CHAPTER 3:
Temper

The central city of the pink moon was a great deal larger than they had anticipated. From a distance, the small white domes that dotted the pink grassy landscape appeared to be somewhat large igloos, but after the trio landed and began to walk through the main gravel streets, they realized how gigantic the city truly was. Despite how sparse and open the city looked from above ground, an entire megaplex was constructed underground through a series of tunnels, bridges, and a multitude of generators that converted the moon's thermal energy into city power and a complex lighting system of multiple colors of LEDs that lined buildings and housing domes underground, which combined their colors to create white light, or sunlight, underground.

Under the surface, the city buzzed with life and activity. Steam rose everywhere from vents, which was caught in the underground system and caused the air to be tropically humid and slightly stuffy. The condensation of the air dripped from the undersides of the leaves of pink potted plants that also decorated the city as much as the lights. There was some shade of pink, or some shade of white just about everywhere.

Hundreds of small moonlanders bustled through the gravel streets, most of them reaching a height of only about 4 feet tall. Their skin was a light pink, and their eyes and hair varied from light lavender to a light red. They all had big wide ears, large white eyes, and, at least in Trunks' opinion, they resembled short, stubby, big-lipped versions of Piccolo, but without the antennae. They also appeared to be ageless, differentiated only by their height and a slightly different sense of fashion among the taller ones than the shorter ones.

All of the moonlanders wore different shades of white. The taller ones had cinched outfits and wore golden rings on different hands; the shorter ones ran around in togas and white dresses. They all had soft, welcoming expressions, and greeted each other and even passersby with low, polite bows as they spoke in two languages - their native tongue, and a heavily accented version of Common language.

Most of the moonlanders nodded their heads and deeply bowed in greeting to Trunks, Pan and Goku in passing. There were a number of smaller ones that ran away, seemingly intimidated to have towering aliens walking among their city. Trunks figured it was fairly uncommon for outsiders to land on this moon, and that thought greatly intrigued him.

The way Trunks saw it, it was rare to come across an isolated ecosystem that had retained its native cultural practices. This was an opportunity to experience uncorrupted alien culture. Trunks could feel his heart pounding in excitement as he continued to observe the moon. He itched to get his hands on some of their technology. His gut continued to tell him that there could be a profound impact and learning experience he could take away from this place.

"So which way now?" Pan held Giru in her hands, shaking him slightly as she walked. Giru wiggled and squirmed in her arms, trying to wrestle himself free.

"Dragon Ball detected! Dragon Ball this way!" Giru beeped two times, vibrated, then pointed down an intersecting avenue, which contained numerous food vendors and several carts being pulled by creatures similar to small red donkeys. The street food appeared to be vegetarian, and appeared to look like dark red sea coral branches.

Trunks, whose mind was always spinning and connecting dots, began to daydream, wondering if there was a link between the diet and the moonlanders' skin colors, similar to how salmon back on Earth became pink from carotenoids in their diets. Trunks was feeling electrified and inspired from fascination. He could feel a pool of joy rising within him - something he had not felt in a while, and it was refreshing, as if his soul were able to come up for air after a long and exhausting period of feeling he was drowning.

Pan led the group through the gravel streets, holding Giru out in front of her as if he were a beacon. Giru enthusiastically held both of his arms out, each pointing and making small circles with his hands as he bounced gleefully within hers. Pan beckoned Trunks and Goku to follow her with an angular nod of her head. "Well, come on, guys! I think we're getting close."

They continued to walk through the crowds where the streets seemed to narrow more and more and the crowd increasingly became compacted… until they passed under a decorative marble archway that bridged two of the white underground edifices, and they crossed a bridge over a massively deep gorge, to where it opened out to become an enormous marble square with pink trees and deep red flowers landscaped in perfect symmetry around its perimeter, and a pink grassy knoll in the middle, where the smallest moonlanders ran around and played and their parents sat on simple marble benches, snacking on red coral street food.

