Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Come Together ❯ Part 8 ( Chapter 8 )

Hi, everyone!

 

Hi, LadyKATT! No worries, in the end of this chapter some bulbs in Goku's head should switch on. If not, the ninth chapter might help.

 

Hi, JuSt-An_OuTcAsT! Wow, what a compliment. Well, I'm proud enough to have made you read my first story. But then again - I dare to ask - how many Vegeta/Goku fics have you read then? Try to read something written by B-chan (especially `Dirty Dancing'). Well, if you have already read it…I'm really honored.

For me usually it takes 3,5 - 4 pages in Word (1cm from both sides, 1,5 from top and bottom, and without spaces. It's just the way I like to write - I like to see everything under my nose, I don't like to scroll all way back or forward if I want to find something, it just takes time. If you'd like to know how it would be with spaces between paragraphs and such - simply copy the text and paste to your Word with your measurements, and I think it would make about 5 - 6 pages). Of course, sometimes it's less or more, but, as said, I try to keep to that my 3,5 - 4 pages standard.

Come Together by chayron (lttomb@yahoo.com)

Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ characters.

Warnings: Yaoi - Gk/Vg

 

Part 8

 

After six hours of flying, the landscape changed again. Hills and mountains replaced the flatlands of before. Soon the forest was covered in snow and ice. The party decided to raise their ki only a bit for fear of someone sensing them.

 

Vegeta felt hungry again, but he didn't want to stop, his motivation for the decision being that there wasn't a good place to stop. They had to move on. The prince wiped his forehead. He wanted to make up the time they lost oversleeping. His son was in danger, and he had overslept! Vegeta snorted, angry with himself. Some warrior I am!

 

Two hours later, Vegeta sensed a ki. He took note because it was much higher than the animals of the planet he had been sensing before. He decided to check it out. If it wasn't anything interesting, maybe they could eat the thing.

 

His stomach agreed with the idea, letting him know it thought it was about damn time it ate. Form how his vision blurred slightly from lack of food and energy, he realized he had pushed himself too far. He didn't feel good at all, and he bet that Kakarott wasn't faring much better. Vegeta cursed himself for his stupidity. At this rate they wouldn't be able to make up the lost time. At this rate, they would most likely die from exhaustion…

 

Vegeta quickly found a place to land in the snowy forest a bit away from where he sensed the large ki. Kakarott landed beside him. The prince heard the Fire Clan's planes hummed as they circled to find a place to land.

 

“You know, it's cold here…” Goku complained but didn't raise his ki in case the creature they sensed was able to feel ki changes. Goku was thankful that that they were in the middle of forest now, instead of flying through the cold and biting wind.

 

“Yeah, a bit…” Vegeta agreed, shivering. He heard the Fire Clan running over the snow towards them. He waited for them to catch up then started off in the direction of the mysterious ki.

 

Ahrae flared her ki trying to keep a steady body temperature. She was still wearing her khaki clothes with short sleeves, and they weren't very warm.

 

Vegeta stopped dead in his tracks. “Do you want to scare it away?!” he hissed at the girl.

 

“Scare what away?” Ahrae asked, dropping her ki and trying to understand what he was talking about. She looked questioningly at her mages who immediately informed her of the several strange kis.

 

Vegeta eyed her contemplatively, measuring her up. He had had his suspicions earlier but still couldn't believe them. “You cannot feel ki, can you?”

 

Ahrae rolled her eyes at him and sighed. “And I was hoping you finally decided to stop to eat.” Now she was looking around, hoping to see the source of the ki they all were talking about.

 

“Do you even feel my ki?” Vegeta pressed. He was becoming annoyed and being cold didn't help.

 

“I could feel it before, but now it's too weak,” Ahrae answered, hoping that after her remark the prince would decide to eat something. This wasn't healthy for Goku.

 

“How old are you?!” Vegeta stared at her. Despite him suppressing his ki, it was still high enough for everyone near him to feel.

 

“Three. If you don't want to eat, you should at least give something to Goku. I may not be able to feel anyone's ki, but I can most certainly hear Goku's rumbling stomach!” Ahrae snorted at the slightly frozen prince.

 

“You're only three years old?!” Goku almost choked. He looked at Vegeta, waiting to hear something about different years' calculation on different planets, but it seemed that she really was only three years old.

 

“Why is everyone suddenly so interested in my age?!” Ahrae snapped at them, crossing her freezing hands in order to warm herself. “I already have enough problems with my age at home! Let's go to find that creature so you can eat it.”

 

Ahrae turned to the side where she presumed the creature should be, then cursed when everyone else turned to the other side. She hated not to be able to feel ki. Of course, she was able to feel REALLY powerful beings, but it wasn't enough. She simply was too young and needed experience with ki reading. She had only started learning to control it, and still wasn't used to concentrating, creating ki fields and such. She could raise or lessen it without trouble, could blast everyone and everything in ten miles around her, but when it came to control… She rarely used it because she was afraid of blasting someone accidentally. And that was the main reason her status as commander was being questioned by some of her clan members.

