CHAPTER 11:
Meet Raiyan! Wait! Who?

For a brief second, everything flashed as white as a Solar Flare. He was blinded and shut eyes tightly. He felt the world shift around him. The gravity increased tenfold, pulling him like a deadweight to the ground. His legs underwent a great shock while trying to maintain his balance. Even the air was heavy, seeming to smother him in its humidity. It felt as if he stepped into a giant mega-gravity tropical rainforest. After a moment, he realized he had stopped breathing, and took a sharp intake of air. He opened his eyes and saw that a wall of leaves and flowers were before him. He was in some sort of garden. He cleared his mind and refocused his priorities. First was to make sure Pan was okay.

"Pan?"

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"Pan!"

"I'm right here, dummy, behind you on the ground. Don't shout."

"Don't scare me like that. Next time, answer me."

There was another moment of silence. He heard Pan trying to stand up. The gravity must have knocked her off-balance when she came in here first.

"Where are we? Some garden?"

"I... I don't know." Trunks' eyes rolled up in thought. What he saw struck him speechless. There's no way. NO WAY! His voice caught in his throat as he tried to make words out. Any words. There was just no way...

"What's wrong? Are you okay Trunks?"

"Oh my great Kami, Pan... PAN! Look up!"

After a split second, he heard a gasp behind him. "That's... impossible! How can this be? Where are we!"

A great sky of shifting colors stretched above them. There were clouds and birds. There was no ceiling. How could there be no ceiling! They were supposed to be underground!

"This is really strange. I mean... it's like we're on a completely different planet." Trunks stared at the sky in awe, but realized Pan was starting to sniffle behind him. "Pan?"

"Grandpa... we're on some planet... hic... and we left ...hic... Grandpa behind..." She sounded like she was about to break out in tears.

"Pan, don't cry. We can go back anytime, see?" He looked at the door they just came from, but did a double take when he saw that it was... gone! The door was GONE!

Okay Trunks, don't panic. There must be another door here somewhere. People have to make it back somehow. His own encouraging thought still left lead in his stomach. Although he wished it were true, one look at the sky and his hope began to falter. But, no matter what the case, they had to move on. They first had to get the dragonball. Then, they could worry about going back.

"Pan, just don't flip. We'll make it out of here somehow."

She fully broke out in sobs. It pained him that he couldn't console her with a hug or even a touch. She was intoxicated, emotional, traumatized, and he couldn't do anything about it.

"Pan, just wait here. I just you need to wait here while I go look around."

"No! No, I want to come. Don't leave me! Don't leave me too..."

"I'm not leaving you..."

"We'll walk together, okay? hic...Okay?"

Trunks nodded. She did have a point. There was no telling if they might be separated somehow. That wouldn't be good at all.

He reached back and found her left hand, taking it with his right. "We'll move together, okay?"

"Okay."

They began to slowly edge their way forward, through a passage of vines and flowers. It appeared as if they were approaching a clearing. Perhaps the dragonball would be there. Then, half the problem would be solved.

A voice screamed out that made them both nearly jump out of their skins.

"Get out! Get OUT! What is it with all these nymphomaniac hedonists that are running around my garden! Go BACK to where you came from!"

Trunks jerked his head to the path they had just come from. A little round blue man stood there, fuming with anger. Trunks felt his face go beet red.

"I finally find another planet and everything seems perfect, except out of nowhere, you naked lovebugs start prancing around my property! I've had it. I don't know WHERE you are coming from, but I want you to go home RIGHT NOW!"

"I ... uh..." Trunks tried to form words in his mind. "Are... I mean..." He was so embarrassed being seen this way, he couldn't find his voice. "Are you... Raiyan!"

"What? Raiyan? How would you know Raiyan? Sorry, but you've just missed him by about five eras. Now, go back to where you came from. Shoo..." The chubby man paused for a second, and took a sharp intake of breath as if something dawned on him. "T-Trunks? Is that you, Trunks! And Pan!"

