Okay it's chapter 8 folks and the story is approaching its (reasonably) exciting conclusion…

The Power of a String Telephone

Fighting is a bit like a game of cards. Okay bear with me a try to stretch you're imagination a bit. Nine times out of ten the person who is dealt the better cards will win. And the one other time will only happen if his/her opponent is smarter or more skilled then they are. It's pretty much the same in a fight. The bigger person will always win unless there opponent is a lot smarter or more skilled then they are.

As Goten is currently a lot weaker then Thermos he needs to be smarter or more skilled to win, unlikely since, while Thermos is no genius, Goten had never been in a real fight before. No one had taught him how to fire ki blasts or even how to fly. All in all there is almost no way Goten could win the fight he was about to start. Even worse there was no way he could escape it either. No wonder Goku was shaking as he watched, though that might have been due to the snake bite!

"Hold still a second Monkey!" snapped Freeza as he tried to put a plaster on Goku bite.

"Oh no!" said Goku determinedly, "if that's going to sting as much as that antidote you put on it I'll do with out."

"Stop being such a baby!" said Freeza, "if you don't put this on the wound could become infected and then you might die. Hang on a second why do I want stop him from dying?"

"Maybe your like being a good host," suggested Cell.

"Good host!" snapped Goku, "a good host would have mentioned that there was a cobra in the toilet as well as a python!"

"Sorry about that," said Freeza "we've been meaning to get a Mongoose."

"Anyway," said Goku sitting down carefully, "how is the fight going?"

"And now we return you to our live fight," Declared the TV right on cue.

"That's convenient," muttered Cell but no one heard him as their concentration was now firmly back on the fight.

Goten had manage to doge Thermos's first attack and was now proceeding to hit the Icea as hard as he could. Thermos didn't even bother to block it. Goten's strike landed on Thermos's chin but did nothing more than move the Icea's head a little.

"Is that all you've got?" Thermos asked in a mocking tone.

"Err… pretty much," replied Goten, "is that going to be a problem?"

"Not for me!" declared Thermos who suddenly hit Goten with his tail sending the young Saiyan straight though the Coliseum wall. Goku gritted his teeth.

"Come on Goten," he bellowed at the TV, "you can do better than that."

"Personally I would blame Gohan for not teaching him anything," said Cell trying to sound objective.

"Oh you blame Gohan for everything," snapped Freeza. "You even blamed him for that leak we had in the radiator last week."

"No," said Goku sadly, "It's my fault, I should have been there to tech him; I am his farther after all. But because I'm dead he's going to die and there's nothing I can do about it."

"Yeah your right Goku," declared Cell smugly, "it is all your fault."

"Wait a second Cell," said Freeza thoughtfully, "Isn't it technically all your fault for killing Goku in the first place."

"Oh yeah!" said Goku angrily. Cell had just enough time to glare at Freeza before the Saiyan grabbed him and threw him to the ground.

"YOU KILLED MY SON! YOU JERK! I WOULD KILL YOU IF YOU WEREN'T ALREADY DEAD!" he screamed repeatedly smashing Cell's head against the floor.

"Wait Goku something has changed in the fight!" said Cell desperately. Goku stopped to look at the TV.

"Not for the better, he's just being thumped in the street now!" he snapped.

"So he is," agreed Cell, "but it's kind of hard to tell what's going when someone is smashing your head against the floor."

"Well you better be videoing this then!" replied Goku before renewing his efforts.

"Hit him with this," said a beaming Freeza handing Goku a fire stoker. The Saiyan accepted the gift before carrying on, much to Freeza's amusement. Just then the Icea's attention was drawn back to the TV.

Thermos was now really letting the young Saiyan have it. He was punching him almost constantly. More and more bruises appeared on the kids face. The only part of him that wasn't damaged was the scouter, and Freeza was sure that that was only because Thermos was showing off.

"Darn it!" snapped Freeza, "How come he gets to beat two Super Monkeys and I couldn't even beat one! It's not fair, if only I had a magic gem, wait a second! That's it!"

He turned to the others.

"Please stop Goku," begged Cell, "the people living below get very irritated by banging from the floor above!"

"That's not my problem because I don't live hear!" snapped the still outraged Saiyan.

"Hey guys, guys," said Freeza, "I think I know how we can beat Thermos, I mean save Goten." Goku swung round.

"Really! How?" he asked eagerly.

"We just need to get Goten to destroy the gem," explain Freeza proudly, "then he would be stronger then Thermos.

"Oh very clever!" said Cell sarcastically, "and how are we going to tell the kid that, send him a postcard?"

"No it's brilliant!" said Goku delightedly, "I'll just go tell him though King Kia."

