Disclaimer: I do not own DBZ.

Chapter Eighteen

Goku had the misfortune of nearly falling through the door with the precariously-balanced bowl of water. As it was, he tripped over his own feet in an attempt to not plow into Krillin, and most of the water sloshed onto his gi top regardless. "Whoa!" the Saiyan exclaimed as he caught sight of King Kai and Piccolo, the former pulling his hand away from the latter's forehead, and the latter lying limp on the bed. And then the incongruity clicked. "King Kai? What are you doing here?" Goku asked, quirking one eyebrow.

"I'm making sure Piccolo doesn't blow up the planet," the god said as he turned around and faced the other two men. "What are you doing here?"

Goku, in turn, held up the not-so-full bowl of water. "Trying to keep the fever down."

King Kai snorted. "Looks like you're wearing most of it, to me. Did you go for a swim? And that reminds me, what did the Martian say to – "

"We really don't have time for jokes, King Kai," Goku interrupted, to the god's surprise. "Piccolo needs our help. Are you with us?"

The expression on the Saiyan's face reinforced his statement. Never before had King Kai seen such determination on his face…correction, only once before had he seen such a look – when Goku had gone off to fight Frieza. The god adjusted his sunglasses and humphed. "Of course I'm with you!" he said. "I'm not trying to pick a fight with you, especially not with Piccolo like this. He'd be liable to blow us all to kingdom come!"

Krillin's face blanched. "W-What do you mean, blow us all to kingdom c-come?" he stuttered, peering around King Kai's portly form at the Namek.

"I mean exactly what I said, Krillin," the god said, sniffing. "In this condition, and I've seen it two or three times before, any ki-tossing will set the person off, dragging their ki into the fray. And in an explosive manner, too. It's not pretty, you know."

"How did you get here, King Kai?" Goku asked, frowning as he set the bowl down on the chair at the foot of the bed. "I didn't think you could get here this fast by running down Snake Way!"

"I used Instant Transmission."

"Insta-what?"

The blue god smiled at his befuddled student. "Instant Transmission. Teleportation, if you will." And then the god was no longer by the bed. "Quite easy, really," came his voice from behind the two men. Goku and Krillin turned around quickly, but the god wasn't there. "Wouldn't you agree?" And King Kai stood directly in front of them.

Krillin felt his jaw drop, and beside him Goku did the same. "You know that?" the Saiyan asked. "What an awesome technique! Why didn't you teach it to me?"

"You didn't ask!" came the smug reply.

"So that's how you got here so quickly, then! Couldn't you have teleported yourself to what's left of Namek? Or even the planet Vegeta?" Goku asked, cracking his knuckles and glancing over at Piccolo.

King Kai shook his head. "Nope. You can only use it to teleport yourself to a place with ki. There's no ki left on a dead planet."

"How did you know to come here?"

The god raised both eyebrows at the unusually inquisitive man. "My, my, so full of questions, are we?" he mused, adjusting his sunglasses again. "Well, I was listening in on your fight with those nasty mutts, Goku, and might I say congratulations on a job well done! I've been keeping an eye on them for a while, but I didn't know what they were until I peeked into your mind and saw them. But anyway, I watched your fight, and I must admit that Piccolo is a pretty quick thinker. Still, I could feel the strain you both put on yourselves, and even more so when you dropped. Piccolo was under a lot of pressure. When I caught a glimpse of his last attack, I knew something was wrong. So I've been watching the both of you. Then this happened," and here King Kai shrugged and threw his hands into the air, "and here I am."

"Is there anything you can do for him, King Kai?" Krillin asked as Goku moved the bowl of water to the floor and sank into the chair.

"Other than knocking him out the way I did, not really," the god replied, shrugging again. "You could keep a cool cloth on his forehead to help with the fever, but that's about it. If you have any more senzu beans, make sure he eats at least one more. Keep him hydrated. That sort of thing. Do whatever is necessary, even if you need to bring in a doctor of some sort. I really don't know the treatment for his condition."

The terrified expression that crossed Goku's face caused King Kai to chuckle. He must be thinking about needles, he thought. Hmm. The only thing that can frighten the greatest warrior in the universe: a small pointy piece of metal. And that sounds like a good joke to me…what's small, sharp, and silver, and is capable of scaring the strongest man alive?

"Do you think he'll pull through?" Krillin asked, folding his arms behind his back and rocking forward on his heels.

"I would say so," the god said in reply. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully and grunted. "He's always been stubborn, this Namek, and I don't think he'd be giving up that easily."

