Sorry for the long wait guys. I'll spare you the long winded excuse, and just say, being an adult sucks. Hopefully this was worth the wait.
Chapter 18 - Strength of Soul
"Slow down, Gohan!" Goten yelled, flapping his arms.
Gohan backpedaled through the air. "Slowing down won't help you train" Gohan retorted.
Puffing his cheeks, Goten's aura flared up around him, sparking golden. He charged straight at Gohan, fist cocked back as he accelerated. Keeping his own power low, Gohan swerved to the side as his brother swept past, and used his momentum to fling him away, adding extra force to it with a kiai, sending him barreling through the air.
Gohan was never one to waste time. Videl had made great progress over the past four days, but she still had yet to draw her ki out. She was on the cusp, he could tell, but since there wasn't much he could do to help push her over, he used her meditation time to help train Goten.
"Dad was right about our generation having to protect the Earth. Even though he's coming back, we need to be ready. Goten and Trunks are a part of this generation to boot, not just me."
Goten flipped in the air before darting back at Gohan. Goten flung a pair of blasts at him that arced, coming onto him pincer style. He caught both of them in his bare hands, clapping them together and detonating them, forming a smokescreen. He threw his own blast back out throw the murk, but the detonation never came.
His senses screamed at him as he felt Goten dart behind him. He reacted before he could so much as think, and dropped like a stone, Goten's attack flying over his head. "You're being too direct with your attacks, Goten" Gohan called out as he sent another wave of force his brother's way, but not without dashing up to steady him. "The fake out was good, but you're overextending yourself" he continued. "When you're fighting someone more powerful than you, don't go all in and overshoot. Focus on countering, rather than going on full offense."
Goten huffed, crossing his arms and dropping out of Super Saiyan. "How do I do that, big brother?" he asked.
"Well it's more about technique than power, Goten" Gohan explained, before chuckling. "You want to hear something? You can't tell anyone else though."
"What is it?" he asked.
Overexaggeratedly, Gohan looked side to side, as if looking for spies. "One of the reasons Vegeta never beat Dad was because Dad knew martial arts, actual fighting techniques" he said. "Vegeta's really strong and skilled himself, but his fighting style doesn't have the same refinement Dad's had." He formed a fighting stance as he floated. "A difference in power can be beaten with experience and technique, remember that, Goten."
"Technique…" Goten muttered.
Gohan nodded. "Mom hasn't been training you as much since you became a Super Saiyan, right? And you've been focusing more on raising your power when we were fighting Buu. Try to remember more of what Mom was teaching you, Goten. Maybe you could even beat Trunks the next time you two spar."
Goten's eyes widened, sparkling. "Wow really?" he asked. "Beating Trunks…"
"He's a year older than you, but he's still being taught by his dad" Gohan chuckled. "Now, don't think I'm saying Vegeta's a bad fighter. To be honest, he's a brilliant one. He just doesn't have the same finesse as dad had. That could make the difference in a fight."
He patted his brother on the shoulder. "Let's be done for now, Goten, I need to go check up on Videl."
"Alright Gohan" Goten said, hugging his brother tightly. "Have fun with your girlfriend!"
"GOTEN!" Gohan shouted, voice echoing off the mountains after the miniature demi-Saiyan who was flying away. He turned the other way, beet red face steaming in the cold air at his current altitude.
Cooling off, he turned around and soared back towards the field where Videl was meditating. For the sake of her concentration (and to prevent her wrath) he and Goten had flown quite a ways away, where the sounds of their battle wouldn't carry. Still, such a distance wasn't much when he could to laps around the planet in seconds. He slowed as he settled down a few feet in front of Videl, settling into his own meditative position nearby.
Out of curiosity, he felt out with his ki sense, trying to get a reading on where Videl was at. His eyes widened slightly in surprise when he felt it scraping just below the surface. It was charged, primed, ready to emerge. "Come on, Videl, you've almost got it…"
He could feel the air becoming charged around them. A weak force began emanating from the meditating girl, buffeting the grass in the area, and a single spark leapt between her hands, bringing a smile to Gohan's face. Slowly, the energy began to manifest itself, starting off as an infinitesimally small orb and growing in size.
When the ball of energy had grown to about the size of a softball, Videl's eyes opened up, staring wide eyed at the ball of ki hovering between her hands. "This… this is…"
"Congratulations, Videl!" Gohan said happily. "You drew your energy out for the first time, how does it feel?"
Videl raised her hands higher, raising her ball of energy up to her eye level. "It's incredible" she whispered, still transfixed by it. "I was beginning to feel like it wouldn't happen… then I felt something different. My center or whatever you called it, I knew what it was when I felt it."
Gohan formed his own little ball of energy in one of his hands. "I told you that you'd know when you found it" he said.
The energy dissipated from Videl's hands, and she fell backwards, catching herself, breathing heavily. "I didn't… expect that to take so much out of me though…" she panted.
