I wish I owned DBZ, but I don't. I own DVD's and tapes, but it just isn't the same. I also don't own the rights to any of the music pieces you see selected, just copies of merchandise, such a shame. The artists that created them are geniuses and we all must bow to them.

Chapter 47: Detective Trunks

Trunks eyed the dismantled knapsack with suspicion while Goten glanced around the hill.

"You think he went home?" Goten asked.

"No, there had to have been some sort of struggle. Look at how all of the grass is smashed down in places, like a strong wind came through here, or someone incredibly fast," Trunks pointed out.

"What do we do then? Mom will be mad if I don't get home soon!" Goten claimed.

"Your mom is always mad about something. Here, I'll take the Dragonball for now and you can go home. No sense in both of us getting in trouble. Besides, I can always lean on my dad for support. He doesn't care what I do as long as it doesn't bother him!"

Goten handed over the ball, "What are you gonna do then?"

"I'll look for Marcus. If I can't find him, I'll look for that creep that has the Dragonball. The one that got away from both of us," Trunks added.

"Won't you need help?" Goten asked.

Trunks grinned, "Nah, that guy is a weakling!"

"Okay, I'll come back in the morning!" Goten flew off and Trunks darted back into the city under the night sky. Trunks immediately turned on the Dragon Radar and saw that the other two Dragonballs were still in the city somewhere. The ball that he knew Tao possessed was reading farther away and was remaining stationary.

Tao couldn't have been the one to attack Marcus, he was too busy running from us. It's possible that some cops came through, but unless they were tipped off, I doubt it. And they'd probably still be around. I'm betting that whoever has the two Dragonballs must have come after Marcus, not realizing that me and Goten had it. I don't sense anything unusual, but that doesn't mean anything. Trunks walked at a brisk pace once he hit the streets, all the while keeping an eye peeled for Marcus. It wasn't long before he came up to a dimly lit warehouse, one that had seen better days. On the west wall, Trunks found a broken window that provided a big enough gap for him to slip through. Once inside, Trunks elected to stray close to the darkened ceiling in an effort to stay concealed. This plan backfired when Trunks suddenly lost control of his flight and plummeted to the ground.

"OW!" Trunks immediately realized that he might have blown his cover and ducked behind a large box to hide. Nothing happened for the next thirty seconds or so, allowing Trunks to breathe easier. He scanned around the area, quickly noticing that he couldn't feel any energy levels, not even his own.

Not again! Why can't these bad guys ever play fair? Trunks sighed heavily and moved deeper into the dark warehouse, keeping close to the shelving in the isles. It wasn't long before he heard voices and then spotted a brightly lit room with the door open. As he got closer to the large doorway, he heard Marcus inside.

"I told you already, I don't have it!" Marcus claimed. A distinct smack reached Trunks' ears, confirming that Marcus had been thrown across the room before striking pavement. Trunks peered in and saw Marcus struggling to get to his knees after an apparent blow to his knee. Not far way from him were two tall, teenage twins wearing matching black jumpsuits. Both of them had glassy-eyed, emotionless expressions on their faces. Behind them stood a smaller teenage girl with brown hair. Just to her left sat a small table with the two Dragonballs sitting on it.

"Come now Mister Satsu, I already know you don't have the Dragonball. I want to know where it is, or specifically who you may have given it to," Ranso stated.

"I lost it. Floated down the river weeks ago, maybe you should go drown yourself looking for it," Marcus suggested.

"You are not a very good liar. We know you had it when you became a fugitive. Your wife had it before and likely gave it to you prior to her death. Now just tell me where it is and this will go smoothly."

"Ha, you'll have to do much worse than this to break me," Marcus claimed.

"I could force you myself, but I prefer my victims to hand over their free will on their own. Sort of like these two did, though I doubt they realized what they were doing at the time. I can be rather persuasive even without my little talent," Ranso said with a deep grin.

"Like that would happen even if your two grunts break every bone in my body. I've already lost what matters to me, nothing you do will change that!" Marcus said in defiance.

"Tsk tsk. I guess that wouldn't work would it? There's always knowledge then," Ranso said as she reached into her pocket and slipped on a glove.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Marcus asked. Ranso didn't answer as she pulled out a small revolver from a different pocket and held it up with her gloved hand.

