[Rated] R - "Quoth the Raven: 'Nevermore.'" --------------------------------The Hunt------------------------------------ Part Five [By] Ben Weeks [Note] Whew. Finally, this, the end chapter of my epic. It's been fun taking a dive into DBZ land. While we didn't get to see much of most of the characters, I got to explore the relationships between my favorite saiya-jin and his mortal enemy, Kakarotto. I don't delude myself into thinking many people enjoyed it. Maybe you're offended I'd do this to Mr. Toriyama's work. Please understand, I did this for my own enjoyment, and to flex my story-making skills for all the world to see. Enjoyment? Yes, I had fun writing it. I hope you had fun reading it. Remember the words of VegettoEX: "Dragonball may be over, but it will continue to live on in the hearts of it's fans forever......" Words to live by. We love the way the DB characters make us feel about ourselves. We love the considerable skill Toriyama has in weaving a wondrous tale of fantasy, adorn with strange magic and evil villians. In the end, the child in each of us loves what we see. The adult in each of us loves the way we can still enjoy something so ageless. I love the way it brings so many, of such varying differences, of such wide races and beliefs, together. Regardless of what you say, we should all be bound together by the common thread of Dragonball. Can this be? Me...choking up? Trying hard to find something to say? I feel sad and happy. My story is over. Time to move on to others, if you enjoyed this, I'd appreciate it greatly if you could email me at: redwizardb@yahoo.com If you liked it, then maybe I'll do more stories. If everyone hates it, then I'll take a hint and stay away from fanfics altogether. Whatever you think, I love emails, whether they be hate-filled or praise. Please, let me know your opinion. Here we go... Vegeta flew through the air at incredible speeds, breaking the sound barrier and causing a huge wave of water rush up after him in the wind. His eyes were on the target in front of him, however. A bright orange-clad figure clasped a shrieking woman to his chest, every now and then casting a furtive look behind him to see Vegeta holding a steady distance behind. Gokou. Where is he going?, thought Vegeta. He can't outrun me, and he can't keep my wife forever. Vegeta gritted his teeth in the wind. If Kakarotto killed her, the consquences would be dire. He couldn't believe he was letting the fear of harm to her getting in his way. What did he care if she died? But something inside him refused to allow her to come to harm. The same part was frothing with rage at the fact that Gokou dared lay hands on Vegeta's wife. Anger lent speed and strength to his actions, but clouded over his perceptions and clarity of thinking. Suddenly Vegeta gasped as he noticed something he had been missing in his murderous intent upon Kakarotto. A large, snakelike dragon was twirling around the cove they had just come from, it's body seeming to have no end, akin to a large, coiled rope. Shenlong. Vegeta suddenly realised in a flash of comprehension what Gokou planned to do. Using Bulma as a hostage, he would make himself immortal at the hands of the dragonballs! He couldn't let that happen. He sped himself up to full throttle and started to inexorably gain on his opponent, feeling the no-man's land between them shorten and shorten. Gokou saw this and increased his speed, but it wasn't enough. There was no escape. Vegeta finally overtook him right as they arrived into the cove. Gokou flashed down onto the ground and jumped back from Vegeta, who landed with a spray of sand in every direction. Kurillin was kneeling next to the wounded form of Tien, but was gazing up at the large dragon in wonder. Yamucha was watching as well, and Chiao-tzu was unconscious on the ground. The fact that they were alive was miraculous. But standing next to them was a figure who startled Gokou. He was grim. He was green. It was Piccolo. Vegeta stood, ignoring Piccolo and watching Gokou intently. The Namek-jin warrior watched Gokou as well, as did the ecstatic Gohan. Gokou licked his lips, holding the struggling woman under his arms. He cast worried glances around, trying to figure a way out of this predictament. Above him loomed Shenlong, growing quickly impatient with what was going on below him. Gokou bit his lower lip and utilised every brain cell he had, trying to figure out what to do. Finally, he spun Bulma around and hugged her to his chest, then yelled at the top of his lungs into the sky. "SHENLONG! I COMMAND YOU TO GRANT MY WISH! MAKE ME IMMORTAL!" Vegeta leapt forward instantly, as did Piccolo. Vegeta's fist was merely inches away from Gokou's open face, when he suddenly slammed into a wall of energy that dragged him up into the sky, then flung him out onto the hard, cratered ground. Piccolo stopped just in time to see a huge beam of light surrounding