Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ A Light in the Darkness ❯ Prelude to a Fight ( Chapter 83 )

A Light in the Darkness - Part 83: Prelude to a Fight
by Mia Skywalker & Wataruo

 

PAIRING: Bulma/Vegeta, Yamcha/Hakusai, Tenshinhan/Lunch
RATING: PG-13
WARNINGS: Minor violence
C&C: Please! ^_^
DISCLAIMER: Neither of us owns any of the DBZ characters or anything about DBZ, but we both wish we owned the Saiyans. All of them. At least all of the ones with hair. And yes, we're including Yamcha, Ranma, and Ryouga in that, now you know. Dragonball Z and the associated characters are owned by Toei, Viz, Akira Toriyama, and FUNimation. Ranma 1/2 and the characters of Ranma Saotome and Ryouga Hibiki are owned by Viz, Rumiko Takahashi, and some Japanese studio I don't know the name of. We do own what we've written here, and our specific storyline, just not Dragonball or Ranma 1/2 themselves. We make no money off of any of these guys, nor off this fic. We just have fun writing it. Oh, I guess we do own Hakusai and Serori. But I doubt anyone cares. ^_~
SUMMARY: The real battle begins...
NOTES: The rest of this story is completely unbeta'd, as I can't seem to find a beta who will be as brutal or thorough as I like, and will get me chapters back in what I feel is a timely manner. I have, however, had training as an editor, and I've edited the remainder of this pretty thoroughly. I would simply like people to be aware that no one else has gone through it to catch any errors or inconsistencies, so it may be more flawed than I realize. By the way, the reason I did all this about Ranma, Ryouga, and Yamcha, had to do with two images - screen captures - that I found of them. There's a picture I have where Ryouga is yelling at Ranma, and Ranma is smiling impishly; the two are facing each other and you can see that their profiles are identical despite the differences in expression. There's another screen capture I have of Yamcha where he is in the middle of a brawl at one of his baseball games, and his face - as well as the expression on his face - is identical of that to Ranma's in the previous screen capture. Those two images made me go “hm…”, and hence I wanted to write this.

 

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The group headed to the boards to look at the listings, and they checked to see when each of them was scheduled to fight. Vegeta remarked with satisfaction when he saw that his fight with `Kakarotto' would occur fairly late in the day. They each had fights with two other contestants scheduled first, but Vegeta had no doubt that both he and Goku would make it to the end. He scoffed at the clumsy skills of most of the human fighters in the crowd, and knew the humans didn't stand a chance against either of them. The only human fighters who were even close in level to the two Saiyans were Krillin and Tenshinhan, and neither of them was in a direct line to fight either of the Saiyans until the final sets.

 

Bulma took careful note of when each of their fights were scheduled as well, then went back to the infirmary after giving Vegeta a quick kiss. As the day progressed, Vegeta's prediction held true; there was no doubt that the Zed Senshi didn't really have any competition from the other warriors. Bulma made sure she was watching every fight that Yamcha, Goku, or Vegeta was in, and she cheered her friends on.

 

Towards the late afternoon there were only six contenders left, including all of Bulma's friends. Bulma had excused herself from the infirmary for the rest of the day, explaining that she couldn't disappoint them by not watching. She found a place in the stands near Lunch, who also seemed excited about how far Tenshinhan had placed in the Budokai, and she settled down to watch.

 

This next fight was between Goku and Vegeta, and Bulma held her breath in anticipation. She crossed her fingers, hoping they wouldn't kill each other. She knew that Goku would never willingly kill anyone, but she wasn't entirely sure about Vegeta. But she did hope that Vegeta would win. She knew it would hurt him terribly if he came in second to Goku again, if he couldn't prove himself the stronger of the two.

 

Please, Goku, Bulma prayed to herself. Don't go Super Saiyan in this fight!

 

Vegeta could feel everyone's eyes on them as they made their way into the ring. He was surprised to discover that he could pick up some of the spectators' emotions, in particular the people that the Saiyan Prince had begun to think of as friends.