Things were getting weirder by the second. How in the world, in all the universe of the four quadrants combined, did this man know his name! Trunks gaped stupidly, his mouth practically down to the ground.

"Trunks! Pan! You guys are here! But... how? I mean... you didn't die? Did you!"

Pan was silent throughout the whole thing. If she wasn't going to speak, Trunks had to be the one to find his voice. "Who... Who are you? How do you know us?"

"What? You don't recognize me? Well, I guess you wouldn't. It's not like you've ever seen me before, I guess. I'm King Kai."

Trunks flopped to the ground, unable to take it any longer. "K-K-King KAI! What are YOU doing here!"

"No, the question is, what are you doing here! And why are two naked!" A thought dawned in King Kai's mind. "You two weren't...! Oh my goodness! And in the garden!"

"NO! Nothing like that!" Trunks turned several shades of red. "We're here because..." He was so embarrassed, it was hard to think of the explanation, "this is, uh...apparently the 'Temple' in Kikaru? The dragonball is supposed to be here, so we had to get married and naked to enter this place. But... this place is supposed to be on Kikaru! Where are we? How did you get here!."

"I live here! This is my new planet. Augh!" King Kai threw his hands in the air and yelled up to the sky, "How is it that every time I find a new planet, something is terribly wrong with the real estate!" He looked down, frowning, "I miss my old planet, no thanks to Goku." King Kai's antennae began to twitch excitedly. "But a wedding you say?" He looked toward Trunks with a dawning smile. "That reminds me of a joke."

"A... joke?" Trunks blinked. He heard Pan shift uncomfortably behind him.

"Yeah! Did you hear about the two antennae that got married?" The blue oversized bug was practically bouncing, "The wedding was lousy, but the reception was great! Hahahahaha!" King Kai started snorting in laughter, but Trunks felt sweat forming on his forehead. "Did you get it? Wedding? Reception! Hahaha-snort-hahahaha!"

"Uh... yeah..."

"Okay, hehehe, I need to get you a set of clothes. You two look ridiculous like that."

"Really? Oh wow, that would be great!" Trunks felt elated at the offer. It was exactly what he needed right now, other than the dragonball.

King Kai stood there for a few moments, as still as a statue as if in thought.

"Well, what's taking you?" Pan's aggravated voice broke the silence.

"I know, I'll make a deal. You each tell me one joke and I'll give you clothes."

Trunks and Pan exclaimed in unison, "WHAT?"

"Ah come on, one joke. You have to have one joke. Or else no clothes. Nope, no siree." He waggled his finger at the two with a wide grin.

This guy is off his rocker. Trunks stared in amazement.

"Okay, me first," Pan was a little too quick to come up with one. In her state, it would doubtfully be anything funny. King Kai smiled and put his arms behind his back in expectation. "What do elephants, trees, suitcases and bathing suits all have in common!"

There was no way. She isn't...

"...Trunks!"

His face turned a shade of purple. There could be no way... She must not have realized what she was saying. She had some nerve saying that! "Pan, I'm going to make you suffer for that. That's not funny!"

King Kai was silent for a moment, his thoughts tumbling around in the big bug head of his, and then he cracked a grin. "Oh ... Hehe... I get it! Trunks, she's making fun of you! Talking about you behind your back! Hehehehehe-snort-hahahaHAHAHA-snort-HAHAHAHA!"

Trunks scowled feeling his eyebrows twitch in rage. "She's drunk, King Kai. That's the only reason why I'm not PUMMELING her right now!"

"Oh get a sense of humor, Trunks. You know I'm joking."

"I swear to all Kais, Pan, I will turn around and look at you."

Pan audibly shut up.

"You two sure do look funny standing like that. It's like you're both backed up against some wall snort hehehehe. Reminds me of Bubbles. He ran into a wall the other day, and boy, was he plastered! Hahahaha."

"This isn't happening..."

"Time for your joke, Trunks, and we can go." King Kai looked quite pleased himself, chuckling at his own awful humor.

Trunks never worked well under pressure. He tried to think of something quick, but only ridiculous jokes that Goten used to say came to mind. Goten would have been able to think of something quick. This guy was insane. He actually thought he had a sense of humor... Suddenly, an idea popped in his head.

