Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Strange New World (That Has Such Creatures In It) ❯ Avatar ( Chapter 9 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Part 9

The whole of the Saiyan race stood outside the castle, filling the courtyard, spilling out into the streets and on top of houses, all staring at a single point of light in the sky. Even in the glare of two suns, the asteroid sparkled like a plummeting star.

No one spoke. They saw how fast it was coming, knew how deep it would impact. The city would disappear. The orchards would vaporize. Their castle would collapse like a child's tower made of stones.

From their perch on the castle spire, the royal family watched the asteroid grow in size, eclipsing one of the suns. Half the light blinked out, revealing a fiery red glow around the deadly missile.

"It's too big," Bardock whispered. "Even if we break it apart, the pieces will--"

The king silenced him with a wave of his hand. With a deep breath, hating himself for what he was about to ask, all the responsibility he was again laying out, he turned to his son. "Can you do this?"

"What?" Goku shook his head. "You can't be serious, he just gave birth."

"All the more reason why I must," Vegeta said. He stared at the asteroid for a few more seconds, then nodded slowly. "Yes, I can do this. But everyone must remain in the city, to destroy the fragments I leave."

The king glanced at his own mate. "You heard him."

Without a word, Bardock dived from the spire and flew to put the Saiyans in order.

Vegeta hefted Jalen in his arms, adjusting his grip. "Trunks, Goten. You must stay in the air above the city to destroy the largest pieces, but you have to stay behind me, well out of reach. Father, you should do the same."

All three nodded.

"Kakarrot, that goes for you too."

"Vegeta--" Goku frowned, shaking his head.

"Trust me." He lightly touched Goku's arm. "I mustn't be distracted while I do this."

"What about us?" Piccolo asked. "Gohan's in no condition for this."

"I can help." Gohan sat straight in his chair, but a sharp twinge in his abdomen made him sit back. "Okay, maybe not. Why does it hurt so much?"

"We'll look after you once this is over," Vegeta said, stepping closer to them. "For now, you'd better just sit this one out. Blast whatever comes too close." He plopped Jalen into Gohan's lap, gently unwinding the small tail from his wrist. "You stay here too, brat. It's safer."

Looking back and forth between his tezata and Gohan, Jalen grumbled and puffed his tail. He stretched his arms first to Vegeta, and when that didn't get him picked up, he reached to his diira.

"Sorry," Goku said, ruffling his son's hair. "But it's better this way. And we'll be right back, I promise."

One after the other, Vegeta led his family up into the sky, ascending at a normal speed until they were well over the city. With one last look over his shoulder, Vegeta suddenly accelerated, leaving them behind.

The king halted and raised his hand, motioning for the others to stop. Goku stopped a few feet ahead of them, looking back and forth between his mate and the brats.

"Stay here, Kakarrot," the king said. "He knows what he's doing."

Goku didn't answer, but he didn't fly any farther either. He felt sick. His mate had just given birth, had just gotten back on his feet, and no matter how strong he was, Goku had seen him terrified and too weak to protect himself. And now he had to protect a whole planet?

He watched his mate fly along, speeding towards the asteroid. It was so close now that they could see turn white hot as it burned in the atmosphere. Vegeta stopped directly in its path, and with his outline to give the asteroid perspective, everyone began to grasp just how enormous the asteroid truly was. It was less an asteroid and more like a moon had been thrown at them. As it came closer, almost within range, Vegeta began to power up. Goku felt for his mate's ki, and his brow furrowed as it strengthened steadily, rather than bursting out in stages. His hair and ki went from yellow to silver as if his ki burned as hot as the asteroid.

All the light in the world gathered around Vegeta, who kept his arms out but crossed in front of him, waiting for the right moment. When the last drop of light formed and merged with his own ki, he spread his arms, and all the energy expanded towards his target. His eyes burned, his breath was a bit of excess ki.

Goku stopped breathing for a moment. On earth, he'd called up the genki dama, but here on Vegetasei, Vegeta was the genki dama.

Vegeta's energy struck the asteroid head on and held it back, vaporizing the surface. The force coming from the clash radiated out like a concussive blast, driving everyone in the air back several feet. Brilliant light, like that of a star, made everyone shield their eyes. Except Jalen. He squealed and clapped his hands and bounced on Gohan's lap, watching the light grow stronger under it seemed like a new star had appeared in the sky.

The asteroid exploded into fragments, some as small as marbles, some larger than houses.

As one, the Saiyans fired at the pieces, aiming carefully and burning away as much debris as they could. Boulders were blasted to stones, stones to pebbles. Tiny bits escaped through their defense, knocking corners from rooftops, grazing their arms and legs, but nothing like the killing blow their enemy had planned.

