AN: Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been on holiday (that's 'Vacation' for all you non-British speakers out there) in Spain, in an all-inclusive resort taking advantage of the naïve fools giving out free alcohol. San Miguel beer and the discovery of 'Black Russians' (Tia Maria (a coffee liqueur) + Vodka + Cola, except at the resort I was staying at, they were by no-means stingy with the measures of Vodka or Tia Maria… I think they put in a thimble-full of cola… yummy!) meant that I was in no fit state to walk/play pool, never mind write.
Anyway, enough of my holidays. Read on and enjoy… at least, pretend to enjoy, 'cos that'll keep me happy.
- Paul
Chapter Two: Those Who Are About To Rock…
Goku and Raditz sat on the sofa of their new house, their old one having been destroyed in the destructive battle between Vegeta and Tomatta almost a year ago. Chi-Chi was busying herself somewhere else, and Goten was at school, so that left just the two Saiyans in charge of the front room, for the time being at least.
Raditz looked down at the vid-disc then up to the TV, then back at the vid-disc.
"It isn't working, brother," Raditz said, eventually.
"You're supposed to put the disc in the player, Raditz," Goku replied.
"Player?"
"Give it here," Goku said, swiping the disc from Raditz' hand, and strolling over to the vid-player. He slid it into the slot, and pressed the play button, then quickly clasped his hands over his ears as music began to spill out. It wasn't Noise, as the kids were listening to, it was music… heavy, raw, unrefined music. The sort of music that, if left unchecked, would steal your girl (or man… or both!), take her upstairs and give her the night of her life.
Raditz looked at the TV, his eyes wide, and his long hair flowing backwards as it was caught in the air-stream from the speakers.
"GOK-UUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" came a shrill cry. Immediately, Raditz vanished, leaving Goku alone to face Chi-Chi's wrath. He turned the volume down substantially, then turned around to face his wife, who was standing a pace behind him. Goku yelped and hopped back in surprise, narrowly missing the frying-pan that swiped down from above. He never managed to avoid the second shot as it came slamming out and caught him on the side of the cheek, causing his head to rock to the side in surprise.
"Hey… what was that for?" Goku asked, rubbing his cheek.
"You and your irresponsible brother… why don't you do anything else than train or watch TV?!" she shrieked, tensing up.
"Awww, but hunny. This is important, there's a new evil coming across, and we have to study these old bands to help fight it, and…"
"OOOOOH!" Chi-Chi cried and stormed off.
"Bye hunny!" Goku called after her, cheerfully. The tall Saiyan turned around and looked back towards the Television, and what he saw almost made him choke.
"Oh… wow…" he gasped, and dropped to his knees. On the screen, there was a man in perpetual motion, hopping across the stage with his long curly hair trailing out behind him as the music screamed out. But it wasn't this maniacs inability to stop that had caught Goku's attention, it was the fact he was wearing a school-boy's outfit, complete with tight leather shorts so short they were nearly underpants.
Goku's eyes widened even more as this total nutcase broke into a guitar solo, the instrument singing the most beautifully intricate combination of notes and chords.
"Is she gone yet, brother?" Raditz asked, peering back into the living room, then he immediately saw Goku sitting in front of the set, eyes glazed over. Raditz joined him, sitting down next to him on the floor and watching the screen, then he saw another guitarist prancing about, his fingers a blur over his guitar, and a wide grin spread over his face.
** * ** * **
Vegeta sighed as he leaned back in his chair, and idly watched as Mirai Trunks slid the disc into the player and pressed the play-button. The screen was black, and vegeta leaned forward slightly.
"If that woman has given us a blank disk I'll…" Vegeta's words were cut off as a large fiery explosion ripped across the screen, revealing a group of people jumping about the stage, their faces painted with interesting designs in black over white.
"I stand corrected…" Vegeta muttered as Mirai moved back and took a seat in the second chair that had been positioned in the Gravity Room on the prince's orders. On the screen, the four still jumped around, their fingers pounding on the strings and the lead singer pulling faces as he sang the lyrics. Trunks was watching them all, his attention caught by none of them in particular, but Vegeta however, was interested in the one who had a black star painted across his right eye. It wasn't the make-up he was interested in, but the hairline. The bassist had a widows' peak or almost exactly the same magnitude, and Vegeta's face slowly contorted into a grin.
"Boy," he said, turning to Trunks, "I have found myself a role model!"
"That's great, dad," Trunks replied. "But I haven't found one yet."
"Well, there's till quite a few discs to go through, I'm sure you'll find one eventually."
