Well, here we go again; another chapter. Lots of angst in the beginning, but I tried to set things right in the end of the chapter. More Lion King parallels too, so I hope you all like that because I sure do! Thanks to reviewers:
Rika/Phoenix –Yeah, Hell seems like a good place for him now. With luck, he will be there very shortly, read the chapter to find out how!
animeprincess1452 –You felt bad? I was the one who wrote the thing, I felt terrible about having that happen to Goten. And yes, it was a very long chapter, but this one is just as long because I didn't want to make a cliffhanger in the middle of it. Lucky for all of you! 'Our favorite chibi pair' sounds like a name for a cheap soap...oh well.
GOTEN2003UK –Hey, hey, hey! Calm down will ya? Vegeta is going to die, you don't need to pull some freaky thing and beam your way into the story to kill him! I have that all taken care of, and I promise you will be happy by the end of this chapter okay? Good. !!!
BlueAzul13 –Yeah, you certainly have a fine way of telling about what is going to happen here. I hope I did not disappoint then, it was very mean. Vegeta was cool, in a cold-hearted evil son-of-a-bich sort of way I guess. 'His usual evil self', yep, that's right, always evil; always ready to mess things up.
I was hoping for more reviews after such an insane chapter, but it's okay, I will live and here's the next chapter.
Chapter 10: Reconciliation
The stolen spacepod streaked towards a definite destination and the only person aboard was overjoyed at last. Trunks had been tinkering with the pod's communication array when he had accidentally intercepted a transmission from a faraway planet from another Saiya-jin spacepod confirming leaving it. The transmission had ended with 'Tri-Gamma 15' and a set of coordinates. Feeling sure that it had to be the place where Goten was, Trunks laughed at the thought that the single Saiya-jin in that spacepod was probably high-tailing it out of there after getting the shit kicked out of him by Goten and Goku-san. Either way, Trunks knew he was soon going to get exactly what he wanted and was happier than he had been in many long years.
Back on said planet, Vegeta powered down his spacepod's communication array and smiled at his own creativity. Knowing that his son would surely intercept the un-coded transmission he had sent, the King knew he would arrive there shortly. And he planned to be ready. He knew that after Kakarotto's brat denied his love, Trunks would have no alternative to returning home, and Vegeta planned to be right there when it happened to comfort him and insure it went perfectly. As for now, he decided to go off in search of Kakarotto himself. The baka third-class might provide some entertainment until Trunks arrived. Why, he might even decide to kill him then. Leaving the spacepod where it was, Vegeta took into the air and, lying low, headed back towards the Son home.
The moment had finally come; Trunks was so elated that he was going to see Goten he was fidgeting like hell in the pod. The planet had come into view and there was only a few minutes separating him from his lover. As Trunks prepared the pod for landing, he smiled as he wondered how long Goten would kiss him for when he arrived. He also wondered if he kept the same hairstyle as when he was a kid. Shimatta! thought Trunks. That would mean he would look almost exactly like Goku-san, man, I hope I can tell them apart. Well, I think Goten will let me know quickly; I just can't wait! The pod landed and Trunks stepped out, looking around at the nearly lifeless landscape. "Damn," Trunks said to nobody, "it's like a fucking desert here. What a shitty place." A smile curled up as he thought: Well, if Goten's here, it won't matter what it is like-it'll be perfect! Using the computer in the pod to locate life signs nearby, he found three Saiya-jins on the planet. Two were close together and one was alone. Wondering why that Saiya-jin had decided to stay, Trunks decided he would just get rid of it later, after he found Goten. He took off as fast as he could towards the two other life signs, thinking about what he would say when he at last arrived.
Goten lay in a bed, resting. He was okay now, in body at least, after his father had healed him with a senzu bean. It was one of the last ones left in the universe, but Goku was more than willing to use it to heal his son, wishing only it could heal his injured mind and spirit as well. Goten's mind was fried. All he could think of was 'why' and it consumed his brain. As for his usual lively spirit, it wasn't too healthy to begin with, but now it had been crushed to virtually nothing. As far as Goten knew, the only person left in the universe who loved him besides his father had raped him and then left him for dead. As Goku watched on, unsure what to say, he noticed the tears trickling continually down Goten's cheeks and dripping onto his pillow. He was sure in just a few days, his last family member would be dead, seeing as he did not look as if he would eat, and grappled with the realization that Vegeta had destroyed him and everyone he loved. It hurt like nothing else, because he had once had faith in Vegeta's good side, as well as the fact that he could never avenge the deaths of those around him. Trunks-kun, thought Goten weakly, why...why...why...why...why... A sudden knock on the door came to a complete surprise for Goku. Vegeta would have just blasted his way in, and nobody else would ever come here...unless...Trunks! Then there was still a chance! Looking back at Goten, Goku thought that he still might be saved; it would be getting him to talk to Trunks that would be the hard part. But it was worth at least a try. Gathering his courage, the Son father walked to the door and opened it.
