Piccolo flew at top speed around the Earth, his sharp eyes searching for anything, any sort of sign that his student was still with them. King Kai and King Yemma hadn't seen a soul like Gohan's pass through check in, but Goku said he'd keep a look out.
It has been almost six months since the Cell Games, since the day Piccolo watched the closest thing he'd ever had to a son of his own destroy the Earths greatest threat. There were no words to describe the pride he felt watching that. Now, six months down the line, Gohan had been keeping up with his studies and his training. The namek could remember with a smile how the half-saiyan told his mother he'd keep studying, but that he wanted to be a fighter as well as a scholar.
"Mom, I know you want what's best for me, but I need to be able to do what I want to as well. And I want to be a fighter like Dad. I want to protect my home, my loved ones, just like he did. This is all I have left of Dad, to carry on his legacy. Please, don't take that away from me." he had pleaded. Even his hot headed banshee of a mother couldn't argue with that, simply telling him that if he started falling behind, he was done.
Gohan agreed and had been spending two weeks out of every month with Piccolo on the Lookout training and one with Vegeta to learn about his people, until they found out Chi-chi was pregnant.
His training slowed to a week a month up at the Lookout and the rest at home so he could be close by with Vegeta visiting to teach 'Kakarot's half-breed brat about the glorious race he descended from'. He had wanted to train with Vegeta a bit as well, but any passion he'd had for fighting was long gone.
Piccolo, what do you honestly hope to find? It's obvious that he's not on Earth anymore. Kami said, trying to understand his fellows Nameks decision.
Yeah, man. You've been at this for four days now. Maybe it's time to pack it in and get some sleep.
"I'll sleep when I'm dead!" He barked at Nail, ignoring his fatiguing body. He had to find Gohan. He had to.
Piccolo, Gohan destroyed Cell and his demon spawn. He can handle himself, wherever he is. You just have to have faith in the boy.
Piccolo sighed in defeat, turning around and blasting off for the Lookout. He hated to admit it, but Nail and Kami were right. There was little point in killing himself like this. Wherever Gohan was, he could handle what came.
I cannot handle this! Gohan mentally screamed before being ax kicked down into the city below, crashing through the crystalline earth below. He pulled himself from the impact crater just in time to dodge a dive bomb kick from his attacker, the changeling general, Diserex.
Gohan was panting hard and they had only been fighting for a few minutes. His wounds were taking their toll and Diserex wasn't making it any better. No matter what he did, it didn't seem to make a bit of difference. The changeling was shrugging off his hardest strikes like they were nothing! The boy jumped into the air, clashing with his opponent once more.
The air shook violently as the changeling and saiyan traded almost super sonic blows, Gohan's being caught, dodged, or deflected as his opponent struck him harder and harder with each passing second.
He jumped and grabbed the changelings leg as he came in for a quick spinning kick aimed at Gohan's head. "Please, Diserex, there's no need for this! We don't have to fight! There's no point in it!" He cried, hoping the general would actually have a bit of humanity. It was a long shot, but one worth going for.
Diserex simply scoffed, a green light surrounding his gnarled horn before a beam of magic slammed into the boys gut, throwing him back. "Now, Gohan, you didn't actually think that would work, did you? Even if I were to walk away, another monster far worse would take my place. So, let's not waste each others time talking and finish this!" He gave a powerful roar, his aura erupting around him and pushing his saiyan opponent back hard.
Gohan covered his eyes as the wind kicked up around his enemy. "I don't understand! How can you be getting so strong?! Your power just seems to keep… growing." That's when it hit him. "No way!"
The changeling laughed loudly as he glowered down at the boy. "Looks like you figured it out. Well, since this is to be your last moment, I guess I should explain. You see, Gohan, emotions are a very powerful thing. Each emotion you feel gives off a bit of energy, but the strongest of those feelings are rage, hatred, and love. Many of my race feed on the energy given off by beings who feel this love, but me," Diserex chuckled as he clenched his fist a few times. "I'm a bit different. Like my mother, I can survive and strengthen myself on any powerful emotion, meaning the angrier I make you, the stronger I get." He finished with a sneer.
The saiyan's eyes widened in shock. "But then that mean this whole time you've been feeding off my emotions!" Diserex's sneer turned to a dark smirk as Gohan's body shook in anger, images of Android #19 beating his father coming to the forefront of his mind. He gave a mighty roar, his energy pushing the changeling back, not much, but enough to catch him off guard. "NOW YOU'VE PISSED ME OFF!"
