Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ When It Rains ❯ When It Rains 08 ( Chapter 8 )

Warnings, disclaimers and such: Hey, I’m updating. Can you believe it? It’s amazing what you can do with a little extra time on your hands. Anyway, no warnings this time just a bit more plot development. Also, it seems that I’ve been going a bit too slowly for some people. Sorry about that, but I’m still fairly new at this and I really hate half-doing anything. But don’t worry. Things are getting ready to pick up.When it RainsBy: Kaineko
Chapter 08

Several months passed transitioning the season from the gentle warmth and reawakening of spring to the scorching heat and vitality of summer. The summer night heat was nearly debilitating in its intensity. It was as if the sun had yet to set. Gohan was sitting on the sidelines of one of the most popular nightclubs in the city, sipping from his drink and wiping sweat from his brow. The heat had somehow managed to overcome even the air conditioning that he was sure was on full blast. It just couldn’t compete especially with the multitude of bodies moving frantically to the rhythm.

Gohan watched the waiter leave and picked up the fresh drink he’d just left. Maybe this hadn’t been such a good idea after all. But Goten had all but dragged him here. He could appreciate the fact that his brother was just trying to cheer him up, but this just wasn’t his crowd. So far, he wasn’t feeling it. Guys had been approaching him all night flirting a bit and attempting to exchange numbers or hook up for a fling. They had all been attractive, but not enough to really gain his interest. The fact that they all seemed shallow and unoriginal, using nearly the same line as the one before, didn’t help either. Gohan was starting to wonder if they handed out a cheesy pickup-line book at the door or something.

Goten glanced over at Gohan then back to Trunks. He knew his brother well enough to know when something was bothering him and he knew exactly what…or rather who it was. He’d hoped by showing him that there were lots of other guys besides the thickskulled Namek, maybe it would cheer him up and help him get into the dating scene. But so far it hadn’t really worked.

Looking back over to Trunks he stood and grabbed his hand. Maybe he could show Gohan how to have a good time. “We’re going to dance. Why don’t you grab one of these guys and get out here with us.” Goten said.

“Yeah, that cute blond hasn’t taken his eyes off of you all night.” Trunks said gesturing to a guy that had indeed been staring unchecked for a while.

“No thanks. I’m perfectly fine watching from here.”

Goten shrugged. “Your loss. Come on Trunks.”

Gohan watched as his brother disappeared in the throng of bodies with Trunks. He sorta envied his brother’s carefree demeanor. He wished that he could be like that, but thinks just never seemed to work out well for him. His thoughts drifted back to earlier in the week.

------FLASHBACK------

“Hey Piccolo, I was thinking that maybe we could spend a little time together. It feels like you’ve been avoiding me….”

‘No, that’ll never work. Confronting him rarely does.’ Gohan thought as he flew low through the early morning sky enough ahead of the rising sun not to be blinded, but not so far that he encountered significant darkness. He’d been rehearsing what he would say to Piccolo since he’d decided to go see him. They hadn’t seen each other for the last few months and Gohan missed him terribly. He tried, but he just couldn’t accept Piccolo’s refusal to have a relationship with him.

Piccolo had made an obvious effort to avoid him at all costs and Gohan couldn’t take it any more. Piccolo wanted to go back to being friends, but now that his feelings were known, mere friends would never be sufficient. Quickly he suppressed his ki so that he wouldn’t alert Piccolo and finished the few miles to Piccolo’s location. He landed at the edge of a clearing, watching through the dense trees for a few moments as Piccolo grunted in exertion while doing some training. From his location he could see the small beads of sweat on his mentor’s brow, and smell his wonderful amplified scent that was like warm spearmint, sharp with sweet undertones. He swallowed as his mouth started to water from the mix of the sights, scents and sounds. For the moment he was content just to hide and watch as long as he was undetected.

Even though Gohan’s ki was still suppressed, Piccolo could feel the younger man’s presence on the edges of his consciousness. He stopped what he was doing and turned in the direction that Gohan was standing in. Gohan knew the instant that Piccolo realized he was there. He stepped completely into the clearing, closing the distance between the two of them in a few purposeful strides. The frown that marred the Namek’s face was almost enough to stop him in his tracks, but his desire was stronger than his fears.

As for Piccolo, his displeasure wasn’t at seeing Gohan, but at the fact that logic would dictate that they couldn’t be together. He wanted the younger man, more than he’d ever wanted anything else. But he refused to damage their relationship any more than it already was. What if they got together and it didn’t work out. The only person he’d ever cared for would be lost to him. ‘Avoiding him certainly isn’t bringing you any closer.’ Piccolo quickly shut off the part of his mind that was trying to defy logic and steeled his emotions. It wasn’t that he didn’t want Gohan around him anymore it was just that it hurt too much to see what he just couldn’t have.

“What are you doing here Gohan?”

Gohan could barely find his thoughts, and the little script he’d practiced was lost as he actually confronted Piccolo only one thought stood out. “Tell me...truthfully. Why have you rejected me Piccolo?” He asked. His voice held a tone somewhere between accusation and pain.

Piccolo’s throat clenched. No, no no…he hadn’t rejected Gohan…had he. It wasn’t Gohan he was rejecting, but a relationship beyond friends that would eventually destroy them. Piccolo turned his back toward the other man, not able to stand the pain he saw there. This wasn’t going to be easy. “I haven’t rejected you Gohan. But anything beyond friendship just wouldn’t be practicable.”

“You talk of practicality as if it were some business deal.” Gohan said.

Piccolo faced him again. He had to make Gohan understand. He wanted their relationship to go back to the way it was before, without all these complications. “We are from two completely different worlds. My kind…Nameks aren’t meant for commitment Gohan. It just wouldn’t work.”

“I remember seeing Nameks living together…committed to their family and community. It isn’t so different. We aren’t so different. Just give it a chance, we could make this work.”

“Just like you parents did?”

Gohan looked hurt at the Namek’s callous words. That hadn’t been Piccolo’s intention. He just wanted to make Gohan see that people from two different cultures shouldn’t mix. It normally proved disastrous.

“That’s not fair Piccolo.”

“Reality rarely is Gohan.”

Piccolo could feel the pain of denying his feelings…something that greatly unsettled him. But he couldn’t allow his emotions to cloud his judgment. He was simply being honest with himself since Gohan couldn’t seem to be.

“Look Gohan. Do me a favor and give this a rest. Take some more time for yourself and think about what I’m saying from a logical standpoint. You’ll see that I’m right.”

The young demi-Saiyan stood in silence for a few minutes. At one point in his life he would have thought that Piccolo could never be wrong. But on this subject he knew that his mentor’s rationale was flawed.

“But…”

Piccolo cut him off. “That’s the end of the subject Gohan. I refuse to continue this discussion.”

