Dragon Ball Z: The Catalyst

by Drakthul

Catalyst: a person or thing that precipitates an event or change. A traditional encounter is changed, and begins a series of events which will alter the fate of millions. From the beginning of the Saiyan Saga forward. Rated T for violence and themes.

94. Chapter 94: Mirror

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

The Cataylst

Act VI

Chapter 94: Mirror

Turles:

The craft flew through the air with all the grace of a rock, but it flew. In the rear compartment, Kakarot was sleeping, though his occasional screams of pain were noted. It was more than a little disappointing that he was going to need to hear that in his condo if he was there for any kind of reason. Not because he didn't enjoy hearing the suffering of others, or that he cared about Kakarot's condition, but solely on the basis that his home was a very quiet place, and he enjoyed it that way. He didn't like other people cluttering his space, which was one reason he forced Raditz to live somewhere else as soon as he could.

Everything was organized the way he liked it. The furnishings were arranged the way he liked them. He spent time creating his space, and inviting these other fools into it was something he was already regretting. It was of course, only made better by the fact that he was now pretending to be this other guy's father, if only because his mother was something he didn't want to deal with. It was clear dodging difficult challenges was a talent Gohan, both present and future, had a knack for, when it didn't involve getting himself killed.

With his arms crossed he stared at the pilot, looking unimpressed the majority of the flight so far. He'd only been in the back a few times to 'check' on the others. They all seemed engrossed with Kakarot and his health, and understandably so. At least it was helping avoid awkward questions about Ox, or was it Collar, now? This kid was terrible at lying. First, if you need to lie about something important, you plan it out in ADVANCE, you don't do it on the fly. Turles considered himself somewhat of an expert on the subject, and if Gohan wasn't dealing with such amateurs, he'd have already failed a dozen times by now.

The young man eyed him once before looking back ahead, continuing their flight as he clearly did his best to ignore him.

"So," Turles started again. "Your name is Collar and Ox is your nickname?"

"Will you stop pestering me on this."

"Oh? Well I want to make sure you can actually keep your story straight, especially since you seem intent on keeping who you are from your younger self, and your mother."

There was a tensing of the other fighter's shoulders before he shot him a look from the side, not fully turning to give him his full attention, but it was enough that Turles smirked. Lying was not this kid's forte, and that much was painfully obvious to him. Well, once you buried yourself, you really needed to figure out what you were going to do. So, he'd opted to start this game, he was going to need to learn to play it. As he'd always thought to himself, they all had their roles to play.

"They don't need to know," he pointed out. "It's just not something I can be focused on with the Androids here. And with my dad being the way he is? Mom needs to focus on him right now."

Being a fantastic liar did have perks, beyond just being good at concealing your intentions and manipulating others, you could very much easily pick up on the cues of someone else being dishonest. Firstly, the honest ones when lying, were very clearly uncomfortable with their remarks, and Gohan most certainly was giving up all of his cards. It was interesting that he seemed to have the same ticks that his younger self did, when it came to being dishonest, though ironically his younger self was clearly getting better at concealing them. Staring to one side, often away from the point of discussion or the person he was talking to, and trying to deflect onto the other subject.

"You're the one uncomfortable," Turles said bluntly. "Which is fine. I personally wouldn't want to be in the middle of the mess…"

"Oh? Is that why you tried to corner me back at the house?"

Good, he's not totally useless and clueless at this.

"I was looking out for your mother's best interests."

"What a kind brother-in-law you are," Gohan shot back. "No ulterior motives here. You had a plan, and you were involving her. I don't like it; do you understand me? You stay the Hell away from her, and my younger self. I can see the snake that you are. Everything you do is to manipulate people, all to your own gain. Even after Android 18 nearly killed you, even before that, I could see you doing it."

Turles's amusement bled away as he looked at his 'son'. It was the clearest anyone had been with him on the subject, and he was genuinely impressed. He liked to think he'd been a great uncle, and a great brother-in-law. What with him saving his nephew and sister-in-law, and with him putting them up in his own home.

Spying at the city they were passing, Turles realized that Orange-Star City was coming and going. So, this monkey had another idea. That was where he was much less impressed with his dear nephew.

"I take it that we're not going to my condo, then?" Turles asked calmly, his eyebrow raising before he looked out the window again.

"We're going to Capsule Corporation, and then you're getting out and moving on. I'm going to sort things out with Vegeta first, then I'm leaving my dad and mom with Bulma…"

Well, my respect for him as a tactician has declined. His ignorance is painful.

They'd both felt Trunks's energy flare up, and they'd both sensed him decline rapidly with Vegeta's power rising, before Piccolo's energy briefly appeared. So, this guy wanted to go off the script? Well, that wasn't going to happen, not under his watchful eye. There was going to be an altercation, if necessary, to divert things back to their original plan.