 

The idea disturbed him. He had been taught to believe that he needed nothing and no one. It had been instilled in him that power was everything; that being the strongest was all that mattered. But as he half-listened to the announcer's commentary about his and Kakarotto's upcoming match, he realized that he had learned that there were other more important things.

 

Take his relationship to the man he was fighting, for instance. Goku had been his strongest opponent and his greatest adversary. Vegeta had suffered his first real defeat from a third class warrior, wounding his pride, making him doubt himself for the first time in his life. He had gone so far as to follow Goku to Namek to wish himself immortal so he could beat the other Saiyan.

 

Then there was Bulma. She had never feared to argue with him, not caring that she had no ki at all to defend herself from him. She insulted him, called him names that the Commander of his father's armies would have been proud of, and then had surprised him with her offer to come and live at Capsule Corporation. Bulma had known full well of his intention to kill Kakarott; Vegeta had only mentioned it on a daily basis. Yet she opened her home to him and showed him that there was more to life than fighting.

 

Then he had bonded to the loud-mouthed female, with her odd coloring and quick wit, and nothing about his life had been the same since. He smiled to himself, wondering if he would actually win this fight with Kakarott, or if he would once again lose.

 

Well, at least I will lose to a Super Saiyan, he thought as the announcer finished up his speech. There is no dishonor in that.

 

Vegeta and Goku turned and faced each other in the ring, both men trying to figure out how and where to attack their opponent first. Both men sank into attack stance, watching the other, trying to decide on how the other would attack.

 

Finally Vegeta snorted. "Are you going to stand there all day and look tough, or are you going to do something?" he asked smirking.

 

"Don't wait on me, my Prince," Goku said, showing the first sign of respect that Vegeta had ever heard from the younger man. "Feel free to start at any time." To the surprise of the audience, the two fighters shared a smile. They both understood that this match was not a fight to the death, merely a way to find out once and for all who was the strongest.

 

Vegeta was about to launch his first attack on Goku when he heard the audience give a collective gasp. He smirked, thinking it was directed at their fight. It took a moment for him to feel the power spike behind him, and by the time Goku shouted out a warning, it was too late for Vegeta to raise his ki enough to deflect the enormous ki blast that was heading at his back. Kisama! he thought in the instant he realized that the blast would be fatal and that he had no time to run.

 

Everyone in the audience gasped in surprise when the large blue-skinned man appeared from nowhere, raised one hand with an evil grin, and released a blast directly at Vegeta's back. There were only a few there who had the ability to feel his sudden rise in power, and they were all too far away to react in time. Bulma had leapt out of her seat as she saw the blast headed towards Vegeta, but there was nothing that she could do to save the man she loved before it was too late.

 

As despair clutched at her heart, terror that she was going to lose the one person who made her life worth living, there was a sudden explosion as another blast ripped through the air, deflecting the one heading for Vegeta, and sending it into the ground instead. Bulma and everyone else in the audience looked up at the source of this new power, and to their surprise saw a young, lavender-haired man hovering in the air above the ring. He was glaring down at the blue-skinned man with a face full of determination and fury, almost oblivious to the shock of everyone around.

 

He lowered himself gently to the ground, landing lightly in front of the enormous man. He looked almost dwarfed by him, but it didn't seem to intimidate him in the slightest, as he continued to glare at the larger man almost contemptuously.

 

"You're not going to win so easily," he said softly, but somehow in the shocked hush of the audience his voice carried clearly. "I won't let you kill them this time."

 

Vegeta was aware the Goku had come up to his side and was staring at the blue-skinned man and the youth with some concern. "Such power," Goku whispered. "And the other, he doesn't feel right." Vegeta didn't know which of the two Goku was talking about; he could sense the power emanating strongly from both of the strangers, and they both felt wrong to him.

 

To the group's surprise, the big man laughed. "Oh, and you think you are going to stop me?" he scoffed, and placed his hands on his hips. "Those two would be dead now if you hadn't interfered."