It seemed that there was no changing his mind and he didn’t think that his heart could take any more rejection. “Well, I guess I’ll be going then Piccolo-san.” He said reverting to his formal address of Piccolo. “I don’t want to waste any more of your time.” The younger man said as he turned.

Piccolo blinked, not able to fathom the amount of pain in the younger man’s voice. “You never…”

He trailed off as he watched the younger man fly off. “…waste my time.” He finished but it was already too late for Gohan to hear him.

------End Flashback------

“Mr. Son…Mr. Son?”

Gohan blinked rapidly, coming back to the present. He almost thought he’d just imagined the voice calling his name over the blaring sound of the music but the person called him again. As he turned he wondered who would know him in a place like this and address him so formally at that. But he smiled as he recognized the owner of the voice.

“Just Gohan…besides we’re not at work.” He answered.

“Okay Gohan. Can I sit down?” He asked gesturing to the table with the drink in his hand.

Gohan’s answer was to slide over to make room in his booth. Ian sat down, placing his drink on the table in front of him.

“I’ve never seen you here before.”

“This is my first time. It was my brother’s idea.”

Ian followed his line of sight to Goten who he could just barely make out in the sea of other dancers along with Trunks.

“Looks like he’s enjoying himself. What about you?”

“Hmm. He seems to think I need to unwind.”

“And do you?”

Gohan shrugged “Maybe.” He said. But ‘definitely’ would have been a more accurate response. The official merger for JAI and CC was less than three weeks away, and Gohan had been swamped hammering out the last dents along with Bulma. Of course in his mind that was a piece of cake compared to his personal problems with Piccolo. Going home every night to his lonely apartment with no real hope of ever being with his longed-for lover was unbearable. His little brother knew him better than most. He was just trying to cheer him up.

Ian could see the loneliness in Gohan’s pensive eyes. It wasn’t very difficult to see if you paid enough attention and it certainly wasn’t hidden very well. It simply either went unnoticed by people too busy to pay attention or was uncommented upon by those too polite. Though Ian’s comments also went unvoiced, it wasn’t out of politeness.

“Well in that case, let’s dance?”

Gohan observed the carefree expression that his brother had as he danced and enjoyed himself. In fact none of the people dancing seemed to have a care in the world. Maybe that’s what he needed. To push the thoughts of his problems aside for a while and just live in the moment. What could it possibly hurt?

“Why not.” He said.

------00------

The music was pounding, rhythmic, thumping, vibrating as they took their place among the crowd. It seemed that the music never stopped, it was just one steady meld of beats providing the background for the “sex-with-clothes-on” style grinding that passed as dancing. Everyone swayed to the beat, bodies meshing frantically, erotically, hungrily. Sweat rolled, hair matted, clothes wrinkled and saturated. The whole scene was highly erotic, blatantly hedonistic, and enticingly arousing.

Gohan hadn’t really noticed from the sidelines, his thoughts on other things. But no one could be in the midst of this display and not be affected, Gohan included. He and Ian were right in the middle of the action, not failing in their own display of self-indulgent hip swaying. Gohan couldn’t remember a time where he just let himself be free…wild. It felt good. Ian was an excellent dancer; his body seemed to be perfect for the remarkable moves he was making. And to his inexperienced credit, Gohan kept pace well.

Ian moved his body just a fraction closer than seemed humanly possible without actually touching him. Gohan didn’t seem to mind the close contact. As a matter of fact he seemed to be milking the attention for all it was worth. Ian could feel the evidence of the younger man’s arousal as he finally brushed up against him while moving in time with the beat. Gohan groaned, his groin tightening, as his pants suddenly became entirely too tight. The heat and energy from Ian’s body as he slid against Gohan were enticing. Ian could see the changes overcome his younger companion and he didn’t try to hide the devilish smirk that crossed his devastatingly handsome face. Gohan noticed, but it just made him all that much more aroused. He was at a point where he couldn’t take the teasing touches any longer.

They moved off the dance floor and toward the bar on the opposite side of the room from the table where Goten and Trunks were once again seated, and ordered a couple of drinks.

Ian took a sip of his drink and caught Gohan’s eye, seductively sucking the ice from the glass, and rolling it around with his tongue before letting it slip back into the glass. Gohan groaned again as he watched Ian’s tongue make love to the ice before it escaped back into the glass.

Ian leaned forward, his slightly cool, sweet smelling breath tickling Gohan’s ear, making the short hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. “You know, I could take care of that for you.”

Gohan knew what “that” he was referring to. The dancing, music, and alcohol had mixed to produce a highly arousing adrenaline rush that was evident by the bulge that Ian was now referring to. Images of the two of them together, doing the most delicious things flashed through Gohan’s mind. There was no doubt that he wanted this man and none that this man wanted him in return. Thoughts of Piccolo, Capsule Corp, and everything else went out the window. Only his growing lust remained. Gohan leaned forward, his lips almost touching Ian’s ear this time.

“Let’s go.” He whispered, and with that they headed toward the door. As an afterthought Gohan made eye contact with Goten across the room and made a quick see-you-later gesture before disappearing with Ian.

-------00------

“What’s not to like about him? My brother doesn’t seem to have a problem.”

“Your brother’s just sexually frustrated. His judgment is poor.”

“Well wasn’t the whole idea to get his mind off Piccolo and get him to hook up with someone?”

“Yeah, but someone a little less…I don’t know. I can’t put my finger on it, but something’s off about that guy.”

Goten frowned. It wasn’t like Gohan had just left with the first guy that approached him. He hadn’t actually given them the time of day. This Ian guy on the other hand he seemed to really like. “Well I think it’s good that he’s doing something to get his mind off of Piccolo. Maybe this Ian could be a good distraction for him.”

Trunks noted the skeptical look on Goten’s face. “I just hope he knows what he’s doing.”

“Well, he’s been taking care of himself for a very long time.”

------00------

The sexual tension was almost unbearable on the short drive to Gohan’s apartment. He pulled up into the parking garage and they made their way through the lobby of the building. Within the private confines of the elevator compartment on the short trip to Gohan’s floor, they could barely keep their hands to themselves. Ian shoved Gohan face first into the wall, pinning him while rubbing his hardened cock along Gohan’s ass. His hands slid up Gohan’s sides and around to his chest where it caressed his peaked nipples through the soft fabric of his shirt.

Gohan arched and moaned into the touch before sliding around to face Ian. They stumbled out of the elevator as it chimed, still groping frantically at each other. Gohan moaned softly enjoying the slightly exhibitionist rush of doing such naughty things in a semi-public place. He felt blindly for the right key to open his apartment door, never once breaking from his activity with the older man. He found it and deftly opened the door into which the two fell and it slammed closed behind them with a resounding click. Had Gohan been aware enough of his surroundings he would have felt the slight falter of a hidden ki close by, but he was too absorbed in his escapade with Ian to notice much.