Gokou, increasing his power level substantially. Gokou screamed in orgasmic ectasy, an insane laugh that was horrifying. Vegeta cursed in rage and whipped out his left hand to face Piccolo, gritting his teeth. Piccolo's arms fell to his sides. He nodded. Vegeta was about to fire when suddenly Shenlon's eyes stopped glowing the bright red. As tension hung in the air, he spoke in a deep, guttural voice that echoed around the world, dooming it. "Your wish has been granted. And now, I bid you farewell." Vegeta fell to knees and punched the ground. Gokou was being struck by lightning all over his body. He threw Bulma face-first into the dirt. Vegeta grabbed a rock and squeezed it so hard it broke, then flung the pieces into the air. Piccolo bowed his head. Gohan was shaking along with Kurillin, Yamucha, and Chiao-tzu. Tien sighed a deathly sigh. The Dragonballs rose into the sky, and with a brilliant flash of light, flew off into seven different directions. Gokou stood up, straight and tall, his blonde hair waving dramatically in the wind. His face leered with pure evil power, and Vegeta stood up on his feet, determined to face death with a fight. Piccolo threw his turban and cape onto the ground with a loud clunk, then spread his feet. Gokou smiled condescendingly. Vegeta leapt forward. Suddenly Gokou cried out as he was surrounded by a ball of black energy that seemed to suck power out of him. He shuddered in immense pain, then as the ball disappeared, fell to his knees. He reverted back to his normal saiya-jin mode. Piccolo blinked in surprise. Vegeta stopped and floated in midair, watching suspiciously. Gokou suddenly snapped upright, and a green vapour sprayed out of his ears. He screamed in pain, and when the vapour was done, he fell to the ground. The green mist appeared to hover in the air for a second, then the wind caught it and blew it away. Gokou gurgled, coughing violently and clutching his stomach. Vegeta narrowed his eyes as Piccolo watched silently. The others huddled on the ground, gazing at Gokou fearfully. After a few moments, he rose his head. It was bloody from all the fighting. It was bruised and beaten. His Gi was torn. His hair was matted with blood. Burns covered his arms. He gurgled, then finally coughed up some blood. He looked at Vegeta with a confused face. "What...where am I...uhnn...that food tasted funny.." Vegeta took advantage of the fact that his victim was momentarily delirious and lunged forward, grabbing Gokou's back and bringing his knee into his stomach. The air rushed out of Gokou's body and Vegeta twisted him around, then flipped him into a nearby crater like a ragdoll. Piccolo watched this detachedly, his thoughts on something else. Gokou cried out in confusion and pulled himself up from the edge of the crater, wiping blood from his mouth and rubbing his stomach. "Vegeta....what are you doing..." "I'm not falling for your games, Kakarotto." "What are you talking about, Vegeta? I..I..." Vegeta didn't allow him time to finish as he jumped into the air and fired a yellow ki blast down at his opponent. Gokou looked up in fear and confusion, and the blast ripped into his flesh, destroying vital organs, bones, and killing him. At least that was the plan. It worked fine, up until the part where the beam was supposed to hit him. It would have, but Piccolo jumped in at the last second and pulled Gokou out of the way of the destructive Ki power. Vegeta growled in anger and suprise. "What!?" Piccolo let Gokou fall to the ground, then rose up, cracking his knuckles. "He's no longer evil. Can't you feel it?" Vegeta's senses had never reached the peak that Piccolo's were, so he couldn't differentiate between an evil Gokou and a good Gokou by mere Ki appreciation. He narrowed his eyes. "How can that be?" "The other dragonballs, the Namek dragonballs, were used to wish me back to life. I can only assume they were used to make him un-immortal." "And so you're saying that they made him good again?" Piccolo didn't say anything, he merely nodded. Vegeta watched as Gokou dragged himself up from the ground and rubbed his forehead, his eyes bleary. "I feel so strange...the last thing I remember is being fed really nasty food, and then, WHAM!, I'm here..." Kurillin ran forward, tentatively looking at Gokou closely. The Ki felt normal... He leaned forward slightly. "Gokou, what's Kamesennin's largest pride?" Gokou blinked in confusion. "Why, his porno collection, of course! Duh! Everyone knows that." "It really is you, Gokou!" Kurillin ran forward and hugged his best bud, who was confused. "Of course it's me. I mean, what, did you think Taurus (author's note: DragonballZ movie number..uh..I forget, but in Dubland it's called "The Tree of Might" and you know, you got that guy who looks so much like Gokou it's frickin' scary, and his name's Taurus, you know, right?? Right?) Did you think Taurus had dressed up in my