Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty

By Feraligreater328

Chapter 10: The Next Adventure

In Bulma's Airship...

The Capsule Corp Airship buzzed away from the battlefield with both the wounded and their loved ones loaded aboard. Chi-Chi gently cradled her unconscious, but only moderately injured son in her lap. Master Roshi stood vigil over both of his injured pupils, Goku and Krillin. And, in the back of the ship, Oolong and Puar stared in fear at their other three passengers.

Everyone on the ship knew who Raditz was. He was that bastard alien that showed up and started all of this Saiyan Invasion nonsense. No one trusted him and very few could comprehend why he was being taken to the hospital or, more importantly, why he was even wished back in the first place.

As for the other two, they were total enigmas. One was a gruff, older man who looked strikingly like Goku. And the other was a delicate, older woman with a surprisingly gentle face for a saiyan. No one wanted to admit it, but they could all see a lot of Goku in these two. Whether what they saw was fighting spirit or genuine innocence depended on whom they were looking at.

Chi-Chi, in particular, focused hard on these two strangers that reminded her so much of her husband.

Earlier, at the Gizard Wasteland...

Chi-Chi was the first one out of the airship, making it out of the hangar before the door had even fully opened. The worried mother scanned the field until, to her relief, she saw the familiar face of her little boy in the distance. Chi-Chi covered 40 feet in under a second and came to a screeching halt to an incredibly odd sight: it was Gohan, but he was tightly wrapped in the arms of some strange woman!

Chi-Chi's mama bear instinct immediately kicked in and she snatched her little boy from this stranger. But, once she had, Chi-Chi caught sight of the woman's face and something immediately felt...off.

This woman that was so tightly holding on to Gohan gave off such a "Goku" feeling. The soft, innocent look on her face was so much like Chi-Chi's husband that, in spite of herself, she found herself immediately trusting her.

As Chi-Chi stood there, gawking at this new person, the other got to work. Oolong and Puar immediately rolled out a stretcher for the injured Krillin and Yajirobe, rolling their friends on and pushing them back into the airship. Roshi and Bulma, meanwhile, each came to a sight of their own.

Roshi grabbed on to the arm that was sticking out of the ground and gave it a hefty pull, extracting Bardock from beneath a pile of rubble. This man, who looked like a gruffer version of Goku, gave the Turtle Hermit pause. Was this one of the people that Goku had requested be wished back?

Bulma, on the other hand, was horrified to see that monster that had started all of this was somehow back among the living. Raditz laid on the ground, beaten and bloodied, his chest heaving. Bulma's face was green at the sight of him. If it weren't for him showing up, then Yamcha and everyone else would still be alive. Bulma scanned the area and eventually came across Yajirobe's broken katana. She went and picked it up and glared back at Raditz with hate in her eyes, only to be immediately stopped by Master Roshi. Bulma glared at Roshi and Roshi shook his head. "No."

Bulma snapped at Roshi. "Why?! This is all his fault to begin with! Why shouldn't I send him straight to Hell where he belongs?! I thought he was already there anyway! I don't-"

Roshi interjected. "Goku specifically requested that Raditz be wished back alongside him. As well as two other people named Bardock and Gine...who I can only assume are the other two people laying here injured."

Bulma was totally confused. "But, why would Goku want so many of these evil saiyans wished back to life?!"

Roshi shook his head. "I don't know. That's something to ask Goku once he's awake again. For now, we just have to honor his wish and bring all three of them with us..."

Back in the present...

An hour passed and, soon enough, Gohan, Krillin, and Yajirobe were all awake. Krillin was injured, but not nearly as badly as he would've been thanks to Yajirobe and the two Senzu Beans that he had brought. Krillin looked over and sighed at the sight of Gohan, and a worried Chi-Chi, kneeling next to the cots that Goku and Gine had been placed on.

He looked over at the other two cots, the ones holding Raditz and Bardock. And then, he looked over at Bulma and Roshi. "So, yeah...that about sums it up..."

Bulma was totally perplexed. "So, this is Goku's family from space? His Mother and Father and Brother...?"