"Okay, I have one. Achem... Why don't sharks eat King Kais?"

King Kai had a silly grin on his face. "I don't know, why?"

"Because they taste...funny."

Trunks heard Pan burst out in stifled laughter behind him. King Kai's grin became a tangled smile, and suddenly he too burst out in laughter.

Though her laughing fit, Pan managed, "Trunks that was so stupid, it was actually funny."

"Does that mean we get new clothes?"

King Kai nodded, all the while snorting in laughter. That couldn't be healthy, to laugh that much. Trunks raised his eyebrows toward the overgrown bug.

"Here you go!" King Kai reached out and POOF two training gis appeared in his blue outstretched hands. "Since I principally train, those are the only outfits I can really create out of thin air. If you want anything else, you have to wait a bit for the shipping and handling... not to mention the mail forwarding delay."

"These will be fine." Trunks couldn't help but grin. One problem solved.

Both Pan and Trunks changed into their outfits as quickly as they could. When they were fully dressed, they finally felt they could turn around and look at each other. However, even with clothes on, the two of them were still blushing when they saw each other.

"Okay guys, now that we have that out of the way... What do you need here? Oh wait, first, does Goku know that you two are here?"

"Goku? No. Actually... I'm still a little confused as to where 'here' is."

"What? You don't even know where you are? Surely they told you where the 'Temple' would take you, right?" King Kai was incredulous. "Oh wow! You're serious! You're in the Other World, boy. Another dimension. You're where ... well, dead people end up..."

The world flashed white in Trunks' eyes as he stumbled back. The whole situation was just ludicrous. There was just no explanation for how weird their day had been. "That's crazy..."

"I'll have to do something about that portal on that moon you came from. I don't know how that got there, but I don't want any more of those honeymooners on my property!" King Kai brought his hands to his head and began to pace, "Just think of them all, coming here and thinking they were entering some sort of Temple and the whole time, they're prancing around naked on private property as if it were some Garden of Eden."

"Listen, King Kai, I'm sorry to interrupt you – err – your thoughts... But, have you seen a dragonball anywhere, by any chance?"

"A dragonball? In this dimension? That's impossible. They'd stay in the living world."

"Yes, I know, but apparently someone placed a dragonball here somewhere."

"I don't know. I don't know where it could be." King Kai thought a bit. "But if it's on my planet, I can find it. Hold on." His antennae twitched a little bit and he looked as if he were deep in thought. "Hmmm... interesting. Very interesting... Oh...? No... Wait..no... Oh! I found it."

Pan stumbled a bit on shaky legs, "You did?"

"But that's strange... no, no, it can't be? What? Oh my. Hehehe... oh my!"

"What's going on?" Trunks felt like he would strangle King Kai to death, but the halo above King Kai's head made him realize that Goku had already done the job for him. I'm going to treat Goku to a cornucopia of buffets when we get back to Earth. He earned that one.

"That's funny..."

"Just tell us already!" Trunks felt his eyes bug out in anticipation.

"It's in my house. But I never noticed it before. It must have recently been put there... Oh my... hahaha, wait here, I'll go get it for you." King Kai scuffled away from them, heading beyond the clearing, to another path in the gardens.

"Hey!" Pan looked to where King Kai had run off. "He just left us. Where did he do?" She sighed and began to walk in a straight line with her arms outstretched, as if it were a difficult thing to do.

"I don't know." Trunks took his moment to get a better look at the young girl before him. She wasn't very talkative tonight, no matter how hard she tried to act normal. This just wasn't like her. He had felt like he was doing all the talking for them, which was definitely a 180 from what would normally happen. She'd usually speak on account for him, get him stuck playing hero without his consent, and push him around as if he were some convenient side-kick. "Pan's Side-Kick..." What a stupid suggestion from Goku. But the hard fact was that it was, in a sad way, somewhat true.

"Back!" King Kai returned hastily.