Gohan rushed in, having caught his second wind, and Diserex too slow to catch him before the boys knee met the center of his chest, said boy unleashing a high speed flurry of attacks, stopping short as he saw the changeling smirk. He realized his mistake too late as Diserex slammed his fist home, an almost cartoonish bulge coming out of Gohan's back.
Dammit, this is bad. I can't keep up with this. He just keeps getting stronger! I've gotta come up with a strategy or something, or he's gonna kill me! Maybe I should transform and- Gohan's thoughts were cut short after taking a heavy handed left to the face, sending him crashing through a few more buildings. He was slow to rise again, spitting a bit of blood onto the floor of the house he was in. He looked up and saw the family that lived there, a mother unicorn-blood, a father earth-blood and their daughter, a pegasus-blood, the father putting himself in front of his family. Gohan's eyes widened in shock as a shadow began to fall over him.
"Get out of here, now!" The boy gave a cry of pain as Diserex pulled him up by his black locks, slamming his knee into the side of the child's ribs, more blood shooting from his mouth. The family heeded Gohan and ran from the house, freezing once Diserex turned his gaze towards them. The changeling only stared for a moment before he bent down and picked up a teddy bear from the floor, dropping it to the girl before stepping aside, letting them run.
"I have to say, Gohan, I'm rather disappointed!" The general said, tossing Gohan into the air on 'disappointed', following after him and slamming his knee into the boys gut before slamming his balled up fists into the half-breeds back, gasping a bit as he struck through an afterimage.
The elder fighter turned quickly as Gohan attacked with hard right hook, knocking a mouthful of spittle from his mouth, before following up with a roundhouse kick, passing through the changelings own afterimage. "I honestly expected more from the son of the man who defeated this Frieza. Maybe I was wrong in assuming this was an actual achievement." he said from behind his opponent with a sneer, the boy turning to face him.
"DON'T YOU TALK SHIT ABOUT MY FATHER!" Gohan roared as he rushed the changeling, using the power his anger gave him to break the general's defenses with a brutal gut check of his own before unleashing a savage series of punches, alternating between striking him in the gut and face before floating behind him and planting his boot squarely into Diserex's back, sending him flying back down into the city.
The saiyan child landed and sensed that there was no one in that direction before slamming the heels of his palms together, bringing his hands to rest just at the side of his navel. He didn't hear or notice that Flurry's parents had appeared behind him. "Kaaaaa, Meeeee, Haaaaa, Meeeee,"
Diserex tore his way through the rubble, rushing toward the younger male, his eyes widening a bit as he saw the energy gathering in between his cupped hands. Time seemed to slow as Gohan smirked at the changeling general for a moment, "Checkmate, Diserex. HAAAAA!" He threw his hands forward and unleashed the pent up energy, straight into the older mans chest.
The large blue beam that erupted from his hands slammed full force into Diserex, the changeling screaming as it plowed him into the ground and across the city, finally exploding several hundred feet away. Yeah, he probably caused a good bit of damage to the city, carving a massive trench through the center and a pretty big crater to go with it, but at least he didn't hit any of the houses or people.
He then noticed two higher then average power levels behind him, turning to look at the awe struck Shining Armor and Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. He smiled sheepishly at them until an explosion rocked the ground under their feet, a large column of dust erupting from the ground.
Gohan scowled and took his stance again, his energy flaring again. Does this guy run on batteries or something?!
Cadence sobbed into Shining Armors arms as he tried to comfort the near hysterical princess. The other princesses and women in the room began to wonder to them selves 'Why didn't I go with them? Why did I stay here?'
It had been Gohan that had convinced them to stay behind. 'Too many people will give the group away faster. Besides, a smaller group will move faster. Stay here and protect your home. Flurry will be back by the end of the night. I promise.'
"We should have gone with them." Luna said, staring into the hearth.
"What could we have done? Even wounded, it's obvious Gohan was far more skilled and prepared than us, Luna." Celestia said, the memory of Gohan tearing the changelings apart as if they were nothing more than flies still fresh in her mind.
Many of the changelings were being interrogated by the castle guards, though just as many were unconscious. His attacks were powerful, evidenced by the fact that many of the unconscious changelings were planted into the floor or wall, but none were lethal.