Is there a reason to hang on? For this? were the words that flashed through Goku's mind, but he said nothing. The last thing he wanted to do was undermine their confidence in Piccolo. Something like that could very well be the Namek's downfall, especially now. If he was already feeling that poorly with himself, any more negative emotions would most likely kill him. And Piccolo was always the one to take over in battle after something happened to Goku, to give the strategy, and if there was any doubt in him now there would not be that comfort. He was the unofficial Goku back-up, and quite often the reason their opponents did not win…blasting Radditz to high heaven, knocking Frieza away from Goku, taking the ki beam that would have killed Goku, rendering Morodath unconscious, killing Kadrin. If something happened to Piccolo and he wouldn't be available to fight, a crisis situation would erupt. Most of the other warriors would be disoriented, at least for a moment, and a lot can happen in that time – especially in a fast-paced battle, like the ones that had been raging as of late. It could very well spell death for more than one defender.

Your wife would rather see me dead. Well, he had to speak up eventually about it. If he was going to be of any help, he needed to know what would help and what would hurt. "If Piccolo's going to be so sensitive to ki, what about emotion?" the Saiyan asked quietly, so low that King Kai and Krillin both had to strain their ears to hear him.

"Why do you ask?" The god gave him a quizzical look.

"Chi-Chi would rather see him dead than recovering, I think. At least that's the feeling I get from her."

The downtrodden expression on Goku's face left King Kai with few options. It was depressing just to see the normally vivacious man so dejected, so saddened. He had to say something to comfort him, even if it was a simple you're-wrong-it's-not-like-that. "Ha," the god snorted. "A highly unlikely situation, you know. He's worth a lot more than she thinks. I think I'd know – you two are my prize pupils, you know!" Then he chuckled. "You don't know how many times I've bragged about you to the other Kais. To have trained two of the five beings that took on Frieza! They're all jealous of me, even though Piccolo wasn't an active trainee." This last part was grumbled, and Goku and Krillin had to stifle their laughter. "But still, Piccolo loves Gohan like a son, and any being with such a bond is worth saving. Mark my words, Goku, that might even be what gets him through this."

The Earthlings were so hung on his words that they failed to notice the appearance of a fourth person until he spoke up. "Do you really believe that something so simple is going to bring Piccolo out of this?" came Kami's voice from the shadows of the hall. "He is a demon, Goku, and you would do well to remember that." The Guardian of the Earth stepped forward into the room, and it was clear to the god and the two warriors that he was greatly displeased.

"Glad you could join us, Kami," King Kai said with a snort. "Where were you when your other half decided to try to blow up the planet?"

"I had other matters to attend to," the old Namek said coldly. "Piccolo would have been able to wait until I arrived."

"Yeah, like a true demon would pass up the chance to blow up both the Earth and you," King Kai snidely remarked. "Go get your priorities straightened out, Kami. Your nephew is a bit more important to the Earth right now than anything you could have possibly been dealing with."

The Guardian glowered at the blue god.

"He's not to be taken lightly either, Kami," the North Kai added. "He's the second-most powerful being on this planet, and he could be well on his way to topping even Goku's strength. I've seen the outcome of this condition he has before, and he's going to need a lot of rest and recuperation time. And he will not need any hassling from you. He's vulnerable enough as it is."

The two beings, one blue and one green, locked gazes in a struggle of wills. Neither one was willing to look away, but at the same time, as the minutes passed, the prolonged staring was becoming uncomfortable for the other two men in the room. "Uh, Kami, King Kai, why is Piccolo vulnerable right now, outside of the obvious lack of consciousness?" Krillin ventured uneasily.

King Kai was the first to look away. "It doesn't really concern you, Krillin," and he shifted his gaze to Goku, "or you, Goku. We will be taking care of the matter." The god glanced over at Kami, and the Guardian did not miss the look.

"I have been monitoring his mind since before Goku's return, King Kai," Kami said with a growl. "There has been nothing out of the ordinary happening within or without it, besides this condition and the psi-down." Again he glared at the god, who seemed not to notice.

"Then you don't have to stay here any longer, Kami," King Kai said, waving a hand dismissively. "We should be fine without you."

The Guardian bristled visibly but nodded once, before glancing at Piccolo a final time. "Tell me, if and when he wakes up, if anything seems different with him, Goku, Krillin," Kami said, narrowing his eyes in concentration. "I must be going regardless. Keep an eye on him." And the Namek vanished into thin air.

King Kai was mildly surprised. "So he knows how to teleport, too, eh?" he mumbled, rubbing his chin.

"This is nuts," Krillin said matter-of-factly, moving farther into the room. "We didn't have these problems years ago. Y'know, Goku, if Radditz hadn't come here, our biggest worry would have been figuring out how to get rid of Piccolo without killing Kami. Heh. Big change."

"That was a brief visit," Goku commented with more than a little amusement. "If I didn't know any better, I would've said he didn't want to stick around any longer than he had to. I guess Kami doesn't like you very much, King Kai."

