Yo!
I am back!
Sorry for the delay!
Guest Review: Thanks for the support!
Jpx0999: Thanks for the support!
Maritza92: Thanks for your kind words!
Now, onto the chapter:-
The yellow-haired female flew in the lead, two guards beside her — indicating her of some importance — with the three captives behind in their cylindrical prisons.
While turmoil and pressure were palpable, the trio couldn't help but pay heed to their surroundings, immediately on egression of the building.
The first thing that drew their attention was the outlook. Reddish orange grass supported beige colored tree trunks which seemingly bifurcated the yellow colored skies which, on squinting the eyes showed, housed a binary star system — a duo of blue suns half the size of their yellow sun.
Fortunately, the lack of clouds aided them to observe the skies limpidly.
In that moment, the vessels made a smooth but quick turn that forced the trio out of their stupor, and the scenery before them blew their minds.
It is a CC simulation, right? Please let it be… Erasa mused frantically because, despite not being a traveloholic, she knew nary a single place supported such architecture.
Crescent shaped buildings, parallel to and fixed on the ground with two disc-esque structures atop both ends, serving as landing-cum-take off as well as egression and ingression points too.
With single crescent indicating single storey to multiple crescents atop one another, majority of the architecture was the same.
This is ingenious! Gohan couldn't help but praise the architecture, nescient that Erasa was thinking along the same lines.
These buildings resemble a banana; that's why the planet's name is Bana… His mind began working more thoroughly, and post a quick perusal, he had to admit the structures were the epitome of aerodynamics.
One crescent parallel to ground while above it, another horizontally perpendicular; a plus shape was thus formed of all the storeys from the bird's eye view. Bulma will definitely want to know about it!
While her friends were busy sightseeing, Videl was assaying the surroundings for the people.
Though almost everyone was bipedal, the uniformity in species was missing. From the shape and size of the head to the whole body, the different species could easily be distinguished.
Then, guards were almost everywhere — visible as well as inconspicuous — if not for her training, she couldn't have spotted anyone. Naturally, you don't manage fifty billion lives without some clandestine activity.
However, an innate voice had begun to rise in the trio — what purpose were they going to serve?
The sudden change in the scenery to indoors, halted their thoughts, making them heed to the long and wide corridor with elegant decor.
The implication was pellucid.
During the bout of their sightseeing, they had entered the Royal Palace. Nervousness began percolating through their beings as minds worked hard to ascertain the cause of their presence on the planet.
While the busty blonde couldn't think of any reason to support the question, the demi-Saiyan was teetering towards the cause being an old rancor due to their Saiyan heritage.
Again though, the purpose for involvement of humans remained elusive.
Beside him, Videl had a totally different set of thoughts. The female and her guards were clearly flying thus indicating they were either using Ki or some other form of energy.
Thus, their abduction to gain knowledge of Ki was out of the question.
Then, what could…
"Humans!"
The sharp tone demanded their attention, and the trio at once became attentive to their escort who was supporting a seemingly perpetual sneer. "I advise you to behave beyond these doors."
Commanding, she whirled around and the next moment, metallic gates languidly opened. The trio were carried forward against their will, and the sight once again rendered them speechless.
Having been acquainted with King Furry, both Videl and Gohan were expecting a rather ascetic appearance as their King was more like a professional than a ruler.
However, this was contrary to their expectations.
A massive hall apparently adorned with various patterns as they could see similarities on the huge pillars, roof and floor — the only parts visible due to most of the area occupied by royals.
Hundreds and hundreds of regal looking men and women of various races, adorned in exquisite garbs, occupied seats in an ascending altitude not unlike their classroom.
And, in the center of all, sat the King himself - pellucid from his appearance as supporting a wide frame covered with blue and white royal garbs and apparently a white cape over his shoulders.
Long flowing grizzled hair with equally grayed long beard and thick mustaches over a slightly wrinkled skin were indicative of age, wisdom, calmness, all in all providing a grandfatherly vibe yet the sole sky blue eye — taking them in while languidly blinking every now and then — was eerie similar to the calm before the storm.
Beside him, on both sides in a descending manner, were four smaller thrones — two on each side — similar to the head of an upward arrow.
