The Chosen One
Chapter Forty-Seven
Gohan climbed out of his bed. It had been a few days since his last fight with Rekhas, and he was feeling better. He would probably need a healer to make a complete recovery, however. Unfortunately, Earth was destroyed, so that meant that there was no Dende or Senzu Beans. However, he had another destination in mind.
Gohan slipped on his armor and walked to the bridge. It's so quiet with no one else around, he thought. Hopefully that will change soon.
"Beginning landing procedure for Namek," the computer said. Gohan sat in the pilot's chair and prepared for a landing.
-47-
Gohan walked out of the spaceship onto Namekian soil. He stood on the outskirts of a Namekian village and walked toward the center of the village. As he did so, he came across a familiar figure.
Gohan bowed. "Hello, Elder Moori."
"Ah, it's nice to see you, Gohan," Moori replied. "You seem a little bruised up. I guess your fight with Rekhas was difficult then, no?"
"Very," Gohan answered. "And I would not have defeated him if you all had not given me your energy."
"So, what brings you to our planet?" Moori asked.
Gohan hung his head, and tears began to cloud his eyes. "My friends, my family, Earth . . . they're all gone. I came to stay here until the Dragon Balls can be used again."
Moori frowned. "Hmm. Reviving so many people may be more than Porunga can currently handle. I can work on that. When was the last time the Dragon Balls were summoned?"
Gohan thought for a moment. "I'd say about a month ago. So I have another four months to wait before the Dragon Balls can be reused."
"Actually, make that two," Moori said. "Something about your fight with Rekhas gave the Dragon Balls more energy and cut the wait this time."
Gohan's eyes lit up. "Really? That's great!"
"Right now, though, I have a question," Moori said. "We Namekians only require water for sustenance. You, on the other hand, require food."
"I have plenty of food on my spaceship," Gohan replied. "Bulma stocked it with enough food to feed a small army of Saiyans for three years. I'll be fine."
-47-
Soon, two months passed and Gohan gathered the Dragon Balls, along with a Namekian interpreter to make the wishes. The interpreter spoke the words to call forth the Namekian Eternal Dragon, Porunga.
"SPEAK YOU WHO HAVE SUMMONED ME. I WILL GRANT ANY THREE WISHES YOU WANT."
"My home planet, Earth, was destroyed," Gohan said. "Could you bring it back the way it was before it was destroyed?" The Namekian interpreted the wish for Porunga.
The dragon's eyes glowed. "IT IS DONE," he said. "WHAT IS YOUR SECOND WISH?"
"Please move the souls of my traveling companions to the Namekian check-in station in the Other World!" Gohan exclaimed. The Namekian interpreted the wish.
Porunga's eyes glowed again. "THERE. THEIR SOULS ARE NOW IN THIS PLANET'S CHECK-IN STATION. WHAT IS YOUR THIRD WISH?"
Gohan choked up. Here it was. He would finally be able to see his friends - and Sephra - again. "Please restore life to all those who were killed by the Roxians!"
Once again, the dragon's eyes began glowing a bright red. One by one, Gohan's friends appeared, starting with Piccolo. The last person to appear was Sephra. The very moment she appeared, she threw herself on Gohan, weeping tears of joy. Gohan closed his eyes and stroked the princess's hair.
"YOUR THREE WISHES HAVE BEEN GRANTED," Porunga said. "FAREWELL." Porunga then disappeared, and the Dragon Balls shot up into the air. At their peak, they shot out in seven different directions, not to be discovered for another five months.
Bulma smiled at Gohan. "Where now?"
"Home," Gohan replied. "Let's go home."
-47-
"Okay," Bulma said. "Everyone, prepare for entry into Earth's atmosphere."
Sephra grinned. "I can't wait to see what Earth looks like!"
No one else was able to say anything as they entered the Earth's atmosphere and felt the planet's gravitational pull kick in. Bulma eventually managed to slow the ship down, and they saw themselves above a small city.
"Man, it's nice to see some normal Earth-style buildings for a change!" Gohan commented as he looked out the rear window.
"It'll take us about an hour to get to West City," Bulma said.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Krillin exclaimed. "Let's go!"
Suddenly, the ship got knocked sideways. It tumbled over a few times, and everyone got knocked around the bridge.
"What was that?" Bulma shouted.
Gohan looked out the window, and gasped in utter horror. Where the city had been there was now a giant mushroom cloud comprised of flame and smoke. "What is going on?"
Trunks looked out the window. "That's a nuclear explosion. Did someone drop a hydrogen bomb on the city?"
Bulma looked at her control panel. "No way! That explosion was too strong to be from an H-bomb! Radiation levels are climbing, too!"
"Then get us out of here!" Vegeta shouted. As if on cue, the ship sped off.
"Is there a nuclear war or something going on here?" Yamcha wondered aloud.
"If there isn't, there's going to be one now," Piccolo said. "Once the government of whatever nation controlled that city finds out who was responsible, they'll most likely retaliate with a nuclear weapon of their own."
"I can only think of one place on Earth that's relatively safe from nuclear warfare," Gohan said. "Bulma? Change course. We need to go to the Lookout."