Trunks didn't expect this, he had thought that Goten would have sensed his Ki and bowled him over with joy before he even got there. He was unprepared when Goku-san opened the door, looking like he had spent the last years in Hell and...spotted with blood from an unknown source. Trunks cleared his throat and looked at Goku, a little surprised that he was actually looking slightly down on him. "Uhh...hi Goku-san, I am so glad to see you," Trunks said, but he got no smile from Goku in response. "Come in, Trunks," Goku said slowly, "you need to talk to Goten, it's urgent." Fully worried now, Trunks jumped around Goku to see where Goten was and nearly fainted when he saw him lying in bed, looking half-dead. "Goten?!" he yelled in shock.
Goten opened his eyes a crack and, seeing it was Trunks, sat bolt upright in the bed. "You!" he said, with a tone of fury that took Trunks aback. "How dare you come back here! Why haven't you gone and dropped dead?!" Trunks' jaw fell and he said: "Goten, what's wrong? What happened to you, I-" But he was cut off as Goten flew from the bed at top speed, transformed into a SSJ and punched Trunks in the face, sending the young man hurtling into some rocks. He stood up and Goten was already there, hitting him time and time again, screaming: "How dare you come back here! After what you did to me. I loved you and just look what you did to me; I never want to see you again! You're lucky I don't want to kill you! I think I will just leave you for dead, just like you did to me!" Trunks didn't fight back, not wanting to hurt Goten in any way. With one final punch, the younger boy dropped Trunks to the ground, spitting on him and then taking a step back. "I never want to see you again!" The tears came before Goten could stop them and he restrained the urge to blast the incapacitated boy in front of him to dust, deciding instead to fly away as fast as he could.
Trunks stood up, coughing out some blood and looked up, seeing Goten take off into the sky. Gathering his own strength, he started to pursue him, but was held back by a strong arm holding his own. He allowed himself to be pulled back to the ground and turned to face Goku, tears of his own starting to well in his eyes. "What happened to Goten? Why is he so mad at me? Why did he do that, Goku? Is he sick? What's going on?!" the questions just poured from Trunks' mouth faster than he could make any sense of the occurrences himself and Goku shushed him, pulling him closer. Trunks sobbed loudly, burying his face into Goku's chest, just needing a comforting presence and not caring who it was. The scene might have been with his father instead, but Vegeta wasn't there for him, as usual. It's funny how Fate does things like that. Goku shushed him again, and ran a hand up and down Trunks' back, letting the boy cry for a while and wondering where his own son had gone off too. Presently, Trunks pulled himself away and looked at Goku, and, with a burst of effort, forced out his words. "Wh-what h-happened to him?" he asked. Goku's mouth set into a hard line and he took a long time to choose the correct words to tell Trunks the painful truth. "Trunks," he started. "I'm not going to lie to you, Goten was raped." The reality of that fact sunk into Trunks almost immediately and he clenched his fists, rage mounting. "What?!" he shouted. "I didn't do it! Who the fuck did?!" Goku crossed his arms and closed his eyes, "Vegeta," he said after a pause. "I wasn't here when it happened, but I found Goten a while later and I could practically smell the yaro all over the place. I know it was him." He opened his eyes to see how Trunks was taking it in and was shocked at what he saw.