Apparently, the upward arrow shape was also the insignia of the empire as the shape — in a thick light blue color — was also present above behind the king.
The sound of throat clearing contemporaneous with a gliding sound brought them out of their musings towards a plain looking bald man, with small mustaches but regal garbs decorated with some medals of sort, currently irborne atop a circular disc.
"Humans! On behalf of the Eastern empire led by the great Varcus the third, I, the prime minister, extend you the greetings! I am hopeful you had a pleasant journey."
Irritation flashing on her visage, Erasa opened her mouth…
"Moving on," The Prime Minister quickly voiced, shooting a disapproving glance at the blonde human. "Your visit—"
"Abduction! It's abduction!" Erasa shouted before pointing her finger at the royals. "When you bring someone against their will, that's plain kidnap—"
The shrill voice muting, both Videl and Gohan looked at the blonde girl in alarm as panic flashed across her visage; eyes widening to impossible levels.
At once, the raven haired girl began checking for symptoms of asphyxiation, better oriented due to her crime fighting stint.
Beside her, Gohan, having faced similar situations due to Goten often trying to swallow food in a go, also did the same.
"Worry not, humans," The prime minister's calm voice echoed. "Your friend is well, just unable to speak for the time being. Naturally, a proper decorum is a prerequisite before the Great King."
Heeding to the reason given by the prime minister yet not turning their vision, both Videl and Gohan continued to check their blonde friend.
After some moments, confirming the well being, the raven haired girl looked at Gohan. "I will take it from here, please cooperate."
Blinking for some moments, the demi-Saiyan nodded. Videl was truly better oriented with such situations; even he hadn't seen much in the Ox kingdom.
The regals gazing at her with blatant disinterest – really the norm with all high people, right? – the blue-eyed human stepped forward a bit. "While I am aware of the decorum to be maintained, I will not apologize as my friend's concerns are rightly warranted."
Not taking any reprieve for the reactions of others, she continued. "Our visit to the empire is clearly without our consent that tantamounts to abduction which, if I say it bluntly, is blatant turpitude."
A wave of whispers ensued but nobody raised a voice implying their subservience to the king, however, every eye became focused on the king who just kept blinking in same phlegmatic manner.
Videl continued, maintaining eye contact with the prime minister. "We deserve to know the purpose of our abduction."
Eyes narrowed while mouth clenched, the prime minister pointed a finger. "You dare—"
"Minister."
At once, a deafening silence descended upon the hall, and again, the focus shifted onto the king whose voice had reverberated throughout the hall.
Surprisingly, it lacked any loudness yet managed to had the same effect.
"My lord!" Bowing, the prime minister floated backwards.
Varcus the third pinned the trio under a scrutinizing gaze for some moments, as if assaying whether an effort on his part — even for speaking to them — was necessary or not?
Nevertheless, the trio held firm.
"Humans," Varcus began, and the hall, if possible, became more silent. "You seek knowledge? I shall allow it for the foundation of this empire is not fear, however, let yourselves be cognisant that no privilege is entitled to you."
"Even your survival is at my bidding; henceforth, choose your words and actions with utmost care."
Nervousness began to seep into the three friends because these were not common thugs they were used to but a fuckin' empire!
Even Gohan, despite being oriented with such threats, couldn't help the feeling due to the sheer size of the empire as the ramifications were dire, too dire.
He has allowed it though. Steeling herself, the blue-eyed girl took a breath and nodded. "We just seek the purpose… your majesty."
Staying inexpressive for some moments, the king nodded. "Minister."
The prime minister literally floated again into the conversation. "Thank you, my lord," bowing politely to the sire, he shifted to the three aliens.
With barely suppressed aversion, he began without any preamble. "Two years ago, our scouters at the perimeter detected an energy signal — very potent one."
"It was probed into and an interesting piece of information came to light. The energy had its origins around seven years ago; for it to persist without dissipating, was another proof of its potency."
"For obvious reasons, the signal was traced to its source which happened to be a not so backwater planet — as was previously reported — planet 4032-877 or as per your nomenclature, planet Earth."
Gohan's eyes slightly widened. It wasn't hard to guess where the words were aimed at.