Towering above the square was a bright white limestone cylindrical dome that was hand-carved into a series of mandalas and decorative knot patterns. There were countless symbols engraved onto large white limestone doors that must have risen about twelve feet or more. Bending backward to look up at the details, Trunks marveled at how tall these doors appeared to him, ruminating as he brought his right hand to his chin in observation. If it looks this tall to us, I can only imagine how it appears to these Shrimp people.

Trunks realized he was giving a fairly rude nickname to them, but it made him feel good to put things down sometimes, especially since he'd never say something like that aloud. If people knew how he actually thought sometimes, word would get out he's not the nicest guy. Though, as the son of Vegeta and Bulma, he doubted anyone who really knew him would expect him to be an angel.

"So is this the place?" Pan stopped before the doors and held Giru up, who was waggling his little arms toward the giant edifice in front of them. And then he bleeped, and almost as if he powered-down, both his arms dropped and he went limp in Pan's hands.

Pan was genuinely shocked, and with a concerned gasp, shook him. "Giru! Giru wake up!"

Giru sprang back awake again with his arms out, making peace signs that rotated in his fists and contented bips and beeps. It was clear he was not tracking the Dragon Ball anymore.

Pan frowned, "What does this mean? Where'd it go?"

Trunks blinked in confusion. "What? The Dragon Ball disappeared?" He held out his hands, "Let me see Giru."

And then before Pan could move, Giru whirled back to life again, making a little screee sound as he did a little arm dance and pointed back to the doors "Dragon Ball detected!"

"Well that was weird!" Pan held Giru in her left hand and bonked him playfully on the head with her right first, "Giru, don't scare us like that again!"

And then Giru flopped again in her hands with a disappointed tone, "No Dragon Ball…"

"Trunks, I think Giru's broken!" Pan looked distressed as her eyes pleaded to Trunks.

Goku scratched his head, "What's wrong with him?"

Trunks remembered how this Dragon Ball had been strange, appearing in and out of the Radar's sensors even from the ship. He gestured to Pan for her to hand him Giru. Trunks would fix this.

Pan reluctantly handed over Giru, as if she were concerned for the little robot's health. Her eyes were wide and her expression radiated worry and doubt. It was endearing to Trunks to see how Pan could gain such an emotional connection to the little guy. She was clearly expressing some form of love.

Trunks held Giru up and turned him over, with his arms dangling limply under him, making Giru slightly resemble a white lobster picked up from the tank. Trunks opened Giru's back hatch to view the actual Dragon Radar, which had fused with Giru's motherboard along his spinal frame. The Radar was blank and dark. But then, when Trunks shook Giru a bit, some static interference pixels lit up and vanished from the screen.

The Radar was definitely working …

"Hmm," Trunks continued to feel puzzled, and took a few steps back to see if the interference would clear up. As he thought, there were certain positions that worked better than others. Trunks concluded that this anomaly was definitely some kind of signal jam. It helped calm his nerves, because, despite his outwardly calm face, he had been fighting a rising dread about the Dragon Radar failing at this point.

Trunks cleared his throat. "It looks like the Dragon Ball signal is still from this direction. Something's impacting the signal, so we might need to ask around."

Pan grinned and reached out her hands, asking for Giru back. "Well there's only so many places it can be in there!"

"Oh boy," Goku grimaced, "do you think they'd have something to eat in there, too? I don't know how much longer I can stand being this hungry…"

"Yes, yes, we know, Goku. You've 'never been this hungry before'." Trunks recognized it was Goku's snack time.

There was only so much that Goku could do before his mind turned to food, as always. Luckily, Trunks had prepared for this; this was not the first time that Goku had pulled this stunt. Goku was twelve years old, and Trunks had to carry food bars for him like a parent just to shut him up. Trunks accepted this as life now.

Silently grumbling about the timing of all of this, Trunks removed his backpack and unzipped it, digging around. He pulled out a couple of dried fruit bars. He learned that if he fed Goku, he needed to also feed Pan. He handed one to both, out of vigilance.

