Dragonball Z
Drifted
Away
Disclaimer: Dragon Ball Z does not by any means belong to me. It rightfully belongs to Akira Toriyama-sensei, TOEI Animation, Bird Studios, FUNimation, and other licensees.
Disclaimer 1: The new characters that make their debut in this fan fiction all belong to me. No stealing or there will be consequences!
Disclaimer 2: No profit is made in this venture. It's just a love of writing and a dose of boredom.
Chapter 1: Solitude, My Price
The inevitable caught her unawares as her body lay limply upon her tattered bed with her dishevelled hair atop a waste of cloth. Spattered drops of blood visible upon her bed; her legs, arms, and hands covered in its presence; she continues to lie, silently, within the dry shallowness of recycled air. Staring into the abyss she now sees, an empty void begins to tear within her, her heart breaking, her spirit wavering, and her faith shattering before her. The stars shine brightly outside, the small window giving but little view of the deep emptiness of the cosmos.
Lifting her tiresome head, she rises, her body swaying slightly due to the overwhelming shock that presently washes over her. Facing the window, she walks over to its shining glass, placing her tainted hands upon its pane, waiting, hoping to reach the stars afar. Staring, gazing, watching, a tear misguidedly trickled down her cheek, washing away the dry blood across her face. In that moment, her heart turns to stone, and her emotions begin to shroud within a fog of sadness and anger. For it is within that moment, she last sheds a tear.
As time rolled by, Gohan continued within his studies as the young scholar he was becoming. The countryside never looked as peaceful, the sun shining its bright rays of life among the treetops, whilst the animals thrived of the forest abundance. Bluebirds began to sing songs, perched within a tree not too far from Gohan's room. Their melody aided in his studies, relaxing him of the work he endured. Yet, looking up towards the never-ending blue sky, he still yearned for his father's return, out there in the unknown. He sighed in sadness, not knowing of what has become of his father, his eyes blankly staring upon the brown mahogany desk before him. Two years had passed since the tyranny of Frieza's reign, Gohan growing up with his mother in their spacious home. With very little contact from the loved ones afar, he brought his attention upon paper after paper, his energy constantly used for many a problem-solving and algebraic equations.
Taking a deep breath, Gohan placed his pencil upon his desk, and leaned back on his chair, swinging by its hind legs. He gazed into the distance, the sky looking very inviting to him, almost persuading, its clouds insisting the comfort of rest in his mind. Nonetheless, Gohan needed to continue on, he never really felt the need to leave, though cringed at the thought of his mother's thought of it. Seating himself properly, he picked his pencil once more, jotting down his answers to such questions, yet not knowing the answers he craved for.
"Otou-san," he whispered to himself, his eyes immediately torn away from his papers. If not by coincidence, or sheer luck, Icarus arrived, Gohan spotting him from above.
"Icarus!!" yelled Gohan as the young dragon landed by Gohan's bedroom window.
Icarus barked in a sense of urgency, his wings flapping rapidly.
"Icarus?" questioned Gohan. "What's the matter?"
Frightened, Icarus turned his back to Gohan, offering him a ride. Apparently, Gohan knew Icarus wanted to show him something, yet he turned towards the door worried of his mother's entrance to the scene. Icarus barked in anxiousness, Gohan's hastiness beginning to get the better of him. Without another thought, he jumped on, Icarus soaring towards the sky into the vastness of the woods. As the clouds rolled by, Gohan gazed upon the splendour of the Pauru Mountains, the luscious treetops, the sparkling rivers, and the great ravines and cliffs. It was not long until the giant crevasses of the empty plains began to appear and the giant monoliths peaked above the earth. Gohan scanned around the area, his eyes watching over from the skies above.
"Icarus? What's this all about?" he asked. "I don't see anything."
Icarus barked in reply, revealing Gohan a broken trail of shattered earth towards a ravine. Gohan, wanting a closer look, jumped off of Icarus and onto the dusty land, running towards the ravine. However, reaching towards the canyon, his head peeping over its periphery, Gohan found nothing in sight. Icarus landed beside Gohan, looking down the crevasse alongside him. His deep purrs and shallow barks began to coax Gohan forward, the sudden urge to investigate filling Gohan's curiosity. Without thinking, Gohan jumped into the large ravine, jumping from rock face to rock face until he finally reached the bottom. He looked around the poorly lit area, attempting to find anything suspicious, or the reason behind Icarus' concern.
