Happy New Year everyone! Here's Chapter 124! Thanks to Rawrz and DarkReina for the reviews on chapter 123.
Disclaimer: I do not own DBZ or any of its characters, Akira Toriyama does!
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Daiz stared at the screen of the bridge computer with rapt attention. When a wide smile lit the Kabochan's face Gartoas growled in utter annoyance.
"Don' be gittin' any ideas o' sneakin' off wi' tha woman somewheres, Turles done ordered ya back ta tha ship!"
"Turles ordered me to return to the ship but he didn't say I had to STAY aboard the ship!" Turles's second-in- command chortled.
"Wha' kinda' excuse is that?" the Kardanagan snorted.
"The perfect excuse to have a pleasant outing with delightful company...BULMA!"
"When Master Turles hears ya out falutin' round..."
"Turles changed his scouter's frequency. HE can contact US but WE can't contact HIM!" Daiz snickered.
Gartoas glowered in helpless fury. Turles wanted no distractions as he searched for the elusive half-ling. Which meant the former thief would be unable to report his crewmate's absence...
...
Chi-Chi flushed with embarrassment as she landed awkwardly on the hard ground from the Gaiazaz tree she had sheltered in the previous night. But there was no way she would allow a certain despicable Saiyan to assist with her descent. Thankfully Turles made no obnoxious comments about her abrupt presence. He was eyeing something in the sky above. The daughter of the Ox-king gasped in disbelief as the pirate took to the skies without a word of warning. Had Turles decided to abandon Gohan on this strange planet? Was he just going to leave her here in this forsaken jungle?
Seconds later the subject of her ire had returned with a blue plump goose-like fowl tucked under his right arm. As his boots touched down on the planet's surface Turles held up his prize.
"Breakfast!" he announced as Chi-Chi rolled her eyes...
...
Bulma clapped her hands in delight as she took in the beautiful gardens that stretched out for miles. Exotic butterflies fluttered about dipping down occasionally to procure nourishment from the multi-colored blooms.
"These are absolutely the most stunning..."
Daiz pressed a finger to his lips before Bulma could finish.
The bluenette stood with her hands on her hips," Okay! What are you up to this time? What's the big surprise?"
"BIG is definitely the word I'd use!" Daiz chuckled.
"Get to the point!" Bulma exclaimed as she gave him a playful swat.
"Come down this pathway here," the Kabochan directed as he took her right hand to guide her along.
The young scientist stood with her jaw agape for a moment then she rubbed her eyes in disbelief. At the end of the pathway was the largest blossom Bulma had ever seen! With both arms outstretched she'd still have no hope of reaching across the diameter of one single petal of the gigantic crimson flower.
"T-That's the biggest rose imaginable!"
An enormous shadow suddenly darkened the floral display. Only a feeble squeak escaped the terrified Terran genius as she took in the monstrous butterfly that had lighted at the edge of the alien rose. Its huge eyes were bigger than her head!
Daiz laughed softly as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders," RELAX! It's only here for a meal!"
"I HOPE WE AREN'T ON THE MENU!" Bulma shrieked.
The lepidopteran's gargantuan tongue snaked down deep into the center of the great crimson bloom. Bulma watched rapt with amazement, she could even hear the creature swallowing the nectar. It eyed the two garden visitors curiously at the completion of its meal.
Daiz boldly reached out and gently scratched between the antennae of the enormous insect. The daughter of Dr. Brief smiled as the multi-colored creature rubbed its head against the pirate's hand like an over-sized cat. Obviously the small plane-sized butterfly was gentle-natured. As she cautiously reached out as well Bulma laughed as she was rewarded with a soft warbling sound from the insectoid for her efforts.
Bulma protested as Daiz suddenly took her up in his arms and placed her right on the giant winged wonder's back. He quickly scrambled up behind her and wrapped an arm around her waist. With a light tap of his heels the former royal coaxed the alien insect into flight.
Fear turned into absolute delight as Bulma begin to enjoy the ride as their mount fluttered about on the gentle breeze. A gorgeous twin rainbow appeared in the sky just ahead of them. The dark green-haired pirate guided the huge butterfly directly towards it.
"You can't fly through a rainbow! It's just the light reflect..." Bulma began.
She fell silent as a mysterious smile lit the face of Daiz. The heavenly colored display now appeared to their right. As the lepidopteran changed direction so did the twin arcs.
"Now we can actually say we were out chasing rainbows," Daiz whispered...
...
Chi-Chi wiped the sweat from her brow as she trudged after Turles on his relentless journey through the jungle. On one hand she desperately wanted her son to be found, but what would become of her and Gohan once he was finally located? And what would be Bulma's fate as well? It greatly disturbed her that affections were becoming more apparent between Bulma and the dark green-haired pirate in Turles's crew. Didn't Bulma realize that the miscreant's first loyalty would be to Turles? With her warnings apparently falling on deaf ears Chi-Chi had resigned herself to the fact that the so-called "genius" would have to deal with the consequences of her unwise choices when Daiz revealed his true colors.
'She can't say I didn't warn her!' Chi-Chi mused.
Turles suddenly came to a stop. The Saiyan was intently observing the grass at his feet. As Chi-Chi craned her neck to see what had caught the planet marauder's interest she jerked back sharply as a foul odor assailed her nostrils. Several small creatures' bodies were strewn randomly about. They were stripped of all flesh and covered with swarming insects. A neat pile of hides adjacent from them caused the stench in the afternoon heat of the jungle.
Chi-Chi felt her stomach lurch as she was reminded of an event that had taken place in the morning hours. When Turles had snared the alien goose he had thought nothing of ripping out several still steaming organs out of the hapless creature and devouring the raw blood-drenched horrors right then and there! It taken all her strength not to collapse or empty the contents of her stomach at the sight!
And to add insult to injury Turles had the audacity to question if Goku had indulged in such an obnoxious habit on occasion. When she resolutely insisted her husband would NEVER behave in such a manner the uncivilized pirate muttered under his breath that 'Kakarot' must have fallen and struck his head at some point while on Earth. Of all the nerve!
"These are from a fresh kill. Gohan must be close by," Turles announced.
A surge of hope as well as fear rippled through Chi-Chi. Gohan was behaving like a starving wild animal. What a state he must be in!
The sound of the falls reached them before Turles and Chi-Chi stepped out in a clearing. A great waterway gushed before them below the plunging falls and there at the shoreline was...GOHAN!
Chi-Chi sucked in her breath as Gohan whirled about. His hair was wild and tangled, what little remained of his clothing was torn and filthy. His chest was bare and his eyes were an eerie red and blazing with fury. An animalistic roar erupted from the young demi-Saiyan as he charged. Turles stepped forward and sank into a fighting stance...
...
Until the next chapter!
daughterofrisingsun