Crossover Fan Fiction / Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Dark Angel ❯ Chapter 26 ( Chapter 26 )

Dark Angel

Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Ball Z or any of the Dragon Ball Z characters. I do not own Star Wars or any of the Star Wars characters. They are owned by those who own them. I do, however, own the fic all of this is in. That is all.

Chapter Twenty-Six

"Are we ready?" Ki-Adi asked as he sat in the pilot's chair, pushing buttons and checking the stats of the ship without even thinking. Obi-Wan sat next to him in the co-pilot's chair, doing roughly the same thing except he was doing it at a slower pace and looked more frantic then the other did. Anakin was ordered to go into the room that he shared with Obi-Wan in the ship and to stay there until they came back with Amidala. Even with his protesting, the Padawan did what he was told although he did not like it one bit.

Vegeta, Goku, Tien, Yamcha, and Krillin had been the first ones to enter the ship from the transport that had taken them from the Temple up to the platform in which the ship was resting upon. Anakin, upon seeing the transport land upon the platform from the top of the ramp, had rushed to find Ki-Adi, who was somewhere in the ship. As soon as the Jedi and the Padawan had gotten back to the ramp, Vegeta had already stomped up the ramp in an angry fashion, the rest of the group not too far behind them. None had even bothered to look at the duo as they walked past and into another part of the ship.

Obi-Wan and Mace were the next to follow suit, except they did at least acknowledge the others presence. Obi-Wan walked past them stiffly without much word while Mace stopped for a moment to give any last orders to Ki-Adi, who had swiftly come to see the group come onto the ship. As soon as Mace was off of the ramp and back far enough upon the platform to watch the ship take off, the ramp slid back into the ship, creating a metal barrier between Jedi.

"I'm sure we are," Obi-Wan said quickly, glancing over towards the other before returning his gaze upon the window in front of him. He knew that the ship, the others on board, and the will to rescue Amidala was ready, but he didn't know if he himself was ready. Maybe it was the fear of facing the Sith and destroying him or the thought that this might be his last trip from Coruscant. Either way, this was the most fear he felt since Qui-Gon had died.

The ship soon started to vibrate smoothly, the controls lighting up as Ki-Adi began to lift the ship off of the platform it had been sitting on. Obi-Wan then pulled a lever up to bring the landing gears, his heart racing a little bit faster then before. He knew he had to calm himself before they landed back on Tatooine and before the group came face-to-face with Frieza and the Sith. Calm down, He told himself, taking a deep breath to do so.

"You okay, Obi-Wan?" Ki-Adi asked, steering the ship up towards the top of Coruscant's lower atmosphere. He made sure that he didn't get in the way of oncoming ships, keeping his distance from the steady stream of smaller ships that was moving all around them.

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?" The Jedi wondered, trying to looked interested in something on the controls. His companion wasn't that easily swayed; he took a quick glance over at him and gave a soft chuckle. Obi-Wan glared over at him, still trying to look as thought nothing was wrong. "What is it?"

"You say nothing is wrong, Obi-Wan, yet," Ki-Adi paused to let a small smile play on his lips for a moment before continuing, "your face is pale and your hands are shaking. Do you really hate flying this much?"

Obi-Wan opened his mouth to answer but closed it right back. Instead, he focused on the layers of atmosphere that laid ahead on the other side of the glass, the ship beginning to rattle as it began to move into a different layer of the same atmosphere. He honestly did not want to lie to Ki-Adi, but then he also didn't want to tell him the truth. He was torn between both aspects, however he didn't want to give in to either one.

"I am just nervous about the mission ahead," Obi-Wan responded at last, his voice quavering slightly. To his relief, Ki-Adi just nodded and did not peruse the matter further.

Some things were better off unsaid and unheard.

****

Vegeta paced along the kitchen area of the ship much like he had done earlier in the room inside the Jedi Temple, his face filled with more anger then before. All were becoming restless, wanting this journey to be over with so that they could go on with their normal lives. They knew what was just ahead of them on a distant planet, but this also contradicted itself in a way. None knew exactly what was there on Tatooine or what other forces had now joined up with the Sith. They had to rely on what they knew and what little powers they had in this universe.