"Quite surprising that such a peaceful planet, relatively of course, supported one of the most barbarous races — the Saiyans."
Shit! The word coming to his mind on its own, the demi-Saiyan realized that his fears were not wrongly placed. Undoubtedly, it was some old rancour against the Saiyans and…
Another thought cut into his current line of thinking. These guys had termed him as human, and if rancor against Saiyans was the reason, why were the girls involved?!
"The energy signature matched a Saiyan who had surpassed his limits; naturally, it begged the question 'how'? On meticulous perusal, it was revealed that the Saiyan wasn't just that but a hybrid in fact."
My father is an alien… mother is a human…
The words jumping back from her memories, Videl immediately knew the name as 'Bardock' and the power surge as Cell games. Damn! Is he this strong!
Still, the question remained why were she and Erasa roped into this?
"Even more astonishing was the hybrid's superiority over the pure Saiyan's. Further scrutiny was done and our results emphasized that the superiority was due to the mixing of human genes."
Well, that was already confirmed by Bulma. Gohan reminisced about the Cc heiress showing them her findings of unique cells which she labeled as S-cells — their quantum was higher in hybrids than pure Saiyans, and clearly, a larger presence of S-cells ensured higher potential.
So these guys are after our genes? While relatively placating, he didn't want to end up in some foreign laboratory either.
"Accordingly, the best human female was chosen to ensure the hybrid of greatest quality in the empire too."
Wait, what?!
Videl blinked and took a moment to process the sudden digression from the subject. Then her eyes almost popped out of sockets as the implications set in. Mouth parting in shock, she whirled towards the king—
"The hell?!"
Whether it was just the requisite time that Gohan's outburst provided or the astonishment that the gentle boy had spoken such a word, the miniscule adrenaline wore off and the ramifications made themselves known.
Her location, the size of empire and her power or lack thereof made her realize just where she stood in the grand order of things.
A slender arm — Erasa's — encircled around her wrist, but she paid no heed.
Rolling his eyes while being unable to comprehend how these feeble humans were shouting again and again without feeling a bit of fear when many had been killed for far less, the minister cleared his throat.
"You, the daughter of Satan, should feel honored as a great opportunity has been bestowed upon you to serve the empire. You shall sire a child with the crown prince himself."
A wave of applause ensued and looks of awe and jealousy were thrown around while Videl's shock deepened further.
"I won't allow it."
Erasa immediately looked towards the son of Goku, his face serious like never before, fists clenched and gaze directed at the King himself who remained quiescent as before.
"I shall advise you to stay within your limits, human," The prime minister's stern voice rang out from the above.
But the demi-Saiyan ignored it. "You cannot force her; I won't allow you to—"
"You dare?! Guards!"
Two masked guards immediately blurred into existence before the king and then moved towards the trio…
… only to get clotheslined as Gohan suddenly appeared between them. Breath audibly escaped the guards and no later, they fell downwards.
As if that was the que, guards flashed everywhere. And, in response, Gohan began settling into horse stance.
Clenching his fists, he opened his mouth…
And fell down, hands coming around his head while a painful scream erupted from his mouth.
That was enough to elicit a reaction from the girls as they crouched around him, shouting his name in concern as the raven-haired boy slowly lost consciousness.
"Insolent bastard."
A chilling voice reverberated throughout the hall; the peculiar tone even forced the girls to look towards the newcomer.
A redhead, with hair falling to shoulders, a sharp face, green eyes, with toned body clad in white regal garbs, slowly levitated towards the thrones.
Immediately people started bowing towards the redhead. "All hail the prince! Greatness to you, Prince Kardon!"
No intelligence was needed to confirm that this was the crown prince of the Eastern empire.
His action and words overshadowed his handsome features, giving birth to immediate disdain in Videl's being. She didn't hide her feelings as the prince looked straight towards her.
Halting beside his father, he gave her an appraising look. "Clearly, your friend cannot comprehend this rare opportunity you have been presented; females all over the cosmos would die to be in your position."
"Such insolence he showed; many have been punished for far lesser, yet, due to you, I only rendered him unconscious."
