Chapter 19: In which the bad guys always ruin a good time!

Dislcaimer: I don't own DBZ.

Loving everyone's reviews by the way!

/

Having returned to the lively stands after the boys' fight, I hoisted Lattice up onto the side of my waist so he could see down below.

When I'd teleported into the waiting area before, he'd been ecstatic to see me, eyes enlarged, jumping up and down like human children often did for the ice cream truck. I'd lost count of how many times Lattice asked if I'd been watching his fight.

Even Trunks, having been surprised by his cousin's strength, was in a better mood; amped even. After all, he'd be fighting Goten after a few more rounds and had just received a hell of a warm-up.

And so, standing quietly next to Goku while he conversed with his best friend, I leaned my face gently against my son's as he wrapped an arm securely around my neck.

'I don't know what to think…' I was still in shock from what Goku had told me, and the sudden feelings of that shock, gratitude, and a slightly rekindled anger left me silent, a drained expression on my face and somewhat uncomfortable feeling in my chest. 'Should I ask Lattice about that night?'

It's not that I doubted Goku, but… Who wouldn't want to get a first-hand account of the story from their hero? Their own child—having given up their life to save yours!

'But that was fifteen years ago… and he still has the mentality of a little boy… I don't want to upset him…'

I wondered… How much of Broly did Lattice remember..?

Realizing I was practically glaring, I sighed and shook my head in an attempt to force the bad feelings down.

Broly…

A small finger reached around to the left side of my face and poked my cheek, causing me to briefly shut my eyes and smirk. "What?" I asked under my breath, pulling back somewhat to look at my son.

As I prodded his cheek in return, Lattice exclaimed, "Trunks and Goten are next!"

My eyes widened. "Oh, already?" I looked down onto the ring where the announcer was reading over his clipboard.

Down below, the blond host brought the microphone to his lips, and his magnified voice called out, "NOOOOW THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR!"

As he spoke, Trunks and Goten appeared from behind the partition and made their way out to the announcer.

"THE JUNIOR DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP IS BETWEEN EIGHT YEAR-OLD TRUNKS AND SEVEN YEAR-OLD GOTEN!"

I smirked again, showing a bit of teeth, whilst Krillin gushed, "This is gonna be awesome!" and Goku agreed with "Definitely!"

The crowd numbering in the thousands was making their alliances known; some areas shouting Goten's name, others chanting Trunks' name.

The boys were holding stance, ready to fight—tension building.

'But if I know them, they're all grins down there.'

Goku leaned forward slightly, bringing a hand to his mouth. "RELAX AND HAVE FUN GUYS! YOU'RE BOTH LOOKING GREAT DOWN THERE!"

Krillin added, "LOOKIN' SHARP! GO FOR THE GUSTO!"

And the two were off like lightning, meeting in the center of the ring in a small pushing struggle. Trunks then shoved Goten back and the two went jetting across the ring, exchanging blows, both boys suddenly flipping back and away from each other before flitting into the air to exchange more jabs.

I let out a low whistle. It had only ten seconds or so and they had already stunned the audience into silence as they fought meters above the ring.

I glanced over as Gohan and Videl ran up on us; I'd nearly forgotten about them.

"Hey dad, Midori, Krillin, we finally finished the qualifying test!"

Krillin tossed the teenagers a devilish look. "What took so long, hmm?" He then laughed. "Oh, I see, you were hanging out with your girlfriend!"

Gohan's sunglasses did nothing to hide the sudden flush of his face. "Krillin, it's not like that! We're just friends!"

The shorter male laughed louder. "Yeah, right! Whatever!" He exclaimed, waving a hand.

Even Goku joined in with "Gohan, is that sunburn, or are you blushing?"

Leaning forward from next to Goku, I happened to catch Videl's wide-eyed gaze and winked, causing her to blink in confusion, before I turned back to the fight.

Trunks slammed his fist into Goten's face, the younger boy returning the gesture a moment later before they took to high speed dodging; the technique that I'd been working on with Trunks— it was definitely paying off.

"And Goten's got it down too…" I mumbled to myself, impressed.

But, Trunks was showing more and more that he'd mastered all of our training. The way he charged Goten when back down in the rink, then pivoted to the side, disappearing—leaving Goten stumbling—then using a distraction punch to turn around and nearly kick the younger boy out of the ring.

Not to mention the speed they were moving at!

The fight was proving to be almost a whole caliber higher than Lattice's fight, and I could only nod, feeling pride for my half-saiyan nephew.

Even Lattice gasped. "Wooow!"

Goten made a short comeback, head-butting Trunks and managing to quickly restrain his older friend during his recovery. Vegeta's son responded by breaking free soon after and ramming his elbow into his friend's face. Meeting each other head on in the ring again, the two ended up punching each other at the same time, both of their heads snapping to the side in unison.

With the intensity of the fight and lowered volume of the crowd, their blows echoed over us loudly, as if their punches were thrown by grown men (of our rank).

"Those two are really tearing it up!" Goku exclaimed. "They'll be stronger than us soon, if we don't watch it!"

"I know!" Gohan said in reply.

Lattice turned to me and asked, "Mommy, can I get that strong, too?"

I feigned a thoughtful pout, glancing up. "As strong as them? Definitely." I then looked over to my left with a sly smirk. "And stronger than Goku? I don't doubt it."

Vegeta, who'd been oddly silent, chuckled at my words, and Goku looked over at me with wide eyes and a smile.

"Hey now, I've got a reputation to keep up, you know!" He joked, laughing a bit.

Down below, the boys had paused their fighting and were back to staring one another down. The previously stunned silent crowd then burst into cheer and applaud without warning. They chanted, "More, more!"

I narrowed my gaze somewhat at the two stationary boys. 'Ah, they're talking.'

