The Long Road

by Drakthul

AU: Abducted at the age of three and a half, taken through thirteen years of bloodshed and strife, Gohan finds his way back to Earth... to finish a backlogged contract. On Earth, he will either overcome what he is, or be destroyed by it. Rated M.

16. Chapter 16: A Saiyan Proverb

I know I should be posting this in four days, but I've made really, really good progress on TLR, so you guys can get the reward a few days early.

Pre Chapter Author's Notes: I decided to do a lot of notes for this chapter before and after. Before, I want to explain why I've decided to post this as one piece. I know some people won't like it, and others will, but at its core is the fact I actually wrote this as one piece over two days, and I only found one space where I could break the chapter in two. The space where I could felt like it could be broken off there, but the part afterwards seemed like an awkward place to start a chapter from, so, thus, this is being launched in its original form. One piece, one encounter, one struggle both inside and outside a man.

I got a lot of feedback both for and against posting this as one piece. I want to thank everyone who gave me advice in my private message box, and in reviews. You all deserve my heartfelt praise. Thank you all for sticking with the Long Road as long as you have. Don't worry, there is still quite a journey down the path for Gohan to travel.

I sincerely hope everyone enjoys the read. If you can't get through it all in one sitting, just remember it's always here for you to pick back up at any time, and you won't have to wait for the ending to this piece.

Disclaimer, in case it wasn't obvious. I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, or really any other property. Thank you.

The Long Road

Chapter 16: A Saiyan Proverb

Somehow, this planet had given him something he never expected. It had given him an opportunity. Hell, it'd just given him several opportunities.

The first opportunity had been one Gohan had already taken. It allowed him to meet his mother. This planet had delivered it as a strange gift, a painful gift thanks to Kakarot breaking him like a frail twig, but a gift all the same. The woman cared about him a great deal, and having met her really helped open his eyes to where he'd come from. She cared for his annoying, but occasionally tolerable little brother. Even thinking about it now, he was grateful he hadn't destroyed the Earth, as had he done so he wouldn't have met her.

The next opportunity was to obtain more power than he ever dreamed. Gohan was now amongst the legendary cohort of Super Saiyans. Power flowed through his veins like a mighty river. Cooler was nothing to him now. Hell, almost everyone in the universe were nothing to him now. The freedom and strength he'd always dreamed of were at his finger tips. Anything he desired was now his. If he wanted to end someone's life, he could. If he wanted to force whole worlds to knee just at his name, whole star systems, or even whole star clusters, he would. It meant true liberation.

And now, there were two more opportunities laid out before him, thanks to this incredible blue ball.

One of those opportunities was obviously that Turles was now here. Not only here, but more powerful than ever. Gohan had no idea how, and to be honest it didn't really matter. A reunion with Turles had been something he could have only imagined in his dreams. It was as if a ghost had stepped out of the past and greeted him. But this was no ghost, their arms were still locked together. Blue eyes still met blue as the two took in this moment. This opportunity had an added bonus. It would mean escape from this world, and a return to the life he knew. A surge of something akin to joy was now rushing through him. This moment would be one he'd never forget. It was his salvation.

But there was, one other opportunity.

Standing there, barely able to hold himself against the wall, was the bloody wreck that was Vegeta. The Prince of All Saiyans. The one who had spat on his accomplishments. The one who denounced him in front of his mother. As if he had any right to do that? The noble prince who was supposedly going to beat respect into him. Well, the Prince was going to get to learn what happened when you crossed First Class Commander Gohan, C.O.O. of the Planet Trade Organization. It wouldn't be as satisfying as becoming a stronger warrior than he was, and it wouldn't be honourable, but that wouldn't matter. Revenge mattered to Gohan, and he had ample time now to humiliate Vegeta.

With a devilish smile appearing across his face, Gohan nodded to Turles, letting go of his forearm.

"I thought you were dead," Gohan said, his voice sounding pleased, but measured.

Saiyans didn't exactly jump into one another's arms, no matter who they were. Except Kakarot and Goten, but they weren't normal. Gohan resisted the urge to turn his head to look at the man he'd just betrayed. It was something that had to be done. Kakarot would have fought Turles, and Turles would have killed Kakarot, it was really that simple... because he would have helped Turles kill Kakarot. Like this, it meant they could leave, and Kakarot would wake up in a few hours and wonder what even happened. Everyone would get a win.

Or as close to a win as they were ever going to get.

Chi-Chi would have met him. That would have to be enough for her.

Kakarot, well, he'd get to live.

Other then that, everyone clearly won.

"I thought you worked for Cooler," Turles responded a second later, his own smile not disappearing.

So did I.

"I did, I do, well, kind of. That Saiyan lump back there, Kakarot, defeated me and let me live. I've not been able to leave this planet since then. I've been stranded here. But you came by to grab me right? I mean, you're the retrieval team aren't you?"

Something dark flashed across Turles's face.

"I didn't even know you were here kid. I don't work for Cooler anymore. One might say I've gone independent. After that little scrap with that Namekian, I barely managed to get off that planet alive. Since then I found some creative ways to increase my power. I'll get to show you later today, trust me, you'll appreciate it," Turles assured. "I'm the most powerful being in the universe because of it. The Kais couldn't stop me now."

It was true too, the fact that Turles was the strongest. Stronger than Kakarot, he could feel it the moment he exited the time chamber. It was something he always knew Turles would achieve. Pride, for an accomplishment not his own bolstered through his chest. Seemingly Turles's death would have put an end to that. The death of his mentor, the death of the only man who'd ever really been family had always felt unnatural. It had happened too soon, before Turles could have achieved what Gohan knew he was destined for. Now, here on Planet Earth, he'd lived long enough to see it. Slapping Turles's shoulder a second later, Gohan felt himself almost overwhelmed with the sensation of joy he felt.

"This planet must be getting to me," Gohan said, before letting out a half laugh. "Whatever the case, I always knew you'd become the mightiest of all the Saiyans, Turles. You were incredible back then, and you're even more impressive now."

I've always worried that your death was somehow my fault. That if I'd have fought harder, or wasn't so exposed, you would have been alive. I was right as well, I killed Slug.

One of the only things that had ever stuck with Gohan, was the realization that Turles's death was his fault. It was a struggle to push past it, to push past that failure. If any one failure in his life had plagued him it was that one. It was still a failure, only now the consequence of that failure had disappeared. Things wouldn't just go back to how they were before, they would be better. Their dreams had been realized.

They were free, liberated. They could go anywhere, and do anything. Both of them had become seemingly gods compared to anyone they once knew. Even compared to the once mighty Cooler. This was their time. They would be able to rekindle the name of the Saiyans across the stars, not as some dead race with a few shreds left over. They would be two legends, destined to use the galaxy for whatever they wished. Nothing could come close to challenging them anymore.

Turles was the strongest, stronger than him by many levels of course. But just as he thought when he was a boy, he was strong enough to be as free as he wanted to be.

And the first act of that freedom, was going to be revenge.

"Talking in the past tense when I've already defeated men stronger than you Gohan?" Turles responded, looking amused.

"Hey, it's still hard to see you as unstoppable. I've got so many years of you being, effectively unstoppable, but showing more effort," Gohan laughed. "Hey, can you hold on a second?"

Gohan's eyes shifted towards Vegeta, a hateful sneer appearing across his lips.

So you think because you're above me in power and position that you can spit on me, is that it Vegeta?

Walking with a brisk set of powerful strides towards Vegeta, Gohan only froze when he heard Turles.

"Gohan, what do you need those seconds for?" Turles asked with an amused tone.

Fire was already running through him, a lust for revenge, or discipline even. Vegeta would feel the humiliation he felt when he'd outed him in front of Chi-Chi. Every moment of his life from here on out, would be filled with an agony that he certainly deserved. When he was done with this foul, insignificant Prince, they'd not be able to recognize him. His leach of a son wouldn't be able to identify the body by the time he was finished.

"I need to show the Prince the respect he's earned from me, Turles," Gohan responded tightly. "Now that there are no more rules confining my behaviour."

"Well, feel free Gohan. I was going to spare him, but I'll let you indulge yourself. With you around I don't really need him any longer anyway."

Propped against the wall breathing heavily still, Vegeta just stared up with his one opened eye at Gohan. It was clear any efforts at all to communicate were even difficult for Vegeta. Part of him wished in that moment that they actually could have their fight. It was obvious based off the way Vegeta was looking at him, that Vegeta certainly wanted to fight. Gohan let his satisfaction show through, a cruel smile replaced his previously jubilant one. Cracking his knuckles a moment later, the son of a third class warrior prepared to take his pound of flesh.

"So," Vegeta rasped. "A traitor until the end. Not only do you betray your men, you betray your own father?"

There was a vibration that moved through Gohan's body as he sneered hatefully. Without much ceremony, he slammed his fist into Vegeta's already badly bruised stomach. Immediately the wall behind them cracked, and Vegeta coughed up blood. Pulling his fist away, Vegeta coughed several more times before spitting up phlegm and crimson. Turning his head to glare back up at him, Vegeta spat blood and spittle forward, hitting Gohan's chest.

"You could never hope to beat me on your own boy, and you never will. Go on then, finish it," the Prince wheezed, moving a shaky arm to support himself.

Without a moments hesitation, Gohan grabbed Vegeta by his shoulders, ripping him from the wall he used to support himself, before violently throwing him through the building across the street. Support columns collapsed in Vegeta's wake as the building imploded. Appearing on the other side, Gohan sharply kicked Vegeta in the side before he could hit anything else. The older Saiyan skidded terribly across the ripped up road, hitting debris before slamming into a ruined car. The car folded inward as Vegeta's body made its impact, leaving him deposited in the now shattered frame.

Vegeta flopped to the ground next to the car as Gohan pulled him out of the wreckage. Kicking the noble onto his back a second later, and sizing Vegeta up, he hoisted Vegeta into the air with his foot before kicking him into the wall. The Saiyan rebounded violently, only to be met with another kick. Each bone breaking blow further wrecked Vegeta's body as blows bounced him off concrete and then back into Gohan's feet. Finally, he was allowed to hit the ground in front of Gohan.

Struggling to even move, Vegeta's body was now a complete disaster. His left arm was broken and bent unnaturally around his elbow and shoulder, and his right leg was a broken mess as well. A half dozen ribs were broken easily, and his body was suffering internal bleeding in several places. Grabbing Vegeta by the hair and pulling his head up, Gohan prepared to make another attack. This time he pulled his fist back.

The only thing that stopped the assault, was the weak laughter which escaped Vegeta's mouth.

Every moment of this had been a treat for Gohan. Every blow had his pent up frustration and anger built into it. Each time he struck Vegeta, he felt himself releasing his own shame at what had happened to him on this world. Each strike was a symbol. Each one had meant the end of his time here, and the road towards his final liberation. But somehow it had become spoiled in that moment. Gohan felt all the vigour for his assault drain from him as Vegeta started to laugh.

As if he had any right to laugh at him. Especially as of right now, when he was preparing to end Vegeta's miserable life.

"What's so funny?" Gohan demanded.

With a grin, despite the blood pouring from his mouth, Vegeta gave his response.

"What a complete fool you are."

Fury replenished rapidly as Gohan flipped Vegeta violently into a nearby building again, nearly busting him through once again. Imbedded in the crumbling concrete, reinforcing steel rods having bent around Vegeta's body from his impact, the Saiyan Prince nearly looked dead now as he almost slumped from the ruined wall. Stepping before him, each step a pulse of anger from Gohan, the younger Saiyan felt himself conspiring to make Vegeta pay for his remark.

I am the fool? I am the one who is about to leave this planet with more power then I could ever have? No Vegeta, you are the fool.

But then the laughter, as weak as it was, escaped the Prince somehow again.

"Explain, now," Gohan ordered.

If this was such great comedy to Vegeta, he had to know why. No man should stare into his death as this one was, no one should seem so content.

"Because... not only are you a pitiful, weak... spineless coward," Vegeta breathed. "But you are also stupid in equal measure. You've only ever fought like this haven't you? Attacking those who already can't defend themselves. Turles has softened up your food for you your whole life. Even I can see that."

You have no idea what you are talking about, Vegeta.

Vivid memories of desperate battles flooded his mind. Vivid memories of being impaled, broken, beaten, burned, and blasted. Painful reminders traced across his own body. It was a body ruined by a life too close to the fires of war. Now this coward dared to accuse him of staying in Turles's shadow?

"I could see it right away. He's the one who raised you, and he certainly... raised you well, if he wanted to raise a coward," Vegeta rasped, a second later Gohan's hand came to his throat. Vegeta continued speaking, despite this. "You already know he didn't come here for you, what do you think he came here for then? What reason would he have to come here? To train? To try out the local culture and cuisine? He came here to destroy this world, and kill everyone on it. Exactly what any Saiyan would."

Gohan's hand tightened, but ceased when Vegeta mentioned the Earth. So what? This planet would have given its life for his, just as all the others had before this one. Enough worlds had burned in his path he'd lost count. Billions had died before his blast waves. Yet now the Saiyan Prince, a killer of worlds himself, attempted to moralize?

"So what? What makes you think I give a shit about this ball of mud and water?" Gohan responded, his eyes examining Vegeta critically.

