The Power Within

Hey guys! After a LONG time, I'm finally back with an update! Sorry for the wait...I was bombarded and buried in countless assignments, tests, and presentations, plus a bout of writer's block. But I'm here! And that's all that matters. Please be patient with updates, too. Lastly, I've solidified my plot, so you don't have to worry about me abandoning this (really!). Anyways, as always, enjoy the chapter!

2 months had passed since Gohan visited Piccolo for advice. His weird dreams had surprisingly ceased after about a month of piano playing and he felt more relaxed than he had ever been. The relaxation definitely showed in his daily life; he was no longer angry about studying—in fact he enjoyed it—and he was more open to his mother's decisions on his education. He smiled more, he laughed more, he played more, and he came to accept his father's decision of staying in otherworld. Gohan had also told his mother about his strange piano talent, which she accepted right away as she thought (knew?) that he was a child prodigy. This was just as well, as they hybrid didn't want to explain anything to her.

Piccolo, true to his word, kept a close eye on his pupil's energy levels. It was what he was doing currently by his waterfall that day, when he noticed a sudden spike of negative energy entwined in Gohan's own positive energy. As suddenly as it came, though, it vanished.

'What was that?' Piccolo thought, snapping his eyes open. He looked in the direction of the Son house and concentrated. Still, he felt nothing. 'It felt so…evil.'

The Namekian frowned. He would have a talk with the boy later. For now, it was back to meditating.

Meanwhile, in otherworld, King Kai looked upon the planet with worry gracing his features.

'Earth Is heading for a dark time,' he thought, light dramatically glinting off of his glasses.

"Gohan, wake up, breakfast is ready!"

"I'm coming, mom!"

Gohan ran down the stairs and jumped into the kitchen, a huge smile on his face. Chichi laughed; his good mood was contagious. She served him breakfast and they sat down to eat. When Gohan finished eating, he got up.

"Thanks! That was good!" he exclaimed. "I'm going to do my homework now."

"Oh, Piccolo stopped by," Chichi said, gathering the dishes. "Normally I would yell at him and shoo him away, but I'm in a good mood today, and you've been working so hard." She put the dishes in the sink and rolled up her sleeves. "You can go see him if you wish."

Gohan gasped. "Really!? Cool! I'll go change!"

The half-breed Saiyan ran up to his room and threw on his favourite purple gi. Before he ran out the door of his room, he caught a glimpse of something in the mirror. It looked like a shadow of some sort. But that was strange; why would there be a shadow in the morning, when the sun was bright and shining?

'I must be seeing things,' he thought, shrugging it off and running out.

"Bye mom!"

"You're lacking in your training."

Gohan stood in front of Piccolo, his head hung in shame.

"Y-yeah, I know. But I've been training my mind, and—"

"Training your mind is not training your body. Your energy is steady now but have you tried using it in combat?"

"No, b-but…I've been busy studying."

Silence. Then, "When was the last time you went Super Saiyan?"

Gohan didn't reply. Piccolo frowned.

"Well?" he pushed.

"Uh, yesterday?"

The Namekian became cross. "Don't get smart with me, Gohan. You haven't been a Super Saiyan since the Cell Games, have you?" he questioned. Gohan smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his head.

"Yeah, well…no," he said. His smile dropped. "Why? The Earth isn't in any danger, is it?"

Piccolo hesitated, which made Gohan anxious. Finally, he spoke.

"No, it isn't. But we need to be ready for anything that comes our way, and you're the strongest of all of us right now," he lectured. "Spar with me."

"What?"

"Spar with me," he repeated, falling into position. Gohan followed suit, albeit a bit nervously.

"Um, okay," he said, then smirked. "I'll be sure not to hit you too hard," he said. Piccolo smirked as well.

"Don't count on it," he replied coolly, and lunged forward.

The two sparred for about an hour until a particularly rough punch from Gohan brought the fight to a pause as Piccolo stopped to breathe.

"Ah, Mr. Piccolo! Are…are you okay!?" Gohan asked, running up to his mentor. Piccolo tried to slow his breathing.

"S-sure, kid…just fine…was just caught off guard for a second, that's all," he said, sitting down on a rock. Gohan powered down and sat on the ground beside him. They rested for a bit before Piccolo got back to his feet.

"Alright, Gohan, now I want you to go Super Saiyan 2."

Gohan gaped at him. "W-what? B-but Mr. Piccolo—"

"But nothing! Get to your feet and transform," he barked, crossing his arms. Gohan stood, feeling small. He could sense a rushed and worried aura around Piccolo, as if there was an enemy around the corner and they needed to act fast.

'Geez,' Gohan thought. 'He's acting as if there's an enemy lurking in the shadows, just waiting to pounce on us.'

"Piccolo, I can't do it."

A frown. "What? Of course you can."

"I don't know if I can."

Piccolo growled. "Goddammit, Gohan, just transform already!"