"It gets easier over time" Gohan promised. "It's sort of like working an old muscle, although this time, it's one that you've never really used. Really hard to use at first, but it gets easier to use and stronger when you use it the more you do so."
"I guess that makes sense…" Videl muttered, pushing herself back up into a proper sitting position. "Hey Gohan, out of curiosity, how long did it take you to get your energy the first time?"
"The first…" Gohan mused, before he blanched. "Oh, right that…"
Videl's brow furrowed. "What is it?" she asked.
"Well, I sorta unlocked it immediately" Gohan explained. "But, uh, the methods we used were different."
He flinched at the pointed look he received. "You're telling me that there was a faster way to do this?" she asked dangerously.
Gohan raised his hands. "Well I didn't figure you wanted me to chuck you into a cliff face and make you either blow it up or go splat on it" he said. "Although if I'm wrong I can-"
"No thanks!" Videl said, eyes wide open. "I want to say you're pulling my leg, but I'm learning to not think that so much, jeez, just who was your teacher anyways?"
Gohan half wanted to laugh, half wanted to apologize for her horrified expression. "Well… he was a hard teacher" he said. "He wasn't very kind most of the time, and his training was brutal. But he made sure results happened, and… well, even if he didn't say it much, he cared about me."
"You sound like you have a lot of respect for him" Videl noted, looking intently at him.
"Well yeah, Piccolo taught me everything I know" Gohan said, before slapping a hand over his mouth. "Crap!"
"PICCOLO?!" Videl exclaimed. "As in Demon King Piccolo?!"
Gohan winced at her volume. "No, Demon King Piccolo was his dad" he said. "Piccolo taught me a lot of what I know about fighting and ki control early in my life. He wasn't exactly kind at first, but he wasn't evil like his father. He even sacrificed himself to save me, twice now."
Videl gave him a skeptical look. "Well if you say so, but I… hold on, twice? How the hell does that work?"
It was too easy. "Tell you what" Gohan said with a smirk. "Once we get past the next step of your training, I'll tell you."
"You're still holding out on me, Son?" Videl asked, though with less malicious force than she had previously.
"You know, if you want everyone you ever meet to tell them every detail of their life, you're gonna have a lot of trouble making friends" Gohan chuckled.
"Most people don't have lives with as much to hide from everyone as yours" Videl countered. "And-" she said, raising her hand as Gohan tried to speak, "I know why you hide it, but my point stands. Anyways, what's this next part of the training?"
"Oh, right" Gohan said, standing up. "Here, before we start, this should help" he said, pointing his hand at Videl, glowing brightly.
"What are you-" Videl asked, before she felt her energy being rapidly restored. She jumped to her feet. "I feel… wow, I feel great!" she exclaimed.
"Not all forms of ki are destructive, you can lend energy to others with practice" Gohan explained. "Since pulling out your ki is still tiring for you, I'll help you keep your energy up for a while."
"Well I definitely am ready to go" Videl said.
"Alright then" he said, forming another ball of energy in his hands. "You see, just how like not all forms of energy is destructive, not all of it is quite so flashy either." The ball of energy sunk back into his palm, and his stance relaxed. "Videl, hit me as hard as you can, if you would."
Raising an eyebrow, Videl sunk into a fighting stance. "If you say so…" she said, before striking out with a side kick, aimed straight for Gohan's torso. Not even the flesh atop his chest gave even a micrometer. "Yeesh, you're like a steel wall" Videl complained as she brought her foot back down, rubbing her knee from the recoil.
"That's the point" Gohan said. "Ki is more than blasts and flight, after all. It's an internal energy, so it stands to reason that it doesn't only have uses externally." Stooping down, he picked a small rock off the ground. "By charging your energy through your body, you can make yourself far physically stronger. You feel less impact and damage from something hitting you, as well as increasing your own strength." He punctuated his point by gripping the stone, then letting the powdered dust fall to the ground.
"So this lesson, I'm guessing it's learning how to charge my body like that?" Videl asked, leaning in interestedly. "It may not be lasers or flying, but being that powerful alone would be awesome!"
Gohan nodded. "It's one of the most important aspects of ki usage" he said. "But… there's a catch."
A thoughtful frown found its way to Videl's face. "I don't like the sound of that…" she muttered. "I'll bite, what is it?"
"You see, just like you only have a certain reservoir of ki at your disposal, your body can only actively use so much of it" Gohan said warningly. He pulled his arm in front of him, in clear view. "It's got limits, a fill capacity, so to speak."
Ignoring his immensely fine tuned control, he brought power into his body in the crudest way he could manage. His aura sparked to life, and his muscles began bulging, stressing. "Ki is naturally volatile when it's being harnessed" he said, letting his power drop and his muscles deflate. "So, one of two things need to… Videl?"
Videl jerked her head up, a light blush on her face. "Ah, yeah?!" she asked hurriedly.
