Goku, take these two to King Enma and see if they will accept them. If not, then it's Vegeta's turn. Is that fine with you, you over-aggressive Saiyan prince?"
Vegeta yawned again. "No but have it your way. I'm sleepy."
Seconds later, Goku was gone with the couple. Two more seconds and he was in front of King Enma's desk.
"Hey!!!" some spirits shouted behind them. "What's the big idea?! No pushing in!!"
"Sorry 'bout it," Goku said over his shoulder. "It won't take long. Hi again, King Enma!"
"What…oh, it's you." King Enma seemed bored. "What is it this time? You're dead once again?"
Goku shook his head and told the story. It took a little while before King Enma realized where the point was since Goku has never had a very good memory as you probably know… Finally King Enma found some old papers from his drawer and looked at them.
"Ahah, yes, the last two Day Vampires," he said. "We threw them out some centuries ago. They refused to quit drinking from the blood ponds of Hell as I remember. Okay, maybe I really should give them a second chance. The blood ponds are so polluted that it shouldn't become a problem any more." He called two ogres and ordered them to take the vampires away.
"See ya guys around!" Goku shouted to them. "Say hello to Freeza and Cell from me!"
"Anything else?" King Enma asked. "I'm a busy man."
"That's all for now. Thanks a lot, King Enma!" Goku concentrated and left.
He returned to the others and told them that the Darkshores are back in the Other World. Meanwhile the fog around the castle was fading and the lake calmed down. Suddenly the door opened and Andrew the butler came in quietly.
"You took the master and the mistress back to the Hell?" he asked. The families could see a big bunch of ghosts standing behind him. "I thought so. I knew that only you, the legendary Saiyans, could get rid of them once and for all."
"How do you know about the Saiyans?" Vegeta asked.
Gohan answered the question before the butler. "Andrew's story is in one of those books in the old library. He came here in this castle already as a ghost. He came from the outer space nearly 40 years ago, right?"
Andrew nodded. "They refused to let me into the Other World after I died because I was too dangerous. I used to be a spy on planet Plant."
"Plant?" Bulma asked. "Say, Vegeta, wasn't that the planet the Saiyans conquered last before Freeza found them?"
Vegeta nodded. "You were a spy," he told Andrew. "What for?"
"It's a long story about a king that wanted to conquer the Universe. I worked for him. I was killed during one of those sessions and since they didn't let me to the Hell I had to fly around the space until I found this planet. I lived here for a while, and then the officials of the Other World found me and put me here in this castle. The other ghosts and ghouls are local. Most of them are the spirits of the previous Darkshores, the pure ones that weren't vampires yet. They're all very thankful."
"How can we repay you?" a pale slim girl with an apron asked. She was the maid.
Goku yawned loudly. "Listen, guys, I think our work is done here. Should we leave the castle tomorrow or do you want to stay? These ghosts seem pretty nice and the food is fine too. But I'm getting a bit homesick."
Goten agreed: "Some boring daily routine would be cool. I've had enough action for a while."
"And I bet Gohan is missing Videl," Trunks added, ignoring Gohan's angry hissing. "Hey you ghosts, it looks like we'll leave tomorrow but right now we could use some sleep and a nice hot meal in the morning. In case you don't have a problem with that."
The rest of the night was quiet and the next morning the bright sun was shining on the castle's stony walls. All the ghosts had prepared a huge breakfast and the families ate it all. In five minutes or so.
Trunks mumbled with his mouth full: "These ghost's aren't so bad. And the meat is fresh! Where did you get it?"
"It's a wild deer," the tubby cook said proudly. "I scared it to death myself."
Chichi had already gotten over her fear and was talking to the boy whose skeleton was in the lapse in the ballroom. "Your father did it?" she asked. "What kind of a crazy bastard was that?"
"He killed my sister and I saw it so he had to kill me too," the boy explained. "He was sent to the Hell but we're still here. See?" He pointed to a girl that was talking to Goku.
"So the only reason why you dashed us out through the ceiling was the fact that you were taking a bath?" Goku asked with great surprise. "But you were a ghost! We couldn't see you! And where is that bath in the shed anyway?"
"Oh you see, after you've been dead for sixty years you start forgetting some things," the girl said. "I fixed the greenhouse and the ceiling afterwards, didn't I?"
"Yeah, but the rose bush was still on a bad place," Goku complained.
