fate 17

Once Gohan and Chi-Chi landed down in front of their home, a little figure burst through the front door, running at full speed for Gohan and Chi-Chi. Gohan could see tears running down Goten's face as he launched himself at his big brother.

Gohan was a little taken aback when Goten wrapped his arms around Gohan's neck, clinging on as if for dear life. The shocked look soon faded into a compassionate look as Gohan cradled his younger brother close to him, consoling him as he cried.

"I was so scared, Gohan," Goten said through the tears; it broke Gohan's heart to hear his little brother cry, "I couldn't feel mommy's power anymore and then I felt yours and the ground started to shake...I thought you were dead!" Goten cried out. Gohan smiled and set Goten down on the ground. Putting his hands on Goten's shoulders, Gohan spoke to him in comforting tones.

"Sorry to scare you, Squirt. We're not dead; both of mom and I are here. And we won't ever scare you again, I promise. Do you believe me?" Gohan asked. Goten sniffed and nodded, a slight pout on his face as he got over his tears. He looked past Gohan to his mother, who was standing there with her hands on her hips, one eyebrow raised.

"Well, where's my hug, Goten?" Chi-Chi asked, a slight smile on her face. Goten smiled before launching himself at his mother.

"MOMMY!" Goten exclaimed as he landed into his mother's waiting arms. Chi-Chi laughed joyfully as she wrapped her arms around her youngest son and spun the two of them around. Gohan smiled at the sight until his mind came across a concern.

"Goten, were you here by yourself?" Gohan asked, his arms crossed over his chest. Goten and Chi-Chi both looked over at Gohan and Goten shook his head.

"I was," a deep voice called out. Gohan looked over to see Piccolo standing in the doorway to his house, the top of his head scarcely an inch below the top of the doorway. Gohan didn't say anything as Piccolo stepped out into the open area.

"Yeah! Mr. Piccolo picked me up from Bulma's house and took me back home. He said he wanted to be here when you got back home," Goten exclaimed.

"I must admit," Piccolo continued, "You had me worried there for a moment, kid. I thought your raw power alone was going to tear apart the Earth. I could feel your emotions in your power, Gohan; they were very powerful." Gohan blushed slightly.

"Yeah, well, there were certain conditions that brought out my power," Gohan said cryptically, not wanting to say in front of Goten that Chi-Chi had died. Piccolo, who knew what happened, nodded his understanding at Gohan's tact in withholding Chi-Chi's death from Goten, who would either not understand, or freak out about it.

"Piccolo," Gohan spoke, "There was something about those people Vegeta and I destroyed yesterday. I think they could be a threat and I think everyone should be alerted to the new threat. It wouldn't be fair to keep them all in the dark when their lives could be at stake." Piccolo nodded.

"Wise move, Gohan. The only question is how we're going to find everybody. We all know where Vegeta, Krillin, and Yamcha are, but none of us know where Tien is off training. He could be anywhere." Gohan smiled widely; he knew how to find him

"Well, you see, finding Tien isn't going to be as hard as we thought." Piccolo looked at Gohan with a skeptical look.

"How so?" Piccolo asked. Gohan walked several steps away from Goten and Chi-Chi, out of earshot, and motioned for Piccolo to come over as well. When Piccolo was standing close enough, Gohan spoke.

"When Vegeta and I summoned the dragon to wish Bulma and mom back to life, we both forgot that Dende had changed the dragon so that it granted two wishes instead of one. Vegeta told me to figure out something to wish for and I did." Gohan paused for dramatic effect.

"I wished for the power to do the instant transmission move dad knows." Piccolo smirked at the pure genius of the wish.

"Once again, wise move Gohan. You're father would be proud of you until he realized how easy it was for you to gain the knowledge to perform the move," Piccolo said, his gruff voice ruled with praise for the oldest son of Goku. Gohan laughed at the remark, knowing how true it actually was.