-47-
Dende rushed out to his friends. "Gohan! You're back!"
Gohan nodded. "But we have another crisis on our hands."
"Dende, do you know of any nations preparing to launch a nuclear strike?" Piccolo asked.
Dende shook his head sadly. "So you saw, too. I have no idea what happened."
"Well, whatever the case may be, we need to get our friends that are still down there to safety," Piccolo commented. "Chi-chi, her father, and Goten should be safe in their rural village, as should Master Roshi on his island. Everyone at Capsule Corporation, however, is at a major risk. After all, West City is the largest city on the continent."
"I'll get them," Gohan said, and he disappeared. A few moments later, he reappeared with Bulma's parents, the present-day Trunks, and Puar.
"Well, now that that's been taken care of, someone ought to check out what happened at ground zero," Piccolo said.
Androids 17 and 18 looked at each other. "Eighteen and I will go," Android 17 replied. "We won't be affected by radiation."
"Also, no one can sense our power levels," Android 18 added. With that, the two siblings took off.
Gohan then took Sephra's hand. "May I talk to you for a moment?" Sephra nodded.
Gohan led Sephra over to the edge of the Lookout. "There's something I want you to see," Gohan said. He then took a deep breath and shouted, "NIMBUS!"
A streak of yellow shot through the sky as the ever-faithful cloud neared its caller. It came to a stop in front of Gohan.
"This is the Flying Nimbus," Gohan explained. "It travels at speeds up to Mach 2. It will allow people to ride it, but only if those people are pure in heart." Gohan jumped up and landed on the Flying Nimbus, and did not fall through. "See?" He hopped off the cloud. "Let's see if it will let you ride it."
Sephra bent her knees and jumped as high as she could. She used her wings to give her more momentum to land on the cloud like Gohan did. Her feet touched down on the cloud, but she did not fall through it.
Gohan smiled. "Just as I thought."
"Why did you want to show this to me?" Sephra asked.
Gohan's expression became more serious. "Sephra, if something bad happens here, I want you to hop on the Flying Nimbus and fly away, as far as you can."
Sephra shook her head. "No. I'm staying with you, no matter what."
"Sephra, I gave your father my word that I'd protect you," Gohan replied. "I intend to not let him down. Also, I already lost you once. I can't let it happen again. I'd never forgive myself."
-47-
An hour later, there was a sudden outburst of energy. It caught the attention of Gohan and his friends at the lookout. "What is that?" Gohan exclaimed.
"It came from the city where the nuclear blast went off!" Piccolo responded.
"Oh, no!" Krillin exclaimed. "The androids!"
Gohan jumped to his feet. "I'm going over there."
Vegeta spun around. "Do you have a death wish? You won't survive the amount of radiation there!"
Gohan grabbed the hilt of Testament. "With this, I can." He then teleported away.
-47-
Androids 17 and 18 were hiding beneath a pile of debris. They barely managed to escape an explosion of power.
"What was that?" Android 18 asked.
"I don't know," Android 17 answered. "But whatever it was, it's not good. Also, it feels familiar. As if I felt it somewhere before . . ."
Suddenly, about a hundred yards away, Gohan appeared. "What's Gohan doing here?" Android 17 wondered.
Gohan began looking around for the androids. Unfortunately, he could not tell where they were from power levels, since theirs could not be detected. He kept his hand firmly gripped on Testament's hilt. As he flew around, he noticed something. The sword was warm. He pulled it out of its scabbard, and found the grooves in the blade to be glowing red. I wonder what that means? As he was looking at the sword, something hit him in the back. Gohan was knocked forward, but he stabilized himself and spun around. "Who's there?" In response, he felt a blow to his chest, knocking him backwards. Gohan righted himself, and looked around frantically. "Show yourself!"
There was an echoing laugh. "As you wish," the voice said. Several feet away from Gohan, a light appeared. The first thing to emerge from the light was someone's arm. However, this person's arm ended in not a hand, but rather a sword's blade. Then, three more arms appeared, and two legs, and finally, a body. The body of someone Gohan recognized all too well.
"It . . . can't . . . be!" Gohan exclaimed in utter shock. "I killed you! Twice!"
Rekhas laughed. "Yes, you did. But once again, you failed to destroy Ifrit. As can be proven by my upper-right arm. You only broke the blade off the hilt. Sadly for you, this is what contained the soul of Asok, my ancestor! And just look at my power! Soon, I'll have the universe bowing before me, unless they want to look like this city!"
Gohan was taken aback. "You did this? You generated a nuclear explosion?"
"Yes, I did!" Rekhas replied. "This was Asok's trademark ability! And now it is mine!"
Gohan looked at the ground. He found the ruins of a teddy bear below him. "I don't believe this. Once again you prove you are a monster. You kill anyone if it suits you, whether it be someone who challenges you, or innocent bystanders. Not even children are spared." He then looked up at his adversary. "And you delight in it! You never stop! You love it!" Gohan's rage was building at an alarming rate. I'm not going to take this ANY MORE!" In the flash of an eye, Gohan was Super Saiyan.
"That's different," Android 17 commented.
