Before setting out our new companions had taken everything they would need off of Korravi's ship and brought it onto ours, mostly clothes and more food. But for her ship itself, it wasn't like we could just tie it to our bumper and pull it along, so I'd found one of the spare capsules we had that wasn't pre-programmed for anything specific and put it inside. I'd been wary of revealing Capsule technology to people who were still mostly strangers, but they weren't scientists who could replicate it and nor were they in a position to steal anything so I set my concerns aside.
Since our first task was apparently to find ourselves a certain Namekian, we'd agreed to let Bardock advise us as to where we should start looking. So far, we were headed for planet SE-3, which contained one of the largest cities in Frieza's corner of the PTO aside from his capital. We'd also promised to keep seeking the save haven's location, but it appeared as if our new companions would be settling in with us for the time being – so despite starting off on the wrong foot we offered to give them proper sleeping accommodations.
Due to the number of people now aboard some of us had to share rooms or beds. Daikon and Korravi offered to split a room together, Goten and I shared one as we'd done it plenty of times growing up, and the remaining three got their own spaces.
The tattooed man and his not-friend didn't warm up as much as Bardock did as time went on. The latter would sometimes eat his meals with us and talk, asking questions about his child and grandchildren – especially about Goku at first, although I think he might've been starting to doubt the man's intellectual acuity.
At some point during one of these after-meal conversations Bardock had asked, in a way that suggested he already knew the answer, if Raditz was really dead.
"Well, it was a long time ago," Goku explained, "but... yeah. He would have killed us and taken Gohan if I hadn't done what I did. I would probably try to handle things differently now, but it's not like I can go back and change the past."
Bardock pondered in silence briefly.
"You know, he kind of resented me. Raditz did. He was born with a high power level compared to most kids so they thought he might be special. Plenty of people knew I was his sire, and I guess I was still gaining notoriety back then... He became a little less pleased about that when rumours escaped that I'd gone soft and fallen in love. He also struggled to get stronger – no matter how big he got I'd knock him flat on his ass every time we fought. The last I heard he'd been placed on a squadron with Prince Vegeta and his bodyguard. After that it was just the visions, until Raditz didn't have a future anymore," he said.
"I'm sorry," Gohan replied.
"Like Kakarot said, it was a long time ago. I'm a shit parent, anyway," Bardock harrumphed.
"Huh. I guess it's funny that you just happened to save a young guy who looks kinda like him," Goku mentioned.
"Tch. They look nothing alike. And since this also seems to have gone over your head, that young man is an adult woman."
Goku blinked. "Really? Huh. And I thought I had that figured out."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Oh." Goku leaned forward slightly and pointed at the back of his head. "My grandpa – Grandpa Gohan, I named little Gohan after him – said I hit my head when I was a baby. He said I was really bad behaved before that but the bump fixed me. I guess it also did some other things, but I didn't realize that until I grew up. It's why I didn't destroy humans like I was supposed to."
"... You have brain damage?" Bardock looked stunned.
"I wouldn't call it that. Little Gohan read a bunch of books on it and says it's more like I just got rewired to think differently from a lot of humans. Or Saiyans. So one of the differences is that it's hard for me to know whether someone's a boy or a girl sometimes, although I've gotten better at it! Chi-Chi and Bulma are pretty helpful if I ever ask questions."
"I don't know what those two things are."
Goku beamed suddenly. "Chi-Chi's my wife. She's not a Saiyan, but can be a bit like one. She's bossy, but she also knows how to fight and cook and be a mom all at the same time, and she made Gohan and Goten. Bulma is one of my oldest friends – she's a supergenius, but kinda crazy. She's the mom of Trunks and his -" Goku paused. "Uh, was. Was Trunks' mom. She died on Planet Vegeta."
"The kid told me all his third class companions died too, but here you are..."
"Ah. We agreed to keep that the story for now, just in case," Gohan jumped in to the rescue. "Most people think Trunks is also dead anyway."
