~*****~

"All right, it's time!" The commentator cheers. "So glue your eyes to the ring and your backs to the seats, get ready because here comes the Battle Royale!" Cheers explode over the arena. "Now, begin!"

Juul and Killa are immediately taken out of the ring, leaving it between Mighty Mask, Mr. Satan, and Eighteen. "Wow! I never would have guessed it! Both Killa and Juul are out of it! They're both history!" I exclaim. "Ladies and Gentlemen, only three fighters remain in the Battle Royale! Mighty Mask, Number Eighteen, and our current champion, Mr. Satan! It's come down to this, and only one of these three will emerge the victor!"

Mr. Satan lifted his hand into the air. "Wow!" The commentator cheered. "Mr. Satan's already declared his victory! Now that's what I call showmanship!"

Eighteen and Mighty Mask aren't concentrated on him. Not one bit. The two begin to fight, leaving Mr. Satan in the dust. "And they're off! Their fists are flying, and so are they!" I cheer as they take it to the sky. "How about this ladies and gentlemen; neither Mighty Mask nor Number Eighteen are showing any indication of slowing down!" I shield my eyes as Eighteen slams a powerful hit against Mighty Mask, and sends him hurtling to the ring. I peer into the crater he's formed. "You good in there, Mighty Mask?" I ask curiously. "Thought about giving up?"

Mighty Mask leaps out after squirming around and I try not to giggle. Goten's face is peering through the mask now, and I vaguely wonder how Mars is going to escape his little sister's wrath once she finds out. "I never give up!" Goten giggles.

They get back into the air and continue to fight Eighteen. She lands another solid slug against Mighty Mask, and he's once again in the crater. "Mighty Mask has hit the ground! I don't know if he'll be able to get back up this time! That leaves just Eighteen and Mr. Satan to duke it out for the tournament title!" The Commentator shouts.

And just like that, Mighty Mask gets back up again. Eighteen hurls a powerful energy blast that hits the ring. I give a sharp gasp as something grasps onto my legs, and presses into the curve of my hip. I glare down at the hulking man hiding in my leg as if it were a child searching for it's mother's embrace.

I kick him off and turn my attention back onto the fight. Mighty Mask's costume was ruffling around, and a familiar golden energy began to seep out of it. "Oh, that's cheating." I chuckle.

"You say something?" The commentator asked.

"Nope," I laugh.

Eighteen slices through the costume, severing it in half. "Oh, no! Mighty Mask has been sliced in half!" The commentator shrieked.

"Take another look," I nudge him. I shake my head as both Mars and Goten start to fight Eighteen. "Boys." I say sternly. "Before I get into the punishments, and all that, I should probably tell you; You're disqualified." The commentator begins to whimper as the ground shakes below me. "YOU BETTER HOPE I DON'T CATCH YOU DOING SOMETHING LIKE THIS AGAIN, DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?!" I shout after them. I give out a sigh and roll my shoulders a little before clearing my throat. "Number Eighteen's done it! Mighty Mask was disqualified because he was two people! And that means Mr. Satan and Eighteen are the last fighters; ONE OF THEM WILL BE DECLARED THE CHAMP!"

~*****~

Mr. Satan had yet to throw a single punch at Eighteen. I didn't blame him. With that look, anyone would turn tail at Eighteen. When she grapples him, I assume the fight is over, but just when I lift my mic, she releases him and Mr. Satan begins to showboat. "What a kick! It was so fast, you couldn't even see it!" The commentator cried when I started choking on my water. How had he even landed a hit on her when Vegeta had been defeated by her all those years ago.

He showboats again and I have to watch in horror. Was this guy really just a big goof? Did he really have the power to be so strange? When she stumbles out of the ring from Mr. Satan's Ultra Megaton Punch, I hurry to her side and kneel down besides her. "Is he--" I stammer. "Is he not just a freak?" I ask wildly.

Eighteen scoffs as Mr. Satan explains his delayed reaction punch. "Please, as if I'd actually lose to that moron." Eighteen retorts. "Now act like you're helping me to the back."

I nod with wide eyes and help her stand, and let her lean on me. "So... why did you throw the match, then?"

"For twenty mil." She hums with a knowing smirk.

It clicked into place. I contain that laughter as I help her back. "Oh, thank goodness, I thought he was actually serious." I sigh.

As usual, the fanfare for Mr. Satan is through the roof. I rejoin the others in the stands. "Mommy, how come I couldn't go Super Saiyan, but Mars and Goten could?" Marble asks with a sour expression.

