Author: Nadz
Email: vegitto02 at yahoo dot com

Disclaimer:
The title "DragonTek" is owned by the author.
Any characters owned by the producers of Tekkaman, Dragonball Z, Dragonball GT, or Rurouni Kenshin are, of course, the property of those respective individuals or companies. Any original characters are strictly owned by the author of this fan fiction.
The story line of the entire DragonTek series is also owned strictly by me.
This story may not be distributed to anybody without the author's permission. However, the author does encourage you to welcome your friends to read DragonTek on FanFiction dot net. Much thanks...

DragonTek (Part II: The Blood Saga)

Introduction

Two weeks of relative silence have passed since the initial Radam attack. Having to face only frequent but minor bugger assaults, the Allied Military on Earth utilized their time and resources in rebuilding their defenses. Survivors all over the Earth had begun to reconstruct their homes and buildings with the hope that the enemy had retreated permanently. All could not be forgotten, for the losses endured two weeks prior would forever leave their mark in the memories of those who had survived the massacre.

A dark reminder to those remaining on the planet, the masses of spore plants continued to lay in silence, basking in the sun and spreading feelings of dread to those who gazed upon them. Yet, there were those who chose not to be disturbed by the enigmatic flora – children once again ran through the streets with their friends, experiencing the joy that had existed prior to the devastation. Some considered it to be a time of peace; others could not help but view it as a period of loneliness and grief.

Among those grieving were the heroes whose actions had resulted in this eye of the storm. Back in their homes, the Saiya-jin descendants proceeded to reconstruct their communities in an effort to quell the pain of their losses. News of Alena's capture did not run well with Vegita and Goku; both deeply worried as to the fate of their loved one. It would only be a matter of time before she returned…

Chapter 13 – Recovery

Space Knight Command Center…

"Blade, I cannot believe you stayed by my side this entire time," Aki said. She had only regained consciousness several days ago, but the doctor had instructed her to continue resting on her medical bed. It was Noal who told her that Blade had paid so much care while she was injured.

"Aki, it's something I would do for a friend. It was my fault this happened to you," Blade said softly as he looked at her. "I'm happy that you're okay now, you'll just have to take it easy for a while."

"Its okay, Blade. I'm tougher than you think. I'll be out and about faster than you can transform," Aki laughed. Her smile soon disappeared as she saw Blade's face stay serious. "What?"

"I can't transform anymore," he sighed, looking downwards.

"What are you saying? Why not?" she questioned in concern as she tried to get up.

"No, Aki, don't get up, just rest," said Blade. "I can't transform because Dagger shattered my crystal. It's broken… gone. Chief Freeman has the pieces of my crystal and told me that they would do what they could with it. Honestly, though, I don't think they would be able to accomplish anything."

"Blade, we're the Space Knights," Aki said, trying to reassure him. "I'm sure Honda and Levin will find a way to get you to transform again."

"Even if they do, it won't make a difference anymore."

"Blade, don't talk like that; we need you."

'No, Earth doesn't need me. It needs those two guys who saved us,' he thought. "Thanks, Aki. I think you should rest again now; I'll explain everything later."

"Blade?" she said in a kind voice, touching his hand just as he was about to turn away.

"Yeah?"

"I just want to say… thank you," Aki smiled. Blade nodded before leaving the room.

"Chief, it's almost ready," Honda said as he wiped the sweat on his forehead. For almost two weeks now, he and Levin had been working on a new project the Chief secretly assigned them. They took a step back to view their creation, a massive blue and red mecha standing almost eleven feet high. It was no ordinary mecha – it was a giant contraption that would allow Blade to transform again into a Tekkaman.

The way it worked was Levin's idea. With meticulousness, Levin had glued the pieces of Blade's crystal back together and placed the crystal on the front chest region of the robot. The backside of the robot, named Pegas, would flip open upwards, exposing the large cavity within its hollow body. To transform, Blade would jump into this cavity, and the back flap would close. Then, Pegas would amplify the power of the crystal, embedded in its chest, and direct it towards Blade, allowing the man to transmute.

It was a simple idea, but very difficult to implement and build. Freeman nodded, inspecting it.

"Very good," Freeman said, admiring it. "How much longer do you think until Pegas is ready?"

"Soon, I hope," replied Levin. "There have been a lot of glitches, and every time I fix one, another seems to pop us. It's so frustrating!"

"Don't give up hope," smiled the Chief. "I'm sure you'll come across the solution soon."

The young man agonizingly crawled backwards, hoping to escape from the predator that had pursued him. The broken ribs and the numerous cuts running through his body made even the simplest of movements far too painful. Every motion only drew more blood from his wounds, and the boy prayed for his life, backing away from the grinning human that stepped through the darkness towards him.

"How could you do this… to your own friend?" the young man whispered, his eyes fearful as they locked onto the bloodied dagger being gripped by the other.

"Because of me, all of my other friends are dead," came the response, "and so are you."

"What the hell are you?" he cried, retreating. "You monster!"

"Wrong, Hamato," the being grated. "Even a monster wouldn't be this cruel..."

One day passes…

"Hmm, another person's life was taken yesterday," muttered Pan as she read the morning paper. "This is the third murder in three days, one for each day. It seems as if a serial killer is on the loose. Listen to this – at each of the crime scenes, the word 'Blood' is written, using the victim's blood for ink, near the corpse. Also, there has been a broken window at every crime scene. Police have not found any sort of weapon, and they have no suspects so far— Goku, are you listening?"

