Author's note: My apologies for the delay. Both Steven and I have had some very busy weeks. The good news is, CH56 is well under way, and should be out the Saturday after this upcoming weekend. CH57 is also already being worked on.
Written by: SparkerLightning.
Edited by: StevenBodner
Chapter 55
Atop Kami's lookout
Mr. Popo was watering his plants in his heavenly garden. The floors were swept, the stone was polished, and the animals were fed. Once watering was done, he'd sweep the floors again, polish the stone again, and then it would be time to feed the animals again. After that, he'd water.
Kami popped into reality in front of Mr. Popo "Hello, old friend."
"Kami, you're back." Mr. Popo said, slowly moving from one plant to the next. "How was your outing?"
"I am." Kami reached his hand out and his staff formed in it. "It was good. Turns out we're not the only one surprised by recent events."
"That's disappointing. Perhaps Shenron could help us?" Mr. Popo asked, standing upright.
Across the platform motion caught his eye.
"Hey, what's that?" Mr. Popo pointed at another staff, moving behind a row of hedges.
"I, I don't know."
Kami and Mr. Popo looked at the piece of wood for a moment, not recognizing its appearance. A red ball rapidly formed on its head, and once it was formed it flew between the Guardian and the spirit. Instead of exploding though, it began to suck. Three loud pops rang out, and Kami and Mr. Popo were gone.
A short, bluish green, imp like creature jumped atop the hedge row. As the portal he summoned vanished, he began to laugh.
"Now nothing will stand in my way!" He shouted to the sky.
"Wrong." A voice called from behind him.
Garlic Junior leaped out of his skin, quickly turning to face the newcomer. Gohan stood on the opposite hedgerow, clearly exhausted, and both Kami and Mr. Popo standing behind him.
"WHAT?" The imp shouted.
"You've done enough harm here." Gohan flared his aura, summoning his Super Saiyan energy. It was low, he didn't need to shatter the lookout, but he did need to intimidate Garlic Junior. "You're going to leave Earth, and never return. I don't care about the Makyo Star, I don't care about your friends, I don't care about you."
"NO! GO AWAY!" He shouted, as he summoned another ball and threw it forward. "DEAD ZONE!"
Gohan touched two fingers to his forehead, and pops rang out in rapid succession. Kami and Mr. Popo were dropped in front of the palace. Garlic Junior was brought to where they had been standing, as well as the other, still hidden, Spice Boys.
As they fought the force of the Dead Zone, screaming, cursing, and pushing each other back to push themselves forward, Gohan appeared atop the dome of the palace. Taking a moment to site his target, he prepared and fired a single, massive, ki blast. A moment later, the Makyo Star was destroyed, and the Dead Zone closed. Another final pop, and Gohan was gone as well.
Mr. Popo and Kami stood on the lookout, once again alone.
"What, was that?" Kami asked.
"I don't know, Kami." Mr. Popo returned to where he had been watering, and summoned the can once more. "Perhaps King Kai could explain?"
"I think that was the boy, Gohan." Kami said. "So, I'll assume he couldn't explain this any more than he could explain anything else about him..."
"Likely correct." Mr. Popo said, continuing his watering. "And was that Garlic Junior?"
Later, Outside Orange Star Middle School
Gohan tried to twitch his tail, but it was too constrained. He wrapped it around his waist, and wore a wide cloth belt over it. Over that was draped the hem of his tunic. It was well hidden. His power was well-hidden. His identity was well hidden. He knew to be himself, but he couldn't be, not here.
As he looked up at the large clock over the entrance, its hands ticking closer and closer to 8:00. Eighteen minutes to go, and he was still alone. He stood off to the side, constantly glancing between the clock and the gate a short way down the pathway. Students were constantly flowing in, but none were familiar.
As the first bell rang, the ten-minute warning, Gohan jumped to his feet. She wasn't on time, but she was here. With a wide smile on his face he nimbly swam up the river of students. They opened their arms to hug each other, but quickly realized there wasn't room. Now going with the flow they veered off to the side, and back to where Gohan was waiting, with nine minutes to spare.
"You made it." He beamed. It would have been so easy just to fly away and not come back. But now, with her here, he was stuck. She was his anchor, holding him accountable. He was nervous, but he loved it. She kept him here, but she kept him safe as well.
"Of course I did." She wrapped her arms around him. "It's so good to see you."
A nearby teacher cleared his throat, and she released him, against her will.
