"It's an earthquake!" Videl gasped, also rising and holding onto little Pan.

"It can't be!" Gohan shook his head. "There isn't one predicted!"

"That never stopped them before, Gohan-kun!"

Kuririn also took to the air, finding it steadier footing. "Maybe we better get out of here?"

"No way!" Bulma snapped. "Capsule Corporation is built stronger than that, it's not going to fall down in some little quake! Besides, if you think I'm going to leave Tr--" she stopped, then shrieked, "TRUNKS!"

Unnoticed by the rest of them, Mirai Trunks was awake, and more than awake-- he was dragging himself out of the bed, a very Vegeta-like snarl on his face. Half staggering, half swaying over the unsteady footing, he reached the sill and clung to it, throwing the window wide open, then shielded his eyes as the wind blasted in with hurricane's force, sending Kuririn tumbling into the back wall. "No!" he screamed. "No, no, no!" He brought one foot up, obviously about to fling himself out.

Tossing Bulma at Gohan (who hastily caught her), Vegeta rocketed forward and grabbed the young man's shoulders, yanking him back. "Yamero!" he ordered. "You're not going anyhere!"

Mirai Trunks twisted to look at him, still snarling; then the snarl dropped away, to be replaced by confusion, then a flicker of hope. He fisted a hand in Vegeta's shirtfront. "Vegeta-san?" he gasped. "It's you? This is the past?"

"Vegeta...san..?" Vegeta repeated, brows knit across.

Mirai Trunks looked around, eyes flicking from Videl to Gohan to Bulma to Kuririn and Juuhachi-gou, hope and despair mingling more and more in his features as he marked each figure. "It is, this is the past," he said, letting go of Vegeta. "I was.. I was on the outside of the time machine... How in Kami's name did I-- no. Never mind." He looked back around at Vegeta. "We have to get everyone together. Right now. He may still be vulnerable till he learns to wield the power. It's our only hope now."

"What..?" Bulma said, still dangling from Gohan's arms.

"The Dragon Killer!" Trunks shouted impatiently, then clapped a hand over his mouth. "Gomen, gomen ne, I didn't mean to shout. I'm sorry, Bulma-san."

"BULMA-san?!?" Bulma gaped, then scowled. "Oh, so I'm not good enough to be your mother any more?! That's a fine thank you for getting you out of the hospital! I had to practically crowbar the doctors out of the way, and all I get is a 'Bulma-san'?"

"I, ah, um, that is," Mirai Trunks stammered, then shook his head again helplessly. "Please can I apologize later? If we don't hurry, the whole world will be destroyed."

"Maybe you'd better tell us now, Trunks-san," Gohan said, drawing nearer. "It won't do any good to hurry if we don't know what's going on."

At that moment Gokou reappeared, holding the Dragon Radar in one hand. "I got it!" he crowed, then promptly fell over as the floor shuddered under his feet. "Oiiii! What's happening? Who put the building on roller skates?"

"It's not the building, Gokou-san," Mirai Trunks said. "It's Chikyu. It's rocking to its foundations. Shenlon, the Holy Dragon, the spirit of the Earth itself, is dead."

"Naaaaaaaaaaaaniiiiiiiii?" Gokou shot up into the air, jaw dropping. "You're kidding!"

"I only wish I was." Mirai Trunks looked around again. "... Anou... Chibi Trunks.. where is he..?"

"I sent him and Goten off to get you some senzou. You looking pretty good right now without it though."

"Arigato. --Who's Goten? -- Never mind, tell me later. I've got to make this quick. Can I explain while we head that way?"

"Which way?" Vegeta demanded.

Mirai Trunks reached out, took the Dragon Radar from Gokou, hastily adjusted it, then held it out. To one side of the crossgrid a huge point of light showed. "Here. To the east. He'll be there, Ryubarasu. I don't know any other name for him."

"This is just great," Kuririn groused as he rejoined them, a large knot on the top of his head. "We just got over someone trying to destroy the world, and now we're right back at it. Man, is this lame or what?"

Juuhachi-gou didn't answer--not Kuririn, at least. Instead, she turned to her daughter. "Marron, you'll stay here with Bulma. Don't be a problem to her."

"I'll stay too," Videl said, holding Pan a little closer. "We can let little Trunks and Goten know where you've gone. And I'm sure once the quake stops, the city's going to need at least one of the Great Saiyamen."