After checking the son of Goku, with Erasa looking at her with great concern, Videl stood up. Mustering the most spiteful glare she could manage, she looked directly towards the face of the prince. "I would rather slit my throat!"
The prince recoiled as if slapped. A moment of emptiness enveloped his being as his mind tried to comprehend the words.
Silence from the courtroom also gave birth to embarrassment. This was unprecedented! Any and every female in the cosmos would feel privileged at this opportunity, right?
Then why was this female of one of the weakest species there, reacting like this?
Genuinely more confused than anything else, Kardon asked. "You will become a queen of the strongest empire there!"
"Not interested," the blue eyed girl casually replied as if the one asking was just an eve teaser and not a prince.
Eyes narrowing and mouth clenching, the crown prince pointed at the ungrateful girl. "Stupid wench! How dare you?! You… you think by ignoring my will, you can just leave the empire?!"
A slow but chilling chuckle ensued. "Let me be clear: there is no escape at this point; either you concur willingly or… " The rest was unsaid but more limpid than if it were spoken.
Her heart began beating faster as anxiety and fear clutched around her chest. The words of the prince began flashing before her eyes as she imagined her life as a slave in the dungeons, serving anyone to their bidding and…
She visibly shook her head, and after labeling the prince as no more than a common thug, turned towards the king.
Time for some word games. "Was this your majesty implying when saying 'the empire's foundation is not fear?!" Is this how relations are built in this empire?!"
Then, she whirled around, taking in the masses. "Today, it's me! Tomorrow, it will be you or your daughters!" She pointed at other royals. "This is blatant coercion!"
The prince smirked at the baseless words but it quickly withered away as small whispers emerged which slowly began to amplify.
This had never happened before!
Rage flashing in his eyes, he began levitating, gaze affixed on the human wench and…
"Kardon."
Silence once again ensued. All eyes shifted towards the king who had now risen. Everyone followed.
After some moments of pause while putting a hand on his son's shoulder, Varcus the third solemnly gazed at the human female. "Child, heed to my words: while I still stand by my words that the foundations of this empire is not fear, but above that and anything else, my every decision must affirm with the greater good of the empire."
Taking in everybody, he continued. "That is the oath I swore to, and ever since the inception of my reign, I have never digressed from the oath."
"Times are dire; skirmishes are augmenting in the southern quadrant. No doubt we are capable of facing them but what of the future generations? Their prowess cannot be ascertained at this point."
"This is one of the endeavors to ensure the longevity as well as integrity of the empire," This was at least true.
Reports had been receiving anent a unnaturally strong Saiyan who wielded Ki of green color and continuously laying waste to civilisations in several thousand light years of range.
It was sheer fortune that they stumbled upon the discovery of the existence of a Saiyan-human hybrid.
"Nevertheless, I respect your opinion and propose that the matter be resolved by a simple duel; a duel between your male companion and my son."
The girls became surprised at the unexpected turn of events though Videl soon inferred everything as whispers of approval began pouring around.
The king had, with simple play of words, managed to quell the disorder and presented himself as a fair king.
But that was the least of her worries; the most prominent was the duel— no way could she agree to this. "A duel is not an option, your majesty! Gohan is clearly not an opponent for Kar… prince."
Kardon's eyes narrowed at the blatant disrespect but kept quiet.
"But he is strongest amongst you," The king mused but without waiting, continued. "Perhaps, the Saiyans can assist you then, well if you are in contact with them."
'Yeah, let's do it!" were the words that almost left her mouth if not for the concomitant thought that it would be a selfish act on her part.
Bardock would definitely agree; he was like that but she didn't know what the outcome would be. Certainly, the man's ki had caught the attention of the empire but at no point had they expressed any qualms in dealing with the Saiyan's prowess.
In fact, they were deliberately offering her to involve him. Besides that, could she, for her own sake, deprive others in need of the golden warrior's aid?
The answer quickly came to her. Shaking her head, she replied. "I cannot contact them."
"It is settled then; two days from now, in the grand arena, the duel shall transpire."
'Praises to the king! Long live the empire!' followed, loudly too.
Varcus the third smirked, basking in the support from his people while squeezing his son's shoulder.
"You know Bardock will definitely agree."