"This right here could be called the smoking gun. It was also the gun that killed your wife. Fingerprints were extracted from it, do you know who last touched it?" Ranso asked slyly.

"Probably the killer," Marcus grunted.

"Yes, you!" Ranso declared.

"Whatever witch, I think you're the one in denial now!"

"No, I'm not. When I touch someone, they become my slave for however long I need them or until their task is complete. If I so choose, I can also implant a suggestion in the back of their mind that triggers upon a certain situation. This way even those that know about my power and think they got away after contact are sadly mistaken. After you left at the behest of your wife, we met and I implanted the urge to go back to her. Once you did, another suggestion triggered, the urge to kill. So the police did get it right," Ranso explained. Trunks' jaw dropped when he heard this; So this is that girl that tried to make Gohan her boyfriend. And she kidnapped Mom for Doctor Cash!

"No! That's impossible!" Marcus said.

"Trust me, it isn't. Haven't you noticed how these two are completely silent and obey every command I give them? With that in mind, your small mind should be able to grasp the truth, you killed your wife!" Ranso pointed out.

"I don't believe you. I could never do that!" Marcus proclaimed.

"Never say never. Would you like a demonstration?" Ranso offered. Marcus didn't answer, but maintained his glare.

"Fine, you obviously need one. Ryo, Supido, go retrieve the first two people you find and bring them back here. I don't care if it's a toddler or some old hag with a walker, the first two you see. Then I'll make them tear each other into tiny pieces until you get the point! You'll see first hand what I can do Mister Satsu!" Trunks stood up and hid behind the corner as the twins approached the doorway, unaware of his presence. Trunks considered letting them leave and taking the unguarded moment, but he knew that whomever they brought back would be in danger.

"Hey, tool brigade!" Trunks shouted. Both twins turned just as Trunks charged towards them. Supido promptly phased out, causing Trunks to turn his head in wonder when he passed him. Ryo's fist made contact with Trunks' small head a moment later. Trunks went flying through the wall before landing on the other side of the lightened room.

"Trunks!" Marcus called out.

Ranso looked amused, "So, it's the other Briefs brat this time. How convenient."

Trunks got up warily and wiped the dirt off his face; Man, that guy hits like Dad. And the other one is really fast, this may not be as easy as I thought without my energy. Wait a sec…why didn't I get some creepy vision when he punched me?

"Tell me, is your brother joining us tonight? Or maybe that pumped up alien you call a father?" Ranso asked.

"Hmph, I don't need either of them to beat you three!" Trunks boasted.

"Now that's doubtful little Trunks. Without your Saiyan energy, you're helpless! Ryo, Supido, you can rough him up a bit, but don't kill him yet!" Ranso ordered.

"Trunks, run! Get out of here!" Marcus shouted. Trunks ignored him and tossed his jacket aside, grinning slightly as he sunk into his stance.

"No way, I'm gonna kick the crap out of these two idiots!" Trunks claimed. Trunks ran towards the slower Ryo first, but stopped short when Supido started moving again. Trunks tried to track his moment, only to have Ryo move in on him. Trunks jumped back, right into Supido's sweeping leg, tripping him. Ryo ran at Trunks with his fist drawn back, but only hit concrete. Trunks countered the charge with a kick to Ryo's head, sending him back into the deeper part of the warehouse. Trunks landed and dashed towards Supido, who was already running at him. Trunks narrowly ducked Supido's fast jab and was barely able to tag him with an uppercut. It was enough for Supido to crash into a shelf before getting up and running towards his brother. Trunks paused for a moment and stared at his fist, I didn't get a weird vision that time either. But maybe it's because these two are under mind control. Well good, it won't distract me then!

Louder sounds of scuffle activity came through the door as the three bashed each other around the warehouse. They were knocking down shelving and breaking many other things in the process. Ranso patiently watched some of the action, but Marcus had no intention of waiting around. At the earliest chance, he jumped up and ran for the gun next to the Dragonballs. Ranso realized what was happening and dove for the table as well. They both hit it at about the same time and it flipped, sending all of its contents in two directions. The gun landed behind Marcus and he grabbed a hold of it. Ranso had watched the Dragonballs fly into the warehouse, but stiffened when she heard the distinct click behind her. Marcus had her pinned and she knew it.