 

"But he did," Goku said to the unknown adversary in a puzzled tone. "Why did you do that?" he asked he asked the blue-skinned stranger, sounding almost plaintive. Goku had been sure that Vegeta had been about to die, and had been more than a little surprised to see the pale-haired youth deflect the blast away. "That wasn't very fair."

 

"Fair?" Vegeta snorted as he made his way to Goku's side. "He doesn't care about fair. But that doesn't explain who you are."

 

"Or what he wants." Goku scratched his head. "Or who he is." Goku looked over at the teenager who was standing tensely beside them.

 

"I am Bojack," the blue man said arrogantly, as he folded his muscular arms over his chest. "And I am your death, unless of course you wish to work for me."

 

"Don't listen to him!" the lavender-haired young man said insistently. "He's not telling you the truth. He's going to kill you because you won't work for him. You would never give him what he wants, and he knows it. But I'm not going to let him kill you this time!" The determination in the youth's blue eyes never wavered in the slightest.

 

The other Zed warriors landed near them, forming a loose semi-circle around Bojack. Seconds later, the three younger Saiyans joined them as well, having sensed the sudden unknown ki and then hearing the explosion. Tenshinhan growled low in his throat, while Krillin remained battle ready but looking somewhat nervous. Hakusai looked almost relaxed as she stood next to Yamcha, who was considerably tenser. Gohan moved near his father, his face a determined scowl, looking older in some ways than his six years. Serori and Ryouga looked both confused and nervous, yet both were determined as well to do what they needed to do.

 

Yamcha glanced at the lavender-haired stranger, studying him carefully. There was something oddly familiar about him, but he wasn't sure what it was. "What do you mean, 'this time'? And who are you, anyway?"

 

The young man blushed slightly, pink staining his cheeks. "That's not important right now," he replied quietly. "The important thing is that he's not going to get a chance to kill you. You're all too important, and I'm not going to allow you to die."

 

"Die?" Vegeta snorted and looked even more annoyed than he already was. "Who said anything about dying?"

 

"I hate to tell you this, Vegeta, but you nearly got gutted," Goku remarked.

 

Yamcha nodded. "Yeah, Vegeta. It was a good thing this guy came along. You were almost killed." He blinked at Vegeta's glare. "Hey, you know, the guy attacked you from behind, it wasn't as though you'd done anything wrong or nothin'!" He found himself arguing defensively, as though warding off Vegeta's anger.

 

The blush on the youth's face deepened slightly, but he said nothing. He seemed slightly uncomfortable with the idea of standing near them, and he kept shooting indecipherable glances at Vegeta.

 

Vegeta glanced at the youth, eyes narrowed. "I agree, I was lucky indeed. But as for you...." His tone changed as he glared at Bojack. "You aren't going to be so lucky."

 

"All of you combined do not have the power to stop me," the huge blue-skinned alien boasted confidently.

 

"Does this guy have an ego problem or what?" Hakusai commented dryly, earning another snort from Vegeta. "It doesn't matter, since he is stupid enough to think that he can take seven Saiyans on."

 

Goku blinked. "I still don't understand what's going on."

 

"It's amazing you understand anything," Vegeta muttered under his breath.

 

"At any rate," Goku said, ignoring Vegeta's comment. "What do you want?"

 

"Earth," Bojack said simply. "This is the most beautiful and prosperous planet in the North galaxy. A great place to start my empire, don't you agree, Prince Vegeta?"

 

"Over my rotting corpse," Vegeta snapped back at him.

 

Bojack laughed. "I almost would have if this boy," he glanced at the youth in question, "hadn't interfered. I know some of you by reputation," Bojack explained. "But I have never seen the woman," he gestured to Hakusai, "or this boy before."

 

"'This 'boy'," Goku remarked, studying the youth so intently that he blushed, "managed to deflect a strong attack. I'd be worried if I were you."

 

Vegeta frowned. He knew his rival was right. The boy had managed to block an attack that would have been fatal, and it didn't seem to have affected him one way or the other. "Well... it seems there are ten of us against you." Vegeta smirked at Bojack.