Trunks was standing, entire body tensing at once and Goku could feel how high his energy began to spike. A bolt of electricity skittered across the dirt, followed by another and accompanied by a definite crackle as a few small rocks lifted off the ground and broke into dust. "Trunks...?" Goku said uncertainly. Trunks' jaw set firmly and he clenched his fists tighter, his energy rising even more. His scream tore through the air as his eyes flashed to green and his hair rose to spike gold towards the sky. The sheer power the boy held inside became evident to Goku as he ascended to super Saiya-jin 2, electricity shooting about and gold aura blinding. The ground shook and crumbled beneath him and several mountains lifted to the sky before shattering with the force. Goku looked at Trunks in horror; his pupils had gone white, his mouth was clenched in a grimace, and his whole body was tensed to the breaking point, every muscle strained as his Ki continued to shake the world. And he was still screaming. Gathering his power, Goku went SSJ3 and pushed into Trunks' aura to knock him in the head just as hard as was necessary. With a flash, Trunks fell back to normal and collapsed to the dirt. Goku powered down as well and helped Trunks off the ground. "Gomen nasai, Trunks," he said. "I had to do it; you would have killed yourself if I hadn't." Trunks wasn't listening, his teeth were still clenched and he looked up, his eyes blue but still burning from a fire within. "I'm going to kill him..." he whispered, starting back into the sky before being reeled back in by Goku. "Trunks, you will just get yourself killed you aren't powerful enough!" Trunks turned around, fists clenched, saying: "Then teach me how to go super Saiya-jin 3." Goku frowned, looking at the ground, "I'm sorry Trunks, if it was possible I would, but only full Saiya-jin can go past level 2, and that means no matter how hard you train you will never match your father's strength," he said, bringing the news down hard onto the boy in front of him. "But that's not fair!" yelled Trunks. "There has to be a way!" Goku sighed, saying: "You have to outsmart him, but that won't be easy. His only weakness is often said to be his pride, but that only serves to make him stronger. One has to exploit his overconfidence to win." Laying a hand on Trunks' shoulder he said: "We can fight him another day, right now you need to go find Goten, before it is too late. Make him understand." Trunks nodded his head and looked up towards him, wishing he could understand his strength.
Goku pointed behind him, "Goten most likely took one of our pods...you can follow him to wherever he goes," he said. Trunks took off toward his own and then stopped, "Arigato, Goku-san." Trunks said, turning around, "I will bring Goten back, I promise." He waved and took off, seconds later Goku watched as the pod streaked off into the sky and towards the stars. He clenched his fists and let his breath escape, concentrating his mind as much as possible in anticipation. "Vegeta," he said suddenly, "you can come out now." There was a pause and then Vegeta stepped out from behind some nearby rocks walking calmly to Goku. "I knew you knew I was there Kakarotto," Vegeta said, arms folded defiantly. "I was planning to be the one to comfort Trunks, but the end result is as much the same. I plan to finish ending your worthless bloodline today, starting with you." Goku scowled, staring down the King, "Cut the bullshit Vegeta, I know why you are here, besides ruining the life of your son and raping mine!" he yelled. "Fine then, we can just get started right away if you prefer!" Vegeta yelled back, stepping instantly to level three with a shout. Goku smiled and then did the same, shaking the planet with his own Ki added to Vegeta's.
With a yell, the two remaining Saiya-jin warriors blasted towards each other and began their fight. This was nothing like their other fights, defined, calculated, and perfectly coordinated; this fight was a bash fest. The ground cracked and whole mountains were disintegrated as they fought on, punches and kicks as well as massive waves of energy breaking rock, vaporizing air and causing massive injury. Goku struck Vegeta in the chest, breaking several ribs and the King didn't even feel it as he swung back to crack Goku's jaw in two places. The ground cratered as Vegeta hit it then rolled out of the way to avoid Goku's foot and sending out a blast in retaliation. There was another explosion and Vegeta dodged out of the way of a weak Kamehameha only to have his long hair singed before sending out a Final Flash which was blocked into the distance where a flash of light and a mushroom cloud rose. Vegeta streaked back, forming a sword of Ki and slashing at Goku, who avoided the attack and formed one of his own. They fought briefly with them like lightsaber combatants at fantastic speed, lightning cracking through the sky and rocks melting around them. Goku finally broke through and sliced Vegeta's chest open, splitting the armor and drawing blood. Vegeta recovered quickly enough to lay open Goku's shoulder and the two fought on, landing on a mountaintop to continue. In a brief stroke of luck, Vegeta gained the upper hand but was then caught in a headlock from behind. Vegeta decided to end it and bit deep into Goku's arm, tasting the blood of his arch-rival as it flowed out of the wound. Goku screamed and let go, allowing Vegeta to slip away and he sent a knee into Goku's crotch before spinning around and elbowing him in the back of the head. Goku tried to recover and was caught in a massive beam of energy, spinning into the dirt and bashed quickly once again before he knew what was happening. Another blast sent his vision spinning and Goku lost the transformation, powering back down to normal and flying toward the cliff, just managing to hold onto the edge.
