A/N: I have FINALLY outsmarted and figured out a way to mark off dream sequences and place changes, etc. (o) symbols a dream/vision/flashback, etc., while ((o)) is a change in place/POV/time, etc. Later I'll go back and reformat the previous chapters.
Time Distorted
BY MARA ROBERTS
Chapter 7
"Gold…" they breathed as one, shocked at the vast amount of treasure littered across the floor and piled up all the way to the ceiling.
"What is this all doing here?" "Where did it all come from?"
They entered the room fully, taking in the glittering gold, the beautiful and surely very rare jewels.
"Must be pirates' treasure. It's the only explanation," Gohan said.
"Um-hmm," Kakorott nodded in agreement.
Mie sighed heavily as she forced down the feeling of euphoria all this wealth was giving her. Besides, she could conjure it up anytime she chose, or at least would be able to once she'd learned everything about being an immortal. "Well, this isn't what we're looking for. Best to move on, I think."
The others groaned mildly but they really had no arguments to give her. They shuffled out with a last look at the riches, two of them thinking how much food they could buy with all that, and the other dreaming of the giant martial arts arena that could be built… a place for fighters to come and test their mettle, the training grounds out back, a few dojos… One last sigh and the door sealed tightly behind them, invisible once more among the stone.
They wandered around a little bit more, aimless and their hearts really not in it, so they gave it up for the day. Mie managed to trace their paths back to the gold-laden room – she had once again fused her Ki into the wall – then smiled sheepishly. In her rush to not lose Bardock, she had forgotten to mark the route.
Kakorott pointed down and they saw a continuous, smooth fissure along the ground that could only be created by Ki. Mie grinned at him in embarrassed thanks and they continued their way. Reaching sunlight, they stepped out into the dusk, blinking at the contrast of light as they waited for their eyes to adjust.
When they had, they noticed the lateness of the day and headed back towards town. Gohan stretched and yawned, complaining of being sleepy. Kakorott griped of hunger, and Bardock's bottomless pit grumbled in response, giving them all a good laugh. Their good cheer, ended however, when they finally reached the inn.
That man was standing outside the door, arms crossed and leaning casually against the wall. He seemed to be waiting, and waiting for them.
"Howdy," Kakorott said, making light of the feeling the stranger was giving him… that of being in a cowboy showdown. He wasn't dressed in any part of the classic cowboy attire, yet his whole posture seemed to suggest one who was ready for a death match under the sun when the clock struck noon. Maybe it was just the way his wide-brimmed baseball cap covered his eyes.
He nodded greetings in return, the shadow dipping and rising on his face.
The four kept approaching the inn, Kakorott keeping up the act of a naïve little boy, and the conversation as well. Since he was young, rudeness was both understandable and forgivable. "What's your name?"
"Sam," the man grunted. He made no move to continue the exchange.
"Well, nice meeting you, Mr. Sam," he said as he shuffled past into the welcome shade of the inn.
They ate dinner in silence that night, still disturbed over that strange man's attitude, and quietly made their way to their rooms. Bardock was the last to leave, picking over the small remnants of his meal in utter silence, mind preoccupied with a most unnerving emotion. Finally he dropped his chopsticks on his plate and brought it to the sink where a waitress would take care of it. Still silent and pensive, he walked slowly up the stairs and into his room.
(o)
…A few more paces and the sound of their footsteps changed to the steady clink of sole 'gainst marble flooring. Bardock quickly directed his gaze face front, and that was a mistake. Blinding white light emerged from too many places to pinpoint, burning his eyes and lacing his mind in agony with its suddenness. He was vaguely aware of the others falling back a few steps as well.
He rapidly blinked tears out of his eyes, trying to focus on the events surrounding him. From the corner of his vision he saw a streak of white slam Gohan full force, the man unable to defend as he had instinctively covered his eyes against the light. The man went down, hard, and stayed there. Bardock's vision finally adjusted and he saw Gohan lying as though in death, eyes clouded over and dim.
Another enemy darted his way and the world spun quickly, or so it seemed. Then he realized he was the one whirling at top speed. Bardock straightened himself and staggered forward, arms coming up in defensive position. Kakorott had reacted brilliantly and had already launched himself forward into the enemy. His eyes were tightly shut and Bardock didn't know how he could hope to fight, but he had no time to worry about the Saiyjin child as a thorn-covered arm threw a punch his way…
(o)
Bardock sat up with a gasp, sweat-soaked and cold to the bone. He breathed deeply, steadying his racing heart. Deciding not to go back to sleep for fear of another hallucination, he got out of bed and started exercising. He might as well do something useful with his time.
He placed himself parallel to the floor and started with a hundred pushups, not wanting to make too much noise and rouse any neighbors.
((o))
Bardock exercised until dawn came, and he thought others must surely be up by then. He headed for the shower to wipe away his weariness and perspiration. By the time he was done, the others were already at the breakfast table. It was pancakes this morning, and Bardock's stomach grumbled loudly in desire.
