Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Crossroads ❯ Overload ( Chapter 4 )

This chapter is dedicated to both Hella and Biggi, two people I appreciate a lot and consider as close friends, and I want to see them happy. :-)

Disclaimer: Don't own DBZ.

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Svenja stared numbly into the distance, unmoving. Her whirling thoughts had finally slowed down after a while, them running in circles didn't help at all. Now she was only tired, in mind and in body. She had been sitting and staring, waiting for the last couple of hours since Zura had fallen asleep.
She turned her head slightly and looked at the weird guy lying slumped in the corner. That position didn't look very comfortable, he'd be in a lot of pain when he woke up.
She snorted. 'Yeah, right. As if some stiff muscles are his main problems.'
Who, or rather what was that guy anyway? Okay, he had answered her when she had asked. But it didn't make much sense, only adding to her confusion. "Don't!" she hissed fiercely at herself, firmly stopping the train of thoughts she had been over and over again without getting any closer to a solution. She didn't want to go there again, it felt like a downward spiral with the same ever-repeating patterns, getting tighter and tighter and tighter…
"Stop it!" she said aloud and cast a guilty glance at the injured man in the corner. No change.
She stood up slowly, rubbing her tired legs. She had the urge to move, walk around a bit. Not only because her stiff muscles demanded it but also because it eased the tension that had been building up inside her. Gods, how she hated waiting, she always had. And this was much worse than simply waiting for a bus or for some exam results.
'Curious how perception changes depending on situations,' she thought wryly and started pacing, walking out of the ruin and circling it a few times, stomping and waving her arms to get her circulation running again.
After a few minutes she stepped into the former building again and looked around, looking for something, anything to do. She'd give a lot for a Rubix Cube right now. Given her lack of tactics she'd be occupied with that thing for the next few days. If she didn't smash it to pieces a lot sooner. Her wandering eyes stopped at the device fastened around Zura's arm and she stepped closer, her curiosity being piqued. She hunched down close enough to see the device clearly, but not so close that he'd perceive it as a threat as he had before, not an easy feat considering where Zura was lying.

Not that she was afraid of him, after all he was injured and unable to move much. But still, there was no reason to piss him off more than necessary. After all, she needed him to explain things. She thought about how he had looked when she had asked him the last question. He had seemed genuinely surprised and confused, and even though his answer had disappointed her deeply his offer to talk about it later had kept a tiny bit of hope alive.

She eyed the device curiously. What did he call it? A Healing Enhancer? His sarcasm at the explanation came back to her and she growled silently. What a smart-ass….
The Healing Enhancer didn't make much more sense to her than it had before. Symbols in a strange language she didn't know and rhythmically blinking lights. She frowned. Did the lights blink in rhythm with a person's pulse? Or was the device the dominating factor in the healing process, did it slow down or speed up a person's pulse to match the rhythm? And what meant Healing Enhancer exactly? What exactly did it enhance?

Svenja smiled slightly, that was what she had needed. Something to occupy her mind, something to puzzle out. Even if she wouldn't get answers to all of her questions, she was sure this was something Zura could answer.
In a way it was a kind of substitute. A poor one, admittedly, since it didn't solve her main problems, but still a substitute. And maybe the fact that she'd found something she could get clear and definite answers from would help her find a way to deal with her main questions.
And she had always been interested in stuff like that anyway, medical things especially, and her deep uneasiness when it came to needles only enhancing that interest. She shuddered at the memory of Zura jamming the needle into his arm, feeling slightly sick. How had he been able to do that?

She stared a bit longer at the device, its rhythmically blinking lights making her sleepy. Shuffling back a bit to provide herself with some space for her legs she sat down a short distance away from Zura, her eyes never leaving the strangely calming and hypnotizing blinking lights.

When the pattern of the lights changed, increasing slightly in speed, she couldn't say how much time had passed.

**

Zura dreamed. He was once again eight years old, roaming the halls and corridors of Slianka Station with the other kids, getting in trouble. He knew it was a dream, reliving the events and at the same time experiencing them as a detached observer.
He saw his younger version getting dragged to the house where he lived by one of the station's security people and shoved firmly into the building when the door was opened. "Really, Frasid," the security guy said exasperatedly, "that's the third time in this cycle, and this time we found them near the launching area. I know it's not your fault, but we have other things to do than getting the young ones out of security areas. No," he held a hand up and shook his head when Frasid opened his mouth, "I know. Kazac was there too. Those two are always getting into trouble. I know very well we can't keep them grounded forever. Hadn't worked with us either, remember?" he grinned, but became serious again. "All I'm asking is that you speak with him. Try to talk some sense into him. As will I with my son."
He turned around to go after sharing a rueful grin with his childhood friend, stopping only shortly when the young boy's voice rang out. "Yeah, say hi to Kaz from me, okay?"