"Hello?" he called, his voice echoing around him. He continued his search, finding the usual nooks and crannies everywhere, and finally falling upon something. His face turned a pale blue, the blood drained from his face discovering the last thing he would have wanted to find.
The circular object stood before him, the hatch open with a motionless figure inside. Gohan gulped, regained his composure and collective self, and walked towards the spacecraft. Creeping in front of it, the figure began to look clearer in Gohan's eyes despite the limited sunlight the ravine admitted. His eyes widened in surprise, his mouth ajar, staring upon the broken, bloodied figure within.
The figure's eyes cringed in pain, her mouth stifling the pain emitting from her weak body. Gohan walked closer towards her, his heightened senses wary for potential danger. Yet paradoxically, he did not feel precautious, but compassionate and pity towards her.
"Are you okay?" he asked, aware of his distance between himself and her.
The woman, realising the company holding in her presence, suddenly leaned forward from the pod, only to fall to her knees in exhaustion. Holding her left arm in pain, she looked up at Gohan with deep black eyes, her vision blurring in and out of focus. Her mouth quivered in weakness and her breathing turning shallow, nonetheless she took a deep breath, attempting to gain the last ounce of her strength from within her.
"Tou… -san?" she lightly spoke, fainting before Gohan's feet.
Gohan jumped back from the subtle outcome, his eyes peering over the motionless body.
"Tou-san?" he thought confusedly. Almost immediately, the thought escaped him, noticing a bushy length draped behind her.
"She's a Saiya-jin?!" questioned Gohan in panic. "But that's not possible."
Icarus' bark echoed through the canyon walls, snapping Gohan's attention towards the sky. Calm and demure, Gohan looked back towards the body. Slowly approaching her, he turned her over to her back, assessing the many injuries inflicted upon her body.
"She's badly wounded," he contemplated. "But what should I do? Leave her here for her just rewards? What would Otou-san do?"
A long silence ensued, almost as if time had stood still. Gohan thought long and hard, his mind set on his utmost final answer that seemed to click within his mind. It was the most obscure thing to do in this situation, yet Gohan couldn't care less and stood by his decision. Turning the woman over to her back, he laid her by her pod before flying up towards Icarus above.
"Icarus! Let's go!!" he yelled, waving at Icarus as he reached the top of the crevasse.
Icarus stood in confusion, purring and staring at his friend from below.
"Come on, I need your help," pleaded Gohan.
Soon enough, following Gohan's orders, Icarus began flying with him into the forests ahead.
It was almost nightfall, and a fire flickered before the broken body, its embers cracking above the flames. The woman's body laid upon a bushy mound, the smaller injuries of many half covered in medicine leaves. Her eyes cringed, slowly opening from her slumber and witnessing the little sunlight shining through the gorge. Fully awake, she rose slowly from the ground, rubbing her head in pain.
"What the…?" she yelled, looking about, finally noticing the stinging pain throughout her body. She caught glimpses of the mosaic of leaves placed across her arms and legs, gently touching one located across her right cheek. The rushing pain began to ensue, her left arm still immobile as well as the trauma she experienced returning to her. She fell back onto the ground, her breathing deepening from the agony she was undergoing. Curiosity took her as a small figure approached from above the chasm, growing larger as it drew closer. Still weak, she still laid upon the mound, but the figure became clearer, the appearances of limbs present on the being.
Gohan landed by her side with a small bowl of water in hand. Turning towards the now conscious woman, he placed the bowl near the small fire, walking towards her for any signs of recovery. In a jolt, the woman shot up from her position, her hands strained in claws as she took a defensive posture in front of him. Gohan, again, jumped aback from the woman, taking his defensive equal to hers.
"Who are you?" she yelled, her voice hinting onto anger despite the running pain through her body.
"I should ask you the same question," he replied. "Where did you come from?"
The woman began to tremble, her strength dwindling rapidly from her weakened state. Gohan lowered his guard slowly, realising the lack of threat she possessed. The woman's eyes continued to glare at him, her breathing turning irregular and shallow once again.
"Look, I'm not here to hurt you. I'm helping you," reassured Gohan. He walked slowly towards her, despite her attempted guard, and began tending to her wounds.
The woman pulled herself away from him, pushing him away with her only mobile arm. Cringing through the agonising torment her body gave her, she attempted to stand on her two feet and leaned against the rock face with all the strength she could muster.
"Where am I?" she continued asking through gritted teeth, having made evident of her ignorance to Gohan's question.
Gohan rose to his feet, looking up at her tired face, filled with pain and strength.
"Earth," he answered. "But what is your reason for being here? Why are you here?"