When Vegeta smiled through the pain, his blood stained teeth showing through, he felt something unsettling appear in him. There was something more to this. What? What could possibly ruin this for him? This was his moment, his moment of revenge. Not only that, this was his new rise to power, a new rise to liberated freedom.

"The woman... Kakarot's woman... the one who apparently spat out the vile, pus filled monster that you are. Do you think she'll persist through a dead world?" Vegeta barely said. "Even if you saved her... she'd always hate you after this. If you saved her. She'd likely die along side everyone else here. I've known that harpy longer than you... I can at least die knowing you can't have what you want. You miserable coward. They should have known better than to have ever trusted you."

It wasn't a physical force that hit Gohan. It wasn't something his body could physically tackle or confront. It was a blow to the stomach though. Air escaped his lungs through his nose, and he released Vegeta. Looking at the bloody, wrecked ruin of a man, Gohan felt himself trying to grapple with what was said. Because right now, he knew it was true. If Turles hadn't been sent here for him, then Turles had come here to purge this planet. There was no other reasonable explanation, at least not without first asking Turles.

"I'll be back for you shortly Vegeta," Gohan snapped.

The golden Super Saiyan aura appeared around him, before blasting off, back towards Turles. Behind him, he didn't even notice the smile creep across Vegeta's lips.

Two determined eyes looked ahead on Gohan's face as he felt memories flooding to the fore of his mind.

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Limping ahead, Gohan's body was still barely able to move or function. That wretch Kakarot had done this to him, and now he was trapped in this place. The only saving grace of this whole place was the woman's... his mother's... cooking. The discussion they'd had only a short time ago head really affected him. Without even knowing him, she'd shown him nothing but affection, and for nothing more than being her son. It was a strange thing for him to grapple with. The idea of unconditionally loving someone was utterly foreign. The idea of loving someone to begin with was almost as hard to grapple with.

But for some reason this woman went out of her way for him. She was already trying to observe him to try and change her own behaviours to accommodate him. It was frustrating for him because he could see her doing it. Why would she be going out of her way so extensively for him? Kakarot was trying to do the same thing as well, though he appreciated it much less from the man who crushed him like a bug.

Stepping towards the corner to find the bathroom, Gohan heard voices in the living space. Sensitive Saiyan ears tuned in towards the sound. It was most definitely the voices of Chi-Chi and the brat, Goten. They were talking quietly. Focusing as much as he could, Gohan began to hear the voices.

"... he's so mean all the time mom," Goten's voice almost seemed to whisper. "He's always grumpy, and he doesn't like anyone. I think he hates me. Things were so much better before he came here."

There was no disagreement from the Planet Trade Officer. Things were much, much better for him as well before he was dragged into this household. The kid was some sappy, happy go lucky idiot like his father Kakarot. Only... he wasn't, was he? Just now the boy was expressing how he was distressed by his presence. They barely interacted, so why was that an issue?

"Goten, there is no need to be like that. Your brother-" Chi-Chi was cut off by a frustrated sound.

"But he's... he's not my brother. He's mean, and he's never been here. All he's done is show up and everyone wants to make him happy. But he's never going to be happy. He wants to be mad."

It was strange, that the smartest person in the house, the one who got it the most, was a kid.

"That's enough," Chi-Chi finally said angrily. "Goten, I don't want to hear you talk about your brother one more time like that. You have no idea what he's been through, and he'll need his little brother just as much as he needs your father and I to get better."

Gohan could almost hear the little boy's posture change to a depressed state. Clearly, the child didn't agree. Clearly, Chi-Chi didn't mean physically better. She had the expectation that he'd somehow, magically, turn into the son she'd lost over a decade ago. That was the only explanation.

Then... he heard something soft. Was that crying?

"Goten, please-"

"He's been gone mom. Gone forever and now he's back. I don't want to know him. I want to be your son not him. I... I... I just want everything to go back to the way it was. I wish he never came here. Everyone was better," Goten sobbed quietly. "I know I'm not supposed to talk like this mommy. I'm sorry. I just-"

The sound of Chi-Chi pulling him into a hug a moment later, causing Goten's feet to slide against the floor was unmistakable. The boys words had moved her.

"Listen, okay Goten? You're brother has been through so much. I won't ever fully know, neither will your father, and neither will you. Right now he's really hurt, inside, and hasn't had anyone for so long. I know he'll never be like I remembered him, or how your dad did, but deep down I can see a good person in there just waiting for the time to come out," Chi-Chi's own voice was strained. "One day Gohan will start to get better, and then he'll be the best big brother. Right now you're right, he's angry, and he's upset. But we need to do everything we can to let him know we care."

Something slowly shifted in Gohan's stomach, and he felt himself almost freeze as she spoke. She really wanted this to work more than anything in the world, didn't she? It wasn't just about him being a child again for her, she understood he couldn't be what he was before. But then why did she claim to love him the other night? It still poised the same question as before. The answer she gave him was the only thing he could think of.

Because she was his mother.

"I want you to be the best little brother you can be Goten, even if Gohan doesn't understand right now. One day when he really comes home, he'll appreciate you like a big brother should. Okay?"

There was a long pause, almost freezing Gohan's own thoughts. A few sniffles followed, before he finally heard the response.

"Okay mom," Goten whispered. "I'll try my best for you."

The brat was going to still be as annoying as ever, and for what? Because his mommy told him to? Part of Gohan almost wanted to intrude on them and shoot down everything she'd said. But there was another part of him, part that was neglected for as long as he could remember. The part of him that made his chest feel a surge of adrenaline as he heard them speaking. Even if he couldn't understand them, or why Chi-Chi was like this, he didn't mind.

Smiling to himself for a moment, Gohan knew he couldn't go out there and cause the two of them more pain. They'd done nothing to deserve it. But the idea he'd ever be that little brat's big brother was plainly ridiculous.

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Turles could sense Gohan having his fun. Certainly he was not as strong as Vegeta, or the Namekian, but his power was very, very significant. Never in his life had he imagined that Gohan would rise to the kind of power he had now, especially without the fruit from the Tree of Might. The only real gains Gohan ever seemed to make was after a mortal wound, but there was no way he'd become this strong without some kind of guidance of influence. It was hardly a bad thing by any means, it meant the boy had improved dramatically in only six years. However, he doubted much of that power gain had been in the last six years, given that he knew a year ago that Gohan still worked for Cooler.

There would have been no reason for him to have worked with Cooler if he had this kind of power.

Which meant that radical shift in power needed to be recent. Which in and of itself was incredible.

Standing over Kakarot with his arms crossed, Turles briefly decided on what to do with his twin. He'd only met him a moment ago and couldn't stand him. Clearly he would be a bigger disappointment than Vegeta. Neither of these warriors were Saiyans, at least not anymore. Their race was truly doomed, at least in any form he would understand. Even the Prince had become domesticated, it was disgusting. But it wasn't all a loss, Gohan was still the Saiyan he was meant to be.

Well, he's back. I still sense Vegeta however, what's going on?

Turles's boot currently rest on Kakarot's back while he looked over to Gohan.

"Why did you come here, Turles?"

There was a brief confusion which settled over Turles at the remark. Why had he come there? Wasn't it obvious? He had come here to destroy this planet. It was what they did. Hell, it was what Gohan did. The boy had betrayed the others in a heartbeat as well.

"Remember our conversations, Gohan, I don't like vague questions."

The younger Saiyan in front of him seemed to steel at the remark, something he never expected.

"I meant exactly what I asked. I wasn't being vague or cryptic, why are you here Turles? What brought you to this planet?"

A valid question, even Turles would admit that. He certainly hadn't come here for the local food and customs, nor had he come here train with these pitiful wretches. No, and of course he knew this, he came here to kill this planet and consume its energy. If he knew Gohan like he did, it wouldn't matter anyway. Gohan, before the incident with Slug, had always been the first to the battle line on any world to be destroyed.

"Well, I was going to tell you later. But if you insist on knowing," Turles started. "I am going to plant a seed on this planet, belonging to a rare breed of tree, known as the Tree of Might. It will drain this world of all its energy and resources, and then bear fruit that grants that power to whoever consumes it. The fruit is what increased my power so greatly, and even eventually granted me the means to transform into a Super Saiyan and beyond."

The look of shock on Gohan's face said it all. It would be a fair trade this time, he'd split the fruit with his comrade evenly, this time. It'd allow Gohan to realize the power he could achieve if they harvested this fruit together across the universe.

"So everyone on this planet-" Gohan started, but wasn't given the opportunity to complete his question.

"Will also feed their energies directly into the tree. Even these fools who tried to oppose me. Their energy will seep into the power of the tree after they die. The Earth will provide me with a bounty not yet seen. A bounty I of course intend to share with you Gohan. The power of Kakarot, Vegeta, the Namekian, and the power of this entire planet, will be ours, on top of our already substantial power."

There was a grin across his face now, but he couldn't help it. The power would be incredible. What force in the universe could challenge the collective might of the Saiyan race in two bodies? What power could stop them now? The heavens themselves would tremble at their approach. Not even the Kais themselves would be able to defy them.

But instead of seeing a similar, sinister joy plastered across his protege's face, Turles saw something else. Uncertainty, doubt, and conflict.

Something was wrong.

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So that was it, that was the plan. Not only would he destroy this world, he would devour it. Even if he didn't literally devour the whole world, he would devour what made up the world. Was that any different than killing anyone? Other than receiving more direct benefits, it was largely the same. Dead was dead, and this world and all its inhabitants would be dead. Their lives would feed this tree, and in turn the tree would feed Turles... and himself.

Their lives, their energy, would become one with his own. With powers such as Vegeta, Kakarot, Piccolo and others in this, he would become a god. Did this world even create him to go through with this? The last son of a dead world, given its power, given its very soul seemingly. Would he be the legacy of the Earth, an echo throughout space?

... What would that legacy be?

Gohan would have liked it to be a portrait of a powerful warrior, fearless in battle. An almost statuesque vision of himself.

But deep down, underneath all of that, he knew what the legacy would be. Of a man who killed the world that bore him, a world he may have shared little love for, but a world of importance. If for no other reason, it was important because of a small number of people who lived on it.

It was painful, physically painful almost, to admit Vegeta had been correct about one thing. This would be his mother's grave. This power he would gain would come at the expense of her life. Even if she were able to be saved, even if he managed to drag her kicking and screaming from this fate, she would hate him until her dying moment.

The Namekian, Piccolo, may well be already dead. But did that make his power some nectar to be consumed by hungry insects? The Namekian earned his power. It was something Gohan had never truly appreciated until he fought the Namek, and learned from him. For a Namek, he was... tolerable.

Then there was Kakarot. The father he couldn't understand. The man who had nearly killed him twice. Then he became the man who wanted to know him, but couldn't understand him in turn. Now he'd become something perhaps more then that. Even not being able to stand him, Gohan could at least begin to respect him in some regards. It wasn't just his fighting power either. The worst part of Kakarot however, was that he'd become the man he'd betrayed, chasing after a fate he was now beginning to realize he didn't even want.

What was all that power worth?

Looking up at Turles, he realized that it wasn't worth the price that would have to be paid for it. The cost was too high, even for the Saiyan warrior. If it'd been any other world, any other place, without these people on it, he would in a heartbeat have accepted the opportunity. The lives of this world didn't mean anything to him but those three, and perhaps his little brother to a lesser extent. Their lives should not be simple... feed, fuel, energy, for his own.

Seeing Turles staring at him with a confident, dark smile, he knew he had to find a way around this. They could come to an agreement. This world wouldn't matter in the long term of things, this world could be spared. What did it matter? It would take what? Three worlds, four to replace it? Nothing but a little time.

"We're not destroying this planet,"

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Unreal.

The words that were just uttered were unreal, there was no way that he just heard them. They were not going to destroy this world? A world rich in life, so much so that its power alone would give him the single greatest boost yet? A world with powerful warrior's lives to be drained by the Tree of Might as well? But worst of all, Gohan had just decided, as if he got to decide, that this planet would be spared. For what?

For Kakarot? This worthless lump under his foot. For a man too trusting and foolish to know the nature of his allies? Or was it for something else? This world had obviously offered Gohan something, there was no reason he'd just wish to up and spare any world.

Slowly, Turles's smile was replaced, shifting into cold, dark indifference. Critical blue eyes now stared at the young man he'd helped raise. The young man ruthless enough to become a commander officer in the Planet Trade. The young man ruthless enough to betray his allies at a moment's notice for a greater call to power.

And now?

What was he now? One of these snivelling weaklings?

"And when did you get to decide that, Gohan?" Turles questioned, his eyes now narrowing critically. "Do you think somehow your feelings about a planet change the objective? Well allow me to tell you this. This planet is mine, its people are mine, and its very life blood is mine. I am going to share it with you. Which means you are going to be spared the fate of this world. I am allowing you this because we served together, we bled together, and we fought together. How many times did I drag you back to your pod Gohan? How many times did I plunge into the flames after you to pull you from the fires?"

A Saiyan didn't stand in front of him. In some ways it almost seemed like the boy he'd met ten years ago. Immediately the other Saiyan turned his eyes away from him. Turles felt his own heart racing as he questioned Gohan, his eyes still critical. Somehow, an anxious moment had gripped him.

