Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Touketsu ❯ Animal ( Chapter 24 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Animal

Zhernobog, having sustained significant injury from Goku's powerful surprise attack, was having difficulty maintaining the forms of the soldiers. Goku dropped down from Super Saiyan 2 to 1 and remained in the air to spot Touketsu. Throwing out ki blasts while being careful not to hit his ally, Goku flattened the one winged soldiers that tried to flank him.

The demon prince made short work of the others. Cutting them down before their brothers could respawn, Touketsu burned their bodies away while Goku covered him. At last he slashed through the last Kagemazoku, its shadowy body ripped apart by the dripping flames of the dark sword.

Touketsu leaned forward, breathing hard. He glanced down at the wound over his stomach, left behind by the Kagemazoku's blade earlier. Like the one over his back, the deep puncture wound had sealed to a blackened gash after his last surge of power. Meanwhile, the snapping, nervous energy that had been released when the collar was broken was still running its course through his body. Though abating, it continued to feed the energy blade that danced and burned from this right hand. Around him, fires crackled after several trees were hit by errant ki blasts, the flames casting the demon prince in an orange glow.

Goku touched down behind and dropped his Super Saiyan transformation. He leaned forward and put his hands on his knees, breathing hard before clutching his chest with a wince. He would be lucky if he had an hour left now. Goku took a few moments. Finally, he straightened and trudged up to stand at Touketsu's left.

Touketsu straightened a little as he looked sidelong at Goku. "I didn't need your assistance with those soldiers." he huffed. The clown had already helped him more times than he cared to admit. Couldn't he have just sat out this last battle?

Breathless, Goku gestured to the now quiet battle zone. "Just thought you could use a spotter. I was-"

"Getting bored?" Touketsu finished with an arch of his eyebrow. Smirking, Goku gave a one armed shrug. Touketsu snorted and shook his head, betraying a wry smile. His expression darkened as he looked away, his brows drawing together. "He waits. He waits and recovers his energy." He looked warily at his multiple shadows cavorting around him on the snow, cast by the moon, fires, and the flames of his ki blade. "It may be some time but he'll eventually be back."

Goku nodded. "Well, at least we know more about what we're dealing with." The two stood shoulder to shoulder as they caught their breath, the small fires crackling around them. "Whew. You might not want to hear this, but I think we actually make a pretty good team." The demon prince's shoulders sagged a little, and he gave a reluctant nod.

Yes," Touketsu panted. "We did."

He turned and plunged the dark blade into Goku's chest.

Goku gasped in pain and surprise, blood spurting from his mouth. He grit his teeth and raised his eyes to Touketsu, the demon's deathly white and impassive face now inches from his own. Touketsu studied him with crimson eyes, the glowing embers of burning timber drifting between them. He cocked his head slightly in morbid fascination, a ghost of a smirk twitching his lips before quickly being submerged behind an expression of indifference.

"My resentment of you doesn't seem quite rational, Goku," he spoke quietly. "From the moment I met you the hatred seems to have been ingrained." He leaned closer, and his voice dropped to a harsh whisper. "So…something tells me that Vegeta would have enjoyed this."

With a vicious upward swing of the embedded sword he cleaved Goku's torso in half, the blade slicing upward through his heart before cracking through the left clavicle. Goku's body disintegrated into golden particles, and their light was quickly smothered by the suffocating flames of the dark sword.

The ki blade extinguished in a whirl of fire and smoke as the adrenaline at last left Touketsu. He stood alone, physically drained and expressionless. One down.

"GOKU!" Bulma screamed. Touketsu snapped his head to look up over his shoulder.

Yamcha hovered amongst the towering trees 15 feet above him, Bulma in his arms. Goku had communicated telepathically to him just moments before that it was safe, and Yamcha quickly homed in on Goku's ki. They had arrived just in time to see their friend killed before them.

Without a word, Yamcha fired a powerful ki blast at Touketsu.

Shocked, Bulma turned her attention to her ex-lover. "NO! Yamcha what are you doing?! Stop! PLEASE!" Bulma screamed in a panic, gripping fistfuls of his parka.