------A few weeks later ------

The early morning rays of sunlight were just meeting Goku as he walked into his kitchen through the backdoor. He took a seat at the table and slumped forward with his head resting wearily on his forearm. He was tired and his head was beyond pounding at this point. His shift had ended just before sunrise and he was glad to be home. He’d taken up a job as an overnight security guard just to help stay afloat until he worked out things with Chichi…if he ever worked out things with her. He’d always been self-sufficient and he just didn’t feel right taking Gohan’s money. The job was crap with long hours and no benefits, but it paid his bills and he really didn’t mind the few people he met. It’s just that he wasn’t used to being tied down so much and it was one more thing that kept him from finding any rest. Also it cut into the time that he and Vegeta had started spending together regularly.

After the first time he’d cooked for Vegeta, it had pretty much become routine. Vegeta wouldn’t admit that he liked his company, but he also wouldn’t turn down the offer of a good meal. So Goku just settled for that as the reason for the Ouji’s frequent visits. But since he started working he hadn’t really had the time to spend with Vegeta like he used to which wasn’t good for him. The other Saiyan kept him together somehow, kept his mind off of his nearly overwhelming problems. Without Vegeta’s company, he spent entirely too much time alone thinking and wallowing. Gohan and Goten had stopped coming around as frequently as in the beginning. He couldn’t fault them; they did have their own lives to lead. But he couldn’t help feeling a bit isolated lately.

Goku stood and made his way up to his bedroom. He removed his uniform and dumped it in a corner along with his boots and snagged some clean pajama bottoms on his way to his bathroom. After a quick shower he slid into the pants and stood in the bathroom mirror. He wiped the steam away from the glass and stared at his reflection. The dark circles under his eyes told the story of his insomnia. He looked like he hadn’t slept in a year; that’s how he felt too.

His sleep deprivation had finally reached the critical level and he was about to go crazy from exhaustion. He had to find a way to get not just some sleep, but some rest or his body was going to shut down on him. This whole situation had escalated past the annoying to the utterly ridiculous. His appetite was waning, his appearance was ghastly, and his mind was a jumbled mess of confused thoughts. He was having fierce headaches off and on for days and occasionally he’d blank out. The nightmares that invaded what little sleep he did actually get were taking over his entire subconscious and making him fearful and paranoid which wasn’t exactly good for a security guard. He found himself flinching at the slightest of noises. The night before he'd almost blasted a stray cat that had snuck up behind him while he was on his post. It was getting a little hard to guard anything let alone function while living with this constant fear of something that he couldn’t even name.

He hoped things would settle soon and return to some semblance of normality so he could get back to his life the way he was used to. But in the meantime, all he wanted was some rest. This was his off night and he wanted to be refreshed so that he could spend some time with Vegeta later that afternoon.

Goku opened the medicine cabinet and pulled out a small bottle. About a week ago, he’d been rummaging for some aspirin when he ran across a mostly full bottle of some prescription drug. Picking up the short, fat bottle, he read the label and instantly remembered what they were. Nearly a year ago, Ox King had become sick with some weird strain of flu and Chichi spent a lot of her time taking care of him. She was more stressed than normal and her anxiety was making her sick. Her doctor had given her a prescription for something to help her relax and get more rest. Goku had fingered the bottle, contemplating whether he should take a few. They had certainly helped Chichi, and he’d thought that maybe they would help him too. He’d taken two that night, as directed, and they helped him sleep for a few hours, but they wore off quickly and he still woke up at sometime in the night and never did make it back to sleep.

Goku looked down at the bottle he now held. Maybe he should increase the dose a bit to compensate for his Saiyan metabolism. He opened the bottle, poured a handful of the tiny peach colored pills into his hand and popped them into his mouth rinsed down with water from the tap. He repeated the action with a few Aspirin to help his headache. That should be enough to keep him from waking after only a few hours.

In the few minutes that it took him to finish up in the bathroom he could already feel himself becoming drowsy. The near-constant pounding in his head had settled to just a mild throbbing and his limbs suddenly felt heavy. He poured himself another glass of water to sit by his bedside and left the room.

Something didn’t feel right. The hallway seemed to have stretched to a thousand feet and he felt like he was moving at a snail’s pace. By the time he actually made it the short distance down the hall to his room everything seemed to be spinning. He sat the glass on the nightstand and gripped it in an attempt to steady himself. Almost to the bed…suddenly everything was consumed in total darkness. He lost his grip and fell backwards, taking the nightstand and everything on it with him. His head connected with the rounded edge of the metal bed frame, filling the room with a sickening thud as a pool of blood began to blossom out from under him.

------00------

The Capsule Corp mansion was utterly quiet and devoid of everyone that was usually there, except Vegeta. He'd trained all day…well at least tried to train, but his concentration had been so shot that he'd finally just given up. He settled onto the plush couch in the living room and began aimlessly flipping through channels. As a rule he didn't watch TV too often, finding the shows to be the most idiotic drivel he'd ever seen. But on occasion he'd watch…when he needed a mindless diversion from his own overwhelming thoughts. This had turned out to be one of those days, when he just couldn't seem to stay in control of his mind. He needed to escape from himself and meditation was out of the question since he couldn't stay focused enough to even train let alone to meditate. Short of sleep, TV was the best distraction. After pausing on several channels, he finally stopped on a reality show where people were put in seemingly life threatening situations and had to escape unharmed to win their share of some prize money. It was truly amazing what humans called entertainment; some of it more freakish and sadistic than anything he'd witnessed on Frieza's ship.

After watching the show he turned off the TV deciding that humans were indeed sick, and that he'd had quite enough 'entertainment' to last him for a while. That left him back at square one…with a head full of thoughts, and nothing to do. He started thinking about how nice it would be to have a good spar with his fellow Saiyan. But he hadn't seen Goku in almost a week. He was getting tired of sparring against the training bots, and longed for some time to train against his counterpart.

Vegeta had gotten used to seeing the other man everyday, spending the afternoon sparring in the mountains near Goku’s home then eating dinner afterward. But Goku had taken a job that kept them from spending too much time together. Vegeta had been disappointed but he didn’t say anything. Goku needed to do what he felt was important and Vegeta wasn’t going to stop him.

Vegeta couldn’t help think about all the days that they’d spent together mainly talking. Vegeta would explain about customs and life on Vegetasai as he remembered it. He hadn’t been aware that Goku was genuinely curious about their home world until one night the younger man had asked him to explain again Saiyan bonding protocol and the reason he and Chichi were no longer together. Of course Vegeta hadn’t denied his request. Talking about their lost race and customs with something akin the nostalgic deference. It brought back many memories; some good, some bad, but all cherished. He hadn’t realized how lonely he was…they both were in fact until that time. Not surprisingly bringing up such a subject also gave him insight to the fact that Goku was no longer pining over that onna. Though with his gentle human sentiment, he just wished they could be on better terms.