 

Vegeta was grumbling under his breath and cursing all Fire Clan members for sending Ahrae with him. But he couldn't understand how she knew that he and Kakarott were more powerful than they seemed. If she had problems with sensing other kis, how in hell she knew?! Maybe some of her warriors had told her, but that couldn't be it. Because if they knew, then the Queen would have known too…

 

Goku and Vegeta were struggling through the knee-deep snow. Goku turned around to see how the short girl was doing. He stopped, amazed. He watched as one of the mages waved her hand and the snow melted to create a wet but easily traversable path. “Hey, you should go in front and do that for all of us!” Goku cried, outraged.

 

Vegeta looked back in time to see Ahrae stuck her tongue out at Goku. Apparently she was still angry about the conversation about her age. He heard her sneer “Walk by yourself!” to Goku. Goku responded by sticking his own tongue out at her.

 

Vegeta angrily stormed in between the two. “Stop it, you children! You…” he didn't finish the sentence. A loud roar echoed in the clearing as he was suddenly thrown through the air, unable to stop himself as he took several trees with him.

 

Vegeta fell onto his back. He shot up from the snow, his ki almost reaching Super Saiyan. What the…?! There wasn't anyone else around except Kakarott and the Fire Clan, and none of them had attacked him… He saw that Kakarott was in his fighting stance and looking around frantically. The Fire Clan members already stood in some kind protective field created by one of the mages. They stared at something deeper in the forest. Vegeta followed their gaze but wasn't able to see anything. He floated higher, but still didn't see anything. “What was it?!” shouted he at them.

 

“You can't see them?!” Ahrae was surprised. She turned to her mages, barked some orders then turned back to Vegeta. She drew the sword from her back, left the power field, and went to stand by Goku who was still crouched in his fighting stance. “Would you leave your Prince if I told you that, even if you were judged on my planet, you would be freed after a couple of weeks?” she asked, looking at Goku.

 

“What?!” Goku stared at her openmouthed. What in the hell was she saying!? “Do you know who attacked us? Are they dangerous?”

 

“Yes, and they are coming fast. And there are many of them.” Ahrae glanced at Goku again. “Would you leave him?”

 

Goku stared at her. Then something hit him on the back, knocking him down. He leapt to his feet and turned around. Nothing. He saw how Ahrae suddenly moved to the side as if avoiding something. Fuck, these things are invisible!

 

“No,” Goku shook his head, “I won't leave him.” He frantically searched the place around him, trying to spot or feel anything. Nothing. He watched Vegeta who was whirling in the air above his head. It seemed that the prince didn't see anything either.

 

“That's your choice…” Ahrae nodded and turned around. Suddenly she extended her hand, aiming at something.

 

Goku heard a thud as if she had hit something. And then he saw it. After she had hit it, the air around Ahrae's hand rippled and a white furry creature appeared. It stared at them with black piercing eyes, growling threateningly, trying to get free from the grip Ahrae had around its neck. Ahrae tightened her fingers, and there was a sharp snap as the creature's head fell loosely to the side.

 

“There are more than a hundred of them coming,” Ahrae said, disposing of the creature. “They aren't strong, but if I am right, you can't see them for some reason…and they can fly…” She looked at her mages in the power field. She had to help them to defend themselves. Ahrae ran back to her mages, drawing her sword and cutting the neck of one of the creatures in her way.

 

Vegeta suddenly felt sharp claws scratching his side. He whirled around in the air but still couldn't see anything. He was slowly getting angry. What the hell was this nonsense?! He turned Super Saiyan and flared his ki, causing some frustrated growls around him. The prince cursed himself when he realized that he was already surrounded. Moreover, he couldn't feel their ki. He couldn't even smell them! He began to hit the space around him randomly, orienting himself by growls and snickers, finally being able to see what had attacked him earlier. Big, white, furry creatures grinned ferally at him, giving the impression that they were all canines and sharp claws. Now he was thankful that Ahrae had given him armor.

 

The creatures weren't hard to kill; they fell like flies when he hit them. But every one that he killed was replaced with five others. Vegeta frowned in impatience and blasted the space around him clear. He glanced at Kakarott. Orange dressed Saiyan was Super Saiyan too and didn't seem to be having any major problems. Ahrae was near her mages. She was standing calmly in the field and just waved her sword from time to time, making the huddle of white furry beasts around the field grow bigger and bigger. No doubt, she could see them…

 

Goku growled when he saw Vegeta knocked from the sky and into the snow several meters from him. He grinned proudly as the prince got up and flared his ki, ready to deflect any possible attack.

 

Suddenly everything was calm. Vegeta looked at the snow, expecting to see footprints of the beasts. Nothing. He heard rustling whoosh and was knocked onto his back again. Vegeta felt sharp claws tearing into his skin and hissed in pain. The prince hit the air around him but missed. Then he heard an ocean of grumbling and growling advancing on him. Vegeta immediately shot into the air, trying to power up to Super Saiyan Two and was shocked to learn that he couldn't for some reason. He couldn't summon any more power. He quickly glanced at Goku. The other Saiyan was in the air, too.