This world would die, and his strength would grow.

And there was no reason for the boy to die along with it. After all they'd done, after the years of him being there for the boy, there was no way that Gohan would stand firm. The boy knew his place.

It just wasn't possible that Gohan would be stupid enough to throw his life away for these weak minded fools.

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How many times had he been pulled from death, and dragged towards life by Turles?

Each moment was dragged across his mind. It felt almost like he was being dragged towards his pod by Turles right now. Every time he found trouble, every time he ended up being in too deep, Turles had been there to save him. Head injuries, burns, disfigurements, shattered rib cages, broken necks, impalement, severe chest wounds, internal bleeding, organ failures, all of them seemingly a dozen times over. All of them leaving their marks on his body, leaving their signatures with him, marks to remind him of their passing times in his life.

It was always a relief, a relief of fear when Turles would intervene to save him in his darkest moments. In the moments where it seemed death was assured. All of these years of survival weren't his own doing, that would have been a lie. There was no chance he'd be standing here on the Earth's soil, in the midst of this ruined city, were it not for the man in front of him. He owed Turles everything. Not only did he owe him his own life, over a dozen times over, but he was indebted for what happened in the battle against Slug.

Now, Turles was asking him to trade those years of loyalty, for the life blood of this world.

Almost every fibre of his being wanted to jump out and say yes. Every muscle urged him to step forward and retract what he'd said. The bonds of loyalty tightened around him. But there was a quiet voice, almost a whisper.

"Gohan? Gohan is that you?"

They were the first words he would ever remember his mother saying to him. The first words he heard from her. At the time he'd disregarded her. He was confused how she knew his name, and spoke his name with such familiarity. But the voice had been strangely, almost calming. Would he disregard her life, and take from the fruit born of her death and suffering for loyalty?

Gohan's eyes couldn't meet Turles now. There was shame at the realization that he couldn't agree with the man who'd been there for him, the man who'd trained him and kept him alive, the man who taught him how to be a Saiyan, even if he wasn't a very good one. Swallowing, it felt like his throat was swollen, trying to restrict airflow.

Betraying Kakarot, Vegeta, and the others had been one thing. The consequences of that had been largely beneficial, at the very least to him. Everyone except Vegeta were getting what they really wanted, in his estimation anyway, or at least would have not been too grievously wounded.

The idea of letting down Turles, betraying him, tore something inside of him. It was like there was a rip inside his chest, bleeding warm blood into his body. Anxiety rooted in his breathing as he tried to bring himself to look up at his mentor. He couldn't bring himself to look up at the man he would have been proud to have called his father, and tell him that all those years weren't enough.

How could they not have been enough!?

Gohan's fist closed as he felt himself desperate to contain the bleeding feeling inside his chest. It spread like a flood through him through. Never in his life had he owed anyone as much as he owed Turles. Never in his life again would he be so indebted to another individual for everything they'd done to him. But despite all of that debt, accumulated throughout every moment he'd served with the man, he couldn't bring himself to repay it with this planet.

Gohan's eyes closed painfully, the feeling in his chest had turned to pain the second he began to turn his head upward to look back towards Turles. Eyes could not be averted for what needed to be said, he wouldn't insult the man twice over. Opening his strained eyes, eyes which had been fortified against real emotion years ago by the watching the horrors of purges every waking moment almost, Gohan stared into the eyes of his mentor. Without even knowing it, he didn't realize that his eyes finally betrayed what they had felt, pent up for all those years. They shone with the light from the sky, a thin layer of liquid having built up on their edges. It was the look of apology. Inside his eyes, they opened windows to a pained soul taking on a new, heavy burden.

"This planet is not yours Turles, it doesn't belong to you, and it doesn't belong to me. I hate this planet, I hate the soft, and the weak people who inhabit it, with their petty problems and pitiful lives. But this planet is my origin, it is where I was born. This world is the one place I can't let you destroy. Some of the only things I've ever cared about are here, and I cannot allow you to destroy them. No matter how much I wish I could let you destroy this world," Gohan finally said, his mouth forming into a pained, small smile.

"But we can still leave, we can still carve our path throughout the galaxy, we can challenge the gods themselves with the power we'll acquire. Think about it, what could stand against our power? Cooler? He's nothing. The other Galaxies? They'll be nothing but dust in space before our wrath," Gohan proposed. "It will be just like how we left off, only this time we'll get to decide our fates, we'll decide our missions. We will guide our own destinies."

It was the fulfilment of the dream Turles had shown him as a child. It was the realization of their race, to create a legacy and a legend that would far outlive the Saiyans themselves.

But during his words, he saw no movement from Turles. Instead, behind his static figure, he could feel what he feared. For the first time in his life, without an open sign of emotion, he could sense the feelings of another.

From the moment he started to speak, there had been a fear behind his pain, and behind his shame. The fear that Turles would not forgive this, that his mentor would not understand why it was this way. There was a fear that this wouldn't be settled with this exchange.

This would be settled with blood.

Long ago Turles had taught him something of the Saiyans before their journey into the stars, before the war with the Tuffles. What Turles had taught him was that son killed father... or father killed son. Buried within himself, he knew it could come to that.

It couldn't come to that.

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It'd all been for nothing then.

All those years of being there, all those years of taking on the boy as if he were his own, they were all being forgotten over this... this pitiful world? Somehow he'd not bled enough for Gohan? Somehow he'd not pulled himself through fire, ice, and all manner of Hell to reach the boy enough times to keep him alive? Somehow, he'd not told him enough of their people, or taught him enough of how to survive? Somehow he'd not fought hard enough against foes like Slug, and others?

The man in front of him wasn't the Gohan he knew anymore. It was painful for Turles to admit as he looked at the battle scarred young man, but this shallow weak creature had replaced the ruthless warrior he knew. On the outside, the cold gaze hadn't changed, but inside a torrent of emotions left untouched in lifetimes swirled violently with in the Saiyan.

How could have this happened?

The question went through the elder Saiyan in a mixture of confusion and disappointment, crushing disappointment. This boy had been the only thing he'd fought for other than himself in his entire life. They'd been the last of the Saiyans, together fighting across the galaxy. That was over now, they weren't the last of the Saiyans anymore, and certainly not because of the discovery of Kakarot and Vegeta.

None of them were Saiyans anymore, none except him.

It was telling in Gohan's eyes, they acted as portals into his mind. It wasn't strength and pride he saw inside Gohan's eyes, it was conflict, despair and pain. It was the look of a broken warrior, someone who couldn't continue the struggle against the world anymore. The boy would sacrifice strength, for the lives of pitiful, insignificant people.

This couldn't be the real Gohan at all.

Closing his fist tightly, Turles nearly drew blood from his palms. Worst of all, this weak shadow of Gohan now wanted to negotiate with him, speaking with him as if they were somehow on an equal footing. As if Gohan had any damn say in what he did. Sparing one world was the same as sparing any world. Irrelevant emotional attachments to this ball of mud would see Gohan sacrifice everything, just like the fools they once slaughtered together across the galaxy. He'd gone from a predator, to prey, and it was hard to even stomach.

Every sane urge in his mind told him now was the time to attack. They were no longer on the same side, knowingly or unknowingly Gohan had chosen the side of the weak. It was something he never thought he'd seen. It was almost physically painful to see. It was a failure on his own part. Somehow he must have failed in his training of the boy for him to become this... pathetic creature now before him, trying to talk about compromise.

Those urges however were overridden by one prevailing sense. Even if this wasn't the Gohan he knew, even if he was behaving like a weakling and cattle, the boy deserved one final chance to join him. Despite the betrayal, despite his cold feet and delusional attitude, the boy deserved one last opportunity.

"There is no we, Gohan. I am the one who decides what we do, I am the mightiest Saiyan warrior who has ever lived. I am giving you a chance to become something great, a legend, but that starts here. This world should mean nothing to you. Children grow out of their cradles Gohan, they leave them and become men. So what if this world created you? So what if you know some of these weaklings?" Turles asked harshly. "All that matters is strength. Strength is my destiny Gohan, and I thought it was yours as well. You are... disappointing me."

Silently, Turles awaited the response. It was last chance the boy would have to see reason.

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The tone said it all.

The decision had been made by Turles. This was his course of action. Gohan had no idea what would change his mind anymore. But he did know that he'd chosen his side, even if it was for the second time. There would be severe consequences for his decision. The most important one however was that Turles was going to kill him.

Behind his determined face, there was that fear again. The fear of death and all that it entailed. After the time spent on this planet, the locals had begun to rub off on him. Piccolo, Chi-Chi, even Kakarot, they were all responsible for this. Inside of his fear there was that same small voice, which was becoming louder within his mind. If he did die as a consequence of this, on his way to whatever terrible fate awaited him, there would at least be one right decision on the list of things he'd done in his life.

"Well then I'm disappointing you Turles. I'm not going to let you destroy this planet when there is no need to."

Anger showed through on Turles's features finally, and it was real anger. It was chilling for Gohan to see. Instinctively he began to raise his own power to prepare himself for whatever was going to happen next. Not that it would matter much, Turles was stronger than Kakarot even.

When the golden energy around Turles flared violently, Gohan knew what was coming next.

"So, you're one of them then?" Turles questioned.

It was obvious that he already knew the answer. Because he'd made the answer by forcing him to choose.

"Whatever Turles, I'm not one of them, you're making me one of them by killing this planet. You don't have to destroy this world," Gohan fired back. "It's not too late, we can still leave."

Gohan had seen Turles fight, the core of his own fighting abilities came from Turles's teachings. When he saw the other Saiyan shift his right leg, he knew the attack was coming. There would be no more talk of compromise. There would be surrender, or death for one of them.

Narrowing his eyes on Turles, Gohan let his own aura thunder to life around him as he braced himself for the battle. Fighting Turles like this was something he never wanted, it was a nightmare come alive. Why couldn't he have just taken the deal?

"Well, we'll just have to see if I can't change your mind," Turles responded.

Within a heartbeat, the other Saiyan had disappeared in a blur of motion. Gohan couldn't even track the movement. At the last moment, Gohan felt a disturbance in the energy around him. Just as he'd learned from Kakarot and Piccolo, he knew where the blow was coming. Raising his arm just in time, the kick slammed into his forearm.

Both men now scowled at one another. It was sadly Gohan who was in the inferior position, that much was plainly visible. His power paled in comparison to Turles's. Whatever drove him to do something as stupid as to challenge Turles for this world bolstered his resolve. It wasn't a matter of a fight anymore, he had to win. The only problem was, he had no idea how he was going to win.

In a blur of motion, Turles slammed a knee into his stomach, causing Gohan to cough suddenly and violently. Stumbling back, Gohan fell to one knee. It'd just been like when Kakarot struck him, impossibly powerful. Looking up at Turles, his arm still trembling while it held his stomach, Gohan tried to keep himself together.

"You've already lost Gohan," Turles announced. "It looks like the inferior fighters on this planet couldn't teach you to become a superior, not like me."

A frustrated noise escaped Gohan's nose as he assessed where to go. The main thing about it was getting under Turles's defences with more than just speed. The Namekian had showed him it was more than just power that could win a fight. The main problem was trying to beat a superior power without killing them. Just putting Turles down a few times without finishing the job would just enrage him.

There was no way Gohan could find it within himself to kill Turles. Even if he was fighting him, this was just resolving a misunderstanding, a very angry and upsetting misunderstanding, but still a misunderstanding all the same.

Raising his hand in a swift motion, Gohan discharged an energy blast towards Turles, before taking off right after the blast itself. As expected, Turles deflected the blast with no effort, but his guard was down for what was coming. Moving inside Turles's defence, Gohan grabbed both sides of his armour. One foot slammed into the ground, breaking down the road as he anchored himself, before pulling with all his strength. Large Ultra Super Saiyan muscles flared and flexed as he threw Turles with all his strength towards a ruined building.

Preparing to make a dash for the other side of that building and attack, Gohan paused when Turles disappeared before he could smash through the structure.

Shit.

"What's the matter Gohan, is that the best you can do?" Turles asked him, heaving appeared behind him, his arms crossed casually.

Closing his fist, Gohan almost sneered before his head shifted to look towards Turles.

Too much strength and speed, and enough energy to even halt his flight, even with him throwing him at full strength. A frustrated look crossed Gohan's face as he realized all the skill in the world may not save him. It was time to see if Turles could make a mistake. Lunging forward with a quick palm strike directed towards Turles's chin, the powerful Saiyan dodged his head to the side with a dark look still written across his face. With a spin of his own body, Gohan came around with a backhand, swinging past his faster counterpart still. Striking out with his leg a blinding thousandth of millisecond later, Gohan aimed for Turles's leg, only to find it too moved from his attack's path. He wasn't just not landing a blow, he wasn't even forcing Turles to block.

Throwing a vicious punch a moment later, Gohan's fist slammed into an office tower instead of Turles, a hole smashed through the concrete, before blasting out every wall on the lower level. The vicious scream of steel giving way followed as the entire building started to wax and wane, before crumbling down towards its foundations. Glass shattered en mass, sending sharp shards in all directions as a massive dust-cloud exploded out of the levels as the building crashed down to the Earth.

In the midst of the debris and dust, Gohan could sense Turles behind him, and not far.