The sheer amount of training he'd have to have undergone to garner that level of strength is beyond imagination, but to use it non lethally? That child is truly something special.
A bright light filled the room, and the people in it had to shield their eyes for a moment, looking as they noticed the light dim to reveal Flurry with Spike and Rainbow Dash. The young girl smiled bright before her eyes fluttered closed, falling into the wait arms of Spike, who handed her off to her ecstatic parents.
"Where's Gohan?" Fluttershy asked, her answering being something akin to an explosion rocking the castle. They all looked outside to see two columns of light shooting into the air, one white with a brilliant gold outlining, the other a sickly green color. After a few moments, the column's vanished and more concussive forces began rocking the kingdom.
"What in the name of the Princesses is going on out there?!" Twilight shouted, holding onto a table.
Pinkie Pie jumped to her feet, somehow producing a spyglass from her fluffy mess of hair, causing Twilight to just stare in shock. The pink haired woman stood by the window, aiming her amped up vision in the direction of the shock-waves, gasping and freezing in place.
Luna looked at the younger woman, walking over to her. Before she could say anything, Pinkie offered her the spyglass without looking away. The Princess of the Night put the telescope to her eye, shocked at she saw. Diserex?! But he was- And Gohan is fighting him?! What in the name of The Creators is happening!?
"What is it, Sister?" Celestia asked.
"I-it's Diserex. Gohan is fighting Diserex and he's holding his own!" Luna cried out, unable to stop watching. Just not very well. At least he isn't dead yet.
Flurry groaned a bit as she began waking up, trying to listen to the voices around her. She vaguely noticed she was being held by someone, a familiar someone. She opened her eyes, letting them adjust to see it was her mother. She noticed everyone staring out the window and that the castle was shaking. "Is that boy insane!? He's still wounded! Diserex is going to tear him apart!" Celestia words were accompanied by another rumble.
Flurry sat up and jumped out of her mothers grasp, despzite her moms best efforts to keep her there, running over to the window. What she saw was Gohan's body fly into the air, the man that had stopped them before appearing above him and striking down through him, only for the boy to vanish and appear behind the changeling, only to get the same problem, kicking through the older males head. The changeling appeared behind the fighter and said something, to which Gohan responded with "DON'T YOU TALK SHIT ABOUT MY FATHER!"
This shocked everyone as they were several hundred feet away. Hearing them was one thing, but well enough to understand him was another. Diserex must have said something that really set him off because they were watching this boy, not much older than their youngest member, taking apart one of Equestria's greatest threats.
"We have to help him!" Flurry cried, tugging hard on her fathers uniform. He simply looked at her and then at Cadence. The alicorn-blood woman took her husbands hand and nodded.
Shining Armor smiled and knelt down to look his daughter in the eye. "Flurry, baby, I want you to stay here." She opened her mouth to argue, Shining putting his finger on her mouth, a smile on his face. "I'll be back." He lifted his pinkie to her, the girl wrapping hers around it.
"Pinkie Promise." they said together, before Armor stood, taking his wife's hand, who bent and kissed her daughters head. She stood and took her husbands hand again, her horn glowing brightly before they vanished from the room.
The two reappeared in the center of the urban district where most of their festivals were held. "Cadence, you were focusing on Gohan, right?" They both gave a quick shout of surprise as they saw one of the two combatants slamming into the ground several hundred feet away. Gohan landed not too long after, taking a deep horse stance (ha!) before cupping his hands together and bringing them down to his navel. "Kaaaaaa, Meeeeee, Haaaaa, Meeeee," The two rulers watched in awe as they felt the air become thick with energy, a small ball of blue energy forming in the child's hands.
Armor and Cadence jumped as they heard Diserex start flying back towards them, Cadence preparing the strongest offensive spell she had while her husband prepped a shielding spell to protect his daughters newest friend. There was no way they could beat this Diserex, but they'd be damned if they let a child- "HAAAAAAA!" Gohan threw his hands forward, a massive beam that obscured the castle from their view erupting from his hands, a similar view causing the denizens of the castle to become speechless. Even Twilight dropped her book and quill.
The beam slammed full force into Diserex, the changeling warlord screaming as he was plowed into the earth and pushed through the center of the city, a massive blast following, leaving the city's center as a four block crater.