Videl sighed. "I know but you heard my answer."
The bubbly blonde, now partially unworried on getting her voice back, wrapped her arm around the blue-eyed girl's shoulders, squeezing a bit. "It can be a trap too, I do understand that."
"Still, Gohan is strong; I mean he made Tao Pai Pai look like a child. Then, he is the son of Goku who defeated the Red Ribbon army and Piccolo daimao as a child— that ought to count for something, right?"
"I hope so, 'Rasa," Videl muttered because if things went south… she didn't even want to delve into that.
Later into night, after confirming Erasa was sleeping, Videl Satan cried inaudibly at her pitiful life and the action she would need to take if Gohan failed.
For if he failed, which was almost set into stone — so, she didn't know why she was waiting — she would make her words true.
I would rather slit my throat…
Gohan woke up groggily, as his eyes opened and adjusted to the light. Hands slowly covering the head as he felt a phantom pain on blinking, he took in his surroundings.
A simple small room with two lamps, an air vent and a water container were present around. Looking down, he counted a simple mattress too. Where am…
"Good morning, Gohan-san!"
Blinking and clenching his teeth at the pain that ensued, the demi-Saiyan looked towards the source of the greetings. It only took him a moment to recognise Berry…
Everything rushed into his mind: their arrival, planet Bana, the empire, Erasa's voice…
Panic filled his being and he frantically began looking around for the girls while standing up. Then, he whirled towards the ethereal figure. "Berry! Where are the girls?!"
The cute girl-like figure blinked. "They are in the girl's chamber," She stated as if it was common sense.
Any other time, the son of Goku would have definitely agreed but his lack of knowledge of the journey from the court to chambers gave birth to queasiness. "What… what made me unconscious?"
"Prince Kardon because you violated the decorum of the court, and the prince takes it very seriously."
Okay, that made sense. He was angry, created a mess and the prince decided to deal with it. He couldn't fault the prince as he was a bit brash with his emotions. Nodding, he continued. "What happened afterwards?"
"A concord was reached between your friend Videl and the King. Two days from now, a duel shall transpire between you and Prince Kardon; all claims on Videl Satan shall cease to exist if you emerge as victorious."
A duel?
Gohan sat down as the words slowly sinked in. A battle to decide the fate of his friend and, most likely, his future partner… he blinked and blinked again.
Then, a smirk almost appeared on his face but he withheld it.
Who knew if Berry were a spy?
But he couldn't be any happier at the turn of events. A battle was certain; but now it was just a duel rather than 'him against the entire empire' — that would have been pure chaos with the only possibility of his victory being an ultimate transformation, if such a thing existed.
Then, definitely a battle in space — that would be totally out of his reach.
"Can you tell me about the prince?"
"Classified, Gohan-san."
Of course, it had to be. Though his thoughts were cut as Berry glided to his other side.
"Is my way of referring to you acceptable, Gohan-san?"
Eh… the demi-Saiyan blinked, rubbing the back of his head in confusion. Nevertheless, he nodded.
"Great!" Berry twirled around in clear joy. "I have been looking into Earth's culture and found the honorifics quite endearing. Could you share something else?"
Oh that… Gohan cursed himself for his stupidity. Not having anything else to do, he decided to oblige Berry.
"Why did you do that, Father?!"
King Varcus glanced at his only child. Strong and confident he was, but levelheaded did not. He sighed. "Be patient, child, and you shall find the answers on your own."
Irritation flashed across the red head's visage, and he shifted his face petulantly while crossing his arms.
The king had to chuckle. "Still a child," Shaking his head, he stood up. "If I had not given the girl what seemed to be a fair chance to the public, it would have reached far and beyond."
"Already I have broken the norm by choosing you the crown prince—"
"But I am the strongest!"
"Not by much. There are at least four others in the empire who come close, very close and as per the norm, a battle amongst five is the right procedure to choose the crown prince."
Kardon clenched his fists but refrained from saying anything.
"However, we both are aware of the outcome of this duel. The girl will have to follow our bidding, sooner or later."
The arena was set up and buzzing with the crowd. It was the most crowded event the girls had ever witnessed.