"It's pathetic to watch you go through such... futile attempts to stop me Gohan. Stop humiliating yourself more than you already have," Turles said, his voice hard and unkind. "Look how far you've fallen from what you were."

The words stung Gohan. He wasn't weak. The insinuation was even more insulting because Gohan knew it was true. Kakarot was immensely more powerful than himself, as well as Vegeta, and the Namekian Piccolo. They didn't deserve to be, but they were. Which meant any of them were going to stand a better chance against Turles. He'd all but maimed Vegeta, and he'd knocked out Goku. Of course the fact he didn't even sense the Namekian was even more discouraging.

A want to go back to his old life had condemned him to the fate of fighting Turles alone. It was the fate he'd created for himself, and it was something he would have to live with, or die with. For once, death wasn't the first fear on his mind, his real fear was if he failed, and Turles killed everyone on this planet.

For the first time in his life, he cared about someone more than himself.

With a vicious motion, the dust in the air blasted away from him as he twisted his body to face Turles and took off towards him, throwing his body out as a weapon, his leg pointed towards Turles with dangerous intent. When the blow sailed past Turles again, Gohan crashed through the bottom level of an apartment building. Two walls were knocked out.

Leaping from the ruin a second later, Gohan's eyes scanned rapidly for Turles. It was then that he narrowed his vision on his foe.

"I think I've given you enough opportunity to make a fool of yourself Gohan," Turles pronounced. "Allow me to you show you the power you denied yourself."

Pain exploded in Gohan's mid section again, feeling his bones, muscles and organs protest wildly from the impact. He was frozen in place almost entirely. Unable to even help the slump, Gohan slid forward and down, noting Turles's left fist pressing against his own abdomen. With a step forward and a blinding motion, Turles swung his own body around, before driving a backhand into Gohan's head, as if to add insult to injury.

Agony permeated along the right side of his face. The impact was so powerful and vicious his lip immediately tore, his cheek cut on the inside from his teeth, and his body felt weightless and helpless before being sent into a building. Gohan's body shattered past the first structure before plunging into another massive office building.

Concrete, glass, drywall, wood, they all tore at his flesh after he broke through them. After his body escape the second building, he felt his momentum finally starting to stop, slowing enough that his body began to drift downward almost peacefully. In a second that peace was silenced as a vicious knee slammed into his back, directly into his ribs and spine. A scream of agony couldn't be released, and was instead replaced by a gag as blood spat from his mouth. Laying almost half dead over Turles's knee before he was kicked aside by the same leg he resided on, Gohan hit the ground with a roll.

Everywhere hurt, and from only three moves. It felt like his body had been utterly crushed. His left arm trembled uncontrollably from the raw hurt now surging through him. It wasn't just a physical pain, but a pain raked across his mind. Now his failure was complete. Gohan had completely failed to stop Turles, and completely failed everyone by betraying them. It could have all just worked if Turles had agreed to just leave the planet with him.

"Pathetic, to think you could stop me," Turles said, looming over him now, his palm pointed out. "You fell faster than any of the others. You can't even move."

The energy was gathering in the other Saiyan's palm, Gohan could feel it. This was it. Death had arrived finally, after all these years of sneaking past it.

"We'll have to talk about this after I plant the Tree of Might."

There was suddenly a change in Turles's voice. It sounded, hesitant, reluctant even. Gohan felt the energy disappear a moment later, knowing now that the energy attack had ceased. The sound of Turles's boots walking away rang through the empty, desolated street.

Stay down Gohan, you're lucky you got out of this alive. He's not going to kill you. You can just stay down.

A hand slid against the pavement. Slowly pushing up against the ground. His left arm was still trembling, his breathing was ragged, and his body protested every inch of his movement. Something else was driving him, something he'd never experienced before. Words couldn't describe what it was. Was this what drove countless thousands of warriors to fight him to their last breaths, even when they'd known it was futile?

Even when they knew they could save themselves, they'd thrown their lives away.

Stop!

The rational part of his mind now almost begged. The part of him that always had him beg to be spared, the part that told him when to run. Carefully, Gohan began putting weight on his knees, then on his feet. Barely able to reach a standing posture, Gohan took a step forward, before shakily assuming a defensive stance. This wasn't about him anymore, it wasn't about Turles, it wasn't even about pride, it was about his mother.

There was no way he was going to let her suffer and die, as Turles would have her suffer and die... as he would have had her suffer and die.

"Turles," Gohan announced, trying to sound strong, but his voice was weakened and pained. "We're not done yet."

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The words echoed out through the empty street from behind him. Turles froze in place upon hearing them.

It wasn't possible. Not only was Gohan torn up and clearly no longer able to fight, but the Gohan he knew was... lacking in bravery. The boy had seen what bravery earned the weak in their lives. How many thousands had he, and Gohan for that matter, killed? They would bravely rise to the occasion, and then they would fall like rain from the sky, rapidly and helplessly. Some would cry out and decry them, others were silent. It was impossible to imagine It was... unbelievable to imagine Gohan had become one of those pitiful creatures.

Stopping his walk, Turles turned his head back slowly, seeing Gohan standing there defiantly, just as all those would-be heroes before him. What had to have happened to have allowed him to change so much? So what if this was the world where he was born? An empty feeling suddenly pushed its way into his chest. It was a sense of loss. The boy he'd raised, the one he'd taught all those years, was dead. Replaced by this... this shell of his former self. A creature stupid and selfless enough to throw his life away when their was a viable alternative. What was he throwing his life away for? An ideal? Or perhaps it was being tossed into oblivion for something far less interesting, like a family member? Surely it couldn't have been for Kakarot.

"So, I must know Gohan, why can't you do this again? You said earlier it's not even the whole planet, just some elements of it. Well what elements are so important Gohan? What is worth dying for?"

The tired, beaten, and pained eyes of his former protege seemed to almost glaze over for a moment. Gohan nearly seemed to pass out on his feet before he steeled himself. Just to stand must have been everything Gohan had. The only times Turles ever saw the boy so determined were when his life was in danger. It was of course true his life was in danger, but it was because he was wilfully endangering it.

"My mother is on this world Turles, and she'd never forgive me if I let you kill it," Gohan finally said as he seemingly came back to the world of the living.

That was it? The boy cared about some frail woman? His mother of all people? It was some kind of childhood fantasy that held his instincts, his ruthless nature in check? Disgust welled up in Turles, almost replacing the empty void. So, there was a way to get the boy back to his right mind at least.

"So what you're saying is after I kill this bag of skin, you'll come to your senses?"

The response was immediate. Gohan's aura exploded from his body and his power began to ramp up, rapidly. Controlling himself, Turles just smirked at first, powering up his own aura. So the kid thought he could throw everything at him and try to make the difference that way? Well that was fine.

It was fine until he noticed the almost animal like look on Gohan's face, and felt the power still continuing to ascend. This was something he'd seen a dozen times, Gohan when cornered always found a strength within himself which Turles could never explain. The scouter hadn't lied then, just as his power sensing abilities didn't lie now. Bracing himself, Turles could feel the surging energy rising like a massive wave, preparing to crash against his defences.

Finally cresting, the energy sent the ground around Gohan scattered in all directions as the young man screamed out. The scream was unnatural, it was a howl of agony almost. A hidden shiver went down Turles's spine as the wave of energy cascading off Gohan's body tore the street apart. Derelict cars exploded into metal parts, scattering in all directions as their shrapnel was cast in all directions, before bursting into flames and scattering into the ruined buildings all around them. The sound of millions of stray pieces of pavement, glass, and wrecked metal clattering against these buildings sounded like millions of small explosions blasting all around them.

Turles's own power was massive, even larger than Gohan's, but it wasn't focused all in attack, as he knew the boy's was about to be. Reckless abandon was all he ever saw Gohan act like in this state. Carefully, he moved his own leg forward to begin the process of making a preemptive strike to put this down. The second he did, he felt the world around them shift violently. Gohan's aura exploded around him, this time as the younger Saiyan launched himself towards Turles.

It was like a replay of history for the brief second Turles had to defend himself. He recalled countless 'heroes' and monsters slain by this very same unforgiving, overpowering rage. For the first time in years, Turles felt fear. Part of him worried that this was just the edge of Gohan's power. Perhaps it was just tapping into the edge of the well of seemingly limitless power the boy had been capable of his entire life.

No way!

With a desperate thought reaching the edge of his mind, Turles moved to block the lightning fast assault, only for his block to arrive too late as the first blow Gohan really landed on him in years connected with his jaw. It protested from the strain, forcing his teeth to lock together hard. Turles's head tilted back violently before his body took off from the ground. Sailing across the road, he felt the grim and terrible impact of his body slapping into concrete, and breaking clean through the thick barrier. The edges of the reinforced steel ripped across his arms and chest, before his body impacted the walls behind the first.

Within a few short seconds, Turles broke free from the other side of the building, his armour cracked down the middle and his left pauldron torn from its place. As he reached the middle of the road behind the building, he saw only a blur of golden light before Gohan flew straight into him, smashing both his forearms into his chest in a vicious attack. Quickly slapping into the ground, Turles's body cracked the asphalt below him, before bounding several feet into the air. Pain exploded into his back and ribs from the two sided impact as he grimaced from the pain.

The crest of energy seemed to expand within his former student. Gohan's power was incredible, and it seemed to only expand. As it expanded, his own fears expanded. This must have been what Slug went through, dealing with a foe who only seemed to get stronger, and stronger with every passing moment. There had to be a way out of this, and now.

Before Turles could formulate a plan however, Gohan had launched himself above him as he bounced off the ground, shooting back down into his abdomen and chest, this time driving his knees into the centre of his body. When Turles impacted the ground, he felt the world below them shatter. The entire street exploded seemingly as the pavement was tossed into the air like dust being blasted away by a strong gust of wind. The pain was immense, and the world below him cratered, before it too cracked and fell apart. A subway underneath them had revealed itself by existing. The tunnel below collapsed from the impact, hollowing out the ground beneath them.

Finally, below the tunnel, the underwater reservoir for the city was revealed, as the tunnel collapsed, meters of hardened rock cracked and split, causing that too to collapse. Within a second, miles of city began to almost fold into a collapsing wave of land. Buildings crumbled and shifted before tilting and fell apart from the stress of the ground below them shifting into this city scaled sink hole. Both of them fell into the darkness of collapsing buildings, dust, and and other debris.

Two golden fields of energy could still be seen amongst this apocalypse, clashing together violently.

Turles shifted as Gohan slammed his fist into his face again, crashing into his cheek as he laid another assault into him. Each attack was accompanied by a snarled hiss from the other warrior. He was no longer fighting a man, he was fighting an uncontrolled beast. The thoughts were cut short by another blow, this one causing blood to spit from his mouth. The series of blows continued until the two collided with the now concrete and dust filled water below. All around them the city still collapsed into the ever growing sink hole.

Time had been bought by their fall into the water. Time to regroup and reassess what to do.

Up, Turles knew it was time to head up and quickly. This place was a mud pit, no advanced moves would stand a chance of making it through the mountains of rubble that would soon be upon them. Letting his power resurface, the filthy water around him blasted away from him, creating a massive bubble in the formerly underground reservoir. Blasting upwards, his body blasted through the shattered ruins of a city still descending into the ever expanding pit.

Dust and smoke trailed behind him as his body brought through the debris clouds. Turning his head and looking down, Turles began forming energy into both his hands, preparing for the rise of the challenger again. He had to stop the boy now. Below he could feel the other power, still growing, and now ascending to reach him.

Pointing his palms down violently, Turles unleashed the powerful purple wave of destruction down towards his attacker.

"Calamity Blaster!"

The torrent of raw energy slammed into the golden figure just as Gohan broke through the clouds. For a brief moment the beam halted, breaking on the aura from his opponent. It was as if it was the ocean, crashing against the rocks. But soon, the rocks gave way, collapsing into the sea. Gohan's power sharply declined, the golden field around him ceasing to protect him from the deadly attack. The massive debris cloud below escaped the path of the beam, blasting in all directions away from it. When the bolt hit the Earth below, a massive explosion blasted out of the centre of the ruined city, sending millions of tons of ground and other materials in all directions.

Turles finally breathed easy, his body taking the moment to relax as he looked down at the mushroom cloud forming below, waves of destruction rolled over the already destroyed pile of ruin. Breathing out with relief, the Saiyan warrior felt Gohan's remaining power dwindle to less than it was when he was a Super Saiyan. There had been moments where he was sure his own death would be met in this battle. The power he'd seen Gohan demonstrate throughout his life had always been incredible, just as it'd been incredible now. Never did he feel that his student's rage would be turned against him.

Descending into the crater that had once been a thriving city, Turles could still feel Gohan's energy. The boy was still alive, even after that attack. Landing next to the now near helpless Saiyan, the elder of the two looked down at Gohan as he tried to sit up. His hair was black now, no longer holding Super Saiyan form. Gohan was too weak and injured for that, just as Vegeta had been.

"That was too close," Turles said honestly, looking at the boy with a still somewhat awed look.

The kid had put up more of a fight than Vegeta had, or the Namek. The violent surge of energy he demonstrated had been incredible. Blood dripped from Gohan's hairline now however, his tired eyes looked up at him as he tried to move further.