"Wow," Trunks turned his head and boggled, "That was so fast, you were barely even gone."

"Yes, well, it wasn't hard to find. I'm just surprised that it ended up where it was. I never noticed anyone entering my home. And, who'd have ever thought to look in the sink?"

"The sink!" Both Pan's and Trunks' mouths dropped wide open.

"Yeah. I upgraded to the ultra deluxe edition bathroom, equipped with jacquzzi and fountain. No wonder they thought it was some sort of shrine."

Pan shook her head slowly and raised her hands above her head, "I'm not even going to ask about this one."

King Kai handed the Five Star Dragonball to the demi-saiyan. Trunks took it carefully and inspected it thoroughly. It almost seemed unreal to his touch, as if it were a fantasy come true. They did it. They finally had the dragonball. All the sufferings that he had to endure for the past two days finally paid off. It was in his hands now. It was all over.

Now, they had to get out of there.

"So you two, is there anything else you need around here, or will you be off?" The blue man adjusted his outfit and put his arms behind his back again.

"Actually," Trunks scratched his head, "I'm not sure where the exit is. We don't need anything except a way out of here at this point. But thanks a lot for helping us with the dragonball."

"A way out? Oh, like that portal you two came from? I thought I had destroyed it yesterday. You should not have been able to come here to begin with, but now you most definitely won't be able to return through that wall. Nope, I don't think there is any other way back to your moon from here."

Trunks felt a sinking sensation in his stomach. The world seemed even heavier for a moment, pulling him down using his own weight against him. A sudden realization hit him and he trembled with panic. "There's... no door... No way back? None... at all!" Trunks grabbed onto King Kai's outfit with both his fists and began to shake him violently, "Do you know what this MEANS!" He shook King Kai harder with ferocity, "We're going to be stuck here! Goku can't instant transmit us out of here! The whole Earth is going to be destroyed because of this!" Trunks released King Kai and took a step back, feeling as if tears were forming in his eyes. "We're stuck here..."

King Kai laughed and dusted himself off. "You're not stuck, Trunks. Goku isn't the only one that can instant transmit. I can take you two back to Kikaru in no time."

"You can?" Pan raised her eyebrows as Trunks stared wide-eyed at King Kai.

"I need to go with you two anyway. I'll see to it that the doorway to my new planet is sealed shut forever. I can't keep having these naked kids running around my property anymore, eh?"

"If you can do that, that would be amazing. Thank you! Thank you so much!" Trunks shook King Kai again in joy. "We need to get back immediately, King Kai. We've spent too much time sacrificing time for the expense of attaining this dragonball. I don't mean to rush you, but it'd be really great if we could go back right now."

"It's no problem! Hey, calm down!" King Kai gently removed Trunks' claws from his clothes. "It'll be nice to see Goku again as well. Just touch my back and we'll be out of here in a jiffy." When both the others touched him, he thought out loud "Okay let's see here... Goku... Goku, let's see... Hmm..." His antennae searched for the moon kikaru. "Aha! I found him! Hold on tight!"

One moment they were there, the other moment they were gone. They vanished into thin air, instant transmitting faster than the speed of light toward Goku's energy.

Goku was trampling anything and anyone in his way. "No way, Giru! There's no way I'll let you have this!" He laughed happily as the robot lagged behind.

The dawn was almost breaking. The early birds were setting up their stands in the marketplace. Goku was out in the city, running through the streets like a madman trying to escape the robot that was chasing him. After a while, the chase ended up becoming a game of cat-and-mouse to the two while waiting for Pan and Trunks to return to Kikaru. He had sensed their kis vanish several hours ago and wondered how long they would be, but lost his track of time during his game with Giru.

Goku flew up to the top of one of the residential buildings. He stood on the roof and looked down to see if Giru may have followed him. He threw back his head and laughed, hands on his hips. "Haha! I think I outran that robot once and for all." He smiled and tossed the camera up, catching it. "Nobody will find me up here."