Even though the Sons and I had been omitting things rather than directly lying, I wondered if Bardock was able to perceive the truth with his ability. And if his visions really made him see significant events, there was a chance he'd seen Mom and Goten die or become resurrected and would know that way too.
But he wasn't easy to read – his eyes gave little away.
"Um... aren't you going to ask about Gine?" Goten interjected.
Bardock cast him a look. "What about her?"
"Are you trying to tell me she's never crossed your mind once all these years? The last time I saw her she was alive and well. I often stayed at her house when I was on Planet Vegeta – she's my grandmother. She'd talk about how much Dad and me looked like you, how part of that scar on your face was her fault. If she left the planet before it was destroyed, she could still be alive!" my best friend said.
After holding his fixed gaze on Goten for another few beats, Bardock leaned back against his seat, staring up at the ceiling and folding his arms.
"I wouldn't count on it," he replied.
"'Wouldn't count' has nothing to do with it. If you care about somebody the odds don't matter."
"I haven't seen her in as long as Kakarot's been alive, kid. She likely moved on years ago. And besides," he said as he tilted his head away, "the PTO is targeting Saiyan women particularly and that pipsqueak never had the heart of a fighter."
Goten pursed his lips, about to retort when Gohan spoke first.
"We shouldn't give up hope for Gine too easily. If you knew her well, you'd remember she can be clever when she needs to be. And who knows – maybe you'll see some vision that will change your mind. "
"I'll let you know if anything comes up," Bardock deadpanned.
When Bardock looked away, Goten stuck his tongue out at him.
The bed, or rather, Goten's bed, was just big enough for two nearly-grown Saiyan men without becoming uncomfortable. Yet. No matter how the ship's temperature was adjusted, space was cold, but stifling because you and the other half-blood a foot or so away produced more body heat than natural for a human was worse.
Goten was awake next to me. I knew that because when he wasn't awake, he sprawled all over the place and had accidentally kicked me off the bed several times doing this when we were kids. (I was also notorious for not-so-accidentally doing the same in return.) We tried to keep each other's respect for personal space, but he couldn't always stop himself from tossing and turning. I also occasionally sleepwalked so I couldn't point fingers too much.
He probably knew I wasn't sleeping either, but we didn't bother with any small talk. Being in space was different – silent except for the noise we made on board. I'd gotten used to how noisy Earth was, full of birds and cars and strange people and my little sister whose presence was ten times the space she physically occupied, especially the mornings where someone let her wake me up. But home hadn't been like space either. Space had no faint breeze, no taste of dust or ash in the air. It lacked the faraway sound of shifting dunes and the splitting glare of the midday sun on metal, or even the rumble of a distant volcano.
What space did have plenty of was stars.
As quietly as I could I sat up and shifted out of bed, taking one of the blankets with me. Even though my friend wasn't asleep yet, he was trying to be, so I didn't want to disturb him unnecessarily.
I slipped a pair of boots on but didn't bother to exchange my tank top for something warmer, gathering the blanket up around my neck and shoulders instead. Goten didn't stir or ask any questions so I left the room silently and proceeded down the hall.
A few dim-level lights clicked on overhead as I walked, enough to add some visibility without overly sensitizing my eyes. Still, I found myself squinting a little, torn between letting them adjust and not bothering to since I'd be back in a dark room pretty soon anyway.
Nearing my destination, I rubbed my eyes. The control room, which had the largest window to see outside the confines of the craft, would have the best view even while we were in motion through space. When Father and I had been on our way to meet with Frieza, the two of us had spent quite a bit of time stargazing that way, with limited other things to do. Those moments felt like ages ago now.
I heard the entrance to the control room slide open a few milliseconds too early in front of me and before I could register why, I walked smack into a solid object coming through from the other side.
I recognized it as being a thing that had collided with me before and I tilted my head up, meeting stares with a nonplussed set of black eyes and the freckled face they were set in.
"Uh – sorry," I blurted, a little taken aback.
The woman blinked at me, one hand grazing the top of the doorway to help mind her head. Her presence seemed bigger in the narrow corridor than it had in the open air, the room beyond her dark as the only illumination came from the hall behind me. I took a small step back.