Gohan raised an eyebrow, but shrugged off the weird behavior. "Anyways, your body has limits on how much ki it can actively, physically contain. So to increase how much you can use at any time, you need to do one of two things. Either train your body and increase your basic strength, or train your mind and work on your ki control." He sparked his aura to life again, but this time without the physical changes. "Training your body will make it so it can contain more of your power at a time, while training your control will make it less volatile, so you can basically use more of it without the downsides."
"But I don't get it, if working on your control gets rid of the downsides, what's the point in the first one?" Videl asked.
"Not a bad question, but ideally, you'd want to train both, Videl" Gohan explained. "No matter your control, your body still has limits. Besides, you'll find that your reservoirs will actually become larger along with your strength. Essentially, one increases your output, the other helps your finesse."
"Oh…"
Gohan gave her a smile. "It's easier than you think to do both" he said. "Your control will naturally improve the more you use your ki, and normal exercises can still make you stronger… Although, you may need to add some special tricks to make it really effective."
"Tricks?" Videl asked.
"Let's just say that me and my friends have special methods of training" Gohan explained. "One of them has a special room at their house that can simulate multiplied gravity. You do your daily workout at fifty times the Earth's normal gravity, you'll get some fast results."
Videl gave him a disbelieving look. "Fifty times? Isn't that a little crazy?"
With a snort, he shook his head. "The same guy usually warms up at around three hundred times, though he started off a lot lower."
"Well he's got my respect…" Videl muttered.
"He's one of the strongest warriors on the planet" Gohan gave Vegeta his due praise. "He practically does nothing but train, he's obsessed with strength. That drive has saved us a few times, though."
"I guess, but what about you, Gohan?" Videl asked. "How do you usually train? Do you have one of those gravity room things too?"
"No, and I don't use his, he basically lives in it anyways" Gohan chuckled. "Honestly… I don't really have a specific way I've trained. Sometimes I sparred with my dad or my friends, though kata and similar practices helped me out before too. Then I've got…" he paused. "Let's just say I have a friend in high places who has some unique ways to train" he said, mind flashing back to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber and Pendulum Room.
"You're telling me eventually" Videl said warningly, not falling for his vagueness.
"Alright alright" Gohan said. "But for now, let's focus on your training. We don't have endless daylight to chit chat in after all."
"Fine" Videl said, huffing. "How do I do this?"
"It's pretty easy actually" Gohan said. "You see, it's just like drawing your ki out into a ball like you did a bit ago, but you don't draw it out all the way. Instead of manifesting your energy on the outside, let it flow through the parts of your body you want to power up." He paused to look at Videl. "Eventually you'll begin to be able to keep it constantly powered through your entire body, not just specific parts when you call on it."
"Wait, is that why you performed so well in P.E. all those times?" Videl questioned.
Gohan rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Heh, yeah… my body is adapted to using ki, so I have trouble holding back sometimes."
Videl crossed her arms thoughtfully. "So with enough training, you don't even need to be focusing on it to have that superhuman strength… interesting."
"Yeah, that's exactly it" Gohan said.
Videl smirked. "Sounds fun, Son" she said. She tightened her hand into a fist and held it out. "So, my energy right beneath the surface…" she muttered to herself.
Her ki flickered, rising much faster than the last time she needed to call it out. Her muscles spasmed a bit as she began channelling her energy through her arm, making her wince, but she didn't stop. "I… I think I did it" she said through gritted teeth.
Gohan looked around. "Uh… Oh!" He darted over to the edge of the clearing where a large boulder stood embedded in the hillside. Making an energy blade, he cut down twice, severing a relatively thick piece of the stone and letting it fall away. He grabbed it and dashed back over, and held it out in front of him. "Hit this slab, Videl" he said.
Videl huffed, still straining to maintain the output in her arm. Cocking her fist back, she struck straight forward.
CRACK
The stone slab all but shattered, Videl's fist cutting through it with no effort. Her eyes widened in shock, and she hissed in pain, pulling her arm back fast and holding it tenderly. "Gah" she yelped. "I wasn't expecting- GOHAN?!"
Gohan dropped the two remaining pieces he held, and reached up to clean off his face, including a large chunk that had landed just barely to the side of his eye. "Mmphen" he said. Making a confused face, he opened his mouth again and spat out the mouthful of debris inside. "Yuck… I'm fine, Videl" he assured, chuckling. "But you know, I haven't eaten dirt that hard since I went up against Buu, you really surprised me."
Videl relaxed. "Good…" she sighed, before she raised an eyebrow to him. "You fought Buu?" she asked.
"Huh? Oh yeah, I guess I never really told you about that, huh…" Gohan asked.
With a shake of her head, Videl sighed. "Dad told me that Buu was an alien who came to terrorize Earth, but he won him over, and Buu's evil brother is the one they killed. How much of that was a lie?"
Gohan chuckled. "You know, less than you probably think" he said, leading to her giving him a perplexed look. "Buu's an alien, but he was more of a child who fought and killed because he didn't know really any better. He had been controlled by a wizard who was taken out of the equation, so that's all he had ever known."