In their time together, Vegeta had learned that though not formally educated, Goku was anything but stupid. Of course he had always suspected that the other Saiyan was sharper than he let on. In the past few months Vegeta had learned a lot. It was like meeting Goku all over again. They were getting acquainted in a way that they’d hadn’t had the opportunity for before. The prince’s feelings for Goku were becoming clearer in his mind and harder to ignore every day. He wasn’t at the point that he could admit that he loved Goku, but he could at least acknowledge within himself that he cared. That in and of itself was a promising step in the right direction. If only he could take another.

Vegeta glanced at the clock and noticed that it was mid-afternoon already. This was Goku’s off day and they had planned to meet up for a light late afternoon spar and a meal. Leaving the living room he stopped at the door and quickly pulled on his boots. As he opened the door to leave, he ran headfirst into Trunks.

“Damnit brat! Watch where you’re going!”

“Sorry dad.” He said offhandedly. Apparently something else was on his mind. “Have you seen mom?”

“Not since this morning. Why?” Vegeta really wouldn’t have been interested if the boy hadn’t seemed so frantic.

“Someone broke into her private lab last night! I’ve been trying to call her cellphone, but she isn’t answering.”

“Why the hell are you so frantic? Just call the police and file a report.”

Trunks shook his head, his face still grim. “No you don’t understand. I already talked to the police, but I don’t think they’ll be of much help with this one. Whoever it was downloaded copies of all her research on Saiyans and demi-Saiyans.”

“What!” That got his interest. “I thought that place was heavily secured. How did someone get passed it?”

“Get passed what?” Bulma asked coming in through the still open door.

“Your private lab was broken into woman, and all your information on Saiyans was stolen.” Vegeta stated.

“That’s impossible!” Bulma said incredulously. “My security system in that building is state of the art. It couldn’t possibly have been broken into.”

“The strange thing is that there were no signs of forced entry into the building itself that would have tripped an alarm and the night security guard said that he didn’t admit any visitors. I figured if someone entered the building they must have had advanced security clearance and used a keycard for one of the back entrances.”

“You think one of our employees did this? But not very many employees have that level of clearance into that building.”

“True, but it gets stranger. Whoever it was disabled the video feed from the delivery entrance all the way to your lab. I had the guard check the electronic access archive. He found that there was only one entry last night after hours…” Trunks said leaving an exaggerated silence hanging in the air.

“Kuso, cut the drama boy and spit it out!” Vegeta spat, already more than annoyed. His previous destination to Goku’s completely forgotten.

“It was Julie Sanders…”

Bulma gasped, her blue eyes growing impossibly large and taking on an utterly shocked look.

Vegeta frowned. “Who the hell is Julie Sanders, and why would she want info on Saiyans?” Vegeta asked completely clueless.

Bulma, getting over her initial shock quickly, responded. “Julie was my personal assistant for years. But she was murdered several months ago…” Bulma said leaving the statement hanging.

Bulma thought for a second. “Wait a minute. Even Julie didn’t have access to my private lab. Her key could only open the building, but not the actual lab.”

“Exactly. That’s how I knew someone had broken in. Apparently they hacked the lab security system and melted the door lock and knob with some kind of acid.” Trunks said holding up his hand that was blistered and showed signs of a chemical burn from where he’d grabbed the knob. “Whoever did this was really good.”

Vegeta’s tactical mind contemplated all the bits of information he was given so far. No forced entry into the building that would rouse suspicion, but obvious forced entry into the lab itself and the electronic keycard belonged to a secretary that was murdered months ago. He quickly came up with a conclusion. “So obviously whoever killed her, took the key and used it to get passed the security system to keep from alerting the guard. But that still doesn’t explain why they stole data on Saiyans.”

He paused and thought about it for a moment before he turned to his son. “Trunks, did they steal any other info, or was it just the stuff on Saiyans?”

Trunks knew the reason behind the question. If they’d stolen other secrets, then they probably just took the Saiyan info along with the other files. But if they only took the info on Saiyans, then they had a very specific use for it in mind, and Trunks didn’t want to envision what that could be. “It was only the files on Saiyans. Apparently that’s what they were after because all the files on our prototypes and new inventions weren’t even accessed.”

It was then that Bulma realized she’d been standing there all this time with the door open. She walked completely into the house and closed it behind her, still trying to make sense of what was going on. “This just doesn’t make any sense. What does Julie and Saiyans have in common?”

There was a brief silence before Vegeta spoke up. “Nothing. Maybe whoever killed her did so to takeover her access to Capsule Corp. Maybe the ultimate goal was to gather the records on Saiyans.”

Vegeta didn’t like this situation one bit. It sounded suspiciously like enemy reconnaissance to him. “Onna…exactly what was contained in those files?” He asked, his pessimism already leading him to think the worse.

“Well, let’s see. All the info I’ve gathered over the years on Saiyan and Demi-Saiyan history, culture, and physiology. I also had your original ship’s hard drive translated and backed-up on there…oh Vegeta! Do you think it’s some new enemy trying to investigate Saiyans to find their weaknesses?”

Vegeta scoffed as her so-called genius mind finally realized what he’d already perceived. “It’s either that or one of those ruthless earth journalists trying to prove his alien-life theory.” He said sarcastically.

“This is bad. What should we do?” Trunks asked.

“Maybe we should call the other z warriors.” Bulma suggested.

“No. Not yet. First onna, you and Trunks go and backup those files and delete them completely from that computer system. Then transfer them to a safe place where absolutely no one but you two will have access.”

“What will you do?”

The prince had been in way too many life and death battles to allow himself to take anything for granted. He had a lot of issues that needed addressing and he had an idea of the only place he could probably get them dealt with quickly. “I’ll go see Dende. We are his wards.” Vegeta said sarcastically. “He should know something about any new threats to earth. We’ll meet back here afterward.”

Trunks and Bulma nodded before setting off to do their task. Vegeta left the house and blasted off towards Dende’s lookout.

------00------

Dende stood on the edge of the lookout clutching his staff in much the same manner as Kami once had. He could sense Vegeta approaching in the distance and knew what the reason was before he got there. After all, he was the guardian and he could tell everything that was going on with earth’s inhabitants. Especially those who held a special place in his life like the z-senshi.

Sifting through his recent visions, his heart clenched at the life-altering enormity of the foreboding future. Something was going to happen that would have a tremendous impact in the lives of his special friends. Unfortunately he knew that he was not free to interfere, or even discuss the issue. Apparently whatever was going to happen was supposed to, and his benevolent interference would only end up inflicting more harm than good. He really hated not being able to at least warn his friends, but at least he understood the reasoning behind it. This was the ethical dilemma that he faced where his friends were concerned. He understood the delicate nature of his position and the many ramifications the earth would face if he meddled too much. There was a natural order to things, and for the most part it was better left intact.

