Just a Nightmare: Slumber of the Dead
Disclaimer:
<Insert standard one here.>
Warnings: This
teaser basically has only violence, mild profanity, and a mention of death. The
yaoi comes later. There’s also a bad description of a sparring match. I just
can't write them that well for some reason.
Pairings:
(eventually) Goku x Vegeta, Goten x Trunks
Misc
Information: This fic is in two parts. First off there's a get-together
ficcy, then I get into the reason behind the title in part two.
Shameless
Plug: I need more people to review Age of the Empire on
Fanfiction.net. Won't go into all of the reasons, but let's just say that I've
entered new territory with it. So far it's general :( but that'll change.
Just a Nightmare
(Part I: Distant Dreams)
Chapter
1
The
sterile white walls, the antiseptic odor, the mundane sentiment, the quiet
sobs... Those would be the things he would always associate with that day,
things that he would come to later associate with a different day. Just another
part of the memory his mind made when Bulma Briefs died.
The
Saiya-jin no Ouji stood silent and even more taciturn than usual against the
wall opposite the closed door of the hospital room. He had said nary a word
since the doctor announced Bulma's fatal disease yet Goku could see that he did
not grieve. The thought curiously didn't puzzle him like he assumed it should
-- he'd known for years that Vegeta's love for the ningen woman was a
nonexistent thing -- and he felt that he understood the reason why.
Vegeta
could never fully come to love anyone that could not accept him for who he was.
In fact, if Goku hadn't seen evidence, he would have believed that Vegeta could
not love at all.
On
the day his oldest friend died, Bulma asked to see him alone. Goku left the
others in the hallway, left them to their quiet misery, and took the single
chair that sat at Bulma's bedside. She turned her gaunt face towards him and
smiled.
"May
I ask a favor of you, Son-kun?" she asked weakly, those few words nearly
sapping all of her strength.
He
moved forward as her voice dropped in volume, tears springing to his eyes. Goku
could vividly remember that young girl he'd met so many years ago and how she
went vigorously about her task of collecting dragonballs to wish for the
perfect boyfriend. The woman that lay before him was the exact opposite of that
girl, but she would always remain beautiful and youthful in his eyes.
"Anything,
Bulma. Ask anything."
She
smiled again and moved one trembling hand forward to pat his cheek. "You
were always such a sweetheart." Bulma closed her eyes as a wave of pain
passed through her. "Onegai, Son-kun, take care of Vegeta. He needs
someone."
Goku
sat with her until he felt her ki slip away, not truly thinking about her
request until she was gone. His eyes shot open as the full import of her words
hit him. Take care of Vegeta? Just how was he supposed to accomplish that? The
stubborn ouji wouldn't even look at him without glaring... how in the world was
he supposed to care for him?
He
went out into hallway, back to the few people who'd gathered. There was Vegeta,
of course, Trunks and Bra, ChiChi, Gohan, Goten, and Yamcha. Goku tried to look
on the bright side of everything -- at least his friend wasn't in pain anymore
--, but his facial expression gave his true emotions away; they always did.
Bra
inhaled, a sharp, quick sound, and buried her face into her father's stomach.
She was only seven years old and far too young to have to deal with the grief
of losing her mother. Trunks remained silent and stoic, staring sightlessly at
the door in front of him. His hold on his composure was tenuous at best,
shattering into tiny fragments when Goten laid a comforting hand upon his
shoulder. The tears slid down his cheeks at a rapid pace, absorbing into the
cloth of Goten's shirt as the younger boy embraced him.
That
had been a year ago. Since then the surrealistic hospital scene had been played
once again; this time at ChiChi's death. It had not been an illness to take the
wife of Goku, but a bizarre series of events.
She
had been at the grocery store, buying the necessary items needed to restock the
pantry at home, when a group of thugs entered the store and began to wreak the
place. ChiChi, extremely annoyed that the cashier was halted in the middle of
ringing up her purchases, approched the man who was stealing from the register
and slapped him violently across the face. The thug blinked at her through his
pain for a moment before pulling out a long knife and sliding it between her
ribs. The woman went down... but not before kicking her assailant hard in the
groin. Her last thought before losing consciousness was that she was going to
kick his ass so hard that he wouldn't be able to sit down for weeks.
ChiChi
lasted quite some time at the hospital even after she discovered that she'd
lost too much blood to survive. She looked hard at the family that surrounded
them and said a few last, albeit cryptic, words before passing on. "Don't
stay alone, Goku-sa. It's not good for you."
The
sound of knocking drew Goku away from depressing memories. He rolled over in
his bed and peered at the clock. Oh, it was seven-thirty. Closing his eyes, he
was close to allowing himself to drift back to sleep when the time made an
impact. His eyes popped open and he blinked at the glowing red numbers. "SEVEN-THIRTY?!"
"Kakarotto,
if you don't get your ass up right now...!" Vegeta allowed the threat to
trail off into nothingness as he pounded on the front door again.
