A/N: I think this was the hardest chapter of them all to write, I just didn't know how to finish this story. But finally, I am done. Whew. Of all the stuff I have written so far, I have never finished any except for this one. It is strange how captivating the first chapters can be, they practically write themselves, but the further the plot develops, the harder it gets to writ. And the end is the worst. I hope you are not disappointed!

To Green Eyes: * cackles maniacally * don't we all love Gohan torture? I sure do *giggles a bit more * enjoy this chapter!

To Kegger007: well, this is the last chapter. Do you like the twist I brought into it? As for my writing skills: As often as I reread and proof-read my own chapters it should better be good. At first, I write it out on paper. Then, I type it in the computer and make slight changes to the places which are not completely clear. Then I go through it again and put in all the details that just give the story a certain flair and look for any mistakes so that I won't contradict myself. Then, in the final step, I check it for easy reading and any spelling mistakes. Only then do I post it. But the ideas: they just flow out of my pen when I am sitting somewhere on the couch or when I am bored at school or when I have nothing to do. When I started this story, I never knew in which direction it would go (originally, I wanted to make it a mega-crossover with Neon Genesis Evangelion, Candidate for Goddess and any other Anime series I have seen, but it didn't turn out that way), and every chapter is even knew to me. Hope you enjoy the conclusion to this story!

Epilogue

What kind of demon has possessed me to make such a ridiculous suggestion? 'To unite to become the supreme being'? That sounds corny to me, just what the evil villain from a standard movie would say. I have never been power-hungry before, so why did I suggest joining our forces in order to get stronger?

Sometimes I am a little bit afraid of myself. There are times where everything seems so distant, but so far, nothing has happened. However, I feel as if I had no control over myself during those times. I don't know what will happen if I loose my sanity again like at the Cell-games -

or with Mistress Denna. Her name strikes uncontrollable fear into my heart; although at the same time, I pity her for what she had to suffer through. She made me experience everything first-hand through our mind link, and I could feel her sprit break under the tortures that were impended on her as if it was mine...

I am aware of the other me, the innocent me, following my trail of thoughts, and weakly I try to close myself off from him. I don't want him to become as tainted as I am…

But if you don't allow me to see, I can't trust you. And if we should reunite, we will have to share each other's memories. Otherwise I can't trust you.

Yes, why should he blindly accept my offer? Why would he want to live with me, another mind in his body? I don't think I have done anything to gain his trust. He will have to assure himself of my intentions; however, I hate to hurt him with my memories, him who has saved me from myself. I try to get that across to him, but he softly tells me that he has to see.

He shows me the reoccurring nightmare that has been haunting his whole life of roughly ten or eleven days. My heart beats wildly with the fear that is flooding through the entire dream, the fear that he must have experienced every time. The pictures might not be familiar to him, but they are to me. They are all my memories until her face and her memories, that she had shown me, appear.

So she has not only affected me greatly, she is also haunting him. Feeling my resolve weakening when faced with his silent pleading for a reason, I finally give up my resistance and curl up in a corner of my mind, trying to protect myself from what is to come. Fear rises, and I hug my knees tightly, hiding my face in my arms. I don't want to see them again…

But nothing is happening. He doesn't do anything but stare at me, and his gaze seems to burn a hole into me. Sensing his sudden reluctance to look into my memory, his surprising care about me, I draw my courage together and slowly get out of my fetal position. I do not dare looking into his eyes when I urge him to go on because I am too ashamed. He does have a right to know with whom he is perhaps going to share a body and it is not within my right to deny him that. Steeling myself, I give him the ok-sign.

Nothing could have prepared me for the following experience. It is so infinitely painful when he swiftly accesses that part of me I am trying to forget. It is tearing, scraping, burning, violating my mind. All the old wounds that have never healed properly are ripped open again and start bleeding as I am forced to relive all of my horrible past.

Radditz' visit when I was four - and the death of my father

The year in the wilderness together with Piccolo - with the constant knowledge that we are the only ones who can protect the world against the Saiya-jin

The arrival of Nappa and Vegeta - and the terrible feeling of helplessness when Piccolo sacrificed himself for me

The trip to Namek - the encounter with Furiza - Kuririn's death

The year afterwards when my father didn't come home

The following three years preparing for the androids - the need to become stronger than ever before

Then, finally, the year that had passed within a day - the endless whiteness of the Room of Spirit and Time - the painful transformation to Super-Saiya-jin

The fight against Cell - the pain when he squeezed me half to death - the even greater pain when he forced me to watch my friends slowly being killed by his hideous creations, the Cell Juniors - the ultimate pain when my father had to sacrifice himself because of the mistakes I had made

The year of depression afterwards

The arrival of Goten who was a constant remainder of my failure, but who also brought a lot of happiness for me

The two strange guys that had popped up in my room

The time with Mistress Denna - pain, suffering, agony - the brief moment of joy when we forged our Sharing - the horror when she made me experience her worst hours through our new mental bond - the feeling of being a girl, of being raped, of being broken over and over again - the beginning of insanity when she delved into my mind and showed me my failures over and over again - the act of desperation when I built up an iron wall around my core and retreated into my shelter -

only to realize that I was caught within my own brain

Hopelessness - guilt - despair - self-hatred

He retreats, clearly shaken, terror in his eyes, trembling while he moves away from me.

