She was dreaming, though she didn’t know it yet. It was a soft, comforting dream, full of subdued colors and light sounds. She was outdoors, in a field somewhere, surrounded by flowers and grass as tall as her waist. Gokuu was there, she could smell the citrus scent of his hair and feel his strong arms around her; she could hear him whispering something in her ear. There was food cooking and music playing, and somewhere in the distance, both Gohan and Goten were playing in the soft, flowing grass. Oddly enough, the boys appeared to be the same age, twins almost, rolling around and playfully teasing one another. Yamucha appeared, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly with embarrassment. He stood there, staring at her and Gokuu, the tall grass blocking the lower half of his body. She felt a moment of anxiety, a shred of guilt, and then finally, Yamucha smiled, waved, and walked out of her life. ChiChi’s heart swelled. This was paradise. Right here, with her family in a beautiful, safe place, full of fun and laughter.

Gokuu wrapped his arms around her waist, and suddenly they were up in the sky, wisps of clouds brushing past their faces. The sun felt warm and comforting on her cheeks, Gokuu’s arms felt so tight around her body, and her heart felt so light and so free that she was afraid it might flutter away like a bird let out of it’s cage. She lifted her arms and relished in the warm breeze, so perfectly happy and at peace.

“Where’s the book?” Gokuu whispered. She had barely heard him over the wind, and she looked at him in confusion. It didn’t make any sense to her. What book?

“ChiChi, where’s the book?” Gokuu insisted, and shook her shoulders slightly.

“Tell me where the damn book is!!” He screeched, in a more feminine voice. His features twisted and warped until he looked exactly like Koronu. “The book!” Screamed Koronu. “Where the hell is it?!”

ChiChi awoke, very annoyed and still groggy. Her eyes were heavy and her head was pounding with each heartbeat, as if the blood was going straight from her heart and hammering into her temples. Vaguely, she could hear two voices arguing above her.

“Calm down!” Potuto insisted. “If you wake her up out of a dead sleep like that, she might get sick.”

“What do you want to do, then? Simply wait for her to wake up? The seconds are ticking away, Potuto! I need that book and I need it now, dammit.” Koronu snarled, and ChiChi felt the Saiya-jin woman shove at her shoulders, trying to shake her awake. “Wake up, you pathetic piece of a life-form!”

ChiChi tried to open her eyes, tried to say something --- anything, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t even move her body, it felt as though it was filled up with lead, or something equally as heavy. Panic spread through her veins as fast as the blood. Paralyzed! I must be paralyzed! Finally, very slowly, she was able to move her fingertips, and then her eyelids lifted just enough to let the harsh light of the infirmary in.

“She’s awake!” Koronu said ecstatically, and removed her hands from ChiChi’s shoulders instantly.

Potuto cleared her throat. “She’s practically comatose. She can barely even move.” His voice was dripping with disapproval. “This is what happens when you wake patients up before they’re treatment is completed. I tried to warn you. You could have just caused her irreparable damage. We don’t know the bodies of weaker species. You can’t just rip her out of an unconscious state like that….”

They both watched as ChiChi sat up groggily and opened one of her eyes halfway. She placed a small, pale hand against her temple and groaned audibly. She had been through several sicknesses in life, including one fierce bout of the flu that almost took her life when she was younger, but this was like nothing she had ever been through. Her stomach lurched and her face turned several shades of green, her eyes growing wide. Turning to the side, she angled her head down and threw up. Chest heaving, breathing abnormally with her eyes nearly crossed, ChiChi could barely hear Koronu say in an assertive voice, “See? She’s perfectly okay.”

Potuto placed a warm hand on her shoulder and tried to make eye contact with her. ChiChi glared at him, then looked down quickly, feeling another round of nausea settling in. Potuto frowned. “I don’t think she’s okay at all. In fact, I think you just made her very sick by waking her up just now. This isn’t a normal reaction to this stage the Saiya-jin injections.”

Koronu narrowed her eyes at him, and ChiChi watched the drama unfold while holding her stomach in agony. Koronu stomped towards Potuto and pointed a finger at him. “I don’t think you understand just how serious this is, Potuto. In a matter of days, I could be dead.” Her eyebrows raised and she moved to a nearby sink, filling a small, white cup with water. “And if I’m dead, there will be no one left to save the Saiya-jin race, let alone you. We are fighting for our lives. I think every risk and every step we are taking is worth it. If the human was brave enough to steal the book from us, then she should have the strength to face up to it and take responsibility for it. Because of her, we lost a lot of preparation time, and we do not have extra time to lose. Minutes count, seconds count! If I want to want to wake her up, then I am going to wake her up, and you of all people should not argue with me! I am trying to save your life too, you ungrateful brat.”