"That's fine. There's no one to hear us out here...no one that doesn't need to know about the existence of Saiya-jins, that is."

"Good," Gohan said, "Then, how about you go get Yamcha while I call Vegeta and Krillin. After I do that, I'll use the Instant Transmission and go get Tien. Does that work for you?" Gohan asked.

"Right," Gohan said. Piccolo gave his ex-student a small grin before lifting off into the air, flying away at top speeds, leaving a ki trail as his figure retreated, eventually becoming no longer visible to Gohan. Once he lost sight of Piccolo, Gohan turned and walked towards his house.

"Why the hell does Tien train up here?" Gohan asked himself as he used his ki to warm up the area around him. Several yards away was Tien, who was sitting the snow, his eyes closed as he meditated.

< I hate to disturb him, but this is important, > Gohan thought, preparing himself to draw Tien out of his meditation.

"Well, that's a bit of a long story. I'm sure you felt my energy yesterday along with the earthquake it produced," Gohan said. Tien nodded in affirmation.

"Yeah, I did. I was wondering what was going on, but decided to ignore it, thinking that you were probably just training." Gohan shook his head and began to tell the events of the day before. Tien looked shocked and appalled at what happened.

"Yeah, but Vegeta and I brought them back to life with the use of the Dragonballs. With the other wish, I wished for Vegeta and myself to have the power of the Instant Transmission. That's how I was able to find you and it's how we're going to get back. And I'm being serious about this, Tien. I don't think this is a one time deal," Gohan said, his voice wiser and older than it should have been for a person his age.

< But he's had to go through a lot in his short life, > Tien thought, < I mean, not many 11-year olds are given the responsibility of saving the world, yet he took it an succeeded. It's because of him that Cell was destroyed. Everybody on this planet, and the universe, owes him their lives. >

"I'll explain more when we get back to my house. I'd rather tell the whole story to everyone at once instead of repeating the story several times," Gohan reasoned.

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Tien said, walking over where Gohan was. "So," Tien continued, "As I remember this, I have to be touching you when you do the Instant Transmission, right?" Gohan nodded and Tien laid a hand on Gohan's shoulder.

"Then let's go," Tien said. Gohan smiled and focused his mind on Goten's energy, knowing it to be the only definite energy source at his house. Finding it, Gohan smiled.

It was several hours until everyone showed up, with Krillin and #18 the last ones to show up seeing how as they had the farthest distance to travel.

"Sorry we've kept you waiting," Krillin said slightly out of breath, obviously from pushing himself to get there as quickly as possible. Gohan dismissed the time of his arrival with a wave of his hand.

"It's no problem," Gohan said, "We're just happy you're here. Even Vegeta's not complaining." Krillin looked over at Vegeta, to see him sitting on a couch, holding Bulma close to him, as if she was going to disappear from his hold any second.

"What's wrong with him?" Krillin whispered, leaning in close to Gohan so he could whisper his words. Gohan leaned in close as well.

"Bulma died yesterday and Vegeta just got her back today. He's very happy to have her back," Gohan said in a whisper as well. Krillin nodded before Gohan's words sunk in.

"We have a possible threat on our hands. And my instincts are telling me that it's pretty serious," Gohan spoke, his voice hushed. Gohan looked around the room, glancing at the occupants.

On his left, leaning against the wall, was Piccolo. Sitting on two chairs were Tien and Chi-Chi. Yamcha had confiscated a chair from the kitchen and was sitting backwards in it, leaning against the back of the chair. On the two couches, which were more like loveseats, were Krillin and #18 and Bulma and Vegeta. The only people absent were Goten and Trunks, who had been sent out to play by their mothers. Gohan needed no motivation to start speaking.

"Yesterday, I was in Satan City, waiting for my friend to arrive so we could go see a movie, when I felt mom's ki rise in distress and panic. I immediately turned into a Super Saiya-jin and rushed to the scene to see two men holding mom and Bulma at knifepoint and this other man demanding to see the Saiya-jins; it turned out that he had a message for us, that his queen was going to kidnap somebody from this planet and use them as a sacrifice to rule the universe with.