"We're not finished," Gohan barely managed, trying to sit up to fight further.

It was something Turles had never seen before in his life. The Saiyan was so determined to win or die, all to save one person. It was incredible. The shock over seeing it still couldn't seemingly fade. It was hardly as if he knew the woman. Was it because he was somehow attached to the idea of a mother? Turles could only speculate in his head that somehow Gohan wanted someone to ease his conscious, or to care about him.

Slowly, Turles's heart sank at the realization that Gohan must have never been as strong as he appeared. The entire time they'd fought along side one another, beneath all of the attributes he acquired, Gohan had been some scared little boy, wishing to see his mother. Some child yearning for a weak life that he lost. It cast all the good years they'd fought together in a new, terrible and disappointing light.

For the second time in that day, he pointed his hand down towards Gohan with the intent to kill. This would be it, he would finish the boy off who he'd spent nearly a decade pulling out of the fire. The boy who would have given his life for him. The child who learned from him and tried to be like him. The only other Saiyan he'd seen in years until today. Turles fought with himself as he kept his hand locked onto the boy, no longer seeing the disappointment in front of him, but the kid he'd been proud of. The one who always pushed the fights to the limit, who was always at the front line, and who always had his back. The boy who got himself into trouble and constantly had to make a run for it, and ended up needing him to bail him out. The one he'd always been... happy to bail out.

The kid who 'avenged' him from his battle with Lord Slug.

The two images of Gohan were utterly unable to be reconciled now, but even so, Turles couldn't bring himself to finish this.

"We are finished," Turles finally said to Gohan.

This fight was over.

Turning his head, Turles felt a new power appear. Both his eyes widened at the realization. The entire battle with Gohan had clearly bought his twin time to recover. Perhaps Gohan's role in this battle was over, but the battle itself had a new entry.

Kakarot.

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It was a violent upheaval when his body was thrown as the street around him collapsed. There had only been seconds for Goku to respond when he awakened. Just in time he'd managed to instant transmission out of there before the entire city turned into a ruin. From a safe distance above, and disoriented, Goku tried to get a handle on the situation when a massive explosion blasted out from the core of the city.

Power levels were rapidly shifting, one depleted as another increased. One suddenly felt very familiar. It was Gohan.

The other power was unfamiliar, but recognizable as the Saiyan who attacked the Earth while they were in the time chamber. The Saiyan that looked just like him, the darker mirror image of himself. His name had been revealed at the moment of the betrayal.

Turles.

Gohan had betrayed him. The thought was painful, sore, hard to grasp. It'd taken his son only the briefest of moments to decide to betray him, to betray everyone. Dende had been right about him the whole time. They should have never trusted him, he should have never trusted him. There was no saving Gohan.

A dull, long pain began to throb in his chest. This would mean he'd have to do what he'd tried to do the first day they'd met when Gohan returned to Earth. He would have to deal with the consequences of his failures.

I tried so hard Gohan. I wanted you to recover, I wanted you to have a chance at life without hurting others. I failed you again, and I'm sorry.

Something was strange though. Gohan's power was now in sharp decline, like a damaged power. Had Vegeta attacked him? Reaching out, he could sense Vegeta, now outside the city limits, his power was barely existent. Goku could almost feel Vegeta's broken bones. Which meant that someone else had to have. There was no sign of Piccolo.

Which meant that the one responsible for it must have been... Turles?

It was nonsense, they were on the same side... weren't they? Unless something had gone awry. But who would know?

"Vegeta," Goku called out. "Vegeta can you hear me?"

It was worth a shot, if Vegeta knew what the Hell he was walking into, maybe he could find out if Gohan was friend, or foe. Every part of him rejected the idea that Gohan was friend, but every part of him at the same time hoped that he was.

"What is it you idiot?" Vegeta asked in irritation. "That boy of yours made a mess of me after that psychopathic look alike of yours softened me up."

Even without being next to him, Goku could tell Vegeta's ego had been hurt. It wasn't the fight he'd promised Vegeta either, a straight fight against Gohan, and if he won, a fight with him. Right now, no matter what, after everyone recovered, he'd given Vegeta the fight he wanted, Vegeta had already earned it in his books.

"What's happening down there?" Goku asked. "I've been out of action, what'd I miss?"

"That traitorous rat you call a son is fighting your clone. I suspect it has something to do with the fate of that woman of yours."

It now made sense. Goku's heart came to life, even if it wasn't what he wanted. It was a relief to know Gohan had found his way back to the path. Somehow, something had made his son realize what was important to him, and even if right now it was mainly Chi-Chi, that was fine. What was really important was that he'd realized Chi-Chi was more important to him then some loyalty to a monster.

Which meant it was time to step in, as quickly as he could. There was no delusions to his chances against Turles, they were bad, but his son was down there, and even if he'd betrayed him, at least he'd found his way.

Hold on Gohan, I'm coming.

In an instant blur, Goku appeared on top of the ruins of the city, standing on what used to be the top of a building, or at least part of it. Within seconds he'd summoned his Super Saiyan form, and seconds after that, he'd ascended to its next state. Lightning shot around him as Goku built up his own resolve. This was his chance, his chance to save Turles, and perhaps even help his son see the real errors of his decisions. Maybe after all this, they could finally find some common ground, or at least some peace.

Disappearing again and reappearing, Goku stood next to Gohan, now staring directly at the monster who came to kill everyone on this planet. Staring as it would seem, directly into his own eyes. It was almost like a monster that had been separated from him at birth, and allowed to grow into its own dark vision of himself.

"Kakarot," Turles said, his mouth curving into a smile. "I suppose I should say it is good to see you, brother."

Brother?

Suddenly it made sense, it all made sense. Turles was his brother, the same as Raditz, only clearly they resembled one another even more. Perhaps this was a monster that broke off from him at birth, perhaps this was a twin. There was something odd about it however, that this brother of his had been the main reason for Gohan's corruption, and yet still the man that had kept Gohan alive. If it weren't for him, there would have never been a chance to meet Gohan again.

Gritting his teeth, Goku decided to make one offer.

"One chance, leave this planet Turles and never come back," the Earth's Defender offered, his eyes as cold as steel themselves.

The casual and disregarding smirk he received in response said it all, this supposed brother of his intended to fight to the death. Fighting to the death always seemed so pointless, but now it didn't matter. Someone had to stop this maniac before he could do anymore damage. Focusing, Goku tried to keep himself focused on Turles, and not on his badly injured son to his right.

"K-Karkarot," Gohan wheezed. "He's... he's going to kill everyone."

"I know," Goku responded.

"I'm sorry... if... if I'd known, I'd not... "

"Save your strength Gohan, this isn't your fight anymore," Goku said seriously, his eyes beaming ahead dangerously towards Turles. "When I'm done, we'll talk."

There was something to be proud of in that moment. It vindicated how he'd felt about Gohan prior to all this to an extent, for the first time, Gohan was truly trying to apologize to him for at least what he'd just done. Perhaps it was because he was aware of the consequences of his actions, or perhaps it was because he cared, but what did matter to Goku was that he seemed, and sounded sincerely sorry.

"Enough talk," Turles interjected. "I have better things to do than listen to you two weaklings bond. Fight me, now."

Setting up his stance, Goku prepared himself as Turles prepped his own defence. Within seconds, both fighters turned into a blur, and thunder trailed across the sky as the two came to blows.

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Both of Turles's arms locked together as he blocked an incoming kick from Kakarot. A thunderous boom echoed out across the sky as once again from the sheer force of the impact. First, he'd had to fight The Prince of All Saiyans, then the Namek, then the son he'd never had, and now the brother he'd never known. This planet was a kind twisted snake pit. It took in its attackers and turned them into its own defenders. This fate would never befall him.

Breaking his locked arms apart, and casting away Kakarot's leg, Turles threw a vicious strike at his brother's head. When the blow landed blood and spit were cast into the air around them. Once again the air around them thundered and boomed with the impact. Rocketing through the air, Kakarot's frame disappeared a second later with pure speed. Turles followed suit, the two colliding again as their forearms locked together. When the two struck out again, this time Turles felt pain in his own face, but knew his blow connected as well.

The two fell back from where they were in the air, before rallying and immediately moving back into one another. Kakarot landing a dangerous blow on his midsection, while he connected with a violent elbow to the shoulder. It opened up an even bigger opportunity, while it closed off options for Goku. Following up with a strike to the gut with his other hand, Turles then plunged his fist into Kakarot's head, before following up with a furious battery of blows, each one causing Kakarot's body to violently twist in the air.

This was what it meant to be the most powerful warrior in the universe. No one could stop him. Not Prince Vegeta, not some alien Namekian scum, not Gohan, and certainly not Kakarot. The sacrifices he'd made for power were immense, and he'd do it all again. Turles would even sacrifice his own brother's energy to be absorbed into the Tree of Might. The tree gave him all the advantages in the universe. It was the great equalizer, and then the great advantage. Soon, he would be remembered as the ruler of the universe, and the slayer of the most powerful beings who ever lived, other than himself. Even the Kais would tremble at his approach.

With that last thought, Turles drove his leg into Kakarot's head with a violent kick, aiming his brother downward. When Kakarot made impact on the surface of the rubble below, Turles could only smile when he saw the huge plume of dust rise into the air.

"You were all fools to think you could challenge me! I will rule the universe with the power of the Tree of Might!" Turles laughed. "But don't worry Kakarot, I'll give you and the others a decent burial, what more could I do for family?"

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The sun was warm at least.

Even part of Gohan's body felt like it'd been pulled apart by a vice. It was agony just to try and turn his head to follow the fight, and futile anyway. It was when he felt Kakarot's energy level take a sharp dive, that he knew it was all over. There was no way for them to win any longer. He'd failed, Kakarot had failed, they'd all failed.

Closing his eyes, Gohan wished somehow that this world wasn't real. There was a sincere wish that this was all a dream. The one he'd always wanted to save him, the one who always did save him, was going to kill him, his brat brother, and his mom. It was a morbid opposite to the story of his childhood. That was the most upsetting part of this whole affair, beyond one small fact. It didn't have to come to all of this. Why couldn't they have just left this world behind?

The answer finally came to Gohan... Greed

Turles's greed outweighed his care for anyone else, even himself. Perhaps it was some kind of test of loyalty as well, a test he'd failed. Quietly, he imagined his fate, to be blasted away by Turles. But his own fate was nothing compared to the cruelty his mother would now face when Turles found her. It would be like what they used to do to fighters who resisted too long. They always let them know that their loved ones would suffer more as a result. Burning skin away, crushing limbs, fatal, but painful and slow killing wounds. They committed acts of agony.

And those acts would be committed against her. Fear now flooded into his veins at the realization. She didn't deserve that, no one could deserve that. Not even the one's he'd done that to had deserved it. All the woman had wanted was a quiet life for her family. Before he would have thought this shameful, dishonourable even, but now Gohan slowly began to feel that this was a good, noble way to live.

Goten would probably also face the same... no. Goten would be taken in, somehow he knew that. The kid would face a new life, a life of torment, pain, and sadness. He would find himself forced into killing until it became natural to him. It would become his nature. A life for the sake of survival. It would be his life that he'd be swept into.

For some reason that made his stomach twisted violently feeling despair and sickness.

"Gohan."

It sounded like Kakarot was talking to him. But from where? Kakarot was nowhere near him.

"Gohan listen to me. I'm not going to last much longer against him. You need to get back up."

Get back up? Right now he could barely move. This must be a hallucination brought on by his misery and physical pain. All the same he groaned as he sat up further for a briefly moment, before slumping back.

"Gohan, I know it hurts. But if you don't get up and fight, Chi-Chi, Goten, and everyone else is going to die."

They would die even if he got up, what was the point?

"If you can't stop him Gohan, he's going to kill them. You can't fail them, please Gohan. I can't stop him, you're the only one who can."

That was it? This was somehow all his responsibility? This was all him? He couldn't save them, there was nowhere near the strength left in him. But there was a brief scene that flashed before his eyes.

Her hand broke as Turles grabbed it violently. A scream echoed out from Chi-Chi's throat as the monster began to form an energy beam from the tip of his finger.

"Let's start with taking off these fingers, shall we?"

Breathing in sharply, Gohan began to pull himself up, trembling as he did. It wasn't a memory, it was a fear. But it was a fear he knew would happen, Turles always started with fingers and toes, then feet and hands. Finding it within himself to rise beyond just sitting, Gohan found himself being pulled by more than just his own will somehow. Something powerful pulled up from within himself to allow tired and finished muscles to work.

Screams echoed out before the smaller figure rushed into the room.

"Mom!"

Panicked eyes opened for Gohan, just as they would have for Goten. Golden energy began to circulate around his body. His eyes shut painfully as he tried to block out the vision. It couldn't happen, it wouldn't happen that way. Something painful now drove him to take a step forward. His exhausted arms slumped down, still pained, still unable to function. Tired eyes stared forward, trying to find where to go.

With a violent thud Kakarot landed in front of him, savaged and broken. Slowly Turles descended from above next to Kakarot, landing slowly onto his feet. The other Saiyan was breathing heavily, but looked exhilarated. Shoving his boot onto Kakarot's chest, Turles grinned before looking at Gohan. The unconquerable Kakarot, had been conquered.