"You too, Videl." He held out his hand, and she took it. "It's only been a week, but it feels a lot longer to me."
"Same." Videl's eyes were glowing. "We got a new place though. Sissy and I are sharing a room, but it's safe, it's clean, and, and Dad got a new job."
"Oh yeah?" Gohan hadn't even began to forget what Videl smelled like. But having her here, in person, was… it was simply intoxicating, he still had all his faculties, and was still very aware of his surroundings, but he was more relaxed. A comfortable ease washed over him when she was near, and having gone days without it, he almost forgot how delightful her presence was.
"What's he doing?"
"He's a bodyguard for some rich guy." She said dismissively. "He says that after a year of working for him, he'll be able to quit and get back to training. He's hoping to train under Master Roshi. Do, do you think we could set that up?"
Gohan stroked his chin. "We, we can try? I haven't had a chance to really talk to him, but we can talk to him together?"
Videl nodded. As a light bulb lit up over her head she dug into her pocket. Pulling out a sheet of paper, she unfolded it. "What's your schedule like?"
Eight minutes.
Gohan swung his backpack onto the ground in front of him, and quickly retrieved his schedule.
"Uh..." He stalled as he opened it up. "Algebra 1, language arts, Earth science, lunch, gym, biology, chemistry, and, and that's it. How about you?"
"Algebra 1." Videl took a deep breath. "biology, gym, lunch, Earth Science, language arts, and choir. There's also math with Mr. Reubens. How about you?"
"Same!" Gohan and Videl squeezed their hands together.
"So, math and lunch together?" He couldn't help but feel his back straighten slightly as he stood a little taller. "That is perfect."
Seven minutes.
"Hallway six, room nine." Videl said. "Should we get walking?"
Gohan nodded, and the pair entered the building together, hand in hand. Slowly they worked their way down the corridors, keeping their eyes peeled.
"Are you excited?" Videl asked as they went down hallway three.
"Kind of." Gohan admitted. "How about you?"
Videl gulped as she looked down at her feet, then at her and Gohan's hands. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous about algebra. I probably should have prepared more than I did. How about you? How are you with math?"
Gohan scratched the back of his head. "Well... my mom has always been, uh, encouraging of my education… so, I'm not worried about math, or, well, class. "I'm more so nervous about the other side of school, the students."
Videl rubbed her thumb on the back of Gohan's hand as they finally found hallway six and the five-minute bell rang. "Well, that's what I'm here for. I'll help you with the students, well, as much as I can… you may need to help me too... And you can help me with the actual studying?"
Gohan smiled. "Videl, I'm here to help you, just as much as you're here to help me."
They noted the signs as they walked down the crowded hall. One, three, five.
"We'll take it on as a team, and we'll succeed as a team. No need to assign roles." He pulled his shoulders back slightly, walking with confidence. Seven, nine.
The door was open and half of the desks were already occupied. They both took a deep breath and entered the room.
Mr. Reubens, an older, warm, man sat behind his desk. He wore a light gray suit with a plain white shirt and a red bow tie. Out of the corner of his eye he saw two unfamiliar faces looking into his door. Smiling at them he stood.
"Son Gohan? Videl Hercule?" He walked to the door, putting a hand on it, holding it open. As he approached, the classroom quieted, and all eyes fell onto Videl and Gohan.
"Yes, sir." They said in unison, both bowing slightly.
"Welcome to algebra." He gestured for them to enter. "I see you two already know each other? Wonderful."
The pair subtly untangled their hands. They didn't need to draw too much attention, not yet.
"Yeah." Gohan said. "We've known each other for years."
"Perfect." Mr. Reubens said, guiding them to his desk. Flipping his notebook open he found his seating chart. "I'm thinking front and center for you two? Maybe one row back? If you don't mind being seated together?"
"That's perfect." Videl said and Gohan was quick to agree.
"And what level of experience do you two have with algebra?" He grabbed two textbooks off a long shelf and sat one on each of their desks.
"I've studied it before." Gohan said, scratching the back of his head.
"I, uh, I haven't." Videl sagged slightly, but perked back up at their teacher's smile.
"Well, Gohan, you and I should schedule a time to test you then. If this class is too simple, we'll need to bump you to something more your level. And, Ms. Videl, if you need any help, at any point, with anything, feel free to raise your hand. You are here to learn. I am here to teach."
He pulled their seats out and invited them to sit.