They both eagerly took the snacks, and Pan let go of Giru, who floated up to circle around her.

Trunks felt strangely satisfied that he put the fire out before it started. Goku was predictable, and Trunks was fairly clever. When Trunks wanted to keep Goku out of trouble, he had his ways.

Pan munched on her fruit snack loudly, looking up at the big doors. "So what now?" Pan spoke as she chewed.

Trunks looked back up to the ornately hand-carved doors again. They were quite a wonder. "I guess we knock."

Trunks cleared his throat and raised his right hand. However, before his fist hit the door, there was a loud CLICK sound, and the doors shifted, and began to open inwardly on their own.

Trunks stood there, blinking, with his fist still up, and balled in front of him as the doors slowly swung inward with a long creaking sound, until BA-BUMM, they hit the inner white walls and came to a stop. The white artificial sunlight of the underworld poured into a great hall of patterned marble, glass, and quartz.

The entrance hall was truly spectacular.

"Wow!" Trunks brought his hand down and stepped into the cavernous edifice, feeling his body surge with immense awe. "Just look at this place! It's like a palace!"

Trunks looked up to the enormous paintings on the ceiling, of Kais and gods and of two gold rings that had what seemed like red lace running through them. The artwork was just magnificent. What was even more awesome was the continued mandala patterns that decorated every inch of the inner walls, and zellij-like geometric patterns that trimmed the inner columns and archways that led to the back wings of the ornate building.

Trunks' boots made small, barely audible footsteps that echoed and were magnified by reverberation off the marble walls. Soon, two more sets of echoing feet followed him inside.

"Oh wow, you guys!" Goku looked up to the ceiling and over to some windows which were shaped in beautiful silhouettes of figures. "Talk about a photo opportunity!"

Digging into his belt pouch, Goku took out a small gray camera that originally belonged to Goten, and aimed it upward. With one click, his camera flashed, and so did the whole dome for a microsecond as Goku got his shot of the ceiling.

Goddamnit, that camera. Trunks forgot Goku had that.

Trunks was momentarily distracted as he watched Goku spin while looking up, and click it for another picture.

That camera belonged to Goten. While preparing for the original spaceship launch, Goten had dropped a bag of his things inside the craft before he had gotten distracted by a phone call. It was during that exact distraction that Pan had boarded the ship, locked it, and pressed the auto-launch button.

It was a gray digital camera that was designed to have a retro look and feel of a film-based disposable camera - meaning, it was impossible to see what the images looked like until the photos were developed. Goten had received it as a gag gift from one of his girlfriends, and he gravitated to it because he liked the surprise of not remembering what was stored on it before developing the images. It also had its own proprietary connection cable and image encryption, so Trunks did not have the ability to link the camera up to the monitors while on their trip to review its images.

Trunks had mixed feelings about that camera. He did not like knowing that he was unable to review the photographs that Goku snapped with it; he felt there might be some embarrassing images on there that'd he'd prefer to delete. However, at the same time, Trunks supported Goku using the camera because he personally viewed it as the last trace of Goten on board the ship, and perhaps the photographs could be used to bridge their friendship and regale Goten with stories of their travels after their return to Earth.

Trunks was pulled out from his thoughts when he heard a scuffle of footsteps and a high-pitched frantic voice mumbling something inaudible through all the reverberations and echoes of the hall. The trio turned to see a small pink man with wide pointy ears, bushy white eyebrows and lavender eyes, barely three and a half feet tall, running toward them. The small man was desperately waving both of his arms in front of him, signaling for them to stop. His little feet made echoing tchh-tchh-tchh sounds as he scurried forward.

"Nay! Nay!," The little man's strong accent shifted some vowels and diphthongs in his Common speech, so it was a little hard to understand him as he ran up to Trunks and immediately put his hands on Trunks' waist, pushing him toward the door. "Yoo can't enter this sacred place looking like that!"

Trunks blinked as he was being led to the exit by the strange man, "We were only going to be here for a minute."

