Her Return

Chapter Thirty-One

Vegeta ran toward a cloud of smoke with his hand gripping tightly on his bleeding stomach. He peered through, squinting his eyes trying to see if Aya was in there… and alive.

Suddenly, someone came flying out of the smoke slamming right into him catching the saiyan prince off guard. Vegeta hit the ground and skid a little bit tearing up his shirt on the rubble on the ground. He looked to see who had slammed into him, and he saw the one person that he was looking for, Aya.

Aya was still awake, her eyes locked on the smoke in front of them. Vegeta sat upright pushing her forward a little bit. When Aya felt someone's hand lay upon her back, she gave a slight jump and turned around. She sighed in relief to see Vegeta sitting behind her.

"Thank God…" Aya mumbled.

Vegeta looked her over. "Are you alright?" Aya nodded her head looking at the saiyan prince as she got to her feet.

"Yeah, Kira's attack didn't even… touch me." Aya answered. Vegeta looked at her oddly. Aya turned her head to look into the smoke that was slowly starting to disappear. Vegeta was looking at Aya. He wasn't too sure if he wanted to look at what she was looking at, but he did anyway.

Vegeta lifted his head, and instantly he was caught by surprise. In the distance where the large explosion happened, was Kira, and amazingly; Areiko too. Areiko was on her knees panting. Her hair was rustled and damaged looking. She was covered in dirt and claw marks that bled badly. Her hands were up in the air holding onto Kira's. She gripped tightly to the point where her knuckles turned white. Her arms shook with weakness as she held onto Kira. Kira stood there tall and strong. She glared down at Areiko as she allowed her sister to hold onto her hands as tight as she could. Kira was just as dusty looking as Areiko. As Vegeta stared, he figured how Areiko had gotten so weak.

She had stopped the attack from hitting Aya by grabbing onto her hands and causing it to implode on just her and Kira. But the real question was where did Areiko get those horrible looking claw marks? They looked like they had reached her bones.

Kira blinked looking into Areiko's eyes. She watched as the iris of Areiko's eyes faltered from icy gray to crimson red. She placed a smirk on her face as she kicked Areiko in her chest throwing her to the ground on her back.

"You're pathetic."

Areiko rolled over onto her hands and knees. She placed her left hand onto her head and gripped her hair clenching her eyes shut. Suddenly she felt pain rushing through her face as her head was thrown back. Kira then latched her hand onto her throat.

Aya and Vegeta instantly lunged themselves over there. At the same exact time, they both pulled back their fists and went around Areiko punching Kira right in her face. Kira was caught by surprise and let Areiko go as she flew back into the ground. Vegeta and Aya each threw their hand out grabbing onto Areiko's arms stopping her from falling to the ground. Aya gently turned Areiko over to Vegeta as she lunged at Kira once more.

Vegeta watched Aya for a minute as he seated Areiko down. When he let go of her arm, it just fell into her lap as if she was a lifeless body.

"Areiko?"

Vegeta knelt down in front of her. He lifted her head so that she would face him; his eyes widened. Areiko's eyes were black, but some how they managed to show some sort of life in them. He waved his hand in front of her face calling her name. Suddenly Areiko grabbed onto his wrist and gripped tightly. Vegeta winced as he looked at her hand. Again she was gripping so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.

The saiyan prince looked back into Areiko's face. "Areiko? Can you hear me?" he asked and he got no response. So he decided to take a different approach. "Areiko, if you can hear me grip my wrist."

Areiko, if you can hear me grip my wrist.

As Areiko dodged Lekira, she heard Vegeta talking to her. She blinked and looked around the darkness. "Vegeta?"

"Watch your enemy!" Lekira shouted pouncing at Areiko again. Areiko barely dodged her. Lekira clipped her at her right thigh. She screamed as blood splattered out of her leg.

"AAH!!"

Vegeta didn't get a grip from Areiko. But he spotted blood fly from the corner of his eye. He looked over to see that the blood he had spotted was splattered on the ground. He traced it back to it's source to see that it was coming from Areiko's right thigh. He reached out to touch her when suddenly her hand came out of nowhere smacking his hand away from her. He turned his head back to look at her.

"Areiko!" He shouted and gripped onto her shoulder. "Areiko!" He was getting really pissed off. Areiko's body was reacting to him touching her, but not to him talking to her. "Areiko snap out of it! I know you can hear me!"

He looked into her eyes and for a split second they turned gray.

Areiko snap out of it! I know you can hear me!

Areiko was on her knees holding onto her clipped thigh with her eyes tightly clenched and her teeth gritted. "I know I can hear you!" She shouted back with the hope that Vegeta would hear her. "But I don't know how too—"

Lekira's fist hit Areiko in her face throwing her to the floor. Areiko laid there with her body shaking in pain. Every cut, claw mark, bruise, and burn throbbed making her immobile. She propped herself up onto her elbows with her eyes tightly clenched.

Areiko! Wake up!