clothes?" "No, I...that is, we....it's a long story..." Gohan ran forward and threw his dad a hug, while Gokou laughed, unaware of what was going on. Tien smiled weakly as Yamucha rubbed his face in pain. Piccolo allowed himself a very small smile as he watched Gohan romping slightly with Kurillin and Gokou. Suddenly, the little party was interrupted by piercing laughter. "Hahahaa!! You fools! So what if Kakarotto's nice again? That makes no difference! I am still superior! And I will finally realise my dream of defeating Kakarotto, as a rightful prince of saiya-jins should!" Gokou stood up, looking at Vegeta in (what else?) confusion. "What? You're not stronger than me, Vegeta." "Oh ko! (Author's note: That's not a typo, I meant to say "ko". I read Shogun and they used that phrase alot. I like applesauce. What more do you need to know??) Is that so? You seem to have forgotten the beating you were recieving at my hands! Shall I refresh your memory?" Gokou cried out in pain as he felt a booted foot catch him in the balls, and he reached down and grabbed Vegeta's foot. With a grunt, he thundered into super saiya-jin and threw Vegeta into the air. Vegeta caught himself with ease and hurled a ball of energy at Gokou with a yell of power. Gokou spread his feet and grabbed the ball, digging his booted heels into the ground. With a loud grunt, his temples throbbing and sweat pouring out onto his forehead, he hurled the ball away into the distance, where it exploded into a huge atomic cloud that ripped away the countryside. Vegeta gasped in suprise. Gokou panted in exhaustion. Vegeta leaned down to watch Gokou slide into a battle stance, even as his compatriots formed up on him. Look at them! They so quickly forget what happened mere moments earlier and trust him implicitly again! What's going on? Was he letting me win? Impossible! Gokou's not that smart to make a bluff like that, and besides, it would have served no purpose. No, his power's stronger now that the drugs gone. Could the drug have had that effect? Vegeta knew the answer. He's stronger now that he's good again. The reason for his strength has always been his purity of heart, his innocence, and his absolute need to win. But when that's gone, when he's Kakarotto, not Gokou, then that power, that 'need to win' is taken away, and he falls into his rightful place. Does that happen with all saiya-jins? Or is it just that the extreme reversal of roles does that? Does that explain why Piccolo is so powerful? Because he's so opposite of the good in Nameks? Gokou's purity of hearts is the pure opposite of saiya-jin instinct, and he's the greatest warrior we've ever had. Maybe that's nature's way of keeping the balance. But that's just not fair!! Vegeta was pure evil! Or was he? He hadn't killed Gokou and brought about the death of Bulma. Had he really allowed himself to be played out like that? It was impossible! And why had he went on that damned trip in the first place? It had served no purpose!! Even as he thought that, Vegeta knew he was wrong. He felt fufilled in a way he couldn't describe, having went on a hunt with a fellow saiya-jin and had many impossible adventures. Vegeta sighed as he realised his turmoil had gotten the best of him. He fell out of super saiya-jin and landed on the ground, staring at Gokou coldly. Finally, as they watched him intently, he spoke. "Kakarotto....remind me to never go any trips with you, if this is how they're going to turn out. A little anti-climactic, is it not?" Without waiting for a reply, he jumped up and zipped off into the far distance, disappearing out of sight on the horizon. They watched in his direction for awhile after he could no longer be seen, then Gokou sighed and fell out of super saiya-jin. He looked around him. The carnage and destruction was overwhelming. Tien had lost an arm. Piccolo had died, only to be brought back to life. They had went on a trip through space, found the lost home-planet of the saiya-jins, found the "legendary" super saiya-jin, killed him, then zoomed off only to have Gokou kidnapped and brainwashed, whereupon he fought with Vegeta for dominance of all the universe. He smiled. "That was fun!" DRAMATIS PERSONAE FINALIS (No, I don't know what I'm talking about, but it's sure fun to act like I do!!) Vegeta ended up avoiding Gokou like the plague, instead taking a heavy interest in learning how to drive stock cars. After defeating all comers in his souped-up speeder, he was caught watching "Speed Racer" and humming along to the tune of "Go Speed Racer, Go Speed Racer, Go Speed Racer Goooo!!!". He firmly denied this, and claims the "Driver X" briefs were a gift to Dr. Briefs. Bulma pointed out that her father ironically only wore boxers. He now owns a company that is paying for more episodes to be produced. Gokou found out he had un-discovered skills in being a meek husband and spent most of his days bowing under the iron will of Chi-chi. However, she certainly sang a different tune in bed...