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One Hell of a Trip

The air whistled next to his head; he swung out of the way by mere instinct. A blow grazed his shoulder and he felt the powers converge on each other as they mounted their attack.

Grinning at the challenge, he braced himself as the blows became more and more erratic and violent. He balanced on the balls of his feet, swallowing each blow as if it were child's play. It didn't take long before he noticed a decrease in their power; sensing his chance, he waited for another attack, and then swung out for all he had.

He caught the attacker's fist in his hand, and then struck upward into their gut with the side of his foot. Without waiting, he released them and turned around to his right, deflecting the oncoming blows as best he could. With each hit clipping him more and more, he knew he wasn't going to be able to count on wearing his enemy out; they were smart and would wear him out before they would break a sweat.

Furrowing his brow in determination, he dodged the next attacks and hit at the next opening; feeling his fist connect with his opponent's ribs, he quickly moved around as fast as he could. A groan slipped from his opponent's lips and before they knew it, he landed a blow in the center of their back with the tip of his elbow, disabling them.

"Owie!" A soft moan sounded from his left. Squinting, Goku's eyes adjusted to the small form of his youngest son, Goten, who now stood up shakily on his feet and pouted at his father.

"Heh, sorry son." Goku apologized sheepishly, rubbing a hand across the back of his neck. "Guess I got a bit carried away."He glanced down at his oldest son, who now recovered enough to sit up, wearily rubbing at his back. Goku grinned despite himself, and reached down to help Gohan up. "You guys sure are strong though; just like your old man!" Goku declared with a note of pride in his voice; there wasn't much else he could do. They were both strong and knew how to fight, and yet the only thing they needed now was experience.

"Yeah well, we were taught well." Gohan said, grinning cheekily at his father. Goten, behind him, scampered up to stand beside his older brother.

Not as happy as his sibling, the young half-Saiyan grimly rubbed his stomach. Both a combination of hunger and pain ravaged him as he despondently pleaded with his father, "Can we go home now? I'm hungry and tired."

"I guess...there isn't much else we can do now. You both know how to fight already, and we're just wasting time out here training for no real reason." Goku said thoughtfully, scratching at the back of his head. The only other thing he could think of was training them in the gravity chamber; Gohan, he knew, didn't need the extra training, whereas Goten had little experience outside of his mother's teachings. While he was proud of his son and wife, he had a bit more to teach him before he was through. Though, glancing down at the pitiful expression on his face, he couldn't help but agree; his own stomach began to mournfully growl.

Gohan crossed his arms, chuckling, "Might as well stay the night as long as we're out here. We can make a fire and eat and head out in the morning."Goten stuck out his lip in protest, but didn't argue.

As the night wore on, the trio napped happily beneath the stars with a low firelight to accompany them. With heavy eyelids and a full stomach, Goku briefly gazed over at his slumbering sons. His brow furrowed slightly, as if he were lost in thought, yet the moment passed as quickly as it had come. With a deep sense of foreboding, he succumbed to sleep in the midnight hours.

She barely slept. How could she, with this monster of a man occupying her house, stalking her every move as he patiently waited the return of her husband who may or may not be alive? Nerves frayed, she lay in her bed, staring up at the ceiling as she refused the comfort sleep may bring. Her stomach was twisted in knots, and even as her eyelids felt as heavy as lead, she couldn't possibly imagine sleeping.

Gripping the bedspread, she glanced at the door. He sat against the door, his arms and legs crossed as his head slumped over in sleep. His hair, which resembled Goku's in every way, hung in his eyes as snores gently rocked his slumbering frame.

What a strange man, she thought. She'd figured he'd beat the information he sought out of her, instead of stalking her in her home. It was almost as if he could care less how long it took, as if he had all the time in the world to waste waiting for a man who probably was going to take his sweet time coming home.

If was really careful, she might be able to escape now.

Chi-Chi dared a glanced over at the stranger, her breath caught. Could she get away with it? With him blocking the door, her only other option was out the window. But then again, something told her this man was more like Goku than she'd give him credit for.

She couldn't take the chance and fight him; there was no telling if how strong he was. He was a Saiyan after all, she noticed from his tail, and part of her knew Saiyans were supernaturally gifted in fighting. No, she resolved, she couldn't take the chance. Her best bet was to try and slip out the window.

Biting her lip, she gently cast the blankets off her body and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. The bed groaned beneath her; it seemed to want to kill her, apparently.

Her heart rate accelerated; trying to reign in her breathing, she gently looked over her shoulder...and breathed out in relief.

The dumb man was snoring even harder now, it seemed.

Shakily, she stood and moved to the window. Her fingers fell over the worn wood, searching for the latch as if she could feel the Saiyan's breath on the back of her neck. Just to be sure, she glanced over at him with a trembling breath.

No. She couldn't be scared now. She could be scared when she was running for her life in the woods at night, since she couldn't fly...

This minor revelation brought tears of frustration to her eyes. Freedom was so close, yet so far away. She'd bet the Saiyan could fly, and would track her down in a heartbeat. It seemed pointless to escape now; either way he'd catch her and bring her back, and most likely punish her for leaving. But then again, what else could she do? Live in fear and desperately wait for Goku's return? There was no telling how long it would take, or if this man truly would lose his patience and take his anger out on her.

She had to go. There was a chance that he wouldn't know she was gone until much later, when she had the time needed to escape. Strengthening her resolve, she felt for the latch on the window and flicked it open. She held her breath as the window creaked open, hoping with all her might that he wouldn't wake up suddenly and grab her from behind.

Not daring a look behind her, Chi-Chi quietly crept onto the windowsill and slid her legs over the edge. With her luck as she'd turn around he'd wake up and yank her back into the room. She just had to trust he would stay asleep long enough for this to work.

She landed with a soft thud and didn't pause before she took off into the night. Reason told her she could just use the sky-car but there was a chance he'd hear it revving and come get her in an instant. No, she would just have to run for her life and hope she'd reach Capsule Corp sooner rather than later.

A breeze stirred through the air; birds chirped pleasantly as sunlight streamed in through the open window. Bardock opened his eyes, his vision focusing on the stream of light blasting through the open window. "Damn." Bardock growled, fearing the worst.

Sure enough, as he whipped to his feet and glanced over at the bed, she was gone. Likely escaped when he was asleep like the coward she was.

"Damn it! I had her!" He snarled, fist clenched as a furious wave overtook him. How could he be so stupid? He'd had her, the key to finding the Saiyans, and now because of his own incompetence, she was gone.

With his resolve hardening, he strode over to the open window. No enemy was perfect, Bardock mused. The key to beating any opponent is to watch and wait for them to slip up, then mount your assault at their weakest moment. And, with any luck, this was her slip up.

A dark grin curled over his lips as he surveyed the surrounding forested area from the window. Oh, she was running away from the big, scary Saiyan...and most likely, running straight to the other Saiyans to protect her. A chuckle rumbled deep in his chest. She might run, she might hide, but he'd find her eventually.

"Might as well give her some time to catch her breath, running for so long." Bardock mused with a twisted grin, his head tilting as he imagined the woman running in blind fear from him. Amused, he threw his head back and laughed long and hearty. Yes, he would enjoy this. Despite the initial turn of events, he was excited at the prospect of hunting her down, if only because sitting in a spaceship drifting aimlessly through the universe wore on one's mind considerably.

He pressed a button on his scouter, darkly pleased as a reading of a considerably small power level appeared a couple miles from the house. It was moving, but not very fast. Bardock shook his head, chuckling to himself.

"Time's up." He muttered beneath his breath, eyes glaring out over the horizon.

To Be Continued