That is, until I saw Trunks bring both of his hands back behind him as they lit with energy.

My eyebrows rose. 'He's going to use his Buster Cannon here, eh?'

This was extremely alarming to Gohan and Krillin, who were fussing over the probability of people getting hurt.

I shook my head slowly, smiling as Goku calmly stated, "Aww, it'll be okay. Really—just look at 'im! The kid's in complete control."

The eight year-old thrust his hands forward, firing a yellow energy beam at Goten. The younger boy dodged the wave easily enough, but its course was then dead-on to hit the stadium.

At the last second Trunks worked his hands like a conductor, causing the beam to angle upward and shoot clear over the fear-filled stands.

It was then Goten's turn to show off; causing my smile to quirk a bit, the miniature version of Goku fired a small Kamehameha.

One of my eyebrows lowered though, as Trunks leaned out of the way and the blast proceeded to take a big chunk of the back room's roof with it.

"Oh well," Goku said, arms folded. "I guess Goten still has a little bit of practicing to do on that one."

…

I could tell the match would come to a close soon, as Trunks was suddenly fighting like he was ready to end it. My nephew was pulling out all the tricks we taught him, defensive and offensive, remarkably.

"Oh man," Goku said, worry evident in his voice. "This does not look good!"

"Sure it does," Vegeta spoke up smugly. "If you're rooting for Trunks, that is."

For the lavender-haired child had Goten in an iron-clad stranglehold, midair.

It seemed like a futile struggle until Goten suddenly burst into golden flames, his blond hair standing on end, forcing Trunks off of him.

Dropping to the arena below, Goten just as soon powered down, leaving a contemplative Trunks in the air.

Goku, next to me, stood completely straight, his jaw dropping in shock. "UH—WOW! GOTEN'S ALREADY A SUPER SAIYAN!"

And he'd broken the original agreement as well. Something my brother was quick to voice.

"KAKAROT! THAT'S NOT FAIR!"

Goku turned around to look at Vegeta, eyebrows high. "Well… hey, don't look at me, he did it."

"Look, you two," I interrupted, tipping my chin towards the fight. "Goten's about to try and pull off something big."

They turned their attention back down below us as the younger boy (who'd been forced back up into the air) was flying straight down into the ring, right at Trunks.

Trunks dodged, and at the very last moment Goten held his hands out, using a small blast to rebound against the surface of the tile and shoot off towards the other boy, who was still in the midst of executing his evasion.

I tensed as Goten went rocketing into Trunks from behind, that is, until my nephew managed one more teleporting dodge, disappearing and reappearing behind Goten—as a Super Saiyan—and blasting the boy in the back, sending the already fast-moving Goten clear out of the ring and into the stands.

We all leaned over the railing as Goten attempted to stop himself, but to no avail as his feet touched down on the lower steps of the stadium.

I let out a light laugh, surprised at the sudden ending. "Well, well."

Goku leaned back. "Ah, darn…"

Gohan, on the other side, exclaimed, "Oh no! He lost!"

But Vegeta laughed openly as the host announced that Trunks was the new Junior Championship winner. "Cheer up, Kakarot! There's always next year!" The prince chuckled, actually placing a hand on his rival's shoulder. "Your son put up a good fight, but there can only be one champion!"

Goku couldn't help a feeble laugh at the prince's words, slightly shocked that Vegeta was even touching him; Trunks' win must've put him in a good mood, right?

Of course.

Even more so when it was declared that Trunks would get to be in an exhibition fight with Hercule Satan.

My brother chuckled some more, claiming, "Trunks is going to pulverize this noisy fool!"

"Heh, you mean send him back to the Stone Age?" I asked, readjusting my son on my waist.

Still completely tickled, Vegeta continued to say, "World champion—" in a sarcastic tone. "I've known stronger house plants!"

This seemed to catch Videl's attention, who was still convinced of the lie that her father had been spinning for years.

But Gohan immediately intervened, sliding in front of my brother to block him from Videl's view while shouting, "OH, YEAH RIGHT—VEGETA—HAHA-HAHAHA, COME ON, JOKSTER!" as he waved his hands in a further attempt to distract from the prince's statement. "WHAT A CRAZY, FUNNY GUY, HUH?" Gohan laughed loudly, and was the only one doing so.

I didn't understand what Gohan had against bursting the girl's bubble; it wouldn't take much. Hadn't it been proven already just by watching all of our boys?

Oh well…

Eventually Mr. Satan made his appearance, loud and bumbling like usual, meanwhile Trunks stood calmly in the center of the ring, Goten off to the side by the announcer.

"Man," Krillin said. "He's just too pitiful to watch… Does uh… anyone else wanna get something to eat?"

Two things that I liked to hear.

After Goku accepted his offer, we all walked away without another word. But Videl stopped us, calling indignantly, "Hey wait, you guys! Don't you wanna see the fight between Trunks and my dad?"

We paused, and I was more than eager to call back "Not really!" but kept my mouth shut.

"He is the reigning world champion, you know! Don't you wanna study his technique?"

Again the urge returned…

Gohan spun back around to Videl, speaking in that loud, fake tone again. "HA-HA, YEAH! OF COURSE WE DO!" He glanced back in our direction. "Whaddya say guys, sounds like a great opportunity, huh?!"

But we were already leaving, Goku waving goodbye.

…

As we made our way around the back of the stadium walls, it was evident from the echoing action that Trunks had already taken down Hercule. And, not too much longer after that, the announcer's voice could be heard advertising the different kinds of foods offered to the general public; hot dogs, drinks, and nachos.

Goku made a face. "I've had those nachos... yuck."

Krillin wholeheartedly agreed before pointing out that we had access to excellent food in the athlete's lounging area.

But the men standing watch outside made us identify ourselves first.

"I'm Goku."

"The name is Krillin."

"… Number Eighteen."