"Well, son, that's not only a series of misguided ideas, but I'm regretting to tell you, that it'd be an incredibly stupid idea. Firstly, my home was picked because the Androids didn't know who I was. Secondly, you are not facing Vegeta, because he'd crush you even faster than I will. Oh, and the third point I am making, just to be clear, is if you don't turn this craft towards my apartment, I'll break your skull open and leave your body in the streets down there."

When the young man turned towards him, this time clearly full of righteous indignation, Turles could see the rage seeping through from beneath that, and gave it several seconds. Releasing the controls, Gohan stood up to confront him, getting into his face.

"This is my family. I don't think you're understanding me. I'm not playing whatever games you have in store for everyone here. I'm not going to be intimidated. We're going to pretend to get along until we get there, then you're done, understand? You can go off on your own, where you belong. Now you can get the Hell out now, or you can-"

Turles hadn't been making threats, he'd been making promises.

Before Gohan even fully knee what was happening, Turles had shoved him out into the open space outside the craft, his body blasting out the door next to the pilot's seat. Air sucked out as the pressure changed and Turtles sighed. With his mind, he reached out to Gohan.

"Pilot the craft to my rooftop. Your cousin and I have some things to work out."

"This seems like a really bad idea, uncle Turles."

"It's about as good as I can do right now, kid."

Looking through the wind at a glance, he could see the worried looks from everyone save Kakarot. His eyes traced over the two most familiar figures, first noting Kakarot's son. Gohan, the better Gohan, was confused as much as he was concerned. Kakarot's woman, Chi-Chi, was just as scared as she was worried. That was not something he'd intended, and the boy outside was going to pay for disrupting his plans.

Giving a smile before rushing out into the open air, seeing the falling form of his 'son' before gold wrapped around his new opponent's form, and gold covered his own. The fight couldn't happen at the city, especially if there were Androids watching for anything like that. That was fine, this planet was more than big enough for another battlefield. It only took a second for the other fighter to charge towards him, swooping through the air in a blur as Turles saw him from a kilometre away.

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Raditz:

The wasteland was a familiar sight for him. He remembered the first time he travelled across this world, with company in tow, seeing these untamed lands with few inhabitants, and not even bothering to reflect on what it looked like. Despite being barren, there was a kind of charm to it. The vast expanse was more often from his view, a battlefield. This wasn't far from where he'd killed Nappa, even. The signs of where Vegeta's great ape form had destroyed much of the region was still visible, even now years later.

This was where they were regrouping for now, it looked like. Leave it to the Namek to pick the most practical place to try to figure things out. It was sound in the explanation however. If they followed power levels at all, it might reveal where Kakarot was if they went to him with any haste, and right now the flare-up of the Future Warrior and Turles seemed like a grim repeat of what had just happened in West City.

Raditz could sense it and felt uneasy immediately. Turles wasn't know for his mercy, and was a more efficient fighter than Vegeta when he needed to be. The question was going to be was the Namek going to intervene like he had before? Chasing after him was a nightmare once he got going, everyone was already tired, with the exception of Trunks.

"Oh no," Trunks breathed, his eyes widening before looking at the rest of them. "You all sense that, right?"

The kid had a rough one, that was for sure. Being Vegeta's son was a burden no one should want to carry. Even if Raditz held a grudge, he didn't know how he could against someone Vegeta had so violently rejected. It was ironic, in many ways, Vegeta had been the head of the family that composed himself, Nappa, and the Prince. In the same way this boy had been cast out and discarded, Raditz had been cast out and discarded.

For the same reason, seemingly, as well.

"Yes," Raditz confirmed before anyone else before looking in the direction of the fight, feeling nervous for Ox's situation. "Hopefully things don't escalate as badly as they did in your case."

"This isn't good," Tien said, sounding just as nervous as Raditz felt. "Are we going to tear ourselves apart? The Androids are still out there, and they might not be caught unaware this time. It's not over yet, not by a long shot. We can't just kill each other."

"We've gotta step in," Krillin piped up. "We've already lost Yamcha, we can't lose anyone else…"

The Namek was a statue almost, staring into the distance, his eyes fixed hard on the horizon, his teeth being barred as he tried to keep himself under control. He looked more than concerned for just a stranger, though he wasn't sure why. He didn't sense Gohan's power at all, and it hadn't vanished from some kind of violent encounter.

"Those idiots are supposed to be moving Goku," Piccolo growled, his tone severe. "And now they're going to try and kill each other?"

"… Ox… wouldn't do it without a good reason," Trunks rationalized. "Maybe that Turles guy was up to something."

"Turles is always up to something," Krillin growled. "We've gotta help Ox. We'll figure out whatever Turles was up to later."

Turles wasn't an idiot. He'd already tried direct confrontations with the others, and that was when he was trying to establish dominance over the others. Why the Hell would he start this now? He was at the very least tactical, and Raditz knew it. So, where did that leave things?

Ox… started the fight? Or instigated it? I don't know the guy very well, but that seems crazy.