Touketsu leapt out of the way of the blast, but Yamcha fired one after the other. Desperately trying to hit the fast moving target, the blasts sent explosions of snow up into the air that rained back down around the scrambling beast. Finally, Yamcha succeeded in clipping Touketsu in the shoulder. Touketsu cried out in pain as we as sent spinning into the snow to land on his stomach. Raising his head, his eyes widened as a large ki blast bore down on him. He clambered back to his feet and barely jumped out of the way before bounding into the cover of the trees, more of the timber now on fire from the volley of ki energy raining down around him.

"YAMCHA, STOP IT!" Bulma shrieked, desperately hitting Yamcha's chest with her fists.

Touketsu had his back braced up against a tree when he realized the onslaught had stopped for the moment. He peered furtively behind him; the pair, hovering amidst the trees, appeared to be arguing. He glanced up at the tree he had taken cover behind and began to leap up into the branches.

"HE'S NOT YOUR HUSBAND ANYMORE, BULMA!" Yamcha shouted back in desperation. "Why can't you see that?! He killed our friend! He'll kill us too if we give him the chance!"

A powerful force tore past Yamcha from behind, raking deep gashes through his down packed parka and into the flesh of his back. Yamcha was spun around by the force of the impact, and with a cry of surprise and pain he lost his hold on Bulma. She fell with a shriek into the snow, Yamcha landing not far away.

Pulling himself up painfully, Yamcha looked over his shoulder to see Touketsu bearing down on him like a grizzly. The creature's skin darkened to gray as though a storm cloud had passed over, electricity pulsing and lacing through its body.

"BULMA, RUN!" Yamcha yelled as he flared his ki and and threw a large ki blast at the beast just as it leapt towards him. Terrified, Bulma bolted for the woods. Touketsu was hit dead in the chest, and the transformation disappeared after having absorbed much of the blow. Injured, Touketsu nonetheless immediately got back up and was upon his quarry in seconds. Yamcha got his guard up just as Touketsu laid into him.

Yamcha deflected some of the blows and parried with some of his own, but whatever ki-laced punch he successfully landed only fed the injured demon's berserker rage. The speed and ferocity of Touketsu's onslaught increased as he began to break through his defenses, the creature's vicious claws raking through Yamcha's forearms and cleaving his scarred face. Now unable to focus for even a moment to summon a ki blast, he could do nothing but weather the relentless attack.

"Where is that great power of yours, scarface?" Touketsu taunted, breathing heavily as he delivered another nasty shot to the face. Yamcha's head snapped back, leaving himself wide open. Touketsu stomp-kicked him in the chest with a heavy, taloned foot, sending him flying to fall onto his back.

The demon plowed through the snow up to Yamcha. Touketsu was no longer retaliating in self defense, much less thinking about usurping the Dragon Balls. The territorial Oozaru had taken over, and his attacks were motivated purely by jealous hatred. The human scrambled back up to face the advancing creature, finally managing to throw a ki blast in desperation. Touketsu easily dodged it, never once taking his livid gaze off his target as they re-engaged.

"You simpering shit," he hissed between strikes. "You can bullshit yourself, but you can't bullshit me, you fucking mongrel! I've smelled your lust for her from the very beginning!" Touketsu snarled, his skin beginning to darken. "She is MY mate, do you hear you me?! MINE!"

Yamcha drew back his fist to throw a ki blast point-blank when Touketsu caught it. Desperately, Yamcha threw a ki-laced punch at Touketsu's head, only for his other hand to be caught as well. They stood at a stalemate for a moment, locked in position as Touketsu gripped Yamcha's fists hard, his claws punching through the gloves and into his hands.

"You dare to threaten me, after you come sniffing around for my mate?" He seethed as the ultraviolet light began to pulse throughout his body. "You covet her, flaunting your stink, and you have the audacity to do it RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME?!" Touketsu roared, his darkening skin suddenly plunging into a deep onyx. The light strobing though the markings became a cold blue. A blue aura wreathed his body and the light suffused the stone in his chest.