"Vegeta."

"Lattice!"

"Meedo-Ree."

"Ma Junior."

Goku looked at me and then Piccolo in confusion.

"I thought I'd go undercover, protect my identity a little bit," the namekian informed him.

"Oh—yeah, sure. I get it. You too, Dori?"

Lifting my son up onto my shoulders, I smirked briefly at the deceased saiyan. "No."

"No..?" He blinked, totally lost.

I snickered at his expression, and strolled past him into the waiting area.

…

To say I was a big eater was an understatement; it was part of my genetic makeup. And after coming to Earth I'd started eating more regularly; like a true saiyan, according to my brother. But, what I didn't consider myself was a fast eater.

That being said, I was sharing a table full of food with the prince of all saiyans, my son, and Goku… so I couldn't exactly eat casually, now could I?

Goku was at the head of the table, Vegeta directly to his right, followed by me and my son down the line. Krillin, Piccolo, and Eighteen were on the other side of the table.

The whole room was filled with loud slurping, low satisfactory sounds, the occasional burp, and dishes clanking, Goku being the main perpetrator of noise. When Gohan joined us (Videl in tow), the volume only increased.

With cheeks eventually bulging like a pudgy hamster pocketing food in its mouth, Gohan called across the table, "Hey dad, we're outta pasta!"

Goku lifted his chopsticks into the air. "'SCUSE ME! MORE SPAGHETTI, PLEASE!"

Vegeta added roughly, "AND BRING SOME MORE EGG ROLLS, WHILE YOU'RE AT IT!"

Scraping the last bits of fried rice into my mouth with my chop sticks, I then reached for a plate of sausages a bit to the left. At the same time Goku's hand landed on the plate and both of our gazes shot up.

Quickly swallowing, I smiled, eyes widening a tad. "Be a gentleman, won't you?" I asked, sliding it a bit my way.

Goku grinned back playfully. "Aw, come on, you know I gotta eat to be at my best!" He slid it back his way.

"And you've eaten!"

"So have you!"

The plate continued to slide back and forth, our voices gradually rising.

Lattice stood in his chair to see what was going on, and Gohan began whimpering pleads for the two of us not to make a scene.

"GOKU—"

"DORI—"

Just as Goku said my name back in a mocking fashion, Vegeta finished his dish and, without a word, reached forward from between our outstretched arms and stabbed his fork into the sausages, all of the linked meats trailing onto his plate as he bit into several at once.

My jaw dropped as Goku cried out in alarm, and we both shouted an indignant "HEY!"

The prince continued to chow down, chortling at our petty behavior through a full mouth. "You snooze, you lose."

Thankfully, a dozen more platters arrived (one of them being the plate of our aim) before we could voice any disdain.

Goku simply rolled his eyes, planting his elbows onto the table whilst taking a sip of his juice as he waited for the servers to place down the delectable spread they'd brought in.

I sat back, brandishing my utensils and grabbing the nearest meat dish with a lessened scowl. "Just be glad I'm saving my energy for the matches," I grumbled before digging in with the same fervor as before.

A moment later Krillin blurted out, "Good grief—" while gaping at us. "You saiyans are like bottomless pits, I swear!"

Videl, who'd been standing idly behind him, questioned suspiciously, "What's a saiyan?"

To which Gohan dove on top of Krillin, faster than a dog on a bone, putting the shorter male in a headlock and covering his mouth. "KRILLIN, HELLO?"

Luckily the girl decided not to question any further.

Two men—one towering, with skin bright like pink cactus fruit, and the other, dwarfish and skin tone like soft lavender—were waiting outside of the fighters' lounge. Both of their faces were framed by elven ears.

"Master," the taller, coarser male spoke. "The female seems to have a much higher resting power level than all the others here."

"Yes, Kibito, but Goku is still our best candidate. I sense a deep disturbance within the woman, something unstable, that I do not wish to test…"

"You mean the power of the stone…"

"No… not the elemental stone… It's a raw energy… Please, trust me, Kibito."

"Yes, master… my apologies."

A short while afterwards found our gang on the way to where the drawings would take place.

"WOW-WEE, I'm so full!" Goku exclaimed, stretching. "If I have to fight one of you guys, please don't punch me in the gut!"

Vegeta shot back with "Well, if I have to fight Kakarot in the first round, the first thing I'm going to do is punch him in the gut!"

My nose scrunched in amusement as Goku replied, "Aww man, no mercy!"

But then I noticed the men standing in our path, and my amusement faded into cautious wonder. And I wasn't the only one. Slowly, our group came to a stop in front of the two otherworldly-looking males.

They wore matching earrings, and clothing that painted a picture of importance; a style I'd seen before, but definitely not of this planet.

The shorter one, with a purple complexion and a tall, white Mohawk was floating, and soon hovered over to us, stopping just in front of Goku.

"Good afternoon," he greeted in a clear, calm tenor. "You wouldn't be Goku by any chance, would you?"

The saiyan in mention stared back, expression slightly awed. "Yeah… How did you know my name was Goku?"

"Well, your reputation as a great fighter proceeds you." His slanted eyes squinted somewhat, in an almost graceful show of mirth. "I was actually hoping for a chance to fight you during the tournament."

This bold statement caused my own eyes to widen, and the others seemed just as privately taken aback as I was, including my son, who made a quiet noise of confusion.

"It's not that I'm confident about beating you, not at all," the stranger continued. "It's just that I want to have the greatest challenge that I can think of."

Huh…

He then added in a lower, deliberate tone, "And I know you're a man who understands that…"

Receiving nothing but wary and shocked stares from our group, the short, elven-eared male continued on. "I'm honored. And I'm very much looking forward to today's competition. I've traveled very far for this opportunity to meet you in battle. You might even say that I'm one of your biggest fans…"

I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. 'This is too shady… someone with dark intentions wouldn't be so obvious, would they?' I then focused in on their energies… after a moment— '...What? What am I feeling?' My brow furrowed somewhat.