Krillin was sitting at the table, looking interesting in a small crack that had formed long ago on one of the edges of the table. Yamcha and Tien were on either side of Krillin, each staring up at the ceiling with glazed looks on their faces as they were deep in thought. Goku was standing near the doorway, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes staring at the ground beneath him. He was also deep in thought, but for another reason.

"I can't take this any longer," Vegeta growled, breaking the silence in the room. No one seemed to care that the Saiyan had said that, none even bothering looking in his direction when he had uttered those words. They continued to be amused in some way, which helped them to control their boredom. "I just had enough of waiting."

"We know, Vegeta," Goku said, raising his eyes up. There was a determined yet scared look on his face, like he was afraid but brave to go into battle without knowing what was going on. Krillin glanced up at his friend, noticing the look on the second Saiyan's face.

"What is it, Goku?" He asked, half afraid of the answer. All seemed to come out of their trances to look over towards him; even Vegeta stopped pacing long enough to hear the answer to the question.

"It's the portal," Goku said quietly, his eyes moving along everyone that was in the room. "Even if we defeat Frieza, the Sith, and the rest of them, others will want to go through the portal, good or bad. We can't let that happen."

"I am sure that the Jedi will be able to find some way to make sure nothing else goes through it," Yamcha said hopefully.

"I don't think that the portal is something they would be worried about constantly," Goku explained. "It needs to be closed some way."

"But how?" Vegeta demanded irritably. "We know nothing about the portal, and I am sure that these so-called 'Jedi' don't either."

"I'd suggest that some how we could blast it from our end, but it would probably have the same effect on this universe like it has on ours," Tien said. "There has to be a way to close it from the inside, like a blast to make it unstable so that it would close."

"How would we make it unstable then?" Krillin asked, looking over at Goku. The Saiyan half smiled at the question. "We could ask the Jedi to send something into it, like a ship, and have it be destroyed while moving from one universe to the other." Then an fleeting expression of excitement came upon his face. "Maybe we could also send Garlic, Jr. on that ship as well."

"Someone is going to have to make sure the ship stays on it's course and it is destroyed inside the portal," Vegeta spat out, causing the excitement to leave Krillin's face. He then went back to studying the table once again, a defeated look on his face.

"I'll do it, then," Goku offered without thinking. Everyone looked over at him, surprised looks on their faces.

"Goku, are you crazy? You'd be killed," Yamcha cried. Goku smiled softly, nodding his agreement.

"I know I will, but it would be the only way. I am sure there is a way that one of the Jedi can program a ship, like Bulma did with the one Vegeta and I came into this universe in, to go into the portal and destroy itself in the process," The Saiyan said, the smile fading. Vegeta narrowed his eyes, moving swiftly over to him. He then grabbed the front of Goku's clothing and pulled him off of the wall.

"There is no way in hell you are going to get yourself killed just because this portal has to be closed," He said icily, letting go of Goku before turning his back upon him. There was something different inside Vegeta's eyes that hadn't been there before. Something they hadn't seen before and probably won't again. "There will be another way."

"Why do you even care, Vegeta?" Yamcha demanded. The Saiyan didn't answer, instead turning towards the doorway without word. The doors opened up, allowing him to exit swiftly before they closed behind him. Tien and Yamcha looked at each other with odd looks on their faces, Krillin staring at Goku, still dumbfounded that his friend would suggest doing something like he did. Goku, on the other hand, acted like Vegeta hadn't even been in front of him as he leaned back against the wall and resumed looking down at the ground.

This would be a long journey back to Tatooine.

****

Amidala pulled on the chains that bound her wrists, seeing if they would pull out of the wall. She had already pulled some of the chains that bounded her ankles slightly out of the wall, although it wasn't much to get herself out of. Whoever the Sith was, he made sure that he could hold someone inside the ship very well. However, there was always a way to get out of something, no matter how hard it was.

Just as she was pulling on the left chain, the door to the room slid open and a form stepped inside. The queen immediately stopped pulling on the chain and looked up to see who had entered only to look away in disgust. As the doors closed behind him, Frieza moved forwards, his tail swishing behind him. Once he got in front of Amidala, he stopped and knelt down where he was. She did not look at him, her face contorted in anger.