"I'll help you with your jobs, both of you, all of you." He addressed the rest of the room. "As long as you help me with mine… and, honestly, even if you don't..."
Gohan's smile vanished.
"Uh, it's, it's been a while though..." He took his seat, and Videl sat beside him. "I, I think I need the refresher..."
Later, in the Diablo Desert
Deep into the sands of the massive desert one lone capsule structure stood. The capsule structure was a home, or at least the shell of one. Complete only with air conditioning, and no internal walls, it was filled with the friends and loved ones of the soon to be returning Namek crew.
Dr. Brief was the only one not looking through the windows, into the sky. In the center of the room was a large round computer, taller than the scientist, and wider than him as well. A trio of monitors were attached to it, an arch against a circle. Reaching from the computer, and through the ceiling, was a thick wire. Atop the domed roof was an array of antennas.
As the home received signals from Cami, it returned them as well.
"Target here. Land within one hundred meters." It told the ship. "Do not land within fifty meters." It also told the ship. As such, a ring was created around the structure. The landing gear had worked fine on Namek, but they weren't willing to risk an incident in a populated area.
Minutes later, a point of light appeared high in the sky. Slowly it fell towards them, dimming as it decelerated in the atmosphere. As it fell in front of the sun, it vanished from view altogether, only to reappear under it, clearly identifiable as the ship.
Another minute passed as the ship continued to slow, continued to fall. Eventually, gently, it touched down a short way behind the capsule structure. As the entry ramp was lowered to the ground, the door to the structure swung open. As Bulma lead her crew, Krillin, Tien, and Turles, down to the sand, the others rushed to meet them.
Yamcha, Puar, Dr. Brief, and Panchy ran towards Bulma. Her eyes brightened and her arms opened.
Master Roshi, Oolong, and Launch ran towards Krillin. They were excited to see Goku as well, but Goku was not excited to see them. His hardened gaze detoured them from rushing him.
Chi-Chi and Ox-King rushed towards Turles. Making the same mistake that Master Roshi had, only Gohan could easily tell the difference, at least while they weren't together. Gohan told his family about Turles, told them how similar they appeared, but in the moment, they forgot all about that.
Piccolo, Yajirobe, and the others, stayed back, watching from a distance.
Chiaotzu flew through the air towards Tien, arms outstretched.
"WAIT!" Gohan hollered, appearing in the middle of the two groups, an open palm outstretched to both sides. Slowly he looked over the new arrivals. One, two, three, four… he expected himself and his father to not be there, but Loa was missing as well… That wasn't important though, she wasn't important, not at the moment.
Both groups of people stopped immediately. While the earthbound group had grown to know Gohan as Chi-Chi's slightly older son, they also knew he came from the future, they knew his strength, and they instinctively listened to him. Bulma stopped as well, leading the others to slow, and stop, only a few paces ahead of her.
Lowering his hands, Gohan turned his back on his family.
"Tien?" He tilted his head at the large fighter.
Tien copied the gesture.
"Yeah?" He narrowed his eyes at the boy. The woman said he claimed to be a time traveler, and, and that did not bode well for him…
Gohan narrowed his eyes in return. "Come here, Tien."
He gripped his energy, but kept it low for now. At a moment's notice he could transform, at a moment's notice he could obliterate anyone on the planet, but for now, he didn't need that energy.
Nervously, Tien stepped forward. One foot in front of the other, and swap. He swung his arms, consciously considering if it was too much movement. Was he too animated? In the ship, the others, they, they didn't swing their arms much while walking… but was that because of the tight quarters? Or part of their species? He stopped swinging his arms, choosing instead to cross them over his chest. The sensation was odd, feeling both against his skin, but only one receiving feedback. He still wasn't used to it.
"Yes?" He asked again, stopping in front of the boy.
All eyes were on the duo. The young teen half Saiyan, and the three-eyed assassin.
Gohan extended a hand to Tien, coldly smiling.
Tien mirrored the gesture once again.
Their hands clasped, and shook up, down, repeat, and a third time. Tien loosened his grip, Gohan did not. Tien pulled his hand gently, no result. He tugged it, and it was like his hand was encased in steel.
Gohan's expression grew grim. "It's nice to meet you, Captain Ginyu."
Tien's eyes widened in surprise. "I, I don't know what you're talking about." He pulled his hand again, still no result.
"Captain Ginyu?" Krillin asked, walking up to them, clapping the larger fighter on the back. "No, this, this is Tien. He may be a little off, he caught some nasty blows to the head, but I assure you, this is Tien."