Potuto looked down and fingered the collar of his lab coat nervously. “Gomen nasi.”

Koronu accepted his apology with a nod, and casually flicked the cup of water to ChiChi. “Drink.”

ChiChi cradled the cup and gingerly lifted it to her mouth, taking a few sips. It was the best water she’d ever tasted; crystal clear and so cold that it took her breath away. She drank as if she had been in the desert for days, and the quick intake of water seemed to refresh her spirit. “I didn’t steal your book….I didn’t even know it was your book at first. I was just looking at it.”

“Where did you get it?” Koronu demanded, placing her hands on her hips. She didn’t look angry, as ChiChi had feared, but instead….excited. ChiChi could understand that. After all, Koronu’s life was in serious danger, and whatever the book was, it held the secret that could save her life.

“In the library. I was in there the same time that you were, and I wanted to give it to you then, but I was too scared. I was afraid that you would kill me if you knew I overheard you.” ChiChi admitted. She tipped the cup up further, trying to get the last few drops on the bottom. Water dribbled harmlessly on her nose.

“Where is it now?”

“In my room, under the bed.” She replied cautiously. Koronu appeared to be getting slightly angry. An outlined vein was beginning to appear on her forehead and her mouth was twitching. ChiChi reasoned that Koronu had a slight anger management problem, somewhat like Vejiita. “Do you know what the book is written about? I was looking through it and it’s all written in some strange code. I tried to make sense of it, but….”

“Hai, we know of the code, and the contents of the book. The code was developed by the Council to protect vital, secretive information from being leaked out. The book contains highly confidential information that could put the entire planet in danger, so it was written solidly in code.” Koronu sighed. “Sukuashi possesses the key to the code, and I have been trying to obtain it for several months now. His quarters are heavily guarded however, and I would have to kill a lot of guards in order to reach it. I used to have regular access, but as you must know by now, Sukuashi is trying to have me killed --- therefore I am an enemy to any of his guards.”

She slammed a tightly curled fist down on the stretcher, frighteningly close to ChiChi. She curled back in fear and gave a slight whimper, but Koronu didn’t seem to be paying any attention to her at all.

“Damn him!” Koronu cursed and kicked a nearby cabinet, leaving a small dent in the metal. “I hate this!”

“Calm down.” Potuto quietly commanded, and Koronu took several deep breaths, closing her dark eyes to shut out the world. She was trembling from head to foot with anger, and ChiChi could feel the power radiating from her. From her own experience and from being married to the strongest being in the universe, ChiChi knew that anger was a very good thing to have. In a battle, anger equaled strength, when used properly that is. If the anger was focused and pure, one could reach an unbelievable power within themselves. If it was simple, blind fury, however, it only made a fighter stupid and unprepared --- completely open to an attack and defenseless. Koronu’s anger, though very strong, seemed as though it was focused, and ChiChi somehow knew that would one day be helpful.

“What is in the book?” ChiChi asked, and they both looked up at her nervously, as if gauging whether or not they could trust her.

Koronu took another deep breath and dusted her gloves together. “As an Earthling, you probably wouldn’t understand this, but we all belong to a different race --- the Saiya-jin. We are a race of fighters, natural born killers with a great talent and underlying sense of battle and strength.”

“Actually….” ChiChi began.

Koronu ignored her and continued on with her speech. “Though we are all extraordinary fighters, every thousand years or so, a warrior comes along that could surpass every single one of us. This special warrior is known as a Super Saiya-jin. I know this must be hard for you to comprehend…. ”

“But I….”

“The book contains all of the Super Saiya-jin knowledge.” Koronu explained. “How to become one, how to raise power-levels, detailed information on subjects such as that. Because the last Super Saiya-jin appeared thousands of years ago, we have no other way of gaining this knowledge. And you see, it is imperative that I learn how to become Super Saiya-jin, because once I become one, Sukusashi will not have a chance against me.”

“I know all about….”

Koronu kept on talking. “It is so important for me to read that book. Like I explained to Potuto earlier, we only have so much time before Sukuashi puts his own assasination plans into action. Your appeareance here only proves that he is planning on having me taken care of immediately. Otherwise he never would have brought you here. I need to become Super Saiya-jin as quickly as possible. And if the book is in code….That’s going to make it even harder. I’m afraid we will never get the information on time.”

“Listen to me!” ChiChi exclaimed suddenly, looking exasperated and annoyed. They both stared at her with shocked expressions at her outburst. ChiChi placed her hands on her hips. “My husband is a Super Saiya-jin. My sons are Super Saiya-jin.”

“Nani?” Potuto stared at her as if she were insane.