Suddenly, three figures zapped before him, appearing out of thin air. Goku jumped back by instinct, in shock. Somewhere in the sudden panic, the camera went flying into the air. He turned around to catch it, but saw with great irritation that Giru was hovering before him, his prize camera in his hands.

"Giru catch camera, Giru, Giru! Play again, play again!"

Goku went from eyeing the robot to turning and blinking at the three figures that stood before him. At first, he thought his eyes were deceiving him. "King Kai!" He blinked, "Trunks? Pan! What are you all doing here?"

"Grandpa! Oh Grandpa!" Pan staggered over to Goku and gave him a bear hug. "I thought we'd never see you again!"

"What happened?" Goku suddenly looked concerned.

Trunks looked at his watch and the approaching dawn. He began to program something into it and half-mindedly said, "Don't mind her, Goku, she's still a little dazed. We were fine. We ended up on King Kai's planet."

"What? King Kai's planet? You mean..." Goku put his fingers to his chin in thought, "Raiyan is ... King Kai!" Goku grinned at the thought.

King Kai chuckled toward the boy. "Not quite, Goku, but around the same ball park. I only met Raiyan a few brief times. I guess I'll put a long story short. Raiyan was the real name of one of the original five Grand Kais. Unfortunately, he had died in the fight against Majin Buu many years ago, leaving his property open for new management. However, seeing as I helped train one of the best fighters in the universe..." King Kai flexed his muscles immodestly, "... the Supreme Kai granted me an upgrade to a nicer planet. I guess these people haven't gotten with the program yet!"

"I see!" Goku reached over and grabbed the camera from Giru before the robot had the chance to protest. "So... are you going to set them straight?" He stopped and thought a bit, "You know, it might be hard to break the news to these people that their God is dead."

"I'm not going to break the news. I'm going to break that door! The one that leads to my new planet. They can keep their religion for all I care, but when they start romping around my property, that's trespassing." He pointed a finger up, as if trying to make a point, "Well, in any case, I'm off to destroy to their Temple entrance. I'll see you all later. Hopefully in a long, long time if you keep up your health."

"Wait, King Kai...?" Trunks looked up from his watch and made eye contact with the Kai. "Could you do us a favor?" Trunks stepped forward a bit clasping his hands together.

"Me? Grant a favor? What is it?"

"Well, when you go to the chamber, can you grab our clothes for us? They won't let us back down there to claim them, and, well, I'm sure Pan might like to keep her wedding dress as a memento."

"Ah no problem. I'll leave them on your spaceship for you on my way out. Consider it done. Oh, wait." The blue man beamed happily as a light bulb went off in his head, "I know! How about, consider it an advance favor for a funny joke you'll think of and tell me one day, okay?" King Kai grinned sheepishly. "Oh, and Goku?" His happy air vanished and he looked deadly serious for a moment.

"Yes King Kai?"

"Don't even think about instant transmitting to my new planet with a self-destructing enemy. I'll not tolerate that anymore from you."

Goku laughed a little bit. "Don't worry, I promise."

King Kai gave a little wave and then vanished from sight.

After watching the Kai dissapear, Trunks looked to Goku and Pan and put his hands on his hips. "Does this mean we can go now?"

Goku put his arms behind his head. "Yeah, as soon as we say goodbye to our new friends. I don't see anything else that would hold us back."

Finally, they would be able to leave this place. Within the hour, Trunks would make sure. They had five dragonballs now. Two to go. He could imagine seeing the Earth again. It would be the most wonderful feeling. He could hear it calling to him. Home. He'd be returning soon, and his life would resume right where it left off. His family would welcome him home with open arms. Even his father would nod in acknowledgement. It would be good to be home.

––––––––

They all stood in a group in front of the Capsule Corp. ship. Lelanu, Hikaru and Shina had come to see them off. Goku was up in the ship, restocking some of the kitchen supplies with Giru, and Pan was talking with Shina several meters away from Trunks and the other two Kikaruans.

"Itbe good to have bonded two from another planet. It gives us great pride to know we have spread a bit of our culture to other lands." Hikaru bowed respectfully toward Trunks, who stood two feet taller than him. "If you have any last minute questions about our culture, feel free to ask."