 

“Vegeta, I can't power up!” Goku shouted to Vegeta. It was evident from his tone that Goku was troubled. When Vegeta didn't answer, Goku realized that the prince couldn't. Then saw blood running down Vegeta's thigh. Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!

 

Vegeta was tossed to the side, hitting several creatures that were nearby. He wanted to get a good distance from them and blast them to hell, but each time he tried he was pulled back into the fray. Suddenly his armor was ripped away. The prince screamed in pain and anger feeling several ribs braking. He trashed around, succeeded in freeing himself then launched several blasts at the place he was being held. Several burning bodies fell to the ground, but others charged at him.

 

Vegeta was knocked from the sky again. His hair began to shimmer between yellow and black. He stumbled to his feet, the snow under him turning pink. He tried to clear his head but was knocked on his back again. He saw several scorched creatures rushing at him and blasted them away. But there were more that he couldn't see, though he was able to hear them well enough.

 

Vegeta suddenly felt sharp teeth digging into his throat. He blasted everything around him he could feel and see, then stood up, pressing his fingers to his neck, trying to stop the bleeding. He felt weak. He cursed himself again for not stopping to eat. It was his fault now he and Kakarott were so vulnerable. Damn his stubbornness!

 

Vegeta watched as Kakarott rushing toward him, blasting everything in his way. Kakarott looked like hell, too. His left arm was covered in blood and he stumbled a bit.

 

“Kakarott, go to the Fire Clan. These creatures cannot reach through that power field,” Vegeta motioned to Fire Clan, still holding his bleeding neck with his other hand. He was tossed to the side again, knocking several trees down. He felt a huddle of bodies pile on top of him and press him into the cold snow under his back.

 

Goku cursed, rushing to Vegeta's side but was knocked down, his ki melting the snow around him. He felt sharp claws digging into his hip and heard his armor crack. He kicked several creatures off of him and looked around for Vegeta. He saw him lying under the pile of burned creatures. He looked quickly toward the Fire Clan. They were standing in that power field. The creatures weren't able to reach them. Ahrae and her mages seemed to be amusing themselves while blasting any of the creatures that were foolish enough to come near the force field. Why in the hell weren't they helping him and Vegeta?! Everything had happened so fast that they hadn't been able to the Fire Clan and their protective barrier. And now Vegeta was too weak to reach the force field. But it was the only chance for them. He had to reach Vegeta and IT them both into the field.

 

One of the creatures rammed into Vegeta, covering them both with snow. Vegeta growled, feeling the creature's claws in his side, tearing easily through the fabric of his fighting suit. He bucked to toss it away, but only succeeded in making it tear his flesh off with its claws. His vision blurred, and suddenly he was very cold. Finally, after some struggling, he managed to wring creature's neck and kick the unmoving flesh away. He felt extremely weak. He frowned down at the red snow and realized he was seriously wounded.

 

Vegeta slowly rose to his hands and knees, his eyes searching for Goku. He saw him slicing the air around him. Goku's hair was flickering between gold and black. It seemed that soon everything would end…and not to their benefit… He had to save him! But how?! He couldn't even stand on his own feet!

 

“Please, Ahrae, take him with you! Please!” Vegeta tried to shout, but the sound was no more than a whisper. But he could see that she heard him. Her eyes fell on him. She was watching him. “Please, save him!” Ahrae shook her head at him. No! No! No! He watched as one of her mages created a portal. They were leaving.

 

Goku saw the Fire Clan one by one begin to create portals and disappear. Then it dawned on him. It had been a trap… His mind was foggy, but he noticed that the girl was still standing and watching Vegeta and him. How could she..? He felt his legs giving in. His blond hair flickered to black. Cold clung to his bones. He saw Vegeta fight against three white monsters… Vegeta was bleeding all over. No, Vegeta, no! Goku got up but was tossed to the ground again. His hair flashed gold but quickly faded back to black. He almost couldn't see anything. He reached his hand in Ahrae's direction. “Please, help Vegeta.”

 

This was it. Goku watched the unmoving girl. They would never save Trunks. Trunks would die. He would never see his own sons again… Gohan, Goten… Vegeta would die. Vegeta… He would die. And this time it was forever… They both would die…

 

Ahrae watched them fight, watched how they grew weaker and weaker. She watched how the red droplets painted the snow under their feet, watched as they fell to the cold ground. She watched and wondered. This was what she wanted. It had been her plan after all…to lure them here where they wouldn't be able to use all the power they had. She had brought them here to lessen the chance of someone from her clan becoming a victim. They had come here to be farther from her planet in order to save the clan's reputation (They came with the white flag after all…). Her clan didn't even need to taint their hands with blood.

 

Perfect idea. Perfect plan. Perfect outcome. Perfect revenge.

 

TBC