As Trunks was fending off the twins, he saw the two Dragonballs fly through, both nearly hitting him in the head. They rolled through the combat zone, rolling to a stop near a set of boots standing on broken glass. Trunks' eyes widened when he saw the figure bend down to retrieve them.

"Well, it must be my lucky day," General Tao said as he picked up both balls. Trunks ran towards him, only to be cut off by Supido as Tao was jumping through the window.

"Get back here you big chicken!" Trunks shouted.

"Sorry brat, the room looks to be a little crowded. Sayonara!" Tao waved. Trunks threw Supido to the side, where he crashed into a rubbish pile and kicked up plenty of dust. By the time Trunks could clearly see again, it was too late to determine which way Tao had went. Trunks reached into his pocket for the Dragon Radar. It doesn't matter, I'll find him easily with this! The stronger Ryo suddenly hit Trunks from behind, and he fell right on top of the radar. When he got up, it was completely smashed. In his rage, Trunks turned and hammered Ryo in the stomach, taking out a pillar when Ryo flew through it. Trunks started to run after him when he was suddenly surrounded by a wall of dust created by Supido's speed. Trunks could just barely detect the fast human, and watched for his opening.

Damnit, I can't isolate one without the other jumping in. I need to separate them to put one of them down before I take on the other. Then I can knock them out, end this and go after Tao. If I don't hurry, I'll have to wait until the radar is fixed! Lights suddenly flashed into the warehouse from outside, distracting everyone present. Red and blue police lights blinked intermittingly from the windows as sirens sounded. The brief distraction was all Trunks needed to jump out of Supido's fading dust swirl and hammer Ryo over the head as hard as he could. Ryo dropped like a sack of bricks, his head smashing through the concrete when he landed. Supido dashed towards Trunks as the warehouse doors flew open behind the small Saiyan. The bright light blinded Supido long enough for Trunks to side step him and then attack from the side. Supido crashed against one of the sturdier pillars and bent around it slightly before falling to the ground. He let out a muffled groan when he smacked pavement, but didn't move afterwards. Trunks ran back into the lighted room, slightly nervous upon seeing Marcus holding Ranso at gunpoint.

"It's over, the cops are here!" Trunks claimed.

Marcus barely regarded him, "It won't be over until I finish the job!"

"But, you can't. They'll take her to jail for what she's done, won't they?" Trunks asked.

"Even if they did get her into a jail cell, she'd be out of there within an hour with her power to control others," Marcus pointed out.

"Please, I'm sorry for making you kill your wife. It was only business, nothing personal!" Ranso pleaded. The police ran up behind Trunks with their weapons drawn.

"Marcus Satsu! You're under arrest for the murder of your wife Catalina Satsu! Drop your weapon!" the chief ordered.

"Surely there's a better way than this!" Trunks said.

Marcus didn't react to anyone except Ranso, "Nothing personal huh?" Ranso nodded nervously as she stood up slowly. Marcus' gun snapped up instantly, freezing her movement again.

"Neither is this," Marcus said as he fired. The shot went right through Ranso's head and her body slumped to the floor. Marcus then dropped his gun and held his hands up as Trunks gasped.

"Sorry Trunks, I had to. I'm sure you'll understand some day," Marcus stated. Trunks grimly stared at the ground as Marcus was being handcuffed, stunned at what he had just seen. He had gone through the madness of the Zerg war and the fight with Majin Buu, but seeing one human kill another appeared to have been too much for him to handle.

"You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can be used against you in a court of law!" the chief read off.

Marcus ignored him, "Don't get down on yourself kid. You did a good thing by finding me and ending her terror spree. Without you, I would have never found out who was responsible for Catalina's murder, and I certainly wouldn't have been able to find justice for it. Keep your chin up lad." The police then carted Marcus towards the patty-wagon and Trunks merely stared off into empty space for a while.