I hum delicately as I lift her up into my arms. "Because they're both hard headed. We told them no, but they did it anyway."

"Gohan did, too." She retorts.

I nod. "Yes, and he's also hard headed." I say.

"That's right, Marble," Chi-Chi hums as she ruffles Marble's hair. "My sons are just like their fathers. Bone heads. You took after your mom, that's for sure. Sensible!"

Marble blossoms under the praise before she scrunches her nose up again. "How come Daddy didn't fight? Or Goku?"

"It's..." I trail off as the others gaze at me expectantly. "It's a long story."

Marble huffs at my lack of answers. "What about Goten and Mars? Where are they?"

"Probably hiding." Bulma laughs. "Both their mothers are probably livid at their little stunt."

I snort at her. "Oh, yeah, no doubt. I just wanna know where the real Mighty Mask went."

We all began to laugh. "Whoa--" Yamcha chirped in surprise. We all turned our gazes and I gape at the ring. Goku, Gohan, Supreme Kai, and Vegeta are there.

"Vegeta?" I stammer.

Marble slips from my grasp and leaps onto the railing just as I grasp onto her waist. "Mommy, let go! It's Daddy!" She exclaims.

"What's going on?" I ask.

"Instant Transmission, maybe?" Roshi suggested.

"No, they have to be touching Goku for that." I retort.

"They're back," Chi-Chi mentioned. "Thank goodness." She sighs. She grunts after a moment. "Great, there goes our prize money. Nothing ever changes between those two! They never earn a dime, and as always, they're late!" I glance at her before shaking my head. She'd probably kill Goku if I mention that Vegeta earns money by modeling my training gear-- albeit, unknowingly. "Hey wait! I bet they could still win some money if they knock Mr. Satan out in front of all these people!"

"It doesn't work that way." Yamcha mentioned.

"Hush up! Goku and Gohan beat Cell and that bum got rich off it! Now tell me, is that fair?!" Chi-Chi retorted.

"No? But that's the way it goes, Chi-Chi," Yamcha reminded her.

"Hey guys, take a look. Something's seriously wrong here." Roshi reminded us.

"Excuse me, gentlemen," The Commentator exclaimed. The championship has already been concluded, I'm sure you're all very strong, but there's always next year!" After a moment, the Commentator seems to recognize them. "Hey! Goku! I didn't see you back there!" He tromps past Vegeta without even looking at him, and I finally notice the strange shift in Vegeta's energy. It felt... dark.

"Mommy, something's wrong." Marble mentions to me, her small hands now clasping at my shirt.

"I'm afraid you and your friends arrived a little too late!" The Commentator exclaims.

"Look out!" I hear Goku clear as day as he shouts.

With a burst of energy slamming the Commentator out of the ring, Vegeta is roaring in anger. Marble whimpers and buries her head into my neck, her entire body shaking violently. "What does he think he's doing?" I ask breathlessly.

Vegeta lifts his hand, and fires an energy blast at Goku, and it's pushing him back, little by little until he's literally sliding past the ring. Goku manages to get out of the blasts way, but it destroys a portion of the ring. I slump to my knees, clutching Marble as close to my body as possible. My ears are buzzing as I gaze at him. I vaguely hear Marble whimper for me when I slump backwards.

~*****~

I don't know what to say in this moment. Marble is curled up on the ground, her knees pressed to her face as if it would stop the tears oozing from her usually bright eyes. I just hold her to me. Even as the planet starts to shake, no doubt from the fight between Vegeta and Goku.

"I'm feeling very strange disturbances in the distance." Roshi says softly. "I just can't tell what it is exactly. But it doesn't belong."

"If things are wrong, then I just know Goku and Gohan are mixed up in it. And my little Goten is missing, too, and nobody can tell me anything!" Chi-Chi exclaims. "What is going on!?"

"Look, if any of us had an inkling as to what just happened, I'm sure we'd tell you." Bulma mentioned irritably.

We leave shortly after Videl arrives and explains the situation and where our boys had went. The ship is mostly silent, save for the occasional sniffle coming from my young daughter.

"Uh, Chi-Chi, you didn't bring any guns on board, did you?" Yamcha asks.

"No, of course not! But maybe a grenade or two, though." Chi-Chi answers. "Videl, you're absolutely sure you heard them right? I mean, you actually heard them say they're going to go fight this Majin Buu character?" Videl hums in response. "You know, I hate to say it, but I resent the fact that you let Gohan and the boys go, you could've at least stopped Goten and Mars."