Feeling confidant that he had won, Vegeta powered back down, his long golden hair disappearing to reveal his normal black flame. He walked over and kneeled down at the edge of the cliff, smirking at his enemy and wiping blood from his face. Goku was so weak, that last blast had drained him and he wasn't even able to use his Ki to fly up onto safe ground; the only thing holding him up where his hands. He tried to get a grip with his feet but found no footing and his eyes widened in fear as Vegeta's fingers tore into the back of his hands. "This would be your end Kakarotto," Vegeta said, smiling through blood-stained teeth, "I never lose, never. I am the crowned leader of Vegeta-sei and that makes me the best; this battle proves it!" Goku looked on and his own smile formed, "You can kill me, Vegeta, but you can never destroy what I am. Someday your own time will come and you will be powerless to stop it," he said. "Long live the King...," he hissed, and Vegeta released him with a start and sent him falling to the ground. Goku screamed as he fell, unable to stop himself, and the last thing he saw was the cold dirt one-thousand feet below as it rushed up towards him.
Both Trunks and Goten felt that. They both looked up from the controls in their spacepods as they felt Goku's life-force leave. Trunks wasn't quite sure what had happened, and wasn't even positive that it had been Goku, but Goten knew. He immediately let out a cry and reversed course, heading in exactly the opposite direction. Trunks' pod streaked right past his, missing each other by mere feet and Trunks cursed himself as he set the controls to follow. Goten might have gotten him by surprise by that last one, but at best Trunks reasoned that he would get back to Tri-Gamma 15 only about twenty minutes before him. He couldn't possibly get in too much trouble before then. Could he? Trunks set the thing to go even faster, not wanting to take that chance.
Goten didn't wait for his pod to hit the ground, he simply blasted his way out as soon as it entered the atmosphere and flew over to the battle field. He looked at the landscape, cratered and burnt, and wondered about the awesome powers that had done such damage. He landed on the ground and started to look around, searching for answers, when something caught the corner of his eye. Spinning around, Goten took in Vegeta, who stood just a few feet away, grinning in victory. "Vegeta," Goten said, dropping quickly into his stance. "What are you doing here?" Vegeta started laughing, "You fool, you don't stand a chance against me. If you beg, I might spare your life. Seeing as you are the last of your family, there may be grounds to keep you alive as a loyal servant; what do you say to that?" Goten clenched his fists, "I'll never serve you, not after what you did!" he shouted. "You made Trunks do that to me, didn't you?" Vegeta smiled, saying: "I suppose you could say that. Well, then let's end this right now!" He watched as Goten powered up to super Saiya-jin and flew towards him, already knowing this fight would not be long at all.
Trunks couldn't believe his horrible luck, the spacepod had chosen now to have a complete engine failure and by the time he got it running again he could feel Goten's and his father's Ki rise. The scale was hopelessly weighted in the wrong direction and Trunks knew that it would be over soon, he just wished Vegeta would kill him too when he arrived. Shutting his senses off to avoid feeling out the fight, he let the pod just keep flying and moved on with a heavy heart.
There was no mistake, something was wrong with this whole situation. Goku, Gohan, Piccolo-all had been killed. There was no stopping this-this-this whatever it was and all Goten could do was run from it. He felt the irony of his situation; when he ran he got nowhere at all, he just stayed in place, but when he stopped moving, he went backward. It was like Alice in Wonderland, running from the Red Queen but getting nowhere. There was no escape and it infuriated him so much he transformed and then stepped up to level 2 with a flash as the electricity crackled around him. The youngest Son jumped in the air and took to the sky, using all his Ki energy just to fly as fast as he possibly could, but it was still no use. It had him. Goten was violently thrown to the dirt with such a force that he could not sustain the transformation and he powered down, his hair falling and darkening to black. He looked up weakly, the evil creature was sheathed in darkness and Goten could just fathom long golden hair past the figure's knees and an evil smirk along with it. He was about to be killed and he knew it, just where the hell was Trunks?! Trunks. His best friend had left him alone and he was going to die, maybe-NO! Trunks couldn't have already been killed by this maniac. Could he? It was obvious the intention of whoever was doing this, he would have killed Trunks; he would stop at nothing, even if that meant killing his only son!