Gohan nodded and leaned in, kissing his young wife. "Be careful," he said softly.

"I will..." Videl touched Gohan's face. "You too?"

Gohan nodded, then followed the rest of the warriors out the window.

When they were gone, Bulma sat on the bed (which wasn't shaking quite so badly as the rest of the room) and crossed her arms, scowling. "Typical men, run out when things get interesting."

"H-hai," Videl said, a sweatdrop appearing on the side of her face.

"Now what the hell is this you've been puling about?" Vegeta said to Mirai Trunks as they all flew east.

"He came to our world only a few days ago, and came to Capsule Corporation, demanding our Dragon Balls. He said his name was Ryubarasu, and he needed the Dragon Balls desperately." Mirai Trunks drew a hand across his forehead, sweating. The effort of flying was taking more out of him than he liked, but every second counted. "We'd been warned about him, and when we told him he couldn't have them, he wasn't very happy."

"I thought Piccolo-san was dead in your time, " Gohan said quietly. "If that's so, he really couldn't get the Dragon Balls, could he?"

"There's a new Kami, he's recreated them, " Mirai Trunks answered. "Just recently. They're more like the original Nameksejin Dragon Balls-- they grant three wishes, not one."

"Ah, then you got a Dende too," Gokou observed.

Mirai Trunks looked surprised a moment, then nodded. "Yes, the new Kami's name is Dende. --I guess that means..."

"Hai. When old Kami and Piccolo merged--you remember, to fight Cell--the Nameksejin sent little Dende to take over."

"Looks like both times chose the same replacement then." Mirai Trunks smiled briefly, then became serious again. "Ryubarasu came back later and tried to take the Dragon Balls by force. We fought him off and he fled. I chased him. Mom was charging the time machine for me then-- I'd decided to try a trip back here to see how you were all doing, and to let you know things were much better for us now.... he stole the time machine. Thought it was a spaceship, maybe."

"And instead it brought him back here." Juuhachi-gou nodded. "Why is he so dangerous, this Dragon Killer?"

"He doesn't want the Dragon Balls to make a wish. He wants the Dragon. He has some kind of weapon that-- that takes your whole ki, your whole lifeforce, and draws it into the wielder. It's an ancient artifact, Dende says." Looking around, Mirai Trunks shook his head. "He's been stealing the souls of every Dragon he can find. When he takes the souls of one hundred dragons, he's supposed to be invincible. And our Shenlon was to be the hundredth. We stopped that-- but-- I think he must've taken the soul of your Shenlon instead... it's all my fault!" he burst out, fists clenching. "If only I'd stopped him before he took off in the time machine! But it was all I could do to hold on, I thought I'd be torn apart--"

"Na, shinpai shinai, Trunks-san," Gokou said. "It's nothing you can change now, we just gotta beat him, that's all!"

"If we can, Gokou-san, if we can."

The six of them flew on in silence for a few moments, Mirai Trunks stealing glances at Juuhachi-gou the whole time. Finally she leveled a cool gaze on him and asked, "Did I grow horns?"

"N-nani? --Oh, gomen..." the boy looked ahead, blushing a bit. "I was.. I was just wondering... whose little girl that was you were holding. Back in the hospital."

"Ours," Kuririn said proudly. "Her name's Marron."

"You and Juuhachi-gou-san are married?!"

"Well--sure, I mean, you don't think we had Marron BEFORE we--"

"No no no!" Mirai Trunks laughed hastily. "It's just... I wonder if... never mind."

"Yeah, it's been a pretty good few years over here." Kuririn sobered a bit. "How're things over where you're living? I mean... did we change anything..?"

Mirai Trunks shook his head. "No. Except that I did kill the other Jinzouningen, and Cell too. Our past didn't change."

"Geez... I'm sorry.... I mean, you came all that way--"

"It's all right, Kuririn-san." The young Saiyajin smiled. "Believe it or not, things are getting a lot better. We're rebuilding the cities, and it looks like the human race is going to survive after all."

"Oh okay! Good deal. Um.... how's... how's your mom?"

"Happier than she's ever been." Trunks took a long, long breath. "But that's a story for another time. After we've dealt with Ryubarasu."

