Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ A Time Mixup! ❯ Flee or Fight, Will Trunks remain a Guardian? ( Chapter 11 )

Chapter 11

Flee or Fight,

Will Trunks remain a Guardian?

"Thank goodness that you're alright…" Yuna looked at Trunks with nothing but relief, her eyes filled with tears. "When I saw that attack on you, I thought that you'd been killed!"

Trunks shook his head.

"No… Goten saved me." Trunks looked back towards Goten, who was laying on a cot, covered in blankets. Yuna had done what she could to heal him, now only time would tell if he would recover. "Goten, Goku-san, and my papa."

"You should be proud…" Yuna said, looking to Vegeta. "Your son is very courageous."

Vegeta shook his head, scowling. He'd been very withdrawn since he and Trunks's teary reunion, and now was no exception. Goku was kneeling next to Goten, looking equally as serious. Funny… In all the pictures Trunks had seen of Goku, he'd worn an expression of careless happiness. Now that Trunks had met him, however, he had found that the man had a silent seriousness about him. It was almost more intimidating than Vegeta's. Trunks walked to Goku, and looked up at him worried. Goku looked down at him and said nothing, and for a time the two just looked at each other-half and full Saiyan, both feeling the enormity of the situation that Trunks didn't fully understand. He looked at Goten, feeling his throat tighten. The wounds had been healed for the most part, but… Goten just didn't look alive. Trunks looked to Goku fearfully, and he touched the elder Saiyan's sleeve.

"Gok-er-Mr. Son…" He said softly.

"Just call me Goku." Goku looked down at Trunks, and his expression softened a bit. "That's what you called me before."

Trunks nodded, only barely understanding.

"Um, okay then… Goku-san." Trunks looked back to Goten, his eyes fearful. "Is… Is Goten gonna be okay?"

"I think so… But then again…" Goku shook his head. Trunks managed a nervous grin.

"We can just wish him back, right?"

Goku bowed his head unhappily, and said nothing. Trunks suddenly felt very tense, and he turned away, feeling fearful. Vegeta walked to Trunks and Goku, and he looked at Trunks for a long time, as if taking him in. He then spoke, his voice sounding strained.

"I suppose time flowed quicker here for you. How old are you now, boy? Eleven? Twelve?"

Trunks bowed his head, feeling a little awkward.

"Um… You see, I haven't really been here that long… The time machine… It did something to me. I've… Aged somehow. I still should be eight… But I don't feel like I am. I feel a little more mature, I guess you could say." Trunks grinned a bit, giving his victory sign. "But hey, it isn't that bad!"

Vegeta shook his head.

"Have you stopped aging, boy?" He sounded a little concerned. "You won't… Just keep getting older will you?"

Goku looked at him sharply.

"You've… You've been aging?"

Trunks nodded.

"It's no big deal… It just hurts a little when I sleep."

Goku narrowed his eyes.

"How long has this been happening?!"

"Two nights or so…"

Vegeta's eyes widened.

"You aged four years in two days?!

Trunks nodded.

"Uh-huh. Can't we just reverse it with the Dragonballs if it gets bad?"

"I suppose…" Goku looked down, crossing his arms. "Has anything odd happened with Goten?"

Trunks shook his head.

"I don't know. I found him a few seconds before you got there-or actually, he found me."

Goku was silent. He looked at Goten for a long moment, then looked back to Trunks.

"We need to go." His voice was urgent. "We need to get you boys home now. If we don't, then we'll never be able to wish Goten back to life… If… If the unthinkable happens."

Trunks looked at Goku in shock.

"I can't go home now!" He exclaimed. "I'm a Guardian-I must protect Yuna!" Trunks looked over at Goten, and suddenly felt a pang of guilt. "Why don't you take Goten back? I can go back with my dad."

Vegeta shook his head.

"No. You are coming back now. What will Bulma think if only Goten comes back?!"

"Well…" Trunks said softly. "Goku-san can tell Mama that you and I stayed behind…"

Goku shook his head.

"No I can't. I'll have a mortal body in that universe only long enough to drop you and Goten off. Once I appear there, I'll die again. You see-I had to be alive to come here."

Trunks blinked.

"That Universe?! What do you mean by "that universe"?! Are you saying that we're not in our own anymore?! That we're in… Another dimension?!"

Vegeta nodded.

