Gohan had separated from the others in the hope of putting his secret plan into action. He had sneaked a suitable distance away before beginning construction. It only took him a few minutes to create a huge pile of snowballs. He made sure they were hidden behind a rise before heading back. His plan was to lead Goku and Trunks here, dive into his secret snowball stash, and come up firing madly. He grinned in anticipation. They'd never know what hit them!
As he flew, he spotted a sizeable body of water to his left—Sapphire Lake.
"All right!" he cheered aloud. "Time for some ice-skating." He came down on the frozen surface, his momentum speeding him along for a good distance.
"Whee!" he shouted gleefully before turning and sliding again. On the opposite bank, he hopped out onto the ground, turned, and sprinted in earnest. He became a mere blur of motion once he reached the ice. He was enjoying himself so much, he didn't notice the dark shadow under the ice coming up behind him.
Krak! The ice split suddenly beneath his feet. He barely had time to register puzzlement, when he was pulled forcibly into the water. His scream was abruptly cut off as his head went under.
He went numb, paralyzed by the intense cold. His only awareness for long seconds was of pain at his ankle, where the something holding him continued to steadily draw him to the lake's bottom. In the back of his mind, his Saiyan reflexes urged him to action. Inch by inch, he extended his hand, fingers spread. He concentrated, his brain unwillingly searching for any chi his freezing body could spare. Energy sluggishly made its way up to his palm, lighting up his determined face. Shutting his eyes, he shoved it upward.
Though it had only taken him a few seconds, his time was quickly running out. . .
Trunks wore a bemused frown. With a growing sense of unease in his voice, he asked slowly, "Did you see that energy blast? Gohan must have thrown it, but he knows it's against the rules. . ."
"I saw it, too," Goku replied grimly. His brows knit with concentration. "I can sense his energy signal—but it's dwindling." They didn't waste any more time. In unison, the two Saiyans powered up, white energy flowing around them. They leaped into the air, quickly disappearing as they moved faster than the speed of sound.
Above the ice-covered surface of Sapphire Lake, their bodies reappeared as they came to an abrupt stop.
"He's in the water!" Trunks cried, pointing at the jagged hole in the ice. Goku didn't need telling twice. Without hesitation, he took a deep breath and dived.
The dark, icy water shocked him so much that most of the breath left his lungs, bubbling out around him. A dim splash sounded as Trunks entered the water beside him. He grabbed the teenager's arm, pointing to a bubble trail leading downward. Trunks gave a nod, and they descended, their bodies quickly growing stiff as the cold got colder. Through the blackness, Goku could just make out a pair of glowing green eyes. Even in that dim light, his Saiyan vision revealed all he needed to see. A creature of some sort held his son by the throat. He sped up, forming an energy ball in his hand. With an unheard cry of fury, he released it.
But the sinuous thing . . .whatever it was . . .released Gohan and moved lithely out of the way. It had an advantage over the Saiyans: while they were clumsy and half-frozen with cold, it didn't seem bothered at all. It moved through the water with the ease of a fish. Goku lost sight of it, and the next second, he suffered a mighty blow to the head. He blacked out immediately.
Trunks unsheathed his sword and approached the beast. It circled around him with easy grace. The glittering eyes smirked at him, and he angrily swung his blade. But the creature moved smoothly out of the way, and struck.
Long, sharp claws ripped a deep gash in Trunks's upper arm. Trunks nearly dropped his sword at the sudden pain, bubbles blossoming around him as he screamed. He quickly gripped the wound with his free hand, slowing the blood flow. His head began to pound, begging for oxygen. If he didn't get to the surface soon. . .
He sheathed his sword and swam clumsily to rescue Gohan, hoping he would have enough time to save Goku as well.
But Gohan, apparently, had other plans. Trunks stopped and stared—Gohan's entire body was suddenly glowing! The light illuminated a steely resolve on the boy's face. Trunks was still trying to sort out this confusing information in his head, when Gohan cupped a shining ball of energy in his hand. Trunks gazed in awe as the previously helpless boy released his golden chi attack. Power streamed freely from his hand—there seemed to be no limit to the flow of energy. It slammed into their shadowy enemy. The fish-like being was thrown back, and immediately began sinking into the lake's depths. Before Trunks knew what was happening, Gohan grabbed both his arm and Goku's, and shot towards the surface. In an instant, they were out of the water. Gasping for air, Trunks glanced at Gohan, whose mysterious power was rapidly dissipating. The light faded, and Gohan fell limply to the ice, unconscious. Trunks hurried over to Goku, shaking him gently.
In the back of his mind, Goku could hear a voice calling him. Vaguely he thought of Chi-Chi . . .was she getting after him again? His head was pounding, but he forced himself to listen. It sounded like . . .
"Goku! Goku, wake up!"
Goku opened his eyes. A face swam into focus above him . . .Trunks. The adolescent's expression of fear dissolved into relief. Goku pushed himself painfully upright and immediately began coughing, expelling the water his lungs had taken earlier. When he could breathe again, he looked around in confusion.
"Trunks? What happened? Where's—?" He stopped as he spotted his son lying motionless nearby.
"Gohan!" he cried fearfully. His strength returning to him in a rush, he leaped up and hurried to his son.
"It's okay—he's alive," Trunks assured him quickly. "But we have to get back soon. His body can't take much more of this cold."
Goku nodded, scooped Gohan up, and took to the sky, hugging his son close to keep them both warm.