Was Piccolo sizing up the same equation?

"I'm going," Trunks declared.

"Stay," Raditz ordered, his tone stiff before he looked at the others. "I don't believe Turles would be just trying to kill your friend for no reason, and I doubt even more than he'd be out there trying to put him down. Turles knows if he did anything even approaching that, the Namek would kill him."

There was a pause before Trunks turned back to him, almost violently.

"What the Hell? Did you not just see what Vegeta just did to me?" Trunks spat. His tone hurt by his own words. The fire seemed to deflate out of him a second later after he'd said it, and Raditz could see the realization and self pity beneath the surface.

Because he'd felt that before as well. Blaming himself for Vegeta's actions.

"He's not wrong," Tien chimed in. "If we don't get involved now, Ox is dead."

"Turles is not Vegeta. Do you really think he'd jeopardize his position and life over that? In all the time you've known him, for all the backstabbing and mistakes, do you really think he'd play the same hand again, especially when he's unlikely to survive it once the Namek arrives? He knows how strong Piccolo is, and I expect Piccolo is much less forgiving than Kakarot."

The Namek seemed to still be trying to conceal his frustration and anger, his teeth locked together as his eyes stared still in the direction of the powers. This was going to be his decision more than anyone elses. The rest of them could at best, play a spoiler role. Perhaps if all of them dogpiled Turles, without the Namek there, they could swing things in Ox's favour.

But the source of the next comment surprised him. Krillin seemed to relax before taking a few steps towards the ledge of the cliff they were standing on.

"Maybe," he agreed. "Maybe Raditz is right. Why would Turles turn on Ox like this? It doesn't make sense. Turles nearly got killed by the Androids too. Why would he jeopardize everything? We should go to check it out, but let's not just jump to conclusions."

"We'll check on it," Piccolo remarked. "And if we sense things getting out of hand, I'll try to intervene faster, but right now it's hard to tell what's happening over there."

Auras covered all of them as Raditz felt himself feel some relief.

Now, all he hoped, was that his brother didn't fuck this up, and actually try to kill the other guy.

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Future Gohan:

Everything this guy said oozed with manipulation. He'd seen him even briefly talking to his younger self and saw the poison he was delivering him, and it was something he could barely keep himself under control over. The way he manipulated his mother was obvious, even how he was trying to corner him back at his home. Then there was the fact that his dad was going to be left in this guy's care? To Hell with that, Gohan was raised better than that to just let that happen. The only problem was, even now as they squared off, the trees around them swaying from the waves of power between the two of them, Gohan found himself overmatched, again.

But having experience fighting consistently stronger opponents might be helpful to him. Still, this guy was a killer, a Saiyan Warrior from space was just like Vegeta, Raditz, and Nappa from his timeline. He didn't forget them so easily. He could sense how Trunks had just been badly injured, and were it not for the others, he might have died. These guys were vicious, and he couldn't forget that.

The Androids were dangerous too, but it was a cold kind of mechanical kind of dangerous. The other Saiyans fought like vicious, starved animals.

And the predator in front of him had raised his guard, slowly edging towards him.

"You don't need to do this, kid," Turles said. "You're not going to win. We can just head back and act like nothing happened."

"Yea, sure," Gohan shot back. "Except we both know the kind of snake you are. I'm here to stop the Androids, and you undermine everyone and everything around you, for your own little games. I can see it even if the others can't. You're going to use all of this to your own gain."

There was a knowing, dangerous smile on the other fighter as he started to move forward again, this time entering his threat range, clearly not intimidated, and it made Gohan angry that he felt like he was able to do that. Reluctantly, Gohan's feet started to slide backwards, trying to put the distance between them again.

"You've not been here, kid," Turles pointed out. "You don't think your old man and I have fought? Do you not think the others here like having me around? You're delusional. Old Uncle Turles has caused some problems, but I'm a team player, now. I am the survive, and I thrive. So, when I tell you where we're moving Kakarot, I'm not telling you that because I want that lump of flesh dirtying my apartment, I'm telling you that because it's the right move. I'm just here to help…"

Bullshit you are.

Turles's style seemed mostly to be a Saiyan-styled stance. Just from what he'd seen so far, he guessed that he'd fight in a disruptive way, given how he'd not blindly charged Android 18. The problem was, he'd not seen him in a real fight, and he didn't know how he was going to react. Part of how he was positioning his legs to respond reminded him of his father, and it didn't help he was seemingly wearing his face, and clothes at the moment. That in and of itself, my be intentional on his uncles' part.

Dad, I wish you were here. You'd know what to do.