"Your dad went to fight Buu, just like he went to fight Cell, but actually managed to befriend Buu and convince him to stop killing and destroying" Gohan went on to explain. "It's thanks to your dad that Buu is actually on our side now, really, why do you think he's living with you?"
"Why am I not surprised you know about that too" Videl snorted. "So what about his brother, was that true too? And the sleeping gas?"
"Sleeping ga-" Gohan said, before he cut himself off with a sharp breath. "O-Oh, th-that" he said a little shakily. "Uh, y-yeah, gas, that's right. The entire planet was p-put to sleep, and… you're not buying any of this, are you?"
"Nope" Videl said with an unamused expression.
He sighed. "Just… forget about that, alright Videl?"
Videl crossed her arms. "How am I supposed to trust you here again?" she asked. "With you blatantly keeping things from me."
"Just trust me that you really don't want to know" Gohan pleaded.
"Oh quit acting like I'm so delicate already. You don't want to tell me about Cell, I get that, but what could Buu have done that was so bad that you're clamming up about him too?" Videl asked. "I'm starting to think that you're just making up excuses so that you don't have to tell me anything else."
Gohan frowned. "Come on, Videl, that's not-"
"Then what is it?!"
"We all died!"
Both teenagers sitting out in the field fell silent. Gohan swore at himself internally. "I can't believe I let it out like that!" he chastised himself. His tail twitched inside his gi, and he fought down his surmounting stress.
Videl was giving him a scrutinizing look, the one that never failed to make him feel small and insecure. The growing silence was tangible, until she broke it. "What… what exactly do you mean?"
"You dug your grave, go ahead and crawl into it, Son." Gohan sighed aloud. "Buu is… a little more complicated than you think" he led off with. "The Buu you know now, he's the good part of Majin Buu. But when your dad made friends with him, his goodness fought with the darkness inside him, and it… became real. He split into an Evil Buu and Good Buu."
"Evil Buu took Good Buu's power, and kept up what he was doing before he met Hercule. One of the first things he did was butcher almost every single human on the planet" he winced as he said that.
"Butch… Wait, he killed everyone?" Videl asked. "But how? We're all here!"
"..." Gohan stayed quiet, thinking for a moment. "Remember earlier… when I told you my mentor sacrificed himself for me twice?"
Videl nodded, egging Gohan on. "There's more to myths in this world than just ki control" he began, putting his serious face on. "Videl, you've got to promise to never tell anyone else what I'm about to tell you."
"What is-"
"You need to promise!" Gohan said seriously.
Videl's eyes grew concerned for a moment. "I promise I'll keep this a secret" she swore.
Gohan let out a relieved breath. "You might not believe me at first anyways" he said. "I don't have any physical proof on me right now. But you see… across the world, there are seven ancient artifacts, called Dragon Balls."
"Dragon Balls?" Videl asked. "Like a dragon's-"
"NOPE!" Gohan cut her off, blushing lightly at the path she took it with. "The Dragon Balls are seven orange glass orbs with red stars inside of them. They're about the size of your fist, pretty small."
"What's so important about them, and what does this have to do with the whole death thing?"
"On their own, they aren't very important" Gohan admitted. "But if you gather all seven of them, you can summon a dragon, known as Shenron." Gohan spread his arms wide. "He's massive, miles long, and hangs out of the sky. And when he appears, he'll grant you three wishes, almost anything, before they go inert for another year."
"That's… well, that's how we're still here even though almost everyone died." He paused, thinking for a moment. "Well, more or less" he said, remembering that it was Namek's Dragon Balls in this circumstance, but he didn't need to get into specifics yet. "The few that survived used the Dragon Balls to bring us all back to life."
By this point, Videl had a look of shock and disbelief on her face. "A wish granting… wait, I've been dead?!" she exclaimed. "And 'we', you died too?! How come I don't remember it?!"
"Easy Videl" Gohan said soothingly.
"How can I be easy learning-"
"You know why I was holding back then" Gohan said tiredly. "And to answer your question, yes, we all died. The only people that didn't die were my dad, a couple friends, and your dad."
"How come no one remembers dying" Videl asked anxiously. "I mean, if this Otherworld thing is a place, wouldn't our spirits go there and-"
"Easy!" Gohan said a little more sharply, putting a hand on her shoulder in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. "No one remembers because we were only there for a few hours. The cross between the worlds isn't something easy on the mind, so it's not exactly easy to remember what happened if it was such a brief visit."
"You don't remember anything either?" Videl asked. She still had hints of anxiety in her voice, but her curiosity was back in full swing.
Gohan looked thoughtful for a moment. "I remember snippets" he said. "I spent time in Otherworld while I was alive though, so it was a little easier. I remember standing in Yemma's line, and…" he paused, looking confused. "I… I think I talked to someone, but I can't remember who, or what about…"
"Damnit, kid, I thought your mind was stronger than that!"
He blinked. "That voice… was that who I talked with? I don't know who it is though…"
"So… I've already died…" Videl muttered. "That's… that's a heavy thing to know."