Clearly, she was comfortable enough to be exploring around, tail uncoiled. She was in sleepwear not too different from mine, although that somehow made me feel a little self-conscious, like I was the stranger on someone else's ship and not the other way around. I ran a hand through my hair, hoping it wasn't too obvious I was trying to discreetly tame the mess it was.
Though I may not have been able to sense good or evil in people like the Sons, I hadn't gotten any threatening vibes from the woman since we'd fought. And since we were bound to be travelling together for the time being, I supposed I could at least be cordial. It wasn't like I got to meet female Saiyans every day either.
"Sorry," I repeated. "Didn't, uh, sense you there."
She let her arm drop to her side but said nothing. Just stared, without any particular emotion, focus drifting around my face a little and flicking to my mouth when I spoke.
"Um. You – I guess you found the control room," I went on.
"Stargazing," she stated.
"Huh?"
"I was just stargazing."
That hadn't been what I'd asked, but it did answer what would've been my next question.
"Oh. Okay. That's... same here. I mean, that's what I'm doing. Will be doing. Being in space is good for that." I then shut up to avoid sounding any stupider than I already did.
"Hn," she sounded noncommittally. More silence followed. Then, she stepped back out of the entrance, moving aside so I could walk through.
Of course. Fucking idiot, I chastised myself. I'd been standing right in the way so she couldn't go forward.
I walked in as casually as my embarrassment would allow, thankful for the darkness.
"Thanks," I mumbled.
She didn't respond to that either. Instead, she squinted at me slightly, paused, and then abruptly turned and left before I said anything else.
The door closed a few moments later, leaving the room almost completely cloaked in shadow. I pulled my blanket a little tighter around my shoulders, shook my head, and didn't bother to try and make sense of the whole interaction.
However, a thought occurred to me, and just to quiet my mind I moved further into the room to inspect the control panel and ensure nothing had been tampered with. But everything was as it should've been, so I relaxed once more and moved to find a comfortable seat.
The observatory window gave a wide view. The stars ahead appeared to be stationary and the ones in periphery were distorted due to our speed, though none of our motion could be felt from in here.
I didn't recognize a single constellation; not that I'd expect myself to. Just millions of bright, individual suns burning unfathomable distances away, ones that would go on burning until everything else was gone and they'd finally consume themselves.
Everyone, including myself, was a mere spec in comparison to the mass and fusion energy of a sun, and the thought made me feel small. In a good way. Like I could just rest in my spaceship for a moment and not worry about anything, be a traveller passing by.
The silence enveloped me, as if I was part of the nothingness between stars too. My father was out there somewhere – I knew I was drawing closer because I had to be. I didn't need a fortune teller to predict it because no matter what, I wasn't going to give up.
My father never had.
I was awoken into a fog, still half-asleep, by a familiar beeping from somewhere in the room.
My eyes remained shut, but I knew opening them wouldn't make a difference – it was dark anyway. Nighttime? No, I'm... we're in space. I think.
The noise continued, but exhausted as I was I resolved to try ignoring it. It would stop eventually and I could return to sleeping on the... floor, I supposed. I didn't recall laying down here specifically, but nor did I really care at the moment.
At some point someone else entered the room, hopefully to turn off the damned noise before I actually had to get up and do it myself.
The person let the door close behind them and moved around the room quietly, leaving the lights off. Their gait wasn't heavy and I was just awake enough to read their tranquil aura as one I knew very well (instinct would have kicked in otherwise, and I'd already be much more alert).
They continued on to the source of the beeping, rustling around with a few things to retrieve it. Then, after a brief sigh, answered the call.
"Hello?" Gohan's drowsy voice asked, awaiting whoever was on the other end of the communicator.
"Oh... Hi!" he exclaimed. While he'd never been a harsh speaker his voice had brightened enough to be above a whisper. His energy was fluttering a bit too, much like a heartbeat would. So he was likely talking to...