Just then there was a crash form the TV as Goten was smashed into another wall!

"You better hurry then!" said Cell, "You can't teleport in hell, you'll have to run."

"Darn it!" growled Goku, "that means I'll never get there in time! There has to be another way to talk to him!"

Suddenly there was a rustling sound from the corner of the room. The three creatures looked round to see Cooler pulling his head out of the waste paper basket!

"May I be of assistance?" The cross-eyed Icea asked…

Kori looked out of her bed room window. There where a lot of guards on the palace walls. There were also a lot of explosions just outside those walls. Kori wasn't the brightest Girl in the universe, but it didn't take a genius to put the two and two together. With a nervous sigh see wondered what was causing the explosions. She also wondered what had happened to Goten and Vegeta. Galfore hadn't told her but she feared the worst. Suddenly voices entered the room.

"This is ridicules!" declared a rather well educated voice, "we can't speak to living people though this!"

"Don't criticise my inventions!" a slightly deranged voice snapped, "They all work and there all flawless!"

"Except possibly the bread maker that actually made Uranium!" said a rather smarmy sounding voice.

"I thought we agreed never to talk about that again!" said the deranged one.

"Shut up guys." Said a fourth, more normal sounding voice. "Right Cooler how do we use this?"

"Well," said Cooler, "you keep the string taught and speak into it hopefully someone in the living world will answer."

"Hello!" exclaimed a frustrate sounding first voice, "It's a string telephone! It can't possibly communicate with the living world; it probably can't communicate with the next room! We'd be better off waiting till Goten's dead and telling him then!"

Kori sat up! These voices new Goten. She desperately looked around for the source of the noise.

"Can it Cell!" said the fourth voice, "I have to try!" he cleared his throat. "Umm… Bring bring!" he began. Kori finally tracked down the source of the voices; they were coming from a mug on her dressing table! Nervously she picked it up.

"Hello?" she said.

"I don't believe it!" said Cell sounding more disgusted then amazed.

"Alright it works! That's amazing!" declared the fourth voice. "Right, okay…err how should I put this. Hi I'm Goku who are you?"

"Hi Goku," said Kori, "I'm Kori; I'm a friend of Goten's!"

"Alright, are you on Tamaran?" asked Goku.

"Err… yes I am." Kori replied "how can I help you?"

"Yeah you can, I'm Goten's farther…" Goku began.

"And he brings you a message from beyond the grave, whooooo!" butted in a mock scary voice.

"Freeza!"

"Sorry I couldn't resist it!"

"Anyway Kori, listen very carefully…."

If Goten thought the landing on Tamaran had been painful, this feeling required an entirely new word! He was in agony; yes that word would do nicely. He desperately staggered from foot to foot trying to stand against Thermos. He had seen on TV that boxers didn't lose a fight until they fell down and couldn't get up. Therefore Goten reasoned that if he was still standing up Thermos hadn't won and couldn't take over the planet. It was a great plan, with only one tiny flaw, which was that all Goten wanted to do, was lie down.

The scouter's bleeping warned him of the up coming attack before his own battered senses could. Thermos landed right in front of Goten, smacking him with his tail before the young Saiyan could react. Goten was thrown in to the air, over the place walls and through a window. He landed with a crash.

Now that he was on his back Goten really didn't want to get up. He lay there for what seemed like hours. Presently a voice seemed to call to him from far away.

"Goten, are you alright?" it asked nervously. Goten opened his eyes to see a girl hovering over him. Goten, pretty sure that he must be dead and drawing on his slim knowledge of death made a guess as to her identity.

"Are you an angle?" he asked.

"No it's me, Kori!" she said. Goten sat up.

"Are you dead too?" he asked nervously.

"No," said Kori happily, "but I have just been talking to them, there was you're farther, and a guy named Cell, and another called Freeza and Cooler too. They told me how you could beat Thermos!"

"Really," said Goten who saw no problem in her story, "how?"

Before Kori could answer there was a noise at the window.

"Where are you Kid!" demanded Thermos, "Are you dead yet, or just playing hide and seek?"

Goten promised to himself that he would never play that game again, but Kori had other ideas. She grabbed Goten's hand and flew up wards hiding them amongst the rafters just as Thermos entered the room.

"Here Kiddy Kiddy Kiddy," he said confidently, "Come out come out where ever you are."

"See that gem he has." Whispered Kori, pointing at Thermos's left hand.

"You mean the red Shiny thing!" said Goten hopefully.

"Yeah, Goku said that we must take off him and destroy it!" she explained.

Goten looked at the Icea below him, the gem kind of reminded him of a cookie. This reminded him of the fights he and Gohan always used to have over the last cookie. Gohan always used to grab it first, but Goten had some tricks up his sleeve.