Mirai nodded. "Yeah dad," he said. "I guess I'll go over to Gohan's to find myself one, kay?" he suggested. Vegeta waved his hand irritably, gesturing for his son to do whatever he thought was best as long as it didn't involve pestering him.
Trunks sighed and quietly slipped from the room as Vegeta just stared in wonder as the black-starry-eyed one lurched on stage, wearing a deck of full-plate armour and unleashing a barrage of flame form the head of his guitar.
"Yes…" said Vegeta, chuckling to himself, "that shall do nicely."
** * ** * **
Mirai knocked on the door of the Son's house, and heard the usual screaming coming from Chi-Chi. As she opened the door, Trunks' sharp eyes caught the transaction of her expression turning from psycho to friendly.
"My, Trunks! My, you've grown! Although, Goten's at school… I'm sur eyou could come in for…" Chi-Chi began.
"No, it's okay, Mrs. Son. It's me, the Trunks from the future…" Mirai looked at Chi-Chi's blank expression. "The one who came back and gave Goku the heart medicine?" Trunks suggested.
"Oh yes that's right!" Chi-Chi exclaimed, clasping her hands together over her chest. "Such a polite young man, so unlike your modern self!" Trunks blushed and scratched the back of his lilac hair.
"Well… gosh…"
"So you're here to speak to Gohan, right?"
"That's right, Mrs Son."
"Well, he doesn't live with us anymore – he moved out some time ago," Chi-Chi said, her face turning down at the thought of her little boy not living with them anymore.
"Oh, where does he live?"
"He moved into the house next door," Chi-Chi said with a sigh. "It's not the same, living without my little Gohan."
"But… he's only next door…" Trunks said.
"I know… but the house feels so empty." Chi-Chi's words were finished by a loud crash, and her face turned red.
"Excuse… me… I have to… go… talk to the… boys…" she said, vibrating as she struggled to contain her anger.
"Okay, I'll see you later, Mrs. Son!" Trunks said, moving away from the step, moments before the front door slammed shut. Sighing, Trunks moved to the next door down, and rapped on it with his knuckles gently, and almost instantly heard some commotion from within. Then the door opened, and a oval face peered at him with sparkling brown eyes.
"Yes?" she demanded.
"Uh… I'm looking for Gohan…" Trunks said.
"Hmph, I might have known," the girl said, and turned around to face into the house. "GOHAN! There's guy here to see you!" she called out and then vanished. Trunks waited patiently, and then when Gohan finally arrived, he almost jumped out of his skin.
"Hi… oh wow, Trunks!" Gohan cried.
"Gohan… is that really you?" Trunks asked, looking his friend and former sensei up and down.
"Yeah… guess I've grown, huh?" Gohan said sheepishly and grinning.
"Evidently… uh… what's that in your hand?" Trunks said looking at the thing held in Gohan's arms.
"Oh, this is Pan, my daughter." Gohan said matter-of-factly.
"You what?!" Trunks said with shock. "That means that that woman here was…"
"My wife, yeah. Her name is Videl, and she's Hercule Satan's daughter," Gohan explained, and Trunks' face dropped.
"Hercule's daughter? That pompous guy who tried to take on Cell?!" Trunks gasped.
"What was that?!" came a shriek from in doors, causing Gohan to cringe.
"Shhh! Keep your voice down, buddy!" Gohan said.
Trunks nodded and peered around Gohan. "Is it safe for me to come in, do you reckon?"
"Yeah… what's wrong?"
"You won't believe what the others are upto…" Trunks groaned as Gohan stepped aside to allow his old friend into the house.
** * ** * **
"They're what?!" Gohan gasped. Pan was crawling about on the floor as they spoke, trying to eat everything she came into contact with.
"I told you that you wouldn't believe me…" Mirai sighed. At that moment, Videl appeared with a tray holding three cups and a pot, steam curling gently from its spout.
"I've brought us some tea… and Gohan, you still haven't introduced me to our guest," Gohan's spouse said in sickly sweet tones that told Gohan that he was in deep shit the moment Mirai left the house.
"Uh, dear… this is Trunks. Trunks, this is my wife, Videl." Gohan said.
Trunks stood up and bowed. "Thank-you for your hospitality, Mrs Son."
"Well… at least this one is polite, and doesn't call me your 'mate', Gohan," Videl said, still using the deceptive sweetness in her voice.
"Uh…"
"Vegeta, Brolli, Nappa…" Gohan said simply and sighed.
"Ah, of course. How foolish of me."