The god of the North Quadrant watched as Goku's bemused expression melted into the classic Son grin, including the hand on the back of his head. "I don't think that's it, Goku, but it was a good guess. Hmm." He scratched the tip of his nose and shifted his attention to the unconscious Namek on the bed. "I wonder what he started screaming about in the first place." It was definitely a thought to ponder, and to perhaps act on. Well, anything that would make Piccolo cry out like that would be worth more than a moment's notice. He wasn't one to give voice to his fears, and what had happened not ten minutes before was quite disturbing.

Krillin walked up to the side of the bed and watched Piccolo's face as a shiver ran up his body. He's cold? was the thought that crossed his mind, and he reached out his hand and lightly touched the Namek's forehead. You've gotta be kidding me. Behind him Goku and King Kai followed his movement with their eyes, lest they miss some minute detail in this unfolding drama. At least that's what it felt like to him.

His very next thought was a curse directed at Goku for having spilled the water down the front of his gi. "Yeowch!" the midget yelped, withdrawing his hand and cradling it to his chest. "He's burning up!"

The resulting responses were instantaneous. Goku leapt up from the chair and yelped as well, forgetting that he was not yet fully healed. King Kai was standing beside Krillin so swiftly the monk thought he might have teleported himself over. Then the god brushed his hand against Piccolo's forehead as well, and Krillin knew, just knew, that if Piccolo ever found out so many people had touched his head – no matter how briefly – there would be hell to pay. The thought of the mighty Namek on the warpath caused him to flinch.

"So the Earth Guardian was right about Piccolo," the North Kai muttered to himself before frowning, the surprise evident in his voice. "This fever of his isn't normal, but that's not all? Let's see what spooked him, shall we?" The god closed his eyes in concentration and pressed his fingertips to the sides of Piccolo's head. Goku had no idea what he was doing, but if it worked, he was welcome to it.

Krillin moved over to stand next to Goku. "What's going on?" he whispered, holding a hand in front of his face so the question wouldn't reach the blue god.

"Beats me!" Goku whispered back. "I don't know what he can possibly do, 'cuz Piccolo's not even conscious. Maybe he's trying to read his mind."

The monk shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine."

Both men watched the martial arts master intently as his frown deepened. Not a minute later, the god's eyes flew open. "Oh, my!" he exclaimed, visibly shaken. "How unfortunate!" He removed his hands from the Namek and shook his head in sympathy. "Poor boy."

"What was it, King Kai?" Goku asked, shifting his gaze from the god to Piccolo and back to the god.

"It seems to me that he's got the lion's share of his father's memories, Goku," he replied. "If he's been putting up with visions like that for his whole life, I'm not surprised that he turned out as reticent, as distant as he is. The one that set off this whole fiasco was Daimao's first massacre, and let me tell you, it's not pretty. I don't think there was anything left that didn't have blood on it. Ugh, I'm not going to eat for a week, and most especially not spaghetti." The disgusted expression on King Kai's face gave both Krillin and Goku a fairly good idea as to why he would be cutting out part of his diet, and neither one of them wanted him to go into any more detail. Fortunately for them, he did not.

"No kidding!" Krillin exclaimed. "Now I can understand why he's so, well, silent. I'd never speak again, if I had to watch something that bad! I wish he'd told us about this before." He shook his head and stared down at the floor, briefly admiring the grain of the wood.

"He's not one to share that which does not need to be shared, Krillin," King Kai said with a sigh, exchanging glances with Goku. "I doubt we ever would have known about this any other way."

Goku sighed as well, peering down to see what was so interesting about the floor. I'm glad I didn't kill him when Kami demanded it, he thought. This Piccolo never was the evil one. We were right to get rid of Daimao.

"I do need to get going, though, you two," the blue god continued, "before King Yemma comes looking for me. I've done what I can for Piccolo, and it's come down to his willpower and sheer determination. Goodbye and good luck, and if you need me, I'm only a thought away." Both men felt his ki disappear, but neither one raised their eyes from the floor for another minute.

"Thank you," Goku said belatedly, blinking. "Hey, Krillin," he added, peeking up, "do you think I should get another bowl of water?"

The Saiyan didn't have to be watching to know that his friend rolled his eyes. "I'll get it this time, Goku," the midget said, shifting his weight to one foot. "You're still a hazard."

"Oh. Do you think Chiaotzu brought over any more senzu beans?"

"Probably. We should leave Piccolo alone for now and get you one, but then should one of us sit in with him? To make sure nothing else happens?"

Goku met Krillin's concerned gaze evenly. "Sounds like a good idea. Let's get going."

The Earth warriors walked slowly out the door, at the pace set by the injured Saiyan, and closed it behind them. They made for the stairs, and only once did Goku look back. Good luck, Piccolo, he thought. You'll need all the luck you can get.

- - - - -

Thank you once again for reading! The next chapter may be up a bit later than usual because I am leaving for school in a week, and I will be busy packing. 'Til next time.

Dreamwraith