 

Gohan glanced at Vegeta, then looked at his father. As was usual when facing a strong opponent, Goku's face had lost its childlike innocent look, and had firmed itself into something more determined, more Saiyan. He knew that when things got serious, Goku was an excellent fighter, even if he didn't have the tactical genius and ferocity that Vegeta generally displayed. He had the feeling that if his father and Vegeta could team up together, they might even be unbeatable.

 

He looked around at the others. Yamcha was looking both nervous and determined; he wasn't going to let anyone hurt Hakusai, even if it killed him. Gohan could see the changes that had taken place in the older warrior, and they weren't just physical. Hakusai had a lot to do with the emotional changes in the man, and Gohan knew that those changes were a good thing. He hadn't really known Yamcha very well before, but from what little he had seen, he didn't think that previously Yamcha had had the strength of will that he seemed to have now.

 

Briefly Gohan wondered where Piccolo might be. He hadn't seen or sensed the Namek except for briefly the previous day, right after he had been hurt. He wondered if Piccolo was angry with him for that, and if he was avoiding him now. He was sad by that fact, and wondered if there was anything he could do to make his friend stop avoiding him. Maybe if he just proved that he was strong and brave, that would be enough.

 

He wondered who the lavender-haired boy was. He had never seen the mysterious boy before, and he guessed from the puzzled glances that the others were shooting him that they didn't know who he was either. Then it occurred to him that Vegeta had said that there were 'ten' against this blue-skinned man, which meant that this boy was being counted as an ally, at least for the time being. He hadn't seen what had happened at the beginning, however, so had no idea why Vegeta would trust a stranger so readily.

 

The strange boy shifted slightly, then reached behind his back and unsheathed a sword in a single fluid movement. The others started at this; none of them ever used weapons, and they were surprised that this young man did.

 

"There are more than seven Saiyans here," he said softly. "And more than one Super Saiyan." With that his ki flared, a golden aura around him, causing his hair to spike up blond and his eyes to go green. "I am not going to let you kill them this time! That's a promise!"

 

"Well, I'll be damned." Hakusai sounded amused. "Another one."

 

Vegeta's eyes narrowed. "This is ridiculous. What is this? A Super Saiyan bargain sale?"

 

Goku beamed at the young man. "So young! That's great you can do it so young!"

 

"I could care less how much power you think you have. No one can beat me!" Bojack didn't look the least bit concerned over the way the youth's power had spiked.

 

"What a kusotarre," Hakusai remarked dryly and sank down into a battle stance. "You really believe the crap you are spouting, don't you?"

 

"It makes no difference," Vegeta replied, drawing in his power. "He is about to become a dead kusotarre."

 

Bojack laughed, much to the annoyance of the others, and grinned widely at them. "Come on, then."

 

Gohan stared in awe. He knew exactly what the boy had done, since he had seen his father do it on Namek. He hadn't known that anyone else could do it... until he had seen Ryouga do it earlier that day. And now this boy! He wondered who the boy was. He was a Saiyan? Was he one of the ones that had been with Yamcha's mother's army? He wanted to ask, but was afraid to say anything yet.

 

Vegeta glared at him. "You must be in a hurry to die," he told the much taller man. "Well then, I will be most willing to help you on your way."

 

Without giving the others time to react, Vegeta charged in. He attacked Bojack with a series of punches and kicks that had almost no effect on the big man. When Vegeta paused and glared up at him, Bojack merely back-handed the Saiyan Prince off the stage, where he hit a group of tables with a loud crash.

 

"Kuso." Yamcha winced. "That has to hurt."

 

Vegeta was not about to be deterred from his fight with the man that had tried to kill him, and came flying back at him, shooting ki blasts at him that Bojack merely bounced out of the way.

 

Bojack laughed. "Is that what you call an attack? That is really pitiful! Let me show you how a real attack is done."

 

Bojack brought both hands up and fired a barrage of blasts back at the group, scattering the audience, and forcing the Z warriors to split up. Unfortunately one of the larger ki balls took Tenshinhan by surprise, and it struck him directly in the chest. The force of the blast knocked the warrior off of his feet and through the wall of the fighting arena.