Meanwhile Goten poked his brother. "Gohan, look, an old buddy of yours!" It was the slimy ghoul Gohan had thrown out of the window.
Gohan greeted him: "Howdy! How's it going? I hope I didn't throw you out too hard. You see, I was quite nervous and-"
"Forget it," the ghoul replied merrily. "No hard feelings. I won't be able to use three of my arms for some centuries but yeah, no problems."
Bulma was talking to the transparent ghost that Goku had met one night. The creature turned out to be a real neurotic.
"You have no idea how hard this all is!" the ghost grieved. "All this flying around and scaring people – it makes me so… oh, you know… I don't know if I can take it any more! People aren't the same as they were two hundred years ago! You give your best to scare them and all they say is "get outta here"!!" He fell on Bulma's shoulder and started weeping. "I'm so stressed! Do you know that I take antidepressants every single day?" He jumped up and looked at Bulma. "You're not afraid of me either, are you? I thought so!" He fell back. "Oh, why me? Life was already hard enough, but being dead is a killer!"
Bulma rolled her eyes and patted the ghost on the thing that used to be his back. "There there," she said. "Maybe you could use a good therapist? Or take some days off and go visit your relatives or something. Trust me, it always works."
The ghost sniffed. "Really?"
Bulma nodded and smiled at him. "You don't have to kill yourself… I mean, be too hard on yourself because of your job. I'm sure that your boss will understand."
Vegeta who had listened to the whole story, sighed. "When do we start going?" he demanded. The breakfast was gone already.
"Not now," Chichi replied. "It started to rain again. I don't want my boys to get wet."
The families plus all the ghosts (minus the nervous one who had followed Bulma's suggestion and left for the Satan City to visit his granny) went to the new library and made a huge fire into the fireplace. Which meant that Goku almost blew up the chimney.
"What will happen to the castle?" Bulma asked the ghosts.
"We will stay here," Andrew replied. "One day the villagers will risk coming up here, find it empty and sell it to some rich arrogant family. This should be fun. You're always welcome to visit."
Chichi looked to the window. "Look at that rain," she said. "It's just like the nature is happy to get rid of these horrible creatures and now it's trying to wash off everything that is left of them in here."
Andrew nodded. "Exactly."
"I almost forgot." Trunks turned to the ghosts. "What was the couple doing on that day in the forest?"
"Preparing for their ritual," the cook answered. "You don't want to know the details."
Chichi continued:" I'm glad that they're gone and… what the heck is that?!"
Everyone gazed to the window. It was one of those high and ornamented windows that are so typical to old castles, especially libraries. It was nearly five meters – or ten feet – high and at the moment it was bright white because of the lightning. And in front of that bright background there was a black slim silhouette. It was standing outside in the rain on the windowsill.
As the others were staring at the window it flew wide open and the silhouette leaped in bringing cold wind and whipping rain with it. The fire in the fireplace turned out. The women started to scream – the ghosts too, by the way.
The newcomer closed the window with a single gesture, went to the fireplace and turned the fire back on. Using an energy blast. Then she turned around.
"Stop that yelling already," she said. "I'm on your side now, remember?"
Vegeta was the first one to say something. He was actually the only one that hadn't startled. "I didn't expect you to come here," he said. "You sure know how to make a good entrance, I can tell you that."
Bulma gasped. "Android 18! Men-oh-men, you scared the living daylight out of us!"
The cyborg smirked. "The door was closed; I didn't want to break it and I could feel that you guys were sitting here so I came in here."
"Are you on a vacation too?" Gohan asked curiously.
Android 18 shook her head. "No, and yours is over for now. Piccolo sent me here. There are some strong aliens loose on the Papaya Islands and we need you Saiyans to get rid of them."
"And you with Piccolo couldn't do it?" Goku asked.
The woman sighed. "Let's just say that we spared them for you because Piccolo told me about your yearn for good fighting. The rain is almost over. Shall we go?"
Goku jumped up. "Oh yeah! Let's go guys! We can drop Bulma and Chichi off at my place; it should get on the way. Hey, move it already!!"
"Have a good time and come back soon!" the tall butler shouted as the two families were flying off to the distance.
"It wasn't such a bad adventure at all, what do you think, Vegeta?" Goku asked the Saiyan prince.
"Maybe," Vegeta agreed.
The sun was shining over the huge forest as the Saiyan fighters left it and turned to the big ocean to meet another great challenge of their warrior lives.