"T-that attack… I've never seen anything like it…" Cadence whispered in awe, watching the young man as he simply stared out at the crater. Gohan seemed to finally notice their presences, turning to smile at them shyly before an explosion and a cloud of dust erupted from the crater, the saiyan warrior turning to look at it, taking his stance once more.
The dust was blown away as the air became charged with energy, revealing a wounded and bleeding Diserex. The changeling floated over and landed in front of the three, Cadence and Armor preparing a teleportation spell in case.
Diserex was panting hard, one of his wings badly burnt and his left arm obviously broken. "How? How were you able to muster so much power into that attack? If you had that kind of power, why not use it before?"
Gohan slipped back into a relaxed standing position, smiling a bit at the general. "I told you before. This fighting is pointless. I won't lie and say fighting you hasn't been fun, it's in my blood to enjoy fighting. But this..." He gestured to the destroyed city, a sad look on his young face. "This isn't right. These people, they're innocent." He looked back to Diserex with a solemn look on his face. "When you threw me into that house, you let that family go. If you're intention is to take over Equestria and crush those who won't obey your rule, why did you let them go?"
"I told you before, I have a code about involving innocent lives. If you'll notice, my men have not harmed a single citizen here." Gohan did a quick check and found that Diserex was telling the truth.
Gohan smiled softly, his respect growing for the elder warrior. "You and I might be friends if it weren't for your choice of allies, Diserex." His smile disappeared as his energy began rising again. "There's no way I can talk out of this, is there?" The changeling warrior only smiled. "Didn't think so." The boy widened his stance a bit, his white aura shifting to gold as his hair began flutter a bit around his face.
The elder fighter was taken back by how quickly this child's power was expanding, but his thoughts were cut off by one of his changelings flying to them. The grunt landed and knelt before his superior. "Lord Diserex, I have a message from Queen Chrysalis. We are to pull back immediately."
"What?!" He bellowed, bolts of green bio-electric lightning coursing around his body. He growled for a moment before finally turning away from Gohan, who simply stood, watching this unfold. "Inform the rest of our forces that we are withdrawing."
"Yessir!" The changeling said before flying off as fast as his wings could carry him.
Diserex turned to Gohan and smiled again. "Well, Son Gohan, it seems that our time has been cut short. What do you say we finish this the next time we see each other?"
Gohan smirked at the changeling warrior. "Sounds good to me, though you may regret giving me time to heal up."
Diserex only chuckled before turning and beginning to walk away. "You are a gentle soul, Gohan. I cannot promise that the next time we meet won't be the last, but I promise you one thing." He turned and smiled at the saiyan. "That one thing is that when we fight again, I will not be Diserex, The General. I will be a warrior, fighting his opponent for the joy of fighting someone on his level." A bright green light enveloped his horn before enveloping him, blinding them all for a moment. When they looked back, he had vanished from sight.
Gohan gave a smile and a nod, though he knew that Diserex couldn't see it. He heaved a sigh of relief after a moment, watching all the other changelings leave. He then turned to his still speechless hosts and chuckled nervously. "Hey there."
The two just continued to stare. They looked at each other and smiled, turning back to Gohan, whom they noticed was now face down in the dirt, snoring away. They shared a small laugh between each other as they walked over to the sleeping boy, Armor bending down to lift him into his arms.
"Even wounded, he stood his ground and fought a warrior that even Celestia and Luna are wary of. All for people he just met." Cadence said softly, brushing some hair from his face. "He truly is something special."
"Ya know, if Flurry were to end up with a guy like him, I'd approve." Armor said, shifting Gohan a bit to fit in his arms more comfortably before simply using his magic to place the boy on his back.
The Princess of Love giggled a bit as she watched this, having seen the big softy do the same for their daughter more times then she could count. "I would too, but, I'm sure there is much, much more to him than what we've seen so far." Her smile turned to a light frown. "I only hope that whatever it is that he keeps having nightmares about leaves him be. He doesn't deserve to hurt like that."
"We all have our burdens to bear, and he's shown us that combat and fighting are nothing new to him. If his stories are true, then it's a miracle this kid hasn't lost his mind yet. I'm kinda convinced his father did." Her husband added with a chuckle, starting to walk back to the castle, too tired after the fighting to teleport them back, as was Cadence.
"Armor." Cadence said as she matched her husbands stride. He hummed lightly and looked over at her. "You know that Flurry has been asking to go to Twilight's to study under now that Starlight Glimmer has moved back to Canterlot."