Krillin nodded. "Yeah. And, honestly, we might not have won this without them. Each of them worked their hardest to put a stop to Nappa and Vegeta. Even Raditz did..."

Roshi nodded. "Yes. I don't think Goku would ever ask me to wish back an evil person, so it doesn't surprise me that all three of them defended you like that. If only they had arrived a bit sooner..."

Krillin clenched his fists, his hands trembling. "Yamcha...and Tien...and Chiaotzu...and Kami and Piccolo..."

Roshi sighed. "Those last two, in particular, sting really badly. Without Piccolo and Kami, the Dragon Balls are gone. And now, our chances to bring any of them back are gone too..."

An air of dread fell over the airship. Silently, Bulma began to weep again. But, after a moment, Krillin interjected. "They called him a namekian..."

Bulma and Roshi both turned to Krillin. Bulma wiped her eyes. "What?"

Krillin said it again. "Piccolo. They called him a namekian. Nappa did. Vegeta did. Even Goku's Mom called him a 'poor namekian'...and Vegeta even mentioned there being a Planet Namek..."

Bulma eyes widened at that implication. "So, what you're saying is...there might still be Dragon Balls out there?!"

Krillin nodded. "That seemed to be what Vegeta thought. During the three hours we were waiting for Goku to show up, he joked with Nappa that if Nappa accidentally killed Piccolo, then they could just go to Planet Namek and find another namekian to make Dragon Balls for them..."

Bulma leapt from her seat. "So where is this planet?! How do we get to it?! Is it in our solar system or-"

Krillin held up his hand. "C-calm down Bulma. I don't know..."

Bulma's shoulders sagged, but then Krillin pointed at Bardock, Gine, and Raditz. "But, one of them might..."

Bulma sat back down and stared at the unconscious family of Goku. The airship continued its flight to the hospital in West City with just a bit more hope swirling within. Perhaps, their friends weren't dead...not quite yet...

Two Days Later, West City Hospital...

Side-by-side, Goku and Raditz both laid in their hospital beds. Raditz grumbled as he pressed his hand against his broken, aching face. "Earth healing technology is so damned primitive...if I were on Frieza Planet 79, I would be back on my feet by now..."

Goku chuckled at his brother. "It doesn't normally take this long! Usually, we have Senzu Beans to eat. But I guess the next crop isn't quite ripe yet..."

Raditz shook his head. "Relying on magic beans...ridiculous..."

As Raditz and Goku laid in their beds, Chi-Chi and Gohan both sat in the corner of the room with Gine and near feverishly grilled their new family member. Gine was all too excited to get to know her daughter-in-law and grandson and happily answered their questions. "So, yes, Kakarot was an adorable baby! He had such fat, little legs when he was born~"

Chi-Chi happily giggled and smiled. "He still does sometimes. I think he must just store all of his body fat in his legs sometimes!"

Gine chuckled right alongside her daughter-in-law and picked up her glass of tea to take a sip. "Now, is there anything else you wanted to ask, Gohan?"

Gohan glanced up at Gine and blushed, and then he looked away. Chi-Chi sighed and gave her son a loving pat on the head. "He's always been pretty shy. I'm sorry Gine."

Gine shook her head. "No no. It's fine. I can tell that he's a shy, little guy. I'm just glad I got to meet him!"

Gine smiled at her grandson and Gohan, after a moment, gave a happy smile back. "I-I'm happy that I got to meet you too!"

Gine reached over and gently ruffled Gohan's hair. "See? All you have to do is draw him out of his shell and he's just fine!"

Gine and Chi-Chi both shared another laugh as Bulma and Krillin both entered the room. The two of them quickly hurried to the nearby TV and turned it on, flipping to the news. Bulma looked incredibly excited, but Krillin had a look of dread on his face. Bulma turned to the others in the room and pointed to the TV. "Watch this!"

On the TV, the reporter was standing in front of a sealed room that contained a single Saiyan Battle Pod. The reporter spoke. "Found in the ruined section of East City, this lone pod is the only thing that remains of the alien attack on the Earth. It is unknown what happened to the occupant of this pod, but representatives of King Furry have reached out to the media to say that the situation is being closely monitored."