Yamcha gasped in agony when his trapped fists began to burn with searing cold, the sensation crawling up his arms before he lost feeling altogether. It was as though he was being stricken by frostbite. Yamcha's face turned ashen. He felt his very breath being taken away along with his strength as blackness crawled up his throat. Touketsu's wounds healed and the demon's blue aura flared. His hands suddenly exploded with a burst of dripping, icy fire, burning the gloves off of Yamcha's now blackened hands. Touketsu released his grip. Liquid fire cascading from between his clawed fingers, he struck Yamcha in the face with an open palm. The fighter fell back into the snow with a cry of terror and agony as he felt the biting, cold flames licking up the side of his face, burning and blackening the flesh.

Touketsu stalked up to Yamcha and stood over him for a moment, gloating over the sight of the fighter writhing in agony before him. He relaxed, and the shadow receded from his body to leave him stark white once more. With a vengeful snarl he stomped down on Yamcha's solar plexus with a massive, clawed foot.

Yamcha gasped and tried in vain to push the crushing weight off him with curled, frostbitten hands. Touketsu chuckled morbidly as he watched Yamcha's futile efforts, twisting his foot and reveling in the other male's pain. Finally, he stepped off to reach down and roughly grab Yamcha by the hair. Wrenching him up to his feet, he pulled his head back and glared down into his face.

"You think you're better than me?" he hissed. "You're nothing! You're an animal, and I don't need to use ki against PREY!" Touketsu sank his sharp fangs into Yamcha's throat, puncturing the jugular in a spray of blood. Yamcha gurgled in agony and horror as he felt the blood rise up through his throat to dribble out his mouth. With a lion-like snarl, Touketsu tore out his throat completely.

Watching from behind a tree, Bulma covered her mouth to stifle a scream and whirled around to again conceal herself. She had ignored her logical mind's commands to run. Two people she cared deeply about had been mired in battle, and she didn't want either of them to be hurt. Her mind reeled with Yamcha's sudden and brutal death. Vegeta…no. This isn't you anymore. She squeezed back the stinging tears of nightmarish horror. Her knees felt weak. This can't be you.

Touketsu's ears pricked up. He had heard something. He whipped his head over his shoulder, crimson gore completely coating the lower half of his snow-white face. He callously released his grip on the dead man's hair, letting the still twitching body fall into the snow as he turned around completely. Back-lit against the fires burning behind him, he glanced around as the firelight refracted off his eyes. Twin discs of burning light flashed as he scanned the tree line before him. He sniffed the air. He could make out Bulma's scent amidst the smoke of the growing forest fire, but he couldn't pinpoint her; she must have been downwind.

"Bulma?" He called out, continually scanning for any sign of movement in the woods as he slowly stalked forward. "It's all right. It's all over, you can come out now."

Bulma immediately stiffened with abject terror, her sense of self preservation overtaking her grief. She began urgently searching her bag for the snow-mobile capsule. Where was it!?

"Nothing to be afraid of. I promise I won't hurt you." His expression darkened and his voice dropped. "I would never hurt my mate." He stalked back over to the spot of disturbed snow where she had landed. His shining eyes flicked over to the pair of tracks that led from it into the woods beyond, for the moment untouched by the fire. He narrowed his eyes and began stalking up the trail of footprints as a wolf howled in the distance.

Bulma finally found what she what she was looking for. She depressed the capsule's switch and tossed it into the snow where it deployed with a loud 'POP'. A short distance away behind her, Touketsu's head snapped up at the loud noise. He dropped down on all fours at a dead run towards her. Bulma hopped on and turned the key with fumbling fingers before frantically pulling the start cord. "Come on, come on!" She hissed. Touketsu was almost upon her. The snowmobile finally roared to life, hitting the demon in the face with a spray of powder as it sped away.

Touketsu looked on at the retreating woman for a moment. With a snarl he gave chase.

Bulma began heading up a short rise uphill, narrowly missing the trees as she punched the throttle. Guided by the calls of their father ahead, a pack of wolves had emerged to escape the growing conflagration behind them. Bulma rode between the animals and glanced furtively out from the corner of her eye. A wild-haired demon was pulling ahead of them. He locked eyes with her for a moment before flashing a feral grin through a mask of blood. He banked towards her to tear away from the pack. His prey drive triggered, he lunged.