He nodded lightly, raising a brow in confusion. "We kept telling her no because we were anticipating this attack, just not the way it happened, and because we couldn't be entirely sure of her… safety." He stopped and looked at his wife, said woman stopping as well. "No."
"Armor, she needs to be allowed to grow."
"Flurry can grow just fine here, at home." He countered.
Cadence narrowed her violet eyes at her other half. "Shining Armor, how old were you when you joined the Guard Youth Training Corps?"
The unicorn-blood was silent for a few moments after that. "Nine, but that's-"
"And how old were you when you officially joined the Royal Sun Guard?"
"Thirteen, but still-"
"AND" The alicorn-blood said loudly, cutting him off again. "How old were you, Shining Armor, youngest Captain of the Guard in Equestrian history, when you were named Captain of the Guard?"
"… Nineteen."
"And how were you able to do all this?" She asked, her fists now resting on her hips.
He sighed in defeat, hanging his head a bit. "Because I took a chance and left home to follow my dreams."
Cadence smiled softly and gently cupped her husbands cheek, placing a light kiss on his lips, smiling a bit more as he returned it. She looked into his eyes as she pulled back. "Just because she leaves to follow her heart doesn't mean it won't lead her back to us. We'll always be here and we'll always be waiting for her, but if we give her the chance, she become so much more than we can see now."
He leaned into her hand a bit before they started walking back to the castle. "Alright. She can go. Besides, Twilight and the Elements have beaten every bad guy they've come across so far. And with Gohan, they've got some extra muscle. What's the worse that could happen?"
A wounded Diserex walked into the dimly lit throne of his mothers hive, kneeling as he came within view. Chrysalis sat upon her throne of obsidian, her long legs hanging over one side while her upper half was supported by the other arm of her seat. She wore a simple, yet rather form fitting and revealing, dress that accentuated her curves and bust. Her emerald green, cat-like eyes bore into the top of her first sons head. "Forgive me, my Queen, I have failed you."
The oddly distorted voice of the Changeling Queen gave a light chuckle. "You failed to retrieve Flurry Heart, yes, but your attack was not a total failure. In fact, I'd even be so kind as to call it a resounding success in a different fashion."
Diserex looked up at the queen, confusion written on his face. He opened his mouth to ask what she was talking about, but she simply raised a hand to stop him. "Report to the medical personnel and have them fix that arm of yours. You're useless to me as you are now." She said dismissively.
The general bowed his head again, simply backing out of the throne room before a flash filled the hall, showing he'd teleported to the changelings that could help him.
Chrysalis smiled and started chuckling before it began to turn to a full blown laugh. "Oh, this is just too perfect! I wanted Flurry for revenge against that damned Mi Amore Cadenza and as a power source and what happens? An even greater power source drops into my lap! Now, the big part of this all is to find a way to get a hold of him, this 'Gohan'." The Changeling Queen chuckled as she licked the tips of her fingers, as if she had just finished a delicious, satisfying meal. "I may have to speed my little project. Once I have Gohan and Flurry, I can awaken 'it' and nothing will stand in my way."
Chrysalis's laughter could be heard all across the Hive as it echoed across the halls. The changelings were prepared for war and Chrysalis would see to it that she stood after it was said and done.
The scene opens with Gohan flying into frame as a Super Saiyan, landing and powering down with a broad smile on his face before catching a falling Flurry Heart, the young girl wrapping her arms around the boys neck and kissing his cheek as the logo for Crystal Vanguard appears overhead.
Gohan: Hey guys, it's Gohan!
Flurry Heart: And Flurry!
Gohan: Whew! That was a heck of a fight! I'm just happy it's over with.
Cadence: I don't know about that Gohan, you did see the after episode filler right?
Gohan: What?
Flurry: Gohan, are you really gonna leave?
Gohan: I've got to, Flurry. I've gotta find a way home and Twilight might be my best bet.
Armor: Actually, Gohan there's something I'd like to talk to you about when you have the chance.
Flurry: Next time on Crystal Vanguard!: A Long Train Ride Ahead! Welcome to Ponyville, Gohan!
Gohan: Whoa! That castle is huge! It's bigger than the town! That's where we're gonna be staying? Wait, YOU HAVE YOUR OWN LIBRARY!?