Dreamer
Parts 3 & 4
I've never felt more alone.
===
That was three years ago. I still shudder at the memory. I held Gohan close and shouted my pain out to the world.
I will never forget that night.
They will pay for what they've done. What they took from me. What we could have had..could have been.
My thoughts are snapped back to the present as a metallic voice is heard over the radio. I barely made out what the announcers said. But one word rang clear above the garbled speech. Androids.
"Destruction in Bridge Town.." the voice continued on. I already heard all I need to know, and I snap the belt of my sword over my shoulder.
"I'll get them this time!" I yelled, parroting Gohan san's words. Kaasan's head shot up at my sudden declaration. Worry etched on he face.
"To..Torankusu! tyotto matt---." But her pleas fall on deaf ears.
I fly over to Bridge Town, and vaguely wonder if I'll be able to find them quickly before they hurt anyone else. Ruin someone else's life. However, they were easy to spot.
"ROBOTS! Today I'm gonna destroy you for what you did to Gohan!"
"It's that brat again" Juuhachi gou said cooly. "I don't like you!" With that, she was gone in a flash only to reappear directly in front of me. My face smarting from the punch I hadn't even seen her throw. I recovered quickly and launch a blast of my own from where I landed. I barely phased her and she rushed me. I punch this time, but she catches it, milliseconds before impact. "Damn brat! I almost felt that!!" she spat knocking me away like an irritating fly.
Round two.
I pull out my sword and take a swipe at her throat. I only manage to cut a few hairs. She looked on in shock as the golden strands fall to the ground. 'Surprised you didn't I' I thought smugly to myself. Juunana had been looking on quietly the entire time. But now he finally decides to join in the 'fun.' I aim the sword right between his eyes. He dodges with ease; a carefree smile on his face.
After missing it's target, my sword strikes the ground with a metallic clang. I try again, but now he catches the end. Juuhachi gou, now recovered, sends a ki blast screaming towards me. Several more follow in close pursuit. I pretend as if they hardly hurt at all. 'HA! Is that all you've got!' I send a punishing blow to Juunana's artificial face and make Juuhachi pay for that last blast. I finish them both with a huge wave of crackling blue energy. The surprised look on their faces were just priceless. I wish Gohan could have seen it too. Maybe he's watching from wherever he is now.
"I did it!" I breath finally. A triumphant and bittersweet smile graces my lips. Then the smoke clears. Oh shit! They get up from the rubble and, other than their now tattered clothes, are completely unharmed.
"He's gotten several more times powerful than the last time."
"But his attacks are too easy to read, and attacking like that will wear him out fast," they say calmly to each other. Speaking as if I wasn't there. Wasn't still a threat. I feel my blood boil at their harsh words...their keen observation. 'They're mocking me!!...Kono yaro!' I snarled down at them and let loose several ki blast. They look on apathetically and let the blasts hit them dead on. They know my blasts won't really hurt them. I know it too. Know it's in vain. But anything to get them to shut up!
I feel most of my energy and earlier exuberance leave me in waves. "Damn! I don't have enough energy left to do any damage." 'Not enough to kill them. To make them pay. To avenge my Gohan'
Juunana taunts me again. More ki blasts. But as I suspected, they do nothing. I just fall to my knees, feeling defeated and lost. That was all my energy. Several quiet moments pass. The quiet before the storm. I notice an eerie silence and look up. They're gone.
"No...where are they?!" "Where did they go?!?" I could hear the panic and desperation in my voice. It made me cringe. Losing sight of them could mean death. Juunana suddenly explodes through a wall behind me. Brick and debree fly around us before he backhands me in the face. I'm sent flying back forcibly to the ground for seemingly the hundredth time since the fight began. I don't even have a chance to recover as Juunana kicked me away from where I'd landed moments ago. I stagger a bit as I finally get back on my feet. I try to run. I try to hide. But it doesn't matter where I go. They are always right there. 'Now they're just making sport of me!' I run anyway, and stop when I think I'll have a moments peace. Panting harshly, I try to drag some oxygen into my deprived lungs and wonder if I've seen my mother's face for the last time. Wonder if the androids will be the last thing I ever see.
'No..I'm gonna die here...I'm sorry..Gohan' He had so much faith in me...so much hope..
Then I hear 'her' voice again. "It looks like he's out of breath." Juuhachi finally comes into view now. "Little boy, our energy last forever..we're still good as new." I could hear the derision dripping from his voice. 'I'm gonna die here!' The cold hand I was sure belonged to death itself clamped over my shoulder. I turn my head to stare wide eyed at the next closest thing; Juuhachi gou. "It looks like you've got no more fight left in you...shoud we finish this up now Juunana? she asks calmly. As if my life was so unimportant, so trivial, 'finish this up?! THIS?! How can they be so cold?
...How could a machine learn to hate so much?