"Hello," Kakorott bid him, but the Saiyjin paid him no mind. The boy frowned; that was two days in a row the man had been rude. Maybe he just wasn't a morning person.
They decided to return to the caves after breakfast. Or rather, Mie suggested it, and no one voted it down. Bardock's sour mood was spreading, Mie could tell, when everyone just grunted their consent.
At midday they'd had enough of dank and darkness. Admittedly, at first it had been fun, adventurous, but now it was just old and mind-numbingly depressing to go tramping around in stale air and claustrophobic caves.
So they ventured out into sunlight and had a quiet picnic, each involved in their own thoughts to take much note of the others. After lunch they agreed to explore some other part of the town, settling on the lakes. They ambled over there and were surprised to see a whole sprawling field of lakes both large and small.
"How'd they all come to be here?" "Do you think they're all really independent?"
"No," Mie responded to that last one. "I'd bet they're somehow connected underground, almost like a swamp. But I'm curious to learn why they all developed separately instead of in one common lake."
"Wanna go swimming?" Kakorott asked.
"No," she replied. "We didn't come prepared. We don't have swimsuits."
The young half-Saiyjin blinked.
"So?" he asked, and began peeling of his shoes and socks, quickly followed by his shirts and pants. Bardock grinned, sat down and began doing the same, but he left his pants on. The young could get away with some things, but adults simply couldn't.
"Yeah, you're right. I think it's time we had a break," Gohan agreed and pulled his shirt over his head, discarding it on the ground. "Besides, there's no telling how long this will take or when our next chance to relax will be."
"Fine," Mie grumbled and sat down sulking, saying her next word almost like a curse. "Boys…"
"You aren't coming?" Kakorott asked as they set off to the nearest large lake.
"I'm not swimming around in my underwear, thank you."
He looked behind him and saw Gohan and Bardock walking away. Still, he leaned in close to whisper in Mie's ear. "But you're a goddess. Why don't you just conjure a bathing suit under your clothes?" And then he walked off himself.
Mie blinked at how sensible it sounded and had half a mind to be difficult just for the sake of it, but ultimately decided against it. Besides, the water looked so inviting. She concentrated for a moment and created a simple blue and green one piece and rushed off to join the boys.
They splashed around for an hour and played chicken, Mie and Bardock on one team, Gohan and Kakorott on the other. The game ended in a tie, mainly because both parties had cheated and used Ki to maintain their balance. Then the kids were thrown off their elder's shoulders rather violently and emerged gasping to much laughing from their former compatriots.
Mie and Kakorott immediately tried to drown Gohan, who was too quick and swam away. Bardock, however, was too busy laughing, and so made an easy target. They pushed him down hard, and he sank at least twelve feet before he regained his equilibrium.
Deciding to stay under and play a little Jaws, Bardock waited for his eyes to adjust to the murky water and looked for the two rascals above him. Because of his weight he continued to sink, and just when he was about to take off for revenge he felt cool mud beneath his feet ands expected to sink a bit more under his weight. It didn't happen. That's… unusual, Bardock frowned and repositioned himself so that he could investigate better. He dug away a bit at the mud, and he didn't have to dig deep. Less than an inch below the false surface was an unmistakable slab of stone. Its artificiality was disturbing in a place as natural as this. A sense of foreboding overcame the Saiyjin and he abandoned his exploration for the surface. They had to get away from there, and he couldn't rightly say why.
He broke the surface of the water and started yelling. "Out, out! Get out of the lake!"
Not knowing what he was reacting to, the others scrambled out quickly, trusting their comrade. By the time they were all on the shore some feet from the lake, nothing had happened. They looked at Bardock curiously; Gohan asked, "What's wrong?"
"I don't know." He paused. "I landed on the bottom of the lake. Under the mud, there's concrete. It bothered me, and I felt like we had to get out of there. I can't explain."
"It's all right," Mie said. "We trust your instincts. Your subconscious mind must have figured it out somehow, without letting your conscious mind in on it. You don't need to understand, so long as you know."
(o)
Kakorott and Mie were fighting gloriously. How they managed to hold their own against so many, Bardock could not begin to understand. The two seemed to glow with energy – was that really their strength? He knew the two were stronger than he, but by so much, he couldn't believe…
His own body was reacting poorly to his commands with each blow that rained upon him. He couldn't keep this up, couldn't call for help. Kakorott saw his predicament and made to come over and help, but as Kakorott took his first step, and iron hard fist punched through Bardock's torso and into his innards. Blood and guts spilled out and as the fist came out, the wooden thorns covering the hand tore even more of his life away. Bardock fell to the ground, bleeding away, dying fast. He was glad it would be quick. Already darkness enveloped him in sweet embrace.
But then those images came again, those blasted hallucinations, and they disturbed his peace. They pounded his mind with their truth and his brain could not comprehend all that it meant. He saw outside himself, saw himself, as he lay there, dying, dead. He saw the shifts and paradoxes it caused, the waver in Kakorott's existence, the strange undoing of the boy's presence, essence, self. It became too much for the mortal to bear and a scream tore from his throat. It pounded in his ears, loud enough to wake him from his nightmare-filled sleep…
(o)
Bardock panted and gasped, waiting for a sense of calm, of peace, but his room was covered in darkness and omens, shifting shadows and uncertain futures. He was infused with the need to get away. Away!
