A/N: Short but it'll get the point across.
Beta: QWERTYblues
Chapter:
Mother, Mother, I Don't Know What's Best.
Goku's POV
They were wrong.
I knew from the start; mom's not interested in anything more than friendship. She happily told Nam that their friendship will always remain. He said the same, neither were ever searching for anything more.
We came to a stop the day before continuing with our journey. There we rescued Nam and aided him in his task of finding water for his village. Giras, pterodactyl-monsters, were the cause of the water drought and at first, they were reluctant to give it up. The leader, Giran, recognized my mother though and while he praised her for the strength she displayed, Krillin and I were ready to fight the dragons to make them give back the water.
Mom immediately grabbed both of our shirts scolding us for our lack of politeness. We whined that they were being rude but she claimed that there always has to be polite talk before attacking. That was unless when the attackers started it then that's a different story.
Giran told us that they will leave the area and return the water but we have to find a way to break the dam. He had confidence that we could break it since he's already seen what mom could do.
Mom and I both used the kamehameha wave to release the water back out. Krillin felt a little put out since he couldn't release any energy attacks but he became thrilled when we offered to help him. I think it's a great idea, if we know how to use our energy and fly then we might be able to form a tag-team. It'll be fun if we can all try to push ourselves to the next stage!
Unfortunately, a sandstorm came out of nowhere! It was enough to dry up the river which caused the villagers distress. Luckily for them, we actually came across a lake which led everyone to become overjoyed. Before we left, Nam thanked us once more and like before, mom promised to keep in touch when she can for their friendship to always be looked upon as pious—whatever that means.
Today's a new day, I made sure to wake both Krillin and mom up before sunrise claiming that today is an important day. On this day mom will finally make due to her promise, from a year before, and teach me to fly! How amazing was that?! I'll finally get to learn something that would give me an advantage in battles!
"Stay still son!" Mom smiled as she saw my form eagerly vibrating next to Krillin.
He looked just as excited as I am but I like to pretend that I'm even more eager. I've been waiting for this moment longer than he has and finally the time has come!
"Goku, I want you to be patient first," She patted my hair, "First we need to make sure the two of you can channel your inner energy."
I remember this talk. When I was younger, mom and grandpa often spoke about their "Ki" or energy. Grandpa could only use it for attacks while mom was only able to use it to fly and levitate. Mom wanted to learn how to use them but grandpa told her that he first wanted her to learn how to fight without using any special skills.
My smile slightly lowered, grandpa never was able to teach her because he died right before they were able to get to the next phase of training. That monster killed grandpa before he could even teach mom... before he could teach me.
"Just relax," She whispers to Krillin, sitting by his side. "Try imagining a bright glowing light within you waiting to come out."
That speech was given to me back when I was five but I couldn't do anything back then. In respect to grandpa, who believed that it was better to master combat first before attempting to use special ki. Or maybe it was also because I was still too young to fly or make anything out of ki. Mom could bring her's out but she never really had the time to actually morph it into anything else, at least that's what I believed.
"Kid, don't you think your mom's ever lonely?"
As if! Mom almost never took any breaks when she's with me. Her priority from the start had always been to raise me and make sure that I'm happy. We never used to venture out of the woods; everything we needed was in our area.
"Wa-wa!" Krillin stutters as he finally started to see his ki.
"Don't panic," She told him quickly, "Just relax; this doesn't hurt you, if you know how to use it."
I sat right in front of Krillin and I stared at the light glow. Wouldn't it be more fun and better if he just sees one of us fire the kamehameha and then tell him to replicate it? That's what we did and it's easy to learn. Voicing my thoughts to them, Krillin gave us a curious glance.
"Not everyone is the same hon," Mom shook her head. "We all learn differently."
Actually now that I think about it, didn't Master Roshi say that it took him years to master the wave? I wonder how long it took grandpa or the other guy.
He kept it up for another minute before mom finally said, "Okay let's try now."
Finally!
The three of us stood straight, Krillin and me were eagerly waiting for her next words.
"Alright, first," She placed her hands around her mouth and called out, "NIMBUS!"