 

"Tenshinhan!?!" Yamcha shouted.

 

"He is all right." Goku's eyes narrowed on Bojack, who was laughing at the scene of chaos unfolding in front of him. "We need to get these people out of here." He looked over at Gohan. "Too many people will get hurt if he continues this here. Gohan, take Serori and get these people somewhere safe."

 

"Hai!" The two small demi-Saiyans began swooping down, gathering up the surprised and terrified spectators, carrying them away to safety. They were moving so fast that it was difficult to see them unless you were concentrating very hard. They were more concerned with getting as many innocents to safety as possible, than they were with how comfortable those people would be on the ride there.

 

Ryouga shifted from foot to foot. The other boy his age had turned Super Saiyan so easily, as though it was something he was comfortable with. Ryouga had been told after his fight that he had done this as well, but he didn't entirely understand it. He knew that he had felt a surge in power, but what exactly it had been, and how to control it, still confused him.

 

Yamcha growled as he glared death at Bojack. "Hakusai, get out of here!" he commanded her. He could see Bulma starting to creep over to them. He knew she would only prove a distraction for all of them, regardless of the fact that she felt she could defend herself. "Get Bulma and Lunch to safety!"

 

The unknown boy gasped as he followed Yamcha's gaze. The way his eyes widened in alarm at Bulma's approach made the huge blue-skinned man grin evilly. "Oh, so that woman is important to you, is she?" he sneered. "Well in that case....!" He raised a hand, preparing to send a blast directly at her.

 

Hakusai didn't move, merely raised her arms, palms up and released a green-hued ki blast that no one had seen before. "Taiyoukuken!" she shouted, firing a blast at Bojack. Startled, the blue man turned his attack to Hakusai and released it at her instead.

 

The two beams collided, and Hakusai was forced back by the impact. Kami! He has got some strength, and I can't fight all out. This is not my day. The way her arms were starting to hurt she could tell that her beam wasn't strong enough to destroy Bojack's. But it changed the angle of the blast, forcing Bojack's up towards the ceiling, away from the remaining people. The impact completely annihilated the roof; large chunks of tile and wood rained down of them. A support beam fell in front of them, taking Bojack by surprise, pinning him beneath it and trapping him as more debris fell.

 

"You just had to do that, didn't you?" Vegeta muttered at her, his voice tinged with annoyance. He brushed the dust off of himself. "You took all the fun out of my fight."

 

"I always wanted to bring the roof down. Besides, I just saved your mate's life." She looked pleased with herself. Vegeta scowled at the truth in her statement and was about to say more, when a sudden build-up of ki flared out, bright light filling the arena and making the heroes shield their eyes. When it cleared, a smirking Bojack stood amidst the rubble, clothing torn but otherwise unscathed.

 

"You were saying?" Vegeta said, falling into battle stance.

 

"Time to get Bulma and leave, I think." Hakusai flew over to Bulma, scooped her up, and ignored the way Bulma was yelling at her to put her down. "Kick his ass, Vegeta!"

 

"Hn." Vegeta was vaguely aware of Hakusai's retreating ki and Bulma's anger at being treated so roughly. He knew he would get an earful when he got home, but now that he did not have to worry about Bulma's safety he could fight without distraction. "Now, where were we?"

 

Bulma was furious at being dragged off this way, but when she saw Tenshinhan still lying prone on the ground, and Lunch crouched over him, attempting unsuccessfully to carry him to safety, Bulma's demands suddenly changed.

 

"Hakusai!" she shouted at the Saiyan woman, attempting to get her attention over the noise. "We need to get Tenshinhan out of here!" Suddenly her own imperative shifted; a friend was in danger, and even though her other friends were still in the thick of the fight, they could defend themselves and Tenshinhan couldn't.

 

"Ok, ok! You don't have to yell, Bulma. I can hear you." Hakusai touched down right next to Lunch and the unconscious Tenshinhan. She put Bulma on her feet, watching as the smaller woman went over to her friend. "Is he ok?"