"Well, I was. I mean, I would've been up in a few hours anyway, but it's... ah. I'm not actually sure, I don't have my glasses... No, it's okay. I haven't talked to you in so long – I miss you. How have you been, love?" he replied to the person had must have been Videl.
"No, it hasn't. Bulma's an excellent mechanic," he continued after a pause. "No. Well, yes. I'm afraid I can't say too much yet. We've hit a road bump, but it's nothing to worry about. But that's enough about me. Tell me what you've been up to – I hope the house doesn't feel too empty."
Another pause. "And here I was, thinking you just wanted to hear my voice. You're so mean, Videl," Gohan teased.
He moved around some more, then stilled. "Okay... Nothing is wrong, right? You sound – hold on. I just noticed... ha. Trunks is sleeping in here." Gohan lowered his voice some more. "Sorry, one second, I'm going to – yeah, I don't want to disturb him if I haven't already. He must have just been sleepwalking..."
Gohan left the room quietly and aside from his muffled, retreating voice I was cast back into stillness and silence.
But my mind had started getting busy so I shuffled my blanket and sat up, pulling the material around me. I didn't open my eyes, not yet; didn't know if I could manage it.
I should go back to bed. Properly. It was too late to spare myself a sore back tomorrow, but I could at least reduce the severity by being smart and walking back to Goten's room. If he wasn't sprawled out over the whole damn cot like an invasive space flora.
I wasn't sure how long I sat there, willing myself to move. Open my eyes. Do something. The auras of all those on board were steady in sleep, except for the contained fluctuations of Gohan. I may have been able to ignore my sixth sense otherwise.
Eventually, I detected him coming back in my direction. I continued to stay still until he reentered the room, gait careful, and I opened my eyes to the darkness.
He didn't say anything, but he was definitely there, and I squinted to make out his silhouette. I couldn't be certain which way he was looking, if he was looking at me, but then:
"Are you awake?" he murmured.
"Yeah," I answered even more quietly.
"Do you mind if I turn a light on?"
"Hn... 'kay."
Though he kept it relatively dim, the ensuing bulb coming to life had me shielding my eyes for a moment.
"Sorry," Gohan said.
I rubbed my forehead and looked at him. He was sitting on the edge of the dashboard, hands gripping it like he was worried he'd tilt right off. Hair a bit messy from sleep, but his eyes were wide awake. He stared at the ground and swallowed.
"Um... how did it go with Videl? That was her, right?" I said.
"Yeah," he replied. "So -"
"Bad news?" I didn't currently have the energy to make an incredulous face, so I didn't.
"No. Just – uh. I'm sorry to bother you like this."
"It's fine. I was going to get up and move anyway. Are you... alright?"
"No," he tittered.
"What do you mean? What's..."
He breathed out, releasing his grip on the control panel to clasp his hands in his lap. When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet like a secret he just couldn't hold in.
"I'm a million miles into outer space and Videl just found out she's pregnant. I don't know whether to laugh or cry," he told me, hand moving to the back of his head.
I didn't know what to say. He sat there, waiting for a reaction, then upon my silence kept talking.
"Yeah. I mean – we planned on having kids later. Y'know. A couple years from now. I guess it was pretty obvious that we were looking forward to it since we sure doted on your little sister a lot. Just our luck that this comes up in the midst of all this... although... I guess... I can understand if you're annoyed at us being careless, or..." He trailed off awkwardly, looking more unsure the longer he waited for me to say something.
In truth, I really didn't know how I was supposed to react. Not because of anything to do with what Gohan had said, but because the circumstances of my own birth, and later, my sister's.
I couldn't imagine what it was like to be a father. But I did remember that tiny spark of happiness I'd felt when I was first told Mom was pregnant with my sister, the spark that refused to die in the ensuing months no matter how complicated things got – until the day she was born had crushed it. It hadn't come back until five years later when I'd caught it from a little girl with a pair of eyes the same shade as mine.
If being a parent feels anything like that, then it can't be a bad thing.
"Why would I be annoyed? Gohan, isn't this – isn't this what you've always wanted? To have a family?" I answered, finally finding my voice.