"Once his message was relayed, these two men killed mom and Bulma. I killed the two men, but the other man used his magical powers to prevent me from moving. Luckily, Vegeta showed up and killed him. Then, Vegeta and I went on a search for the Dragonballs to wish mom back to life. I think we should believe this man when he said that his queen was going to take somebody from this planet. He didn't seem like the type of man to lie about something like that." The entire group was silent as their minds mulled over what had happened the day before. Tien was the first to raise a question.

"Yeah, he said that he was from a planet called Cresilia and his queen's name was Milena." Suddenly, Vegeta gave a yell of frustration and sprang to his feet, pacing back and forth frantically.

"Yes, I met this queen once when she came to visit Vegetasei. I was forced to learn all about their culture, including their sacrifice."

"Every 1000 years, the queen of Milena must sacrifice a chosen person. It gives her the power to rule over her planet, and even the universe if she wanted to. Now, depending on the nature of the sacrifice, she will receive certain powers. It even says so in one of their prophecies.

"The prophecy goes 'If the Tears of Grace shrouded in purple, two men, strong in body and will, destroyed must they be to unveil the path to the one, strong in all aspects of life, who's male energy shall grant power to the one up high for a millennia. His power will give the one up high the power to rule the light and bring power to those surrounding; in her wake shall the light be left and rejoicing shall commence for all her reign.

'If the Tears of Grace shrouded in blue, two women, strong in spirit and mind, destroyed must they be to unveil the path to the one, also strong in all aspects of life, who's female energy shall grant power to the one up high for a millennia. Her power will give the one up high the power to command the underworld; in her wake shall death prevail and her reign shall be cast into the shadows.

'If the Tears of Grace shrouded in both blue and purple, use the Heaven's Sea to lead thee down the right path and divine at thy own will. Fair warning, should thee divine wrong, the existence of the universe shall be destroyed and life shall remain no longer. Take caution in how thou divines. In thy hands, the universe does rest.'

"I was forced to memorize that when I was only 4 years old so I would know in case the sacrifice ever came from Vegetasei. Since Bulma and Chi-Chi were targeted, her sacrifice must be female, which she will hold power over the underworld, or Hell. She will rule the universe using that power." Gohan's curiosity forced him to press Vegeta.

"Well, the queen and her 15 High Priests surround a large altar that has the sacrifice placed on it while they chant in their ancient language. The queen makes three slits using a knife: one down the sternum, and one on the inside of each forearm. That allows the queen to steal the sacrifice's power and soul, making her powerful for 1000 years." Gohan's eyes widened at the description of the ritual.

"What happens if the queen doesn't get her sacrifice in time?" Gohan asked. Vegeta looked up at Gohan and stared him in the eye.

"Then she will die. She cannot live without the power of her sacrifice past the age of 150 years old. I take it since Queen Milena is preparing for the ritual, she must be getting close to her 150th birthday.

"The sacrifice always takes place on the eve of the queen's 150th birthday. If there was any possible way to prevent her from getting her sacrifice, she would die and the threat would be eliminated. But..." Vegeta trailed off.

"Most of her High Priests are even more powerful than I. They command magic that could bring star systems to their destruction and they could do it with one thought. And there are 15 of them all under Queen Milena's control. It makes her a very dangerous woman to deal with.

"I wish were dealing with anybody else than her. It almost makes me want to deal with Freeza again. He would be a walk in the park compared to her," Vegeta said, his voice filled with an unusual tone of hopelessness. Gohan and the rest of the room gulped. If Freeza was easy compared to this woman, they were in a whole lot of trouble.

"There's not much we can do. We just have to be on guard. There's nothing else we can do but that and watch out for anyone who possibly matches the description of the prophecy." Gohan gulped; he could think of one person who matched the description: Videl.