Trunks thought for a moment and crossed his arms. "Well, I guess, out of curiosity, can you explain to me the 'bonding' thing again? You say I cannot bond to any other. Why is this so? Does this mean I can never fall in love with any other woman?"

"Oh no, no." Lelanu shook her head with a smile. "The ring does not control whom you love or affect any part of your personality. It bemerely a symbol that you have bonded. It is a part of you that you cannot hide. As long as it is on your finger, you cannot bond with any other woman, do you understand? You cannot wear two rings at once."

"Ah, I see. I can't wear two rings. I get it. That's the same on Earth, as well."

"However, there be one thing that the ring does do..." Lelanu nodded slowly, "as I have mentioned previously... You cannot kill your mate in any way. That includes watching others take her life. It be not possible. If you do not voluntarily defend her, the ring will make you."

"So, wait, wait. What do you mean? Are you implying that... if she dies, are you saying that I'll die too?" His stomach tightened. Please say no, he thought desperately. He may have involuntarily dug himself into a pit with this one.

"No, nothing of the sort." Hearing her say this, Trunks felt relief wash over him, but he tensed again, hearing her words as she continued with a smile toward her husband, "But you would make sure that you would die before she would, if her life were in danger." She paused, "A simple way of putting it be to say that you'd give your life to protect her." She looked at Trunks, "If she dies of natural causes, however, the ring will lose its effect."

"So you are saying the ring is enchanted with something?"

"It is not enchanted, Trunks Briefs. It holds a great deal of her spirit, which acts as your guide and protects you. It holds your bond, not a spell."

He gave a confused sigh and ran his hand though his hair. "Alright. Well, I still don't really understand it, but as long as you say I am free to love other people, I don't have a problem with it. And, I don't think the ring will ever have to force me to keep Pan safe. Although I know she can fend for herself, with or without a ring, I'll be protecting her."

Lelanu smiled warmly toward Trunks and wrapped her left arm around her husband, pulling him close to her. "Perhaps one day, you will learn to love her, Trunks Briefs. I wish for your happiness always. Congratulations on your bonding, and may you choose a name for your first child soon." She nodded her head respectfully toward him and rested her head on Hikaru's shoulder.

The cultural remark about his firstborn child left Trunks feeling unsettled. It only served as a reminder that he wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. He nodded toward Lelanu and Hikaru, bowing slightly, and said, "Well, we must go. It was nice coming here. You gave us a really nice ceremony and I won't ever forget it." He turned to face the two younger girls, "Pan, let's go. Say goodbye to your friend. We're leaving." He waved a bit and climbed up the ladder to the ship.

Walking past the main lounge, he went to the control room and sat down in the pilot's chair. It felt so good to be back in that seat. Looking at the monitor, he began to punch in several coordinates and mathematical calculations. He noted something that made him feel a lot happier.

The nearest habitable planet was a medical facility called Vidal. They could pick up some more fuel for the ship and extra parts just in case. It would be a two day trip to get there, but it would be a nice pit stop before finding the last two dragonballs.

Trunks pressed the intercom button on the dashboard and said into the microphone, "Goku, Pan, we're taking off. Come to the cockpit right away." He sat back in the chair, a relaxed smile on his face. From here on out, everything would be a smooth ride. He would make sure of that... as long as Pan didn't volunteer them for any more heroic roles. And no more wedding dresses. They had seen enough of weddings on this trip.

He heard Goku enter the room and sit down to his right. "Hey Trunks, where are we off to now?"

Pan came in and sat to the left of Trunks. "Giru hasn't detected any close dragonballs. How about we go flying for a while?"

"No, you two, we're going to a planet called Vidal. They should have a lot of supplies we've been needing. And," He turned to Goku, smirking, "they even have restaurants."

"What! Then what are we waiting for!" Goku happily leapt over Trunks and pressed the "Launch" button.

"No Goku, wait –!"

The ship blasted off the moon, throwing the three screaming saiyans all over the cockpit in the process.

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–10/9/04–