Gohan snapped out of his thoughts. "You see why I didn't want to say anything, believing in sleeping gas is a lot kinder than knowing you're already on your second chance at life."
Videl shook her head. "It's hard to hear, but I'd rather know the truth than be lied to just to spare my feelings" she huffed. "I'm a big girl, Gohan, I can handle these things."
Gohan deflated. "I guess you're right…" he muttered. "I just don't like causing tension if I can avoid it. I didn't think you were ready to learn something like that."
"Didn't think I was ready?" Videl asked. "So you were going to tell me eventually?"
"The world me and my friends are a part of is a lot different than the one you know" Gohan said, while nodding. "There are things I want to tell you, but I don't want to dump all the things on you at once." He sighed, running a finger through his hair. "Honestly, there are too many things I wish I didn't see or experience..." His mind briefly flashed to Namek, watching Krillin be blown apart by Frieza. It didn't have nearly the same level of impact on him as it did his dad, but it was beyond disturbing a scene to watch.
"So… does that mean you're eventually going to tell me about the Cell Games?" Videl asked curiously, tilting her head to the side.
He grimaced. "Uh… maybe?" he offered. "The Cell Games are… something I don't like talking about much, if I'm being honest." He sat down, motioning for Videl to do the same. They were in for another conversation, and it was good for Videl to get some rest after her first physical ki channelling anyways.
Videl sat down, and gave him a curious look. "You already told me about your robot friend, didn't you?" she asked. "That alone sounded really bad, are you telling me that worse went on? Did anyone else die too?"
Gohan swallowed hard, taking a slow breath in. "I… I'll answer that another time" he said less than calmly.
"So yes" Videl guessed. "Well, how about Cell himself. Can you tell me what he was? He didn't look like any human I've ever seen."
Gohan shook his head, trying to clear it from the memories that sparked up inside it. "Yeah, sure" he said, taking a breath. "You… I know, remember that last subject we were discussing in school before the attack?"
Videl thought for a moment before answering. "Yeah, we were learning about the Red Ribbon Army and how-" she cut herself off. "Oh right, how your dad defeated them."
Gohan raised his eyebrows. "You figured out he was my dad? How?" he asked, perplexed.
Raising her hand, she began listing off on her fingers. "His family is the only one with the Son surname on record, you had a few reactions while we were discussing him in class, not to mention how your brother is a dead ringer for his pictures in the history books."
He blinked. "Well… uh, yeah, Son Goku wa- IS, is my dad" he said, catching himself. He continued talking before his stutter could be questioned. "Anyways, my dad… he had a habit of never finishing anyone off, it just wasn't in his nature" he explained. "When he destroyed the Red Ribbon Army, one of their head scientists got away, named Doctor Gero."
"Gero wanted revenge on my dad for destroying the Red Ribbon Army, so he began constructing Androids to kill him. He created a lot, but his main two were Android 17 and Android 18."
"What about Cell?" Videl asked.
"I'm getting there" Gohan said. "Anyways, 17 and 18 were powerful, but he couldn't control them, since they were originally human, and nearly-"
"Hold on, the Androids you're talking about, they were people at one point?" Videl asked. "Did he kidnap them or something?"
"As far as we know, yeah, he kidnapped them and modified them into Androids" Gohan said.
Videl looked queasy as she leaned back. "That's just cruel…" she muttered.
"We've encountered some real villains in our time" Gohan said. "Luckily, 17 and 18 are on our side now. Well, 18 is anyways, but 17 hasn't tried to kill us again, so hopefully he's the same… Anyways, since Gero couldn't control them, he began working on his 'ultimate creation,' a biological android that could absorb them to complete his powers." He sighed. "Cell was a tough fight because Gero collected DNA samples from the most powerful warriors on Earth, and even some of our enemies that came to Earth, and put them into Cell to develop."
"How does that work?" Videl questioned.
"Not entirely sure, but it did mean he borrowed some personality traits, and knew all of our techniques" Gohan shivered. "He also had the ability to absorb energy and people to add to his strength. The only problem with Cell is that he took decades to develop."
"That guy was really dedicated to his revenge I see…" Videl muttered.
"Unhealthily so. Cell was still barely a fetus by the time the Androids showed up" Gohan said. "The funny thing is, we actually had a friend that came from the future to warn us about the Androids ahead of time."
"Why am I not surprised that your biography suddenly includes time travel?"
"He came back to warn us, since they ravaged his timeline, even without Cell. However, he also managed to destroy the Androids before Cell was complete, meaning Cell couldn't get his full power. That Cell instead chose to steal our friend's time machine and come to the past so he could absorb our Androids and terrorize our timeline."
"So let me get this straight" Videl said, raising a hand. "Cell is actually a biodroid from the future with DNA of your entire group, made by a mad scientist with an unhealthy fixation on revenge, and he came back to absorb the Androids that… are on your side now but sounds like they weren't before, so he could become complete?"
"'Perfect' as he called it" Gohan said, recoiling at the word. "Cell had an obsession with 'perfection', since that was what he was meant to be, the perfect warrior. What you saw in the Cell Games, that was Cell after he reached his Perfect Form."