< I better keep an eye on her. So far, she's the only person I can think of who would come close to what this queen is looking for. Please, Dende, let my instincts be wrong on this one; please don't let it be Videl they're after, > Gohan thought with despair.

Later that evening, after everyone had gone home, Gohan was lounging in his room, reading a book. He didn't feel like training, though he figured he probably should be with everything that had happened over the last couple of days. He just didn't want to think about that. Reading a book helped keep his mind off of what was going on.

Distantly, he heard the shrill sound of the telephone ringing, but ignored it as his eyes roved over the words covering the page. Just as he was turning the page, he heard Goten's voice call out his name.

"Gohan! The phone's for you! It's Videl!" Goten yelled across the house. Gohan set down his book, putting it open face down on his bed, before getting up and walking over to the hallway phone.

"I'm fine. A little tired, though. Um, how's your mother?" Videl asked. Gohan mentally chuckled; he knew why Videl was asking.

"She's fine. Why wouldn't she be?" Gohan asked, feigning innocence. He could hear Videl laugh nervously on the other end of the phone.

"No reason, I guess. Just asking. Hey, I'm sorry about not showing up yesterday. I got, well...caught up in business, so to speak." Gohan smirked, knowing what "business" she was taking care of.

"It's ok," Gohan said, "I ended up having business of my own to take care of. So, we're even. We'll go see that movie next weekend." Gohan could practically hear Videl smiling through the phone.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I'm free next weekend and it's our last weekend before we go back to school. Are you excited to be entering our Senior year?" Videl asked. Gohan shrugged.

"Well, if you look at like that, Gohan, then it's nothing special. But, it's our last year before we go off to college. Isn't that exciting?"

"I guess," Gohan reluctantly admitted. He wasn't worried about college; he was worried about living long enough to get there. Videl sighed; sometimes talking to Gohan was like talking to a brick wall.

"Well, you sound preoccupied, so I guess I'll let you go. I just called to apologize for flaking out on you yesterday, but you weren't even there anyway, so, like you said, we're even." Gohan smiled.

"Bye Videl. Take care of yourself, alright?" Gohan said out of worry for what his instincts were telling him about the sacrifice that Queen Milena needed to receive her power. Videl was slightly taken aback by the words.

"I hope she really does look after herself. If I'm right, then she's going to be in a lot of trouble," Gohan muttered to himself as he closed the door to his room and climbed back onto his bed, picking up his book and reading from where he left off.

CAUTION NC-17 WARNING FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER, Chapter 18, IF YOU ARE UNDER 18 OR ARE NOT MATURE ENOUGH TO READ THEN DO US ALL A FAVOR AND SKIP TO