"Comfortable?" The Icejin purred, looking delighted that someone was enjoying waiting less for the Jedi and the Saiyans then he was. Amidala gave him a sideways glare, fighting the urge to take one of the chains bounding her to the wall and strangling him with it.

"They will come and get me out of this," She answered, moving her eyes away from him for a moment before turning her head towards him. Frieza smiled, looking smug.

"They will come, that is for sure. I don't know about getting you out of this," He said, standing up. "You may find yourself with company very soon."

"We'll see," Amidala said coldly, gripping the chains tightly.

"There are other ways to get you out of this mess," He said, his lips moving into a bigger smile. Amidala didn't say anything, keeping her anger in check so that she wouldn't do something she might regret later.

The urge to do something to the creature standing in front of her was mounting, coming to a point where she might be doing just that. Frieza took the hint that he wasn't welcomed inside the small room, turning on his heel as he made his way towards the doors that he had come through. When he stopped in front of them, the doors opened up some to allow him to walk through the now open doorway. He didn't move, turning his head over his shoulder for a moment.

"You always have the option of joining us or dieing. Whichever you prefer," The Icejin said before walking forwards. Once the tip of his tail was out of the way of the doors, they slid shut without waiting for the queen to say something else to him. Amidala looked over at the now closed doors, letting go of the chains that had been in her hands.

Death, it seemed, was only one option she wasn't going to take.

****

Bulma sat at one of the computers that was inside one of the buildings of Capsule Corp., her fingers typing furiously across the keypad. Her eyes did not waver from the screen as symbols, letters, and small gray boxes popped up and moved across the screen. It was something she could understand but not the one that was standing behind her, looking at the jumble of mess that made no sense to him.

She had been sitting at the computer for the last two hours without stop, the Name only coming inside the room where the woman was working no more then five minutes ago. He, like the other Briefs, were interested in why Bulma had cooped herself inside the room. Mrs. Briefs was worried that her daughter wouldn't be finished with her work in time for breakfast, so Piccolo quickly went to check on Bulma himself. It was something he didn't mind doing since was concerned more with the fate of two universes then with breakfast.

"What exactly are you doing?" Piccolo asked, eyeing the blue haired woman from behind her. Bulma didn't answer him right away, keeping her focus on the screen in front of her so that she wouldn't loose her place. A moment after he had asked her that question, a gray box popped up in the middle of the screen, information continually running down the page. She stopped typing, her eyes darting along the words as she tried to sort it out.

"I think I've got it," She said breathlessly as soon as the words stopped appearing inside the box. She turned the chair around, standing up so she wouldn't have to tilt her head back so much to be able to talk to the tall Namek. He gave her a look that indicated he wanted to know what was so great about this, Bulma smiling brightly at him. "No, it's not a ship to go through the other side. I think I've found out what made the portal open up."

"Oh," Piccolo said, looking slightly disappointed but nevertheless still looked interested at what the woman had finally found out. Bulma turned her body sideways, pointing to the screen that was alit with information.

"Dad sent in a probe to check out what was going on out there and it got sucked into the portal. Thankfully, it was still feeding this computer with information before the connection with it vanished an hour later." Bulma turned her head towards the screen as she moved a finger down to where there was a computer enhanced image of the portal from their side of it on the screen. "It looks like something had slowly forced it open, creating a rift between two universes. However, this doesn't mean that the second universe isn't a part of our own since ours hasn't been fully explored. That is just a theory which doesn't look like it could be true."

"What do you think caused this rift to open?" He asked, leaning forwards some. Bulma didn't say anything at first, lowering her arm to her side as she sat back down upon the chair.

"I think it may have had something to do with Trunks coming from and going back into the future," She said quietly, looking at the screen. Piccolo glanced down at her then looked back at the screen. "That's one thing that could have caused it to open up. Maybe, with Earth's gravity also a factor, the portal opened up, but very slowly."

"Wouldn't that have made us go into his future?"