I don't let him go though. I hold him tightly, crying on his chest as he cries on mine. Sometime later, we slowly crawl out of our tight embrace, just looking at each other. Finally, he speaks with an emotion-laden, trembling voice.

I am sorry. I should not have doubted you. Are you still willing to share your body with me? I am aware of the fact that I am only a small part of you, but would you allow me to share what is rightfully yours?

I am so surprised that he hasn't turned his back on me after what I have done in my past, that I can't say anything. Wordlessly, I get up and hug him in deep gratitude, not noticing that both of us start glowing, drifting together, until we finally become one being again.

-----<<<<<>>>>>-----

The being that was neither Gohan nor Bardoku but neither both of them, got up slowly and walked around, testing out his limbs that hadn't been used for quite a while. It felt strange, two minds sharing one body, but it made no difference to him. He knew what he had to do, so he focused all his thoughts on the place where he wanted to be. To his surprise, the teleportation move worked, and he appeared on top of a beautiful, intricately woven design that consisted of only one line, seemingly moving like a living being.

He immediately felt the presence of a very powerful person, old, wise, and experienced, but he chose to ignore it as it posed no danger. The outside that could be seen through tall windows consisted of neon green grass and a pink sky dotted with some fluffy, white clouds. The boy with two minds did not flinch or react otherwise when the person started speaking in his head after he had finished his inspection of his surroundings. He just listened quietly.

"You have found me. Congratulations, that is more than many have accomplished. I apologize for all you had to suffer through. I know how much it hurt, I had to go through the very same trials of mind and body. Do you know why you are here?"

The boy thought about the question for several minutes, but he came to no conclusions even with his combined intelligence. There was still an inaccessible spot in his mind, and it was guarded by a picture of the very same line that wound on the floor. The being seemed to have followed his thoughts as he said:

"Very well. Try to open the barrier on your own, just like you have freed yourself on Vegeta-sei."

The boy studied the barrier and probed it with some tendrils of his mind. It was very resilient, so brute force would accomplish nothing, and it was so tight that not even particles as thin as air could get through. There had to be another way.

Carefully, he grabbed one of the thin threads that spun the complex ornament. He was delighted to see that it came off easily without making any knots or ties. One by one, he started unraveling the threads of the picture, and finally, the memory became clear to him. The Gohan-part of his mind shuddered as the vision overcame him, and the Bardoku-part just watched curiously.

-----<<<<<>>>>>-----

"We must leave you here, our Lord has given us orders. Good luck to you."

With those words, the huge pink guy and the small purple man with the white Mohawk retreated and left Gohan alone in the big, heavily decorated room with huge windows through which a strange planet could be seen. The grass was neon green, the sky was pink, and the gravity was about 20g. The most prominent feature in the room was a big, circular ornament that consisted of a silvery and golden line that was woven in a very intricate design and seemed to move on its own accord.

Suddenly, he realized that he wasn't alone anymore. A huge, suffocating presence was there together with him in that room, a soft, loving, gentle presence, an infinitely wise, strong and awe-inspiring presence which he had never felt before.

Without thinking about it, Gohan sank to his knees and bowed, honoring and praising the mighty presence. The presence was so strong that it could kill him within a few seconds, but he was not afraid of it as it exuded compassion and love. The presence became more dense, and it manifested into the body of an old man.

He was an old, wrinkled man whose head was bald from age, and he was shrouded in long, purple robes. He was hunched over tiredly, but his silver-specked eyes still glinted very much awake and showed that he was by no means the old doddery grandfather he outwardly seemed to be. His voice was soft and gentle, but firm and strong like the power he exuded.

"Rise."

Without thinking twice about it, Gohan complied and got up, marvelling about the presence.

"Do you know why you are here?"

Numbly, he shook his head. Why should a person, a father-murderer like him be called in front of such a high being?

"I see, you still blame yourself for your father's death. Why don't you believe your friends and your family? But that is not what I wanted to talk to you about. As you can see, I am very old and my life span is almost over. Do you want to be my successor?"

What? Gohan was completely confused. Him being the successor of the presence in front of him? That had to be a joke, there was no possibility that he could be serious. Gohan was still a boy with very little experience, and he should become successor to such a person?

"I was a little boy once, too, although that was more than a million years ago. Yes, I am very old, and I am tired. I have been looking for a successor to my position for more than 5.000 years, but so far I haven't had any luck. My job is very tiring, but somebody has to do it, as I can't let the many different dimensions go to the dogs. But not many are suited for such a difficult job, so you would have to go through a test to see if you are able to accomplish the tasks demanded from you."