	LOVES TRIALS 17 Once Gohan and Chi-Chi landed down in front of their home, a little figure burst through the front door, running at full speed for Gohan and Chi-Chi. Gohan could see tears running down Goten's face as he launched himself at his big brother. Gohan was a little taken aback when Goten wrapped his arms around Gohan's neck, clinging on as if for dear life. The shocked look soon faded into a compassionate look as Gohan cradled his younger brother close to him, consoling him as he cried. "I was so scared, Gohan," Goten said through the tears; it broke Gohan's heart to hear his little brother cry, "I couldn't feel mommy's power anymore and then I felt yours and the ground started to shake...I thought you were dead!" Goten cried out. Gohan smiled and set Goten down on the ground. Putting his hands on Goten's shoulders, Gohan spoke to him in comforting tones. "Sorry to scare you, Squirt. We're not dead; both of mom and I are here. And we won't ever scare you again, I promise. Do you believe me?" Gohan asked. Goten sniffed and nodded, a slight pout on his face as he got over his tears. He looked past Gohan to his mother, who was standing there with her hands on her hips, one eyebrow raised. "Well, where's my hug, Goten?" Chi-Chi asked, a slight smile on her face. Goten smiled before launching himself at his mother. "MOMMY!" Goten exclaimed as he landed into his mother's waiting arms. Chi-Chi laughed joyfully as she wrapped her arms around her youngest son and spun the two of them around. Gohan smiled at the sight until his mind came across a concern. "Goten, were you here by yourself?" Gohan asked, his arms crossed over his chest. Goten and Chi-Chi both looked over at Gohan and Goten shook his head. "No, I wasn't here by myself," Goten said. "Then who was with you?" Gohan pressed. "I was," a deep voice called out. Gohan looked over to see Piccolo standing in the doorway to his house, the top of his head scarcely an inch below the top of the doorway. Gohan didn't say anything as Piccolo stepped out into the open area. "Yeah! Mr. Piccolo picked me up from Bulma's house and took me back home. He said he wanted to be here when you got back home," Goten exclaimed. "I must admit," Piccolo continued, "You had me worried there for a moment, kid. I thought your raw power alone was going to tear apart the Earth. I could feel your emotions in your power, Gohan; they were very powerful." Gohan blushed slightly. "Yeah, well, there were certain conditions that brought out my power," Gohan said cryptically, not wanting to say in front of Goten that Chi-Chi had died. Piccolo, who knew what happened, nodded his understanding at Gohan's tact in withholding Chi-Chi's death from Goten, who would either not understand, or freak out about it. "Piccolo," Gohan spoke, "There was something about those people Vegeta and I destroyed yesterday. I think they could be a threat and I think everyone should be alerted to the new threat. It wouldn't be fair to keep them all in the dark when their lives could be at stake." Piccolo nodded. "Wise move, Gohan. The only question is how we're going to find everybody. We all know where Vegeta, Krillin, and Yamcha are, but none of us know where Tien is off training. He could be anywhere." Gohan smiled widely; he knew how to find him "Well, you see, finding Tien isn't going to be as hard as we thought." Piccolo looked at Gohan with a skeptical look. "How so?" Piccolo asked. Gohan walked several steps away from Goten and Chi-Chi, out of earshot, and motioned for Piccolo to come over as well. When Piccolo was standing close enough, Gohan spoke. "When Vegeta and I summoned the dragon to wish Bulma and mom back to life, we both forgot that Dende had changed the dragon so that it granted two wishes instead of one. Vegeta told me to figure out something to wish for and I did." Gohan paused for dramatic effect. "I wished for the power to do the instant transmission move dad knows." Piccolo smirked at the pure genius of the wish. "Once again, wise move Gohan. You're father would be proud of you until he realized how easy it was for you to gain the knowledge to perform the move," Piccolo said, his gruff voice ruled with praise for the oldest son of Goku. Gohan laughed at the remark, knowing how true it actually was. "Yeah, well, I suggest we start gathering everyone. How about we meet here?" Gohan suggested. Piccolo nodded. "That's fine. There's no one to hear us out here...no one that doesn't need to know about the existence of Saiya-jins, that is." "Good," Gohan said, "Then, how about you go get Yamcha while I call Vegeta and Krillin. After I do that, I'll use the Instant Transmission and go get Tien. Does that work for you?" Gohan asked. "That works fine," Piccolo