"Right," he snorted and walked home to have a serious talk with his offspring, knowing very well it wouldn't have any effect.

Frasid closed the door and sighed. The wild-haired boy grinned up at his foster father cheekily, knowing exactly what would come now. But it never did. "Come on," the pale-skinned man said and sat down on the couch in the living area, suppressing a grin at the boy's unsure and defiantly curious expression. "You know," Frasid said after letting the boy squirm for a few moments, "I thought about it. You don't use your own name anymore, and that's okay, so don't give me that look. But we need to call you something. And I think I have the perfect name for you." He grinned, showing his elongated sharp teeth. "How about.… Itazura?"

**

The dream blurred and vanished gradually, and Zura slowly rose to consciousness again, for a short moment disoriented before he remembered what had happened.

He groggily opened his eyes and out of habit checked his surroundings. The girl was now sitting propped up against the wall nearby, eyeing him warily with tired eyes.
Had she been awake the whole time? It didn't matter, he had more important things to do.

He turned his focus inwardly, testing his muscles, slowly flexing arms and legs, trying to assess the healing progress enhanced by the H.E.
Better. Much better. He was still sore as hell, and he didn't even want to think about the numerous bruises but he was convinced he could move for a longer period of time on his own if he didn't have to run or get into a hand-to-hand fight.

Lifting a hand he felt his ribcage and along his upper body, and was satisfied when he found the bones had already started to mend.

That Healing Enhancer had definitely been worth the small fortune he'd had to pay for it, without its help he would have had to wait a couple of days until reaching this condition. The device was more than handy when it came to initialising and firing up a person's own healing abilities. It couldn't work miracles, it only helped already existing abilities to unfold to their maximum. And Zura, belonging to a species known for their highly advanced and adaptive immune system, had plenty of them.
But it only did what the name implied, enhancing the healing. Any body part beyond repair couldn't get fixed, no matter how long or extensively the H.E was used.

'Enough stalling' Zura growled inwardly and turned toward the issue he had avoided until now. His tail.
Taking a deep breath he picked his appendage up carefully, running his fingers down its length, trying to put only enough pressure into his touch as was needed to feel the bone structure, dreading what he would find.
He almost collapsed with relief when he found the vertebrae still intact and not completely shattered into tiny fragments as he had feared. It wouldn't be completely healed for a substantial time and was way more damaged than his ribs, but it would heal.
He didn't know what he would have done if things had turned out otherwise. Sure, he'd still be who he was even without his tail - he shuddered at the thought - but something would be missing, and not only in a physical sense. His tail wasn't only another limb used for balance and picking things up, or the source of his ability to transform. It was also something making him to the person he was, a part of his identity. It was a reminder of where he came from, a symbol of his heritage.
A surge of happiness rushed through him, and he found himself staring at the confused face of Svenja, grinning widely and unable to contain his relief.

Svenja was confused. Meaning she was in the familiar state of mind that had accompanied her since she had vanished from the rainy street of her hometown.
She had almost been lulled to sleep by the hypnotizing lightshow of that device when its pattern had changed, and shortly afterward Zura had opened his eyes, moving his limbs a little, muscles twitching slightly. He had lifted his tail from where it had been laying on the ground, almost caressing its length, and then his face had lit up and he started grinning happily, the simple change in facial expression making him appear as a completely different person. She could only stare when he turned his head and beamed at her, a smile so infectious she felt the corner of her mouth automatically lifting in response.

"Er…" Svenja cleared her throat after a few moments, feeling a bit awkward. That had been weird… "Um… what's the good news?" she asked curiously. Zura slowly stood up in a careful and controlled motion with his tail still secure in his grip, causing Svenja to scramble to her feet as well. He looked at her, more sober than before but with an undeniable happiness underlying his features.

"My tail. It will heal," he answered smugly.

"Oh… well congratulations, I guess." she said dubiously, eyeing the furry appendage in his hand. It didn't seem any different than it had some hours ago, still looking mangled, dried blood matting the greater part of the dark fur. But it didn't seem to pain him as much as before. Come to think of it…

"How can you stand?" she blurted out, "You were barely able to move unaided some hours ago!" Either her memory of his health status prior to his nap was completely wrong and twisted or he had undergone a really amazing recovery in a very short time.

