To See the Old Neighborhood.....

Part 25

Trunks paused in mid-run. Both he and Vegita, as well as little Pan, were not more than a few kilometers away from the site from whence they had left Gohan and Goten to fight Lomen.

"What're ya stopping for?" Vegita asked, eyes gleaming with hidden agenda and the need to hurry.

"It's.......it's just that my chi has been freed!!" Trunks cheered, throwing his hands into the air.

"Huhn? How did that happen?" Vegita asked, casting a few glances behind to make sure Lomen wasn't after them.

"I don't know.....but it is! Lomen must have let go......wonder why..........," Trunks began to muse to himself.

"Let's not bother with thinking about it right now!" the little Prince threw another hasty look back before looking Trunks full in the face, "We REALLY should go."

"Yeah......you're right," Trunks said uneasily but they both took off running again. Trunks may have had his chi released from Lomen's strangle hold, but the damage had already been done. He still didn't have anthing left to give. Perhaps if he could find a senzu.............

But why had Lomen released him? Was he too far to keep the bind? Or was it that Lomen could only hold onto one person's power at a time? If that were so, then he must have given up Trunks for a bigger fish........namely Gohan. And what if he went after Goten again? The little guy had gotten off lucky that last time, but what were the chances of Goten getting free of Lomen's clutches a second time? He just didn't know.........

Trunks quickly chastized himself for having so little faith in the Son brothers. Since when did he start worrying like Goten's mom?

Despite this last thought, Trunks couldn't stop wondering: if Lomen wasn't attached to him, who would he be attached to next?

****

Gohan and Goten both felt the sudden release of Trunks's chi not far off. They both turned their heads to look after him, as though they might be able to see him, but quite obviously they couldn't. Lomen smiled at their sudden distration and dove in at them for another swing. Gohan caught onto his sudden movement with enough time to shove Goten out of the charging man's way and to raise an arm to block an elbow aimed for his skull.

"Now that I don't have a link to that little brat, I can make one to you!" Lomen crowed, and attempted to bring his knee up into Gohan's rib cage. Seeing the attack in advance, the eldest half-Saiyan brought a knee up to parry. But once again Lomen made a feint, stopping his knee before even connecting and slipped out his one grounded leg from beneath himself. Gohan, not expecting his opponent to suddenly seem to fall was unable to second guess his intentions.

Lomen bumped to the ground at Gohan's feet and wrapped both his arms around one of the startled halfling's legs.

"Now I've got you!" Lomen howled triumphantly as he started to make his link, pausing to murmer in a voice of sheer delight, "Ahh, gooood.....you have one of those nice and easy powers to absorb......."

"Nichan!" Goten cried, and jumped in on Lomen, kicking him hard enough to that not only did he detach from Gohan's leg, but he also flew a good many yards away, skidding and slidding to a stop in a particularly mangled way.

"Thanks, Goten," Gohan said, trying not to let the sudden shock he was expiriancing show. His chi had been beyond his control. If only for a moment, it was enough to prove just how lethal of an opponent this new enemy was. He had to be taken out NOW.

So, mind set, Gohan launched himself after Lomen, set to deliver a swift killing blow to put an end to such a threat once and for all.

Lomen, realizing his position, rummaged through all the chi he had absorbed from different people until he found the right one. Pulling the stolen chi from deep within its store he wrapped it around his body like a cloak.

It was the chi he had stolen from Goten on their first meeting.

Gohan pulled himself to a screeching stop as he suddenly had the feeling he was about to kill his little brother instead of Lomen. The momentary pause was all Lomen needed and he quickly dove out from Gohan's attack and reached out to lay hold of anything. An arm, a leg, any limb would do, but Lomen knew he needed to get more power or he was as good as sunk. Gohan, over his innitial shock at the sudden and alarming change in Lomen's chi, saw the blue skinned demon coming in for more power. He quickly bounded back a few paces to safer ground.

"This is most amusing, I must say," Lomen said grining, "Who'd have guessed that feeling chi would be a downfall? If you didn't know how, my young opponent, I dare say I'd be dead right now."

Gohan gritted his teeth. He didn't like deception, but how does one see through such a ploy? How does one arm themself against such an attack? Gohan didn't rightfully even know if it were possible to turn off his ability to feel power. For what would probably be the only time in his life, Gohan wish he DIDN'T have such an ability. Now he had a whole new task to overcome..............

"Let's try this again.......," Gohan whispered to himself and readied himself to attack a second time.

****

"The first Saiyan to stand against me without fear..........the second Saiyan to stand against me without fear.......you should both be dead," Freiza regarded Bardock and Vegita first, not yet acknowledging Goku with more than a twitch of the eye.

"Yes, but so should you," Vegita said, "You should also be dead."

Freiza paused and closed his eyes, tilting his head down a fraction, his addmitance rather than saying touche`. The bright sun behind him gleamed off his sembling metalic head once before casting his whole face in shadow. Whence he reopened his eyes, their red pupils glowed in that shadow of a face, causing a momentary shudder to run down the Saiyan's spins. Despite his power being dwarfed by Vegita and Goku, Freiza still had an intimidating manner.

"And you -Son Goku- the first Saiyan and yes, the first creature to ever triumph over me in a fight........you should be dead too."

Goku dared not even blink in surprise, not wishing to even grant that small reward to Freiza's trouble.

"We should all be dead.........," Freiza said slowely and quietly, "We.......should all.........."

"Yeah. Be dead. We know that already," Vegita said, narrowing his eyes like a cat -and indeed one could almost see him putting his ears back, swishing his tail and spitting and hissing. He was not enjoying being reminded about having died. It had happened to nearly everyone, and WOULD inevitably happen to everyone.......BUT DID HE HAVE TO BE FREIKING REMINDED?! Death, no matter race, tounge, religion, beliefe, social devide or holy sect, was still death. A loathsom, seeming unnatural thing. An unpleasantry that plagued everyone, from the greatest of men to the lowliest of curs. It could be considered the universal link to all forms of life and sublife; spanning from plant and ameba to the setience of humane thinking.

Death was not a fun thing. End of story.

"Things will end differently, this time," Freiza said to Goku, now disregarding Vegita and Bardock, "I will win this time, and destroy this cursed planet once and for all."

"You're right about one thing," Bardock spoke out again, "Things WILL end differently this time."

Freiza glared at him with ruby eyes for a moment before lifting a finger with a timy sphere of glowing orange light at the end.

To be continued.......