said. Taking a few steps back, Piccolo gave Gohan a slight nod. "I'll see you when I return from fetching Yamcha." Gohan returned the slight nod with one of his own. "Right," Gohan said. Piccolo gave his ex-student a small grin before lifting off into the air, flying away at top speeds, leaving a ki trail as his figure retreated, eventually becoming no longer visible to Gohan. Once he lost sight of Piccolo, Gohan turned and walked towards his house. "Mom, you might want to prepare food. And a lot of it." "Why, Gohan?" Chi-Chi asked, putting Goten down on the ground. Gohan gave his mother a grim smile. "Because we're having company." * Gohan shivered, his teeth chattering as he stood in foot-deep snow. He looked around the snow-filled area. < Well, at least the Instant Transmission worked, > Gohan thought. "Why the hell does Tien train up here?" Gohan asked himself as he used his ki to warm up the area around him. Several yards away was Tien, who was sitting the snow, his eyes closed as he meditated. < I hate to disturb him, but this is important, > Gohan thought, preparing himself to draw Tien out of his meditation. "Hey Tien!" Gohan shouted into the air. Tien's eyes shot open, surprise reflecting in them. "Gohan?" he asked, "What are you doing out here? More importantly, how did you find me?" Gohan smiled. "Well, that's a bit of a long story. I'm sure you felt my energy yesterday along with the earthquake it produced," Gohan said. Tien nodded in affirmation. "Yeah, I did. I was wondering what was going on, but decided to ignore it, thinking that you were probably just training." Gohan shook his head and began to tell the events of the day before. Tien looked shocked and appalled at what happened. "You mean they killed your mother and Bulma?" Tien asked, aghast. "Yeah, but Vegeta and I brought them back to life with the use of the Dragonballs. With the other wish, I wished for Vegeta and myself to have the power of the Instant Transmission. That's how I was able to find you and it's how we're going to get back. And I'm being serious about this, Tien. I don't think this is a one time deal," Gohan said, his voice wiser and older than it should have been for a person his age. < But he's had to go through a lot in his short life, > Tien thought, < I mean, not many 11-year olds are given the responsibility of saving the world, yet he took it an succeeded. It's because of him that Cell was destroyed. Everybody on this planet, and the universe, owes him their lives. > "What do you mean, Gohan?" Tien asked. "I'll explain more when we get back to my house. I'd rather tell the whole story to everyone at once instead of repeating the story several times," Gohan reasoned. "Sounds like a good idea to me," Tien said, walking over where Gohan was. "So," Tien continued, "As I remember this, I have to be touching you when you do the Instant Transmission, right?" Gohan nodded and Tien laid a hand on Gohan's shoulder. "Then let's go," Tien said. Gohan smiled and focused his mind on Goten's energy, knowing it to be the only definite energy source at his house. Finding it, Gohan smiled. "Here we go," Gohan said the moment before he and Tien disappeared, leaving the snowy landscape behind. * It was several hours until everyone showed up, with Krillin and #18 the last ones to show up seeing how as they had the farthest distance to travel. "Sorry we've kept you waiting," Krillin said slightly out of breath, obviously from pushing himself to get there as quickly as possible. Gohan dismissed the time of his arrival with a wave of his hand. "It's no problem," Gohan said, "We're just happy you're here. Even Vegeta's not complaining." Krillin looked over at Vegeta, to see him sitting on a couch, holding Bulma close to him, as if she was going to disappear from his hold any second. "What's wrong with him?" Krillin whispered, leaning in close to Gohan so he could whisper his words. Gohan leaned in close as well. "Bulma died yesterday and Vegeta just got her back today. He's very happy to have her back," Gohan said in a whisper as well. Krillin nodded before Gohan's words sunk in. "What?!" Krillin exclaimed. "I'll explain in a minute," Gohan said. Yamcha spoke up from his position in a chair. "So, what's going on? Piccolo wouldn't tell me much, except that it was important." Gohan drew in a deep breath. "We have a possible threat on our hands. And my instincts are telling me that it's pretty serious," Gohan spoke, his voice hushed. Gohan looked around the room, glancing at the occupants. On his left, leaning against the wall, was Piccolo. Sitting on two chairs were Tien and Chi-Chi. Yamcha had confiscated a chair from the kitchen and was sitting backwards in it, leaning against the back of