Bulma smiled at Goku and Goku smiled back. Together, then two old friends both expressed their excitement. "We have a spaceship!"

Meanwhile, Raditz turned to Krillin, sharing the human's dread. "...they only found one?!"

In deep space...

Lying unconscious in his Battle Pod, only two thoughts ran through Vegeta's head: he must gain immortality...and then he must gain revenge!

The Prince's Battle Pod rocketed through space, tumbling back towards Frieza Planet 79 so that he could get himself healed. And, once he was, his plans would-be set-in motion anew.

Back on the Earth...

Bulma smiled as she pulled out a remote from her pocket. "Pop quiz! Does anyone in this room know what this is?!"

Raditz dryly answered. "That would be the remote control for a Battle Pod."

Raditz thought for a moment, and then he reacted in shock. "W-wait a minute! Where the Hell did you get that?! Vegeta had to have had his to call his ship to him and Mom and I obliterated Nappa!"

Bulma smirked and shot a peace sign at Raditz. "I stole if off of your corpse!"

Raditz's face turned blue. "Th-that's morbid..."

He turned to his brother. "Kakarot! What kind of ghouls have you befriended on this planet?!"

Goku chuckled at his brother as the others all watched on. Bulma was in full showman mode now as she levied the remote at the TV screen. "After a year of study, I have deciphered what each key means and what combinations do what! And now, watch as I summon that Pod back to Capsule Corp for our very own use!"

Bulma was so into her presentation that she didn't notice the door open behind her. She pressed three keys on the remote and prepared to press the bright green button at the bottom, but a large hand quickly reached over her shoulder and stopped her. Bulma turned and came face-to-sour face with Bardock. She flinched in fear. "H-hey! What are you doing?!"

Bardock grunted and snatched the controller from her. "You're about to blow Nappa's Pod into pieces. Now, if that's what you wanted please tell me. But, if you want the damned thing to study it, give the coordinates you want it at."

Sheepishly, Bulma told Bardock the coordinates and the older saiyan nodded, entering the proper key code and turning to the television. After a moment, the Pod whirred to life and took off from its confines to the shock of the reporter.

Bardock threw the remote back to Bulma with a snarky look on his face. Bulma sneered. "Arrogant ass..."

Bardock responded. "You're welcome, sport."

And then, he went and sat down next to Gine. However, no sooner did Bardock sit down than an angry doctor ran into the room and glared at him. "There you are! Get back to your room at once!"

Bardock glared at the doctors and, quickly and vulgarly, flipped him off. Chi-Chi gasped and covered Gohan's eyes and Gine, annoyed, slapped Bardock on the arm. But, to her surprise, Bardock didn't react in pain. Gine rubbed her husband's arm. "Your muscles?"

Bardock shrugged. "Achy, but not painful. I've healed and absorbed my zenkai for this fight. I don't feel great, but I feel stronger."

Gine smiled at her husband. "C-can you believe that we're actually alive again, Bardock?"

Bardock sighed and shook his head. "Too damned sentimental..."

He glanced over at Gine and saw the combination of a warm smile and happy tears on his wife's face. Bardock sighed again, but then he smiled. "It is nice to be alive again and MMPH!"

Overcome by emotion, Gine tackled into her husband and gave him a passionate kiss on the lips. Raditz blushed and Goku stared on in confusion. Chi-Chi smiled warmly at the sight of her in-laws so happy, as did Krillin. Even Bulma, in spite of Bardock making her look like a fool, couldn't help but smile at how happy Gine was to be alive.

Once Gine finished kissing him, Bardock turned to Bulma with a slightly more serious look on his face. "That Pod is useless, you know. It can only hold one person. And if you're going to go out as far as Namek, you at least want to take a group with you..."

Bulma nodded. "I had already figured that. How far away is Namek from her anyway?"

Raditz cut in. "Much less distance than the system that Vegeta, Nappa, and I were in. I would say a month, maybe a month and a half by current Battle Pod standards."

Bulma nodded. "Hmph. Give me and my Dad a month and we'll make something four times as fast!"

Bardock scowled. "So, you're saying you want to wait two months?! In that time, Vegeta could have been to Namek and driven the namekians to extinction! We don't have that long!'