"What is?" Android 18 asked. "He's gone Super Saiyan before."
"But not while holding Testament," Android 17 replied. "He always reverts when he so much as touches the blade."
Android 18 looked and saw that her brother was right. Gohan had gone Super Saiyan while holding Testament.
"Don't look now, but he's still changing!" Android 18 observed. She was right; Gohan's eyes and hair began glowing. The glow died down, and revealed that Gohan now had white hair and red pupils. The grooves in Testament were glowing every color of the rainbow at once. Electricity seemed to travel around his body and through the sword.
Rekhas watched for a moment. "Well, this is interesting. What now?" He figured that there was no point in risking himself just yet, so he tried out one of his new powers. Rekhas brought a piece of rubble into the air. With so much as a slight gesture, the rubble was carved into a humanoid shape. Suddenly, the shape began to move on its own, complete with articulated limbs.
"So, what do you think of this power?" Rekhas asked. "You see the boy in front of you, golem? Kill him."
The golem rushed forward, but suddenly, it fell to the ground, cut in half down the middle. Gohan remained in the same stance.
Rekhas looked on, surprised. "What was that? No matter, I just need to make a STRONGER one!" With that, he lifted a giant rock into the air. Using the rock, he formed a golem that was easily thirty feet tall. "Attack the boy!" Rekhas shouted. The golem rushed forward, but like its predecessor, it fell to the ground in two pieces, this time cut horizontally.
"What is going on here?" Rekhas wondered. Then, a blow hit him in the jaw like an uppercut. Rekhas stabilized himself. He looked at Gohan to find that the teen had not moved an inch. Then another blow was landed, this time in the gut. Again, Gohan appeared to have not moved.
What is going on here? Can he possibly be moving faster than I have detected? Rekhas thought.
"So, you finally figured it out," Gohan said.
"What?" Rekhas said. "Figured what out?"
"That I'm actually moving faster than you can see," Gohan answered. "And that I can hear your thoughts."
"WHAT?" Rekhas was taken aback. How dare this impudent whelp spoke to him that way! He launched himself at Gohan, and his speed was quite hard to follow, too. However, one more time, Gohan was faster and knocked Rekhas back.
Rekhas stopped. "What is going on with you? ANSWER ME!"
Gohan replied with one word: "Saoshyant."
"Saoshyant?" Rekhas exclaimed. "So . . . this is the reincarnated savior's true form."
"That's right," came a voice from Gohan's mouth. This voice, however, was not Gohan's own.
Rekhas's eyes widened. This voice was locked away in Asok's memories. "Lucius."
"That's right," Lucius said. "My soul is in this sword, as well. You see, Asok, there are many more effective ways about brining forth your descendant's power. Strong emotions - such as anger - work quite well."
"Damn you, Lucius," Rekhas said. "You always have to interfere with my plans. Think. In a universe where I rule, there will be eternal peace. No more wars will be waged, and people will go about their daily lives."
"It's only beneficial to you Roxians!" Lucius shouted. "Who would want to live in a world where every race except one is enslaved for not only life, but death, too? No one wants that life!"
"But there will be no unnecessary bloodshed, either," Rekhas said.
"Unnecessary bloodshed? There's ALREADY been too much!" Lucius shouted. "Your mind games will not work on me, nor will they work on my descendant! Get that through your head, because you'll need to be at your peak if you want to have any hope of surviving, let alone defeating us!"
"My peak? Ha! I can defeat you with the way I am now!" Rekhas replied.
"Oh?" Gohan said. "Then why is it that you can't land a single punch?"
"JUST WATCH ME!" Rekhas yelled, and attacked. His punch seemed to go right through Gohan. However, he had only attempted to hit an after-image, as it faded.
Unbeknownst to Rekhas, Gohan had moved to where Androids 17 and 18 were. "Both of you, get out of here. Now." He then moved again.
Androids 17 and 18 just looked at each other.
Gohan then reappeared behind Rekhas and landed a punch in his back. Rekhas tried to catch himself, but Gohan hit him with a kick to the head. Rekhas landed facefirst in the rubble. He slowly got up, and tried to take off, but once again, Gohan was on him. This time, Gohan had Rekhas by the arms, and was slowly forcing Rekhas back to the ground. The Roxian tried to put more effort in, but Gohan decided to increase his strength and forced Rekhas to the ground before he even knew what hit him. Then, Gohan launched a series of punches at Rekhas's solar plexus, driving the air out of the emperor and cracking his armor. He then backed away and let Rekhas get up.
"You can't . . . possibly be human . . . or Saiyan!" Rekhas said. "Who are you?"
"I am the hope of the universe," Gohan said. Unbeknownst to either fighter, this statement got Goku and King Kai's attention in the Other World.
"I am the answer to all living things who cry out for peace."
Androids 17 and 18 were dumfounded by what they were watching. "Amazing."
"I am the protector of the innocent; the light in the darkness; I am truth."
Piccolo, Vegeta, and several other fighters were on the way to ground zero. "We're on our way, Gohan."
The electricity surrounding Gohan tripled in intensity, and a powerful golden aura surrounded the fighter.
"Ally to good! Nightmare to you!"