the chair. On the two couches, which were more like loveseats, were Krillin and #18 and Bulma and Vegeta. The only people absent were Goten and Trunks, who had been sent out to play by their mothers. Gohan needed no motivation to start speaking. "Yesterday, I was in Satan City, waiting for my friend to arrive so we could go see a movie, when I felt mom's ki rise in distress and panic. I immediately turned into a Super Saiya-jin and rushed to the scene to see two men holding mom and Bulma at knifepoint and this other man demanding to see the Saiya-jins; it turned out that he had a message for us, that his queen was going to kidnap somebody from this planet and use them as a sacrifice to rule the universe with. "Once his message was relayed, these two men killed mom and Bulma. I killed the two men, but the other man used his magical powers to prevent me from moving. Luckily, Vegeta showed up and killed him. Then, Vegeta and I went on a search for the Dragonballs to wish mom back to life. I think we should believe this man when he said that his queen was going to take somebody from this planet. He didn't seem like the type of man to lie about something like that." The entire group was silent as their minds mulled over what had happened the day before. Tien was the first to raise a question. "Did he say where he was from?" Tien asked. Gohan nodded. "Yeah, he said that he was from a planet called Cresilia and his queen's name was Milena." Suddenly, Vegeta gave a yell of frustration and sprang to his feet, pacing back and forth frantically. "I should have known!" Vegeta exclaimed. "Do you know something about that planet?" Yamcha asked. Vegeta nodded grimly. "Yes, I met this queen once when she came to visit Vegetasei. I was forced to learn all about their culture, including their sacrifice." "Can you explain it to us?" Gohan asked. "Every 1000 years, the queen of Milena must sacrifice a chosen person. It gives her the power to rule over her planet, and even the universe if she wanted to. Now, depending on the nature of the sacrifice, she will receive certain powers. It even says so in one of their prophecies. "The prophecy goes 'If the Tears of Grace shrouded in purple, two men, strong in body and will, destroyed must they be to unveil the path to the one, strong in all aspects of life, who's male energy shall grant power to the one up high for a millennia. His power will give the one up high the power to rule the light and bring power to those surrounding; in her wake shall the light be left and rejoicing shall commence for all her reign. 'If the Tears of Grace shrouded in blue, two women, strong in spirit and mind, destroyed must they be to unveil the path to the one, also strong in all aspects of life, who's female energy shall grant power to the one up high for a millennia. Her power will give the one up high the power to command the underworld; in her wake shall death prevail and her reign shall be cast into the shadows. 'If the Tears of Grace shrouded in both blue and purple, use the Heaven's Sea to lead thee down the right path and divine at thy own will. Fair warning, should thee divine wrong, the existence of the universe shall be destroyed and life shall remain no longer. Take caution in how thou divines. In thy hands, the universe does rest.' "I was forced to memorize that when I was only 4 years old so I would know in case the sacrifice ever came from Vegetasei. Since Bulma and Chi-Chi were targeted, her sacrifice must be female, which she will hold power over the underworld, or Hell. She will rule the universe using that power." Gohan's curiosity forced him to press Vegeta. "How is the sacrifice performed?" Gohan asked. "Well, the queen and her 15 High Priests surround a large altar that has the sacrifice placed on it while they chant in their ancient language. The queen makes three slits using a knife: one down the sternum, and one on the inside of each forearm. That allows the queen to steal the sacrifice's power and soul, making her powerful for 1000 years." Gohan's eyes widened at the description of the ritual. < Dende, that sounds like Videl's dream. I wonder if there's any connection. There better not be... > "What happens if the queen doesn't get her sacrifice in time?" Gohan asked. Vegeta looked up at Gohan and stared him in the eye. "Then she will die. She cannot live without the power of her sacrifice past the age of 150 years old. I take it since Queen Milena is preparing for the ritual, she must be getting close to her 150th birthday. "The sacrifice always takes place on the eve of the queen's 150th birthday. If there was any possible way to prevent her from getting her sacrifice, she would die and the threat would be eliminated. But..." Vegeta