My flying cloud came racing down at the sound of her voice, settling right beside her knees. "To make this safe, Nimbus will be following you Goku as a precaution. I'll mostly follow Krillin just in case he falls." That makes sense. He can't ride the flying Nimbus like we can.
"Now I want the two of you to concentrate on your ki," She levitated a few feet up, "And attempt to push it under you."
I nodded, determined to fly before lunch time. My feet are planted on the ground and my hands are balled into fists as I push every bit of energy offered to the outer surface. Teeth clenched, eyes focused on the ground; everything around me came to a silence, even Krillin's struggled breathing was shut out.
Then…nothing. Furrowing my brows, I looked up at mom who had a thoughtful look on her face."Boys stop," She descended back on the grass. "If you keep struggling, then this is going to take longer than expected," Mom muttered the last part, "Push the energy out but don't complicate things, this isn't something you're struggling to lift the weight of…well, unless you count yourself but even so I know the two of you can lift more than your weight."
Again, we tried listening to her advice, "Think of your ki, try to see what it looks like without bringing the extent out and to remember what it felt like."
That doesn't sound hard, "Let it wrap around you almost like the wind. Sense where it's coming from and aim to bring most of the ki out."
"That's it," Her voice sounds encouraging I could almost see her smiling, "Push but unlike a special attack, flying doesn't take up as much energy."
I could start to feel my feet leave the ground, my body was being lifted as if I weighed nothing. The best part was knowing that mom wasn't lifting me up, she knows how much I've wanted to fly. I bet I'll be an expert before the day had even begun!
My eyes finally lifted to see her levitating right in front me. Her hazel eyes clearly showed how proud she was that her only son was floating without any problems. I gave her a wide grin before going higher up with my arms extended up. "This is amazing!" I giggle at the freedom flying has to offer.
"Glad you're having fun." Krillin mutters with irritation.
"I am! You should try it!" I call out from the sky.
Mom clears her throat, "Goku, don't get cocky and don't go any further." She calls with a hint of humor laced.
"Why? This is easy!" I told her before taking off on my own. This is easy. I can't believe it took this long to finally fly. I'm sure I could've easily done this a year or two ago.
There are some mountains up ahead... I wonder how fast I can fly by them? If Nimbus and mom are easily able to dodge them, then I can too! Grinning I sped off gleefully at each passing, twisting and turning... avoiding the collision with the peaks. At least that was until the wind shifted, causing my body to go to a different direction. By luck, I managed to avoid hitting a cliff. And by my lack of attention, I managed to hit my head.
"Yowch!" I howled in pain, losing the concentration I needed to keep flying. My body fell down, faster than I've ever gone before heading straight towards sharp and dangerous rocks!
Okay fly! Fly! FLY! I kept chanting in my mind and seconds before hitting something very painful, Nimbus came to my rescue along with a clearly angered mother and a smiling Krillin in her arms. Giggling at mom, I placed my hand behind my head, "Ha, ha, ha... I guess I still need some work."
Nimbus followed mom's side as she started to scold me for my actions, "That was very dangerous Goku! You could've easily gotten hurt! If Nimbus wasn't there or if I'm not around, then what do you think would have happened?"
"I'd be spending the day in pain?" I guessed nervously.
Her eyes narrowed dangerously. Uh-oh... I think I'm in trouble.
"You're not permitted to practice any flying for the rest of the day."
"Why only a day? Make it a week!" Krillin told her sweetly.
"Krillin!" I shouted, "You're only saying that because you can't fly!"
Mom shushed me, "Neither of you will practice today and Goku, you for three days."
"Three days?!"
"Want the actual week?!" She dared me.
"No... but—,"
"KAKAROT!" She shouts my name causing the blood in me to turn cold. If there's anything I disliked, it was my name.
I always liked the nickname grandpa gave me better. I'm not completely sure why though. Since I could remember, "Kakarot" had always been a void name. The feeling I get with the name just sparks a slight irritation and empty feeling. Mom never really got why I preferred "Goku" though. After grandpa died, she suddenly called me "Goku" and only lets out "Kakarot" when I've ventured into a "danger zone." Each time the name comes out, I immediately know that I've done something wrong and I should watch it.