"Minute or nay, naybody be alloowed into the temple withoot wearing white!"

Pan and Goku grimaced as they said in unison, "White?"

Giru did a little cartwheel in the air and then puffed out his little round chest, while he proudly bleeped, "Giru white!"

Trunks continued to be pushed backward, and he was genuinely impressed by the strength that the little man had.

"Really, sir!" Trunks did not like being touched, and dug his heels into the ground and then propped one foot in front of the other to prevent the little man from scooting him any further. He pushed the man back and away from his grip on Trunks' hips. "We only came to ask a question!"

The man stopped and sighed defeatedly, "Yes, alright, one questioon, and then yoo must goo."

Trunks had never heard anything like this man's accent. He felt his heartbeat quicken in excitement when he realized he was getting the chance to experience this new anthropological discovery. He wished the camera that Goku had were able to record video and sounds too; he'd have loved to show his mother how these moonlanders talked.

Trunks gave a bashful half-grin and scratched behind his head, "Okay, well… um…" He looked at the small man and tried to organize the question in his head, "We were wondering if you had seen a ball that is orange with black stars?"

"Ay?" The little pink man gave a confused and slightly suspicious face.

"It's about this size," Trucks measured with his hands, "And it has either three or five stars. Any chance you've seen it?"

The man gave a blank stare, and for a moment, Trunks was certain they'd have to move on and ask someone else for information, since the little man didn't seem to have any clue what Trunks was talking about.

However, before Trunks could dismiss himself, the man blinked twice and raised both eyebrows, "Are yoo the ones who come for the Mystic Booll? Ay? Nay?"

Goku, Trunks, and Pan blinked. They repeated as one, trying to clarify, "The Mystic Ball?"

"Ay! There be a Mystic Booll that fell froom the sky not too loong agoo, and it landed in the middle of our temple here. It be Kai sent! It be foor us to prootect until the one coomes for it. The Mystic Booll is from the Mystic proophecy! Are yoo trooly the ones to speak of this stoone?" The little man walked several steps away from Trunks and looked at both Goku and Pan.

"Uhhh," Trunks nervously scratched behind his head, wondering how the Kais could possibly be involved with this, and assumed the man did not really understand the situation. "I don't know about prophecy … but uh…" Trunks' eyes searched for an idea, and then it sparked. "Does it look anything like this?" He removed his backpack and sorted through some extra snacks and water canteens before he picked out the first round ball he could find.

"Here," Trunks held out the Six Star Dragon Ball with his right hand and showed it to the little pink man.

The man's lavender eyes widened as he stepped back in dramatic incredulity. "Hoow?" His jaw dropped as he looked from the ball to Trunks and back to the ball again, shifting his gaze as if he were not sure which one to revere more. "Yoo…!" The man stepped back and ended up backing up against a bench, "Yoo be of proophecy! Are yoo Kais?!"

"Heck no!" Pan laughed and put her hands on her hips, "We're from Earth!"

"Be yoo… Be yoo…?" The man began to tremble slightly, "Be yoo gods, then?"

Goku gaped, his mouth falling open as he echoed, "Gods?"

"No!" Trunks shook his head, "No, we're from – as Pan said here – We're from the planet Earth. We just came here looking for our lost Dragon Ball." Trunks looked at the Six Star Ball another moment before tucking it away in his backpack again and closing the zipper.

"Yeah," Pan smiled brightly and brought her arms behind her back as she swayed innocently, "We'd really appreciate if we could have our Ball back." She fluttered her eyes, "Pretty please?"

The little man frowned slightly as he regained his composure and stood up straight against the bench. "And are yoo to doo the ritual froom the proophecy then?"

"What ritual?" Pan's face faltered. "What prophecy?"

"The Mystic proophecy! That the whole univoorse depends on this Booll! And only the Mystic bound by Mystic can save the univoorse!"

Trunks coughed while holding in a laugh.

"I don't know what you mean," Pan whined slightly, "What does that mean?!"