~.^ Kurillin spent his time after that trying desperately to "borrow" one of Kamesennin's porno books. After failing miserably, he decides to start a string of highly-successful five-star resturaunts named The Cue. Tien managed, through an intricate process involving a contraceptive and a vacuum cleaner, to have his old arm back, as good as new. He spent the remainder of his days in the "Cue-club" with Piccolo, Kurillin, and Chiao-tzu, discussing possiblities of the "Hair Club for Men". Piccolo suggested Rogaine. Yamucha did some stuff. (does anyone ever pay attention to him after the android saga, really? I sure didn't. I mean, no offense...) The Zarians, like most evil, warlike-races, were merely misunderstood, and they went on to be healed by a very highly-skilled pro therapist. Unfortunately, the cost of his services bankrupted the entire system, and they now live in abject poverty, surviving only by selling books on how to avoid rats. And as we all know, this is the end. That's it. Goodbye. That's all. Still here? Okay, maybe you need a joke. I'll tell you one. It's a little sick, so be prepared. A man has a 40-inch long dick. Now, to many men, this sounds like a dream come-true, but think about it: What woman seriously wants that? So he's actually getting less action than a man with a tiny dick. He needs to find a way to get his dick shrunk. So he goes to see his doctor. He says: "Look, doc, you gotta help me." The doc marvels at his size, but after a thorough examination, says: "I'm sorry, but I can do nothing to alleviate the problem. Now, normally, I wouldn't recommend this sort of thing for my patients, but this is a special occasion. Two doors down, there lives a witch. Go talk to her about your problem." So the man goes and talks to the witch. She is boggled at his size, but says: "I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do. However, there is a frog who lives down at the pond. He can help you. All you have to do is get him to say no. Everytime he says "No", your dick will shrink by ten inches." So, the man skips down there all willy-nilly and see's the frog. He is happy about the solution, but a little skeptical. "Are you the frog the witch told me about?" "Yes." "Hmm...okay then, Will you marry me?" The frog is disgusted. "No!" The man suddenly feels lighter, and he opens his boxers. Viola! His dick is now 30 inches!! He is delighted, but still a little too long. He figures it worked once, why not again?" "Will you marry me, froggy-poo?" "NO!!" He giggles in delight as his dick goes to a mere twenty inches. However, he still feels this is too long, and so he wants to clip it off to an even ten. "Will you marry me?" "How many times do I have to say this? NO, NO, NO, NO, NOO!!!!" HAHAHAAHAAAA! Get it??? Do you...do... Alright, I'll be quiet. Thanks for reading my story, at least. Give me your opinions to me at -----------------------------redwizardb@yahoo.com--------------------------- I love feedback, be it good or bad! Also, if you enjoyed this story, would you like to see more stories by me? Perhaps you'd like to see a certain theme played out, but can't seem to write it out. If so, email me with story suggestions! I'll give credit for the suggestions I get, unless you tell me otherwise. I guess my ego's a little inflated, to think that people would actually trust ME with their stories. Final thanks go out to Gary Andrews, which is not his real name, for being a close friend and for introducing me to DBZ. I quickly topped him in DBZ knowledge, but he still provides inspiration for stories. Darton Brisco (is that o or oe, Darton?) is an enigma. He claims to be intelligent, but when I seek proof of this, all I get are idiotic sayings. For instance, whenever I commented in our risk game about how my Green Pieces, the "Irish" as I refer to them, about how a mere two single men once held off nearly fifty of Gary's pieces WITH NO CASUALTIES, which probably contributed to Gary's insanity, anyway, when I said the Irish are good defenders but lousy attackers, I then put several of my pieces on the UK, positioning them so they were on the small island of Ireland to Britian's left. I said, They're home on Ireland! Darton then said: "Aren't the Irish From Scotland??" It has branded him for life, and erased any doubts in my mind of his so-called smarts. And thanks to the crowd in #spiritworld for timely boots, a receptive audience (sometimes), and to JiVe for being an Ops buddy. Thanks to TOD for being in there to correct things about the fanfic on his page, and thanks to everyone else for being cruel and mean and teaching me valuable lessons on how to be cynical and sarcastic, as well as the joy of booting newbies. And thanks to the inventors of applesauce; you know who you are;) ------------------------------The End---------------------------------------