"That's the problem, Piccolo. I don't know if this other universe is his future," Bulma said in a even quieter voice, looking down at her hands. "If it is, then I could send something into the portal and...."

"No," Piccolo said firmly, his face turning serious. Bulma looked up at him, not at all surprised at the single word he had said. "Once Goku and the others come back through the portal, then it is going to have to close. I don't think that there should be any risks in trying to find something out that we shouldn't even know about. The question is, how is the portal going to close?"

"The center of it is very unstable and could very well start to break down if something were to go off inside of it, like a explosion. That is another problem all in itself." She spread her hands apart. "I have no working or spare ships to send into the portal and it would take me a while to build another one just for this journey."

"And that's time we don't have to spend," Piccolo said, taking in a deep breath. "Let's hope someone over there has the same idea and better ways of doing it."

Bulma nodded her agreement to that, her eyes looking back at the screen. Now, time could tell what was going to happen.

****

Obi-Wan moved down the corridor to the kitchen area where he knew the group had gathered at, not wanting to see them again until they had reached the desert planet. Even so, he knew he had to tell them of the ship's position to Tatooine and how much longer it would be until they reached their destination. This was the least enjoyable part of this mission, but is one that Ki-Adi insisted that he do to keep everyone happy. It will keep them from coming into the cockpit every hour to get an update, had been his exact wording on the subject.

The Jedi knew Ki-Adi was right and didn't want a irritable Saiyan stomping into the cockpit every so often to know what was going on and demanding why they weren't at Tatooine yet. There was enough going on at the moment without worrying who was going to come and bother them or having more tension on the ship then there already was. Rescuing Amidala was hard enough, facing the Sith and the rest was another. Obi-Wan didn't know how he was going to do that even with the strength he had in himself and the Force that guided him. It was just something that he was going to have to do and hopefully live through it.

As soon as Obi-Wan got to the doorway that lead into the kitchen, he took in a deep breath and stepped in front of the doorway. The metal doors slid open, revealing the room as he stepped inside. Almost all eyes turned to him as the doors closed behind the Jedi, who looked just as happy to be in the room with them as they did. Goku was the only one who did not bother to look at the one who had just entered, instead keeping his eyes upon the ground.

"What is it this time?" Yamcha asked, eyeing Obi-Wan coolly. It was clear by his tone of voice that he didn't want to know why this person was inside the same room as them or if he had any new information to give them."

"I've just come to tell you the position we are in right now," He said, clasping his hands in front of him. He allowed several minutes of silence to go past, taking in the unwelcoming stares he was getting. Turning around and sighing, he pressed his lips into a thin line. "I see that you probably don't want to know where we are and how much further we have to go until we reach Tatooine, so I'll just leave."

"To hell you will," Vegeta said before Obi-Wan could take a step forwards to where he had just come from. The Jedi turned his head to the left, his eyes falling upon the Saiyan that was standing not far from the wall. "How much longer do we have? We've been inside the ship for at least an hour already."

"It's more like three, Vegeta," Obi-Wan corrected him before moving on. "Ki-Adi has the ship going at the maximum speed it can go at. Right now, it looks like we will be reaching Tatooine in matter of three and a half hours."

"How come it's taking less time to get to Tatooine then it did to Coruscant?" Tien asked him.

"For several reasons. One, the ship is going faster then it did on our trip to Coruscant. Two, because we don't want to risk any danger to the people of the Outer Rim if the Sith or Frieza should get the urge to do something before we reach there, like destroy a township. Three, the queen's life is in danger and she is one of the Senates biggest supporters. And four," Obi-Wan paused a moment, not knowing if he should continue or not. He considered it, but decided it would be better to say it now so no question would be asked later, "I want to get this mission over and done with as soon as possible. The less time the portal is accessible to people and other creatures, the less chance of it being a danger to everyone in both universes."

"We were having a discussion on the portal not too long ago," Goku said quietly, his gaze staying upon the ground. Obi-Wan turned to the second Saiyan, an interested look upon his face. "It might be to some interest of you."

"Go on," The Jedi said, hoping that this extended conversation was worth hearing it.