"What do you think Gohan?" Turles asked, before staring down at Kakarot, pointing his finger ahead and beginning to form an energy beam. "Should I start with the fingers first?"

Something within Gohan had already been waxing and waning, twisting and shifting. The bending and warping of whatever this was, was what had given him the strength to rise to his feet. It was what now gave him the strength to look ahead at what was to occur. Laying there, the once seemingly invincible Kakarot was about to die a terrible, undignified death. But it was exactly the kind of death he feared for everyone he cared about.

He even feared this fate for Kakarot.

The scene would slowly unfold in front of him, and he'd be helpless to stop it.

I'm not helpless. I can stop this.

There would be nothing he could do. Swirls of wind blasted around him as he closed his fist tightly, trying to keep himself in check. What was happening to him?

Slowly smiling towards him, Kakarot nodded his head to his son. Gohan froze in shock, and almost horror as he felt Kakarot almost saying goodbye to him.

"It's alright Gohan," he said weakly. "Just let it go."

The thing inside him that had given him the power to rise ceased its bending, its resistance and its protests, before it snapped in two.

"No," Gohan finally said to Turles, looking at his mentor with hardened eyes.

Golden energy now exploded around him like a furious storm, his hair turned upwards again and went gold once again. It kept going, the wave of power underneath whatever that had been expanded again, swelling to unnatural levels. It felt like his body was going to tear itself apart. Wave after wave of energy expanded within him until it hurt. Unable to hold back anymore, Gohan screamed out.

And was reborn.

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Grinning, Turles intended to start most certainly with Kakarot's fingers. But something immediately felt off, his smile disappeared as Kakarot began to speak. This was no different than any other time he'd massacred anyone. Kakarot was a weak fool, rightly dying under his boot. But that wasn't the part that was unnerving. It was something about Gohan.

"It's alright Gohan," Kakarot said weakly. "Just let it go."

It was a pathetic excuse for a goodbye. Let what go? Let what go?

It was then however, that Turles felt the air around them come alive. Electricity seemed to rippled through the air around them. Something was rising, and it was incredible. Something almost seemed to cause his body to vibrate, and there wasn't a force wave to cause it, at least not yet. The familiar golden glow of a Super Saiyan began to emerge from Gohan a second later. His hair however, had yet to change. So that was it? Gohan had decided to throw his hat in the ring again? As if he could make a difference anymore? Even with his unlocked power from before, he'd not been able to stop him. This time would be no-

"No."

The one word said so much more. It wasn't referring to Kakarot at all, but to him. The word almost seemed damning. But it had power behind it, greater than any attack he'd faced yet. When the golden aura around Gohan expanded and his hair turned gold once again, Turles felt himself step off Kakarot and turn to face this new challenge. A confident smirk formed across his lips. So this was it? The boy thought he could just challenge him again, just like that?

It was then the first expanding wave of power washed over them. Gohan's aura violently expanded, and the hard, violent look he was giving him made Turles feel the same fear he'd felt when Gohan's sleeping power awakened before. This could not be allowed to happen again. Preparing himself to strike, another wave blasted out, this one powerful enough to almost freeze his body in place as the Gohan's aura expanded again. The aura became almost a violent golden flame in front of him, radical, out of control. The waves kept coming, washing over him as he felt Gohan's power expanding until it looked like his body could barely contain it. Muscles bulged out massively.

He'll kill us all!

At this rate Gohan would burst, and when he did, his power would expand out over a hundred miles and vaporize everything. There was no hope to escape in the second he had left before it happened. But that fate didn't happen.

Instead, Gohan screamed out, his head was thrown back even. The aura intensified and electricity rippled across his body. His hair spiked further and his muscles sucked inward in a violent motion. Gohan wasn't exploding. He was ascending. The power now in front of him was absolutely massive, something he never thought possible to obtain naturally. His power was as high as his own.

But it was the scream that echoed out that was what unnerved him. It wasn't natural, it wasn't even a howl. It sounded almost like the birth scream of a terrible monster. It was hard to even wrap his mind around how animal like it sounded, how pained it was. When the scream ceased, what stood before him was a man ready to stand and fight, and one who was now as powerful as himself. How could have this happened? It looked almost as if Gohan was asking himself that very question.

At first, Gohan looked down at his hands in shock, as if feeling his new power out.

"How?" Gohan whispered to himself, before tilting upwards to stare at Turles.

The murderous look the younger Saiyan now gave him said it all. The ascendency had changed everything about the man he once described as a coward. All Turles could feel from him now was resolve.

"Give up Turles, now," Gohan warned, turning to face him. "I don't want to kill you."

A scowl tore across Turles's face as he brought his own power to the surface, energy rippling across his body. This would not be his end, and he certainly wasn't about to lose to his charge. A charge who'd completely forgotten what it was to be a Saiyan.

"Like Hell kid. You've got a long way to go before I'll back down to you. If you think you've got what it takes, prove it. Show me what kind of Saiyan you've become."

There was no surprise when Gohan leaped into the attack.

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When the two forces collided, it was like an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object. Gohan's fist slammed into Turles's guard, and a golden wave of pure power blasted off the two of them. Golden arcs of lightning ripped across the rubble they were over, ripping up the ground. The force was great enough to cause Kakarot's prone body flying off into the distance, skidding along the ground.

Throwing another punch, aiming for Turles's head, the other fighter side stepped, grabbing Gohan's right arm holding in in place, before striking back with two quick backhands, each one slammed into his face causing his head to motion back. Ripping his hand free from Turles's grasp, Gohan moved under Turles's now exposed guard, and drove an uppercut into his gut, in response he received a knee to the face before the two slid back.

The wind blew past the two of them, both now standing on top of the ruins of six buildings. Both dashed towards with another, striking out. Gohan shifted his arm to avoid Turles's attempt to counter, before moving his free hand up to shove Turles's own punch out of the way. The two missed one another utterly, before in a blur of motions, they began trying to lay a hand on the other. They knew one another too well, each attack was countered by the other, each knew where the next attack would come. Knees slammed together, punches met nothing but air, and elbows and kicks were rendered useless by well timed blocks.

Another strike was slipped past as Gohan jumped over a sweep Turles attempted, before striking down in response with his own leg, trying to catch Turles. Unfortunately the other Saiyan merely rolled back, before hopping to his feet. The two collided again within seconds, this time both their fists meeting in the middle as their aura's flickered violently from the impact.

Looking into Turles's blue eyes, Gohan saw a man who was falling apart. It was all beginning to unravel for Turles now, even if he wasn't losing this fight outright. None of this had gone as planned for him, and that was a good thing. There had only been one way to avoid all of this, and Turles had thrown it away. The kingdom was falling into ruin.

With another swift exchange between the two of them, Gohan found the weakness he'd been waiting to see. Turles exposed his left side, just as he always did when preparing to overwhelm a defensive posture that Gohan was presenting. It was do or die for Gohan. Stepping around and shifting his elbow, Gohan drove the hard point int Turles's ribs. The other Saiyan seemed to almost freeze in place, his face going pale with pain. It couldn't end with one move, this had to be the game changer. Striking again, Gohan shifted his other arm and slammed his fist into the same spot, before striking again with his other arm, two, three, four powerful fists crashed into Turles's ribs before the elder was sent spiralling off to the side. When he slammed into a ruined frame of an old fire hall, Turles had trouble rising, his hand clutching his left side.

"I've changed how I fight Turles, and you haven't. I know everything you're going to do. Give up, there is no point in continuing."

The look of resentment he received in turn was incredible.

"You were always thought too much of yourself Gohan. That's how you kept on getting dragged into the healing tank. If you think this fight is over, you've got another thing coming!" the other Super Saiyan shouted furiously.

Turles's aura expanded rapidly, before he took off towards Gohan, landing a vicious kick on Gohan's side. The blow sent his ribs into a disarray of pain and discomfort, before sending him into the air. Looking down behind him, Gohan saw Turles trailing after him. The two stopped in the air once Gohan shoved his own power out, sending out a wave, stopping his own motion and stopping Turles in his tracks.

There was one other way to end this. It was to make it so neither of them could win. It was his last option, but it'd become his only option. All he'd wanted to do was run from the Earth, escape it. Turles wanted to destroy the Earth, and consume all life on it. How badly did he want to escape this place? Clearly not enough to let it die. There was no way he could get what he wanted anymore, so why even hold out the hope for it.

Looking at Turles seriously, Gohan felt his own heart shrink. How much could he sacrifice to save this world? Could he sacrifice Turles? Deep down, still within himself, he knew there was no way he could. But could he sacrifice his own aspirations, his own dream of escaping this place? This place would have to become a home to him, because it wasn't just going to be his home, it was going to be Turles's.

Forming two energy waves in his hand, he fired them out towards Turles, who easily dodged around them.

"Really Gohan, is that all?" Turles spat. "You didn't even try."

A smirk appeared across Gohan's face however. It was a bitter sweet smile. The sweet taste of victory, with the foul taste of defeat, mixed in one. It was the only way he could not only save the Earth, but save Turles as well.

As if noticing the look, Turles paused, his eyes widening in shock, when he realized that Gohan wasn't aiming for him. Turning his head sharply, Turles looked just in time to see his ship impacted by the two bolts. A massive, fiery blast erupted from the ship. Shrapnel of the vessel expanded out in all directions as it was obliterated by the force of the blast. In the flames, Gohan saw his own hopes bleed and die, his own hopes to become who he was before. They were all gone now. This would have to be all he was satisfied with.

Nobody could have what they wanted anymore, at least not all that they wanted.

"You lose," Gohan finally said.

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You lose.

The ship exploded in a massive blast, sending fragments of his means of leaving this world in all directions. It was no coincidence. Gohan had known exactly what he'd done. By destroying his ship he'd stranded him here. Stranded on this miserable rock which turned attackers into defenders, stranded here with weaklings and fools. By destroying that ship, Gohan had condemned him to a fate worse than death, he'd condemned him to obscurity.

There would be no glorious conquest of the galaxy, no epic confrontations with the mightiest warriors in the universe, no conquest of the Kais even. It was just going to be a hollow, empty life on a world no one cared about or heard of? Anger boiled under his skin as he realized the volume of the blow Gohan struck against him. There was no way Gohan could ever repay him for this crime. The crime of shattering the dreams he'd held his entire life. The crime of ruining everything he'd worked for. But worst of all, the crime of being the only one he cared about, betraying him so profoundly. Betraying him for a lump of clay, and an old woman. He'd hunt this woman down and skin her alive in front of Gohan, before he killed the boy himself.

"You're right Gohan, I do lose," his voice was almost uncontrolled it was so filled with venom and hatred. "But you'll lose much more than I do."

With a violent twist, focusing all his power into his leg, Turles lashed out, throwing a kick into Gohan's left shoulder. The sound of the shoulder popping out of place was vicious, causing Gohan to scream out in pain as the arm fell limply, and uselessly to the side. Why target the body when he could target the limb? With a violent backhand, he sent Gohan flying away. Immediately he turned to where he felt Kakarot, forming his hands together, orange electricity rippled between his fingers before he formed a halo.

"Let's start by taking that pathetic father of yours away!"

Within a second, Turles hurled the Kill Driver towards the fallen and unconscious Kakarot.

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The attack had come so suddenly, it was a complete surprise. Turles almost always went for the kill in a serious fight, so he'd been prepared to defend his head or his body, but instead he found his arm now useless. Even now, they couldn't compromise. Destroying the ship had only made Turles more furious. When he heard the shout from above, he realized just how far he'd pushed him.

Turles wouldn't destroy the Earth, but he would kill everything he cared about anyway. This was what it had come to. What the Hell did he have to do to stop him? There was no reason to fight anymore, what more did Turles want from him?

Son kills father.

The words froze in his mind as he saw Turles forming the Kill Driver. That was what he'd been afraid of. Every action he took only lead back to this one result. There could be no negotiation that worked, it was as if fate was driving him towards it. A sick feeling swelled in him as he felt himself strain to hold it together. No matter how much he tried it didn't seem to matter. Something slowly awakened in the back of his mind. Kakarot never gave up. No matter the odds, he'd never seen Kakarot surrender himself. Even if he lost, his willpower lived on to find the outcome he felt was right. Was it right to try and save Turles?

Yes.

When Gohan saw the Kill Driver thrown towards Kakarot, he knew this was it. There was no time to shove his arm back into place, there was no time for theatrics, there was only time to act. Taking off at top speed, his aura blasting away anything in his path, Gohan stopped in front of Kakarot just in time, throwing his one good arm up and focusing all his energy towards the kill driver. The burning ring stopped in its path as orange electrical sparks rippled off of it. Desperately Gohan felt himself struggling to maintain the effort.

Kakarot was behind him, unconscious, there was no way to get him out in time. The only option he had was to throw the ring back. Bracing himself, he thrust everything he had into repelling it. Golden flames shot from his hand, surrounding the ring, trying to force it back.

"It's pointless Gohan, I'd save yourself while you can. If you don't move, it'll hit you instead of Kakarot," Turles boasted from above. "That'd be a real shame, wouldn't it?"