The men definitely had power, but it felt… different… Not in the least bit threatening, but… odd? Especially the smaller one's…

"In any case, after meeting you, I'm certain that I won't be disappointed."

This caused the halo-bearing hero to smile. "Gosh, thanks!"

"Goku, may I shake your hand?" He suddenly asked.

The request was answered with a blinking pause. "Uh—? Yeah, of course!" The saiyan reached out, amiable as he grasped the smaller hand in his.

Goku was being sized up…

My suspicions held true when the petite man emitted a small chuckle, and Goku pulled back, seemingly awe-struck again.

He had to have felt what I felt.

"Alright—thank you, you're as brave as everyone says you are," the stranger concluded, giving a slight bow and wishing the saiyan a good day.

"Er-uh—hey, wait a second!" Goku called after them. "I didn't catch your name!"

But they continued on silently; mysteriously.

Piccolo approached Goku from behind quietly. "I don't like the feel of it. They're strong."

"Real strong," Goku agreed, watching the duo travel down the long path. "But hey, isn't that what this tournament's about? Finding the unexpected challenge and seeing who emerges as the victor?"

Krillin voiced his doubts about their strength, but I knew better…

Vegeta folded his arms over his chest, his usual glare more pointed. "Well, we'll find out soon enough, won't we?" He inclined his head, eyes never leaving their retreating forms. "I for one would be more than happy to take on either of those two clowns."

I gave a gentle squeeze to Lattice's ankles as he rested his chin on top of my head, my pensive gaze lingering on the spot where the two men disappeared around a corner.

…

I returned a moment later, via instant transmission, having taken my son to "auntie Bulma", glad that Lattice didn't seem to mind.

"Hey," Goku greeted from beside me. "They're getting ready to draw names."

I nodded. "Good."

With sixteen fighters in total, there were five other men (having already counted our group), the two mysterious strangers, and Mr. Satan.

Two of them were average humans, but another pair were hulking, steroid-overdosed, fuming individuals. They also happened to have the letter 'M' tattooed onto their foreheads… whatever that meant.

Goku seemed taken aback as the larger, growling one sent him a deadly look. "Ugh, I wonder what's making them so angry..?" He questioned quietly with a slightly furrowed brow. "Maybe they didn't have a good breakfast…"

I almost rolled my eyes at his completely serious theory but smiled instead, shaking my head.

The last man of the five was standing alone.

I squinted at the fumbling, oddly proportioned male. "Are you kidding me?" I mumbled to myself.

Boys was the correct term.

Goku's expression was even more incredulous when he spotted the awkward masked "man", as he made a noise of disgust. "Who's that? He looks so weird..!"

I inhaled a deep breath through my mouth, but decided not to rat the boys out. 'I wonder what poor soul those two stole that ridiculous costume from…'

They (Trunks, most likely balancing on top of Goten's shoulders), were wearing a white gown with a green, hooded cape, complete with gloves and boots that were obviously too large.

'Those two conveniently placed holes in the abdomen are probably for Goten to see out of…'

Our announcer friend then called out, "When I call your name, please come up! Uhh… Meedo… Ree?"

I stepped forward to the drawing box, sighing contently. Raising my gaze up, I then dipped a hand in and grabbed one of the bright green balls. "Ah, lucky number fourteen." I handed the ball to the blond man as he relayed the number to the other employees.

Strolling back over to Goku, I tucked my thumbs into the waistband of my shorts as we began waiting for the completion of the drawings. After a few more minutes, the matches were finished being recorded. It came down to:

Krillin versus one of the weaker humans, Pintar, in the first match—

Shin (the purple one) against Piccolo in the second match—

Videl and Spopovich (the large, hulking man)—

Gohan and Kibito—

Eighteen and Mr. Satan (Krillin had been overjoyed at that)—

Vegeta and Goku! (ohhh how I couldn't wait to see that. Vegeta's expression had been beyond devilish when he showed off his number)—

Then Mr. "Mighty Mask", AKA Goten and Trunks were up against yours truly—

And finally, the other odd fellow, Yamu, versus a pretty-boy human named Jewel.

"The fighting will commence immediately—" The host declared, leading us over to a different area. "I will quickly show you all to the waiting room. I'm sure you know the fighting rules," he added with somewhat of a laugh.

I stood just behind Goku, with the two teens flanking my left, Vegeta on the right. My hands were resting casually on my hips.

"You are the loser if you give up, if I count to ten, if you fall out of the ring, or if you, unfortunately, kill your competitor. Each match has a time limit of thirty minutes, and not a second more. If there is not a victor decided in the allotted time, then that decision will be left up to the judges."

The man's words lingered in my mind, drawing a delicate smirk out of me.

It was almost time.

Standing around in the waiting room—the noise of the stadium just outside—was the perfect hype, and more than once I found myself leaning forward from our spot on an adjacent wall to peek around to the outside.

I could tell Goku felt the same with the way he was stretching, side-to-side, up and down, nonstop. Krillin pointed it out humorously.

But Goku just laughed. "I'm just excited!"

"Well with you fighting Vegeta right off the bat, it's kind of like having the last round first, you know?" his friend replied.

"That's why I'm stretching!"

And I was watching him unabashedly, a small grin on my face. I did not realize, however, that my tail had uncoiled itself from around my waist, until it hit something firm, once, twice, then a third time. 'It's probably just the wall,' I thought, not caring if it wagged.

But—

"WOULD YOU QUIT WHACKING ME WITH THAT DAMNED TAIL OF YOURS?!" Vegeta shouted, slapping my tail away from him.

I rounded on the prince as if he'd just slapped me in the face, ready to do just that to him.