Goten was thrown again, hitting the dirt and rolling to the edge of a steep cliff, barely mustering the strength to hold on. The dream had always ended at this point, but Goten knew he was to die now, it was just the way life treated him he guessed.
Vegeta. He knew it; somehow he had always known it.
Vegeta had ruined his life; Vegeta had killed his father; Vegeta had destroyed the Earth.
Vegeta had raped him.
But there was nothing he could do now; there was no way he could win and all he had learned from his father about finding weaknesses proved useless as the King had no chinks in his impenetrable armor. A lightning bolt suddenly struck the ground, setting the sparse dead vegetation afire which blazed around the cliff and below his feet. He was done for. Vegeta walked up and kneeled down to face Goten, who looked up in helpless fear. "Now where have I seen this before?" he said. "Oh yes...I remember. That is just the way your father looked before I killed him!" In all his life, Vegeta had always played his cards right and had never made a mistake since Cell, there was no way he could lose. One word ran through Goten's mind. The one word his father had taught him about Vegeta.
Overconfidence.
Vegeta knew he would win, he knew the fight was over and he powered down back to normal to finish the job.
That was it.
Goten saw it immediately and took advantage. Tapping into his last, greatest well of power, he stepped right back to SSJ2 and jumped out of the way before Vegeta knew what happened. With a shout he landed behind Vegeta and turned quickly and with a final shout charged a Kamehameha wave and shot it towards the King, who took it full in the chest and went flying towards the edge. The look of shock on his face was obvious as he fell to the ground below, towards the rocks and the flames. Toward his death. Goten watched as his last enemy hurtled to his doom and powered down.
He collapsed on the ground, drained, and looked around him. The slow patter of raindrops brought him to his senses and he looked around to see the fire get extinguished slowly by the sudden downpour and he let out a sigh. It was over. He looked at the scene and tried to remember the last time it ha rained on this planet, he didn't think it ever had before. But it didn't matter, he loved the rain. He closed his eyes and felt something, and turned to see a figure emerge from the shadows of the mountainside. He didn't need to look closely to see who it was. In an instant, all hate evaporated and the pain lifted from the two teens as they approached each other slowly.
Goten tried to form words as the tears came down, tried to tell Trunks that he was sorry and that he knew that it wasn't him who hurt him. Trunks came close, tears of his own running down his face and stared into Goten's eyes, those same loving eyes that he had fallen in love with so many years ago. Trunks had always thought he had the most interesting eyes, black and depthless but at the same time shining with life deep inside. Goten was also always strongly enthralled with the other boy's eyes; he saw they matched the sky for both color and intrigue and were also shiny with a strength from within. It was that shine that told him that this was the real Trunks, his friend, his lover, and nothing else mattered except that. Their hands met, and they touched bodies again, holding each other like they would never get another chance and they looked up again into each other's eyes. Trunks reached down into his torn Gi shirt and took off the chain with attached silver and held it up as Goten did the same. They each took their respective halves and brought them together slowly, joining the two pieces together on the jagged crack where they were once broken. The rain continued to fall, and the water ran down their bodies as they looked at the two halves of the silver amulet, fitting together to signify their own coming together again. "See, I told you that these would help," Trunks said softly. "Yeah," said Goten. "It worked."
The two pieces of metal went back around their necks and all broke loose as the two boys came together again and kissed. Deeply and passionately, they kissed. Kissed like they never wanted to stop being together for the rest of eternity. The wait was over and they were finally back together. They gripped each other tight and swore over their link to never again let go and to never again forget as they stood silently the ground, leaving the bodies of their dead Saiya-jin fathers where they lay. There wasn't much left to do now, their old lives had ceased and now left only them to live out the new lives they had made. Trunks and Goten stood side-by-side on the edge of the cliff for a short time, taking in the moment as the rain stopped and the clouds cleared. Smiling at each other for the first time in a long time, they took off toward the only home left. The setting sun cast a brilliant glow over the empty planet, and the only life left on it flew on in tandem toward the horizon, to face destiny together.
Well, that's it then. That would be the more-or-less official end to the story, but hang on, I still have a few slightly loose ends to tie up and I never have a story with a prologue that does not also have an epilogue. So, I am open to any last minute suggestions to what you, the fans, want to happen in the end of the story to add to the few things I want to happen as well. So, all of you must review and make me very happy so I can bring this story to an appropriate close. Thank you.