trailed off. "But what?" Krillin asked. "Most of her High Priests are even more powerful than I. They command magic that could bring star systems to their destruction and they could do it with one thought. And there are 15 of them all under Queen Milena's control. It makes her a very dangerous woman to deal with. "I wish were dealing with anybody else than her. It almost makes me want to deal with Freeza again. He would be a walk in the park compared to her," Vegeta said, his voice filled with an unusual tone of hopelessness. Gohan and the rest of the room gulped. If Freeza was easy compared to this woman, they were in a whole lot of trouble. "What should we do?" Tien asked. Vegeta shook his head. "There's not much we can do. We just have to be on guard. There's nothing else we can do but that and watch out for anyone who possibly matches the description of the prophecy." Gohan gulped; he could think of one person who matched the description: Videl. < I better keep an eye on her. So far, she's the only person I can think of who would come close to what this queen is looking for. Please, Dende, let my instincts be wrong on this one; please don't let it be Videl they're after, > Gohan thought with despair. Throughout the minds of everyone else in that room, one thought was prevalent: < We're doomed. > *** Later that evening, after everyone had gone home, Gohan was lounging in his room, reading a book. He didn't feel like training, though he figured he probably should be with everything that had happened over the last couple of days. He just didn't want to think about that. Reading a book helped keep his mind off of what was going on. Distantly, he heard the shrill sound of the telephone ringing, but ignored it as his eyes roved over the words covering the page. Just as he was turning the page, he heard Goten's voice call out his name. "Gohan! The phone's for you! It's Videl!" Goten yelled across the house. Gohan set down his book, putting it open face down on his bed, before getting up and walking over to the hallway phone. Picking it up, he said, "Hello?" and heard a click as Goten hung up the phone. "Hi Gohan," Videl's voice sounded out. "Hey Videl, how are you?" Gohan asked. "I'm fine. A little tired, though. Um, how's your mother?" Videl asked. Gohan mentally chuckled; he knew why Videl was asking. "She's fine. Why wouldn't she be?" Gohan asked, feigning innocence. He could hear Videl laugh nervously on the other end of the phone. "No reason, I guess. Just asking. Hey, I'm sorry about not showing up yesterday. I got, well...caught up in business, so to speak." Gohan smirked, knowing what "business" she was taking care of. "It's ok," Gohan said, "I ended up having business of my own to take care of. So, we're even. We'll go see that movie next weekend." Gohan could practically hear Videl smiling through the phone. "Yeah, that's a good idea. I'm free next weekend and it's our last weekend before we go back to school. Are you excited to be entering our Senior year?" Videl asked. Gohan shrugged. "It'll be just another year of learning things and doing work that seems to have no purpose whatsoever." "Well, if you look at like that, Gohan, then it's nothing special. But, it's our last year before we go off to college. Isn't that exciting?" "I guess," Gohan reluctantly admitted. He wasn't worried about college; he was worried about living long enough to get there. Videl sighed; sometimes talking to Gohan was like talking to a brick wall. "Well, you sound preoccupied, so I guess I'll let you go. I just called to apologize for flaking out on you yesterday, but you weren't even there anyway, so, like you said, we're even." Gohan smiled. "Yeah, so I'll call you tomorrow and we'll work out the details for the weekend, ok?" "Yeah. Bye Gohan." "Bye Videl. Take care of yourself, alright?" Gohan said out of worry for what his instincts were telling him about the sacrifice that Queen Milena needed to receive her power. Videl was slightly taken aback by the words. < Gohan never says that before we get off the phone. Something must be wrong... > "Sure thing, Gohan. I'll talk to you tomorrow." "Bye Videl," Gohan said with a smile. "Bye Gohan." Gohan pulled the phone away from his ear and hung it up. With a sigh, he headed back to his room. "I hope she really does look after herself. If I'm right, then she's going to be in a lot of trouble," Gohan muttered to himself as he closed the door to his room and climbed back onto his bed, picking up his book and reading from where he left off. CAUTION NC-17 WARNING FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER, Chapter 18, IF YOU ARE UNDER 18 OR ARE NOT MATURE ENOUGH TO READ THEN DO US ALL A FAVOR AND SKIP TO Chapter 19 THANKEE ^_^