Used to the bluntness and rudeness of Piccolo's personality, Gohan sighed and complied. "Okay."

He spread his feet and clenched his fists. Letting out a yell, he transformed to Super Saiyan 1 easily and swiftly. Piccolo smirked.

"That's it, Gohan! Keep going!'

Encouraged by his teacher's words, Gohan continued to yell. Eventually, his muscles bulged and he grew slightly taller.

'Gohan…'

Piccolo felt the same spike of negative energy he felt before, only this time it was rising along with Gohan's energy.

"W-wait, Gohan!" he yelled, afraid of the rate the bad energy was rising.

It was too late. With a final yell, Gohan's hair spiked up and his eyes turned a strange turquoise different from the blue of SSJ1. When the smoke cleared, he stood there with a nonchalant look on his face. Piccolo just stared at him, feeling the negative energy rise at an alarming rate. A few minutes later, Gohan smiled. It was peculiar.

"I did it, Piccolo. Can't you see?" he said, unmoving. He didn't even blink. The Namekian took a cautious step forward.

"Are you okay, kid?" he asked, fear leaking into his voice despite his effort to mask it. Gohan's smile grew.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be? I did it."

Piccolo took another step forward but didn't let his guard down. He got a strange feeling in his gut that usually indicated that something was going to happen. Gohan laughed, but it wasn't a happy laugh. It was the laugh of a mad man.

"I did it," he repeated. His laughter grew, and soon he was clutching his stomach. Piccolo frowned.

"What's so funny?" he asked. Gohan continued to laugh loudly.

"I did it!"

'Gohan…'

"Gohan, power down," the Namekian commanded slowly. The laughter stopped abruptly.

"No."

"Power down, kid. We'll continue this tomorrow. Lesson over."

Gohan's eyes held a wild glint. "I said no. Besides, I'm stronger than you."

"That's irrelevant."

"No."

"Gohan."

"No."

"Gohan!"

"I SAID NO!"

He began laughing again, and this time the negative energy grew so high that it enveloped Gohan's own energy signal. Piccolo immediately powered up and moved behind Gohan, his clenched hands poised above his head. Just as he was about to bring his fists down and knock him out, Gohan caught them. His laughter ceased again.

"What are you doing?" he asked, a mocking tone in his voice that suggested that he thought very highly of himself. The Namekian tried to jerk his hands away but to no avail.

"Let go, kid," he said. The hybrid let him go, but didn't turn around.

"I'm stronger than you," he stated. Piccolo frowned.

"Yes, you are," he agreed. This seemed to make Gohan happy. The edge of his mouth moved upward in a sort of half-smile.

"All of this power certainly is refreshing," he said. "I've been waiting for this for a long time."

Piccolo was confused.

"What?"

Gohan turned around. "What do you say we…test out this new power? Killing some innocent life would certainly be sufficient, no?" he asked, smirking. "It's not like they're going to lose anything valuable."

He frowned and tried to dig into his pupil's mind, sensing nothing but evil. "Gohan, enough. This is crazy. This isn't you."

Gohan took a step forward.

"Your mind is lost in shadow," he continued

The hybrid laughed. "You'd be surprised at how true that statement is, my friend," he said, taking another step forward just as Piccolo moved back and growled. Suddenly, Gohan stopped and frowned. His eyebrows contorted into an expression of confusion, and then he smiled that peculiar smile again and raised his hands in the sky. Piccolo dropped into his fighting stance, but was unprepared for what happened next. Gohan, in one quick move, shot energy out of his hands in an attack that closely resembled Vegeta's big bang attack. Piccolo was blown out of the way and landed roughly on the ground a ways back. When the smoke cleared, the Namekian couldn't believe what he saw.

The entire forest had been blown away. Dozens of animals were strewn around, missing limbs. It was clear that they were dead, the burn marks and the blood being enough proof for that. The lake evaporated from the heat of the blast, and the ground was bare, stripped of grass. Gohan stared at the carnage, his face blank.

"They're dead," he said simply, showing no sign of remorse for his actions. Piccolo jumped up and growled.

"The hell they are! What's wrong with you!?"

Gohan turned to face him, opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again. He seemed a bit dizzy, as he was swaying a little bit. Suddenly, his hair turned black and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. Piccolo caught him before he hit the ground. Just as he reverted fully back to his base form, Piccolo tried to sense out the evil energy signal; nothing. It was gone, replaced by the positive energy he was familiar with. He picked his student up and stared at him.

"Gohan…" he said, shaking him a bit. When he didn't move, the Namekian took a last look at the destroyed forest and flew off to the Son's house.

'What the hell was that?" he thought, letting out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He'd been more scared than he'd let on.

'This is getting ridiculous. I brought him here to get some answers and all I get are more questions. Something's going on, and I won't stop until I found out what it is.'

With that thought in mind, Piccolo sped up. He had to return the boy home first.

Gohan woke up and stretched. Yawning, he checked the time, and immediately snapped awake.

