Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Piccolo's Embrace ❯ Chase and Drop ( Chapter 11 )

Piccolo heard the scream with all his senses, it seemed, not just his ears, and came to a halt in the air above the edge of the large city that Alaura had done all she could not be a part of. His heart caught in his throat as he recognized his beloved's cry of terror and cursed himself for ever leaving her alone. He had promised her that he would never leave her alone and now that he wasn't there, she may be in trouble and, once again, no one would be there to save her.

No! He would not, could not accept that. He spun about and flew as fast as he could back the way he had come. He would not allow her to come to harm. Ever.

** Alaura!** He tried to reach her mind with his own, not knowing if it would work having never attempted telepathy with her. They were close on so many other levels he never felt the need, until now, he felt a tiny glimmer, a fading star that tugged at the edge's of his conscienceness that he knew was her trying, amdist her terror and pain, to reach him. Her star of self was fading so swiftly it seemed, a put-away fragment of himself wondered, morbidly, if he would be in time to prevent that star from fading away into nothingness. ** I'm coming! I'm coming, my love! **

"Piccolo..." Alaura whispered, she tasted the blood on her lips, running down her chin, and her jaw ached were the strange man had hit her. Her eyes shone bright with hope for half a moment before he knocked her to the side once more with a hard kick to the side of head that sent her reeling. If she had had anything to eat that day, she would have thrown it all up by now.

"I grow weary of this game." He said, glancing over at the little Namek who now lay crouched in the corner, steadily healing from the damage inflected, "Pathetic. Now, Tae, Tell me where you've hidden that dragonball I know you have."

"Don't.." Alaura coughed and blood came out of her mouth, staining her clothing, "Tell him..Tae...!"

Vegeta spun around to face the woman, he could not believe, after all he'd done to cow her that she would talk like that. She looked up into his sneering face and he did not like what flashed in her eyes. "You are a bother, woman." He said, reaching down towards her, he grasped her by her upper arm and pulled her to his face, "I don't know why I waste my time."

She spat at him. The blood soaked saliva dripped down his cheek and off his chin, landing with a splat on the floor by his boots. He wondered where her newfound courage came from and then shrugged, as it did not really matter, she was dead anyway. She just did not realize it as yet.

** Alaura! ** She heard the scream inside her and the feeling was odd, it was as if she were hearing her own thoughts, thought they weren't her's at all. Piccolo raced through the house, flying down the stairs to Alaura's dance studio where he took in the little Namek child on the ground, the purple-ish blood on the wall and Alaura struggling in the vice-like grip of the man he knew had been the one to hurt her those years ago when he hadn't been around to save her.

"Vegeta." He said, his voice controlled though the rest of him fairly shook with rage...and fear, he feared for Alaura's life while she was held captive, "Let her go."

Vegeta turned about, still clutching Alaura in on hand, her smiled as if just now realizing that Piccolo had joined them, "Oh, Namek. It's been awhile."

He ignored him and focused on Alaura, she had passed out, her head falling back against Vegeta's muscular shoulder, hoping she was all right, "If you've hurt her..."

"Oh, how touching!" He laughed, cold and hard, like nails over bare skin, "Don't tell me you actually have FEELINGS for this weak little fool? Well, if you want her so badly, come and take her!"

Vegeta raised one hand and blasted a hole in the ceiling of her studio to the floor above, he did not have to do much to allow the blast to continue it's way past out the roof, making a horrid hole in Alaura's house that Piccolo knew no insurance agency would cover. Piccolo cried out in terror and anger as he followed Vegeta and Alaura out the gaping holes into the late afternoon sky.

He followed after Vegeta for what seemed a million miles, a few times he would slow down and seem to allow the incensed Namek to catch up, but then would speed up just a hair more and be past his reach. Piccolo shoved his turban and cape, along with the heavy weights off mid-flight and saw the breif flash of dark on white as they fell away toward the sparkling silver of the ocean they were now flying above.

Vegeta stopped suddenly and held held Alaura aloft by grasping her ankle and spinning her down so that her head and upper body floated in the air upside down. She had awoke some time during the flight and Piccolo felt a coldness, like ice coursing through his viens as she opened her mouth to scream and nothing came out. He knew that he was feeling what she did and sharing her sensations with her.

"What do you think, Namek?" He laughed, swinging Alaura in the air a bit, "Shall we see if she can swim?"

"I'll kill you." Piccolo said. It wasn't a threat. It was a promise. Vegeta merely laughed and opened his hand, in an instant Alaura was tumbling, like a bird whose wing ceased to beat, toward the icy waves below.

"Oops."

Piccolo wanted blood in the worst way. He woud almost taste Vegeta's and some primal urge told him to claim it. But, the moment he released Alaura to her watery death he knew what choice he had to make. Leaving Vegeta, Piccolo raced to intercept the woman he loved before she could hit the water like a ton of bricks and break every bone in her body.

"Coward!" Vegeta smirked, "Always knew he was a weakling."

Piccolo caught Alaura just as she was inches from the water. The waves lapped at thier feet as he pulled her into his arms and she clutched at him in thankful desperation. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw Vegeta waiting, a truimpant smile on his face. Piccolo ignored him and carried Alaura away towards the bone-white sandy beach. He carefully laid her down and kissed her brow, worried about what nightmares she would have now.

"Piccolo..." She whispered, looking up into his eyes, "I love you..."

He did not answer. Instead, he turned and took to the skies. Now that he knew Alaura was safe, he could devote all his energy to the task at hand. Vegeta was about to pay for hurting his woman and he was about to pay dearly. Of that, Piccolo would make certain.