"I'm so sorry, Chi-Chi," Videl apologizes. "I wasn't using my head. I should've tried to stop them."

"Hey, whoa, I wouldn't feel too bad if I were you." Yamcha says. "Those little imps would've found a way, even if you told them a thousand times they couldn't go. Stopping Pre-K Super Sayains from going to a fight is virtually impossible, trust me."

"Gee, thanks." Videl hums.

"Sure. Anyway, there's no mistaking they went this way, huh?" Yamcha clarifies.

"Right. They went straight ahead, for sure! Hold on, guys! I'm gonna put the hammer down a bit!" Yamcha exclaims. It's silent for a small moment, and I'm grateful for it. I can't seem to get that horrible smirk of Vegeta's out of my mind. It's like he enjoyed causing that much bloodshed. "Hey, Mara! Lighten up, would ya? C'mon!  The worst that can happen is that one of us gets killed!" Yamcha exclaimed. "And if that happens, we'll just wish 'em back with the Dragon Balls! No big deal!"

There's a spark in the ship and suddenly everyone ducks in their seats as I glare at Yamcha. "Oh? Then if that's the case-- YOU WON'T MIND IF I KILL YOU!" I shout at him as I launch my shoe over the seats and nail him in the forehead as he looks back. The ship turns to the side, and everyone goes flying. Marble whines at the sudden shift and grasps onto my shirt.

"Look what you've done, you idiot!! Straighten this thing out or I'll kick your butt!" Eighteen shouts while Marron cries from being thrown about.

"Hey, no need! Everything's under control!" Yamcha pleads. "Here's your shoe back, Mara--" Yamcha stammers as he tosses it back. Marble continues to shake against me, although, I suspect it's from her own frustration than the ship turning.

"Look, I know you're troubled, Mara, but he wasn't normal when he killed those people!" Roshi exclaimed while he attempts to climb back into his seat. "The Vegeta we know may be arrogant and hot headed, but he would never do something like what we saw today!"

"Yeah!" Chi-Chi agrees passionately. "They did something to him!"

Marble glances up at me as if she's waiting for me to confirm. My eyes feel heavy with tears that I've been holding back. I give her a subtle nod. "They're right, Marble." I say softly as I rub at her hair. "Your father is not the man we saw earlier. Try to put it from your mind, okay?"

She nods after a moment and leans back against me, her hands grasping at her shorts. "Okay, mommy." She hums quietly. I rub at her hair again.

"Wow, look guys! Something's brewing up there!" Yamcha exclaims.

"Yeah, I see it! But what the heck is it?!" Roshi says.

"I don't know, but the instruments are going haywire!" Yamcha retorts. "Uh oh! Hold on everybody!"

Marble yelps again and clutches onto the seat. "Hey! You're making her cry! Stop it!" Eighteen shouts at Yamcha.

"I'm not doing anything!" Yamcha shouts. The ship continues to rock wildly. "If this keeps up, the ships gonna shake apart!"

After a few tense moments, the ship finally evens out, and I drop to my seat, my heart thudding against my ribs slowly. "That got the old heart rate up." Videl comments.

"Sorry guys, I guess I should've had the fasten seatbelt sign on." Yamcha apologizes.

"That was no common turbulence." Roshi comments. "That was the aftershock of an incredible explosion!"

I palm at my chest, waiting for the horrible feeling to disappear. I glance down at Marble, and she's completely unaware. I can't feel him at all anymore. My lips purse as I stare ahead, waiting for any spark-- anything at all to show me he's alive.

"Darn it--" Yamcha growls, snapping me back. "The controls! They're not responding anymore! They've been damaged! Engine one's down!"

"What?!" Chi-Chi barks.

There's a series of explosions outside the ship and we all shout. "Engine two's down!" Yamcha barked.

"Yamcha!" I shout at him. "Do something or we're all going to die!"

"How can I do something without any engines!?" Yamcha shouts back.

"Here, take Marron--" I hear Eighteen bark and a small child is thrust into my lap. I curl my arm around her and Marble, glaring up at the blonde before I realize she's leaping out of the ship.

The ship evens out, and I blow out a sigh of relief as I release the tight hold I've got on the girls. "Wow, why didn't I think of that?" Yamcha questions breathlessly.

"My mom's flying the plane!" Marron cheers loudly.

Marble huffs irritably and clutches at my shirt. "Can you do that, too, mommy?" She asks. I chuckle and ruffle her hair a little. I don't answer her. I'm too scared of my own voice at the moment.