Bulma snapped back at Bardock. "Well, what do you want me to do?!"

Breaking up their fight, the suddenly appearing Mr. Popo spoke up. "I might have a suggestion..."

Yunzabit Heights...

Bulma and the accompanying Bardock both stared in shock at what Mr. Popo had to show them. It was a massive spaceship just sitting among the peaks of Yunzabit Heights. Bulma was amazed. "So... this is the ship that Kami and Piccolo came to Earth in, is it?"

Mr. Popo nodded. "Indeed. According to Kami, this ship is the first thing he remembers having seen when he first woke up on the Earth. He had no idea how to make it work, but he told me that he sometimes came to it to remind him of home."

Stepping past Popo and Bulma, Bardock walked up to the ship and gave it a light kick. "This is some old, Namek tech. I haven't seen a thing this archaic sense I met that bastard my brother used to hang out with..."

Bulma turned to Bardock. "So, is it any good?"

Bardock took a deep breath and nodded. "It's decent. Could probably make it a lot better with some more modern tech. You said that you and your Dad could make some improvements, right?"

Bulma nodded. "Yeah, we could...but I just need to know how fast it actually goes for a benchmark..."

Bardock nodded. "Well, why don't we give the old clunker a spin and see if she can still go?"

One Day Later, Back at the Hospital...

Krillin was shocked. "What did you say?!"

On the phone, Bulma was giddy. "Saturn, Krillin! Within five minutes we were at Saturn! This ship isn't just fast, it might be the most advanced piece of technology on the planet next to the Saiyan Battle Pod!"

Krillin glanced away from the phone and across the hospital room at Bardock, who was doing push-ups at a rapid rate. Krillin spoke again. "If you went that far, they why didn't Goku's dad say anything?!"

Bulma was quick to respond. "Bardock is a prick. That's why."

Bardock called out to Krillin. "Tell that dumb bitch that she can-"

Gine slapped the back of her husband's head. "Not in front of our grandson, Bardock!"

Krillin sighed and returned to his conversation with Bulma. "So, tomorrow is it?"

Bulma nodded. "Yup. Tomorrow. Me and my Dad will be done retrofitting this thing tomorrow. And then, you and I will be heading to Namek to see if we can find some Dragon Balls, Krillin."

Krillin nodded. "O-okay then...sounds good."

Bulma smirked. "Good! Have your stuff ready and be at Kame House tomorrow, 8 am sharp!"

Krillin nodded. "8 am sharp. Got it."

The sound of a phone click ended Krillin and Bulma's call and the bald monk shakily stood up. "Well...guess I have to go and prep for another adventure. I'll see you guys later!"

Goku called out from his bed. "Later Krillin!"

Once the door shut, then it was just Goku and his entire family again. All was silent except for the sound of Bardock grunting as he did push-ups. Finally, after a long silence, Raditz spoke up. "It sucks that we can't go along with them."

Goku smiled over at his brother. "Yajirobe came by yesterday and said that the Senzu Beans would only be another week. Once they're ripe, we'll be able to heal up and follow them in the ship that Dr. Briefs is cooking up!"

Raditz grunted. "A week is a long time, Kakarot."

Another silence. No one knew what to say. Chi-Chi was too distracted to care about this conversation, trying to help Gohan catch up on his studies. But even the boy was taciturn in the face of this upcoming mission to Planet Namek. Chi-Chi gave her son a light nudge. "Gohan?"

Inside Gohan's head, he thought only of Piccolo and how the former Demon King had given up everything to save the boy's life. After a long pause, Gohan reached up to the bandages on his head and ripped them off to the shock of Gine and Chi-Chi. Against the wishes of his mother and grandmother, Gohan stood up and walked over to the open window of the hospital room. He turned to everyone in the room who was staring at him and spoke in a very serious tone. "I'm going with them to Namek."

And then, leaping from the window, Gohan flew off in the direction of Mt. Paozu.

Chi-Chi cried out as she saw her son fly off. "Gohan! Wait!"

Immediately, Gine stood and grabbed Chi-Chi's hand, motioning for her daughter-in-law to climb onto her back. "Come on! Let's follow him!"