"Look," Gohan broke in. "Look ahead of us there..."

All of the fighters looked up, then skidded to a halt. The air before them was filled with a wall of twisting clouds, a bruised blue-black in color, with lighting arcing restlessly from sky to ground and back again. The ground itself was shattered open, in some places bleeding streams of molten rock. And all of them could feel something creeping across their nerves, the sense of some immense power, coiling in the heart of the destruction, a serpent readying itself for a poison strike.

"Wait here," Gokou said quietly. "We're gonna need Chibi Trunks and Goten now." Putting two fingers to his forehead, he teleported away.

The others descended and found a place to wait, watching the roiling tempest. For his own part, Mirai Trunks was just as happy about taking a brief rest. Nothing was broken, but he wasn't fully healed, he could feel it. A grim little smile touched his lips and he sat, head hanging down, conserving his strength. The slightest sound near him made him glance up to see Vegeta watching him like a hawk. "Hai?" he said.

Choosing his words carefully, Vegeta said, "Are you able to fight?"

"Yes, I have enough strength left for that," Mirai Trunks answered, then scowled. "Wait a moment--"

"So you did understand." The next second Mirai Trunks found himself hauled to his feet and inches from Vegeta's face. "Who taught you our language, boy?"

"You did."

"Don't make a joke of it." A sharp little shake. "I may've taught you to fight, but I taught you nothing else. So answer me. Where did you learn Saiya-go?"

The young Saiyajin opened his mouth to answer, then closed it again as Gokou reappeared with the younger Trunks and Goten in tow. "Later," he promised Vegeta. "You know I'll keep my word."

"Hn." Vegeta let go, folding his arms. "If you want to keep breathing you will."

Meanwhile, Gohan had moved off a bit by himself and was watching the wall of fire and air, a troubled look on his face. Kuririn moved up beside him. "Something wrong, Gohan?"

"Piccolo." Gohan glanced at the other man, eyes worried. "I've been trying to find him, sense his ki, so he could join us. And I can't. I should be able to, he never hides from me. I'm just-- I'm afraid--" he gestured at the storm. "He meditates in the mountains, Kuririn-san. What if he was near there when all this happened?"

"That's a tough one to call, Gohan. We'll just hope he wasn't, or if he was, that he could and did take care of himself. Hey, Piccolo's a tough guy, he's smart, I'll bet he's waiting on us somewhere and keeping his ki masked so that this Ryubarasu character can't tell where he is."

"I hope you're right, Kuririn-san."

As the Warriors gathered, Mirai Trunks took the opportunity to move closer to Gokou. "Are you sure you want them here?" he asked quietly, nodding at his younger self and the dark-haired boy beside him. "I mean, it's obviously been a lot longer for you than for me-- I'm sure they've been trained well, but--"

"Hai," Gokou answered, eyes on the far horizon. "Might need Gotenks."

"Go...tenks..?"

Gokou grinned and clapped the other Saiyajin on the back. "Been a lotta changes since you were here last!"

"So I see." Shaking his head, Mirai Trunks ran a hand through his bangs, the same two stubborn locks dropping right back into place. "The little boy--he's yours, Gokou-san? Or Gohan-san's?"

"Mine, sankyuu. That's Goten."

"He looks a lot like you. I hope he fights like you too."

"Hai, Goten's good boy." Turning, Gokou held open a palm, on which rested three senzou. "These are all were ready, Karin says. You go ahead, eat one. The way you're acting, we'll need all our strength. Might as well keep the rest, too, you got pockets put them in."

Mirai Trunks nodded and ate a senzou, feeling health flood back into him, then carefully tucked the others away. "He was bad enough with the strength of ninety-nine dragons in him," he answered. "I can't begin to imagine how much more powerful he is now. And with Shenlon dead, there's no hope of resurrection. I'm so sorry, Gokou-san. I never meant to bring this on you."

"Aa, quit that. You blame yourself too much."

Mirai Trunks laughed. "You sound just like--" he stopped.

"Nani? Sound like who?"

A small smile crept over Mirai Trunks' face. "A very good and wise man I know."