"Not even your enemies can ever be simple, huh Gohan?"
He chuckled and shook his head. "Over my life, I've fought my evil uncle and his friends, an alien tyrant who had control over a large part of the universe, lots of robots made by one old guy in a dead army, Cell, and the living piece of magical bubblegum that is Majin Buu. So I'd say no, we can't ever have simple people to fight."
Videl chuckled along with him. "You know, there are some disturbing parts, but a lot of these things do sound really interesting" she said. "I… I gotta admit, I kind of enjoy hearing about these insane things you and your friends have done. Hey, speaking of, you never really told me about any of your friends besides Piccolo. What are they like?"
"Well, I can tell you, but keep their names to yourself. They want to stay out of the spotlight just as much as I do, and you'll probably recognize some of them" Gohan said.
"Just throw it on the pile with the giant wish granting dragon" Videl said.
Gohan smiled. "Alright, well, you already know my dad is Son Goku. I'm guessing you know his name from the old tournaments too, and not just his Red Ribbon Army conquest."
"Of course, you remember who my dad is, right? I've forgotten more about the WMAT than anyone else."
"Good point. Well, my dad's best friend Krillin is in our group. Yes, that Krillin, the one on the police force" he said, smirking as Videl opened her mouth. "Tien Shinhan is also with us, and of course the one who taught my dad, Master Roshi."
"You mean the legendary Turtle Hermit?! He's still around?!" Videl exclaimed.
"I don't think he's ever going to die of old age" Gohan said, amused by her excitement. "I'm not sure how, but he told me he's over 400 years old before."
"Literally everyone you've told me about is famous or well known in some way" Videl said disbelievingly. "They're all super powered warriors?"
"Yup" Gohan nodded. "Piccolo also came over to our side about the time I was four or five, even though he was enemies with my dad at first. Another one of my dad's enemies, Vegeta, also joined us eventually." He gave Videl a glance. "He's the guy I mentioned earlier who warms up his workout in a three hundred times gravity training session."
"Crazy…" Videl muttered.
Gohan chuckled. "That's one word for him, just don't let him hear it" he warned. "We also have some other friends with us, but they're all that are in our main gang." He paused for a moment. "Well, Yamcha has stopped fighting as much, but he'll come to the front line if things are looking desperate."
"Yamcha?" she asked. "What's up with him?"
"Well, really, the only thing is that he's the weakest out of our group. He's still very strong, but he doesn't feel like he can help as much because of that" Gohan explained. "He can be a little timid, and the guys tease him a bit over it, but to be honest, I think he's really brave. Even when he's completely outmatched he's willing to come fight, even if only to try."
"I see…" Videl murmured, taking in the information. "You say he's the weakest?"
Gohan nodded. "Yeah, but he's still fairly strong, and a good fighter" he said.
"So how strong is he if he's near the bottom?" she asked curiously.
"Hmm… well, if he put all his energy into it, he could probably destroy the planet too" Gohan said. Noting the shocked look on Videl's face, he quickly continued. "Destroying planets actually isn't too hard once you've been training for a while, as crazy as it sounds" he explained. "This stuff is crazy powerful, which is why we need to train control over it. If we didn't, well, every stray blast of mine in a battle could wipe out a city or more. That's just the small ones."
"When we fight to protect Earth it's especially important. Our enemies don't care about causing as little destruction as possible, so what we usually do is shoot condensed blasts whenever they have a chance of going off against the surface. Ones that hit hard but don't have as destructive a detonation. For our more destructive attacks, well, we don't dare risk them where the buckshot can reach a city or anything. We'll usually try to aim them up if we can, so they don't have any risk of hitting the planet. And then we… What?" he stopped, noticing the perplexed look on Videl's face.
Videl started, eyes widening. "Oh, uh, nothing, I just didn't realize how much of an art you guys had turned… defending the planet into."
Gohan chuckled, not noticing the color in her cheeks. "Well, if you're going to do something, do it right, am I right?"
Videl shook her head. "That's not entirely what I meant" she said. "I mean… you agreed to train me for sure, but when I ask all these questions, you almost seem like you're eager to answer" she said. "You were so withdrawn at school, I have no idea while you're so willing now."
Gohan's smile dropped a bit. "You know… I didn't think about it much either" he admitted. "I guess… I really only kept everything to myself before because I wanted to fit in. Being able to talk about my life without having anyone try to put me in a straightjacket is, I dunno, refreshing?"
Videl frowned, realizing that had she heard all this a few weeks ago, she likely would have done exactly that. "I'm kind of a dick…" she thought.
"Anyways" Gohan said. "We should get back to it. We have a lot to work on, so let's do it!"
Videl smiled. "Right, yeah" she said, calling upon her inner power once more.
Videl collapsed, breathing hard. "Done… I… I'm done…" she panted.
Gohan held his hand out and sent another light piece of energy into her. As it soaked into her, she felt her energy to move returning, but she was still fatigued beyond all belief. "I feel like roadkill…" she muttered.