Zura removed the device one-handedly from his underarm and held it up. "Thanks to this little thing."

"What is it?" she asked in wonder. If what he said about that device being the reason for his recovery was true… she couldn't even start to imagine what the results would be if something like that was available at her home.

"I told you. It's a Healing Enhancer." he grinned smirked in satisfaction at the device.

Oh. Back to that again. Svenja sighed exasperatedly. "Yes. You told me what it's called. But what does it do? No, wait." She shook her head, forcing her tired mind to focus. As piqued as her curiosity was, other things took priority right now.

"Okay," she said after taking a deep breath. "You said we'd talk, right?"

He regarded her for a moment, his gaze unreadable. Svenja swallowed, getting a sinking feeling in her stomach.

Now that she had willingly forced herself to focus, her questions and fears she had successfully managed to shove away for a while came back with a vengeance. What if he just said no? What if, now that he could move again, he just went away? What…

"All right." his voice ripped her out of her rising panic and into the present. "Walk with me."

"Huh?" Svenja blinked and stared at his back as he steadily walked towards the hole in the wall. "Walk with you? Where to? There's nothing out there! Hey, wait!" she yelled angrily and stomped towards the 'exit' he had vanished through just seconds ago, and almost ran him over where he had indeed waited.

"Whoops", she muttered and took two steps back, meeting his irritated glare with one of her own.

"Watch it!" they hissed simultaneously, then stared at each other in surprise and annoyance.

Zura blinked and turned his head. "Moving the injured body parts is important to make sure they don't stiffen up. I want to keep my flexibility." He explained, as much to her benefit as to his own. Happy as he was to have his mobility back, moving still hurt like blazes.

"Oh," Svenja muttered. "Okay, and where should we go? Did you have any particular piece of rubble in mind?" she asked sarcastically, apprehensive about the upcoming conversation, glad she would maybe finally get answers and at the same time scared like hell of them.

Getting answers meant she couldn't pretend anymore, couldn't flee into her own little delusion that everything would turn out to be a really big misunderstanding. Of course she knew that was a lie, and she didn't for one minute believe it. But it was a kind of sanctuary, one of the little things she subconsciously relied on to keep her sanity.

Zura snorted in answer, flinching slightly as the sudden muscle contraction caused numerous nerve endings to scream their protest at his brain. "I don't care," he muttered distractedly, looking towards his broken ship. How the hell was he going to repair that?

Svenja tilted her head, taking in the bleak look he gave the spaceship that had almost flattened her. "Come on", she said, and started walking towards the ship, "we might as well go there. It's only a short distance, but it beats walking in circles."

They walked slowly, Zura still becoming accustomed to his current state of mobility, and Svenja trying to find out how to start. When they reached the edge of the crater Zura stopped suddenly, causing Svenja to turn around. "What?" she asked. Zura only shook his head and sat down carefully.

"Let's stay here," he said, uncomfortably aware that he actively avoided going any closer right now, dreading the extent of the damage his ship had taken.

"Okay," Svenja muttered, sitting down next to him, her caution of being within grabbing distance momentarily forgotten as she struggled for words. She frowned and picked up a jagged piece of stone, playing with it. Who knew what it originally had belonged to? Maybe a part of a wall, lending stability and structure to a building, or maybe it belonged to something like a stone bench or well … Or maybe it had always been a piece of rubble. 'I'm like that stone,' she thought distantly before shaking her head wildly, irritated at the downslide her thoughts had taken. There were moments when introspective thoughts just weren't needed, or wanted.

Turning her head she froze when she saw Zura looking at her quizzically. She had always been one unable to hide her feelings, her facial expressions betraying her every time. "Um…" she muttered uneasily, moving her arm to throw the stone away but finding herself unable to do so.

"Frankly, I don't know where to start." she began, giving up her effort to find a good starting point. "I asked you before, why am I here?"

Zura watched her a moment. "I still don't know."

"Thought so…" she muttered looking down, "neither do I." A short rush of helpless rage coursed through her and she threw the piece of stone angrily away, jerking and casting Zura a guilty glance when it rebounded with a metallic 'clang' off the spaceship's hull. "Sorry," she mumbled.

They sat in silence for some moments, the only sound surrounding them the never-ceasing wind flowing through the ruins.