Meanwhile, Chibi Trunks had been staring at his future counterpart, and finally walked over to stand in front of him, arms folded as he scowled up at him. Mirai Trunks struggled to keep a smile off his face-- the boy's expression was so like Vegeta's... I might've been like this, if Pappa had lived. I do sense a great power in him. A lot more than I had at his age. I should know by now Gokou-san knows what he's doing. "Konnichi wa, Chibi Trunks-kun," he said quietly. "Mirai Trunks dai yo."

"You're really me?" Chibi Trunks said.

"That's right. Sort of, anyway. Where and when I come from... the other warriors died when I was a baby. We have that much difference, if nothing else." Mirai Trunks glanced briefly at Vegeta. "He's here to teach you, as my father wasn't."

Chibi Trunks' expression softened. "Gomen," he said, lowering his arms. "I guess... maybe it hurts to see me then. I'm kind of like..." His head lowered and he peered up at Mirai Trunks through bangs a bare shade lighter than the older Saiyajin's. "I'm kind of like everything you lost."

"No, little prince." Mirai Trunks crouched down, to be on eye-level with the boy. "The first time I came here, it was with hope of changing the past. Maybe I didn't change my own, but I helped save your world, your future, from becoming mine... and I learned about what kind of men my father and Gokou-san and all the other Warriors I never met must've been. That was a great gift. Everything I did and learned here prepared me to go back to my own time and make it better, too."

"Enough talking," Vegeta interrupted. "Where is this 'Dragon Killer' you've been saying is so strong? I don't sense anything."

"He's got to be near here..." Rising, Mirai Trunks swung the modified Dragon Radar around. "This says we're practically on top of him."

"Vegeta's right, though," Kuririn said, scanning the area warily. "I don't feel anything either--well, not anything really in one spot. If this guy's as powerful as you keep saying he is, he should stand out like a searchlight on a dark night!"

"Unless..." Gohan trailed off.

"Unless what?"

"Unless his power's so great it's all around us.... so that everywhere feels the same. If we're standing in his aura... surrounded by it... there'd be no way to tell any difference. It'd be like standing in a pool of water. You couldn't pick out one drop from another."

"Oh man," Kuririn groaned, "I don't like the sound of that!"

"Juuhachi-gou-san," Gokou said quietly. "You got other ways of feeling than sensing ki. What do you see?"

The Jinzouningen nodded once and took a few steps forward, china-blue eyes roving over the countryside. "A lot of electrical disturbance... magnetic too," she said eventually. "As if the poles had shifted. As if the energy of the world were being slowly pulled to this spot, rather than where it should be. It's only a little right now. But I can tell it's increasing."

"Otousan..." Goten pointed. "The storm's getting bigger too."

"And coming this way," Chibi Trunks chimed in.

"So's something else." Mirai Trunks shielded his eyes as a blast of wind kicked up some sand. "What's that, there, on the fringes of the clouds?"

"...PICCOLO-SAN!" Gohan rose up, shot forward. "Piccolo-san!"

"Gohan! Yamero! Matte!" Gokou put out a hand as if to hold his oldest son back, then let it drop as Gohan continued on. "Get ready, minna."

As Gohan got nearer, the smile of welcome dropped off his face. Piccolo wasn't flying; he was being driven before a howling gust of wind, which now slammed into Gohan, slowing him down. It took real effort to force through it and intercept the Nameksejin, hold him up. "Picc--" Gohan's eyes widened. "Iie! PICCOLO-SAN!"

What lay in Gohan's arms was only barely recognizable as his alien mentor. One arm was missing and his robes were tattered, seared and torn, their rents mirroring wounds in the Nameksejin's body. His eyes were shut, one swollen closed by a huge bruise. The other opened, weakly, looking at the young man. "Go...han..."

"Who? Who did this?!?!"

"I did." The voice rolled like thunder, and had even less humanity. Gohan looked up to see a man standing in the sky, restless arcs of energy twisting around him like flames. It was almost like the aura of a Saiyajin--but dark, a black that hurt the eyes to look at too long. One hand raised almost diffidently. "The Legendary Super Saiyajin, Son Gohan. The Great Saiyaman. Good words to write on your tombstone."

"GOHAAAAN!" Gokou screamed, taking to the air. The others followed him up as the Dragon Killer fired, arcs of black energy leaping out at Gohan and Piccolo. Gohan moved, but not quickly enough; part of the beam blistered over his back. He screamed, dropping from the air like a stone, only barely keeping a grasp on his friend. Mirai Trunks split off from the main group to steady him as the others forged in.