That's when a wavering voice reached my ears.

"U-um, Gohan?"

I looked over and saw Videl pointing feebly at my slightly wriggling appendage, her blue eyes as large as saucers.

"Is that what I think it is..?"

Gohan, towering over her from behind, was staring at me as if I'd just told the entire world some damning secret. But he quickly pulled himself together. "Videl, don't you know? Haha, she lives at Capsule Corp—they invent all kinds of craaazy accessories all the time! A tail belt that mov—"

"Oh hush," I interrupted, still irked that Vegeta had hit my tail. "This is my real tail. I am a saiyan." I then pointed at Vegeta.

"Saiyan—" then at Goku. "Saiyan." And finally at Gohan—

"Half-saiyan. All born with tails, all having had them removed." I then folded my arms with a light scowl, turning my back on the teenagers as my tail snapped irritably.

Krillin blinked at the display, not able to help a bubble of laughter. "Way to be blunt, Midori!"

I flexed the fingers of my right hand before laying them back over my bicep. "I got tired of the shenanigans." I stated simply, ignoring Gohan and Videl's hushed voices.

Bending over diagonally, Goku then laughed gently; a sound that caused me to expel the annoyance through a deep sigh and smile again.

Could I say that the sound of his voice was angelic? He did have a halo...

I shifted my gaze to the side, hoping I wasn't too obvious, and my sights fell upon Shin and Kibito entering the room from out back. Their calm appearance and graceful gait caused my smile to diminish; the mere sight of them was sobering.

And once again, I wasn't alone.

Goku had paused his aerobics to stand up straight, his light expression having turned serious.

The smaller alien had stopped in the back doorway, just in front of Piccolo and beside me. He held the orange-clad saiyan's gaze for a moment, smiling that mysterious smile that I was slowly coming accustomed to. But… he didn't utter a word, so Goku simply nodded in acknowledgment and went back to stretching.

Blinking slowly, I watched Shin out of the corner of my eye and frowned. 'He looks at us like he knows something…'

He suddenly turned to me, smile growing, lower eyelids rising. "It's a good thing that the last elemental stone wound up with such a fitting owner, don't you agree?"

Oh no. Oh nonono—

Despite the soft, dulcet tone of his words, they hit me like an oncoming train; I gasped frightfully, almost backing into my brother, a sharp pain shooting through my heart when it skipped a beat. "W-what did you just say to me?" I whispered shakily, heart sprinting beneath my chest.

Piccolo, Vegeta, Krillin and Goku stared in alarm as Shin walked away, all smiles, Kibito silently following.

I then looked down, running a jittery hand through my bangs while quickly moving around Vegeta.

Goku approached from behind, laying a comforting hand on my shoulder. "What's wrong?" he asked, concern coating his words. "What did he mean by that?"

"I…" Momentarily clenching my teeth, I then let out a huff of breath, still facing away. "I may be in trouble…" I squeezed my eyes shut tight, tilting my head back.

Ohhh... why now?

"Huh? But why? What for?"

Vegeta leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes. "For stealing a highly sacred artifact from the Nord planet some decades ago." He then opened his eyes, not looking the least bit sympathetic. "Looks like they've finally caught up to you, Toma."

My glare was dark and lip curled in annoyance when I turned his way.

The people they'd sent after me back then had not been weak. Not at all. And it'd gone on for years! Even after the extreme increase in my power level since then… I still wouldn't want to face one of those patrolmen…

Broly had taken care of them for me. Broly was the reason I'd gotten into trouble… So obsessed with becoming stronger than him when I was young… I'd stolen the Thor Stone—the elemental stone of lightning and electricity—hoping for a powerful new ability.

And I'd definitely received one…

Blowing some air out through puckered lips, I rested my hands back on my hips. The fright Shin had instilled in me was slowly disappearing the more I thought through it. "Look—" I paused to glance over at the two bright-skinned men, then lowered my voice. "Let's not worry about it right now… If they were sent to arrest—or kill me… I don't think they'd waste all this time," I said, shifting my gaze over each man around me.

Krillin folded his arms, emitting a thoughtful hum. "You're probably right. Besides, they seem more focused on Goku than anything else."

The saiyan in mention let out a small noise of recognition, nodding. "Yeah."

"YEEEES! LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, I AM PROUD TO PRESENT TO YOU THE FIRST MATCH IN THE WORLD MARTIAL ARTS TOURNAMENT!"

We all turned our heads as the announcer called for Krillin and Pintar to make their way out.

I inhaled deeply and put on a reassuring smile for Krillin.

Goku slapped a hand onto the shorter male's shoulder. "Break a leg, Krillin!"

"Yeah," he responded, turning towards the main door. "As long as it's not one of mine!"

I slowly made my way over to the partition, arching an eyebrow when the sumo-genie-esque competitor pushed Krillin aside, as if to make a point of their size difference.

That over-sized human didn't know what he was getting himself into…

Once the two men were in the ring, Pintar made it a point to impose his grand size on Krillin, all the while laughing and making jabs at my comrade's small stature.

And the match was over before we knew it, Krillin digging his fist into the other man's gargantuan gut, then giving him a good smacking around and kicking him straight out of the ring.

It brought a lopsided smile to my face. Seeing idiots get theirs was always a mood improver.

Krillin walked back to us with his eyes closed and a fist held high as the crowd sounded off.

And just like that, it was time for Piccolo to face off against Shin…

The two walked out silently together as the rest of our group gathered near the doorway, anxious. I stood just behind the divider, Goku to my right, Vegeta behind me, Eighteen and the teenagers to the left.

"I don't understand," Krillin said. "Is this guy really getting under your skin that much?"

Goku looked over at him briefly. "Yeah…"

"If you say so… he just doesn't seem to be all that powerful to me."