It took Gohan only a second long to decide his mode of attack, launching himself forward, faking left before striking right with his first strike. The other Saiyan moved sharply to one side, which had been what Gohan had wanted. Feigning a kick onto Turles's left side, Gohan stopped short, before swinging back around and going low, sweeping for the legs. When Turles hopped to avoid the clearing of his legs, Gohan rose like a geyser of raw power, striking upwards with a vicious uppercut, a golden aura surrounding him as he did as his fist cracked into the Saiyan's ribs. It was a surprise hit, and it was early, Turles's eyes were clearly in a bit of disbelief before Gohan kicked him back.

The ground beneath the other Saiyan tore open as his body shot back across the grassland, they'd found themselves standing in. He needed to keep up his momentum, blurring to the side of his opponent in mid air, Gohan stabbed his knee into his side before driving an elbow into the elder Saiyan's gut, sending him into the ground. Immediately the earth spider-webbed before it started to slip into itself, dozens of tons of earth shifting and burying Turles.

Forcing energy into his body his hands, Gohan took aim and threw both his hands forward, firing the bolt of energy Piccolo had taught him so many years ago.

"MASENKO!"

The golden light, coloured by a fair layer of purple and orange, shot straight into the ground where he sensed Turles. A golden fireball emerged at its core. Energy sparked in all directions before the blast exploded upwards. Fire cascaded beneath the soil itself before energy crackled along the surface of the Earth. The brilliance of the light seemed to subside a moment later as the smoking crater he'd created fumed with fire and ash, the residual energy he'd left behind from the attack still dissipating through the air as he tried to sense for his supposed Uncle. Unlike the Androids, he at least had this going for him in this instance, the ability to sense power.

Slowly, at the heart of where the explosion had been, he sensed the power emerging from below, and it was still enormous. In fact, it was bigger than when he'd first attacked. Golden power swept away the clouds at the core of where the blast had been, revealing Turles, in his father's now tattered clothing. He spat to one side before glaring up at him with what appeared to be a cold glare.

"So," Turles remarked, brushing some of the dirt off of his shredded pants and almost not existent top. "You're playing for keeps, then?"

Not good.

Preparing to go on the offensive again, Gohan felt himself almost slowing down, despite putting more of his power into his speed. In what felt like being trapped in slow motion, he saw Turles blast towards him in a series of rapid motions, moving on a multi-vectored path towards him, dodging around every attack avenue he had before he vanished in front of him. When the fist collided with the side of his face, Gohan felt like someone had just dropped a bomb on the side of his head as his body jerked violently back, before he felt the knee slam into his gut, a full speed shot sending him and Turles flying towards the ground, this time he felt his back slam into the ground, making the hard point sticking in his gut even more brutal. He spat up saliva a second later as he gagged in real pain, before he felt Turles grab both of his shoulders and fling him straight along the surface of the earth.

Ground tore open as his body was ripped through it violently from the force of the throw. Only when Gohan managed to put his hands out did he finally slow his trail of destruction. When he had a chance to look up, Turles was already swinging towards him. Shoving off the ground, heading straight into the air, the younger Saiyan looked back to where he'd been, noting Turles was already ground before he felt two feet crash into his back. Gagging, he shot towards the ground before he stopped himself just before impact.

Rolling in the air to one side, Turles appeared where he'd just been, striking down into the ground, his fist exploding into the ground like a meteorite before Gohan focused his power, shooting towards the off-centred Turles. When he connected with his first right, he noticed the other Saiyan immediately turned to the defensive as he backed up, avoiding every other strike as it came in towards him.

Gohan knew in the furious attacks, each one barely missing as the other Super Saiyan took his time, that his opponent was waiting for one flaw, one mistake, before the attack would come. What Piccolo and his father had taught him all those years ago had followed him throughout his life, and right now he needed to stay focused and be perfect. But to be perfect indefinitely, was a strategy that couldn't win. He attacked thirty, forty, fifty teams, each strike trying to gain traction. It was only when he felt his left arm deflect off of Turles's block, that he realized the error he'd made in his foot, pre-emptively moving to kick as a follow-up. Turles hooked his free leg before slamming him back first into the ground, before shoving a glowing purple orb into his chest.

The burning energy scorched his clothes as Gohan stared back at the visage of his father staring down at him with dispassion as the power started to surge forward.

The worst thing was realizing that he'd failed.

"AHHHHH!"

The world turned violet before he could regain any kind of control.

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Chi-Chi:

All of Goku's family were terrible, Chi-Chi had concluded. Even if they were well-intentioned, they were so violent. She had benefited from that violence when Turles had stopped those monsters from killing her and her son, but it was a very stark example to her of the darker side of how things could go. Apparently the two older Saiyans were now in the process of fighting each other somewhere, for no reason she could discern. At best she figured that it was an authority issue. She'd not seen him fight Gohan like that before, or even her husband, but clearly something was needing to be addressed in a completely unacceptable way.