Gohan broke eye contact with Tien to look at Krillin.
"No, he's not." He said, tightening his grip slightly. Tien winced in pain as he fell to his knees. "This is Captain Ginyu, of the Ginyu Force."
"Gohan!" Chi-Chi ran up behind him. "Let him go. You're hurting him."
Standing closer she took the opportunity to inspect him herself. Every basic detail was as she remembered it. Maybe some extra scars… absolutely some extra scars, but it was Tien.
Turles' eyebrow raised. This was him, huh? The boy from the future.
Gohan looked up at his mother, and tightened his grip again. "Mom. Captain Ginyu has the ability to swap bodies with other people. On Namek he knew he couldn't win against Tien, so they swapped bodies."
"LIES!" Tien shouted, striking out at the boy. Gohan effortlessly caught the attack.
Turles took a step backwards. If this was Captain Ginyu, he didn't want to get caught up in the impending battle. Krillin followed his lead.
"He left Tien to die on Namek." Gohan snapped his right fist shut, crushing the robotic hand in an instant. "He came here to steal our technology for the Frieza Force, for Cooler, and for Cold."
He stepped forward, knocking Tien over. As Tien fell onto his back, Gohan took another step. Somewhat squatting over the man's chest, Gohan pinned him to the ground. "But what he doesn't know is that not only is Frieza dead… but Cooler as well… and King Cold are as well."
He leaned forward, staring into Tien's eyes. Anger flashed, then fear. It couldn't be. It was literally impossible. King Cold as magnitudes more powerful than Frieza, who was magnitudes stronger than himself.
"You, are, wrong." Tien struggled to get free. Why was nobody helping him?
"When I came back from the future, one of the first things I did was seek out Cooler. I killed him to stop him from coming to Earth." Gohan pushed his right hand further, crushing more of Tien's robotic arm. "Because, in my timeline, he came back to Earth. You kidnapped Dr. Brief and traded him, his knowledge, for reentry into the empire."
He squeezed Tien's fist tighter. Bones weren't snapping yet, but it would be so easy…
"Unfortunately I wasn't in time to stop you on Namek, but I'm stopping you here, now." He released Tien's hand and stood. "We are going to use the Dragon Balls to wish Tien, the real Tien, back to life. He will be in your original body. You will swap with him. Until then … you're not getting anywhere near civilization."
Tien scurried away from Gohan, towards Bulma. She stepped away, getting between Turles and Krillin.
"You're wrong, kid." Tien said. Creating a hostage situation wouldn't work for him… "I'm not Captain Ginyu."
"Question." Bulma interjected. "Couldn't we ask Shenron to return Tien's consciousness to his body? That way, if, if Gohan is wrong, and this is Tien, then, nothing will happen… and if he's right, we don't have to revive an enemy?"
Gohan hesitated for a moment, before slowly nodding. "I'm not wrong, but that should work as well."
Tien's, or rather Ginyu's, mind was racing. He'd only have a limited amount of time. They knew. They were going to exorcise him… He'd, he'd need to think of something. Keeping his eyes low he shook his head and turned his back on the group.
Chiaotzu shot to Gohan's side. "Are, are you certain? That, that's not Tien?"
Gohan's face softened as he turned to the psychic. Slowly he shook his head. "I'm sorry, Chiaotzu. Tien died on Namek. BUT… we're going to bring him back. He's not here now, but he's coming home."
Chiaotzu balled his hands into fists. His eyes bored through the back of Ginyu's head. It, it wasn't Tien, but it was Tien's body. His pointer finger twitched. This, this alien stole his friend's body. This alien tried to impersonate Tien. This monster tried to replace Tien… A spark of energy formed on his finger, the beginnings of a Dodon Ray, but while his blood heated and his heartbeat pounded in his ears, he closed his fist once more. He couldn't lash out, not against Tien, not against his body. No.
As Chiaotzu and Gohan kept their eyes on Ginyu, the rest of the groups slowly merged. Bulma was overtaken by a small group, as were Krillin and Turles.
"Welcome home!" Yamcha declared, wrapping his arms around his girlfriend. Bulma stiffened for a moment before returning the hug. He was soft yet firm. She was buried in his grasp, but it was warm, comforting, relaxing. She felt as if she was laying in the sand, under the sand, every nerve being stimulated in the most peaceful of ways.
"Thank you!" She reached up, planting a kiss on his cheek. "It, it's so good to be home."