It wasn't pointless. It was the only thing he could do. Even if Kakarot was an idiot, an impulse driven fool with moments of brilliance, an annoying monkey who never stopped badgering him, he deserved more respect than being killed while prone, with no one there to help him. Pushing himself as hard as he could, Gohan forced his energy forward once more, straining every bit of power he had to stop the driver.

It failed.

The ring finally broke through his aura, shooting past his hand and down until it made contact with his shoulder. The last thing Gohan felt for a moment was an unimaginably burning sensation, and the world disappeared in a white flash of white.

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When the ring closed around Gohan's arm, Turles's eyes widened in surprise. The boy had decided to give up his life for Kakarot. It was unimaginable until this day that Gohan would have done that for anyone. In a way, it was another loss for himself. Today had been a complete failure in all respects. He had failed to plant the Tree of Might, and now it would be suicidal to do so. He'd failed to bring Gohan on side, the boy he'd always imagined as a son. He'd failed to protect his ship, and as a result, had failed in his entire dreams for life.

Even now as the battle had finally turned to his favour, all that was left behind his anger and hate was emptiness. The rest of his life would be wasted on this pathetic piece of shit known as the Earth. Even if he killed everything on it, all he would do would enhance his own misery. The only thing left to do was to kill everything that was a threat to him, and then find a way to marshal this world to his own cause, a means to leave this planet.

Then he could planet the tree and-

A figure stood in the now clearing dust and smoke around where the Kill Driver had exploded, standing in front of Kakarot's unscathed body, was a mess. It should have been a corpse, and it looked like one. Standing there, just as the fragments of his right arm dropped to the ground in a scattered and burnt mess, was Gohan. The right side of his body was badly burned, all along his abdomen and torso, and up the side of his neck. The right arm was gone, and the chunks of burnt meat, or what chunks that could be seen, were scattered about. The stump was a burnt ruin itself. Blood leaked from wounds now covering the right side of his body, and blood wept from his now sealed shut right eye. It was a grisly mess, but he was still standing somehow.

Turles idly wondered if shock had settled in for Gohan yet. Because it was settling in for him. Somehow the boy survived still.

How does he survive these kinds of wounds?

Surging up his own power, Turles prepared himself to finish this battle once and for all. To finish it for his shattered dreams of conquest, and for revenge against those responsible.

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It was numb.

The entire right side of his body had gone numb and unfeeling. He couldn't see out of his right eye either, but felt warm blood suddenly. He felt the blood everywhere. Oozing burns and cuts adorned the right side of his body. His brain nearly overloaded with the pain as he tried to hold himself in place, but twitched all the same. It was then that Gohan managed to shakily move his head to look down at his arm. The arm that was now missing. Burnt chunks of flesh and bone were scattered around him. The arm was gone.

It was nausea that started to take hold as the pain in his body almost seemed to amplify. It was everything he had just to remain standing now. Thought had trouble even functioning for Gohan now, until something broke through the haze of pain in his head. It was a voice, coming from above. The voice of the man who just did this to him. The man he'd seen as his protector, and now the man so determined to kill him.

"Look at you Gohan, look how weak you've become. I used to think you were like me. Why you foolishly chose death over joining me is still beyond me. All for an irrelevant woman, a foolish man, and a worthless planet. It's disgusting to think that I cared so much. You shame everything we accomplished. But worst, you shame me by having understood everything I taught you, and you threw it away!"

You forced me to throw it away.

Turning his head up again, Gohan tried to brace his arm, but failed, being reminded within seconds it was dislocated. He only had one arm, but so what?

Something dawned on him in that very moment. The day he'd avenged Turles, the day he'd killed Slug, he lost his left arm. Now Turles had stolen his right. Power burned around Gohan again as he began to suppress the pain as much as he could. This couldn't be it, he'd not just lose because Turles took that arm from him. It wasn't time to give up, it was time to double down. Giving up would mean death anyway at this point. It was much easier to roll over and die, but after a life of defying death, it didn't seem fitting to not go out with a bang.

Anger began to build up in his gut, a cold, hostile hate. Turles had been so quick to ignore him, so quick to disregard him. Had all those years meant so little to Turles? Here he had agonized, he had suffered just to fight his old master, but his mentor had no such qualms seemingly. It was all about power, dominance, and loyalty to him.

"I promise you this Turles," Gohan breathed, preparing himself for his final assault. "You'll never forget this."

With those words, Gohan flung his left arm out violently, snapping it back into place, realigning the join with a sharp pain. Tensing the arm, he immediately took off towards Turles, a battle cry escaping him as he rocketed towards his one time ally. Death wouldn't take him without a fight.

The response was immediate, Turles opened fire with a devastating energy wave. If he dodged it, he knew it'd buy Turles time to reposition. That left only one option. Without even attempting to dodge, Gohan flew right into the blast. The explosion that thundered across the landscape sent golden energy in all directions, before Gohan shot clean through the field, fresh blood coming from his burn wounds. Pain wasn't a thing anymore to Gohan, it ceased to hold meaning for him. There was too much of it already for him to even have a notion of what was happening to his body. All he knew was that he had to stop Turles.

When he reached Turles, the two immediately clashed. Gohan swept past Turles as his punch missed, and the two quickly turned to face one another in a single swift motion. Blocking Turles's right punch, he had no ability to block the left haymaker than slammed into his face. Blood shot from his eye wound, as well as from his mouth and the burns around his neck. Turning into the blow, Gohan grabbed hold of Turles's left wrist hard and pulled him into him further. Throwing his knee towards Turles with a loud grunt of effort, the blow slammed into his foe's stomach. There was gasped, while spit and blood shot from Turles's mouth.

Within seconds the two were forced back from one another. With hazy vision, Gohan pointed his hand towards Turles, trying to aim a energy wave, but it was hard to even keep his arm steady for a reliable shot. Opposite him, Turles breathed in heavily, holding his abdomen and looking tired as well. The two were worn out, but him clearly more than Turles.

"How much longer do you think you can do this?" Turles breathed.

"As long as I have to."

With that, Gohan unleashed the attack. The purple energy wave shot past Turles as the other fighter dodged, and quickly the two reengaged. This time Turles casting another kick towards Gohan, who dodged to the side. Agony exploded in Gohan's side once again as Turles roughly grabbed burnt flesh and squeezed. Pus and blood bubbled out, as Gohan hissed, feeling the hand and fingers roughly digging into his skin. Throwing his elbow behind him, Gohan found contact with Turles's face. Blood flicked from his face from the first strike, before he cast his elbow back again, and again. Each blow slammed into Turles's face, bruising and making a mess of it. Blood now seeped from his nose and mouth. When the fourth elbow collided with his face, the elder Saiyan finally released him. The reprieve was only brief, as a boot collided with his spine, sending Gohan spiralling down towards the Earth.

When the one armed warrior hit the ruins below, his body broke through the remains of a pillar, before skidding along what had once been several rooftops. Carefully turning and looking up as he started to rise, Gohan wheezed. His body was a disaster, he could already feel it trying to shut down on him, trying desperately to escape this torment, even if it meant death. With a haze slowly fogging up his vision, he could only wobble.

Not yet. Just give me a few more minutes, please.

Over the years in space, over his life, he'd asked so much of his body. He'd asked it to survive being maimed, burnt, impaled, shattered, split open, broken, and battered. Every time he asked it to see him through, it somehow came back and provided him with enough strength to survive. But it was clear now that the debt he'd racked up over the years had finally started to catch up. Gohan could barely move, and the haze didn't lift. No matter how much he begged his body, it was deciding to end its assistance. It felt like it was falling apart.

Hell, it had fallen apart.

In the sky above, Turles was still there, he could still sense him.

"It's a shame, Gohan," Turles finally said. "All that potential, it's all gone to waste for nothing. Do you think this world will contain me? Do you somehow think your sacrifice matters? I will kill everyone I have to, and once this planet provides me with a means to escape, I will destroy it with the Tree of Might anyway. My destiny will not be denied. The only thing you've done is die on this forgotten world."

Slowly, the haze started to life from Gohan's eyes as he stared up, feeling Turles's power rising. Turles was a mass as well, his face was battered badly, and he looked to be heavily worn overall. His armour was a shattered wreck, and Gohan could tell he'd broken a few ribs. But his injuries weren't Gohan's concerns, the concern was the position his hands were in, and when his golden energy turned purple.

"You are my greatest failure, Gohan," Turles announced, purple energy rippling around him. Strangely enough, his voice sounded sad, and almost distant.

It was his most powerful attack, one Gohan knew all too well. With only one hand, he had no idea how he could counter, he only knew that he had to. Maddened eyes stared down at him from above.

"Goodbye Gohan."

With that, the purple field expanded. There wasn't much time left. Gohan summoned his own strength, everything he thought he had left. The golden aura around his body shifted to purple in that moment. Concentrating everything into his left arm, the arm he gave up to avenge Turles all those years ago, his hand crackled with the dark power.

This is it.

"Cataclysm Cannon!"

Both voices shouted out as they threw their hands and hand towards one another. Two huge purple waves expanded outward. The light was blinding as the entire ruin was illuminated by this violet super nova. When the two waves hit, energy exploded in all directions, shattering the already wrecked city, causing explosions in the fuel based vehicles and ruins all around them. Fire seemed to burst from the hellish rubble around them. The sun in the sky seemingly couldn't compete with the light itself, as the horizon went dark as all the light seemed to almost be absorbed into the two beams.

"Nice try, boy, but I have two hands and you have one!" Turles called, focusing more power into his wave.

What had been an even struggle, began to turn against Gohan. The wave slowly started to recede, getting closer and closer to him despite his struggles. There was nothing left to give, there was no power level within himself. The sound of the beams hummed in his ears as he tried desperately to think of something, anything. It couldn't end this way.

Finally, only a few feet of his own beam remained over the huge distance. His eye closed tightly as he felt it coming. It wasn't death, it was failure. The very piece of him that broke before, seemed to surge forward. Gohan's eye opened as he felt something unnatural, hungry, and monstrous open up within himself. It wasn't about death, it was about survival. Power flooded through him in that second as everything his body had hidden away opened up. Gohan almost felt his body explode with power as his burns pumped blood through the skin for a brief second.

His mind fogged, completely losing focus. Instinct completely took over. Screaming out as the power escaped his body through his Cataclysm Cannon, Gohan felt his left arm almost burn up as the pulse of power expanded through him.

No matter the price, his body would pay it to ensure his survival.

As his cry echoed out, suddenly the duel of beams became much less one sided. Rapidly, Turles's power was forced back, before Gohan's beam expanded entirely, smashing it out of the way like a train driving over a bus. The immense purple blast tore past the remains of Turles's attack, and all Gohan heard, and all he could focus on was a terrified, agonized scream before the world turned purple.

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Every moment the wave had crept towards Gohan, Turles had felt reassured. It was the right thing to do, ending it this way. The Gohan he knew wouldn't have wanted to be this weak in Saiyan spirit. Gohan had trained his whole life to be a Saiyan, and now that he wasn't. He was a shame to their whole race, just as Kakarot and the now false prince were.

There would be no one left after this.

The Namek was already dead, Vegeta and Kakarot would meet their fate shortly afterwards, and then any other fools who made themselves known would die. Dominion over this world would take an hour, maybe two hours at most.

But something went horribly wrong. His wave stopped a few feet away from Gohan, it only needed to push a bit further to put his student out his his mercy, to restore his own honour with death by combat. Then Turles felt it. Something greater than himself, something immense, like a dark monster hiding within Gohan, always even stronger than he was at any time. Part of him suspected that Gohan's hidden power was in fact him rising to his ascended level. That part of him was wrong. There was a rejection of fate from this power.

It wouldn't allow the boy to die so easily. It was then however, that Gohan's power did more than just reject death. In a torrent of power, with his desperation filled scream echoing through the air, Turles felt a surge of power from the other side of this beam duel. His own power was at its absolute limit. There was nothing left to give to the beam, there was no hidden reserves. Suddenly his energy beam was pushed back violently, before it was utterly smashed.

Panic swelled in Turles's chest. There was no escape, there was nothing he could do other than try his best to fight the wave. But the wave was unstoppable. No force in the universe could have stopped it now. When the last of his energy evaporated before him, Turles could only sense and see the purple beam of Gohan's. The only thing left he could do was simple.

Turles screamed as his entire world was consumed by the light.

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When the light faded, Turles felt his body hit the ground with an unceremonious thud. Blood immediately began to leak from the gaping wounds the attack had left in his chest. It seemed impossible, if anyone had told him even the day before that this could have happened he'd have never believed them. It seemed almost like a terrible dream, a nightmare was transpiring. The world felt so light, it felt unreal.

It didn't take long for him to realize his legs weren't working. Barely able to move his head, Turles looked down seeing the gaping wounds in his chest. There was spinal damage. This was not something he would survive. Even now, the only thing he felt like he could hear was the sound of his struggling heart. The boy had proven to be stronger than he ever imagined. Every time he fought, he only increased his power. Sparring him had been his failure. But it'd been a failure he was willing to have done.

It was hard to explain, but this outcome seemed... he didn't know how it seemed. One element of it had felt right. In the distance, Turles saw a shambling wreck staggering towards him. The silhouette showed him that whoever it was, had only one arm. Quietly, Turles felt himself breathing as his heart struggled to pump blood. It only pumped more of it out of his body.