In the sky, between Vegeta and the city, the royal family shattered the fragments bigger than the palace. Part ice, part molten rock, the broken asteroid created a clash of temperatures, a hell of blazing ki, atmospheric flames and hissing steam that turned the sky gray-orange with heat and ash.

After a few seconds, the pieces came so fast that Goku couldn't fire fast enough and had to break them apart with his fists. His knuckles burned. Constant pounding on ice and fire wore the skin down, but in the gray cloud around him, he couldn't see if he was bleeding. Between hits, he looked around for Goten, Trunks and the king. Only flashes of gold told him they were still in the air fighting.

His lungs choked with steam and ash as he shattered a colossal piece in front of him. The air cleared for a moment, and he caught a glimpse of his mate far above them. Debris continued to fall from around him, and Goku started to wonder just how big the asteroid was, and if this barrage of pieces was wearing him down, how bad was it for Vegeta? Even in the fight with Buu, there had been lulls, brief stops, changes in tactics. This was a relentless stream of force and heat and cold, a focused force of nature, and even with him and two super Saiyans in the air, they were only stemming the tide.

Beneath them, through the sound of smashing stone and blazing ki, he heard the yells of the Saiyans below. They couldn't turn super, but none of them turned and ran from the attack. Sometimes a stray blast from below rocketed past him, finding another target amongst the mass of fragments raining down. He glanced once over his shoulder and spotted a bright gold glow on the ground. Raditz, he thought, and his heart swelled with pride as his brother fought, not side by side but in the same battle at least. The rawness of Raditz's power, his struggle to control it and his exhilaration at using it, resonated with Goku's own thrill for fighting, and when this was over, he looked forward to sparring with his sibling. But for now, he looked forward to the next fragment, and the next, and the next, trying to clear a way to his mate.

Closer to the ground, Piccolo kept most from hitting the palace, but some still glanced off of the walls, leaving scorches or gouges in the stone walls. From his seat in the open chamber, Gohan could keep himself and Jalen safe, but even that effort left him nauseous and dizzy.

As the fragments came closer and closer, Jalen's smile faded. His eyebrows knitted together as a few pebbles landed on the floor, and he looked up at the sky where his diira was flying. He couldn't see anything in the black cloud but he could feel the energy radiating from that spot, combined with the ki put out by the rest of the Saiyan race. One of Gohan's shots caught a boulder right outside their chamber, and the explosion startled Jalen, too loud and too close.

Gohan's labored breathing made Jalen look up at him. He was pale and his face was bleeding from pebbles that had ricocheted off the floor and walls. There was another burst, and Gohan suddenly leaned over Jalen, covering him with his body. When he sat straight again, Jalen saw a few new bruises on his brother's skin. A small fragment had landed in Gohan's shirt and Jalen reached up for it. A second later he pulled his hand back, hissing and looking down at a slightly red spot on his hand. The rock was so hot, and there were so many more of them in the sky, and Jalen realized that this wasn't a show. Something bad was trying to get him, and his family was trying to save him from a big hurt.

Gohan paused for a second to look down at Jalen. The wriggling in his lap had stopped and he was afraid something had gotten past him and hurt his little brother. Jalen looked back at him with wide eyes, his hands fisted in Gohan's shirt.

"It'll be okay," Gohan whispered. "I'll keep you safe." And he wrapped one arm around Jalen's body and held his other hand up, firing and wishing he was strong enough to fly. Long minutes passed. There were cries of pain from below as some of the larger pieces found one Saiyan or another, passing through their defense. Pieces of houses were knocked off, craters left in the street, blood spattered on the ground.

And then the barrage stopped.

Caught up in their work, Trunks and Goten and the king turned and fired on the pieces that had passed by, but Goku didn't take his eyes off Vegeta. The prince floated in the same spot, surrounded by his white energy, but he didn't move. Goku glanced over his shoulder to make sure his family didn't need his help, then went up.

Higher in the atmosphere, the air thinned before he reached him, and the cold stung his burned skin. As he came closer, matching burns stood out on Vegeta's skin, abrasions bleeding into his clothes. Vegeta didn't turn, didn't seem to breathe.

"Vegeta?" Goku whispered. He didn't hear an answer so he reached out, touching his shoulder gently for fear of grazing a burn.

As he touched him, his mate's ki faded and vanished. Vegeta's head tilted back and he began to slip out of the sky. Goku grabbed him, swinging him into his arms when he felt no resistance. His prince was dazed, resting in his grip with closed eyes, but his chest rose and fell with steady breaths.

"'Geta?"

"Mm..." Vegeta's eyes fluttered open, focusing on his mate's face. "'M all right. Just dizzy."

"Was that what you meant before? That you have the dragon's power in you?"

"Mmhmm. We need Kigeta's strength to fight gods." He closed his eyes again and pillowed his head on Goku's shoulder. "Take us down."

"To Jalen?"