She released one arm from her boyfriend, opening herself to her parents. They came in, hugged her as well, and she was happy, she was at home.
"What was it like?" Her father asked. "In space?"
"Aliens." Bulma said with a deep sigh. "So, so many aliens. So much life… we're not alone, Dad, we're not even close. In some ways, a lot of ways, we are so far behind the galaxy. But, but we can talk about that later."
While Bulma caught up with her family, Krillin was exaggeratedly sharing their adventures with the Turtle Hermit. From Bothawui to Namek. From robots to Arcosians. From orange fruit to blue lightning.
Chi-Chi slowed first, Ox-King stopping just behind her. This man, this Saiyan, was tan. Goku wasn't tan. This man was not in an orange gi. Goku could wear other clothes, he had worn other clothes, but if given the choice, he wouldn't wear armor, not like this. But most importantly, this man was alone. Gohan wasn't here. Gohan was in space, training, with Goku. This wasn't Goku, this was Turles.
"Hi." She squeaked, not sure what else to say.
"Hello." Turles smiled. He didn't know what he did to throw this woman off balance, but he had a solid guess.
"You're Turles." She didn't ask.
Yup, that was it. He knew how similar he looked to his nephew, and for a moment he really enjoyed that fact.
"You're, Chi-Chi?" He asked. Looking up at the massive man behind her, he smiled wider. "And you're Ox-King."
"I am." Chi-Chi nodded her head in a slight bow. "It's, nice to meet you."
She forced a smile. It wasn't his fault he looked so much like Goku. It wasn't his fault she thought he was Goku.
Turles returned the gesture.
"It's nice to meet you as well." He took a deep breath. "Now what?"
"I, I don't know." Chi-Chi admitted. "If you don't have somewhere to stay, you're more than welcome to stay with Gohan and I."
"Your place, huh?" Turles threw his arms behind his head, gently stretching. "Yeah, that'd be nice."
Later, atop Mount Paozu.
The moon was nearly full. Another two days, and they couldn't have this conversation, not here, not at night. Gohan hovered over the top of the mountain, looking over his home, his world. Turles stood beside him, he was proud of the boy, proud of Bardock's grandson, proud of his father's great grandchild, but he hadn't had a chance to talk to him yet, hadn't had a chance to really get to know him, not this Gohan.
"Turles." Gohan started, not looking at his great uncle. "Where I come from, when I come from, you were part of the team. You went with my father to face King Cold. You defended the Earth against Cooler. You were a hero, a part of the family, a friend to humanity."
Turles' jaw fell open. "I, fought King Cold?"
Gohan nodded. "You died, you all died, but you were there. You, Nappa, Krillin, Chiaotzu, and my father."
Turles' jaw fell open again. "Nappa? The elite Saiyan? Prince Vegeta's bodyguard?"
Gohan nodded again. "I'd like to discuss him with you. Him, and Raditz. I'd say Vegeta as well, but my mind is made up about him already."
"Oookaaay..." Turles rose to be level with Gohan, hovering shoulder to shoulder. The moon was behind them, illuminating their view, and framing them in a pale aura. "What about them? They're dead."
"In my timeline." Gohan began, taking a deep breath. "Things went a little differently. A mistake was made, and they were brought back, all three of them, and Frieza, and, well everyone." He looked high into the sky, towards where he knew Namek to be. "It was really the beginning of the end, but, not due to Nappa and Raditz."
"Like your father." Turles said. "They were revived?"
"Exactly." Gohan felt out, and thought he could feel himself, his father, distantly. "And they were, difficult, at first, but I think a good chunk of that was because of Vegeta's influence. Eventually they came around, they accepted their situation, and embraced their humanity. They were both strong, and noble, allies."
Turles scoffed. "And you want to know if I think bringing them back is a good idea?"
"Not exactly." Gohan took a deep breath. "I want to know if we bring them back, if you'll mentor them?"
He turned to face his elder. "Their loyalty was first and foremost to Vegeta. But you were a close second. Without Vegeta, they will fall in line with you. I want to know, if we bring them back, if you would mentor them, and what you would do if you did mentor them?"
Turles kept his gaze on the horizon. Gohan was a Super Saiyan, both of them were, and by the sounds of it, Goku would be one as well. He was alone here, the last true Saiyan. Gohan was right, they would follow his lead without Vegeta here. He's older, he's more experienced, and he's stronger. And with Frieza dead, the entire clan wiped out, there would be a power vacuum, a vacuum that an expanding Saiyan empire could fill.