I just stare at her prettified. I'm almost happy when I'm only smacked back and then blasted into the water. Instead of being killed on the spot. There's a split second laps of time after I stagger out of the water, before another ball of energy is sent towards me...searing my clothes and skin under it. I lay face down on the ground. Face in the dirt, feeling strangely serene, as the pain from the beating I've taken and unconsciousness threaten to swallow me whole.
'I'm sorry father....' I imagine him now, wherever he is, turning his face away in shame and disgust at my weakness. I knew he hated that above all else.
Juunana walks over to me. He slides his foot under my chin and lifts my bleeding face. My earlier thoughts return to me. "Why are..you doing this..?" I must have sounded so broken and frail. "We think Dr Gero made us to conquer the world, but we're doing this just for fun" Juunana answered. "Just looking at humans makes me want to kill them" Juuhachi chimed in. That was the last straw. "I can't let you do this! Yurasanai!" I yelled with as much conviction as my tired body could muster. I throw a painfully weak punches at Juunana. My heart breaks a little every time I take an ineffective swing at him. I feel the muscles in my arms burning with strain and each punch getting weaker than the last. He doesn't even bother to block at all. Neither does Juuhachi gou. With astounding ease, she stops all my pathetic attempts with a quick kick. Several other rib breaking blows were dealt. The world spun and I finally powered down. The colors around me dulled without the brilliant shine of the suupa saiyajin power. When I finally landed, Juunana steps on my face. I could never decide who was more cruel of the two. It was an odd thought to have, given the circumstances.
Ironically, it may be my last thought....
So I thought of Gohan.
"Wait...I want to kill him.."
I saw a flicker of light that could only be a ki blast. Most likely the one to send me from this world.
Gohan...I'll see you soon...
***
"Torankusu!...Torankusu!!" A voice? It sounds so far away. Maybe it's Gohan calling for me. I open my eyes hoping to see his smiling face. "Oh I'm glad you're awake! You've been out for five days now." I recognize that voice.
"Kaasan..?"
She's only a formless blob of greenish blue until my vision returns fully. Then I remember why I'm lying here in the first place and turn my head away in shame. The bitter shame burning and stinging in my chest. It stung like the unshed tears in my eyes. I failed. "Mom...I'm sorry you were right, It was just like you said, they were too strong." "I'm just glad you came back alive." she said with a smile. I guess I'm glad too. Thought I would have liked to see Gohan again. But not yet. Now that I've actually survived that encounter, I know my mission is not totally lost. I'll have my revenge!
But not yet.
***
When I'm finally healed, I decided to ride in the time machine she's built. Kaasan truly is brilliant. I see why dad loved her, even though he may have never said so. I'm really looking forward to meeting him and this 'Son kun' she always spoke of. 'There was nothing that man couldn't do...' she would say in awe.
"I wonder what dad was like" I thought aloud."
"Don't set your expectations too high." She said, her smile faded at once. I thought that was rather harsh of her. It seemed she liked Gokuu san more than 'tousan. Why? But I dismissed the thought.
***
I pack a small bag, taking only a precious few belongings. It's best to travel light. There's but so much room in the time machine after all. All the while I wonder if everything will go as planned. It seems simple enough. Since I can't do this on my own. I realized that the hard and painful way at my last crushing defeat. Maybe I can find someone who can. Maybe the future won't turn out so bleak and I could have lived a happier life. Maybe I could have seen my father, could have gained his love and respect like any son would want.
I say a farewell to 'kasaan and climb into the machine. Before I leave she gets out a large marker and writes the word 'HOPE!' on the side. Arigatou 'kasaan. Someone special once told me if you had hope you could do anything. I just wonder if I have enough of it.
After typing in the coordinates the machine 'whooored' and 'clicked' as it floated off the ground before disappearing in a flash of orange and blue light.
***
I don't think I'll ever get used to time travel. With all the technology we have in the future, it's still a bumpy, nauseating ride. Mom was wise to install seatbelts. Whether my churning stomach is the result of the turbulance or my growing uneasiness at what and whom I may see in the other time line, I don't know. Somehow, I have a feeling it's more the latter of the two. Tousan...what will he think of me? I found my self starting to panic a little and actually tried to fix my hair as if that would gaurantee his acceptance.
"What am I doing?" I relaize how silly that is and how truly little I know of father. I hardly even know what he looks like. I was too young to remeber his face and the rare photographs of him, he never looks towards the camera. I've never see more than half a scowl and exaggerated widow's peak. I only know of his taciurn ways and hatred of anything weak. Then it comes to me, the only reason I'm going to their time is because I wasn't strong enough to right the wrongs in my own.
My apprehension grew.
***
The trip was not long, but the whrol of conflicting thoughts in my head, and half digested food in my stomach made it seem like days instead of an hour.
When I arrived on the scene Furiiza and company had already come looking to pick a fight with Gokuu. The Gokuu that was no where to be found and wouldn;t be for a few hours more.