They sat in the balcony on the second floor, able to get a limpid view of the battle floor. For any outsider, they would appear as unrestricted and just chilling on the balcony.
But Videl knew better.
There was an intangible shield only attuned to them. Anybody could enter like the white bird currently chirping on the edge of the balcony, but they couldn't even get a single finger out of the shield.
"I am nervous, Vidi."
"So do I, 'Rasa," As a token of comfort, the blue eyed girl held the normally bubbly blonde's hand with her right hand while, at the same time, clenched her left hand around the small but sharpened mirror.
"What do you—"
Dum Dum Dum! Dadum! Dum Dum Dum!
"It's beginning," Videl shushed the other girl and both began paying attention to the events unfolding.
"Folks, I, the prime minister, welcome you all to this grand event which shall decide to whom the heart of the beautiful maiden shall belong!"
The raven haired girl didn't bother to hide the distaste as her face was reflected on a huge screen. Leave it to the manipulative bastard to turn this into an engagement ceremony.
"Now, inviting the chief guest of the day, I extend my greetings to none other than Lord Cooler!"
The girls blinked in astonishment. Sure the empire housed innumerable alien species but to some extent, everyone resembled a human.
But this Cooler was an actual alien. Purple and white body with a spherical head and tail, all in all, the alien resembled a lizard!
"Oh my God!" Erasa put her hand to her mouth. If she had any qualms about this being another planet, they were abolished.
Videl didn't say anything.
"Lord Cooler, the ruler of the formerly Cold empire now the Frost empire, is our new ally. Unrest is on rise in the Southern quadrant, and being familiar with the region and a formidable warrior himself, the generous ruler has agreed to pool his resources to usher in an era of peace in the belligerent region."
"Now, I invite Lord Cooler to share his thoughts with us!"
The son of King Cold, after his reception by King Varcus, floated to the podium. Taking in everybody, he dipped his head. "I thank you for the warm welcome."
Straightening, he continued. "Many of you know me as the wayward and outlaw son of the cold empire; to that, I will say these titles do me justice."
"My father and brother were, to put it bluntly, space tyrants but I am a businessman who is aware that peace ensures prosperity. Resources are discovered and grown, new talents emerge and alliances are forged."
"To spread peace and prosperity is my vision, and I am hopeful the great Eastern empire shall aid me in this endeavor. Thank you all!"
A roar of applause followed as Cooler took his seat.
"Now, without further ado and blessings of my King, I commence the event by inviting the crown prince Lord Kardon to the battle floor."
The redhead slowly levitated down to the battle floor. Clad in a silvery bronze armor that covered his entire torso, sans the arms, with black pants, the prince basked in the praise thrown.
Settling on the tiled floor, he bowed towards the King before crossing his arms.
"Now, I invite the opponent: Son Gohan!"
The metal door opened and out came, the son of Goku. Clad in the same sleeveless blue gi with an orange sash tied around his abdomen, the demi-Saiyan's face was set in stone.
He also levitated towards the tiled floor. Settling on it, he quickly swerved his eyes towards the balcony where the girls were situated. A grin appeared on his face and he gave a quick thumbs up.
"He isn't worried, is he?"
Videl slightly shook her head. Erasa's words were true. There wasn't even a sliver of worry on their friend's face.
And, that worried her.
"You were neutralized by a rudimentary attack; what chance do you stand?"
Gohan actually looked a bit sheepish. "I was caught off guard and also hungry."
Kardon blinked and blinked. Then he scoffed. "Typical response. You still have a chance to forfeit."
"Nah," The demi Saiyan popped his neck. "I am good."
"Then, prepare to lose!"
"Hajime!"
Kardon's eyes flashed, and Gohan immediately felt a huge pressure striking his head. However, he was prepared this time.
Focusing on his mental guards, he gazed straight into his opponent's eyes and smiled. "Told ya."
The prince's eyes widened at having his attack failed. Irritation flashed across his face and he snarled. "I haven't even begun!"
The demi-Saiyan in response settled into the Oozaru stance, flexing his fists a bit.
No later, the redhead blurred and a shockwave ensued. Gohan had blocked the prince's puch with his forearm in the middle of the floor.