As he put his arm around Gohan, Mirai Trunks bit back a gasp. Where the beam had scored its mark, Gohan's skin was undamaged, but a deadly white. "Gohan-san... nani... doshite?!"

"T..Trunks...Trunks-k-kun..." Gohan's eyes lost focus, rolled back in his head as he went limp. Hastily Trunks locked both arms around him and Piccolo, lowering them to the earth, then looked back up, worried. Could that have been the weapon? The one Dende-sama warned us about? "Don't let the black blasts hit you!" he shouted, hoping they'd hear him above the rising winds. "Be careful!" Not knowing what else to do, he drew his jacket off, covered Gohan with it-- the other young Saiyajin seemed to be slipping into shock-- and made them both as comfortable as he could.

Above, the Warriors circled the Dragon Killer warily. He seemed to barely notice them. "A hundred," he mused aloud, studying his hands. "A hundred dragons. How they burn inside me. How it makes me thirst, this power. How long before this planet runs dry? 'Behold, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds'..." he laughed.

"Kono yogore!" Vegeta shouted, face twisting. "You think we'll lie down like dogs and let you do as you please?! Bakayarou! Ahondara!"

Ryubarasu raised his gaze to the angry Saiyajin. "Prince Vegeta. Prince of Vegetasei," he mused. "Let me give you a larger kingdom to rule. Two dead worlds instead of one." His hand raised again, the ebon energy already beginning to flicker around it. The blast careened out, but Vegeta was prepared, already letting gravity pull him down out of the black fire's way as it lanced the air he'd stood in only a second before. He still felt it pull at him, like a magnet attracting steel, drawing his ki away. In answer he howled, exploding with gold fire, and cupped his palms in front of him. "FINAL FLASH!"

Ryubarasu only lifted his hand yet again. The shadow didn't just deflect Vegeta's attack; it seemed to devour it, to completely cancel it out. But while he was dealing with one attack, Juuhachi-gou and Kuririn swept in from the sides and struck at him. He rocked forward, turning with a scowl to fire at them.

"Yeah!" Kuririn flipped out of the blast's way. "If we can hit 'im, we can hurt 'im! Let's go guys!"

"You have no idea," the Dragon Killer retorted, sending blast after blast after him as Kuririn dodged, ducked, dropped and just plain scooted. "Idiot, imbecile! I have the power of a hundred dragons! How long will your puny strength hold out?!"

"Long enough for this!" Rocketing in, Vegeta slammed a shoulder into Ryubarasu's back, then lashed punch after punch into the other man's spine and kidneys before finishing with a barrage of ki bursts that sent the Dragon Killer plummeting earthward. As he impacted, Vegeta flattened a palm. "BIG BANG ATTACK!"

On the ground, Mirai Trunks crossed his arms in front of him, shielding himself and the two with him as the concussion of Vegeta's assault rolled over them all. He blinked through the settling dust. S..Sugoi! Powerful-! How powerful he is! I had no idea-! All of the warriors here have gotten so much stronger since I was here last. Maybe... maybe they can win...

Above, Vegeta swooped down a bit, smirking. "So much for the power of a hundred dragons," he said.

"Vegeta, chui!" Gokou warned. "Don't get too close!"

"Shut up, Kakarott. I don't need a low-class warrior like you to tell me how to fight!" Vegeta dropped closer, wanting to savor the victory.

The black light darted up at him, catching him in the side. He screamed, feeling power run out of him like water, and instinctively threw himself to one side to break the contact. Disoriented, he tried to right himself, gain altitude, and instead wound up slamming into the ground. As he shook his head, fighting to clear it--his whole left side felt at once on fire and frozen solid-- the Dragon Killer advanced on him.

"Papa!!" Chibi Trunks flew in, hair spiking as he went Super Saiyajin, with Goten at his heels. "Don't you touch him! I won't let you!"

"You're gonna get your butt kicked good now!" Goten added. "We're gonna show you some real power!"

"Yamero! Trunks-kun! Goten!" Gokou clenched his fists, then drew them to one side. "Kuririn, Juuhachi-gou! All at once!" He fired a Kamehameha, blasting the earth in front of the Dragon Killer, cutting off his approach. At the same time Juuhachi-gou and Kuririn fired, trying to catch Ryubarasu in a cross fire.