"He's calling for you Areiko." Lekira spoke as Areiko turned her head to look at her. "To bad you won't wake up to answer him."

Areiko growled. She watched as Lekira pulled her arm back and outstretched her claws. Areiko blinked as she watched this dark aura surround Lekira's arm and her eyes began to glow.

"What the…"

"DIE!" Lekira shouted as she thrusted her arm forward.

Areiko's eyes widened as she rolled right out of the way, her white robe getting caught by Lekira's claws and getting ripped. Areiko leapt to her feet leaping back once more just barely dodging Lekira's claws again.

"How are you doing that?" Areiko asked looking at Lekira's arm that was surrounded by a dark aura and glowing red eyes.

"I've told you," Lekira started with a growl. "This is MY territory." Lekira lunged again.

Areiko!

Areiko leapt over Lekira and turned around to face her. In the distance, she saw this light where she could hear Vegeta's voice coming from. Areiko! Wake up you damn girl!

Areiko got this sudden idea to run towards the light. She dodged Lekira again and took off running. Lekira turned around to watch her, but her eyes widened when she spotted where she was running too.

"No!" Lekira shouted following her.

Areiko reached her arm out towards the light that started to shine brightly the closer she got to it. She could hear Vegeta's voice calling to her again.

Areiko come on! Wake up!

"I'm coming Vegeta!" Areiko shouted out.

"I'm…" Vegeta blinked a few times when he heard Areiko whispering to him softly. "I'm… c-coming…V-Vegeta…"

Vegeta saw that she was struggling to speak with him. But he didn't understand what she was talking about. Where was she going if she's sitting right in front of him? But little does he know that she's going through a battle of her own inside her.

Areiko was getting close when suddenly Lekira leapt in front of her and punched her face. Areiko fell back with blood splattering out of her nose and onto Lekira. Areiko looked up at her as she smirked.

"You're not going to get there."

Aya!

Areiko's eyes widened as she could hear the commotion going on within the light. She stood up and pushed Lekira back away from her. "Back off bitch!" she shouted. "I have to save my friends!"

Suddenly Areiko's icy gray eyes started to glow brightly with a golden aura surrounding Areiko's arms. Lekira's eyes widened as she took a step back. Areiko then lunged forward shoving her hand right through Lekira's chest. Lekira screamed as a dark aura started to escape from the hole in her chest.

"AAH!" Lekira screamed. She looked at Areiko and growled. "This'll do nothing for you!" Her body started to slowly disappear. "I'll be back!" With those last words spoken, Lekira's body vanished and the darkness all around Areiko started to slowly drop as a white background started to take it's place. Areiko smiled as she looked down at herself to see that all of the injuries that she had sustained from Lekira were starting to disappear.

Areiko!

Areiko snapped her head upwards. Wake up now! Aya needs you!

Areiko clenched her fists. "You're mine now Kira!" Areiko took off running into the bright yellow light that had shined brightly. When Areiko ran into it, the light disappeared.

Areiko blinked a few times, clearing up her vision. She looked at her hand to see that it was tightly wrapped around Vegeta's wrist. She looked up towards Vegeta's face to see that he was looking in the opposite direction. When she let the saiyan prince go, he turned and looked at her.

"Areiko?"

"That's… me." Areiko's body was throbbing. She looked down at her body to see that the injuries that she had sustained from Lekira were slowly starting to heal. She got to her feet slowly looking at Vegeta's face.

She noticed that he was pale, really pale. She looked him over and spotted a lot of blood leaking from his stomach. "Vegeta…"

"Don't worry about it." Vegeta said to her as he got to his feet. "Just go help Aya."

Areiko nodded her head. She charged forward towards the battlefield with Vegeta watching her with a smirk on his face.

Aya was getting the living shit kicked out of her. She was technically being tossed around like a rag doll. Kira gripped Aya's neck tightly with a smirk on her face.

"Why do you continue to fight me?" Kira asked, "you're never going to win."

She didn't get an answer from Aya since all she could do was gag. Kira smirked, but just because she didn't get an answer out Aya, doesn't mean that she didn't get an answer.

"We keep fighting because there are people that we have to protect!"

Kira blinked as she turned her head to the left to suddenly get punched by Areiko. Kira flew back again skidding across the ground.

Aya coughed as she dropped to her feet rubbing her neck. She looked up at Areiko and grinned. Areiko turned her head towards her and smiled. "Are you alright, Aya?" Areiko asked.

Aya nodded, "yeah I'm fine. What about you?"

"I'm peachy." Areiko answered, "how about we save our chitchat for later and kick some Kira ass!"

Both Aya and Areiko smirked as they turned toward Kira who was getting to her feet. Blood trickled down her nose over her mouth as she growled and clenched her fists.

"You'll pay for hitting me!"

"They always say that." Aya and Areiko said together with a laugh afterwards. When they heard Kira lunged towards them, they got into their fighting stances and followed Kira's movements.

A war was about to begin.