A wave of silence and surprise followed throughout the arena as a feeble human had parried the attack of their fabled prince.
"No more!" Kardon yelled and next moment his punch flashed at a hair's width beside the demi-Saiyan's face whose eyes had widened at the speed of the attack.
Fast! Gohan mused to himself. There was… Yelping, he ducked under a kick, sidestepped a back kick, crossed his arms over his head as a punch, too fast to dodge, made an impact.
His bones rattled and the force pushed him a couple of feet into the ground. Okay, this guy has strength also. Again, he was forced to cut his thoughts as a kick flashed towards his face.
Gohan dived forward towards the kick, ducked just a moment before, rolled a couple of times and flew towards the skies.
He turned around on becoming stationary and immediately had to raise a forearm to block the kick coming from right.
Yet it wasn't enough.
The force made his arm collide with his face and the son of Goku was thrown back. Another kick came out of nowhere which hurled him towards the floor.
Though just before he was about to collide with the floor, Gohan rolled into himself, collided with the ground, rolled over it before jumping and standing. Despite the maneuver and his hands open wide for balance, his feet stumbled a bit.
He's strong, hehe! It was time to maximize the potential of his base form. Taking a breath, he raised his forearms in a crossed manner and brought them down.
White Ki erupted around him, sending waves of winds in all directions. With Kaldron in his vision, he shot off.
… Only to find his surroundings halt from a blur. A moment later, he comprehended an insurmountable force centered around his left leg. Looking down, he saw the prince had appeared behind him, and was now holding his leg.
And, the way the prince's hand slowly moved around his leg, he knew what was coming. Oh shit!
The next moment, Gohan's body blurred and impacted the floor, tiles rose around him, and a scream left his mouth.
The motion was repeated again.
And again.
And again.
"GOHAN!" Videl yelled, concern blatant over her face as tears poured down her cheeks. She began beating the intangible shield furiously.
Beside her, Erasa had pushed her fist into her mouth, silencing her own screams while her shoulders shook violently at the brutality that was happening.
"STOP IT! PLEASE! PLEASE!" The raven haired girl cried while sobbing relentlessly.
As if her pleas were actually heard, Kardon halted and threw the body towards the other side of the tiled floor.
Everything came to a standstill.
Videl also sank to her knees, head bowed, her sobs turning into silent cries. Whether as to comfort herself or her friend, Erasa also joined and enveloped the other girl tightly.
Everything was over.
For her, for them.
"You shall live, human but with this memory that will act as a reminder never to put your foot where it doesn't belong to."
"Nevertheless, I did not thrive from your suffering," Saying, Kardon gazed towards the prime minister. "Declare the match, Prime Minister."
"Of course, prince Kardon," The minister floated a bit down. "Clearly Son Gohan is unable to continue hence… "
A tremor, so intense that it rattled even the royal thrones, spread out like a wave.
"An earthquake, King Varcus?" Cooler enquired.
"Impossible, Cooler-san," Varcus replied. "Our technology overcame them centuries ago."
"Then, what is the cause?"
The king frowned, unable to answer.
Another tremor, equally intense, rocked the arena again.
As if that was the cue, the arena started shaking. Winds picked up, tiles became disjointed and began levitating. Towards the east, thunder sparked violently.
"Sir, we are reading a tremendous amount of energy from the arena."
"What?!" The Prime minister shouted in his earpiece.
"Indeed sir. And it is centered towards the right side of the floor."
The prime minister turned towards the direction in confusion and his eyes widened. "Impossible… "
White wisps of smoke were emanating from the prone figure of the human male.
The prime minister's presence and reaction was conspicuous enough to draw the attention of everyone, Gohan soon became the point of focus.
In the balcony, the intermittent halting of the winner's announcement brought the girls out of their grieving. Gathering energy and willpower, they looked above the balcony towards the prime minister, and then followed his gaze.
Simultaneous gasps escaped the mouth of the girls as the son of Goku was beginning to stand up on his knees.
And, the wisps of smoke, which were previously white, suddenly turned to yellow.
Hope began filling their beings and tearful smiles paved their way on their visages.
Everything was not over.
It was just beginning.
Please Review and Support.
Your two words make my day.