"Hang on… you're name's Trunks?!" Videl suddenly blurted out, almost dropping the tray as her brain caught up with what her ears had said.
"Yeah…" Trunks said.
"Uh, dearest… there's something I have to tell you…" Gohan said sheepishly. Videl wheeled about and glared at Gohan, not dropping a single thing on the tray.
"Oh, here it comes!"
"Trunks is from the future. He came from the past to warn us about the Androids, and he was almost Killed by Cell, but not quite." Videl blinked.
"He what? Gohan, that's impossible!"
"Hey, when we first met, you found it hard to believe that I could fly!" Gohan snapped back.
"Flying is hardly Time Travel, Gohan Son!"
"Well Dad can go anywhere instantly!"
"That's different, your dad is a very special man!"
"Excuse me…" said Trunks.
"I know he is!"
"Then what's your problem, Gohan?!"
"TIME TRAVEL!"
"Don't shout in front of our baby!"
"Excuse me?"
"I'm not shouting!"
"Don't raise your voice, then!"
"I wasn't!"
"HEY!!" Trunks yelled. Videl and Gohan stopped glaring at each other, and turned to look at Mirai Trunks. "I'm from the future, honestly!"
"So how's my Gohan in the future then? And why'd you come back here?" Videl aske,d sceptically. Trunks' face dropped.
"Uh… hunny… everybody we know in Trunks' future was killed – even me, dad and Vegeta," Gohan said quietly.
Videl turned pale. "Oh… Trunks… I'm so sorry… I didn't know…"
"It's okay… at least Mum didn't die," he said, then brightened up. "Hey, Gohan! We're still looking for a drummer, wanna join?"
"Wow, you mean it?" Gohan said, grinning.
"Sure!"
"Count me in, buddy! This'll be so cool!"
"Gohan, you're not joining any band!"
"Awww, c'mon. It's not as if I have anything better to do…"
"Raising our daughter isn't important?"
"Not in the sense I mean…"
"GOHAN!"
"Eep!" Gohan cried, hiding behind Mirai.
"Dude, she's just like Chi-Chi!" Trunks whispered across to Gohan.
Gohan groaned. "Don't I know it. Quick, lets get out of here."
"Right."
And with that, they both vanished, the door slamming closed behind them. Videl sighed and dropped to her knees, looking at her daughter, who was looking up at her with a bemused smile.
"Well, I don't know why you're so happy… your daddy's just gone to fool around with those misfits again."
Pan cocked her head to the side, and shook her baby rattle, and Videl sighed.
"And you'll be doing the same when you're older, huh? You, Bra and whoever else comes along. Oh well, I guess that can't be helped. It's in your blood. You are a Son, after all…" Videl's voice trailed off after realising she called her daughter a Son.
** * ** * **
Trunks and Gohan walked back into the Capsule Corps building, thankfully free of The Noise, and headed straight into one of the guest apartments. Mirai took a handful of disks from his jacket pocket and slipped one into the disc-player, gesturing for Gohan to sit down somewhere.
Relaxing, they sat back and began to enjoy the melodies of the bands.
** * ** * **
Meanwhile, Bulma was wondering what Vegeta was up to, so she snuck up to the Gravity Chamber, wearing a scouter modified to mask her kai signature, and switched off the soundproofing. Seeing as their wasn't a sound in the house, Vegeta wouldn't hear the difference, but Bulma would be able to hear everything that happened inside the room.
"But Vegeta… It's too narrow! You'll never fit it in!"
"Silence Nappa! All it needs is a bit of a push!"
"I'm telling you, it's just wide for the hole!"
"Shut up! Let me do this my way, alright?"
"He's right you know, Vegeta. You'll never get that in there."
"Kakkarot, be quiet will you?!"
"Fine, but let me give you a hand that into the little hole…"
"Argh! Kakkarot, get your hands away from me!"
"Fine… I was only trying to help…"
"Look, if I needed your help I'd have asked for it!"
"If you keep trying to push it in like that, you'll only break it! Maybe it needs a bit of lubrication…"
"Nappa, I'm not going to tell you twice! Just cease your infernal mumbling and hold still!"
Bulma heard a deep sigh and then: "Fine then… OW! That hurt!"
"Christ Nappa! I've seen Bakarot's youngest brat take one harder than that!"
"mumblemumblemumble"
"What was that?!"
"I said 'I'm not a Super Saiyan!"
"That's not the point, Nap… where do you think you're going?!"
"Somewhere else."
"Just get back here and hold still, will you?!"
"No."