Chi-Chi nodded and climbed onto Gine's back, and then the two women were off after Gohan. Once the women and children were totally gone, Bardock took a break from push-ups to chuckle at what he just saw. "Hey Kakarot! Your son has some spine. I'm impressed..."

Goku could only smile at Gohan's convictions. "Yeah. He's grown a lot over the past year...I'm proud of him!"

Later that night, Mt. Paozu...

Chi-Chi sobbed as Gine gently rubbed her back. "I don't know what to do, Gine! I tried everything! I tried talking to him! I tried scolding him! I tried reasoning with him! I even tried begging him..."

Chi-Chi sniffled and wiped her tears, only for them to be immediately be replaced. "...I just got him back after a year. I don't want my little boy to die out in space..."

Gine didn't know what to say. She continued to gently rub her daughter-in-law's back while trying to think of anything to make Chi-Chi feel better. Finally, after a long few minutes, Gine spoke. "Chi-Chi...Gohan is a half-saiyan young man...he's starting to gain that infamous saiyan pride and he's starting to develop convictions. It's not anything to be sad about, he's just growing-"

Chi-Chi turned to Gine, her eyes puffy and red. "P-please just tell me that nothing out there will try and hurt him..."

A lump grew in Gine's throat. She had just met Chi-Chi, and she wanted Chi-Chi to trust her. So... she didn't want to have to lie to her so early in their relationship. Gine thought of all of the dangers in the Universe that she had seen: hostile planets, hostile space environments, pirates, the Frieza Force...

Gine looked out the window and saw Gohan, his travel bag packed. The boy was standing next to a fire that he had made all on his own and he was practice sparring with himself. Gine swallowed the lump in her throat and turned back to Chi-Chi. "Wh-why don't we get some sleep, Chi-Chi? We have to wake up early tomorrow..."

The older saiyan woman smiled. "I would love to see the bed you said you had prepared for me and Bardock..."

Several hours later...

Gine lied awake in her bed, staring at the ceiling. After so long, Chi-Chi had finally cried herself to sleep. And now, Gine was left with a moral conundrum racing through her head. She knew two things: 1) As a saiyan, Gohan couldn't be reasoned with, and 2) As a Mother, she knew just how Chi-Chi felt right now.

It was, indeed, a dangerous universe out there. And there were no guarantees that Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma wouldn't be attacked somewhere along the way. Her head getting the better of her, Gine stood from her bed and walked out from the house. She looked around and eventually found Gohan slumbering on top of a log. Even in his sleep, the boy had a determined expression.

Gine stood there and thought back to Piccolo. She thought back to the sacrifice that Piccolo had made for Gohan and the bond she could feel between the two. And then, Gine came to a definite conclusion. "...no one can stop you from going, huh Gohan?"

Gine reached down and gently brushed the hair from her grandson's face. And then, she turned away from him. "But you can't go alone..."

Gine went back into the house and grabbed a blanket for Gohan. And then, after covering him up, she took off in the direction of West City.

The next day, Kame House...

Everyone had gathered at 8 am. Bulma in her new adventurer outfit, Krillin with his travel clothes and a bag of personal belongings slung over his shoulder, and Gohan, accompanied by Gine and Chi-Chi, with several bags of clothes and books and a new haircut.

The three of them all stood in front of the newly remodeled Namekian Ship, preparing themselves for this new adventure. The entire while, Gine was staring off into the distance, as if she was waiting for something. She had an annoyed look on her face.

Finally, Bulma took a deep breath and called out. "Okay! Let's get going!"

Gine held up her hand. "Wait! Please wait just a minute!"

Bulma turned to Gine. "Why, what's up?"

Gine was nervous. "I'm just...someone isn't here yet and-"

"I'm here."

Everyone turned and glanced over at this new voice. Bulma and Krillin were shocked. Gohan was confused. Bardock stepped up to the group with his repaired armor and a bag slung over his shoulder. "Okay, so are we ready?"

Bulma flinched. "Ready for what?"

Bardock grunted. "Ready for the trip. Gine spent all last night yelling at me, so I'm ready to go. Let's head out to Namek."

Proofreading: StevenBodner