"Yes."

By the time they came down over the city, the blasting had stopped. Several Saiyans lay wounded beneath them, but none of them seriously. Already others were at their sides, tending their injuries. A sense of wonder filled the air, not only that they'd just defeated the gods at their own game, but that they had so many legendary super Saiyans with them now, and that their own prince the chosen of God.

The universe hated them and life was good.

*

Failed. The Supreme Kai stared into his scrying pool, watching his asteroid crumble before Vegeta. He had to shield his eyes from the white light even though the dust and burning ash blocked most of it. His perfect plan of divine retribution with a galactic fist had failed. Not even one fatality.

He sat down on his favorite grassy spot and propped his head up on his fists, still glaring at the pool. The answer was obvious now after that display of power. Vegeta had never had that kind of raw power, and even though he used it now like a master, it wasn't his. The Kai frowned. No, it was Vegeta's, but in the sense of an ancestor's genetics being passed down to its inheritors. The prince was not a child of Kigeta's, the Kai was sure, but perhaps he was the god's chosen. That would explain how the dragon was able to suddenly rouse itself out of its forced slumber and recreate a race that had been painstakingly hunted to near extinction.

But why would the filthy lizard go back to sleep afterwards? The Kai mulled it over in his head and reasoned that Vegeta must be its link in the physical world, the Saiyan prince providing it a conduit for its powers and taking action in its absence. That meant that the prince was the real threat now. If they could destroy Kigeta's link to the world, the dragon would be lost once again and the Saiyan threat could be eradicated forever.

But how to do it? As he stared into the pool, he watched Goku carry Vegeta down to the palace and hold him, sitting down with his mate on his lap. Beside them, Gohan held Jalen out and set him down on his teza's lap. Trunks and Goten came down from the sky, shaking the soot and gravel out of their hair, and Piccolo landed beside them, examining Gohan's wounds. All of them were exhausted but happy, holding onto each other as if to make sure they were real and that the victory wasn't a dream.

The Kai sat straight with a sudden thought. Exhausted. They were all tired from saving themselves. He could use that if he moved quickly. To defeat a handful of super Saiyans, he would need a lot of power, and all the players had to be in place before he could fix everything and put things back the way they were supposed to be.

One dead god. One dead race. And the universe at peace once more, with no more threats.

*

Jalen sat comfortably in his teza's lap, patting the soot and gravel on Vegeta's clothes. It was still hot to the touch and when he held his hands up, they were black with ashes. He tried to clean them off on his teza's clothes but that only made them dirtier, so he wiped them off on his clothes until he was covered in smudges.

"Silly brat," Vegeta said, his voice soft as if he was about to fall asleep. "If we'd been in a fight, would you cover yourself in our blood?"

"He might," Piccolo said, examining Gohan's wounds. "Poor thing's too much like you."

Instead of taking offense, Vegeta smirked and wiped Jalen's face clean. "It'll be a little while longer before you're in a real fight, brat."

As Goku watched his mate and child, he smiled and hugged Vegeta a little closer. He didn't understand why the Kai had tried to kill them, or why Vegeta suddenly had so much power, but it felt so good to hold him in his arms, to see his sons relatively unharmed, to see a world that was supposed to be dead still alive and kicking. He hadn't had much contact with the other Saiyans, but they were nothing like the bloodthirsty monsters he'd expected. Nappa and Raditz were much calmer now. Goku wondered if this was how they were meant to be, and if Frieza wasn't the real reason they'd been so warped before.

The king landed on the floor beside them, his cape torn and shredded at the edges, his face showing no happiness at their victory. He looked at his son. "This isn't over, is it?"

Vegeta's smile vanished as he looked up. "No. Their first plan failed. They will try again."

"Another asteroid? An invasion?"

"I don't think so." Vegeta let his head fall back on Goku's chest, closing his eyes. "From what Kakarrot has told me of the other world, they are bureaucrats, not fighters. I don't know how it will happen, but--"

A flash of light caught their attention. They stood and looked out towards the main road through the city. In the center was a glowing portal, as if someone had unzipped the space between dimensions, and a small procession of familiar faces was coming through.

Vegeta held Jalen in one arm and held the stone railing of the balcony with his other hand. "Mm. Speak of the devil..."

"...and he will hear of it," his father said.

"Are those all the kais?" Goten asked Trunks, who shrugged.

The king stared at each of the newcomers. "I take it these are our enemies? They look like bugs."

"They are," Vegeta said. "Cosmic roaches."

"Huh?" Goku scratched the back of his head as he watched the kais come through, followed by the Grand Kai and finally the last kaoishin, the Supreme Kai. "Enemies? But are you sure they sent the asteroid, 'Geta? Maybe they thought the Saiyans were bad again and it's all just one big mistake."