They had gone nonstop for hours, until the sky was stained orange. Alternating practices between meditating to help her draw her ki out easier and performing physical enhancements with it. She felt like she made progress. Albeit slow and painful progress.
"You did really great today Videl" Gohan praised. "I knew you'd catch on quicker because of how long you've been practicing martial arts, but this is way more than I thought! Getting down the basics of strengthening the first day you pull your ki out? That's insane!"
"I feel insane for putting myself through this" she said as she sat up. "So I'm guessing that I should probably avoid using this power when I'm fighting crime?" she asked.
Gohan nodded. "Not for long, but yeah, leave it for now" he said. "This stuff is strong, and if you can punch through stone and trees no problem-"
"Yup, gory mess on my hands, got it" she said, cringing a bit at the image.
He smiled. "Don't worry, when you get a bit more control over your output, I'll teach you something new, and you can use that to help you fight" he said.
"Mmm" Videl grunted, reaching into her pocket. "Let's see… there" she said as she pulled out the capsule containing her jet copter, and tossed it to the ground. A moment passed, and she frowned. "Why isn't it opening?" she asked.
Gohan chuckled nervously. "Well… Usually you have to press the button on a capsule to activate it" he said.
…
Videl facepalmed. "Of course…" she muttered to herself as she strode forward and reached into the grass. "For real this time."
Not forgetting to click the button, she tossed the capsule back to the ground, before the plume of smoke billowed up and the vehicle made its appearance. Videl started towards the vehicle, before pausing. After a moment passed, Gohan grew worried. "Uh, Videl?" he asked. "Is everything alright?"
"Just thinking" Videl sighed. "Honestly, as tired as I am, I don't think I should be flying right now" she admitted. "I hate to ask, but is there any way you know how to fly one of these things?"
"Well, I've never done it before, no" Gohan shook his head. "But if you're worried about getting home, I can always fly you back?"
"Fly me back? Like, by yourself?" Videl asked.
Gohan gave her a smile. "You don't think I can carry you?" he asked jokingly.
"That's not it" Videl said. "I just… You know what, if you're alright with that, that would be great" she admitted.
"No problem at all, it'll only take a few minutes anyways" Gohan assured her.
"Minutes? Damn Son, just how fast do you fly?" she asked.
With a smirk, he shook his head. "It'll take a few minutes so that I'm not going to fast for you. I don't want to give you whiplash with the five second trip" he said.
"...The worst part is, I'm pretty sure you're not bluffing" she huffed.
Gohan floated over and shrunk her vehicle for her, grabbing the capsule out of the air and handing it to her. She pocketed it, before looking to Gohan. "So do you want me to climb on your back?" she asked.
He shook his head. "I'll carry you, don't worry Videl, I know how tired you are" he said. "I could catch you if you fell off of me, but something tells me you aren't in a mood to go free falling."
"You know, you're a lot better at reading the room than you put off at school" she teased.
Gohan chuckled. "I'm new to social situations, but I'm not completely inept" he said. "Anyways, are you ready?"
With a nod, he scooped her up bridal style before taking to the air. He ascended slowly, getting some altitude in before he was ready to fly towards Satan City. As they rose, Videl clutched onto his arm a little tighter. He gave her an confused look. "What's wrong? Are you afraid of heights?" he asked.
Videl blushed, shaking her head. "N-no" she said defiantly. "I'm just… not used to them without a floor under me" she admitted.
"Trust me, I won't drop you."
"I know that" Videl barked, looking more abashed by the second. "It's just a new feeling…"
"Alrighty then" Gohan said amusedly. His aura flicked softly around him, heating the air as he took off through the sky. Videl flinched slightly as they accelerated, but relaxed as Gohan evened out the pace. It was a beautiful flight, as dusk was falling, the orange had begun to leave the sky for a deep purple. It was colder at the altitude they were at, but Gohan's energy created a pocket of warmth as the landscape flashed by beneath them.
"This is… Wow" Videl breathed. "It's beautiful."
Gohan smiled. "You'll be able to do this on your own soon enough" he said. "It really is a free sort of feeling."
"I'll bet..."
"Speaking of, you're gonna need to rest your body to be ready for the next training session" Gohan told her. "I know you're tired, but I want you to take tomorrow off to replenish yourself, no matter how restored you feel when you wake up in the morning."
Videl frowned. "I'd like that a lot" she said. "But we've got an annoying case going on right now. To the point of nearly being impossible, I've gotta be on deck for it."
"What's the case about?" Gohan asked curiously.
"Well, it's a string of robberies" she said. "Nothing incredibly major, but robberies nonetheless."
"Well, what's been stolen?"
"That's the weird part" Videl said. "We're fairly certain it's all being done by one person, but the things stolen are ridiculous. An electronics store was robbed, but really, the only thing the owner caught missing was a new model of CD player, an expensive headset, and a rather large portion of the music section, specifically the metal bands."