"We need to have that portal closed so something like this doesn't happen again," Krillin said, trying not to look as though something was wrong somewhere else. "We thought that we could have it be closed from the inside instead of trying to close it from either side."

"There is several problems with this though," Tien explained. "We don't have anything to destroy it with, like something that is unstable and would go off inside something like the portal. If we did, then there is the problem of having to get that object into the portal and going off inside of it without any harm doing to either universe."

"Well, we have things called thermal detonators that could work in this situation or something even more powerful," Obi-Wan said thoughtfully, turning his body to face the others. "Not hard to find on Tatooine if one would look in the right place and pay the right amount. As for getting it into the portal, something small would be useful, like a small ship or escape pod would work. Easily setting the ship to fly into the portal and having the detonators go off at a certain time is a tricky situation, but it would work. But that idea has one problem."

"Let me guess. No one to make sure that it does work from inside the ship, correct?" Yamcha said with a sigh.

"Correct you are," Obi-Wan agreed. It was then that Goku looked up, a grim expression on his face.

"You have me," He said flatly. Obi-Wan looked over at the Saiyan with a surprised look on his face.

"I will not risk your life even if you wanted to," The Jedi said flatly, not knowing that his words echoed the thoughts of everyone else in the room. "There are always droids to make sure that something like this is done. One can be easily programmed to do a task such as this."

"A machine guiding another machine," Vegeta grumbled. "I don't think it is a wise decision. I've lived in a place surrounded by machines long enough to know how that works. There is always a chance something could go wrong."

"You do have a point there, Vegeta," Obi-Wan said lightly. "But I don't want to have anyone of you killed because the portal has to be closed, so the option of using a droid is the only one we have."

"If your option fails, then what?" Goku asked, glancing over towards the Jedi. "It would be better if I made sure that the portal is closed. It isn't worth seeing if your idea works or not because it might do both universes more damage then it should."

Obi-Wan opened his mouth then closed it, feeling his anger boiling upwards quickly. There was no time for any of them to start being hero's at this point, which included the ones that were not in the room at the present moment. Yet, he knew that using a droid probably wouldn't work nor did they have the time to program a workable droid. Anakin would be able to re-program a droid to navigate a ship the size of a medium-sized escape pod, but those were probably hard to find in Tatooine.

"I see your point in this option. If it comes to sacrificing a living being, then it will be done. Only if there is no other way, that is," Obi-Wan told them. "Is there anything else that you need to tell me or want to know before I return to the cockpit?"

No one said a word, all looking at each other to see if there was anything else to add to what they had already said. When all shook their heads at random points, the Jedi smiled slightly and turned around to the doorway. He took a step forwards, the metal doors opening up as he waited for them to do so. All eyes were upon him as he left the kitchen, all in their own thoughts.

****

Frieza moved down the corridor from where Amidala was being held, his ruby red eyes staring forwards. His tail swished behind him silently, calm for the first time since he had come into this universe. In fact, he didn't feel like killing or destroying anything or anyone like he had several moments ago when he had been in front of the queen. Maybe it was the calming effect of walking down a corridor of a ship without the need to have to do anything.

He knew that would soon change when the Saiyans and himself came face-to-face with one another. The Icejin smiled to himself at the mere thought of having the advantage over the Saiyans once again. Since these two Saiyans didn't seem to have any power on this side of the portal, they would be an easy target to destroy. That gave him more comfort and pleasure since he would be getting rid of the last two Saiyans that was left in the two universes. Then there would be no one else to rival him.

His thoughts were shattered by the footsteps of someone coming towards him. Frieza looked up and saw his father coming towards him, arms at his side as he walked down the corridor but coming from the other way. Their eyes met each others as they soon stopped in the middle of the corridor, facing the other. They stayed like this for several minutes without word before one spoke.

"Where have you been?" Cold asked smoothly, his eyes flickering over top of his son's head for a second as he looked down the direction he had come from.

"Nowhere," Frieza said as calm as he could, hoping that the calmness that he had felt not even a minute ago would not leave him entirely. Somehow, it had been nearly shattered when his father asked him a simple question. "Where are you going then?"