My eyebrows furrowed a bit, making my expression seem pained. "It's not that, Krillin…" I said quietly, watching the two men outside. Aside from the fact that Shin was actually strong… "There's just something not normal about him… and it's really unnerving not being able to know what."

Vegeta hmph-ed behind me, as if disagreeing, but I made no attempt to defend myself. I already had my own reason to be guarded.

"Huh… I guess…" Krillin mumbled back, watching with us.

There wasn't much to watch though. Piccolo and Shin were very still in the ring, and had been for a few minutes, causing the crowd to grow restless.

But I could feel something… Shin's energy…

Slowly, my lips parted and eyes narrowed. I folded my arms again, feeling uncomfortable; a balloon of anxiety was inflating in my chest once more.

Goku also emitted a soft noise that sounded like unease. Maybe he felt it too.

It was then that I saw Piccolo physically react as if startled, and my eyebrows rose.

That's when the announcer crept up to the edge of the arena with his microphone. "So, is this gonna happen or what?"

Piccolo briefly looked back at the human. "I'm sorry," he said, turning back to face his competitor. "I can't…"

All of us inside reacted with shock, Gohan quietly exclaiming "Quitting?!"

The namekian then exited the ring, cape flowing gently behind him.

Gohan was the first to speak. "Hey, Piccolo…"

Krillin asked, "What went down out there?"

"Is he that strong, Piccolo?" Goku inquired next.

The namek stopped halfway into the room, replying quietly, "Yes… stronger than you can imagine…"

Even Vegeta let a small, surprised noise escape his lips, whilst the rest of our jaws had dropped.

And while we stood around in contemplative silence again, the third round was starting. Videl and one of the odd, overly muscular men with the evident anger issue.

"Gohan," Videl said with a pretty smile and thumbs up.

"Yeah..?"

"I wanna see you in the second round, okay?" Her tone was light and sweet. I knew it well.

Gohan blushed in response before nodding and smiling.

She then made her way out, Spopovich following closely.

I was surprised at how quickly things were moving. Shin was still walking away from the ring when he crossed paths with the two contenders.

"Hmm?" My eyebrows lowered.

Just as Shin passed by Spopovich, he turned his head and his calm exterior changed to that of deep suspicion. He was watching the hulking man with narrowed eyes; very different from his cool, elegant front. Again, like he knew something.

'Maybe it's nothing… that man is creepy... I'd stare the same way.' And I had at one point.

But staring was something I tried to avoid as the short fighter reentered the room, passing by us and heading towards the back again.

I sighed, looking back over the wall. The stadium was almost as lively as if Hercule had stepped out. This was his daughter fighting, after all.

I had no qualms with Videl. In the few times I'd seen her over the last month I could tell she had a true warrior's heart. She was sweet, though stubborn at times. I just couldn't understand why Gohan was so dead-set on keeping her in some "blissfully" ignorant state. Finding out there were beings (infinitely) stronger than her father wouldn't be the end of the world… Hell, even Videl was stronger than her father, especially after having learned how to control her energy to an extent.

Blinking in surprise, I realized the fight had started. She was giving it to the growling behemoth with no mercy, punching and kicking with a ferocity that I'd not expected in the petite teenager (despite the stories). After a minute or so, Videl delivered a kick to Spopovich that sent him flying across the ring and flat out onto his back.

Not for long though… Before the announcer began the count, Spopovich was up and charging the spunky girl, who brought the same fierce attacks again, sending Spopovich down—again.

A few more seconds saw him back on his feet.

"Mm—" I shook my head. "This man is a glutton for punishment…"

"Tell me about it!" Krillin replied.

Goku squeezed in beside us, having previously stepped away to talk to Piccolo. "How's she doin' out there?"

"She's kickin' butt!" Krillin excitedly informed .

"Yeah," Gohan said, "Videl is really wearing this guy down! I give him—two more minutes, tops!"

Once more, the hulking man was brought down, but while he had no problem picking himself back up, Videl was showing signs of fatigue.

"Odd…" I murmured, sparing a glance to Goku.

He was observing the arena with a stern eye. He then then eyed me with a meaningful look before turning to Vegeta, who had also silently acknowledged that something was wrong.

I was losing count as to how many times Spopovich had gotten up after being put down. But this time… he was different… an evil grin, gums showing, heaving in breaths through gritted teeth, his grotesque muscles expanding with each growling pant.

Nightmare fuel, really.

It seemed Gohan had finally noticed the abnormality of it. "What's going on?!" he cried out in frustration.

Goku responded gravely, "She should quit the match now. Something's not right about him."

Both Krillin and Gohan protested against such advisement.

Did they not see how tired she was getting? And how that monster of a man just kept taking her hits?

It took Videl being brutally backhanded and skidding across the rink for them to (figuratively) open their eyes. And before the girl had any time recover from the attack, Spopovich sent her flying out of the ring with a kick to the stomach.

But Videl… she'd tapped into her energy in the nick of time, and was floating above the grass. Flying back into the ring, and causing the crowd to explode with cheer, she'd managed to avoid losing the match.

"I think she would've been better off if she'd fallen out of the ring," Goku stated, raining on Gohan's rejoicing.

"Why?"

"There's something very unusual about Spopovich… Look at 'im." Goku's troubled look deepened. "There's no way he could withstand all of Videl's attacks and still continue to fight!"

"Then how does he do it? What is his secret?"

"Idunno Gohan, but I'm going to find out."

'I wanna know too...' Spopovich was human… so maybe he was using something? But I wasn't aware of any drug or another substance that could give someone the strength and endurance he was displaying against Videl…

With a mighty battle cry, the teenager then slammed her leg into Spopovich's face; he stumbled back, face snapped to the side.

The announcer, taken aback, screamed into his microphone, "WHAT THE HEEECK?!"