'I
was supposed to spar with him at six this morning,' Goku said to himself
with a sheepish grin. 'Oops.' He yawned as he rose to go let Vegeta into
the house before he broke the door down. The short Saiya-jin stood on his
doorstep, the frown on his face turning to something that looked remarkably
like a cross between shock and embarrassment.
Vegeta
adverted his eyes by focusing on a point somewhere near Goku's left ear.
"Don't tell me that you're going to spar like that."
Goku
blinked in confusion for a moment before looking down at himself. He realized
his state of dress -- or, rather, the lack of it -- and blushed. "I'll go
get dressed and we can head out."
"Don't
take all day, baka. You're already behind schedule."
He
grinned as he went back to his room. "Oh, don't worry, Vegeta. I'm eager
to kick your ass again."
There
was a moment of shocked silence, then, "What the hell did you say?!"
His only response was deep laughter.
Once
outside Goku tilted his head back and breathed in the fresh air. It felt very
good to be alive at the moment. Today would be the day he bested Vegeta --
there would be no tie. Maybe then the older Saiya-jin would consider him an
equal instead of merely a "third-class baka".
Vegeta
eyed the larger Saiya-jin with curiosity, wondering what the hell was going on
with him. He seemed even happier than usual (if that was possible) and, for
some odd reason, that scared him. A happy Kakarotto was a dangerous Kakarotto.
"Come on," he said slowly, cautiously watching his opponent. While it
was unusual for Goku to use underhanded tactics, Vegeta wanted to be prepared
for anything. Especially when the other man was looking like the proverbial cat
who'd just eaten the canary.
They
flew at a leisurely pace to one of several sparring grounds that had on that
side of the world. It was secluded and strongly reminiscent of the desolate
land where they fought their very first battle. Goku thought it fitting that it
would be the place where Vegeta tasted defeat.
Without
warning, Goku launched himself at Vegeta and threw a series of kicks and
punches that only tested the defenses of the ouji. Vegeta frowned at this,
knowing that his opponent was only playing with him. Before he could open his
mouth to demand that Goku get serious, however, the mood of the spar shifted
dramatically.
Suddenly
Goku no longer toyed with him. For only a moment he lagged behind the younger
fighter, but that brief moment cost him plenty. Goku now had the upper hand and
he just couldn't take it away from him. Vegeta smirked to himself. He may be on
the defensive now, but he wouldn't be for very much longer. Quickly
hopping away, he powered up to Super Saiya-jin. Goku immediately followed suit.
The
spar became greater in intensity as various ki blasts were mixed in with the
physical attacks. Two hours passed by and Vegeta was becoming sick with being
on the defensive... again. He, once again, moved away to transform, but Goku
wouldn't give him the time.
"You
will not win!" Goku fairly growled as he continued his powerful onslaught.
Vegeta's eyebrows raised in surprise right before he executed one of his
signature ki attacks.
"Final
Flash!"
As
Goku twisted aside to dodge the yellow energy, Vegeta shot far above him into
the clouds. Yet even the distraction his move provided wasn't enough as the
taller Saiya-jin caught him in a bear hug from behind.
"Yield
to me," Goku breathed in Vegeta's ear. The ouji shivered at the sensation
even as he cursed himself. He knew that something wasn't right with the
other Saiya-jin yet he still consented to spar with him.
Vegeta
leaned his head forward so that Goku's breath wasn't tickling him anymore.
"Kakarotto, did you hit your head again and rattle what was left of your
brain?"
"Iie,
Vegeta. Why do you ask?"
"You're
acting even weirder than usual." He squirmed and twisted in the other
man's grip, suddenly feeling quite uncomfortable. "If you don't let me go
right now..."
A
moment's silence, then, "You'll do what?" The deep timbre of his
voice made chills run up and down Vegeta's spine. It was starting to become too
much for the older Saiya-jin and, in his panic, he soared upward to the next
level of Super Saiya-jin.
The
golden power was almost painful and Goku gritted his teeth as Vegeta renewed
his struggle. He saw his dream slowly began to fade away with each twist of the
smaller Saiya-jin's body. He wouldn't let it happen. He couldn't! With revived
determination, Goku went beyond level two to level three and put a halt to
Vegeta's movement.
"You
will not win," he repeated slowly and the words finally sank into Vegeta's
mind.
After
a moment the ouji dropped out of Super Saiya-jin completely with an angry
grunt. How dare the third-class baka even think that he would just let
him win! He would have to be near death before the thought crossed his mind and
even then chances were zero at best.
Goku
released him, apparently coming to the conclusion from Vegeta's body language
that he'd won the match. Grinning widely, he opened his mouth to suggest that
they get a meal when Vegeta suddenly smirked and opened his hand. The next
thing Goku felt was a buring pain in his stomach and then he knew only
darkness.
Stay tuned for the completion of this chapter and the rest
of part one. At this point I'm on chapter five (about halfway finished, I
think). How do you like it so far?