"A mistake?" Vegeta shook his head. "They have set themselves up as gods, Kakarrot, and gods are too powerful to be allowed to make mistakes. No, it was deliberate."

The king put his hand on Goku's arm, getting his attention. "I know you have had some dealings with these things before, boy, but you must put that aside now. They are not your friends anymore."

Half supported by Piccolo, Gohan came forward and leaned on the railing, looking down at the procession as it came towards the castle. "Wow...there's so many of them."

After the kais, a large formation of demons came through the portal, each of them wearing clothing stamped with HFIL on the front. Every Saiyan in the city growled and drew back, and on the balcony, anyone who had spent any time in hell snarled and lashed their tails. Jalen saw it and growled in turn, puffing his tail as much as he could.

"I hope you have a plan to handle them," the king said to his son. "We know from experience that we cannot defeat them."

Vegeta nodded. "I do. Trunks, Goten, listen. In my room you'll find the five black dragonballs. Take them to where the cathedral once stood and hide them in the ground where the altar was."

"Where?" Goten asked.

"The big charred mark on the ground," Trunks said. "The altar should be at the center."

"Don't let anyone see you," Vegeta said. "If they know what you're carrying, they'll attack you instantly."

"Got it," Trunks said. "Come on, let's go." He grabbed Goten's hand and led him inside the castle, both of them running for Vegeta's room.

"Will the dragonballs be ready so fast?" Piccolo asked. "You just used them to bring back everyone."

"There are no limits for this dragon," Vegeta said, smirking. "You'll understand when you see him. Those kais are in for one hell of a religious conversion."

"Come," the king said. "We don't want to keep our guests waiting."

"Wait." Vegeta turned and looked at Gohan, who was looking pale and drawn already. "You don't have to come. You can wait this out here instead."

Gohan shook his head, even though he had to lean hard on Piccolo to keep upright. "No. I'm coming."

"Gohan--" Piccolo started, but his mate cut him off.

"I have a baby in me, Piccolo. I have just as much at stake here as everyone else. I'm coming." He winced and closed his eyes. "If you'll help me fly there."

"I got ya." Piccolo tried to ignore the smug look on Vegeta's face before the prince and king flew over the side, followed by Goku. This was it, then, they definitely were not going back to earth for anything more than brief visits. Well, if they survived this anyway. He helped Gohan to the side and put his arm around his waist. For a moment he paused and stared at the situation on the ground. Bardock, Raditz and Turles were already behind the king, serving as a kind of honor guard, and Nappa was on his way to close the ranks. The other Saiyans didn't go near the kais or demons, but their whipping tails and furious eyes promised pain and death to anyone that came close. The kais looked serious, even King Kai was frowning.

From the way Vegeta had talked, Piccolo wondered if they actually stood a chance of...of what? Killing gods? And if they managed to do it, what then? He shook his head. Whatever happened now, his lot was cast with the Saiyans, to either die or live with them. His only other option was to leave and he couldn't do that now. He took a deep breath. He would have to change a little, accustom himself to them, and in some ways that seemed better than living on earth. At least here he was accepted as Gohan's mate. On earth, that could never have happened peacefully. He couldn't help a cynical smile. He might even begin to fit in amongst these warriors--

"Piccolo?" Gohan looked up at him. "You okay? You look a little spaced out."

"Huh? Yeah, kid. I'm fine." Better than ever, actually. He stepped over the edge and brought them both to the ground beside Vegeta.

The kais all froze when they saw both Jalen and Gohan's hand on his stomach. Vegeta smiled and tilted his head up.

"That's right, the whole planet's expecting," he said. "And you know what's worse? Gohan's brat will be a hybrid."

Most of the procession made varying sounds of disgust, but the Supreme Kai waved one hand dismissively. "We didn't come here to banter--"

"No, you came to do what your asteroid could not," Vegeta said.

"We are come here to pass judgment upon your species," the Supreme Kai said.

"And who are you that can pass judgment?" Vegeta asked.

"The rulers of this universe. Now are we going to do this here in the middle of the road, or do we find more suitable accommodations in your...palace?" If it had not been unseemly for a ruler of the universe to spit, he would have done so on the last word.

"No," Vegeta said. "We will do this on sacred ground, where the cathedral once stood."

The Supreme Kai tilted his head. "And does your king concur? Strange, for a monarch to give so much sway to his son."

"Not so strange for a king to yield to a religious leader." The king chuckled humorlessly as the purple god started. "Does the news surprise you, that a king should listen to someone else for a change?"

Not answering, the Supreme Kai turned his attention to the tallest Saiyan. "And you, Goku? You don't have to stand with them. You don't have to share their fate. You'll find the gods reward their loyal servants well."

"You mean go with you...?" Goku asked.

Supreme Kai nodded.

"And let everyone else die?" He turned and looked at his mate and his sons. "Everyone?"