"Various grocery stores have reported minor robberies too, but even smaller ones. They probably wouldn't even notice if the thief wasn't caught on camera."
"He was caught on camera? Why not use that to find out who it is?" Gohan asked.
"That's the frustrating part" Videl said. "He's wearing a baggy coat everywhere, with the hood up. We haven't gotten a visual on his physical traits at all. Though…"
"Though?"
"Well, he seems to be a novice at this, because he's left pieces of DNA all over the scene, but at the same time, he's never once tripped an alarm, and he's never been seen entering or exiting the places he robs."
"If he left DNA, why not use that to track him down?" Gohan asked confusedly.
"You don't think we already tried that?" Videl huffed. "DNA was inconclusive, didn't match ANYTHING on record. We've found brown hairs and what appear to be red skin cells, and he looks human enough from what we glanced, but the science isn't able to tell what he is."
Gohan frowned. "That's a tricky one" he admitted. "The first thing that comes to mind is Androids, if you can't find anything on them, but no one still around knows how to create Androids, and I doubt if there was one running around, it would be just doing petty crimes. They probably wouldn't be leaving skin cells unless they were organic, but if they were organic they'd probably be on record."
Videl blinked as the city lights came into view. "It's stumping the entire force. There's no pattern, and it all seems minor, yet he can get in and out of anywhere without a hassle."
"I'm sure you guys will solve it soon" Gohan assured her. "But sometimes you need to take a rest day, especially after what you went through today."
"Just because I know that doesn't mean I have to like it" Videl snapped.
"No, but it does mean you know I'm right" Gohan teased.
"Yeah yeah, I'll take a stupid day off" she huffed.
"See, that's the spirit!"
Videl rolled her eyes. "Anyways, my hotel's right there" she said, pointing over to the rather large building.
Gohan nodded. "I see it" he said, turning and landing atop it.
Letting go of her, Videl landed on her feet, albeit slightly wobbly. She let out a breath. "Thanks for the ride, Gohan" she said gratefully.
"Not a problem, Videl" Gohan said with a smile, already floating back into the air. "I should get back home before my mom gets too anxious. She knows I can handle myself, but… well, parents."
Videl snorted as she recalled a slew of times her father was far more fretful than Chi-Chi could ever be… Which is saying something because she had seen that woman put on a few intense shows just over the few visits she had over to the household. "I get it" she said. "Have a good night, Gohan."
"Yeah, you too Videl" Gohan said. "You know what, I'll take crime off your hands tomorrow so you can rest easy. Just recover, alright?"
"Yeah yeah, you got it Saiyadork."
"I'm not a dork!" Gohan protested.
"Just because we're friends doesn't make you any less of a dork" Videl countered.
Gohan pouted for a moment before he rose further into the air and began flying out of the city. Her last dregs of energy quickly fading, Videl made her way down back into the hotel and towards her room. She barely made it inside and collapsed on her bed before she had fallen into a dead sleep, secretly thankful for the day off. "I'm gonna need it…" was her last thought before oblivion swallowed her consciousness.
Later
The two security guards snuck through the isles as silently as they could. The faint rustling sounds were growing louder as they moved. Hands gripping their batons and flashlights, they rounded the corner and put the spotlight on the culprit.
"FREEZE" one of them bellowed.
The figure before them yelped. The light briefly illuminated a flash of red hidden within the dar coat…
The air rippled around the thief, before he completely disappeared from sight, vanishing on the spot. Leaving nothing but two dumbfounded security guards.
"Did… did you just see that?"
"I saw it, but I don't believe it. What the heck is going on here?"
Please let that be a satisfying chapter, please let that be a satisfying chapter…
Sorry about the wait, I have no idea where my motivation went. Whenever I had free time, I usually couldn't get the words out. It wasn't my intention to make the wait two months long, but sorry it ended up being as such.
I tried to make it an interesting chapter to make up for the wait, even if it's not quite as long as some previous ones. Got Videl learning the ropes, which as you can see, is going to be functioning very differently than the original story. Before, she just wanted to fly. Gohan's teaching her all the tricks of the trade this time. I also gave a bit of a larger teaser than I did previously to something I was excited to do for this story, a certain character. It's not an OC, for those of you that are wondering, but the individual had such little screen time that he might as well be. They've already appeared as well, and for some people, I may have dropped enough hints for you to figure it out. Who knows though.
MAJORMATT1234 - Well, it's definitely going by differently. Gohan's also keeping his whole lineage deal close to the chest for now, wonder where that's gonna go…
Iwik - Yup, I'm trying to slow down Videl's progress while still making her a relatively quick learner. Hopefully the route I'm taking is appealing and entertaining.
TwistedWizardLizard - Well, I sorta understand that, but don't think Videl isn't going to be decently powerful by the end of it. She's just not jumping right on top of it within the first few hours. I got my reasons.
One last time, I apologize for the long wait. Hopefully next time isn't as long, but until then, whenever it is, feel free to leave a review on your thoughts, and I'll see you guys next time!