An hour later, the police were still picking up the scene when Gohan showed up in his Saiyaman suit. He arrived long enough to see that it was Ranso that had been killed, but the chief immediately told him that Trunks hadn't done it. Trunks still hadn't moved even as the coroner had taken Ranso's corpse away. Gohan managed to locate the ki disruption device hidden in the ceiling and shut it down. During this time, Ryo and Supido both woke up, and neither of them could tell Gohan what had happened. They were also very banged up after their fight with Trunks, but were confused as to why they weren't in North City anymore. Gohan explained to them that Dr. Cash was dead and that Ranso had likely taken control of them for the time being, angering them both to an extent. Due to their injuries, they settled on being taken to the nearest medical facility, and Gohan promised to check on them in the morning. After listening to the chief's explanation of the chain of events, he tended to the silent Trunks.

"Hey, what went down around here?" Gohan asked.

Trunks didn't answer directly, "Gohan, is it right to take a life in revenge?"

Gohan's eyes flew open in surprise before settling, "I wouldn't say it is, even if I've been guilty of at least considering it."

"But you killed Cell out of revenge for your Dad, right?" Trunks asked.

"No. Cell had to be stopped for the greater good. The time in which I would have been taking revenge was before Dad died. And Cell did not kill him that day, don't ever let anyone tell you different. Now tell me what happened here."

Trunks told him most of the details up to the point where Ranso was killed, including their encounter with General Tao.

"You did the right thing in helping that poor man, even if it left a bad taste in your mouth. There wasn't much more you could have done without your energy," Gohan assured.

"Yeah, it just sucks that the Tao guy got away with three Dragonballs. And the radar was busted before I could figure out which way he was going!" Trunks pointed out.

"Well your mother can fix that problem fast enough. You just hold onto that Dragonball for now and you'll probably get another chance at him. Why were you collecting them anyway?" Gohan asked.

Trunks cringed slightly, "I just figured we might need them again eventually. Why not save some time?"

Gohan shook his head slightly, "Alright, you can tell me another day. Come on, I'll head back to Capsule Corp with you."

As the two were flying back, Gohan felt more tension from Trunks, but he could tell that it was for a different reason.

"Trunks, is there something else bothering you?" Gohan asked. Trunks didn't answer for a moment, but drifted a few feet further away from Gohan in the air.

Trunks took a deep breath, "You know how some people are being affected by you and Verto's special energy. Like that girl was?"

"Yeah, what's wrong?"

"That can affect Saiyans too, right?"

Gohan sighed, "Let me guess, you think you've developed an ability that you didn't used to have?" Trunks nodded nervously.

"What happened to you, or to someone else?" Gohan inquired.

"Everything was fine throughout the day until I shook that Marcus guy's hand. My vision got all weird and distorted and I saw him talking to some lady, his wife I think. Then later when I punched Tao in the face, I saw him fighting Goku when he was a kid. But it didn't happen against those two weirdo guys that were helping Ranso. Then again, they didn't seem to be doing much thinking at all," Trunks noted.

"It sounds like you were reading their memories, at least any relevant ones based on whatever was on their mind. Let me know if it happens again," Gohan suggested.

"Please don't tell Mom or Dad," Trunks begged.

Gohan gave him a curious glance, "Why not?"

"Just promise me that you won't tell anyone."

"Alright, for now. But if this turns into something that you can't control, the deal is off," Gohan bargained.

Trunks slowly nodded, "Okay."

On the outskirts of West City, General Tao jumped off the tree trunk he had been riding just as it crashed into the ground. Before him stood a seemingly simple looking metal shack that was barely larger than a standard bathroom. Stepping inside, he shut the door and flipped on the light switch. He found himself standing on a metal platform and noticed that there was quite a long way down underneath it. There was also a small computer screen on the wall ahead of him, along with a large red button. Tao pressed it and the screen displayed a thin green line that kept moving across while an annoying ringing went off, much like a telephone.

The ringing stopped abruptly when a gruff voice answered it, "What do you want?" The green line erupted randomly, displaying the approximate audio wavelength of whoever was on the other end.