"Of course. Only the bad ones would go to hfil. The good ones would be free to have their souls cleansed and reincarnate." Supreme Kai held out his hand, waiting for Goku to take it.

Instead Goku shied away, backing into Raditz. "That's wrong," he breathed.

"It's the natural way of things," Supreme Kai said.

"They'd all die?" Goku asked. "That's horrible, I don't care if they'll recarnage."

"Reincarnate," Raditz whispered.

"Goku--" Supreme Kai tried again.

"Leave him be." As Goku turned his face away, Vegeta stepped between them, wishing that the Supreme Kai was still a short mohawked runt and not this potara-fused, taller creature. "He's made his decision. Now are you going to keep chattering or will we finish this?"

"If you're so eager to return to hfil." Turning sharply, Supreme Kai started down the stone streets, leading the rest of his entourage to the burned out ruins.

Rather than follow or walk beside them, Vegeta rose into the air, followed by his family and then the entire Saiyan race. In loose formation, Vegeta led them over the kais and onto the ground where their cathedral had once stood. He had not been back to examine the ruins since the dragon had destroyed it, too unnerved by his experience on his first day back, and now he found that there was little to examine. A few bits of masonry still stood, some sections of walls and the corners, some of the black floors and piles of black bricks, but most of the vast structure had been blasted to gravel now scattered on the ground. Grass filled the cracks and missing sections in the floor while vines curled around the shattered walls.

Goten and Trunks sat on one of the larger bits of wall, waving with matching smirks. As they landed, the Saiyans spread out around the ruins, sitting on whatever they could or simply standing behind the royal family in formation like troops or believers at a mass. Vegeta motioned them over and handed Jalen off to Trunks, who settled his brother on his hip and let him grasp at his hair.

A few moments later, the kais arrived, sidestepping the Saiyans and taking positions in a kind of broad semicircle in front of them, with the Supreme Kai at the center, the other kais on either side of him, and the hfil contingent backing them up. Soft lights like halos lit behind the kais and as one they lifted up off the floor as if on glowing clouds. The Grand Kai settled in his seat as if it were a throne, his sunglasses set over his head and looking eagerly over the battleground the land had become. The kais all leaned forward, eager to see something more extreme than their usual otherworldly tournaments. And the Supreme Kai sat slightly above them, the highest judge in his court.

"Saiyans," Supreme Kai began, and his voice carried across the crowd. "The kais from the galaxy have gathered here to hold court. Do you know what we will decide today?"

As Vegeta took a step forward, the Saiyan king nearly laughed at the kai's slip. Truly the kai did not know his son that well if he gave him a chance at hijacking their little ritual.

"Yes, but I don't think you know." Vegeta gestured to the lands around them. "You have come to the sacred grounds of Kigeta, the one true God, to be judged for your sins before the whole of His faithful."

The kais frowned in confusion and looked at each other, but Supreme Kai smiled.

"Delusions of a half-dead race. Most of your souls have already been judged and condemned. You're lucky we have condescended to give you this courtesy instead of simply whisking you back down to where you belong."

Vegeta laughed, devoid of humor. "More likely you think you can kill us while we're exhausted."

"So you are exhausted," Supreme Kai said, and he glanced at his followers. "You see, he admits they are exhausted. Completely worn out. I doubt the little avatar here could muster up enough ki to topple a house, much less a divine order."

The kais all grinned and nodded.

"Relieved?" Vegeta asked. "True, we're all tired, but if you want a real fight I could go and get Kigeta's dragonballs--"

"You'll do no such thing!" Supreme Kai said, and his voice thundered across the ground. He spread his arms out and the kais did likewise. Lightning-like ki shot from their hands, streaking around the cathedral grounds and forming a broad fence of energy that expanded to become a dome of crackling electricity.

"No one will leave here," Supreme Kai said, "not until this is done. And those dragonballs will not be brought near. Now...to business. You have already been condemned. You have a few moments to explain your actions or call a few character witnesses, before I have your bodies torn asunder."

"And all of us sent to hell?" Vegeta asked.

"All but you. We have a special end for you. Your body will be destroyed and your soul torn to pieces, so that nothing remains of the last avatar of a false god."

"'False gods'," Vegeta whispered, glancing aside at his father who nodded back. The prince looked back at the Supreme Kai. "Very well, I only wish to call one witness."

"Do so, by all means."

Steeling himself, Vegeta took a few steps forward so that most of his own race could see him. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He'd never been in a large crowd of his own kind before, slowly acclimating himself to no longer being alone, and now he was addressing his entire world and a good part of the next dimension. His nerves were beginning to catch up with his bravado. He swallowed once and opened his eyes. "Since I returned here, I have spoken at length with my father, trying to work out the nature of your divine counsel, the reason for your galactic manipulation."