Touketsu latched onto the rear of the small vehicle, causing it to fishtail wildly as it veered off to their right. They crested the hill and began to descend. Dragging Touketsu, Bulma accelerated and banked hard to the left, successfully flinging him off and sending him rolling through the snow. The snowmobile came to a heart-stopping halt for a moment before Bulma again hit the throttle and sped away downhill.

Touketsu recovered almost immediately and resumed his pursuit. On two legs now, he bounded and slid downhill, snarling as he began to drive himself into the deeper snow. He leapt up into the trees, jumping from one to the other as he continued the chase from above.

Bulma spared a glance up and over her shoulder; like a sarugami, the demon leapt and swung from tree to tree, a flat shadow against the moon-lit sky overhead. He was almost on top of her. She looked ahead just in time to avoid hitting a tree, yelping at the near miss. The snowmobile skidded sideways, inadvertently slowing down. Suddenly the creature dropped down onto the front of the still moving vehicle, his weight sending its tail end up like a seesaw.

Nearly tumbling into the beast's clutches, Bulma screamed in terror as she desperately held on. They continued to speed downhill while Touketsu planted his clawed feet behind him, digging into the snow as he tried to stop the vehicle. The lower end of the snowmobile dropped back down when he began clambering over the top of the vehicle to grab her. Bulma flinched away before seeing a large tree practically in the middle of their path.

Gritting her teeth with determination, she gripped the handles tight and punched the throttle. The vehicle glanced off the tree, effectively scraping Touketsu off and knocking the wind out of him. The snowmobile rebounded from the impact and continued on nearly sideways. Bulma managed to leverage it back down with her body weight and speed away even as Touketsu resumed his relentless pursuit.

Bulma reached the bottom of the hill and continued to speed over the frozen surface of a snow-covered lake. Touketsu emerged from the tree line moments later, skidding over the slippery surface before he quickly dug his nails into the ice to gain purchase. Getting down on all fours to better disperse his weight, he began propelling himself in great lunges. Patches of thin ice broke behind him, but he was now moving much too fast to fall through.

Bulma was almost at the other side of the lake when finally the vehicle drove nose first through a patch of thin ice. Bulma shrieked in terror as she was pitched over the top of the vehicle, hanging on for dear life by the handlebars. Draped awkwardly over the front of the snowmobile, she pulled herself back up and looked over her shoulder. In the silvery moonlight, the form of the black haired beast could be seen; it was now loping over the glittering expanse of the frozen, snow covered lake. With a cry of panic, Bulma extricated herself from the mired vehicle and, gripping the knapsack, took off running.

The snow covering the ice barely offered enough traction. She made it to the banks in a few steps and ran into the woods ahead. Never slowing down, she plunged her hand into the knapsack containing the Dragon Balls as she fumbled for something. In the next instant she was knocked off her feet as Touketsu slammed into her, grabbing her around the legs. They both pitched forward.

Touketsu straightened, a true grin of exhilaration on his face as he at last wiped the gore from his mouth with a shaggy forearm. That was the most fun he'd had since he'd been here. "That was quite a chase you lead me on, woman," he panted. "I'm impressed." He reaching down with his right hand and grabbing her roughly by the back of her parka, hoisting her up and twisting her around to face him. The moment he did, Bulma pressed the muzzle of a handgun under his chin. Touketsu's amused expression instantly dropped from his face.

Bulma didn't know if a gun would have any stopping power against him. Vegeta would have had no problem deflecting a bullet, but he was changed now. If he tried to hurt it could be enough to stop him.

...And that thought terrified her. The muzzle of the gun trembled against his throat.

"Vegeta-"

Touketsu capitalized on her hesitation and snatched the gun out of her hand. Crushing the weapon, he flung it into the snow before looking back to her, his expression now sober. The fun was over.

"I'll be taking these," he said calmly has he yanked the knapsack out of her hand. He stared into the blue pools of her terrified eyes, reluctance creeping into his heart. "I don't wish to hurt you, woman. I admit I've become rather fond of you." His tense expression relaxed as a way to preserve her life began to dawn on him. "Your technical genius is an admirable, valuable trait. Perhaps…Frieza may have some use for you."

The color drained from Bulma's face and her mouth hung open in absolute shock. "What?" she whispered.