“Hai, my husband is a Saiya-jin, and I know Vejiita as well. Both of them are Super Saiya-jins, as are my two sons and Vejiita’s one son.”

They stared at her, unblinking, for a very long time.

“Excuse me?” Potuto finally asked, still looking at her strangely.

An odd sense of pride flowed through ChiChi’s veins. For some reason, the fact that her husband was a legendary Saiya-jin, something so special, made ChiChi feel practically invincible. Also, she was enjoying the astounded looks on their faces just now. “Hai, my husband turned Super Saiya-jin years and years ago during a fight with Freezer. Vejiita, though a little later, also became a Super Saiya-jin. It came very naturally for our children somehow; both Goten and Trunks turned Super Saiya-jin at a very young age. The boys of course are half Saiya-jin, but they still managed to turn Super Saiya-jin. Perhaps half bloods are stronger?”

“Are you positive of this?” Koronu’s eyes were wide and full of disbelief. “Do you know how to decipher a Super Saiya-jin from a normal Saiya-jin?”

“I’m positive. Every time Gokuu or one of the others turned Super Saiya-jin, their hair was tinged to gold and their eyes, turned completely green.” ChiChi informed them. “It was as if they were completely different people. Oh, and I can’t forget the power….It’s absolutely incredible.”

“Gokuu?”

“Son Gokuu. My husband.”

Koronu suddenly glared. “Son Gokuu is not a Saiya-jin name.”

ChiChi thought quickly. “Hai, he was raised by a human. He came to Earth as a baby. Vejiita refers to him as ‘Kakarroto’ all the time. I believe that is his Saiya-jin name….” She squinted, trying to remember. “Years and years ago, Gokuu’s brother, Raditzu appeared on Earth looking for him, and that’s what he called him as well.”

“Raditzu?” Koronu looked shocked. Her body had gone completely still and her eyes were wide and unblinking. She reached out and grabbed ChiChi’s sleeve, suddenly and eagerly. “Raditzu and Kakarroto?”

“Hai.” ChiChi confirmed again, looking at Koronu strangely. “Is something wrong? Did….you know Raditzu? Or Gokuu, maybe, when he was just a baby?”

Koronu steadied herself against the smooth infirmary countertop and held a hand against her heart, beating wildly in her chest. If ChiChi didn’t know better, she would have sworn that Koronu was nearly in tears. In a quiet, emotion-filled voice, she answered: “I knew them, yes. They were my sons.”

Pi opened the door to the infirmary with a flourish, and scanned the room for the Earthling. She was sitting up on a stretcher, Potuto and Koronu close at hand. Briefly, she wondered what all three of them were doing talking to each other and it registered as suspcious, but she had no time to ponder possibilities at the moment. Besides, the Earthling looked sick and weak --- she was no threat.

“Pi? Is….Is something wrong?” Potuto asked, his eyes widening. He looked around the room and appeared to be searching for something. Koronu also looked edgy and nervous, but at the same time, she looked distracted and odd. Her eyes were watering, and a small, half smile was on her face. She chose to ignore the two of them and flicked her eyes over in the direction of the human.

“Come with me.” She commanded, and turned to go out the door.

ChiChi sat there, unmoving, a confused, frantic look on her face. “Nani? Where am I going? I….I’m sick. I can barely move.”

“Pi, what’s going on?” Potuto asked again.

“There was an air attack. Several soldiers were killed, and others were wounded. They need medical attention right away.” She informed them in an annoyed, tight voice. “The human cannot be in the ifirmary with the other Saiya-jins because there is a possibility that a soldier might tell the Council. That is a risk that Sukuashi is not willing to take. So the human is to be moved into Sukuashi’s room.”

“But….I’m not even finished!” Potuto sputured. “And I am certainly not prepared to take care of critically injured soldiers. Where are they going to stay? I have a limited number of beds in here, you know.”

Pi let out an exasperated sigh. “This isn’t debatable. You will take care of the soldiers, and you will release the human into my custody right this instant. There is only so much time before the soldiers are shipped in here, and this room needs to be cleared of all human species!” She reached out and grabbed ChiChi’s soft, pale arm, ripping her away from the stretcher.

ChiChi fought against her and turned back to Koronu, tears running down her cheeks. “Please, don’t let her take me. Please! I’ll do anything! Please! I want to help! I want to---”

Koronu appeared as though she were trying to make a decision, but made no move and closed her dark eyes. Pi, angry at ChiChi’s resistance, delievered a sharp blow to her head. She crumpled like a rag doll at Pi’s feet, and she reached down and scooped her up, flinging her over her shoulders. Without another word, she turned on her heel and sauntered out of the room, ChiChi’s head dangling limp and unconcious behind her.

Chapter 40
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