"Oh I know!" Goku waved his left hand as if a student in class. "I know!"

Pan turned and looked deadpan to Goku, "What do you know?"

"Gohan's a Mystic!" Goku's face was proud, "Gohan's her dad! Ancient Kai trained him in the Mystic power years ago!"

The little man's eyes widened in shock as he whispered, almost to himself, "So yoo be of the proophecy after all… I must tell the oothers." He took a few steps back, and then turned as if he were going to shuffle away down the back hall.

Trunks stopped him, "Hey, wait!"

The man looked to him again, this time with excitement and joy on his face.

Trunks did not want to waste any time. While the prophecy sounded intriguing, it also was a distraction. "All we need is the Dragon Ball and we can get on our way. Can you just grant it to us? For the sake of, uh… prophecy?"

"Oh naayyy," the little man's eyes glimmered with mirth, "That poower be oof the Nameless Oone!"

Trunks' head started to hurt. The gut feeling that he had of this being an easy ball acquisition started to falter inside him. He wasn't sure what the next recourse of action should be, since up until this point, they needed brawn to recover the Dragon Balls. It was starting to look like this ball was going to require wits.

Trunks sighed and lifted both his hands, palms up in question, trying to keep their mission as simple as possible, "So what do we need to do for it?"

"The Mystic Booll must oonly be granted to oone whoo has boonded under the Mystic! Mystic is the boond of Kikarroo religioon and law. We abide by the Nameless Oone, our great creatoor from loong agoo in oour earliest days."

"I can't understand you," Goku suddenly complained as he put his gray camera back in his blue and yellow gi. "I'm getting lost."

"I understand him, Goku." Trunks stated, as if interpreting, "It sounds like this moon is called Kikarroo and they have a religion related to the Mystic powers."

"Ay!" the little pink man fervently agreed.

"And I take it there is a Mystic ritual involved?" Trunks' eyebrows went up in question to the man, who then enthusiastically nodded his head in agreement.

Pan's eyes brightened as a lightbulb turned on in her head, "Oh, like a dance?! Papa told me about the dance!"

Trunks groaned as he mentally wailed, remembering back to the Para Para brothers' dance that they had been forced to do earlier in their trip. Not ANOTHER dance…

"Nay," the little pink moonlander rocked and then did a clockwise spin, "Yoo need the Mystic boond!"

After completing his spin, the small pink man extended his right hand upward, and his eyes followed the movement, guiding everyone's attention to the ceiling. "Look!"

Trunks studied the ornate plafond on the ceiling in greater detail.

The Kais and their subsequent gods were painted among cottony clouds to one side of the fresco mural, reaching with hands from behind a central purple-skinned divine Kai with similarly long pointy ears, wearing a white gi-type robe and a white cape. They were all pointing to a set of large orange-golden rings that had a red string through them, which were suspended as if in motion toward pink hands that emerged from clouds, with the bodies of the mortals hidden behind a cottony fog. The details were intricate for all of their features except for one thing - the Kais and gods were all missing faces.

"What does this mean?" Trunks' eyes lingered on the rings, and he started to feel a little suspicious, but he tried to keep his hopes up. He was not going to assume anything. But he saw it involved rings. And if it was what he was assuming …

"To boond in the eyes of Mystic Nameless Oone! Too becoome oone of Kikarroo!" The man clapped his his hands in a childish joy.

Trunks' feelings turned black.

"I don't like this." Trunks nervously said aloud, not even realizing he said it until it echoed back toward him with reverb. Realizing it was out in the world for everyone to hear, Trunks committed to his statement, and looked back down to the pink man, "Why can't we just get the Dragon Ball and go?"

"Becoose yoo need to becoome Kikarroo citizens! By Kikarroo Mystic law, throough oonly by the ritual can yoo fulfill the proophecy!"

"I don't care about the prophecy." Trunks tried to remain emotionless and calm. "I just want the Dragon Ball."

"Oh come on, Trunks." Pan grinned to him, "The ritual can't be that bad."