Vegeta landed on the lookout with the young guardian facing away from him. He was a bit annoyed because he knew Dende had sensed his arrival. He tapped his booted feet on the surface while clearing his throat loudly to gain the other’s attention. Dende turned toward him and began to approach. He noted the solemn look on the young guardian’s face and wondered if there really was a new enemy about to appear.

“Good afternoon Vegeta-san. What brings you up here today?”

“You know why I’m here. What the hell is going on? Is the earth again under threat of attack?” Vegeta said, all business as usual.

Dende looked the man in the eye, never flinching though the volume of the Ouji’s voice hurt his sensitive hearing. “No.” He answered, not offering any more.

Vegeta waited for Dende to elaborate further, but when he was greeted with silence he became annoyed. “I presume you know that Capsule Corp. was broken into and sensitive information on Saiyans was stolen.”

Dende nodded affirmatively.

“Then I also presume that you know who was responsible. Maybe even why.” Vegeta stated factually, already knowing it to be true. Dende however didn’t acknowledge the fact, nor did he dispute it.

“If there’s no new enemy, then who could possibly have something to gain from information on us? Are you going to tell me, or are you planning on remaining silent?” Vegeta asked.

Dende hadn’t said that there was no new enemy. He’d just said that the earth wasn’t under threat of attack. Ethically speaking it wasn’t a lie. He’d just not divulged the whole truth. He truly felt horrible for not intervening, but he couldn’t ignore the fact that some things were just supposed to occur no matter how devastating. “Listen Vegeta. I’m sorry, but I can’t help you figure this one out. On advice from the Kai’s I have been warned to refrain from intervening in the lives of the Z-senshi whenever possible. You just have to trust me that everything happens for a reason, and it’s better if I interfere as little as possible. Whatever happens…happens.”

Vegeta narrowed his eyes in annoyance. Apparently Fate was pissed that her plans are always thwarted, and Dende was of the notion that he’d been hampering destiny. “Aren’t you the Kami of this planet? Shouldn’t you decide where to interfere and what should happen on your planet?” Perhaps a twist of words would help persuade him.

Dende sighed, shifting his staff to the other hand. When he’d first taken the job, he’d thought the same thing. He’d meddled in many of earth’s affairs instead of just allowing them to play out and it had some dire consequences. After a few years of experience, and the advice of the Kai’s and the former Kami, he was made aware of his erroneous actions. “My duty as Kami is to protect the earth as a whole from impending catastrophes. I do not, however, micro-manage the lives of its inhabitants. I could very easily meddle in the affairs of earthlings, but then what good would it be for them to have freewill in the first place? People on this planet are allowed the freedom to make their own choices and thusly, they reap the benefits or suffer the consequences. I have no right to take that away from them…nor the desire.”

Vegeta was beyond frustrated at the guardian’s unwillingness to cooperate. Whatever was going on involved him and the only person with any knowledge was holding back information. He wanted to grab the Namek by his cloak and shake some sense into him, but refrained out of begrudged respect.

“Fine Namek!” He growled, thoroughly pissed. He couldn’t force the boy to talk, but he knew something was going on. He’d just have to keep his eyes pealed for any new dangers.

‘Just trust me Vegeta. I think this is for the best.’ Dende thought, watching the angry Saiyan leave.

------00------

Piccolo’s mind was still numb. He couldn’t begin to fathom what he’d seen that night. His mind just couldn’t process the thought but at the same time he couldn’t erase the images that were seared into his memory. Gohan…his Gohan had cheated on him. Okay technically Gohan wasn’t his, so it wasn’t actually cheating, but the pain of betrayal was there all the same.

*

For days after Gohan had confronted him that early morning, Piccolo had really given their relationship some thought. He hadn’t meant to hurt him…the pain on Gohan’s face had nearly crushed his heart. The very same heart that he didn’t think he had before he met the young boy that would alter his world. He’d remembered the first time he’d seen the boy. How annoyed he’d been that such a softhearted, whiny brat could possess power that not even he could fathom and be completely, innocently unaware of it. That boy that he’d thought wouldn’t last through his training, that boy that he’d faced as an angry oozaru, that boy that he’d sacrificed his life for, that boy that…wasn’t a boy any more. He was a man…a fine man that had adult needs. He no longer needed the mentor that Piccolo had been when he was young. Now he needed the lover that Piccolo refused to be.

‘I don’t want to ruin our relationship.’ He’d thought. But that’s exactly what he’d done with his refusal. He’d be lucky if Gohan ever talked to him again. Did he really want to risk not even seeing Gohan again, just because of some…some what?

‘Fear.’ His mind sneered.

He hated to admit it, but the little voice was right. It was fear that was wedged between him and Gohan not incompatibility. It was then that Piccolo realized that he’d been letting his irrational pessimism get in the way of something that could be beautiful. Gohan had offered him the most valuable gift of all…his heart. And Piccolo had just turned him away because of something that he abhorred. His own fear. The Namek cringed at the thought of his cowardice. He’d never…never been one to back away from a challenge, so why start now.

Piccolo had gone to Gohan’s apartment later that night to talk to him, but he wasn’t there. No matter he decided to just wait. When he finally did see the demi-Saiyan his heart had shattered into a thousand pieces. He couldn’t believe that Gohan was in the arms of another man. The potent scent of the stranger’s arousal mixed with the demi-Saiyans own scent was sickening. Piccolo had to fight the urge to vomit. He watched in despair as they stumbled into Gohan’s apartment, never breaking their kiss, and cried for the first time in his life.

*

Piccolo shifted his position until he was stretched out on his back and gazing up through the sparse canopy of trees at the clear sky. This was entirely his fault. He’d pushed Gohan away and he had no one else to blame. He’d been foolish and stubborn and because of that he’d lost his opportunity for the best thing that could have ever happened to him. He didn’t think that anyone could be more miserable and pathetic than him!

------00------

“So what did he say?” Bulma asked as soon as Vegeta walked back in. She’d been on pins and needles since he’d left.

“Nothing useful.”

“So he doesn’t know what’s going on?” She asked.

“Oh he knows what’s going on, he’s just not saying. He spewed some bullshit about not meddling in earthling affairs, and letting whatever happens…happen.”

Bulma was confused. Why was Dende suddenly being so taciturn? “Should I call the other senshi and let them know what’s going on?”

“Do what you will, but I really don’t believe that this concerns them. The only useful thing that damned Namek said was that this was not an attack on Earth. It has something to do with me…but I don’t know what.”