"Huh?" Goku looked up from the sketch of Alena he had been so intensely drawing. Pan looked over and sighed. She knew about his feelings, but that didn't mean he should just mope about all the time.

"Goku, it's not healthy for you to be thinking about it so much," Pan said as she sat down next do him. "I told you; we'll find her soon."

"Obaasan, I miss her a lot," Goku said, pausing his drawing. "I was supposed to see her that Friday to help her move out. It's been so long since we've been together."

"Don't give up," Pan tried to comfort her son. "We'll find her soon."

"I hope so," Goku continued to draw. During the first week after the attack, Vegita, Kenshin, and he formed a search party to find Alena, but they didn't find a clue as to her whereabouts. He had spent the last week helping his neighbors rebuild their homes. It was his way of keeping himself occupied so that he didn't go insane over the loss of Alena and her father. It all was so crazy. Life had been so normal, so human, prior to the attack. In one day, the lives of billions had changed dramatically.

Pan contemplated the level of death and destruction that had occurred all over the world. She wondered if that drastic time had come – the time to use the Dragonballs. After the battle with the Evil Shenrons, Kaio-sama had warned the Z-warriors never to use the magical spheres again unless a situation of dire emergency presented itself. This situation seemed dire enough. Goku had the four-star ball in his possession, but it would be hard to find the rest. Buruma had destroyed all of her Dragon Radars in order to prevent anybody from collecting the balls. Yet, the Earth needed the power of the Dragonballs now.

"Goku," Pan spoke up. "Do you still have the four-star ball with you?"

Goku suddenly realized Pan's intention and looked at her in surprise.

"It's in the basement, grandmother," Goku replied. "You don't really mean to say…"

"I think it's that time," came the reply. Pan and the rest of the Z-warriors had agreed never to tell their progeny about the Dragonballs, although she had decided to tell Goku many years ago due to her age. They were the only two in the lineage who knew about them. Not even Akira, Kenshin's late grandfather, had a clue as to their existence.

Vegita punched him square in the ribs. Kenshin had tried to dodge, but he was too slow. He was scared, scared at what Vegita had become. The boy looked in fear as Vegita grabbed him by his hair and slammed him into the ground. Kenshin grunted in pain, and Vegita picked the boy up and delivered a strong back fist into the boy's head. Kenshin fell again to the floor, looking up to see Vegita's Super Saiya-jin form standing over him. His cousin had come to hunt him down, and he was fighting for his life.

He called out to his father, but nobody could hear him. If only he could become a Super…

"You failure!" Vegita said disgustedly as he kicked Kenshin in the leg, breaking it. "You were so close to my sister, and you let her go!"

"I tried, Vegita. I really did," Kenshin managed to say before Vegita kicked him extra hard in the stomach. "Please… please believe me!"

"Trying hard didn't bring my sister back!" roared Vegita as he grabbed Kenshin by the neck and started to squeeze. He saw the boy struggle to breathe. Vegita released the boy and threw him onto the ground; Kenshin lay on the floor, attempting to regain his breath. His eyes looked up, only to see Vegita release an energy blast point-blank in his face…

Kenshin snapped his eyes open, his heart beating rapidly. He calmed down and tried to convince himself that it was only a nightmare, that it was not real. Yet, this was his fourth nightmare in the past week, and it was the same theme that had been haunting him. He couldn't rid himself of his guilt from not being able to save Alena. He had been right there; he had found her, and yet he could do nothing about it because he was too weak. The boy cursed under his breath as he tossed the covers aside.

'I haven't had a break in over a week. It's so good to be walking in the city again,' Vegita thought as he walked down the street in the downtown area. The street was lined with little shops, many of which had been partially rebuilt since during the initial attack. During the last two weeks, people helped one another salvage their stores and homes. Others helped cut down the eerie purple plants that were growing in the city. Life started becoming more normal as each day passed by. The mere sight of shopkeepers resuming the sale of their items brought a smile to Vegita's face.

"Hmm, it's almost two o'clock," he muttered to himself as he looked down at his watch. That watch he was wearing was no ordinary watch; it was a communicator Chief Freeman had given him in order to establish immediate contact. Goku had also received one. Vegita put his hand back in his pocket as he continued to stroll. He turned his head as he walked by an alley; he had heard a sort of muffled cry.

'I think I'll go check it out,' Vegita thought as he entered the alley. He quietly walked toward the source of the sound, staying close to the wall of one of the buildings. The sound was coming from a window on the ground floor, just a little ahead of him. Vegita sneaked over and listened a little more; it sounded more like a conversation. There were five, no, probably six of them in all. Vegita stayed close to the wall, hidden, as he tried to hear what was going on in room inside.

"Please don't do anything to me. I'll give you money. I'll give you as much money as you want," softly whimpered a clearly terrified man. "Just don't hurt me!"

"Very funny," said a voice, coming from a young lady. "You think you can buy me with money?"

"What… what do you… want from me?" he said. "I… I have powerful friends, you know."

"Yeah, and I have a powerful gun pointing at your head right now. Listen carefully; I know you have a Dragonball in your possession. Tell me where it is."