'3:00 am!? How long was I out?' he thought, running a hand through his disheveled hair. Gohan got up and stretched again, choosing to take a walk to get rid of the foggy cloud in his head. He quietly opened his windows and snuck out into the night, hoping his mother didn't hear him. This little escapade would definitely cost him his Piccolo-visiting privileges. He wrinkled his nose at the thought; his mother would dump his studies on him if she knew he was leaving. No, she couldn't find out. Once outside, the hybrid broke into a run.

'Ah, it feels good to have cool, fresh air on my skin!' he thought happily. The scenery blurred past his vision and the wind whipped through his hair as he ran with no particular destination in mind. The nocturnal animals were up and about, minding their own business, and the forest was quiet and calm, as if it knew not to disturb the sleeping people. It was a serene scene. After covering a good distance of dense forestry, Gohan entered a large clearing. A river sparkled in the moonlight, beckoning to him. The hybrid gladly bent down for a drink to quench his thirst. Cupping his hands together, he dipped his hands in the water and held the cool drink to his lips, savoring every blue drop.

'That's much better…,' he thought, wiping his lips. A gust of wind blew past Gohan, making him shiver from the cold as he was still in his pajamas. It was strange; did the wind get this cold in the summer? A familiar voice jolted Gohan out of his thoughts. It was a voice that made his blood run cold.

"Hello, Gohan."

He whipped around, seeing no one. A vague sense of déjà vu hit him, and he suddenly realized that this was almost exactly like his dream.

"I-I know you!" he yelled out into the dark forest. "You're in my dream! I've heard you before!"

Laughter. Then, "I see you recognize me, my friend."

Gohan fell into his fighting position and silently hoped that Piccolo would come, as the Namekian never slept. "I do. Now come out and fight me!"

"I'm over here."

He whipped around again. No one.

"Enough of these games! Come out!" he demanded, his head turning to look in every direction.

"I'm out."

Gohan peered into the darkness and saw nothing. He looked closer, and closer, until he noticed something peculiar. There were no trees. There was nothing. Just darkness.

'Where'd everything go?' he thought, confused. 'It must be an illusion.'

"No illusion, my friend. Look in front of you," the…thing said. Gohan peered harder and saw two red lights evenly spaced out from one another.

'It's definitely a creature of some sort,' he decided. Then, he kept staring. 'Wait, no…'

He was staring into eyes.

Gohan stumbled back and fell, alarmed. His heart was racing and he tried to slow down his breathing.

"W-what…are you!?" he asked, anger and fear slowly replacing the shock. "Answer me!"

It chuckled and slowly walked closer to Gohan. "You do not know? Surely you would know me," it said, its voice steady and calm. "I'm a part of you."

"You're lying!" Gohan blurted out immediately. "I don't know you, I haven't met you, I haven't seen you…I have no idea who you are!" he yelled.

It smirked, which was strange as it didn't seem to have a definite mouth or any definite features other than the red eyes.

"Here's a little something you should know, my dear Gohan. Have you ever experienced…insanity?"

"What? Insanity?" Gohan repeated. "No, I'm sane."

The creature chuckled again. "You say that as if you're sure of it."

"I'm sure!" Gohan exclaimed. "Now tell me what you're here for!"

"But how can you be sure?" it asked. "You must be insane to think that." It laughed at its own joke. Gohan, getting impatient, stepped forward and clenched his fists.

'What does he intend to do?' Gohan thought, a drop of sweat dripping off of his chin. "I can assure you that I'm perfectly sane. Now I'd like to ask you some questions of my own. Who are you? And what do you want?" he asked irritably.

The creature ignored his questions again. "A man who is "of sound mind" is one who keeps the inner madman under lock and key (Paul Valéry)," it said. "I will ask again: how can you be sure that you are sane?"

Gohan stared at it, confused and speechless. He didn't have anything to say to that.

"Embrace your insanity, my friend, for it is that which will ultimately be your salvation," it continued. "You have the key; all you have to do is open the lock, and you will have everything you ever need. All of the solutions, all of the answers."

It smirked.

"Embrace it."

"Embrace it," Gohan repeated, mesmerized by its words. Then, he shook his head and took a step back. "No! What am I doing…?"

The creature's smirk never dropped. "My time is up. Till next time, my friend."

Gohan's eyes widened. "A-ah, no! Wait!"

Too late. It was gone.

The half-breed collapsed to his knees, sweating and breathing hard.

'Who was that? What was that?' he thought, running a hand through his hair. 'A…part of me? Why was it talking about insanity? I'm not insane…but, why were its words so mesmerizing?'

He crawled back towards the river and splashed water on his face, the moonlight shining off of the droplets that fell. Then, a sudden realization hit him.

'Where was Piccolo?'

Gohan's head began to spin, and he decided to head on home. After all, he didn't want his mother to worry about him.

Well, there you have it! I hope you enjoyed. Now, what is this creature? What are its motives? What will Gohan do? All in the chapters to come! :D