"To find you. You had walked out of the room without word...." Cold's voice trailed off, leaving any words he wanted to say left unsaid. Frieza frowned, knowing exactly why his father had come after him. Siddious probably didn't trust the Icejin inside the ship, or even around it for that matter, therefore sent someone after him to make sure nothing was amiss.

His frown deepened, wondering exactly why the Sith had sent Cold after him. Not trusting anyone was a theory; hell, Frieza didn't even trust his own family around him. That fact alone didn't stop them from doing things around Frieza nor did it make him wonder what they were doing. Maybe there is something more to this then we know, He thought to himself as he stepped around his father without word.

Cold watched his son walk around him and then down the corridor they were in. He turned his body half way around to watch him better, his arms crossing over his chest. He stayed where he was for several minutes, giving Frieza more then enough time to go back to where the others were before he began to walk along the same path that Frieza had taken. However, he was going much slower then his son was, not wanting to get back into the presence of the Sith just yet.

****

Siddious sat at the controls, his hands moving over the radar that would detect when any ship he was looking for came within range of his own. This way, he would be able to know when the Jedi and the Saiyans came back upon Tatooine, looking for the queen and possibly more. It would be a long wait for them, with little to do other then to keep his companions from doing something that would cause his plans to go up in smoke.

He knew that the Jedi would react swiftly if someone's life was involved in this, even quicker if it was Amidala. To them, she was important to the Senate and possibly the rest of the galaxy. Siddous didn't see how or why someone like a ruler of a small backwater planet would be so useful to something that was even bigger then the kingdom in which she ruled over. Senators and large corporations were more important then one queen's life, keeping certain business's quiet and with few people knowing was even more important.

The doors of the cockpit opened swiftly, the sounds of someone entering echoing off of the metal walls. There was no words spoken to indicate who it was as the doors closed again and the form of another came next to the Sith. He didn't look over towards this stranger right away, instead keep his eyes focused upon the controls for several more moments. After making sure that there were no Jedi ship outside the desert planet's upper atmosphere, Siddious turned away from the radar to look upon Frieza, who was staring coldly at him with his ruby eyes.

"They aren't here yet, if that is what you came here to know," Siddious said icily, folding his hands upon his lap. Frieza crossed his arms over his chest, turning his body towards the window of the cockpit. He watched people move in front of the ship, small droids moving along as they pulled things behind them or carried things that no Human could. Other creatures were milling around, some looking over their shoulders to make sure that no one was in their business or close enough to hear it.

"Perhaps it was," The Icejin said after a few moments of silence, his tail flickering behind him. "What are your plans with the queen?"

"Why do you ask? I thought you wanted to kill her after this was over," Siddious asked, turning his head to the window as well.

"She could have some use for us," Frieza said, his lips curving into a smile.

"In more ways then one. With the right conditions, that is. She seems to have an affinity for her own home, while it is also her weakness." Siddious sighed, knowing all too true that weakness could always bring one down. He had his own weaknesses, but not ones he openly expressed or showed. "As much as I would like to have her dead, as do several people within the Trade Federation, she is better off alive at this point. After the Senate is dissolved and the galaxy is divided between us, then you can kill her."

"Or she could die now and her death be pawned off upon the Jedi," Frieza said, his smile fading slightly. "She would be a causality of a battle in which the Jedi was a part of. They tried to save her, but their actions caused more harm then good."

"An accidental death that would send shock waves throughout the galaxy and the Senate," The Sith said thoughtfully. It was an idea that could work if more thought was put into it, however it wouldn't be easy. Keeping Amidala quiet and under control wouldn't be easy either, but if certain things were threatened, then she could easily comply. After everything was dissolved within the Senate and he gained power through the loss of the Republic, then it would be all his to control.

Getting rid of Frieza and the others wouldn't be much trouble to start with. Putting them in charge of something small and useless would get them out of the way for the time being before he got rid of them altogether. He knew that creatures that loved power and went after it usually would kill for it, Frieza being one of those creatures. It would be only a matter of time before Siddious would be pushed out of the way and the Icejin would be in control of what wasn't supposed to be his.

And he wasn't going to let that happen.

To Be Continued