"There was a malfunction with the time machine. It opened a "hole" I guess you could say, and it emptied you out here. I was able to follow you only because we wished on Shenlong to reproduce the first time machine. Bulma reinforced it so that it wouldn't explode or anything."

Trunks looked up in wonder.

"Wow… We're the first two people to go to another Universe!!!"

"Well…" Goku said softly. "Technically, the after life is another universe… But you are the first live people to go to another universe." He picked Goten up, and then turned to Trunks. "Now then. Say "bye" to your friends. We've gotta get back."

Vegeta nodded.

"Yes hurry. I need to figure out a punishment for you."

Trunks looked at them horrified.

"Now?! Why do I gotta go now?!" He shook his head, jutting a hand towards where Yuna and the others were gathered. "But I told you… I can't! I've gotta stay to protect-" He felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned, looking up. Yuna stood above him, her eyes warm. She smiled at Vegeta and Goku, and spoke softly.

"I told you, Trunks… That when you found your family, you'd have to have their permission… Correct?"

Trunks nodded meekly, knowing that he had no hope. He looked at Yuna sadly, and nodded.

"I know…" He said unhappily. He glared at his father, and spoke again, his voice on edge. "I could do so much more here, though. Especially because I could keep the Time Machine…"

Vegeta shook his head.

"You're coming home. These people can handle themselves."

Goku nodded.

"It's best that you come home, Trunks. I'll bet that Bulma's really worried about you. And… It's dangerous to stay." He lowered his voice. "I told you… If the unthinkable happens, we can't wish you back."

"Why not?!" Trunks demanded.

Goku sighed. He shook his head.

"In Other World, there… There are a whole lot of clouds. Golden clouds, like Nimbus. I never really thought about the resemblance, or I probably would have figured out what those clouds were. You see… You really aren't the first people to travel to another universe. King Kai told me that long ago people learned to "hop" universes. Unfortunately, your soul belongs to your home universe, and you really aren't supposed to be in realities other than your own. There are other versions of yourself out there, even in this universe. If you die in a universe that isn't your own, your soul will be pulled across the Universal Divide to enter Other World in its original universe-but… Unfortunately, it destroys your soul. A soul can never really disappear-but it can be scattered, torn and warped into something else. In the case of people who die in other universes other than their own, they become the golden clouds in Other World. King Kai told me that it happens a lot-more than it should. So you see… If your or Goten die here… You can never come back."

Vegeta stood frozen, his eyes wide. Yuna gasped in shock and looked at Goten in horror. Trunks let out a cry, dashing to Goten.

"Wake up!!! Wake up!!! You can't die here! You'll be gone forever! Please!!!" He shook Goten, and winced as he felt a spark of energy at his finger tips. He pulled back, looking confusedly at his hands. He shook his head, and turned to Goku hopelessly. "Goku-san!! Take him back quick!!"

Goku looked at Trunks and Vegeta, then picked up Goten.

"It's safer to use the Instantaneous Movement. Vegeta, Trunks, let's go quickly."

Trunks bowed his head, and he turned to Yuna, who nodded.

"I don't want you to disappear, Trunks…" She said softly. Tidus walked up behind her, looking at the group.

"I… I overheard. I'm sorry…" He looked at Goku, speaking weakly. "That doesn't happen to simple time travelers, does it? 'cause, I'd hate to just vanish…"

Goku shook his head.

"No. We had a friend who came to us from the future awhile back who died in our time. We were able to wish him back."

Tidus let out a soft sigh.

"Okay. I was just curious." Trunks smiled at Tidus, eyes sad.

"I gotta go, Tidus."

Tidus nodded.

"I know. Thanks… Thanks for helping us."

Yuna nodded.

"You're truly amazing, Trunks… Maybe we'll meet again someday."

Trunks looked at them vaguely, as he walked to Goku. Goku took Trunks's hand, and Vegeta took his other hand. Trunks smiled softly, as a tear rolled down his cheek. He waved slowly.

"Bai…"

The four Saiyans flickered in and out of existence a few times before finally vanishing. Yuna let out a long sigh, bowing her head. Tidus hugged her, comforting her.

"At least he's safe, Yuna… And he's home."

Yuna nodded.

"I know… But I will miss him, Tidus… But… It's okay." She smiled, turning away from empty room. "I won't ever forget him…"