The familiar jingle of keys was coming from Gohan as he looked both ways outside the door, the gateway into Turles's home. The building itself was really stunning, it was extremely modern and so clean looking. The fact that he somehow managed to find himself a top floor on Orange-Star City's Galleria luxury condos was something she didn't ask about. Goku and herself seemed to get by on being radish farmers, but that wasn't seemingly even in the same realm as what her brother-in-law was living in. When the door popped open, she half expected to see an apartment with clothes laying everywhere, given how things ever went when Goku was left to his own devices.

But as soon as the door pushed open, and her eyes turned to Gohan, realizing he had a key to get in here when he shouldn't, as far as she was concerned, she stepped through to confront him and was met with an incredible sight. The room was clean. The hall leaning to the kitchen was almost spotless, with everything organized. A specifically arranged series of shoe racks were to one side, and to the other, there was a clearly marked 'guest' rack.

"He doesn't like it when people track in mud," Gohan warned.

Gohan took his shoes off, placing them on the guest rack in what was clearly a practiced motion before walking forward, moving down the hall to the kitchen. Copying him, she took off her shoes before walking down the hall. The walls weren't covered in paintings or anything elaborate, but as she entered the kitchen, she couldn't help but notice one of the nicest, seemingly warmest kitchens she'd ever seen. It was fully stocked, and appliances of convenience which she didn't possess, sat beneath the countertop. It was all stainless steel, with a warm cherry finish on the drawers and cabinets. The hardwood floor beneath her feet was warm, she guessed that was a feature as well?

The furnishings in the living room just past where the Kitchen was were soft looking.

"I think we can put these two couches together and rest dad in the middle? I don't think Turles will want us to move dad's bed into the condo, he really hates it when people mess with his stuff," Gohan noted. "Maybe… yea, the couches are going to be the best route. I think uncle Turles wouldn't want dad in his bed, especially. So, the couch…"

"Your father is sick, and might die. We're putting him to bed, and if we can't move his bed in here. Then we're going to put him in whatever bed is here."

The remark left Gohan looking very quiet, giving her a look that seemed to try and say "it's on you, I guess", though she wasn't having that either. If Turles had a problem with that, then he shouldn't have offered up his home for this kind of use.

Walking to several rooms, she found a bathroom and a small study, the study was the part she found most interesting, given she didn't think Turles would be reading, but there was even a notepad, written in a language she didn't understand, next to the sidetable in there with a book called… "How to Win Friends and Influence People"? Along with a few other books immediately off the shelf, but much like every other room, it was strictly maintained, and neat.

Finally, the last room opened, revealing his bedroom. It was extremely… modern, and was strictly organized. The bed looked comfortable, and his side-table was going to be where she kept the medicine and water for Goku.

Still, it wasn't hard to let her mind wander for just a moment. This place was beautiful, and it was so well maintained. She was surprised no one else was living here and it was so… good. She half expected this place to look like a bombed out, stingy apartment on the wrong side of town, but it was almost a palace, as far as she was concerned.

Really, she was just stunned that this was how this place even was. Even Raditz was a pig, she thought it just ran in the family. But there was one noteworthy thing. Every home she'd lived in, or been to her entire life, had some kind of personal effects. Pictures of family, friends, trophies of noteworthy events… this place had nothing. It was an immaculate, beautiful home, and it was totally empty of anything that resembled a soul.

Gohan looked at his mother before hovering into the air.

"Go get your father and grandfather, we're getting your father to bed."

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Future Gohan:

Even standing up was a burden on him right now. His legs felt like reheated rubber. Burns covered his chest and his new attire was already in tatters. The image of his father was in front of him, his own attire scarred, but not nearly as much. Worse still, Gohan could feel blood trickling from his forehead, and could see the marks of battle on Turles, and knew their injuries weren't comparable so far. He could barely keep standing, and Turles was still very much capable of fighting a sustained battle. This was over, his own power had flagged too much that he knew he'd not be able to earn the knock-out blow he needed to overtake Turles.

Which meant that all there was left to do, was be put down. Even as his hair remained arched up, golden still, his aura had long since died. The killing blow didn't arrive, which was all the worse, given he saw Turles just lower his guard, his hair returning to black as he looked at him sternly, there was an angry murmur in his own chest as he tried to keep himself up. It was more manipulation, or another game. That was the only thing he could think of before Turles walked towards him fearlessly, clearly not concerned that he might strike out at him.

"We're done here," he commented to him. "Or should I say, you're done here. You can barely keep your feet on the ground. Even as I am, I could crush you in a minute."

Breathing heavily, Gohan reluctantly let his hair fade back to black as he stared at his uncle, which felt like a dirtyword to apply to his father's look-alike. His guard slowly fell as the other fighter came in front of him, and quite frankly he just wanted to collapse he was so exhausted, but a definite lack of trust was preventing him from taking anything that even looked like a break, even during this faux cease-fire.

This was a capitulation and he knew it. It felt like he'd failed his dad by not finding the path to win against this thug.