"What happened?" Zura asked calmly. He didn't understand what was going on, but the first suspicions he had had seemed to be wrong. He had seen a lot of convincing actors in his life, but that girl wasn't one. Actors could simulate emotions, but he had never encountered one with the ability to feign their own smell. And Svenja was clearly desperate, her scent consisting of negative feelings; hopelessness, fear, anxiety - a mixture carnivores on every planet would recognize at once as the smell of prey. There was no way one could fake that, he was sure of it.

He watched her swallowing, fighting for control over her emotions. Slowly, quietly, she started to talk, telling him what had happened. Once or twice she veered away from her story, throwing in things that came to her mind related to what she had just told. Zura didn't think she really noticed, it rather seemed her way of collecting herself for the next part, for she always soon turned back and continued where she had left off. He didn't interrupt her, letting her tell her tale in her own speed, and it provided him with a broader picture of her thoughts and ideas. He stored the information away for later, concentrating on the events that had led her to this place.

"… and then you woke up and… well, you know the rest…" she trailed off.

Zura frowned. "So… just before you came to Lokran, you didn't notice anything unusual? You just walked down a street and suddenly got dizzy and were here suddenly?"

Svenja's head shot up and she glared at him angrily. "Yes! I know it's stupid and hard to believe, but that's just what happened. I'm sorry I can't give you some glowing magical archway, or anything else that's even slightly out of ordinary. Do you honestly believe I didn't try to remember something unusual? It was just that goddamn street, nothing else! Nothing!" she yelled. She was tired, exhausted, dirty and emotionally drained. This had been the last straw.

"I only asked," Zura said mildly and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes! And I answered," she snapped back before raking her hands through her tangled hair. "But I can't tell you anything else, really I can't. That's just what happened," she said tiredly and closed her eyes briefly. She gave a short bitter laugh "You know what? I had hoped when I told you, you'd somehow know what happened and how I can get back. Isn't that stupid? You have no idea, am I right?"

Zura was silent for a minute, looking down thoughtfully. He turned his head to meet her exhausted look with a resolute one. "You're right. I still have no idea. No, wait." he said firmly when she exhaled sharply at his words, hands balling into fists and her face transforming into a grimace of helpless rage.

"Let me finish. Afterwards you can rant all you like, but this is important. Okay?" She glared at him but mumbled an affirmation.

"Good, I'm trying to make it short. We both came here against our will, within a rather short span of time, to almost the same location. I'm sure you agree with me that this can't possibly be a coincidence."

She nodded slowly and he continued. "And that means that there has to be some external source being the cause of it, but frankly, I don't know what it could be. I had hoped you could give me some clues, but unfortunately what you told me didn't help."

He looked over to his ship, massaging his leg absent-mindedly. "What happened to you and what happened to me were completely different things in different circumstances, but still having the same result at the same time. I just don't get it! I can't think of anything that would cause that."

He sighed and looked at her. "I know this is not what you wanted to hear, but I can't offer you anything else. I can't give you the answers you want. I wish I could, because they'd be the answers to my questions too. I know this is far from satisfying, but it's all I know or believe to know right now."

He fell silent, not knowing what else to say. Damn, that had been crappy. He'd never been a good talker, and that last monologue had proven it again.

Svenja stared at the man beside her, not even noticing his bedraggled appearance, torn clothes and frustrated expression. She felt strangely empty, and lost. She hadn't believed he'd just snap his fingers and things would be perfect again, no. But she'd had a tiny hope that he'd be able to help her, somehow. And now that this little spark had vanished into thin air, the only thing she had clung to, that prevented her from crumbling into pieces, she just let go. There was a limit the human mind could bear and handle, and she had just been catapulted way beyond it.

Taking a shuddering breath she started to cry, silently at first but increasing in force until heavy sobs wracked her body as she let out all her bottled-up emotions, all the strain and fear, her despair and aimless anger.

She had completely forgotten where she was and that there was someone next to her, until she felt the hesitant pressure of a hand on her shoulder. Releasing a hiccupping sob she turned around, accepting the offer of comfort and collapsed against Zura, gripping him like a lifeline. She buried her face on his shoulder, muffling her wails and soaking the fabric of his torn shirt, barely registering his arm squeezing her soothingly.

Svenja didn't know how long she stayed like that, but after some time her weeping receded to silent sobs. When it stopped completely she was already fast asleep in a warm and comforting half-embrace, exhaustion and the emotional stress of the last days taking finally their toll.

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So… what do you think? Comments, suggestions etc. are very welcome :-)