With a final worried glance at Gohan and Piccolo, Mirai Trunks drew his sword and leapt to the air, charging in low. As Ryubarasu turned to deflect the other warriors' fire, he brought the blade up in a deadly cutting stroke, shearing off the Dragon Killer's arm clean at the shoulder, then tumbling to strike again at the opposite side's ribs, cutting the man in half.

"Yeah!" Kuririn yelled as Ryubarasu dropped. "You got 'im! Way to go, Trunks-san!"

"Yosh', Trunks-san!" Gokou echoed.

Mirai Trunks didn't answer. He was looking at his sword.

The bright blade of it.

The bright, unmarked, unblooded blade of it.

Behind him, Ryubarasu's body glowed a rich gold. In the bath of light his arm reformed, the wound closed and vanished. He stood, flexing the restored hand, nodding thoughtfully.

"Huh?" Kuririn blinked.

"Onore," Juuhachi-gou growled under her breath. "He heals."

With a slow smile Ryubarasu turned. "Well struck, young prince," he said. "If I had been mortal, I would be dead. But I have the souls of a hundred dragons within me. How many wishes can a hundred dragons grant?"

"WISHES?!?!" Kuririn all but dropped out of the sky from shock. "Oh jeeeez, don't tell me he can do that TOO! This is so way unfair. Hey, is it checkout time yet? I want out of this hotel!"

"Yes," Ryubarasu said, not looking. "It is, as you say, 'checkout time'." He spread his hands. Again the golden light filled him and he began to grow. And grow. Heartbeat by heartbeat his body enlarged till he towered over the ground, 100 feet or more. "Dodge me now, little men. Or fall to your knees and wait for me to take your lives."

"Get stuffed!" Kuririn flung up a hand. "KIENZAN!"

"ENERGY WAVE!" Juuhachi-gou fired too, drawing closer to her husband. The Dragon Killer simply held up a hand, letting the energy reflect itself off.

Meanwhile, Mirai Trunks was running over to where Goten and Chibi Trunks were struggling to help Vegeta to rise. Struggling, because Vegeta was half-shoving them away with his good arm. "Vegeta-san, don't," he said, trying to get an arm around the furious warrior. "We need to get out of h--" the breath whooshed out of him as Vegeta elbowed him sharply in the pit of the stomach.

"Kusottare," Vegeta snarled impatiently, "don't touch me! I don't need your help. You've forgotten who I am, obviously." He turned on the younger Trunks, pushing him away a trifle more gently. "Move, boy. You and Kakarott's brat are in my way."

"Papa, please," Chibi Trunks begged, then stopped, looking past Vegeta as a shadow fell over the four of them. Ryubarasu was moving towards them, a dark orb already growing in his palm.

"HIYAAAAHHHH!" Arcing down, Gokou slammed into the Dragon Killer's knees, making him stumble. As he did, Gokou moved back, took a deep breath, and screamed. Power crackled and seared the air around him as his hair went gold, then turned into a long mane that reached almost to his waist, brows lowering and body enlarging.

"S....S...Sugoi!" Mirai Trunks caught himself, aware he was stuttering, then shook his head, not believing what his senses were saying. "What is that?"

"Super Saiyajin Three," Goten said helpfully. "Otousan can do that!"

"Thuh... Thuh... THREE?!!"

"Uh huh! You wanna see me and Trunks do it too?"

Mirai Trunks almost heard the sound barrier break as his jaw dropped. "Yuh..you..?"

"Hai!" Turning, Goten nudged Chibi Trunks. "Oi! Let's do it!"

"Hai!" Chibi Trunks nodded, grinning ear to ear, and the two boys darted forward a few steps, stopped side by side, and struck a pose. "Fuuuuuu-sion! HAAAA!" A fiercely blinding light filled the air, and when it faded one stood where two had moved only seconds ago.

With a smirk, Gotenks pointed at the Dragon Killer. "Oi, OI! Now you're in trouble! You're facing Super Saiyajin Level Three GOTENKS!" He shot into the air, taking up a position at Gokou's side.

"S..sugoi," Mirai Trunks muttered, watching them. "Just like Gogeta..."

"Go who?" Kuririn scratched his head.