"Yes it can." Trunks' throat got tighter, and his voice more strained as he tried to not picture the fresco painting and what it all meant.

He would stay calm. He would stay collected. He would get the Dragon Ball and just go. He didn't need to think about the fresco.

"Tell us how we can become Kikarrooan citizens!" Pan put her hands on her hips, and Giru, who floated by her right shoulder, mimicked her actions with a bleep.

"What!" Trunks gaped at Pan, suddenly mortified, "Tell me you are joking!" His collected emotions vanished as quickly as he saw Pan's overconfident face. He gestured up to the ceiling, "You're not going to go along with this, right?!"

Pan was jumping in again without asking her teammates. Trunks was going to put a stop to this now.

As Pan opened her mouth, Trunks stomped his foot, and made it VERY clear. "NO."

Pan seemed taken aback, "Huh?"

"I don't care what you have to say!" Trunks waved his hands once toward Pan as if it would stress his adamance. "The answer is NO." He then turned to the pink man, who seemed fairly astonished, and lowered his voice to be more gentle.

"Please, sir," Trunks politely pleaded, "Can you just show us where the Dragon Ball is?"

The pink man looked puzzled. "But it be Mystic!"

The little man seemed to think that was enough justification for an explanation, but Trunks did not accept it. There was no way that the fresco was going to apply to Trunks. He would not even discuss it. No rings today. Nope.

Trunks did not even care what the details were. Things had already escalated. Trunks was now completely dedicated to the idea of fighting his way to the Dragon Ball, if need be.

If Trunks were alone right now, he might have resorted to violent means to coerce the man into pointing to where the Dragon Ball was...

...But the feelings that were building up inside Trunks dissipated when he heard Giru buzz and bleep. "Dragon Ball detected! Dragon Ball detected!"

With a sharp wave of hope, and a racing heartbeat, Trunks turned his head to see Giru dramatically pointing down the back wing of the building.

"We'll take it from here," Trunks said with an air of finality to the moonlander, who had been distracted by Giru.

Snatching Giru from mid-air, Trunks started walking in the direction that Giru had been pointing.

"Oh nay, but yoo can't!" the moonlander snapped out of it and ran on his stubby legs after Trunks. "Oonly the Mystic boond can pass throough!"

"Yeah, right." Trunks was in no mood to be polite anymore. He tried to channel his father, Vegeta, so that he could project a stronger volition. "I'm going to do this myself."

"What are you gonna do?" Goku started walking after him.

Trunks kept up a quick pace as he stomped through the back hall and turned a corner when Giru's fingers shifted direction. He was animated as he spoke, waving his left free hand to emphasize his words. "I'm going to do what we should have done every other time."

"What's that?" Goku shuffled after him, with Pan and the fraught moonlander behind them who was scrambling forward, shouting for them to stop.

"I'm going to take the Dragon Ball …" Trunks looked to Goku, and then gave a wicked grin. "...and run."

"Ahhhh... I don't know, Trunks…" Goku's voice expressed doubt.

Trunks had already turned his head away from Goku as he marched forward with Giru, who was started to vibrate more dramatically as Trunks was getting closer to the destination.

"Just get ready to run." Trunks beamed confidence. He was finally going to get his way.

Both Goku and Pan were shouting behind him now, along with the little pink man, but Trunks blocked them out. He meant it when he said he did not care. He was not going to do whatever that fresco painting ritual was.

And then turning a final corner, Trunks came to the end of the hallway, marked by a small archway adorned with purple and black curtains that were drawn closed. It was a standout archway, since its curtains were dressed with the first black color that Trunks had seen on this entire moon. And, sensing the frantic behavior of Giru in his hands, Trunks knew he made it to the destination.

The Dragon Ball was clearly behind the curtain.

Trunks grinned back to them and stepped forward. "Alright, here we g- AAHH!?"

Trunks smacked into the curtains like it were an electric fence. An eruption of black and purple electric bolts ZAPPED through him and Giru.