Bulma thought about it. She didn’t want to get her friends nervous or riled up over something that even Dende said wasn’t a threat to Earth. They’d all had their share of worries over these battles and she didn’t want to burden them more…especially if it were for nothing. “No, I won’t call them.” Bulma said. “But someone should talk to Goku, Gohan and Goten since they’re also Saiyan.” She said.

Vegeta started at the mention of the other warrior’s name. He’d just about forgotten about his intended spar with Goku.

“I was going to spar with Kakarrot today. I’ll tell him about it then and he can tell his brats.

“I can tell Goten about it. I’d planned on seeing him today after my meeting…whoa.” Trunks looked at his watch, shocked by the time. “We better get back to headquarters or we’ll be absent for our own meeting.” Trunks said to Bulma.

“You’re right.” She said looking at her own watch.

------00------

Vegeta left the house right after Bulma and Trunks heading toward the east. As he approached the mountains where his fellow Saiyan’s house was, his sixth-sense went into overdrive. Something was wrong…a deep sense of foreboding washed over his being. He tried to shrug it off but it just continued to increase. He figured it was just a bit of anxiety over the break-in at Bulma’s office. It didn’t help that the damned Namek was being cryptic and irritating. ‘Why the hell won’t he just come right out and say what’s going on? Is he deliberately being enigmatic just to piss me off?’ Vegeta wondered.

Vegeta’s pace increased unconsciously. The wind was whipping through his unruly locks, leaving a faint fresh outdoors scent clinging to him. A few minutes later he touched down outside of Goku’s house. He knocked a few times and waited, but no one answered the door. Out of habit, he quickly ki scanned the immediate area thinking that maybe the other warrior was in the nearby woods. What he got back in return sent his mind reeling. Goku’s ki signature was abnormally low and pain-filled, but it was coming from within the house. The prince didn’t think, he only reacted, pushing the door open and entering the house forcefully. Following the ki signature, he made his way up the stairs to a part of the house he’d never been in. He peered in several doors before he finally found the one he’d been looking for.

Shock, confusion, a bit of panic all flashed across his face. Vegeta quickly took in the appearance of his surroundings. Goku was laying on the floor, his nightstand overturned and the scent of burning plastic permeating the room. Underlying the burning scent was the unmistakable stench of blood. Vegeta stepped into the scene and up righted the lamp that was overturned and presently burning a hole through the lampshade. Shards of glass, seemingly from a glass, crunched under his boots as he stepped closer. He kneeled next to Goku, noticing the puddle of crimson that had pooled under the other man’s head, and shook him in an attempt to rouse him, but there was no response. Goku was cold and clammy to the touch almost like a corpse. The unhealthy pallor of his skin and the emotionless features of his face did little to aid in his appearance. It was only because of the faint ki that Vegeta even knew that he was still alive. Vegeta put his thumb on Goku’s eyelid, gently lifting it and holding the lamp up. The light shined brightly in Goku’s face, but his pupils were fixed and dilated.

Cursing in a mixture of languages, Vegeta picked up the larger man, awkwardly holding him like one would cradle a baby. Vegeta didn’t have time to contemplate what had happened or how long the other warrior had been like this. The only thought that raced through his mind was that he had to get Goku to Capsule Corp’s medical wing. All other questions he could ponder later. Goku’s dangerously low ki was still dropping and he was sure that the man would die if he didn’t get medical attention quickly. Blasting into Super Saiyan, Vegeta picked up his speed and raced toward West City trying not to jostle the man too much.

------00------

Doctor Moseri and his assistant were sitting in the medical wing enjoying a cup of coffee while discussing some new medical findings. His job as on-staff physician to Capsule Corp was fairly cushy. There were long stints of inactivity punctuated by sporadic episodes of life-threatening injuries. Ms. Briefs really did have some outlandish acquaintances. The overwhelming excitement aside, his job did afford him the opportunity to conduct research and the Briefs had given him a wonderful state-of-the-art lab.

Suddenly the doors of the medical bay crashed in and Vegeta rushed in carrying Goku in his arms. Dr. Moseri and his assistant jumped to their feet, the assistant spilling coffee all over the table. They had been there long enough to know that whenever Vegeta crashed through a door it normally meant trouble. They watched as he placed the other warrior on a table and stepped back before turning to them.

“Don’t just stand there you idiots! Help him!” Vegeta yelled annoyed at what he perceived as their ineptness.

The men rushed forward, checking the unconscious man’s vital signs and hooking him up to monitors.

“What happened?” Dr. Moseri asked noting the blood matted on the back of the man that he recognized immediately as Goku.

“I don’t know. I just found him passed out on the floor like that. I tried to wake him, but he wouldn’t respond. There was a pool of blood under his head like he hit it or something.” Vegeta stated trying to sound calm, but knowing he was failing miserably. He stood to the side of the room and watched as they stripped him to the waist and started hooking up monitors, wires, and an IV. They worked for what seemed like eternity to the man that was on edge. For a while Vegeta didn’t think they were making any progress. But slowly he felt Goku’s ki begin to rise to a still low, but satisfactory level.

“What the hell is going on?” Vegeta asked once they began to clean their implements and change Goku into some sort of hospital gown.

“He has stabilized but we want to run some cat scans to see the extent of the damage he suffered from the blow. My first guess would be a concussion, but we need to make sure.”

Vegeta looked at the still pale figure lying lethargically on the table. “How long will he be out like that?”

“It’s hard to say with a head trauma. His unconsciousness could be temporary…or not. We’ll run some tests and examine his brain waves to get a clearer picture of his condition. This may take some time though while we set up the equipment and prepare him.”

Vegeta nodded and left the medical bay slightly less panicked than when he’d come in, but still a bit shaken. He made it back up to the kitchen and picked up the phone to call Bulma.

------00------

Ian answered the phone on the first ring.

“Put Bulma on the phone.” Vegeta demanded, still not up on phone etiquette and at the moment too on edge to even try.

“May I ask who’s calling?”

“No…just put the onna on the phone.”

“I’m sorry but Ms. Briefs is in a meeting right now. Would you like to leave a message?”

“I don’t care what the hell she’s doing. Just put her on the phone now!”

Ian tried to remain calm. “Again sir, I’m sorry but if you leave your name and number, I’ll let her know you called.”

Vegeta grumbled and slammed the phone down. Quickly, he exited the house and flew toward Capsule Corp’s downtown office. A few minutes later, he landed in front of the building not giving a rat’s ass about who saw him and what they thought. He stormed up to the receptionist’s desk.

“Hello Mr. Vegeta.” The receptionist said, knowing exactly who he was from previous experiences, some that they still talk about in the employee break room. Vegeta didn’t even acknowledge her. He walked right past her and to the elevators with the pass that he kept in his wallet.

Vegeta took the elevator up to Bulma’s floor and walked to her office. When he walked in the man who he’d assumed had denied his demand to speak with Bulma greeted him.