"I'll explain later, Kuririn-san."

"You know, I'm kinda getting tired of that 'explain later' stuff too."

"If we don't stop the Dragon Killer, it won't matter if I explain now or later-- it won't make any difference either way."

"Yeah, guess you're right. We might as well take a seat and watch. This ought to be short and sweet. Normally Gotenks is kinda bad about dorking around, but Gokou will keep him moving--see, the Fusion only lasts--"

"Thirty minutes," Trunks finished, watching as the two warriors moved into position.

"Hey, how'd you know?" As Mirai Trunks opened his mouth, Kuririn held up a hand. "Don't tell me, don't tell me-- you'll 'explain later'. Man, at this rate, you'll be talking till next year."

"Don't be too sure." Juuhachi-gou brushed back her hair and watched intently. "Gokou and Gotenks are very powerful. But so is Ryubarasu."

"He can't be more powerful than Majin Buu.... Can he?"

Juuhachi-gou only looked at her husband and said nothing.

Mirai Trunks swallowed, then turned to kneel beside Gohan and Piccolo, pausing to spare Vegeta a quick glance. Vegeta was standing a little off from the group, absently massaging his injured arm, apparently trying to work the life back into it for another round of fighting. There was a smoldering fire of anger in his gaze as he watched Gokou, anger.. and a bitter, grudging, yearning admiration. Then he swung his gaze to Trunks, and for a few seconds they stared at one another. He can't do that, Trunks realized. He hasn't reached that stage yet. And it's eating him alive to know Gokou can. If only I could tell him-- hastily he dropped his gaze, giving Vegeta a victory of sorts, then busied himself tending to the other injured. Breaking one of the remaining senzou in half, he carefully fed each warrior a piece. It wouldn't be as much help as a whole one, but it would get them on their feet, he hoped.

In a moment Gohan groaned and stirred, sitting up, one hand to his head, as Trunks retrieved his jacket. "Nnaanda.. --Piccolo-san!"

"Shut up, Gohan," the low growl came, "some of us are busy trying to regrow our limbs." The Nameksejin, teeth locked, snarled, voice rising to almost a roar of effort as his arm regenerated, shooting whole and complete from the seared stump. He flexed it, then nodded. "I'm getting damn tired of having to do that. First Raditz, now this fruitcake."

A crack of noise and flare of light made them all forget any other concern and look to the skies. Gokou and Gotenks were circling the Dragon Killer like wolves, one darting in and retreating when he struck, while the other took advantage of the opening to slam home a ki blast or a blow. Already Ryubarasu seemed to be growing winded; his motions were beginning to slow down.

"They seem to be winning," Juuhachi-gou said.

"Let's give'em some help then!" Kuririn ran a short distance forward, held up both hands, and flung twin Kienzan's, one at each of the Dragon Killer's legs. As they sliced through the calves, hamstringing the huge form, both Gokou and Gotenks arced around and in, ramming the Dragon Killer with all their might. At the same moment everyone else fired, a sound like the world tearing itself open.

Then, silence, except for the rolling echos of the blasts and a dim rumble of thunder from above.

"Did we... did we do it?" Gohan asked.

"Don't be an idiot. Nothing could've survived that," Vegeta snorted. "So much for the all-powerful Dragon Killer."

"Don't get cocky," Piccolo said, eyes narrowing as he tried to peer through the settling dust. "You thought that about Majin Buu, too."

"Shut up, green man, before I feed you your own feet. While they're still attached to your body."

Piccolo smirked. "You can try."

"Yatta! Yatta!" Gotenks thumbed his nose, then put his fists on his hips and turned his back, grinning down at the other Zed Warriors. "Gotenks saves the day again! Yaaaaa!" He thrust a small fist into the air, supremely pleased.

Nearby, Gokou didn't share his enthusiasm. He too was peering intently into the dust, every sense alert. He'd already grasped the implications of Ryubarasu's statement about 'wishes'... if even the slightest fragment of life or consciousness remained, then the Dragon Killer could simply use the stolen powers of the dragons to wish himself fully healed and even more powerful. In order to stop him, they had to hit him hard enough in one attack to kill him instantly. He couldn't feel anything stirring down there, but they hadn't been able to lock in on Ryubarasu before-- he tensed, suddenly, feeling a burst of energy emanating from the earth below, followed by a blur of motion. "GOTENKS!" he bellowed, already moving.