Tao grimaced at the grumpy tone, "I have three of the Dragonballs, and I'm here to collect my fee." There was no direct reply, until the platform along with Tao suddenly descended. It dropped slowly but steadily for nearly a hundred feet before it stopped at the bottom. A door opened for Tao and he promptly got off the makeshift elevator. The small room that followed was maybe three times bigger, but still not enough room for Tao's taste. The elevator door shut quickly, but another door opened before Tao, revealing the source of the agitated voice.

"Hmph, hard to believe that Kakarot ever had trouble with you," Vegeta said as he glanced over Tao.

"Am I supposed to be honored or insulted by that?" Tao asked.

"Pick one. If it were me, you would never have lived past the first minute," Vegeta claimed.

"I didn't come here to trade words with a little man and his oversized ego. If you won't want the Dragonballs then I'll take them to whoever pays the most," Tao threatened.

"You're assuming that I'll let you leave," Vegeta dared.

"Vegeta!" Bulma shouted as she walked up from behind, giving him a scornful glance.

"What woman?"

Bulma ignored him and faced Tao, "Don't mind him. How many were you able to find in such a short time?"

"Three. Others were looking for them also. Fortunately they were too busy fighting with each other to notice my retrieval. Twenty million zeni a piece," Tao declared.

"Alright, hold on," Bulma said as she pulled out a small hand-held personal computer and began accessing it.

"I could have delivered these to your residence with no extra charge. Why this place?" Tao asked as he eyed every detail of the room.

"We're trying to be discreet about this for now," Bulma replied.

"Waste of time," Vegeta muttered.

"Oh shut up, it was your idea! Anyway, I'll wire this to your bank account Tao, it that's alright?" Bulma asked as she typed something in.

"That will be fine," Tao acknowledged.

"By the way, you ever think about being something other than a mercenary?"

Tao barely shifted, "What would be the point of that?"

"Well, it just seems extremely dull that you've done it for so long now."

"Cybernetic maintenance isn't cheap. Besides, what would I do, join your little save the world club? I'm not that desperate!" Tao claimed.

"Well, it was just a thought. There you go, sixty million transferred. We'll take those," Bulma pointed. Tao handed the Dragonballs over to her with a curious expression.

"Am I to track down the rest of them as well?" he asked.

"No, but we'll keep you in mind. Good night," Bulma said cheerfully. Tao nodded and turned, nearly into Vegeta's glaring form.

"Excuse me, but can you get out of my way? I have two contract killings due by tomorrow night and they're both on the other side of the world!" Tao said.

Vegeta snorted, "You're lucky that my son didn't rip you to pieces earlier."

"That purple-headed kid was your son?" Vegeta smirked and nodded as Tao sweated nervously on his way out.

His scowl returned the instant Tao was gone, "I could have just killed him and taken the balls. No need to waste money."

"Oh stop it. At least this way we can keep a certain level of discretion about it. How long did you say we have?" Bulma asked.

"Only four months, five at the very most. We have to keep these hidden if we're going to pull this off. It still irritates me to resort to this just for the Dragonballs," Vegeta grumbled.

"Do you suppose it's possible that she anticipates this and interferes?"

"I'm more concerned with that bothersome Supreme Kai. How long until this place is finished?"

Bulma frowned slightly, "With Verto and Lenz mostly out of our hair for now, not long. The Protoss technology made things a lot simpler for manipulating the metal alloy; I just wish I would've thought of it sooner. If Cash could do it, there's no reason I can't improve it. Still, why not at least tell our friends and family about it?"

"This place should only be on a need to know standard. The boy hasn't been himself after all," Vegeta added.

"Yeah I suppose. You want to go get the three-star ball from Trunks or should I?"

Vegeta paused in thought, "No, let Trunks go about collecting the rest at his own pace. It will buy us more time just in case someone is watching. And then you can save your ridiculous money for something worthwhile!" Bulma snorted lightly as she opened the door, entering into a large tunnel with very bright light coming from it.

Next time on DBV: Piccolo and Lenz are interrupted during training by a mysterious and seemingly unknown stranger, asking to meet with Verto. This stranger proves to know a great deal about Verto, despite having never having met before. The stranger proves to be very powerful and crushes Lenz when she challenges him. Before he can finish her off though, Verto arrives to fight him. What is the secret of this newcomer?

VB: WDG is on vacation, so I had to wing it this time.