"Fine then."
"Good!"
"I'll help, Vegeta."
"No you bloody won't, Kakkarot!"
"Awww!"
"I'll just have to do this by myself…"
"Are you sure that's wise… Now look what you've done! You snapped it!"
"Kakkarot, keep your voice down. I can just superglue it back together again…"
By this point, Bulma couldn't take it anymore. Seizing the emergency door handle, she pushed the door inwards and stood in amazement as before her, she saw Vegeta crouched down in front of an amp, a broken jack-plug between his finger. Standing over him was an exasperated Goku, holding the snapped-off piece of metal, whilst Nappa was sitting sulking in the corner.
"Uh… sorry for bursting in but uh…"
"Woman, what the blazes are you doing in here?" Vegeta asked, standing up.
"Hi Bulma!" Goku waved, the broken plug slipping from his fingers and flying across the room. "Whoops!"
"Kakkarot, you idiot! Look what you just did!"
"I'm sorry, Vegeta. It should be easy enough to find."
"Yes, as long as you're the searching for it," Vegeta mumbled, then turned back to face his spouse. "Anyway, you were saying?"
"Actually, I wasn't saying anything," Bulma responded, then turned away and headed out, closing the door behind her.
"What was that all about?" Goku asked, scouring the floor for the broken-ff piece of metal.
"How in the blazes should I know?" Vegeta muttered.
"Well, she's your mate," Nappa mumbled from the other side of the room.
"She may be my mate, but she's still the must stubborn woman I've ever met!" Vegeta cried, and then hesitated. "Except possibly that harpy of a female that Kakkarot mated with. Twice."
Goku laughed and scratched the back of his head, then his face dropped. "Hey!"
Goku turned around, and opened his mouth to say something, when the chamber doors burst open, and two enthusiastic-looking Demi-Saiyans stood there grinning.
"We have it, we have the muse!" Mirai blurted out, Gohan nodding in support.
"What? Then put it back before people realise it's missing!" Goku cried in dismay as his eldest son's blatant disregard for other people property.
"Kakkarot, don't you know anything? I've been on this world for only a short number of years, and already I know more about this back-water planet than you do!"
"Huh?" Goku asked, dumbfounded.
"A muse, you baka, is a source of inspiration! The ancient Greeks believed that all artistic inspiration came from three ancient hags that lived in some mountains somewhere, and they were worshipped by even the Gods themselves!"
Everybody in the Gravity Room turned and looked at Vegeta.
"What are you hippies looking at, I am the prince of all Saiyans!"
"More like the Prince of all Bakas…" mumbled Gohan under his breath.
"I heard that, you spawn of a 3rd class weakling! Just remember that he is the biggest baka of them all!"
"He went Super Saiyan before you did," Gohan said with a sneer.
"… That isn't the point! Now shut up!" Vegeta roared. "And what the hell are you doing here, anyway?"
"I'm your drummer."
"Oh no you're not!" Vegeta and Nappa yelled at once.
"Wanna bet?"
"You're on!" Vegeta said, smugly.
"Okay, fight me. Whoever wins, wins the bet." Vegeta's face dropped slightly, well aware what would happen if Gohan got really pissed off in the middle of the fight.
"Um… how's about we have a game of monopoly instead?" Goku suggested.
** * ** * **
"Hah! You pathetic weakling!" Vegeta shouted in triumph. Gohan groaned and thumped the floor is utter dismay. "You owe me fifteen hundred for landing on my little thing with a red thing on it!"
"That's Piccadilly, and that's a hotel, Vegeta," Nappa said, pointing.
"Shut up," Vegeta said and tossed his nose into the air haughtily. "Now, shut up and give me my spondoolah."
"Fine, fine…" Gohan said, and handing over the brightly-coloured fake paper money to the almost-giggling Vegeta.
"Yes, now I believe it's my turn. Hand me the two spotted white things…"
"Dice."
"Silence!" The prince threw the dice into the air, hearing them clatter off the ceiling, and then drop down onto the floor beside Goku, who looked down.
"One… two… three… four…"
"Kakkarot, what are you doing?" Vegeta asked, turning to see Goku pointing at a di.
"Nothing…" Goku said, hiding his finger.
"You were counting the spots, weren't you?"
"No."
"Weren't you?!"
"No…"
"Kakkarot, I know when you lie. The vein over your left eye twitches so hard that if you were human, you would have sprayed Nappa and the game board with your blood by now. You were counting the damn spots, weren't you?"
"Yes."
"Well, what's the number?"