I'll deal with this bastard.
_Here's my chance to prove myself_
'Watch me 'tousan' I thought to myself as my hair bled into gold and I obliterated their once unbeatable enemies effortlessly. I loved the look on Furiiza's face before I sent him to hell, where he should have been in the first place. I loved the look on 'tousan's face as I turned super saiya-jin. I think that got his attention more than anything.
***
As we sit and wait for 'Son kun' I look at the group around me. They're a strange bunch, and mom never once mentioned Tien. I see my young mother. She has changed little over the years, though I cannot say the same for her hairstyles. This one was particularly bizarre. I look over the rest of the motely crew. A colorful bunch. They're all giving me just as odd a look, but once I spot my father I hardly notice.
Just looking at him he already seems different from what I expected. Though not at all the disappointment mom made it seem he would be. In my mind he always took the form of someone untouchable and larger than life. His still does give off a kind of superior aura despite his diminutive size. Though he is not as strong as I, I can see the power radiating from him. 'Kasaan's few, brief stories didn't give away much about the man. Now that I've seen him with my own eyes, her retelling did him little justice. She glorified 'Son Kun' over him!?
Feeling my scrutiny, he looks up from the boulder he's sitting on, far away from the group, to lock eyes with me. He looks at me for quite a while, not even blinking and staring me down as if I were some new threat or intruder, sizing me up as any warrior would. He also seems annoyed at my constant glances. For some reason I can't look away. He's..so...
"Rgghr! WHAT are you staring at!?" his voice booms menacingly. His voice a perfect match for his arrogant, princely demeanor.
_You_
Wait...damn it! I pissed him off now. Oh god! Just say something! ANYthing!
"Uh...I like your shirt."
Brilliant.
He settles back on his throne like bolder, crossing his arms in disdain.
"You _would_"
"..."
-What's that suppsose to mean? How can he tell I'm...? Nevermind.-
***
We wait a half an hour longer at the place where Son kun would land. Everyone's a little edgy. We've waited longer than I said we'd have to. I stare up at the sky as Kuririn amuses himself with an empty can. A loud metalic 'clang' sounds as he kicks it a little too hard. Father shoots him a look that would peel the paint off a wall.
"Uh..heh..sorry."
He sneers and folds his arms again, staring at the sky also. I wonder why he's chosen to stay here. I tought he "hated Kakarotto." Once Furiiza was defeated there was no other reason to stay. Shouldn't he have left? Odd.
My musing is cut short when a tiny ship emerges through the clouds.
"That should be him." I state, drawing everyone's attention to his approaching pod. Sand billows and whirls around us as the pod's propultion system slows it's descent and comes to rest before us. A dark, tossled head is the first to appear. From that alone I already know who it is. It's odd how many more pictures of Gokuu mom had than 'tousan. Then it's owner soon follows. So I finally meet the great Son kun, in the flesh. Everyone is a little surprised by his attire but still quite pleased to finally have him back. His absence seems to take it's toll on everyone. But now that he's returned a sense of ease is evident in their expressions and smiles. The ever aloof 'tousan stands back from the group with his arms crossed. It was my turn to be surprised by the look on his face. I thought he would look at his all time rival with complete mailce or at least annoyance. But he too has a sort of relieved expression on his face. Not just that, but something in his eyes I can't place. Not at all what I expected from him upon Gokuu's return.
***
I walk over and give Gokuu a quick looking over. "Nice to finally meet you! I've heard alot about you!"
"Oh really? Gosh I didn't know I was so popular! Ah haha!" he says laughing with one hand behind his head. A crazy grin on his face. He's a silly, silly man but pretty funny. In a weird sort of way, I think to myself a little bemused. But all joking aside.
"Oh, um Gokuu, could I talk to you over here for a minute?"
***
"And that's about it. The androids pretty much destroyed my world so I came back here to warn you long before they arrive. This way you could train hard and be ready for them. Mom and I figured this would change everything in the future and things won't turn out so horribly."
A picture of Gohan's smiling, scarred, face flashes in my mind.
Gokuu looks thoughtful for a while. Absorbing everything I've told him.
"Wow...I guess we really got our work cut out for us! I can't believe all that happened. And Burumaa and Bejiita!? Whoa never saw that one coming!!" he said a little too loudly.
"Uh Gokuu, please don't mention that to anyone, 'cause..uh..I might not be born." I say sheepishly.
"Heh oh yea."
***
We return to the group getting several strange glances from the other Z warriors. 'Tousan and Pikkoro especially.
_I hope those ears are just for show_ And 'tousan, why does he look pissed again? Pissed at me. All I've done is talk to Gokuu. Odd
TBC?
[1]{Tyotto matte! = Wait!
[2]Kono yaro! = Those bastards!
[3]Yurasanai = I won't forgive you
Dreamer (c) 2000-2002 Rena "Sama" / 'the light'
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