"Oh—" I realized with an extremely disturbed look. "His neck's broken…"

It's not that I wasn't used to something like that, but he was still standing, and his neck was twisted around grotesquely, in over a hundred and eighty degrees.

Collective gasps sounded from the stadium as Spopovich fell onto his back for the last time, and Videl collapsed to her knees, knowing what the outcome would be.

"Well, that's it," The announcer spoke in a somber tone. "Videl has clearly beaten her opponent. But, I'm afraid she will be disqualified for using excessive force. Those are the rules—"

My eyes widened in disbelief as Spopovich began struggling to stand again, head still twisted, the announcer screeching, "HE'S ALIIIVE!"

Slowly, disgustingly, the male relocated his broken bones, the cracks and odd rubbery noises not going unheard to us inside. I grimaced at the noises, feeling a sudden sense of dread for Videl.

And she needed praying for, because despite having taken high up into the air to avoid her opponent, Spopovich was rocketing after her…

It all went downhill so horribly after that.

Videl's attacks were doing little to nothing, and it had gotten to the point where Spopovich was literally beating her into the tile. Even when she'd gotten out from under him, he threw her across the ring—she was going to be out—then—

I rose a hand in outrage as Spopovich caught the girl's foot, and tossed her limp body back into the ring.

"What the hell is this perverse shit?" I asked loudly. "The judges should just end the match already!"

The announcer painted it as the man having "saved" Videl from falling out, but it just wasn't so. Not with the wicked looks he was giving her.

Krillin glared ahead of him. "That creep is just playing with her!"

And what came next was not easy to watch…

She was being yanked around by the hair, slammed in the face and abdomen by his gigantic fist. Blood was everywhere, and her screams were high-pitched, like the worst imaginable torture; the kind of screams that would stay with a person, haunting less hardened individuals.

There was a sudden draft next to me and my troubled gaze snapped over to Gohan, as did Goku's.

"Hey! No—Stop! Just calm down," Goku demanded. "Don't do it, Gohan—you're not going out there!"

'But I say let him…' I thought, feeling his power level creep up.

The boy was growling angrily, his cape and robe moving from faint energy currents.

Spopovich was grinding Videl's face into the tile with his gigantic boot. The louder her cries, the more visible the half-saiyan's aura became.

"Gohan…" His father called in warning.

The teenager's cape and head wrap suddenly blew away as golden energy enveloped him. "THIS'S GONE ON WAY TOO LONG! I'M TAKIN' HIM DOWN!"

My breath caught in my throat as Gohan burst out of the room, but without warning a new voice called out, "That's enough! Stop playing games, Spopovich!"

It was his partner, Yamu…

"Don't you remember that we have far more important things to do? Finish it. Now."

Gohan was paused halfway down the path to the ring.

Seemingly bitter, Spopovich used his foot to brush Videl aside, as if pushing aside a dog toy or an article of clothing on the floor.

Videl rolled out of the ring, a few pained whimpers escaping her mouth, and Gohan immediately rushed to her side, reverting back his normal state. After sending the retreating Spopovich a promising threat, Gohan then rushed the nearly lifeless girl to the infirmary.

Goku turned quickly to Krillin then, asking if he had any senzu beans. Not expecting to need any, Krillin came up empty-handed.

"Okay…" Goku lifted two fingers to his forehead. "Then… I'll be right back. I'm going to see Korin to get some," he announced before disappearing.

Shaking my head, I moved further back into the shade of the room. 'If there weren't other things going on, I'd track those two down and kill them myself... Speaking of other things...'

With nothing better to do, I began studying the other contestants… meaning Shin and Kibito…

Gohan would be fighting the latter next. Sending a few inconspicuous glances their way, I noted that Kibito was taller than Piccolo… not that size really mattered…

Of course the next round had yet to be called after such a traumatic event, but one would think that after Gohan asked the announcer for even more time to postpone the fight, Goku would've returned already.

A good twenty minutes must have passed before he suddenly materialized in the center of the room.

Gohan smile brightly. "Hey, dad! Did you get the senzu beans?"

"Yep! Korin and Yajarobi only had three left, but they're all yours if you want 'em!"

"You bet I do!"

"Better get these to Videl." He emptied the edible healers into the palm of his hand before giving them to his son, who took off in a flash while calling back his thanks.

As I stepped forward Kibito did the same, causing me to momentarily stop. He seemed ready for the next match as he proceeded outside.

Goku watched him with a calm smirk as I continued to inch closer, arms crossed.

"So… were they still growing the beans when you got there?"

Goku stiffened, eyes widening as if the jig was up. "Well—uh..."

It was my turn to smirk as my eyelids lowered. "Mhm... save it," I murmured, flicking a soft grain of rice off of his blue undershirt. "Mister 'bottomless pit'…"

His eyes closed briefly as he rubbed the back of his head. "You got me, hehe."

Just then Gohan came running though (nearly bumping into me), but not without shooting a grin back at us as he continued on outside where Kibito and the announcer were waiting.

"Ladies and gentlemen, so sorry to keep you waiting. Now let's get started!"

The stadium lit up with energy anew.

"Here we go with the fourth match of this competition! Kibito versus the Great Saiyaman!"

The two contenders were standing across from each other when I moved back towards the doorway, and when the cheering and applauding had died down, there were several voices loud enough to hear from where I was, not cheering for the Great Saiyaman, but Gohan. And they weren't any voices I recognized, either.

The teenager bristled, suddenly looking horrified that several people knew who he really was, and having already lost his cape and head wrap, Gohan decided to ditch the glasses as well. There was no longer any disguising material.

But what had I just heard?

It was Kibito… he'd asked Gohan to transform into a Super Saiyan…

"They're not fighting…" Krillin observed. "What are they doing? They're just—talking."

Goku whispered back, "Kibito wants to see him become a Super Saiyan."