"Such high philosophy for evolved monkeys," King Kai said, and the kais laughed at his joke.

"Not so high for your humans," Vegeta said, "and they're only evolved monkeys, too."

The laughter stopped.

"In any case," Vegeta continued, "we could not figure one thing out. I didn't want to say anything before I knew one way or another, but now...Kakarrot, I must ask you something."

"Huh?" Goku pointed at himself. "Me?"

"Yes, only you can answer me."

"But..." Goku looked around at Trunks and the king . The Vegeta lineage was so much smarter than him, and they hadn't figured whatever it was out? He swallowed reflexively and moved closer. "Um, okay."

"A long time ago, back when the North Kai told you about the fate of Vegetasei, what did he say had happened?"

"Uh..." Boy, that was going far into the past! Goku closed his eyes as his hand went to the back of his head out of habit. "He said that Vegetasei had been destroyed by a comet or asteroid, something like that."

"But then you discovered that Frieza destroyed Vegetasei. What did your 'King Kai' say then?"

"I don't..." He glanced up and regretted it, looking quickly away from all the kais staring at him. He frowned, trying to bring up long forgotten memories, but shook his head. "I don't think I can remember that. There was so much happening then I don't remember it all."

"Kakarrot, your answer is the only thing that may keep us from destruction." Vegeta put his hand on his mate's, staring into his eyes. "Don't look at anyone else, just at me. You are among friends and family, and you must answer me if you're going to help us. What did the kai say when you found out the truth of how our world first died?"

"That..." Goku stared at his mate. They hadn't stood like this since he arrived, so close, and now he finally saw how much taller his mate was, only a few inches shorter now. He wondered if it still bothered Vegeta, that the prince would always be shorter than his big, dumb mate. Maybe not now that he had found Kigeta--the memory came back to him. "...he had been looking the other way when the planet exploded, and that he hadn't known the truth."

"Thank you. That's all I needed." Vegeta released his hand and put one hand on his hip, thinking. "So a creature who calls itself a god either didn't know the truth, or lied about it, neither omniscient nor honest."

"Is this going anywhere," the Supreme Kai asked, "or are you just stalling?"

"The point is that it's hardly behavior of a god, is it? Lying to his believers?" Vegeta turned his full attention to the kais now, stepping towards them. As he moved, his ki became visible around him. "Too weak to rule even one part of the galaxy? Your kind culls the strongest fighters for your tournaments, your dirty work." Ki sparkled at his hands and flickered at his eyes. "So afraid of one species they try to destroy them from afar? Wasting whole systems trying to eradicate one race?"

"Are you insane?" Supreme Kai demanded. "We do not fear your pathetic--"

"Lies!" Vegeta stopped, but his ki continued to strengthen and spin the dust around him. "Why else was earth constantly besieged by stronger and stronger enemies? You sought to destroy the last remaining Saiyans, pitting them against one another when you could, sending monsters when you could not."

Wondering how that could be true, Goku glanced at Piccolo, only to see the Namek nod once at him. Goku looked down at nothing. This whole time, could King Kai really have lied to him and meant to destroy him? All the time, was he afraid of Goku? He clenched his fists. Impossible, he thought, I never tried to hurt anybody.

But other people had been afraid of him, even his friends sometimes, when he lost himself in battle, or when they cut his tail off. He did love to fight, he had to admit that, even if he didn't like to kill. And then there was Vegeta, who scared everyone and had reason to be scared of everyone. Vegeta, killer of worlds, and Goku had let him live. Maybe he really was more dangerous than he thought.

Grand Kai stood up before Supreme Kai could argue. "Why would we bother to devise tricks when we're the best fighters in the universe?"

"Perhaps you were, once," Vegeta said. "But you have grown old and sodded. You train fighters now for sport and manipulate a galaxy you can no longer rule with a fist. You are weak cowards hiding behind golden thrones, playing at being divine. Tell me, did you create the other dragons to keep us scrambling for meaningless wishes or was it just an amusement to you?"

"I know what you think Kigeta is," Supreme Kai said. "But he's not. Fitting, that your kind will go to its grave worshipping a false god."

"Then why are you afraid?" Surrounded by tendrils of ki, Vegeta smirked and put one hand on his hip. "You know he's a god--"

"He's not a god!" Supreme Kai yelled, standing. His power crackled around him. "No god would share his power with an avatar, lower himself to the level of his believers! We are the only gods in this universe, and you're about to die."

"Thousands of years ruling a galaxy," Vegeta said softly, almost sad. "And you never once thought you might be wrong. Even I changed after a few years."

"We were never wrong. We are gods. The only fault lies with those who don't believe us." Supreme Kai held his fist up, and the rest of the kais did likewise, about to let a divine hammer fall. "Judgment has been passed."