"So, I'm going to make myself very clear. I am the one in charge. I am the one coming up with the plans. I am the one who lasted longest, out of the Saiyans, against the Androids. I am also the one who you thought you could just order around. I hope I've managed to get this point across, kid. I decide what's best. If the Namek's here and disagrees, he decides what's best, because he can enforce that opinion with strength, at the moment."

Survival of the fittest. It definitely sounded like the Raditz and Nappa of his timeline, and he wasn't surprised to hear the pitch here either. Though his thoughts were broken a second later as Turles continued.

"Oh, and Gohan? Do you remember when we had our first talk, at the hospital?" Turles asked, his tone growing harsher with every word he spoke. "I remember quite clearly how you brushed me aside with your power. I'm not the one who's done here, the next time you decide you think you can push me around."

It was a statement, not a question, by the end of it. He couldn't bring himself to verbally acknowledge it, but when he looked away, Gohan knew that Turles understood the message was received. He almost expected the knockout blow to come a second later, an act of revenge for past transgressions. But the fist never landed.

"Everything's just a game to you," Gohan managed, feeling his guilt for having not won, or resisted this man as his uncle walked a few metres away, stopping as he spoke. "These people aren't your pawns, and my family isn't either. Do you really think my dad or Piccolo are going to let you manipulate everyone?"

Turning his head slightly, Turles gave him a cold stare, it almost looked straight through him as he felt himself brace for the attack that hadn't come moments ago, instead, his father's double just gave him a smile. It was unnerving, and it was cold.

"I don't think you understand," Turles said bluntly. "They know all too well. But they also know that they need me. It's called leverage. Why do you think Vegeta's still around? Everyone knows that they felt like they needed him. The same goes for Raditz. I just happen to play the game better than those other two."

Turning back towards him, Gohan felt like the devil was making his way towards him, and immediately felt dirty over the fact he'd just been beaten by this guy. Worse yet, he felt just how compromised everyone else must have felt working with this guy. What did his dad and Piccolo think? Worse yet, being around someone like this, what kind of influence did that have on you as a person? Gohan couldn't help but ask the question as the dark reflection, the mirror, of his father's features stared back at him.

The worst part being the fact that he knew, much like his father and the others, he too, was bending his knee to this lesser evil in order to survive, and in order to try and stop the monsters that had ruined his own world. But at what cost was it going to come? Was this why Vegeta was so much worse in this timeline? Compromises with this thing? Or was it compromises with Raditz? It was impossible to tell, but Gohan knew that all of this was wrong. The pieces on the board weren't meant to be arranged this way.

Trunks wasn't supposed to be here either… or maybe he wasn't supposed to be there? That was a crazy thought to have as well.

"So, we're actually going to practice," Turles commented. "And we're going to go over the lies you need to tell to cover for yourself. I can't drag you back in with you being this pitiful at the task. So, son, let's get started. Oh, and you'd better get your story straight with your friend Trunks, as soon as you see him. Because all it takes is one idiot to ruin any well-planned event."

For a brief second, Gohan looked at this manipulative bully and perhaps saw past the self interest. Despite him trying to stop him, just minutes ago, he was trying to coach him on getting his story straight for lying to his family, outside of his dad of course who already knew. How much of it was self-interested, to preserve his own lies? Gohan suspected all of it. But the fact he even questioned it for a few moments, showed just how everyone else had been lured in by this spider.

Dad's going to be the one to stop this guy. I can tell. Once the Androids are finished, this guy's going to square off with dad. This isn't a battle I can win… but Goku can.

For a brief second, Gohan could have sworn that Turles heard him, giving the look he gave him, followed by a confident smirk.

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Raditz:

The powers both died down and Raditz felt relief as he looked at the others. Anyone who could pay attention to how the ki interacted could see that Ox had been spending more of his energy budget much sooner, and it'd just not been enough to overwhelm Turles. There was a strange convergence going on between his brothers. The longer Turles and Kakarot fought near one another, or trained near one another, their fighting styles seemed to harmonize. On Namek, Turles would have gone full force immediately and annihilated his opponent, and even if he could sense Turles had turned up the power, he'd fought smart this time, letting his opponent tire out before exerting less energy to win the fight.

There didn't seem to be any sign of him killing him, which meant the dispute was handled, whatever it was. Even as they were still headed in that direction, it gave Raditz the confidence that he'd made the right call. Though it was peculiar all the same, because he could sense how resistant everyone was to it.

The oddity of being with Kakarot's friends again was the other thing in all of this that was playing on his mind. The rebuke he'd received for his… correct… actions, was something he didn't think he'd live to experience the consequences of. He wouldn't have described any of these people as his friends, but they were people he'd struggled alongside, warriors of a cadre he never anticipated he'd have been apart of, if only briefly.

"Things seem to be calming down," Piccolo observed, his eyes peeled ahead still, not even sparing a glance to the rest of them as they raced through the skies. "We're getting close now."