"How the hell should I know? And it's none of your damn business anyway." The woman continued to strain under the pressure of her wounds, falling towards the dusty floor slowly.
Assessing her wounds once more, Gohan noticed a pattern, her left leg mangled and broken, as well as her left ribs.
"She must've been hit hard" he thought. Although realising the risks of harbouring the extraterrestrial, let alone healing her, he reached out for the woman's hand in aid. "You're not well. It's best that you rest."
The woman's black eyes gazed upon him, her breath beginning to linger slowly through her stifled cringes. His hand felt like sanctuary, as stubborn as she was, she knew very well she could not survive with instincts alone. Her legs slowly gave way, and her ribs began to feel like daggers in her chest. As much as she hated to admit, without a thought, she grunted in reply and sat back down upon the floor.
"Here," Gohan coaxed, offering the woman a drink from the small bowl.
Slowly and cautiously, she grabbed the bowl, and drank slowly, savouring the cool liquid as it slid down her throat. Placing the bowl upon the dusty floor, Gohan took stride to tend once again, gaining at least some co-operation with the woman. She looked down at him, her cat-like eyes gazing upon the boy in curiosity. Her face etched no emotion. It placed an apathy filled with emptiness, to some extent, almost as if she was numb from feeling. Gohan felt this lingering around, both experiencing a silence through his attention of her wounds. After cleaning up, Gohan added a little more firewood to the fire, looking back at the woman, lying against the wall behind her.
"There, this'll last until morning," he calmly said, walking away to leave. "Just don't move too much until I can get more help."
She said nothing in return, but only looked away into the darkness in the ravine. Gohan sighed solemnly, flying towards the sky and leaving the Saiya-jin female to tend to her own well-being. She watched above, watching his figure disappear into the drifting sunlight. Her thoughts brought her back once more, back to her cold heart and her numb emotions. She closed her eyes, her body laid upon the canyon wall behind her. Slowly, she drifted, her wounds dulling away as her mind began to wander, dreaming.
"Where have you been?! Do you know how worried sick I was?!" yelled Chi Chi, Gohan's face sulking silently before her.
"Gomen," he apologised, rubbing his toe on the tile floor.
Chi Chi rubbed the bridge of her nose, her mind boiling in anger and rage.
"Gohan-chan, I don't want you gone again. Do you understand me?" she sulked, her eyes beginning to water.
Gohan gazed at his mother, his eyes filled with guilt and compassion.
"Hai," he monotonously replied.
"Besides young man, where were you anyway?"
Gohan's insides began to fiddle about, butterflies swarming through his stomach and his heartbeat racing in his throat.
"I... was... playing with Icarus," he slowly lied, watching for his mother's reactions closely.
She sighed angrily, her eyes burning as bright as the half-moon shining down from above.
"You snuck out to play with him, ne?" she asked sternly, Gohan nodding in reply. Chi Chi shrugged in disbelief, her shoulders slumping over in exhaustion.
"Your studies are more important than playing around young man," she lectured, swinging a wooden mixing spoon as she did. "Do I make myself clear?"
Again, Gohan nodded, understanding his mother's intentions as clear as glass.
"Now you better clean up before dinner," she stated before returning to her cooking.
Gohan walked away towards his room, readying for a small bath, whilst Chi Chi returned to the cooking in progress.
"Oh, and Gohan-chan," began Chichi once more, grabbing Gohan's attention from the kitchen door. "I want that potting mix bowl of mine back soon. I know you took it Gohan, and I hope Icarus doesn't make a mess of it."
Gohan laughed nervously under his breath, beginning to sweat under the tension lingering above his head.
"H- Hai, Okaa-san," he slowly answered, creeping out of the kitchen as fast as his legs could take him.
The morning rays brightly shone through the crevice above the chasm floor. Yet, they could not reach the darkness that engulfed the bottom of the canyon. Last night's fire died out with a trail of smoke whimsically floating above the cold fireplace. Her body lay solemnly with her head lying against the rocky surface of the chasm wall behind her.
Slowly her thoughts reverted to yesterday's encounter of the young boy who nurtured her in her sleep. His smile, his hand, was both comforting and warm. She could not describe the emotion she was given despite her precarious presence in this land. A tender feeling welled up inside of her body, a feeling long forgotten. Figures appeared before her eyes long disappeared from this world. With sad eyes, the presence of tears brimmed in her eyes, but she held them away as she shook her head in aggravation. She clenched her fists and stared above at the small crack of the sky.
"Vengeance," she thought."Blood must be paid."