It was strange, but it was a relief to see Gohan. The boy who killed him, approach. The kid had been right all along. All he had to do to prevent all of this was just agree to leave. They could have gone into space and this never would have happened. Something twisted in his torn open gut when he realized this. Hopefully, he'd come to finish him off.

It was hard to admit that he was wrong. Gohan hadn't been his greatest failure. The last exchange proved the opposite even. It was just like the old ways, before the Tuffle-Saiyan War, before the Planet Trade. The Son kills the Father.

"Turles..." Gohan breathed, falling to his knees almost in front of him after another stumble. "Shit, you're a fucking mess."

A smile found its way to the older Saiyan as Gohan found his way to his side. At least he could die with some dignity. There would be no quietly fading into the darkness.

"Finish it," Turles wheezed, unable to believe how weak his voice was.

The boy needed to finish it. What was left of his pride demanded it.

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It was a complete disaster. Every part of his own body could barely function, or move. All the pain he'd ignored had come back. It hurt to breathe, it hurt to walk, it hurt to stand or sit or lay. There was no escaping the agony his body was in. Fresh blood warmly slid down his face from his eye.

But when he saw Turles, that pain felt empty, hollow. He was still alive, even if only barely. There was a chance to still get to him. When he finally managed to drag his own sorry ass close enough to speak, he saw Turles look at him. Despite what had transpired between them, there was still a loyalty to the man, a care for him even. Gohan had never wanted to really fight him, it'd been a forced battle. It was a battle he had to win.

"Turles," he breathed, nearly falling over, before nearly falling to his knees. "Shit, you're a fucking mess."

A mess, but alive. The gaping wounds in his chest didn't look good, but they were partially cauterized by the Cannon. There was a chance if he could get him some medical attention, he'd make it. But there was nothing in this rubble for that, nothing for miles, perhaps hundreds of miles. Slowly, Gohan began to realize how bleak this was. For all the power he'd once had, it was quickly becoming for not. There was nothing he could do to influence this situation.

But that didn't matter. All he had to do was find one of those magical green beans that Kakarot had given him before, and that he took in the time chamber. This could still work out. Turles was beaten, he'd have to give up on destroying the Earth after that. Hazily, Gohan almost collapsed on top of Turles once, before he heard the words that came next.

"Finish it."

Finish it?

Gohan's one good eye turned down to Turles as he felt his mouth drop open slightly, a struggling noise accompanying it. Gohan felt a horrible dread, knowing what Turles was asking of him. Finish it? How could he finish it? Especially when there was no need to. The magic green beans, they would fix this. Hell, after they both got their magical beans, he could show Turles that strange time room. Maybe they'd have to kill the supposed Guardian first, but that wasn't the issue. All that mattered was that it was over now, they had no need to fight anymore. He was the stronger of the two, which meant what he said went. There would be no Tree of Might on Earth, Kakarot and the others, including his mother, would be spared indefinitely.

Falling to his knees next to Turles, Gohan rasped several times as he tried to look at how to pick Turles up with one arm, without having his partner come apart.

"What are you doing?" Turles asked weakly.

Unable to hide his smile, Gohan felt his head tipping as he tried to incline it towards Turles, and nearly fell forward instead. Slowly, he felt his body trying to shut down, now from exhaustion. Blinking once with his eye, Gohan shook his head, ignoring the protests of the skin around his neck and shoulder at the motion, trying to snap himself out of it.

"I'm going to get you help," Gohan responded, taking in air carefully, trying to limit his pain as he spoke. "They've got incredible medicine on this planet. After that, we'll figure out-"

The look Turles gave him cut him off. It was a look of disbelief, mixed with irritation. Feeling himself stutter, Gohan ceased speaking. Instead he looked to continue trying to figure out a way to get Turles out of here. There still had to be a chance to mend this. It wasn't too late. Turles could protest all he wanted, but he'd live. He'd get the same chance he got. It wasn't about reforming, or changing their ways, it was just having a second chance.

"Finish it," Turles repeated, his eyes looking into Gohan's eye. "Let me die with some of my pride in tact, Gohan."

The words were like cold water being poured over a burning hot piece of steel. They stung Gohan as he never knew such a thing could. Something tight moved into his throat, and something burned in his nostrils. It wasn't over yet. He decided when it was over, not Turles, not anyone else. If there was anything he'd learned from Kakarot, anything he'd learned from the battle he was just in, it was that if he put his mind to something and did everything he could, things would turn out in his favour. Despite the viciousness of the battle, despite his arm, despite it all, this man was something more to him than just a teacher.

This man was-

"Gohan, finish it," Turles repeated, his eyes already looking like those of a man long since dead.

"No," Gohan finally whispered back, feeling something hot filling his eye, and his wounded eye socket.

The blood running from the wound in his left eye felt hotter, and stung with salt as fresh liquid spilled from the left side of his face. They'd been through too much together for it to end like this. It shouldn't have ended in the first place, the battle should have never happened at all. If Turles had just listened to him once, once at any point in the battle it wouldn't have come to this.

I'm going to get you out of here.

Struggling, Gohan felt his hand weakly grab Turles's. It was then he realized his own body had become so weak he could barely move Turles's arm, despite there being no resistance in turn. His heard stopped when Turles hand wrapped around his. Looking over to him, Gohan felt himself trying to hold himself together.

"Gohan," Turles finally whispered, smiling sincerely for the first time in his life. "I thought you were weak, and that you'd forgotten everything I taught you. I was wrong. You've made me proud."

It was impossible to look away for Gohan in that moment. The smile caused him to stop breathing for a moment as he realized what this was. This couldn't be happening. Internally, Gohan tried to will his arm to regain what little strength it could.

"Help!" Gohan finally shouted, hoping Kakarot had recovered in any way. "I need help! Kakarot!"

He couldn't even sense Kakarot. All the same, it didn't stop Turles from gripping his hand more tightly. The older Saiyan's chest rose and fell several times, blood tricking out of his body still. The bleeding, he could cauterize the remaining bleeding and buy more time. If Kakarot got here in time he could still save him.

Time, I just need more time.

"Gohan, stop," Turles ordered, just as he used to order him when he was a child. "It's enough."

How could it be enough? It wasn't enough, because if it was enough he'd not be trying to say his goodbyes! Fucking damn it, where the hell was Kakarot!?

"Stop that, you're going to be fine," Gohan promised, his voice cracking into panic and his throat tightening. "I don't want to hear 'finish it' from you one more time. I'm going to get you out of this. Remember all those times you bailed me out? It's not over yet. Just... just hold on."

Memories of being dragged to his pod came freshly into his mind. At times he knew he couldn't make it, but he always found a way. Right now, he just needed to find a way. When he felt Turles's grip loosen, he could almost feel the older warrior die. But it wasn't there yet, his spirit was dying before his body could. But why?

"You're the son I never had Gohan," Turles finally said, a lone tear shed down the side of his face. "Everything I know, I taught you. I always knew I could rely on you. You are the only person I've ever cared about... Son kills father."

It was too hard to contain it anymore. A soft sob escaped Gohan's chest his good eye welled with tears. He wanted it to work, just as he'd wanted to survive, just as he'd wanted to save Chi-Chi, and just as he now wanted Turles to live. But it wasn't working. Son kills father, it was Saiyan, it was the duty of the son of any Saiyan boy to try and be the one to overcome his father and slay him. Struggling to continue to look at his father, Gohan felt his heart ripping in half. Even as it weakly beat in his chest, he could feel it trying desperately to stop itself, as if trying to half time.

"Father," Gohan choked. "Please, we can still fix this."

The words left him in a whisper, and he saw Turles shake his head in response, his own features twisting as Gohan's were as he tried desperately to conceal the first real sorrow he'd ever experienced in his life.

"Listen to me Gohan," Turles struggled to say, his voice breaking up. "Finish it. Please, give me the death I deserve."

Breathing in as he looked into his father's eyes, Gohan finally nodded, relenting to his wishes. This was the only option left to him. All the willpower in the world could no longer save Turles, and if he died quietly passing into oblivion, it would only heap more shame upon him. It was his duty to kill him. It was his duty to perform the task any son would.

I can't look away.

Staring Turles in the eyes as he had before, Gohan quickly raised his hand, forming what energy he could into his palm, and blasting Turles through the heart. The remnants of his armour cracked in and disintegrated around that part of his chest. Energy burrowed into flesh and carved into the concrete below them. Turles's body flinched and gasped once, his face twisted into a pained expression for a moment, before he shakily forced it back into place. Looking at Gohan, Turles's smile returned.

It hadn't taken long, perhaps ten seconds, for Gohan to notice Turles stopped blinking. The last struggled attempt at breathing ceased and everything became still and quiet.

"Turles?" Gohan asked weakly, unable to believe what he'd just done. "Father?"

Placing his hand on the chest, Gohan felt his limb trembling uncontrollably as his entire body began to shake. Another sob escaped him as his body betrayed his feelings. He'd killed his father, the man who'd saved his lives countless times. He'd murdered the man he loved as his father, for the sake of a kind woman and her bratty kid. He'd killed a man for the sake of a man he hated, and a Namekian he'd somehow befriended.

As tightly as his hand could, he gripped Turles's shreds of armour on his body with his one hand as he felt himself starting to cry. Finally, tears fell freely, there was no resistance anymore, there was nothing left to get in the way of his heart ripping open. A pained, choked cry escaped him. The tears he'd failed to hold back slid down his cheeks, mixing with blood and trailing over burns, cuts and scars.

"Why did you make me do it?" Gohan asked the corpse. "We could have- if you'd- why!?"

Angry tears mixed with grieved ones, before Gohan slammed his fist weakly against the body he now hunched over.

"Please, just..." Gohan breathed. "Tell me! Tell me why?!"

The question now was posed too late, it was something he could never have answered.

Why did he refuse to just spare this miserable planet?

Why did he not surrender when he was losing?

Why did Turles take him under his wing all those years ago?

Pain shot through Gohan with each question. It was unimaginable. It was blinding, and only caused more agony to seep out of him as he fell on top of the body. Words couldn't even be formed anymore as Gohan's body became completely wracked with sobs and grief. Pained screams and cries escaped him, and in-between them, his body just choked for air.

Turles had been his friend. Teacher. Protector... Father.

I killed my father.

The last conscious thought branded itself into his mind, before Gohan's world went dark, his body unable to be denied its rest any longer.

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Post Chapter Author's Notes: If you'd believe it, this was written over two days, and as I said, was written with one piece in mind. Huge, important events often get longer chapters in my stories. In a lot of ways, this chapter is the end of the first 'Saga' of The Long Road. There are consequences for this.

Now then, I would like to once again thank everyone whose followed this story. I've been very humbled by how much people have taken to this story overall. Between Private Messages and Reviews, as well as Favourites and Follows, and just the raw number of views, I've really, really come to appreciate the amount of support you've all given me. It may not seem ground breaking, but for me it has been very eye opening.

Chapter 16 has been my most ambitious single piece for any story I've written so far. In terms of how the action was described, how the characters viewed the world, and how they interacted with one another, and the scale of the events and character development that takes place within it.. I didn't want to leave anything to question, but I want to leave people's imaginations open, as to what people were thinking or why they did what they did.

Now, with all that said, given the scale of this chapter and the scope of it, I really, sincerely want to know what everyone thinks.

If you have any feedback at all please let me know, and please let me know if you enjoyed, or disliked the chapter.

As said before, it's probably the most important single chapter I've written for any of my stories so far. Which now makes it something I eventually have to beat... within this very story. Don't worry, I've got plans ;)

Expect to see Videl make an entrance in the story hopefully within the next 5-6 chapters or so. Her first return chapter is actually a chapter exclusively written for her, and not for Gohan or any of the other cast. It'll be a very large chapter (though nothing like this) and very, very important. For those who've wished to see Videl since Chapter 7, don't worry, the wait will soon be over, and after that she consistently plays a major role in this story, for the most part.

I hope everyone enjoys and wishes to continue reading.

Next update will be: Monday the 21st.

Reviewers:

Ness Frost: Thank you for the review. Gohan felt indebted to Goku in a way once he learned that from him. It gave him that brief chance to open up.

Deflow: Power Levels would be really tough to give you right now. I promise I'll try to provide you more of an insight later however. A lot of people don't like getting Power Levels posted in chapters. So I'll see what I can do.

Maesde: This chapter was one of the bigger challenges I've tackled as a writer so far.

KaosMoshpit: Sorry dude. I tried. XD

Eveline: Turles in most ways, was Gohan's father more than anyone.

Peter1398: I like to think I named this one well, as well.

Ky111: I hope that I met your excited expectations :)

Low on Inspiration: You got the big chapter, lol

ergfvew: I'm not sure how it can be so awesome. I just accept how awesome it is, for what it is. Awesome. :P

XXXpossessedforelifeXXX: Thank you for your kind words Possessed. I hope you still think so highly of it after this chapter.

Guest: Thanks!

Dbzfan001: Your long wait is over friend!

Darkvoid116: All the training in the world couldn't prepare Gohan for this :(

tomorrow4eva: Bet you didn't see this coming either XD

RedHunter87: Well, you got what you wanted! By the way, thank you for your kind words. I hope you enjoyed this instalment.