"The better question is going to be how are we going to handle things with Kakarot?" Raditz asked. "We know he's suffering and can't fight. Do we know if the Androids can detect energy in detail?"

"From what I could see, it was very limited," Trunks explained, though his tone was still ensnared with concern for what Raditz assumed, was his friend. "They weren't following Piccolo's energy, for the most part, in the fight. In my time they seemed able to follow my every move, but that might not be because of energy."

He could understand it. It was the same concern he'd felt for Kakarot while he was aboard Frieza's ship, or when he knew Gohan had been in danger multiple times. The details of this other timeline weren't his, not at the moment. If it were Gohan, he suspected he'd not use the moniker. He was almost certain it was him. There was almost no way it wasn't. The age was right, the appearance was right. It'd all come into place not too long ago.

If it was Gohan, he certainly would be proud to know that not only had he survived fighting against these things, but he'd achieved the goal. Kakarot's son, just like his father, having achieved the legendary form of a Super Saiyan. It was more than a little ironic, Raditz knew that he was now the last adult Saiyan alive to have never conquered the form of legend. It'd been Kakarot, Turles and Vegeta who were chosen to hold that mantle, and clearly their offspring as well.

"You and your friend didn't seem to have much success against the Androids," Raditz commented, trying to change the subject as they continued towards the destination. "Though apparently this time has a lot of things that are different, given what we're fighting doesn't match what was said."

"It's complicated," Trunks answered. "But you're right. Things are very different here, and nothing matches up with anything I thought…"

The last word seemed to trail off as he looked distantly forward. There was a moment where Raditz felt like he'd awakened. This boy had been rejected by his father; someone he idolized his entire life. It wasn't unlike what his own experience was, even if it was earlier in life. What was worse was in this brief exchange, seemingly unrelated, he realized the depth of his failure. When he'd tried to obtain his revenge on Vegeta, a revenge that had blinded him, and drove him to any lengths he could… he'd held others accountable for what Vegeta had done.

This boy was no son of Vegeta, and if he was, he clearly wasn't responsible for what Vegeta had done. Vegeta himself, made that abundantly clear by his actions. This was the boy, the future of the boy, he'd tried to murder. The future warrior had no idea, and Raditz had no idea that this was the person he'd tried to kill, would end up being.

All the anger and hatred the others had put on display for him, even Kakarot, was justified. He even knew that himself at this point, he'd known it for a while, but this just framed it so clearly that he couldn't even look away from it.

The others seemed to keep their eyes ahead, while Raditz flew, he looked back at the boy twice, feeling the guilt welling in his stomach.

This was what Kakarot had understood when he'd told him to drop it.

"I was wrong," Raditz managed to say to himself, if only quietly, though he noticed only after he said it, Krillin was staring at him.

Composing himself immediately, Raditz looked ahead, pulling ahead of the others before he dove down from the heights of the sky, swooping in and making landfall first as a cloud of dust followed his arrival just as Turles was straightening out what was left of his attire. Ox was behind him, leaning against a rock and looking like someone had just beaten the Hell out of him. Well, he guessed that was what happened given the exchanges of power they'd all felt.

A second later, the others arrived in rapid succession as Raditz took a social note and stepped outside of the Namek's way as Piccolo strode forward.

"What happened?" Piccolo demanded.

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Turles:

When his brother arrived first, Turles was a bit surprised. Raditz didn't lead, he was a follower by nature. When the rest of the cadre arrived next, it was obvious what was coming, and he'd already anticipated it. There were few leaders amongst the fighters on this planet. Kakarot, despite how much Turles despised to admit it, was one of them. The Namek was another one, even if he put him behind Kakarot, and he doubted anyone else had the stomach for it, other than himself of course. Vegeta, despite being a Prince, was no king. He'd been subservient to Frieza for too long to ever be a leader, he was a goon and little else.

The kid, behind him, might have potential as well, if only because he had a spine, but that was just making him an inconvenience at the moment.

Which was why he was having to stand at attention for the Namek.

"Our future friend and I had a disagreement, we worked it out," Turles commented. "The Saiyan way, that is. I'm not some savage like Vegeta."

There was a sneering set of glares set upon him, though none more than Trunks, who appeared like he was ready to rip his arm off. The bloodless brothers from the future most certainly were protective of one another, though he quite frankly didn't care if there was a story behind it, at least not at the moment. Information was an important component behind control, but that data was something he was going to need to collect when it was more advantageous.

"What are you trying to prove?" Trunks shouted almost immediately. "Gohan wouldn't do anything to start a fight with you."

Turles's eyes flashed, along with everyone else's, barring Piccolo, before he grinned at the Namek, who was staring back at him seriously. Clearly the information wasn't supposed to get out, and when Turles turned to Gohan, he gave him the same cocky grin he'd given the Namek. The look on Gohan's features weren't impressed, as he didn't even make eye contact with him but instead was intensely staring at Vegeta's bastard.