I frowned. "But why..?"

Piccolo then called Gohan's name out. The teenager looked back our way and the namekian nodded.

Gohan nodded back, and slowly his energy began to climb.

Light footsteps caught my ear. I turned slightly, then fully when I saw it was Shin approaching with a grave expression.

"It's time," he said calmly. "You do not need to worry about Gohan… He will be fine… But, no matter what happens, I want you to promise me you'll stay out of the ring. Do you understand?"

I stared down at the short male with a furrowed brow. "Why?" I questioned back defiantly.

"What do you want with Gohan?" Goku asked.

Vegeta was behind Shin, arms folded and eyebrows low. "I don't know you and you're telling me what to do? Who do you think you are?"

Piccolo rounded on the saiyan prince. "Vegeta—show him some respect! That is no way to be talking to the Supreme Kai!

SUPREME KAI?!

My jaw (as well as my heart) dropped, and I suddenly felt very… very small.

"SHIN?!" Goku exclaimed. "You're the Supreme Kai?" Apparently he'd heard stories.

My eyes were still wide, and it was like I'd almost forgotten how to breathe. 'This is… He is…!'

Vegeta stood behind the Supreme Kai as if he'd seen a ghost, and it was then that Shin moved closer to where I was standing, calculating eyes fixed on the arena.

"Listen… the instant Gohan transforms, I'm certain Spopovich and Yamu will try to attack him."

I snapped my sights back to the teenager before quickly looking down at the Supreme Kai.

"But as I've already told you… you must not try to help him…"

After Goku began questioning him, Shin explained that the two odd fighters were after Gohan's energy… not his life…

Without warning, Videl suddenly burst into the room—good as new—pushing past Vegeta ("Hey!") and almost stepping on my toes as she pulled herself up high enough to see over the partition.

Gohan was beginning to power up, and judging by the delay, he was digging deep. He was going to show us his ascended form…

I pressed a thumb to my lips, watching the teenager's energy levitate the tiles of the ring as his ki flooded our sights in a brilliant, golden display. 'Gohan… you didn't have to go that far…'

If only he knew…

Videl gasped. "You're kidding! Is this for real? Gohan is the Gold Fighter?"

But Vegeta could only scoff. "Gohan had a lot more power when he fought Cell. I think your son has gone soft in these peaceful times, Kakarot."

Shin, however, seemed to think that Gohan was the strongest person in the tournament…

I glanced hesitantly at the Supreme Kai, then back to Gohan. 'He's not, though… not like he used to be… my brother is right…' I silently wondered how knowledgeable the Supreme Kai was about saiyans. 'But I shouldn't question that… should I?'

I forced myself to stay focused on Gohan, feelings of dread increasing.

Out of nowhere the Supreme Kai shouted, "THEEERE!" eliciting a gasp from me.

Yamu and Spopovich had appeared out of thin air and were lunging at Gohan. But, after another fierce cry from Shin, the teenager's flowing energy suddenly dispersed, and it was as if something was constricting him.

The Supreme Kai had used his powers to restrain Gohan..!

And while Spopovich had Gohan in a headlock, Yamu suddenly stabbed the teenager in his abdomen with a large contraption, prompting gut-wrenching screams from Gohan.

I felt clammy as I watched on, sickened at the site of Gohan having the energy forcibly sucked out of his body. My heart was pounding hard.

Videl suddenly vaulted over the divider, faster than I'd expected; I couldn't grab her in time, but Goku managed to leap forward and catch her by the wrist. The poor girl tried escaping his grasp, even pleaded with Goku to help Gohan, but…

'We can't…' I studied her misty, blue eyes with a pained expression, Gohan's cries nonstop in the background. 'How much longer do we just sit?' Slowly, my blood was starting to boil.

I clenched my teeth and swallowed as a bright light suddenly emitted from the energy-stealing device, causing Gohan's screams to rise in volume.

At that point we were all standing outside of the room, one muscle jerk from leaping into the fray.

But just then, Gohan's body dropped to the floor like a ton of bricks, and the two offenders flew off, out of the stadium, and off of the island.

As if anticipating our movements, the Supreme Kai held a hand out in front of us. "Don't move! All of you stay where you are! Kibito will take care of Gohan now. He has no need of your assistance!"

He then announced that he was going to take his leave… to follow the two crooks and find out what they were going to do with Gohan's energy.

"I could use your help," he continued to say. "I understand if you feel you have to stay here, but I must go." And on his word, Shin took to the skies without looking back.

I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding, some of the tension I'd built up easing away.

I knew what was coming next…

Turning to Goku, I arched an eyebrow at the slight smirk he was already wearing. "I guess our plans for the day have changed, haven't they?" I shifted my weight from one foot to the other while placing my hands on my hips.

"Definitely," Goku answered, gaze set on the clouds.

We had ourselves some villains to wrangle.

/

A/N: Midori's mentioned electrical attacks

Uhhh, so yeah I felt like adding a little Norse mythology-inspired stuff into the OC's past... if only I had the motivation to write for her backstory, lol. I always had it in my head that all those electrical stunts she pulled were an acquired ability, but I didn't work out how she acquired it until recently.

In my head I like to imagine there were these stones for all the elements (fire, water, wind, earth, thunder, light, and darkness, each named for appropriate Norse mythology people/places), and most of the relics were destroyed, but as Dori and Paragus and Broly were space surfin, she was like "hey I can use that to get stronger" and stole it. Then the gang's got a bunch of angry Nordic aliens after them, and then those space patrolmen, and it's just hell for a while.

At the time of writing this I was not a big Thor/Avengers fan, lol.

ALSO, AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR ALL THE REVIEWS XOXO

And also for those who never played the games, Buster Cannon is Trunks' signature move. Dunno if it was ever mentioned in the manga or anime.