Ian looked up as the door opened and saw a short, muscular man with an intimidating scowl enter. “Good afternoon, how can I help you?”

The prince tried to remain calm, already not in a very amicable mood, but not wanting to further compound the situation by doing anything harsh…like ringing the man’s neck. “Where is Bulma?”

Ian immediately recognized the man’s deep gravely voice from the phone. “She’s in a meeting right now.” He said glancing back at her office doors. “Do you have an appointment?”

“I don’t need one.” The prince said walking passed Ian’s desk and pushing the doors to Bulma’s office open and stepping inside.

Ian rushed in after him. “Wait! You can’t just go in there!” He cried grabbing Vegeta’s shoulder in an attempt to stop him.

This man was already treading on thin ice with the prince, and then he had the nerve to actually touch him. Vegeta grabbed Ian’s hand, twisting it painfully, stopping just short of breaking his wrist, effectively bringing the larger man to his knees.

“Don’t touch me.” Vegeta said in a deadly calm voice.

Ian let out a sharp cry of pain, jerking his hand back as Vegeta finally released it and cradling it to his chest.

“What the hell is going on?” Bulma screeched jumping up from her place at the head of a conference table on one side of her office. She’d been in the middle of a meeting discussing the new CC/JAI product line. Everyone in the room stared openly at the spectacle created by the prince’s entrance. Trunks and Gohan also jumped up and walked over to the scene.

“I’m sorry. He insisted on seeing you and I couldn’t stop him.” Ian said through pain-clenched teeth.

“It’s okay.” Bulma assured him.

“Are you alright?” Gohan asked kneeling beside Ian and checking his wrist for broken bones. “Maybe you should go to Employee Health and have that looked at.”

Shaking his head he said, “No, I’m okay.”

“Dad, what’s going on?” Trunks asked. It had to be major for his dad to even bother to come.

“Something happened to Kakarrot. He’s in the Med Bay now with those doctor’s trying to help him.”

“What!?” They cried in unison.

“What happened to my father Vegeta?” Gohan yelled standing to demand answers from the ouji and completely forgetting about Ian.

“Hell if I know. That doctor said something about head trauma and cat scans. They’re running some tests to check the amount of damage. I found him nearly dead on his bedroom floor, lying in a pool of his own blood. The fool probably fell and hit his head again.”

Bulma ignored the fool comment. It was obvious that Vegeta was concerned or he wouldn’t even be there in the first place. “Where was Chichi?” Bulma asked.

Vegeta, Gohan and Trunks looked at each other and realized that she was completely clueless to the situation. Bulma of course noticed the looks. “Okay, what’s going on?”

Vegeta stopped the conversation before it started, not wanting to get into a lengthy discussion about that. “Look, we don’t have time for this.” He huffed.

“You’re right. I’ll call Goten and tell him what’s going on. You and mom go back to the house and I’ll meet you there.” He said pulling out his cell phone.

Bulma turned to the group of people who’d been enthralled by the whole conversation playing out before them. “Sorry everyone, but we’ll have to continue this meeting another time. Ian, cancel all of my appointments for the day.” She called out over her shoulder as she left.

Ian nodded and stopped Gohan as he was about to walk out behind them. “I hope your father’s okay. I’ll call you later to check up on you.” Gohan nodded and left.

------00------

Most of their friends sat gathered around Bulma’s living room and spilling out into the main hallway and kitchen. She’d taken it upon herself to notify everyone she could think of, and to tell them about Goku’s condition. The prince was more than annoyed and felt that the only people that should be there; other than him, Bulma, and Trunks; were Goku’s brats. Everyone else was just extra baggage sucking up all the fresh air. Still, he sat in the corner; quietly waiting for Dr. Moseri to come up and tell them what was going on with the other warrior.

“Gohan, did Chichi say when she’d get here?” Bulma asked bringing up the topic from earlier. Everyone looked toward the prince as he groaned. Leave it to Bulma to further sour an already dismal mood.

“Um…I didn’t call her. I don’t think she’d come.” Gohan said.

“Why not?”

“Well Mom and dad aren’t together anymore Bulma.” Goten interjected.

“What? That’s news to me.”

“She left him a couple of months ago.” Gohan offered.

“Why didn’t he tell us something?” Yamcha said.

Vegeta rolled his eyes. ‘Maybe it’s because Kakarrot doesn’t trust you idiots.’

Gohan just shrugged his shoulders and relayed the events of the entire incident, including the way Goku found out about his money that none of them even knew he had. They all figured he’d blown all of his winnings on food.

“You mean she just took everything. We had no idea.”

Gohan nodded. “She has still refused to give any of the money back.” You could hear the bitterness in his voice.

“How’s he making it? Why didn’t he come to me for money?” Bulma asked. “I mean there’s no shortage around here.”

“You know dad, Bulma. He has no problem roughing it. I’d been paying his other expenses for him, but he got a job a few weeks ago to help get him back on his feet.”

“A job doing what?”

“A security guard at night.”

“Well he’s certainly qualified for that…”

Vegeta shook his head as he silently observed their conversation. They were supposed to be his friends, yet he hadn’t felt compelled to invite them intimately into his life. It also didn’t escape his attention that Goku had shared the info with him. Perhaps, at least on some unconscious level, Goku felt more connected to the prince than to the others. Vegeta couldn’t help feeling a smug contentment at the thought.

Just then the doctor appeared in the room.

“How is he?” Bulma asked. It seemed that the whole room held their breath in collective anticipation.

“He’s still unconscious.”

Gohan spoke up. “Do you expect him to regain consciousness soon?”

“Actually, we don’t know...”

Vegeta’s gruff voice cut the doctor off. “When will you know?”

“We’re running an electroencephalograph right now…”

Again Vegeta cut him off. “What the hell is that? Damn it! Speak plainly.”

“Oh, yes…” He said removing his glasses and wiping them on a cloth. “…well it’s a machine that monitors brain activity. So far his brain pattern is registering abnormal. But that’s not unexpected given the fact that he suffered such a severe blunt trauma to the left anterior lobe. He could be in a lingering comatose state merely for hours or days. Right now we’ll just have to wait and see.”

Krillen shook his head in confusion at the whole situation. “I wonder what happened. I mean Goku isn’t really the clumsy type. Carefree yes…clumsy no.”

That was true. Goku had to be one of the most graceful people that they knew. It had always been apparent, especially in his fighting...the execution of his movements. They always looked so complicated, but so simple at the same time.

“Vegeta, when you found him, did there appear to have been a struggle?” Bulma questioned with the earlier break-in incident floating through her mind.

“There were a few things knocked over, but nothing that would indicate that someone had fought with a man as powerful as Kakarrot. If that had happened, I doubt that his house would have even been standing.”