"Secrecy isn't a finely honed skill in the future of this world, is it?" Turles mocked before looking past the Namek to the kid. "And my nephew opted to start the fight by putting Kakarot's life in danger."

"You're lying," Trunks fired right away.

"Trunks," Gohan said. "Drop it. We worked things out."

Smart.

"Gohan?" Raditz asked, making his approach to the older incarnation of their nephew. "I thought so."

The situation was becoming beautifully chaotic, though Turles only enjoyed it when he had control, and right now that seemed fleeting.

"Kakarot's at my home, along with my younger nephew. There should be very limited movement towards or near the city, in order not to attract attention to my residence," Turles explained. "As places like Capsule Corporation," Turles started, glaring at Gohan before turning back to the others. "Are known to be places affiliated with Kakarot. They obviously have been spying on him somewhat. It made the most sense. Trust me, I don't want Kakarot in my house. Though I also like living, and will need him to survive these machines, very obviously."

The Namek listened before looking past him at his defeated 'friend', before looking back at him.

"If Goku's safe, that means our job is now going to shift to finding the Androids and finishing them," Piccolo remarked bluntly.

"So, delivering you to the Androids and watching you kill several of them, before they kill you?" Turles rebuffed, rolling his eyes as he did. "Especially since we don't have the indominable Vegeta with us. I don't usually like to signup for suicide missions."

"Got a better plan?" Krillin shouted. "We need to stop them."

"Wait for Kakarot to recover," Turles commented bluntly, brushing off the remark. "So, a few humans might die in the meantime, that's hardly the end of the world."

More scorn followed, but he really didn't care. Being right was more important than being polite.

Before an answer could be fitted, Turles turned his attention to his elder brother, who had stopped near his left side, turning his attention towards everyone.

"Why don't we find the Androids, and if their ranks break, pick off those who get separated?" he offered. "It's a valid tactic. If you can't take the entire herd, you pick off individuals as you can."

When Turles turned his attention forward again, Piccolo's arms were crossed now before he looked at Raditz, and then back at him.

"Until Goku's back in action, we're going to need to find the Androids, even if we don't engage them. If one or two break off from the others, Raditz's plan makes sense."

"We'll need to fan out to find them," Tien offered.

"We'll need to form teams," Krillin then added. "And it's good to see how you turned out, Gohan. Your dad would be proud."

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Author's Notes:

I think Future Gohan, for the memes, may be a Karen.

Lol.

You guys didn't really seem to respond to Chapter 93. That's unfortunate, as we're gonna have like… 3 more Android chapters coming, alternating with the others. So uhm… Sorry, lol

Other Note:

A few of you may know, I used to write Inuyasha fanfiction, (this may be why I hate Romance, lmao, but we can discuss my own neurotic problems later) and apparently there is a new show coming out, that's production looks a lot like Dragon Ball GT. Where the original creator isn't really doing the story itself, and is just doing some designs for the writers/ production who are handling everything else.

What's worse, it's looking like they're kinda low-key endorsing Grooming, as my favourite character from the show who saved a little girl and helped raise her for at least a while, appears to settle down with her once she's an adult and produce offspring. I'm not one to usually tout social justice and what not, and Inuyasha on the outside appears to be in the Feudal Era (it's not, it's just all allegory and metaphor, very little actually behaves like the feudal era, or the attitudes of the people in it), but I feel like I'm on crazy pills, because for years that fanbase were rumbling that they wanted that 'pairing' to exist, and I find the whole thing genuinely creepy and upsetting.

So, yea. I thought my story "Being Alive" was probably my best written start to a story, in so far that I was emulating the series deliberately with short-term villains and characters, and it would run along a long, protracted plot that would evolve over time. It was very much "The Catalyst" of Inuyasha. It's really sad where things are for that franchise now, lol.

"Look, just because he saved her at the age of 6, she became his loyal follower, and then he started a 'relationship' her 10-12 years later, doesn't make him a creep, or someone grooming her!" – Random fan.

I kinda think it does. :\

Sorry for the non-Dragonball rant. I'm just genuinely mad.

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Reviewers:

Pyromania101: Answered by PM.

MalikJamalTimberlake: TLR's on a bit of a hold until I get a few more chapters of this done. Characters will… disappear in my writing queue soon, then I can change attention.

TheItchyCocoon: Trucker hat's comin'! Just you watch! Lol

Super Mystic Gohan: Oh, it's definitely an environment evolving in the same way. I really wanted the Androids and the Defenders to be two teams, equally flawed.

Blades of Fury: Character development can't happen without the quiet moments. The road to Chapter 100 is paved with slower chapters, lol.

Guest1: I can wait, it's an important chapter to me personally, but I've had to restart writing it twice now. Lmao.

Uraqt393: Things will happen with 17 and 18, but the cast will become a bit more rotation based as time goes on, especially after the Android Saga.

Red Power: You'll love… Chapter 97, I suspect.