"Hold on, you made me loose my place…" Goku slowly counted up the dice, then rechecked, just to piss off the impatient Prince.
"Six," he said, eventually.
"Six? You sure?" Vegeta asked, sceptically.
"Yeah, pretty much." Goku replied.
"Right… Nappa, move my little metal thing six squares along." Vegeta ordered.
"Why me?"
"It's on your side of the board, you overgrown pile of blubber," Vegeta snapped. "Now move the bloody thing!" Nappa sighed and picked up the dog, placing it down six squares along.
"Mayfair, and I own that!" Trunks said gleefully.
"Curses!"
"Right… with a hotel… that's four thousand, please!" Trunks said, grinning.
"Damn you brat… damn you…" Vegeta said, counting out the money and handing over a large wad.
"Vegeta, you're almost five hundred short."
"Well, what do you want me to do about it?"
"Sell something."
"No"
"Sell something, or forfeit," Trunks said, icily cold. Vegeta stirred.
"I am the Prince of All Saiyans… uh… you should be paying me for staying at your accursed hotel!" Vegeta snarled.
"Dad…" Trunks snarled in return.
Brolli and Tomatta exchanged glances, and at once they dived on Vegeta, wrestling him to the floor, the two large Saiyans pinning him down whilst Raditz quickly took the hotels from the yellow properties, placing them back in the tray and taking out twelve houses and a wad of money. He set the houses in place as Vegeta thrashed around like a man possessed, Brolli's large hand covering the Prince's mouth as he screamed insults at Kakkarot's technically older sibling.
Trunks took five hundred pound note from Raditz and tucked it into his steadily accumulating wad of cash.
Brolli and Tomatta gradually let go of Vegeta who sprang up and glared at the two, before 'hmmph!'ing and turning away, against tossing his nose into the air.
"Right, my turn!" Goku said, taking the dice and rolling them across the board.
The game progressed slowly, Goku being the first to be beaten, after he squandered all his money on whores and beer (a suggestion by Vegeta), leaving him bankrupt after a wild party in Mayfair (Trunks' idea). I seemed to Gohan that the others playing the game were making up new rules as they wet along – it was when Vegeta put a kai-blast through the board and then smugly said the power station blew up that Gohan had had enough. So after Brolli, Tomatta, Goku and a Trunks prized Gohan's glowing silver hands from Vegeta's throat, they all say down and decided to let Gohan stay in the band. It was either that or have the gravity room destroyed – and nobody Wanted that to happen, it wa sthe only protection they had from The Noise.
** * ** * **
"So let's recap," Brolli said, looking at the list Vegeta had made after the two of them had rounded up the Chibi's and interrogated them about bands. "We have the equipment, we have the band, now all we need is the technician…"
"Bulma!" Gohan, Trunks, Raditz, Nappa, Turlus, Tomatta, Vegeta and Goku all said in unison.
"A short order chef…"
"Chi-Chi!" cried out all, except Gohan who said "Mum!" and Vegeta who has said "Kakkarot's blasted mate."
"And roadies." Brolli finished, putting he slip of paper into a fold of the blood-red sash that wrapped around his waist.
"Well, Roadies are big, right?" Trunks said.
"Right." Said Gohan
"Well… who have we got who's bigger than Brolli, Tomatta and Nappa?" Trunks said, looking from one Saiyan giant to the other. Nappa and Brolli were roughly the same height, Brolli slightly shorter when un-powered, but growing much bigger when Super. Tomatta was almost over a head shorter than the other two, but made up for it with the large Raditz-like crest of his hair.
"Right, you three! You're hired!" Vegeta called.
"What about me?" Turlus asked.
"Uh… you can just hang around and help out back stage." Vegeta said, not wanting the Kakko-clone hanging around in front of the stage, drawing attention to the insane similarities between Turlus and Goku.
"Right," Turlus said, sounding bitter, his tail tightening around his waist.
"Turlus, buddy, once we find you something, we'll let you do it!" Raditz said, clapping the smaller Saiyan warrior on the shoulder.
"Right, now lets get some sleep. It's going to be a busy tomorrow," Vegeta said, glancing behind him where they had set up the equipment, ready to play.
"Yeah, tomorrow should be fun!" Goku said, a grin appearing over his face.
"Kakkarot, we are not doing this for fun," Vegeta scorned. "We are doing this to save the world from those flipped-out chibis!"
"Oh, yeah… but it's still going to be fun!" Goku said, holding the back of his head with both hands.
Vegeta pointed his finger to the chamber door. "Get out!"