My head hung as I apologized, "I'm sorry mommy, I should have listened to you instead of taking off like that."
"Oh Goku," She murmurs coming to sit beside me on Nimbus, "Don't think I did this to stop your fun but flying can be dangerous on the first try no matter how much you think it's a piece of cake." Her grin at the end caused one of mine to appear too.
"Um, what's a Kakarot?" Krillin asks from his spot on her lap.
I grimaced while mom rolls her eyes.
"It's his name and I happen to think it's beautiful."
Sticking my tongue out, I replied, "No it isn't, it's a weird name!"
"Sounds weird." Krillin agrees and like that I know the three of us are back to normal.
Mom pouts before taking the dragon radar out of her shirt, "Alright lets go find a dragonball!" She clicks on the radar a few times before a yellow blinking dot appears.
"Hey it looks close!" I told them.
Krillin stares at the radar confused, "That little dot is going to lead us where the dragonballs are located?"
"Sure is!" We told him before Nimbus followed the path where I pointed to.
Alright so our dragonball really isn't that close but we should be able to find it soon! Mom decided we all needed another bath. Really, couldn't we have waited another day? At least she said I could take a quick dip and swim around since we bathed the day before.
Once done, we all went to get our stuff but the thing is, most of our things were missing!
"Where's my clothes?!" Krillin panics, searching the area where our clothes should be.
"My power pole and clothes are missing!" I said, running around with him as we scouted the area.
"The radar and our essentials are missing!" Mom luckily still had her clothing but her shoes and everything else were missing!
She quickly called for Nimbus, "Krillin uh," She scratched her head before taking her shirt off and wrapping it around the two of us, "Krillin hold onto Goku, we're going to fly."
We searched from above but the trees were making it hard for any of us to even see the ground. I sneezed almost the same time as mom did. It was pretty breezy up in the sky and she was only wearing her pants and a small piece of cloth... I think Bulma called it a bra? Krillin and I were wearing her shirt and it barely covered us.
Gee I wish we knew where our stuff was... hey wait a second, that's it my power pole!
"Here's our stuff." Krillin said.
"The dragon radar's not here!" I complained, "We can't find grandpa without it!"
Mom finished slipping her shirt and shoes back on before pointing behind me, "At least we have a scent." Her nose wrinkled at the same time I swallowed my vomit from sniffing our only clue: a lone shoe.
"It can't be that bad," Krillin said coming closer to the smelly broken shoe.
"Sniff it for yourself." I covered my nose moving to the other side of the clearing with mom.
"Uhm Goku... no nose, remember?" He choked at the end, "Though that doesn't mean I can't smell that! Let's put on our clothes and get out of here."
None of us wanted to waste any more time than necessary. It's highly important that we get the dragon radar back or we'll never get grandpa back! He left it to us and it's our job to find it and take care of him!
Mom flew ahead of Nimbus and she sniffed around while I did the same, just in case she accidentally missed something.
"The two of you really have sensitive noses." Krillin said in astonishment at the sight of me and mom.
"Yeah it comes in handy."
Almost an hour of searching did we pinpoint the scent. It belonged to some kid who was covered in dirt and tattered blue clothing. He smells really bad! Like a mix of pee, mold, and sadly spoiled food. I didn't know if it was his clothing or just him, but the kid smelled horrible.
The boy tried running away but with the three of us on his tail, we were able to corner him and demand for the dragon radar back. He tried to offer us zeni but the money didn't matter, I only wanted the radar back!
The boy told us he sold the radar to another man and even pointed us to where the man went. Grumbling, both Krillin and I started heading to the town when I noticed mom lingering back, "Mom?"
She glanced at us before looking back at the smelly boy, "I'll catch up."
That's strange. By the time she catches up to us, we'll have the radar by then and be on our merry way.
"Why do you think she stayed behind?" I asked my friend as we ran towards the town, seeing as it of running distance.
He raised his brow, "Goku I'm pretty sure she's going to ask about his family. He's clearly not being taken care of."
"What do you mean?"
"Did you see his clothes? Did you smell him? Of course you did!" He speaks to me as if I should know. He whispered the last part, "I don't think he has a family."