"True, but I doubt the kind you expected." His ki burst out like flames around him, lifting rocks and splitting the tiled floor. "You have been judged unworthy. I hope you're ready to face your penance." Vegeta held his hand out, palm up, and as one the buried dragonballs came out of the dirt. The demons screamed and stumbled backwards but were trapped by the same fence the kais had created to trap the Saiyans.

"Those won't help you," Supreme Kai said, backing away even as he spoke. "I helped bind him before. Tied him to those balls with his own name."

"His name? You can't begin to understand his name, much less say it." Vegeta raised his arms, motioning towards the sky. "His name is the light of our suns, the sound of the rocks and stones. You could never speak his name." He stepped closer, and his ki flared brilliantly, even stronger than when he had faced the asteroid. It pushed against everyone inside the kais' trap, the pressure of his power almost tangible.

"Impossible!" The Grand Kai scrambled backwards with the rest of the kais, nearly pressed against the back of their dome. "You've already hit your limit!"

Vegeta stopped, and when he spoke again his voice was no longer his own, but the rumble of thunder. "Child, do you think for me there are any limits?"

At hearing that voice, Supreme Kai paled and his eyes widened. "No...we bound you...with your name..."

"You think my name is simply Kigeta?" Vegeta laughed. "You want to hear my true name?" He drew a deep breath and tilted his head back.

And when he spoke His name, the dragonballs shattered.

A rush of energy, no longer simply ki but something divine and pure, soared out of Vegeta, gathering around him like the coils of a snake. Dark, shimmering with all the colors of creation, it held him aloft within itself as it took shape, a dragon quickly filling the dome until his sides pressed against the barrier and smashed through it as if it was paper.

Behind him, Saiyans flew far enough away to give their deity room but stayed close enough to bear witness. And to get a good view of one hell of a show. Closer than the rest, Goku squinted, trying to see his mate within the dragon. It was difficult, the dragon was as large as the palace, and his presence radiated even farther than that. All of the kais would have fit inside his claws. All of the demons would have fit inside his mouth.

Above them, clouds began to coalesce, swirling into dark storm clouds at the dragon's command and blotting out the suns, leaving the world in darkness. The only light came from the dragon, blazing like a bonfire and turning the area red, as if hell had come to Vegetasei. Rain started falling, big fat drops that burned when they hit the kais' skin.

Fitting, Vegeta thought, it was born with a storm, and it ends with a storm. With that last thought, the warm rush of his god's power poured into his own, and he could no longer control his actions. Although his instincts told him to fight it, he forced himself to relax. His breathing calmed. This was not something he had to fight. Kigeta's control was light, easy even, and there was nothing to fear while he was inside it. Without struggling again, he gave himself over.

Moving in synch, Vegeta's tail swished at the same time Kigeta's tail lashed out suddenly, encircling the demons before they could run. Vegeta raised his arms, and the dragon held his talons out, gathering energy to himself. Kigeta roared, and Vegeta's answering scream was drowned out.

"What's going on?" Piccolo yelled, pulling Gohan back further into the Saiyan crowd. Beside him, Trunks and the king were being pulled along by their own mates, who ignored how much the two Vegeta's growled or snapped at them.

"I dunno," Goten yelled back, hoping they could hear him over the dragon and demons. "But they're acting weird." He held Jalen in one hand, the child hissing and spitting to be let go. "All of them."

"It's Kigeta," Bardock said, and he kept his arms wrapped around his own mate. "He's possessed the prince."

"Then why are those two--" he held one hand up before Goten could say anything, "sorry, three, acting like they wanna get closer?"

Raditz stepped up next to him, looking over the royal family. "They're Vegeta's," he said, "like's calling to like. They're part of that house and they feel the pull just as much as the prince does."

"Will they be okay?" Goten asked, struggling to keep a grip on Trunks. Finally he couldn't keep on with just one hand and pushed Jalen into Piccolo's arms. With both hands free, he grabbed his mate and slammed him into the ground, pinning him there while whispering it was gonna be all right, just to hang on and it would pass.

A moment later, and the king was pitched into the dirt beside them. Goten exchanged a look with Bardock, and both of them gave an overwhelmed smile, trying to hold their stronger mates down before they hurt themselves. It didn't help that the louder the noise became, the more they fought to get free.

While the roaring overwhelmed the other demons and kais, driving them to their knees, Supreme Kai pushed the pain aside and flew straight for the lightning and clouds, the dragon's black scales moving by him in a rush. If he could just dodge that tail, avoid its mouth, fly around the lightning, maybe he could--

Talons wrapped around his body, catching him and bringing him up to Kigeta's eyes. Supreme Kai winced as they squeezed too tight, trapping his arms at his sides. "I don't care what you do to me!" he screamed. "You'll never win!"