"But why did you choose me?"

"Because you are special. Not only do you have great mental and physical powers that have not been awakened yet, but you also possess a strange connection to your grandfather Bardoku that even I can't explain. He says he has been waiting for you ever since the day he died and that you have to go through the test I have decided on for you, but he refuses to tell me anything else. And his mental powers are so great that they rival my own. Would you obey to his wishes?"

His grandfather? He had never heard of his father's father, but the name 'Bardoku' sounded oddly familiar to him, it touched something inside him, and that something urged him on to accept the offer. Gohan's voice almost sounded like a stranger to himself when he finally answered.

"Yes, I will."

Gohan felt himself getting drowsy, but he couldn't look away from those sparkling, silver-specked eyes. Soon, he sank down to the floor and everything went blank.

-----<<<<<>>>>>-----

"Do you see now?", HE asked.

The dual being nodded gently. His existence alone was a grave paradoxon of time, he was his grandfather and his grandson at the same time. To make sure that he was born, he would have to split apart into two entities again, into his grandfather Bardoku and his grandson Gohan so that he/his grandfather could sire his son/father. Not to mention that the time-line might be disturbed by the non-existence of Bardoku.

He shook his head. All that was giving him a headache. How did Bardoku know what to tell HIM? Turning towards the old man again, he uttered in a carefully controlled voice.

"Would you help me ensuring my existence? Could you split me apart again, send Bardoku back to Vegeta-sei and Gohan back into his own timeline, both without memories? And could you make Bardoku remember this conversation as soon as he dies?"

HE nodded.

"Yes, I can. But before that, I would like to know if you are going to keep the word Gohan has given me."

"I will tell you as soon as Gohan and Bardoku are reunited once again. That will be when Gohan reaches the same age that Bardoku has died at. Until then, I cannot give you an honest answer because I can't speak for my future self. At the moment, it is my first priority to ensure that the paradoxon I am is not going to mess up this reality."

The being that was neither Gohan nor Bardoku, neither grandson nor grandfather, caught the unspoken whiff of acceptance and … pride … when HE nodded. HE spread HIS arms, and soon, the room was humming with HIS energy. Looking one last time at HIM, the dual being gave up his existence for the sake of the two boys it consisted of.

-----<<<<<>>>>>-----

Opening his eyes, Bardoku stared into a pair of crimson orbs that belonged to Rabishu. Sleepily, he looked around. All the elders were gone, only Rabishu-sama had remained. The warm voice of the Ueisutodamupu-jin woke him up completely.

"The barrier in your mind has been opened. There had some sort of split personality been hidden behind it, but you have eliminated it. We have freed the memories of your past and you pose no danger to us - you just had a slight case of amnesia. So you are now accepted as a full member of Saiyan society. General Marduku is going to show you to your new quarters."

Yes, that was what he had always wanted. Being part of the people he so clearly belonged to, and he could even remember his past. He had been sent to a small, blue planet and there he had grown up peacefully because he had hit his head and forgot his purging mission. A Saiya-jin had landed on it about a year ago, and had tried to convince him to go back to Vegeta-sei.

Bardoku had not taken kindly to the battle-lusting creature and had given him a good run for his money. In the end though, he had been defeated and was thrown into his space-pod. The sudden loss of his home must have caused his amnesia to fade, and when he had landed on Vegeta-sei, his old personality must have surfaced. But why did he feel that there had been so much more behind the barrier?

But it was gone now and the Ueisutodamupu-jin had said that there had been nothing else behind the wall. Shrugging his shoulders, he got up and followed the Ueisutodamupu-jin through a set of doors out into the bright blue sunlight and the purple sky.

-----<<<<<>>>>>-----

He woke up when his head banged against the table. Rubbing the sore spot, Gohan scolded himself for falling asleep over his math work. He knew better than that. But the dream he had had was quite interesting, something about jumping through time and space, and him being his own grandfather.

Gohan chuckled. His mind was making up really weird things, perhaps it was a sign that he was studying too much. For a moment, he had even thought he had a scar over one of his eyes, like the one he got in his dream. He should lay off some of the brain-work, because in those two years, he had done enough studying to last his whole life - although he knew his mom would have a fit.

But it was time that he finally did something for himself, so far he had only been doing what everybody expected of him. He had been studying for his mother, he had been baby-sitting Goten, and he had displayed a happy-go-lucky-façade for everybody else. Within those two years, he had constantly obeyed his mother and never fought, although he knew he had to keep in shape because he was now the strongest being on earth. The next time there was an attack, he wanted to be prepared and not sent into battle without any clue of his abilities. And he had come to love fighting as long as it wasn't a life-or-death battle.

Smiling sincerely for the first time after his father's death, he jumped out of the window and flew into the direction he sensed Piccolo's ki in. His blood was singing with anticipation, he was itching for a good spar, and he was looking forward to fighting his sensei. He was finally starting to make peace with his Saiyan side and his haunting past.

-----<<<<<The End>>>>>-----