Bardock fled, uncaring of his direction. In the recesses of his mind he recognized the path as the one leading to the artificial lakes. Finally he reached their many shores and collapsed along their banks, deep heaving breaths leaving his gasping for air. The balmy night air calmed his racing heart and brushed his hot face with pleasant coolness.
For an hour he sat there in peace and introspection, taking in the beautiful star-filled and moonless night. Finally, he was able to relax.
But it was not to be for a violent wave upset the dead of night and dragged Bardock into its depths in an attempt to see him dead. Bardock came to enough to realize that was an arm about his neck in a stranglehold position as he was pulled beneath the surface into absolute darkness.
He scuffled and fought hard enough to distance himself from his attacker, catching a glimpse of a short, red fur covered arm and long nails. Claws, a part of his mind reminded him of their proper name. Then his enemy was in darkness again and Bardock desperately needed to get to the surface. He'd not had time to draw breath before he was dragged under.
He had barely reached the surface and gasped in a lungful before he was dragged down again. He readied and threw a Ki blast, which his enemy easily dodged, but the resulting light gave him his first good look at his enemy. It was a woman, slender and tall, covered in short red fur. Her deep blue eyes danced with amusement at his struggles, he ears were pointed atop her head and swiveled to capture each sound. She wore a light blue halter-top that left her arms unhindered for battle and blue pants the color of her eyes. She had no nose. Not being wholly of this realm, she had no need to breathe. A wicked looking tail completed the familiar depiction. A demoness, Bardock realized and wanted to groan. This wasn't going to be easy.
The light faded away and Bardock was left more blind than before, his eyes no longer even partially adjusted to the darkness. Before he could ready another blast for illumination, three claws struck across his face. Had he not flinched they would have gouged out his eyes. As it was hit just a hairsbreadth above them, the venom from the tips dripped down into them, the poison blinding his just as effectively. Any light he might conjure now would be useless.
From his mind's eye he imagined her movement, but he knew it was just his mind grasping at straws, trying to supply him with information it could not possibly posses. He tried to focus his ears and nose but was raked cruelly across the back before he could do so.
Bardock barely held in a gasp, almost letting his air escape. His hallucination… it had been dead on! What if they weren't hallucinations, that what he'd been fighting hadn't been derangement but divination? Another blow hit him in the legs and he grimaced. He had no choice, really. He had to trust these images, no matter where they came from. Even if it meant embracing insanity.
Sensing movement to his left, he successfully blocked with his leg. A down swipe with his right arm also connected, and his confidence grew. He used the momentum of the strike to propel the demoness down and himself towards the surface. Bardock drew in a hasty breath and could see with his inner vision the monster coming up from below to attack him again. He quickly leveled a Ki blast at her, which she dodged, but it bought him time to finally draw in a proper breath that should allow him to hold at till the end of the battle, one way or another. (1)
This time he dived down into the water and attacked with a powerful right hook that hit her face. His joy distracted him, unfortunately, and he received a sharp blow to the ribs. Bardock nearly yelped; some ribs were definitely bruised, but he had no time to dwell on this new pain. He blocked a kick with his hands and attacked with one of his own. She grabbed his leg and used it to shift her feet towards him and slam him hard in the chest.
She still had hold of his leg and used the leverage to slam him into the side of the lake before yanking him back and kicking his torso exactly where she had before. He felt some ribs begin to crack and she continued to apply pressure. He managed to finally get her off balance and kicked at her head. It connected with a solid thump and her Ki dimmed a bit, but then she came back with a vengeance.
For the third time she struck him in the chest, and he realized she was trying to puncture his lungs with his own ribs. The cracks turned to breaks, and he realized that on some level he was still fighting his visions, trying to see with the naked eye instead of the inner one. He forced himself to surrender to the insight, creating faith where before he had none.
The battle fell into a rhythm as Bardock easily struck again and again and again. He knew her every movement, every way she would dodge, every time she would attack. Power filled his every attack but he felt the beginnings of weakness in his limbs. His movements were fast becoming sluggish, so Bardock prepared himself to deal the final blow. Soon, Bardock planted a Ki-enhanced punch into her torso, creating a gaping wound through which spilled scarlet life. He allowed the Ki in his hand to form into an energy ball, and released it. A groan escaped her lips, the only sign of pain she'd made at all.
With the last of her strength, lent by Bibidi, she struck him hard in the head. Bardock's vision wavered on the edge of consciousness. Had he been more aware, he would have noticed someone ruthlessly going through his mind, hastily suppressing the memories Time had given him. The demoness sank to the bottom of the pool, lifeless, before disintegrating.
(1) – If anyone remembers those episodes where Krillian was courting Maron, they'll also remember that Krillian and Gohan held their breath for an incredibly long, Superman-like time, and at great depths.