 

Bulma nodded. "Yes, but I can't lift him. I think I need you to carry him out of here." She frowned, looking around. "I'll get Lunch out of here. You get Tenshinhan." She pulled out a capsule and threw it to the ground, creating a two-person airbike. "Don't worry, I'll follow you!"

 

Hakusai looked at Bulma doubtfully. "Where are we going?" she asked, picking up Tenshinhan. Then she gave Bulma a startled look. "I hope someone remembered to get Ranma. Didn't you say he needed the tank?"

 

Bulma gasped, realizing that she had forgotten the boy. "Can you get him as well, Hakusai? Can you carry both of them?" She was terrified that the boy may have been hurt when the roof collapsed. Had anyone been there to protect him?

 

"Yeah, I can. Stay here. I will go and get him." She put Tenshinhan back down and flew back towards the half-demolished arena. When she got there, she saw Vegeta and Goku attacking Bojack head on; she smiled and ran back to the first-aid building.

 

Hakusai found Ranma in one of the rooms, still unconscious, but apparently unhurt from the damage to the building. She lifted him easily and snuck back out of the arena without anyone noticing. She joined Bulma and Lunch a moment later. "Well, here he is. Do we need to put him in the tank?"

 

Bulma studied Ranma's unconscious form. He seemed relatively unscathed, but she couldn't really tell without anything to check him for internal injuries. "I don't know," she admitted. "We'll need to get him to Capsule Corp, and then I can tell. I think we might need to put him in the tank." She glanced anxiously up at the others still fighting. "The only problem is," she said softly, worry threaded through her voice. "What if one of them needs the tank later, too?"

 

Hakusai was going to respond that they could take care of themselves, when she felt a sharp pain in her chest. She gasped from the intensity of it and closed her eyes to clear her mind and regain her composure. "Yamcha's been hurt," she managed to say softly. "His ki is low."

 

"Yamcha? What? No!" Bulma stared at her Saiyan friend in horror, then looked down at the boy in Hakusai's arms. She was suddenly in a quandary. Who might need the tank more? Well, there wasn't much they could do now. They had to get back and see whether or not this boy had any major injuries first, then they could decide.

 

"Let's go home, Hakusai. Maybe... we'll think of something. I'm not going to allow Yamcha to die!" she assured her friend gravely.

 

Hakusai tried to smile. "I know. And when he is healed I am going to beat him up for doing this to me." Hakusai scooped up Tenshinhan in her other arm and waited while Bulma and Lunch boarded the airbike. "Let's go."

 

The three women headed to Capsule Corp., with the two injured men in tow. Tenshinhan wasn't hurt badly enough to need the tank, Bulma decided after examining him carefully. She set him up in a cot in the infirmary, and Lunch took her place next to him, determined to help him. She had apparently sneezed at some point from the dust of the fight, since she was now in her blonde-haired and more violent form, but to Bulma's surprise she seemed just as attached to Tenshinhan and just as determined to see him get well again. I guess being with Tenshinhan changed her, Bulma thought in amazement.

 

She also decided that the boy Ranma did need the tank. There were internal injuries in him that weren't obvious at a casual glance, but her instruments told him that they were fairly serious if left untreated. She and Hakusai stripped him quickly and placed him in the tank, watching as the liquid filled it, surrounding him.

 

"I don't think it's going to take very long," Bulma said softly to Hakusai. "I think that if Yamcha needs the tank as well, there will be enough time...." She realized that her reassurances were pointless, because they weren't helping either herself or her friend.

 

It was as they were entering the lab from infirmary that Bulma gave out a sharp cry of pain, doubling over in agony. Despite Vegeta's attempts to keep her from experiencing what Bojack was doing, some of it still filtered to her. Enough of it that Bulma knew what was happening to him. His last thoughts to her were that he loved her, and then there was a strange sudden emptiness of the bond. She screamed then, as she fell to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably in the grief that she felt as she knew suddenly that she had lost him.

 

To be continued.....

 

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And in the next exciting episode of DragonBall Z: A Light in the Darkness... The battle against Bojack. Nasty cliffhanger. So, do you want to know what happens next? ^_~