Inside the dragon's coils, Vegeta had his hands out as if he was holding a Supreme Kai doll. With a deep breath, he pulled his hands apart. Above him, the Supreme Kai suddenly separated, the smaller version in Kigeta's left hand and Kibito in his right. The potara earrings shattered and fell in glittering pieces to the ground.

Without bothering to answer the pair, Kigeta opened a portal to the next dimension, a shining doorway much like the ones they had come through before. The demons and kais took their chance and raced inside, escaping the scalding rain and lightning. He loosened his talons enough to let Supreme Kai and Kibito wriggle free and follow them, then put his hands out. Ki gathered at the portal, glowing faint at first, then slowly building until everyone had to turn their eyes away or else go blind. Vegeta took a deep breath, Kigeta drew in his strength, and together they released their blast, filling the other dimension with light.

Goku stumbled to one knee. The ground pulsed and the air felt thicker, like water. He held his hand in front of his face and it blurred. All around him, everything else was blurry. He felt pressure building on all sides and gasped for air. Still Kigeta poured in energy, and Goku wondered if the kais were dead now, and what would happen to the souls of everyone inside, and dragon way, and hfil.

Kigeta stopped. Goku glanced up and saw that everyone else was on the ground, overwhelmed by the pressure, and that he'd transformed to his highest level to withstand it. Above him, the dragon stared at the portal, now filled to the brim with light. With a low laugh, like a child intentionally spilling water, he poked it with one claw. Goku stared in wonder as water burst out into the air, then shook his head. The pressure was finally going away, and what he'd mistaken for water were actually millions of souls, each a small silver drop, set free and disappearing into the sky. Wherever they went, Goku couldn't tell.

Soon the number of souls dwindled to a trickle, and then nothing. With the last one, the portal turned inside out, and hfil, the reincarnation flights, and the next dimension ceased to exist.

As before, Vegeta felt the world spin around as he started to slip out of the sky. Something caught him, and he found himself gently placed on the ground. Kigeta's coils moved around him as the dragon came down and faced him, his entire body looped around the cathedrals' ruins as he lay down.

"It is finished."

Vegeta let his shoulders drop, tired and dizzy and lightheaded. "Do…we rebuild the cathedral? What about the balls?" He started to lean too far to one side and put his hands down to steady himself, only to find grass where there had once been dirt and broken marble.

"The time for those has passed." The rumble of his voice was fainter, and his body began to dissolve. "Only remember me, and call upon me when you have need."

"How?" Vegeta asked. "The balls are gone, how do we find you again?"

"Lift up a stone, and you will find me." The breeze passed through him, taking the last wisps of his body away. "Listen to the wind, I am there."

The skies cleared, the suns shone as bright as ever. Groaning and tired, the Saiyans stood and looked around. There was nothing to indicate what had happened, except that the scorched earth was now covered in grass and their wounds from the asteroid were all healed. Goten sat back and pulled Trunks into his lap, smoothing back his hair. Trunks mumbled something and opened his eyes, looking at him, then closed them again and curled up in his mate's lap. Gohan was already snuggled in Piccolo's much larger arms, and Jalen…

Goten frowned and looked up. Had the little brat crawled away? He heard a child's squeak and spotted his father swinging Jalen into his arms as he walked towards Vegeta.

Goku sat down in front of his mate and set Jalen on the grass, letting the baby crawl into his tezata's lap. Vegeta still looked dazed, but he smiled down on his child and held him up, looking over him to make sure he was fine.

"He's okay," Goku said. "Everyone's all right, actually. I'm more worried about you. You look out of it."

"I was one with the dragon, Kakarrot, of course I look out of it." Vegeta opened his mouth to say something else, but he froze, staring at something behind Goku. Holding Jalen in one arm, he crawled forward and grabbed something soft and fuzzy.

Goku yelped and looked over his shoulder to see Vegeta gently grasping his new brown tail. They looked at each other for a moment, then stared back at the other Saiyans. Piccolo had found Gohan's tail and was helping him curl it around his slightly swollen stomach, while Trunks seemed fast asleep in Goten's lap, his purple tail waving across his mate's face.

"Oh wow," Goku whispered, then shivered as Vegeta slid his hand over his tail. "Oh…wow…"

"He gave them back," the prince said. "I wonder what else he did during all that."

"Vegeta?" Goku asked, trying to form words despite the pleasure coming from his tail. "What do we do now?"

As much as he wanted to enjoy his mate right then and there, Vegeta let his tail go and stood up, easing Jalen on one hip. Goku came up beside him and watched him scan the area, their new grassy park, the houses around them, the palace in the center, and the mountains farther in the distance. Where the air had once felt thick and overpressured, it was now lighter than before, as if a heavy weight had been thrown off.

"Now?" Vegeta took a deep breath and slipped his hand into Goku's. "Now we live."

To Be Concluded…