Giru let out a pitiful wail and fell out of Trunks' hands, hitting and bouncing off the electric curtain wall until he rolled to a stop, lying prone. Trunks was knocked backward entirely and landed on his bottom, his hair all standing up as if he were hit by lightning.

Trunks' eyes were wide as he tried to understand what just happened.

"I told yoo!" the little moonlander panted as he caught up. "You must do the Mystic boond!"

"What…the… FUCK!?" Trunks screamed at the curtain wall. "What the fuck is that?!"

Then Trunks noticed Giru lying prone on the ground. "No! Giru!"

He pounced for him, securing the robot like a football, and then tried to shake the robot. The electricity had stopped the robot's functions. Trunks hoped to all Kais that he could be rebooted without failure. Fuck, the Dragon Radar!

"Giru!" Pan's voice was desperate as she kneeled down to Trunks and tried to wrest him from Trunks' grip. Trunks wrestled her for Giru, knocking her down as he tried to pry the robot out of her grasp. Pan screamed as she lost her grip to Trunks' hands.

Trunks stood, glaring down at her, and then raised his head to glare daggers at the moonlander.

This was not good. Giru might have been damaged. And Trunks needed the Dragon Radar to grab the Dragon Ball and run.

Gods, but Trunks was so close. Giru could wait.

"You know what?" Trunks looked to Pan who was still on her knees and tossed her Giru, with a serious expression. "You take him."

Trunks turned back to the electric wall with a stern face and started to raise his ki.

Pan caught and held Giru, looking concerned at Trunks. "What are you doing, Trunks?!"

"I'm getting the fucking Dragon Ball!"

Trunks did not hold back his language anymore. He was fucking pissed. He was not going to take part in that fresco painting!

With a THUD-ZZZzzzZZzz, Trunks rammed back into the black curtain again, and was similarly thrown back with a shout - this time in a more aggressive roll.

"FUCK!" Trunks stood and took a battle stance, "FINE!" Trunks put his hands to his side as he channeled his ki energy. A torrent of anger surged within him.

"Trunks, no!" Goku shouted and tried to reach for Trunks, but it was not fast enough for his short arms.

Consumed by rage, Trunks hurled a blast at the curtain.

While the ki blast was not intended to be a largely destructive attack, it shook the entire temple as the explosion SMACKED into the curtains…

… and then fizzled out, as if Trunks' ki blast had never happened.

Trunks was incredulous.

"Are you SHITTING me right now?!" Trunks seethed, his fists clenched tight as rocks.

"Trunks, stop," Pan ordered with a foot stomp that Trunks heard, but ignored.

"I'm not stopping until I get that GODDAMNED BALL!"

Trunks charged up again, trying to think of what Goten would do if he were here for this. Trunks had known how to make the Kamehameha ever since he first fused to make Gotenks.

Trunks chanted, "Ka… me …" and a blue-green ki started to gather in his hands.

"STOP!" Goku commanded, in a very serious tone that Trunks had never heard before, but Trunks did not fucking care. He would not be a part of that fresco ritual. It was not going to even be a thought!

Trunks' anger soared, "HA… MEEE…"

SMACK!

A sudden strike to the nape of Trunks' neck instantly plunged him into darkness, and his ki fizzled.

Trunks' legs gave out under him, and he collapsed face-forward…

... And then Trunks smacked right back into the black lightning curtains, recoiling with a shock that jolted Trunks back awake. All of his hair stood up on end again as he was knocked back. Trunks rolled roughly on the floor until his momentum stopped, and he was face-down by Goku's feet.

Seething with frustration, Trunks clenched his teeth, directing his gaze at the ground. His fingers gripped the marble so tightly that cracks started to form in the stone.

Huffing, Trunks felt all of his pride course through his veins, and he looked up to glower at Goku.

But it only took a moment before Trunks' rage quelled. His eyes slowly went wide, as he felt his blood drain from his face.

