"That...that was..."

"Like riding the skylines for the first time, only about a hundred times better." Booker agreed. So flush with adrenaline was he, that he jumped off Shenron before the dragon had even come to a halt.

Elizabeth leapt after him, and he caught her by the waist. She was positively aglow with delight as she hopped out of his grip and actually kissed the Eternal Dragon on his cheek. "Thank you, Shenron!" she said, embracing as much of the dragon's head as she could.

"You are...welcome." Shenron replied, evidently trying not to sound embarrassed or pleased at the reception his flight had received. He carefully waited until Elizabeth had let go, then rose into the air and hovered above the Lookout. "You have one more wish."

"Oh, I can't think of anything that would be better than that!" she gushed.

"How about some cotton candy?" Booker asked sardonically. She gave him a playful glare before she looked back up at the dragon. "You can go now, Shenron. Thank you again!" The dragon nodded and disappeared in a flash of light. The Dragon Balls rose into the air and scattered, rocketing away into the distance. Booker looked around, but saw only Krillin and Piccolo. "What happened to the others?" he asked.

"Dende's on the other side, watching over the Earth. Goku and Vegeta are fighting nearby. You should have seen them down below as you came in." Piccolo said.

"Huh. Thought those were fireworks."

"We were just about to head down and get a better look. Wanna tag along?" Krillin asked.

"Thanks, but we don't...fly..."

"Aw, that's okay. Piccolo and I can take ya!" Krillin sprang forward and lifted Elizabeth into his arms; somewhat surprising given his size.

"Watch the hands, pal." Booker said with a glare as Piccolo lifted him up.

"Are you kidding? I'm a happily married man!" Their escorts bounded away from the Lookout and spiraled down. As the clouds parted, they could see two golden sparks clashing and bouncing off each other repeatedly. "Looks like they're still going at it." Krillin commented.

"Amazing. It's been almost an hour and their power levels are still so high." Piccolo said.

"Man, I gotta get in on that training regimen. How do you think I'd look with Super Saiyan hair?"

Piccolo made no reply. "There. That valley down below should be a good place for the two of you." They flew in low to the ground and dropped their passengers off. "If you need anything, just yell. We'll be up above, but Piccolo's ears can pick up just about everything on the planet." Krillin said.

"How in the hell do you stay sane with all that racket?" Booker asked in wonder.

"I don't." Piccolo said with a straight face. "Wait a second...Krillin, do you feel that? They've stopped."

"I don't believe it! Vegeta's been waiting years for this fight, and he just gave up?"

"Something's changed. Let's find out what." Piccolo took off without another word. Krillin gave an embarrassed half-shrug, then followed him.

"Aliens..." Booker said in an attempt to fill the sudden awkward silence.

"I wonder what makes them different from us." Elizabeth mused.

"You mean besides their stomachs?"

"Maybe Vegeta just worked up an appetite while he was working out."

Suddenly a voice cut through their heads. "Uh, hello? Is this thing on?"

"What in the world...?" Booker exclaimed.

"It's me, Krillin! Piccolo says he can let you guys in on what Vegeta and Goku have been saying. Hang on a second; he's got his wires crossed again." The voice cut out abruptly.

"I haven't been this confused since you started opening your tears." Booker said grumpily.

"Everything has rules, Booker. Even if the rule is that there are no rules. If we stay here long enough, you'll get the hang of things." Elizabeth said reassuringly.

"But if there aren't any rules, then how can there be a rule about there not being any rules...?"

"Your nose is bleeding again."

"What?" He touched his fingers to his nose in panic. Elizabeth smiled broadly.

"No it isn't. I thought it might for a moment, with how scrunched up your brow got."

Booker sighed. "Y'know, you keep tryin' to pull my leg like that and I'd just as soon you turned your all-knowing-ness back on. Least then I know I'm not supposed to understand a damn thing that comes out of your mouth."

"It's just a joke, Booker. Don't you have a sense of humor?" she asked, clasping her hands in front of her and batting her eyelashes at him.

"Let me check my other pants pocket." he mumbled. "D'you think you could stop doing that?"

"Stop what?" she asked, her voice dripping with honey.

"Stop...doing that."

"Doing what?" she asked in mock innocence.

"That...thing, it's makin' me feel like huggin' you." Elizabeth's eyes widened in surprise. "A hug would be nice. What's wrong with a hug?"

"It just wouldn't be right. I...I sold you; the last thing I deserve is to touch you."

Her face fell and she unclasped her hands. "And we were doing so well until now."

Another uncomfortable pause. The two could barely look at one another, each silently asking the other to speak first. Suddenly, Krillin's voice rang out silently once more. "Sorry about that. If we were using phones, I think they'd call this a conference call."

Piccolo spoke next. "In case you haven't felt it, Goku and Vegeta are going at it again. Apparently the last round was just to test the waters."

"Hey, at least we can see it this time!" Booker and Elizabeth turned their gaze to the sky. Sure enough, the two fighters weren't just blurs as they had been before. Vegeta caught Goku with a brutal stomach punch, followed by a double-fisted blow to the back of the neck. As Goku reeled from the force of the impact, Vegeta formed a ball of blue light in his right hand, then hurled it at the other man's head. Strangely, the energy passed right through Goku, who then faded from view. Vegeta turned around, just in time to receive a powerful backhand to the face from the real Goku that sent him flying away.

The fight continued for several minutes, with volleys of energy hurtling back and forth. Finally, Goku stopped and the electrical aura around him dissipated as his hair returned to its original black.