Gotenks, caught mid-boast, blinked, then turned, just in time to see a huge hand swatting down at him, as if he was a fly. "Shimattaaaaa..." he managed to get out, just as the hand connected. He rocketed downward and slammed into the earth so hard he cracked it open, bounced-- and split, the Fusion ending prematurely.

Whirling, Ryubarasu fired one of his dark bolts at Gokou. Gokou teleported out of its way with the Shukan Idou, reappearing beside Chibi Trunks and Goten and scooping them up. He barely dodged a second bolt, and a third, as he flew back towards the group, letting the boys' limp forms drop into waiting arms before turning and cupping his hands to one side. "Kaaaa...me... Haaaa... me... HAAAA!"

Ryubarasu, snarling, retaliated, dark blast meeting Gokou's. For a long moment, as the others scrambled out of the way, the two beams of energy, positive and negative, played back and forth, as Gokou fought to pour so much energy into it that Ryubarasu couldn't absorb it all, while the Dragon Killer struggled to handle the incoming power. Inch by inch the Kamehameha yielded up to the Dragon Killer's blast, until it was mere yards from Gokou himself.

"Gokou!" screamed Kuririn. "Let it go! Get out of there!"

"Otousan!" Gohan cradled Goten to him. "Hayaku! If he hits you--"

"This is crazy! He just keeps getting more powerful!" Kuririn clenched his fists. "How are we supposed to stop that!"

Ryubarasu flung back his head and laughed. "How, fools? The answer is simple. YOU CAN'T!" He slammed both hands forward and the black beam blew through the Kamehameha, headed straight at Gokou. It caught him full on and he screamed as it pulled more energy out of him, forcing him out of Super Saiyajin Three. He plummeted like a bird with broken wings and hit hard, not moving.

Dismissing him for the moment, Ryubarasu turned to the others. "Now. You have all been far more trouble than I thought. This time I eliminate you first." Bolts of midnight energy began to lance and crackle towards them all, driving them back. At the same time, the ground--perhaps overstrained by the titanic concussions it'd already received-- began to crack and fissure, making the footing doubly treacherous.

"Otousannnnn!" Gohan handed off Goten to Mirai Trunks and headed that way, diving and dodging frantically as he tried to reach his father. Piccolo, Kuririn, Vegeta and Juuhachi-gou set up a pattern of cover fire, hoping to distract the Dragon Killer. It worked, but not they way the might've wanted it to; he leveled an arm and fired on them, a normal blast this time, but powerful enough to send them all flying. Then his eyes locked on Mirai Trunks, Chibi Trunks, and Goten.

"No..." Mirai Trunks took a half-step back, mind racing. Take to the air, he'd make them all three a sitting target. Stay here, and they'd be almost as bad off. All he could do was try to draw the main attack-- Chibi Trunks and Goten were still too weak and dazed to stand any kind of battle-- and hope that the others would recover quick enough to get the hell out of here with the children. Never taking his eyes off Ryubarasu, he fished out the last senzou, pressed it into his younger self's hand. "Trunks-kun," he whispered, "crack that in half, and give Goten-kun part. Then I want you both to run for cover as fast as you can."

"Demo, Trunks-san--" Chibi Trunks started to protest.

"No, Trunks-kun. You're exhausted from the Fusion, so is Goten. We'll need your strength later. You've GOT to do as I say."

"Trunks-san..." Goten blinked up, eyes wide and worried. "You're not gonna die are you?"

"I wasn't planning on it, Goten-kun. Get ready." He maneuvered himself in front of the pair as Ryubarasu lifted both hands, black energy crackling around them. "Get ready--"

Something blurred through the air, too fast for Mirai Trunks to really see what it was before he felt himself lifted up. Instinctively he snatched up both Goten and Chibi Trunks, holding them tight as the whatever it was put on speed. In the same moment, he felt four familiar ki signatures wink into being--teleported there, or merely abandoning their masking to reveal themselves-- and gasped, realizing who it had to be, must be, holding him. "Juu-chan--!"

"Who did you expect, murasakige," Mirai Juuhachi-gou said, a half laugh in her voice, "the noodle vendor?"

****

Part Three
"Watch the World Get Bushwhacked"