The doctor cleared his throat. “If I may interject. While running lab tests on Mr. Son, we found an elevated level of Diazepam in his blood that would imply that he’d ingested a rather large dose. It’s just a theory, but perhaps he initially lost consciousness before he fell, instead of as a result.”

Vegeta was rather annoyed with the whole situation. He hated when people talked about things that he didn’t understand. “What the hell is Diazepam?”

“It’s also called valium. It’s most commonly used as a prescription sleep aid. When taken in large doses it can be lethal. It’s a muscle-relaxer that can, not only damage the liver, but also arrest the heart. Mr. Son’s physiology is different from humans, in that his body ingests substances on a cellular level much more rapidly than a human. Because of that, it’s much easier for him to overdose. He probably took the medicine and started to suffer from the effects within minutes.”

“I always figured that Saiyans were more tolerant of things like that.” Bulma said. “But actually it makes sense. Just look at how fast a Saiyan’s body absorbs food. They eat more food than a human could imagine and within 2 hours are ravenous again. The nutrients must be absorbed extremely fast.”

“That’s really interesting and all Bulma…” Krillen interjected. “…But why would Goku be taking sleeping pills in the first place?”

Suddenly everyone turned as Trunks began to speak. “I know that Goku was suffering from insomnia. Goten told me about it and asked if I knew what to do. That’s why I was in your office today. I went to do some research on Saiyan sleep disorders.”

Everyone turned toward Goten for an explanation. “We don’t know why, but every since mom left he’s been kinda weird. He walks around like a zombie, always has a headache, and isn’t sleeping well. At first we assumed he was depressed over mom, but he swears that’s not the case.”

Vegeta too had noticed the other man’s strange behavior. He knew that the woman wasn’t the problem from his own observations and talking to Goku. It was something else. Something everyone, including himself, was missing.

“Right now we have him stabilized. If anything changes in his condition I’ll let you know immediately.” The doctor said before returning to the Medical wing.

“This isn’t good. Didn’t Goku suffer a similar head injury when he was a kid? What if there are negative effects like when that happened.”

Master Roshi, who’d been silently drinking a beer, cleared his throat. “That’s true. Gohan…his grandfather.” he clarified glancing at the young man who shared the name. “Gohan told me once that when Goku was a young boy, he’d been extremely violent and undisciplined. There’d been an accident one day where Goku fell into a ravine and suffered a serious head injury. After he recovered from that, he’d become more mellow, and a fairly docile child.”

It was a familiar story that they had all heard before, with the exception of Vegeta. He’d known that Kakarrot suffered some head injury that had supposedly stolen his Saiyan memories, but he never knew the whole story. Now that he had, he was having difficulty swallowing it. Normally Saiyan children that were sent to purge a planet were trained not to show hostility until the time that they were actually supposed to perform the Purging several years later. They were, after all, the weakest Saiyans and they wouldn’t be strong enough to combat the inhabitants or experienced enough to fend for themselves once the planet was purged.

“That story is ridiculous old man. I have never heard of memory loss changing a person’s intrinsic nature. If a person is inclined toward violence, then they cannot simply forget their aggression and suddenly become amiable. Kakarrot is the way that he is simply because it is his nature to be so.”

“But wasn’t he trained to be aggressive when he arrived so that he could eradicate the life on this planet. Wasn’t that the whole point, though thankfully he suffered that head injury which erased his memory of that mission?” The old master asked.

“First of all, Saiyans do not train their children to be violent we train them to be warriors. As a matter of fact Saiyan children are trained to remain passive in order to gain useful knowledge from the inhabitants of the victim planet.”

“Secondly, Saiyans use a method of subconscious stasis programming with babies sent off-world to purge planets. During their time in stasis they receive subliminal ‘training’ equivalent to Saiyan primary and secondary education since they normally remained on the planet throughout childhood and adolescence. Kakarrot should be fluent in Saiyan as well as 4 other languages that were spoken on Vegetasai and the language of the Aisujins. He should also have an extensive knowledge of Saiyan history, culture, and the values that were revered in our culture.”

“What values? Like death and destruction.” Yamcha added.

“Fuck off halfwit.” Vegeta growled.

Bulma glared at Yamcha for interrupting Vegeta’s story. It was the most she ever heard him share about his culture in one sitting and she wanted to hear more. Especially since it pertained to her best friend. “Please go on Vegeta.”

Vegeta decided to ignore Yamcha and continued. “After the child lands and is removed from suspended stasis the majority of the subconscious training remains dormant. Their Saiyan knowledge is ‘time-released’ so to speak to coincide with their mental ability to grasp the information. Each phase of learning is marked by a key hormonal change that occurs during normal Saiyan maturation. Somewhere around the 12th year is the time when the child is fully able to fend for itself and control their Oozaru transformation. That’s when their original mission, that lay dormant before, becomes active.”

“But we knew Goku when he was 12 and he had gone Oozaru before then.” Yamcha said.

“You don’t listen. I said controlled Oozaru transformation. Any Saiyan can transform if subjected to the right circumstances. But a transformation that occurs before they have matured enough is dangerous and unstable.”

Bulma was feeling a little more than queasy talking so casually about the near destruction of her entire species, though she suspected she should be used to it by now. “So why send them to a planet where the moon cycle is monthly? Couldn’t they easily destroy the planet in a blind Oozaru rage before they reached the age where they could control themselves? That would kind of defeat the purpose of purging it.” She said.

“You seem to have a misconception about what triggers transformation. It’s not just one thing, but a combination of factors. It’s true that the light from the moon is necessary as is hormones secreted from glands within his tail, but those are hardly the key factors.

More so than that, he would also need the impulse to go Oozaru before the transformation can ever even begin. The desire to go Oozaru is more psychological than physiological, without it the transformation is impossible. That’s why with deliberate meditation the urge to transform can be resisted. That’s one of the first components of his training that would have been effective. The only thing that could have negated that training is the desire to transform at the onset of his mission or fear caused by a physical threat or…mental trauma that raised his defenses. Did he suffer from something like that when he was a child?”

Everyone shrugged realizing that they knew very little about Goku’s past, before he met Bulma. They knew he lived in the mountains and trained with his grandfather, and they knew from his own naïve admission that he had accidentally killed Gohan during a transformation. But they had no idea what had triggered the transformation in the first place and beyond the old familiar story they had no clue. Everyone was so engaged in discussing Vegeta’s twist on the once familiar story that no one noticed Master Roshi slip quietly from the room. Almost no one, with the exception of the always-observant prince. He had a feeling that there was more to the story than the old man was letting on.

------tbc-------

A/N: I hope everyone’s enjoying this so far. Let me know what you honestly think. I’d really appreciate it. Sorry for any errors. This wasn’t beta’d.

Want to be notified when I update? Let me know by email or in your review. kaineko@hotmail.com