He returned his attention to the knapsack in his hand. "How do you use these things, these Dragon Balls?" He demanded.

"No - NO! Vegeta, don't do it! Why would you wish that monster back?!"

Still firmly grasping the back of her parka, Touketsu ignored her and upended the Dragon Balls out into the snow before tossing the knapsack aside. "Tell me. Now."

"NO! You tell me why you want to wish Frieza back, after everything he's done to you!"

"For betraying the person that shaped him into the warrior he was, I'd say Vegeta deserved what he got," he said blandly as he looked back to her.

Bulma stared at him, incredulous. "Vegeta," she whispered, shaking her head. "You hated him, and for good reason! He turned you into a monster! Why would you bring him back into your life?!"

"TRUST me when I say I want no part of Vegeta's life," he said as he looked at her pointedly. "That bastard's influence has brought me nothing but trouble. I'm simply fulfilling an agreement."

"What?" she whispered.

Touketsu scowled, internally grappling with the strange pull to confide in her. Reluctantly he spoke. "I created a gateway to The Underworld, for the sole purpose of destroying Frieza." He closed his eyes in shame for a moment. "I couldn't control my power. Frieza nearly killed me, but he spared me on the condition that I wish him back. In return he agreed to train me as he did Vegeta."

Bulma stared in disbelief before finding her voice. "Do you really believe he'll honor your agreement!? He made a career out of manipulating and lying. What makes you think he won't kill you as soon as he decides he doesn't need you anymore? Leave him dead!"

"I won't betray Frieza's trust as Vegeta did. If I don't live up to my end of our agreement, Frieza will know, and he'll be waiting for me." He shook his head. "No one lives forever."

Desperate to prevent him from wishing Frieza back, and not heeding the voice inside screaming that Vegeta could be just as much of a threat at this point, Bulma blurted out, "Well then wish for immortality! That was your big idea when you first came to Earth. Leave him dead and wish for immortality! You want power?! Wish for power! There are three wishes - go ahead!" she challenged.

Touketsu stiffened, and Bulma saw something flit over his eyes. It was a subtle thing that only she had ever been privy to seeing in her husband.

"You're afraid to," she said softly.

Touketsu's eyes flashed with anger, and something else. It was unnerving how she had been able to see right through him like that. "I'm not going to be stupid enough to repeat Vegeta's mistakes, temptress. I have power greater than any Super Saiyan, but I'm not so arrogant as Vegeta was. I need Frieza's guidance. Zhernobog isn't dead, and he and the Kagemazoku will be back again and again. Because I couldn't control my power they nearly had me!"

"Why won't you wish to be yourself again?" she implored. "You don't think that if you did you might cut ties with them?"

"No," he said bluntly. "It was your control over Vegeta that lead me to be bound to the Kagemazoku in the first place, I understand this now. Becoming Vegeta will solve nothing. I will simply find myself back where I was: bound to you and followed by them until they capture me. The power I have now is the best defense against them."

"Are you so sure of that? Vegeta, If this is about power, you had it! You were a Super Saiyan. You had power…we had you."

"Exactly. I won't be owned by anyone, do you hear me?" He shook his head, his eyes narrowing. "You and Zhernobog are the same - all you do is control me. You and the boy both. You control what I think and feel." His brows began to furrow. "When I look at you, I feel as though I'm at your mercy. When I look at the boy, I feel failure. I feel powerless, and weak." He swallowed, and his voice began to crack. "I feel fear. When Zhernobog drives his sword through my heart I feel the same things."

"Vegeta," she whispered. She felt her heart begin to break for him, and she reached for his face. "It can't be all pain-"

"YOU WEAKEN ME!" He roared. Bulma flinched back, speechless. "You weaken me," he hissed. "I will have power. I won't be enslaved again. I won't be tortured anymore. I won't be controlled. NOT by Zhernobog! NOT by Frieza! NOT by Vegeta! AND SURE AS HELL NOT BY YOU AND YOUR BLASTED CHILD!"

"PAIN IS ALL YOU FEEL?!" She screamed. "That's all you feel when you look at us? I don't believe you," she asserted, reaching for his face. He jerked his head away, glaring at her defensively. "Look at me," she demanded, inadvertently placing a hand over his heart as she tried to reach him.