"More than anything. But I just thought you might be – I don't know, you were just sitting there and -"
He stopped when I stood and walked over to him.
"Are you kidding me? This is amazing! Congratulations, Gohan!" I said, reaching out to squeeze his ribs into as tight a hug I dared.
"I... Thanks, Trunks," he replied, probably a little surprised at my open gesture, but warmed up very quickly as he embraced me in return. His metal arm was cold and firm on my back.
"You have to tell the rest of your family, right?" I said as I pulled away. "Gods, Goten and your dad are going to be so excited."
As if on cue, a small sneeze from the hallway reached our ears.
Both Gohan and I looked towards the still shut door, watching it slide open as a pair of brown eyes I knew like the back of my hand peeked through sheepishly.
"Before you accuse me of anything, I was most definitely not standing around in the hallway and holding my breath because I was listening in," Goten said, shuffling the blanket he had draped over himself so that it covered all but his head and the hand that clasped it in place. "Also, Trunks, you dick, now that I have your attention, you took the extra blanket."
"The entire point of it being extra is that you already have one," I grumbled. "And you were totally eavesdropping. I guess you get a pass this time, though."
"I appreciate the lenience, Your Highness," he replied sarcastically, "but what were you guys actually talking about...?"
"Goten," Gohan said, "Videl is pregnant."
My best friend opened his mouth to speak, closed it, then opened it again.
"Like, pregnant pregnant? With a baby?" Goten gawked at last.
"That's typically what women give birth to, yes," the elder sibling chuckled.
"Oh my god. Really?" Goten beamed. "So... I'm an uncle?"
"Well, not quite yet," Gohan said, but Goten had already bounced forward to hug and congratulate his brother.
"How far along is Videl? Do Mom and Dad know yet?" the younger sibling said.
"Um... Around three months, she said. And no, I mean, I just found out myself."
"Wooowwww, this is great. This is so great," Goten said, reaching to crush me in a nearly strangling hug in turn.
"I'll get a roly-poly, drooling ball of dopamine to dote over! I'm gonna be the best Cool Uncle ever," he cooed. "And you can be Cool Uncle's Sidekick!"
I put my hands on his cheeks and squished them around. "Stop trying to throttle me. The baby won't be born for another half an Earth year or so, right?" I said, turning to look at Gohan as his brother loosened his clutches for a moment.
Gohan nodded in reply, still looking a bit stunned. I pursed my lips in thought.
"Do you want to go back?" I asked.
"Go back?" he echoed. "You mean home?"
"Yes. I... Even though I asked you to come, I don't want to keep you from being with your wife and child. I know it's important to you, and I also don't know how long we could be out here in space. If you wanted to go back – even if Goku couldn't take you, I'm sure we could arrange something, get another ship."
Gohan looked down, pursing his lips.
"Six months, huh?" he said. He met my eyes again. "Then we'll have to find your father before then."
I raised a brow as he continued. "I do want to be there for Videl. And I want to be there to see my son or daughter when they come into this world. But... I made a promise. I may not be one of the stronger fighters here anymore, but I can't in good conscience leave you guys to handle this yourselves. Not when we've already come all this way. What good am I if Dad and Goten are here and I leave you behind?" he said.
"Gohan. You don't – you don't have to stay for us. Dad and Trunks and me can handle it. And besides, we've also got our sour new grandfather and a couple of total strangers on board to help," Goten interjected with an attempt at humour. "What could go wrong?"
"Do you want me to stay?" Gohan asked, looking between Goten and I.
"Well, we'll probably find Vegeta faster with someone actually smart around," Goten added.
"I can't ask you to do that," I replied simply. Because if I did, you're the kind of person who would, regardless of your own feelings.
Gohan smiled. "Looks like I'm staying. Like I said, we have half a year. I'm sure we can find your father before then."
"Well if that's settled," Goten began, "then speaking of father – I think he's going to be pretty happy to hear the news."
"Are you sure you want to wake -"
Goten was already moving out the door.
"Dad! DadDadDad!" he called loudly enough that I was surprised the whole ship didn't spring awake.