How would Krillin know?
No parents
That's right Krillin doesn't have any parents. He lost them some time before joining the Orin temple, I think. Although he never looked like a thief... or did he?
"This must be the antique shop."
It's a rundown place with broken glass windows and it had no door. The shop had old random things scattered all over the place.
"The radar!" I snatched it from its spot on a table outside, "The dragonball…it should be here!"
"Come on then!" He took one step in before suddenly stepping to the side of the entrance, "Oh excuse me."
Two people came out of the entrance: a small blue man, and a girl wearing coat.
"YOU!" the three of us screamed, pointing at each other. Krillin looked lost as he turned his head to me and to them.
"Do you know them?" He asks seeing our shocked expressions.
"Get away from me you monster! Mai!" Pilaf screams, clutching a violet box close to his chest, "This is my dragon ball you hear me?!"
"Wait how many stars?" I asked, taking a step closer to them.
"None of your business," the little blue man growls out, "Mai do something!"
She nodded, taking out one of her guns, "Right away sir!"
Krillin screams at the sight and jumps at the first shot, "Why are they shooting us?!"
Ignoring his question, I dodged the bullets and yelled at them, "Just tell me how many stars!" They only responded by running away like cowards.
"Four. Four stars!" The shop keeper comes out unconcerned, stating the number of stars the dragon ball had.
"My dragon ball!" I snarled running towards the two who stole my ball, "Hurry up Krillin before they get away!"
Running towards the troll and girl, I kept demanding that they give me my dragon ball! It belongs to my family and not to them! Those two weren't getting away with my dragonball even if…Gah!
Something started shooting from the sky, straight at me, "They're getting away!" The bullets rained down on me, preventing me from doing anything other than jumping and dodging. The sound came from an airship, it was loud and annoying... it was difficult to hear anything! The bullets finally stopped but the ship was leaving me behind, "Oh no you don't—,"
"Let them leave." Mom landed on her toes behind me as she carried a familiar, smelly boy who clutched her pants in fear.
"But they—," Both Krillin and me tried to tell her of the dragon ball but she cut us off with something unexpected.
"The one they have is a fake." She said, "The dragon ball the radar picked up is long gone. I went back to the shop with Rusty here," The boy is still trembling, "and there were many broken, fake dragon balls along with the…shop keeper's body."
The boy—Rusty finally spoke in a panic, "Oh man he's dead! The guy's dead!" His eyes shut as if he's willing the images to go away.
"W—what?!" Krillin stutters, "W—we just saw h—him though."
"I thought so," Mom says sadly, "His body still had remaining heat but his heart was long gone." She stroked Rusty's hair when he whimpered.
"Who could have done that?" I asked angrily. Even if I didn't know the guy, no one deserves to be killed for any reason, "There didn't seem to be anyone there!"
"I'm not sure," She sighs, "Whoever they were, they are long gone."
It was silent for a couple of seconds before Krillin asks, "What now?"
"Now we're going to visit a friend to see if she can help us."
I turned towards her, cocking my head. We've made plenty of friends already but I don't see how any of them could be of any help to us. The only thing left is for us to travel until the radar spots another dragon ball.
"A friend? Which friend?"
"Fasha."
Gine is such a nice mother, isn't she?
What kid didn't disobey their parents at one point? XD
Originally I thought of naming the boy thief, Sabita, but that didn't sound right so I gave him the English version instead: Rusty. It was kind of depressing when nothing was ever mentioned of the boy again, so I decided to alter his future a bit.
Next chapter is Chi-Chi's POV and it's not like the anime filler episode. Crown also get's introduced!
Actually some of the filler episodes will either be replaced or taken away. If anyone really—absolutely wants to see a filler episode than make it known before it's too late!
Character Profile: Launch
DOB: 730
Height: 168 CM
Mother: Shoku
Father: Dez
Siblings: N/A
Specie: Human
Power Level: 10/25 (She's been working out)
Hair Color: Blue/Blonde
Eye Color: Blue/Green
Occupation/Allegiance: N/A
Other:
Mother is a retired assassin
Father is an accountant
After high school she hit the road
Her split personality reflects her parents
Allergic to pollen