Touketsu stiffened before looking down haltingly at her hand. He stared, the muscles in his jaw flexing when he felt her other hand on the side of his face. She gently guided his head up.

"Look at me, Vegeta," she whispered.

Held in place, Touketsu felt himself beginning to drown in the blue depths of her oceanic eyes. He swallowed, and his stern visage began to soften into what could have been indecision.

"We love you. We still do. Please come back," Bulma pleaded.

He couldn't look away, as much as he wanted to. Touketsu began to feel something stirring inside...something familiar...

Conflict.

With a snarl he batted her hand away from his face as though burned. He grabbed her wrist and Bulma yelped in surprise and some pain as he hauled her almost into him.

"I don't need to justify my decisions to you any further, wench," he hissed. "Now, you TELL ME how to summon this blasted reptile or I'll FORCE YOU!"

"No!"

"TELL ME!"

Bulma struggled valiantly but in vain as she tried to pull herself free. She looked up at him, her blue eyes hard as diamonds and her lips a stubborn, thin line.

Their eyes locked in a silent battle of wills for several tense moments. Finally, Touketsu closed his eyes tight and he lowered his head as he tried to reign in his temper. He exhaled impatiently through his nose before raising his head again to open his eyes.

Whatever it took, he would have power.

His next words were measured and calm, but the slight trembling in his voice betrayed his barely contained fury. "I can tell you feel very strongly about your little family. You obviously care for your boy very much."

Bulma's hard gaze lost some of its edge as fear began to trickle through her body.

"You wouldn't risk your boy's life over this, would you?"

"He's your son, Vegeta," the strength in her voice undermined by the shakiness of growing fear.

"Yes. He's Vegeta's son." Unconsciously, he leaned in and breathed deep her scent. She was terrified, but he was becoming less and less put off by her fear. She had been standing too close to him for too long. He couldn't stand it anymore. Vegeta's little hangups could go straight to hell. She was his mate as much as she was Vegeta's. Perhaps one day she would forget about the Saiyan Prince...

He whispered in her ear, his voice subtly wavering with barely contained lust. "Perhaps if you lost your cub you would be amenable to making a new one? With me? You could be a part of my new life, Bulma. We could start over together. How does that sound?"

Bulma leaned away from him in revulsion, looking with horror into the blood red eyes of the demon that used to be her husband. Finally, something within her broke. When she spoke, her voice was thick with repressed anguish, her voice so quiet she could barely be heard. "The words are: 'Eternal Dragon, by your name, I summon you forth: Shenron.'"

He simply regarded her for a moment, his eyes still clouded with desire before slowly hardening. "At last," he whispered sarcastically, "Your genius intellect has made an appearance." He grappled with his pride over her rejection of him for the second time, his eyes dropping down hungrily to her lips.

Touketsu crushed his mouth to hers, ignoring her muffled sounds of protest as he surrendered to his desire. He quashed the rising guilt deep down when he felt her free hand upon his chest as she tried in vain to push him away. He released his hold on the back of her parka to feverishly grip her hair, deepening the violating kiss as he hungrily explored her mouth. He ignored Vegeta vehemently screaming at him to let her go, instead focusing on her taste. His fangs cut her lips and tongue, the taste of her blood stoking his animal lust while paradoxically filling him with self hatred.

"I don't care," he murmured heatedly against her lips. He scowled at the rising pain in his heart before growling angrily to himself. "I don't care!" He continued to drink her in until the warring feelings finally overwhelmed him, and he at last wrenched himself away. Breathing heavily, Bulma fixed him with a tear-filled, fiery glare that sparked with indignation, disgust, and fear. Her accusing eyes were like a blade through his heart. He felt his own eyes begin to burn and the woman in front of him blurred. With a livid snarl he pushed her away to fall into the snow.

"We'll continue this later, woman," he told her breathlessly. His whip-like tail lashed out to fasten around her ankle, jerking her leg up awkwardly as he looked down at her. "Priorities, after all." He turned his attention to the magical orbs sunken into the snow, scattered before him. "Eternal Dragon, by your name, I summon you forth: Shenron!"