Chapter 70

Last time on DragonBall AF, the final blow was delivered! At long last, Vegeta had finally defeated the evil Daikon after transforming into a Super Saiyan 3 and foiled his schemes of changing the future. But before Daikon could be blown into oblivion, Vegeta told him that his attempt at changing time was futile, therefore leaving Daikon to die an uneasy and meaningless death. Now Vegeta must find Goku and Goshin, and hope that they are still all right.

Vegeta looked around the partially destroyed cavern he was in, searching for where Goku and Goshin could be. "Damn it, I can't sense anything. I hope this doesn't mean they're dead." He walked over towards the end of the cavern which had not been destroyed, hoping to find a sign that Goku and Goshin were around.

"Man this is getting tiring," Vegeta said to himself, and with that he finally powered down from Super Saiyan 3. "What's that?" Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the panel that Daikon had used earlier which lifted up one of the cavern walls. Vegeta walked up to the panel and activated it, sending a bunch of gears into motion.

The cavern wall in front of him began to move upwards, but came to a halting spot after only coming inches off the ground. "Come on!" shouted Vegeta. "Now I'm convinced, they have to be under there." Vegeta crouched down and put his hands underneath the wall, trying to lift it higher. "UNH! Damn it!" It would hardly budge, as Vegeta was starting to feel the effects from fighting his first time as a Super Saiyan 3.

"All right, come on, just have to use one more bit… of power…" Vegeta started to power up just a little bit, and finally the gears started moving again as Vegeta kept pushing up. Then finally, a few moments later, he raised the wall completely, and there behind it was Goku and Goshin, passed out on the floor.

"Guys!" he shouted. "I'll get you out in no time. HAH!" Vegeta kicked through the glass, but made sure he got as far away from Goku and Goshin so that the flying shards would not slice them. As soon as he got in though, he noticed the noxious fumes surrounding them. "Crap! This definitely isn't good! Let's go guys!" Vegeta walked over to Goku and put him on his right shoulder, and Goshin on his left. He walked back towards the hole in the glass, ready to fly out of it, when he began to feel the effects of the gas.

"Unh, I can hardly breathe, it's like my strength's getting sapped out of me." He rose wobbly into the air and cleared through the hole, but as soon as he did, he collapsed onto the floor. "…I can't fail…now…"

"Vegeta. Vegeta. You awake?"

Vegeta slowly opened his eyes. Looking down on him was his mother. Vegeta then quickly sat up. "Wh-where am I? Where's Goku and Goshin? What's going on!"

"Calm down Vegeta," said Celery. "You're in the medical wing here at Capsule Corp. You've inhaled some kind of noxious substance, but you're going to be fine."

"But how did I get here? And where is Goku and Goshin, mom!" he said with his tone rising.

"Right here." And into the room walked Goshin. "And Goku's in the next room. You actually came through Vegeta, wasn't expecting that really."

Vegeta gave him an odd look before he started bellowing. "What is this the Twilight Zone! Goshin was just on the brink of death, and we've all somehow managed to magically end up in the medical wing!"

"For starters, I wasn't on the brink of death," replied Goshin. "When me and Goku were thrown in there, it seemed that I had passed out pretty quick to both Daikon and my brother. But really, I kind of, well how do I put this? I guess I put myself to sleep. Once I saw the fumes pouring into the cell, I knew I didn't have much time to act. I can manipulate my Living Ki so as that it nearly shuts down all my bodily functions, much like a bear in hibernation. Since I wasn't breathing in the fumes that much, I was left practically unharmed, and awoke once you brought us out of the cell into the fresh air. After that, I took you and Goku back here for treatment and make sure we would get the necessary help."

"What about Goku then? I know he can't do anything like that," said Vegeta. "Is he all right?"

"He was definitely the hardest hit by it," answered Goshin. "He's in critical, but stable condition right now. But another 15 or 20 minutes in there, he probably would've died. He's lucky the fumes were coming in at a slow rate and not bombarding his lungs. But the doctors think he's going to pull through. Plus I have Yajirobe getting some Senzu ready for us."

"Great," sighed Vegeta. "If I could've only moved faster, that might not have happened."

"Come on now son," said Celery, "you can't go blaming yourself for that. If it weren't for you, Goku definitely would've died."

"Hm, you're right," he said. "I have to stop being so negative. I'm just glad that you guys are all right."

"So am I," said Goshin. "That attack on us was indeed a surprise. I would hate to think what would've happened if that maniac got his way."

"You don't have to, cause it didn't happen," said Vegeta. "I made sure of that. For once, heh, I guess I'm the hero."

Goshin smirked and turned back towards the door. "You're the man, Vegeta." And with a wave he walked out of the room.

Two weeks have passed since the battle with Daikon. Goku, who took the longest to heal fully, is finally out of recovery and joins his friends and family back at Mt. Pazou.

"Hey! What's up everyone!" Goku walked through the door to his house with Zonza with a greeting party of his family along with the Briefs waiting for him.

"Oh! I'm glad you've finally came home Goku!" said Pan as she embraced her grandson. "You're mother and I prepared a big feast for all you boys tonight, so I hope you're hungry!"

"Really!" exclaimed Goku. "This is great! Thanks so much everybody!" The Goku walked up to Vegeta and stuck out his hand. "Just wanted to say thanks…again. Heh, you know I was totally out of it last week when you came in."

"Hey it's all right man, it's the least I could do," replied Vegeta. "I know you're quick thinking has bailed us out plenty of time so I thought I could return the favor just once."

"Yup! And it couldn't have come at a better time!" laughed Goku.

"Hey!" shouted Bra from inside the kitchen. "Let's move you two, we're hungry too you know!"

"Don't got to tell me twice!" answered Goku as he ran into the next room. Vegeta just stood there and smiled, mildly shaking his head.

"Heh, picture perfect I guess," he said to himself as he looked on at everybody sitting at the table, stuffing their faces. "This is what I live for, to protect these guys I guess. I'll have to make sure to take one day at a time." And with that, Vegeta walked into the kitchen and joined his friends.

Goku and Goshin have come back safely, and Vegeta finally feels a peace of mind. With the evil purged from the Earth for the time being, our heroes can finally relax and revel in their celebration of being back together in one piece. Knowing that he has something to live for has made him realize that every moment is valuable, and to live life to it's fullest…