Goku was glaring down at Trunks with an authority that Trunks had never seen before.

Goku's stern gaze conveyed the weight of his formidable history. It was as if every defeated foe had left their mark in his eyes, and an aura of overwhelming power enveloped him, exuding an undeniable air of strength and intensity.

Trunks felt his heart race as he recognized Goku's stance. It was the commanding presence of a warrior. There was no room for levity in his eyes, no trace of amusement - only an unrelenting aura of formidable threat that sent a clear message: he meant business, and there would be no room for compromise. Goku was ready to fight.

This… was Legend Goku…

"You will NOT destroy a religious temple." Legend Goku commanded Trunks. His voice was firm.

Trunks swallowed, realizing his jig was up. "Fuck…"

"And you will NOT use that language in front of Pan!" Legend Goku reprimanded him with a glare that struck Trunks like a punch through the gut.

Trunks quickly exhaled a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding, attempting to regain his composure. He shifted his gaze from Goku to Pan, then back to Goku, with a fiery storm of emotions churning in his core, trying to make sense of the whole situation.

And then Trunks realized...

Goku was exerting his authority for the first time on the trip.

It was literally the first time Trunks had ever seen an adult within Goku's eyes.

The sight of it instilled a strange consternation within Trunks, and he took pause.

Now that Trunks was able to catch his breath, he recognized that Goku was right. Trunks acknowledged that he had let his temper get ahold of him.

As the weight of his actions hit Trunks, his eyes widened in realization that Goku had actually protected him. Goku prevented Trunks from committing a grave error.

It would be very unwise for Trunks to destroy a Mystic temple...

Doing something that severe would catch the attention of the actual gods...

–––––––

On a small green overly-grassy planet that was suspended in a cloudless ether, Ancient Kai burst awake from under his tree. "Ahhhhhh!" He waved his arms as he sat up, with his scratchy voice raised to full volume. "Kibito, it's starting!"

Lying on the grass wearing a red overrobe, Kibitoshin Kai, the Supreme Kai and Lord of Lords, glanced up lackadaisically, propping his head up with his elbows as he watched a crystal ball that he had placed on a purple blanket. He yawned in apathy. "Yes, Venerable Elder?"

Ancient Kai, wrinkled with faded purple skin and long pointed ears, wearing a black overrobe and teal underclothes, hopped to his feet with a youthful energy he hadn't had in a LONG time. In fact, in all of the fifteen Kai generations that Ancient Kai had been locked in the Z Sword, he had not felt as youthful as he did now.

"It's starting! It's starting!" Ancient Kai hobbled excitedly through the tall grass toward Kibito, "Change the channel! Change it to the goonies!"

Kibito sighed and his purple ears dropped, "But I'm reviewing the latest petition for Kai intervention on the planet M2."

"It doesn't matter!" Ancient Kai stomped his foot. "This is the one that matters!"

"Yes, but Elder Kai…" Kibito sighed again, "This is the second Kai to complain about Baby."

"I don't care!" Ancient Kai waggled his fingers at Kibito, "I've been waiting fifteen generations for this! And it's starting!"

"What…" Kibito began, and then his eyes widened as Ancient Kai conveyed his prophetic vision to both of them. "Oh dear spirits… Is this truly happening?"

Ancient Kai's tight lips widened from ear to ear. "It's about to be written."

Kibitoshin Kai's inner aether pulsated through his corpus.

Kibito realized that this was an important prophetic moment, and possibly the most important prophecy that he, the Supreme Kai, Kibitoshin Kai, Lord of Lords, would ever have the chance to live through. There were many prophetic forks to navigate, but if Kibitoshin Kai played his cards right… maybe he still could truly save all of Universe 7.

Kibito smiled, feeling his own enthusiasm begin to grow. He hadn't felt this kind of thrill in years.

He changed the channel of the crystal ball, and then both Supreme Kais - current, and former, who each shared the same planet, settled in for the show.

–––––––

–––––––

–A: 10/12/23–

–F: 07/23/24–