DB Multiverse

Son Gohan came too, an imperious roar was ringing in his ears.

“DO IT AGAIN!”

The young boy, worn out, crippled with pain, held back a moan as he got up. In an final effort, he looked at the tireless fighter who was waiting for him a bit higher, the harsh master who didn't put up with any complaint, any weakness.

Their living together during those long months had taught him how to recognise the slightest variations in the moods of that quick-tempered partner.

He knew now how to detect the little crack through which he seldom managed to catch a glimpse the well hidden heart of the Saiyan who even almost had the behaviour of a father from time to time. Some held back gestures of affection, rare, true, but so reassuring, so welcomed. Momentary little shows of attention that had pleased the child who had been brutally torn from the boson of his loving parents.

But time wasn't right for tenderness. That look, he knew about it too. That was the one he had when he would not grant him the mere indulgence.

As he was getting his broken body back on his feet... Gohan followed the trail of his thoughts. He took his time, taking advantage of this precious respite to catch his breath...

He didn't hold it against Vegeta for being so inflexible... He knew that he was right to drive him into a corner, push him far, beyond his own limits... beyond his anger, his own frustration... Same as what Piccolo had done all these years ago.

Gohan was now standing straight, the young Saiyan's eyes darkened with a furious determination... He clenched his fists as he submit his painful body to the burning bite of another effort that was inflaming to the least of his cells.

He yelled as if to help him pay to heed to the tiredness and the pain of these long hours of uncompromising fight and deliberately didn't care about the fiery ail that each part of his body was sending to his brain. Now, all he wanted to feel was the warm of the energy rising in him, that flood that felt so much like a melting lava flow, this tidal wave of pure strength that suddenly set his halo and hair ablaze, a blazing and golden light.

Yes! It was certainly thanks to the cruel intransigence of that imposed master that he had succeeded in reaching this incredible level.

A level he had never thought he'd be able to reach without the determination and the stubbornness of this inflexible elder. The same who had coldly told him:

“You'll be worthy of your father or you won't leave this place alive!”

And the child had understood right away that it wasn't a joke. He had held back his tears, thinking of his mother's sorrow, his mother who would be all alone. He was convinced that he would never see her again. How would he match this fantastic warrior he had been worshipping? How could he have survived the furious attacks of Vegeta, who was almost mad because of the frustration of a fight he had always dreamt about and that Goku's death had deprived of? This Super Saiyan humiliated by two machines just when he had returned.

It had taken several memorable beatings, a lot of bleeding and broken bones for the young boy to understand that, actually, the inflexible warrior always hold back when he had reach the extreme limit.

The latter had eventually told him that he wasn't going to kill him until he was sure that he would not be able to reach his goal. Was all this pain worth the little respite that he had been offered that way? The young fighter was constantly torn between a feeling of deep discouragement and the bitterness of believing he was the victim of such cruelty.

Maybe would it be better to go wherever daddy had gone to! But then, who would protect mom?

And then, this day had come, this day when he had come out of a black coma. He had intercepted the Prince's worried look, the Prince who had bent over him with concern in his eyes that were hardly open. He didn't move, so he felt how tenderly the saiyan had taken him in his arm and carefully brought him to the reassuring shelter of the bedroom.

Yes, that day he had eventually understood.

Though he could have remembered earlier their first meeting on Namek, this unexpected gesture, his brushing his hair right before getting this painful knee kick in his stomach. He remembered the move and a 'something' that had crossed Vegeta's eyes as he was mentioning what was left of his decimated people. A 'something' that had been suddenly concealed by a surge of brutality.

He had noticed that the proud Saiyan did all he could keep this 'something' well hidden, even if his acts did let them show from time to time. This 'something'... that was his humanity.

No, Vegeta was not the cold and cruel monster that he wanted everyone to believe he was. He was a man, with a heart and feeling... A man, that was it.

How could he have forgotten it?

His mind now freed of the terror and the deep sadness that had been paralysing him until then, the young fighter had managed to release all the energy he had. He could give free rein to his rage of not being able to go even further. Take the most of this frustration to reply to the requests of an opponent that was always more demanding, always more pressing.

But it hadn't been enough... neither his improvement, no matter how huge those were, nor his determination, not even the spite of the warrior prince had done anything. The precious level remained out of grasp. A frustrating little thing was always missing.

And, in the end, it had been Vegeta's fit of anger that had triggered everything. A shout of pure rage that he had spat to Gohan's face, as an insult, contempt for he had, once again, failed, this time clearly showing a sudden wave of discouragement.

“I'm tired of it. Go back to your earthling mother, you stupid bastard! You'll never be a true Saiyan worthy of the name!”

The words had rung in his mind with the hot bite of the whip of infamy. 'Hearthling mother'... Those were the words that had hurt him the most. They were not rude in themselves, but the tone he had used said a lot about what he thought of it.

That had been too much for a child who was missing his mother's tenderness, who missed her so cruelly. Too much for a half-blood who knew the deep attachment that his late father had felt for this planet. It had been too much for a young boy who had the pride of Saiyan origin running in his vessels.

Anger, fury, rage... It all had happened at once. A uncontrollable surge had got hold of Son Goku's son under Vegeta's look of surprise.

He had eventually found the trigger. He had tried everything: humiliation, pain until it was as torture, memory of his deceased father, description of millions of victims, the mention of the slaughter of his mother by the two cyborgs... Nothing had worked.

And that was when he had lost all hope, did everything he could, that the miracle had happened. His green irises could finally see other green eyes glaring at them.