"Drop me on his arm!" said Goten trying to sound tough like Vegeta had before his fight.

"Are you sure?" asked Kori nervously.

"Of course I am," said Goten, "I have a fool proof plan!"

Kori reluctantly followed Goten's order and moments later the young Saiyan grabbed hold of Thremos' arm.

"What the?" exclaimed Thermos as Goten crushed his arm.

"Drop the Gem!" the kid demanded.

"No chance!" snapped Thermos.

"Please I'm asking nicely!" said Goten.

"Like that's going to make a difference!" snapped Thermos shaking his arm violently. "Get off you runt!"

"Okay then," said Goten, "I gave you a fair chance." Then with out any further warning, Goten bit him!

"AAAAGGHHH" Thermos screamed letting go of the gem. Goten fell off his arm landing awkwardly on the floor. After a moments pause they both clumsily scrabbled across the floor for the gem. Kori beat them to it.

"Take this." She shouted grabbing the gem and hurling it into the far wall. It exploded on contact.

Goten sat up a few seconds later. The palace was wreaked, well this particular wing of it was. Goten looked round and saw Kori lying a few metres away.

"Kori, are you all right?" he asked. Kori sat up.

"Thankfully I appear to be unharmed." She said, just then the two of them heard sobbing. They looked round to see Thremos knelt in the corner.

"This can't be happening," he moaned, "I was going to be king, I was going to rule the universe. I would have got away with it too if it wasn't for those pesky kids!"

"Isn't that phrase copy write of Scooby Doo?" said Goten.

"It's a Fan-fiction story!" snapped Thermos, "As long as the author doesn't claim credit for inventing it I can say what ever I want!"

"Well it doesn't really matter now," said Kori happily, "because we won and you lost, we won and you lost…"

Goten gleefully joined in the chanting as Thermos' blood boiled.

"Stop it!" he bellowed at last. Flying into the air above the palace. "You may have foiled my plans for universal domination, but you won't be able to stop me from destroying your planet!" he declared raising his hand above his head to form the Iceas patented Death Ball. "Say god bye kids!" he shouted throwing the ball at the planet.

"Oh no!" screamed Kori grabbing Goten, "What do we do now."

"I don't know!" said Goten desperately.

"I don't get it," cried Kori, "I thought the good guys always won."

"So did I," said Goten wishing he was back home with his mum, Gohan and Trunks, "So did I." he repeat sadly.

"Sure they do kids!" said a familiar voice, "why do you think I stopped being evil!"

They swung round to see Super Saiyan Vegeta standing behind them.

"Now," said Vegeta calmly, "Do as the Icea says and wave good bye!"

"Good bye Thermos!" both kids chanted as Vegeta brought his hands to his side.

"Very good Kids," he said before declaring, "Galic Gun!"

Vegeta's shot raced towards the Death Ball countering it perfectly, so well in fact that in blasted the Death Ball straight back in to Thermos. He had no hope of avoiding it, still over the noise of all the explosions you could, if you listened very carefully, hear Thermos' last, and surprisingly calm words. They were; "Oh bugg-"

Goku, Freeza, Cooler and Cell jumped joyfully around the room in front of the television.

"We did it!" exclaimed Goku, "my son is still alive!"

"I'm still the greatest Icea in history!" declared a delighted Freeza.

"My inter-dimensional String Telephone works!" said Cooler equal pleased.

"I have nothing to celebrate," said Cell, "why am I jumping up and down like a lunatic?"

They all paused.

"You can celebrate the fact that Goku's no longer hitting you," suggested Freeza.

"Good enough for me," said Cell joining in the celebration once more. Suddenly some irritated bangs came from below.

"Be quite up there," someone from the floor below bellowed.

"Oh go to hell!" snapped Freeza.

"It's a little later for that" pointed out Cell…

"Vegeta!" cried Goten happily, "I thought you where dead! How did you survive that attack?"

"Well it's along and rather boring plot hole, like how come where the only two characters in the story who need scouters to translate what the Tamareans are saying," said Vegeta dismissively, "it 's not important anyway the important thing is that I did."

"Wow Vegeta," said Kori in awe struck voice, "you saved our planet. Thank you so much! "

"Well actually I was killing Thermos," corrected Vegeta, "Saving you and your planet was just a…. side effect." The Girl glared at him.

"Fine then," conceded Vegeta, "It was a bonus…"

I hope that chapter was up to standard. I'm sure you'll all be pleased to know that's there's only one chapter left, I've got to tie up all the lose ends. Anyway if you would like to purchase an Inter-dimensional String Telephone or any other of Cooler's inventions just wait for a mug to start shouting at you.