"I don't know, Gohan." He said honestly.
That isn't what he wanted to hear. It's not what he expected to hear. "What don't you know?"
"I don't know if I'm going to stick around." He floated higher, and Gohan followed.
Gohan's heart missed a beat. "In the original timeline you did, and you were happy here. Why would you leave?"
"I don't know." Turles said again, still climbing into the night sky. "I don't know what was going through my head back then, or over there, when I chose to stay. But I can take a guess."
He crossed his arms and spun away slightly, turning to face Gohan.
"With Cooler and Cold still out there, I wouldn't be safe anywhere but with you and your family." He looked over Gohan's head, into the moon. "They, they were the cause of everything bad in my life. Everything bad in a lot of lives. If they were alive, when they were still alive, the universe wasn't safe, no one would be safe, I wasn't safe."
He felt his blood begin to rush, and continued looking into the sphere. He knew he wouldn't transform. "It makes sense that if I thought we could defeat them, I'd do everything I could to wipe out their family."
Gohan kept quiet, looking down at his great uncle.
"And, while we were taking care of them, I may have grown closer to you, to everyone." Turles looked into the sky, into the galaxy. "And I like you plenty. I like your father, and your mother, plenty. She's one hell of a woman."
He looked Gohan in the eyes. "But with the Cold Clan wiped out, and me not being too close to you, I'll be honest. I don't really feel the need to stay here."
Gohan crossed his arms. "What do you mean?"
"The universe is a big place, kid, and this is a small planet." He took a deep breath. "The universe is by no means safe now, but it's a lot safer. I don't know if I'm going to stick around. If Nappa and Raditz were revived, and they're as strong as you say they are, well, I'd probably take them with me, and head out into space."
Gohan contemplated that for a moment. Chi-Chi was the mother of Gohan, but this Chi-Chi wasn't actually his mother. They both loved him, they were both close to him, and, in time, they would both be his. And this Turles wasn't his Turles, they were both good people, but, they don't have that shared background, not at this point. And, although he wanted to, he couldn't force the issue. They could keep Ginyu in a ki restraining prison cell, he was a bad guy, he didn't deserve freedom. But Turles, Turles was a good guy, he was, in the past, Gohan's friend, and, and he couldn't make him stay.
"What would you do out there?" He asked.
Turles took another deep breath. Restart the Saiyan empire with himself as king probably wasn't the right answer. He wasn't bloodthirsty, he didn't want to conquer planets, obliterate civilizations, be the head of a thriving slave army… no, but he would fight, he would invade planets, and he would crush and kick out any remnants of the Frieza Force. He'd raise an army to do it, he'd need to, but they wouldn't be dark, they wouldn't be selfish, they wouldn't be feared, not by the oppressed.
Turles came to an answer. "I'd keep bringing the fight to Frieza's army. Frieza and his family are dead, but their armies are still standing, the infrastructure is still there. I'd do what I could, and I'd hope Nappa and Raditz would do the same, to shatter the chains of the web that still entangles the cosmos."
"That's..." Gohan shut his eyes. That was good, that was the Turles he knew. He couldn't speak against it. He couldn't stand in his way. "That's a good answer."
He smiled for a moment, before a frown crossed his lips. "But, what if they don't listen to us? Listen to you? Just because they did once, doesn't mean they will again."
Turles frowned as well. "I plan on killing anyone that tries to enforce Frieza's will, or tries to pick up where he left off..."
"But what about Nappa and Raditz?" Gohan floated downward, matching Turles' height.
"If they try to join the enemy, or try to start their own empires, well, as I said, I plan on killing anyone that tries to enforce Frieza's will, or pick up where he left off."
"Fair enough." Gohan said, rotating to face his home. He pictured Nappa, arms and legs shattered, skull crushed to paste. He pictured his uncle, a fist sized hole blown through his chest. He didn't like the images, he didn't like the thoughts.
"So, are you going to revive them?" Turles asked, following Gohan's movement.
"I don't know." He lied. He didn't know Nappa as a Saiyan elite. He didn't know Raditz as a grunt. He knew them when they were free though, he knew them when they had a choice. They made the right choice before, and if they did it again, they'd be fine. If they didn't, if they turned on him, well, they already died once...
Author's note: These next few chapters are likely to go at a very high pace. I'm thinking we'll see our old numeric friends before CH60.