Author's Note: Classes are over!!! Classes are over!!! (Jumping up and down
for joy). Someone remind me never to take 12 semester hours of college and
work fulltime again..(whew!) Thank you to all of you who have been
patiently waiting for this chapter. This chapter explains a lot of your
questions you may have had so read on and enjoy. But please if you read,
review. This is (was) my first fanfic, (sorry but I wrote a one-timer
before finishing this chapter). I really would like your comments on if
you think I should finish this fic.
Disclaimer: I do not own or claim to own any part of Dragonball Z with the exception this fanfic.
Seal of Aravas By DBZ Vegeta
Chapter 5 - The Seal and The First Task
He sat on the dusty ground with his back against a broken boulder enjoying the hot sun that beat down on his pleasantly tired body. Stretching his arms high above his head, he settled back down with right wrist propped on top of his upraised knee, his other leg stretch out along the ground. Tilting his head backwards, Vegeta reveled in the heat caressing his skin, he hadn't felt this warm since he had left Vegetassi. Idly stretching out his left hand he picked up a piece of broken rock beside him, rubbing his fingers absentmindedly across the rough surface. It had been a great workout today. The area was far from any civilization, which made it extremely helpful, since he did not have to hold back on his power. The area surrounding him bore testament to that thought as a large stretch of land was covered in gigantic craters from his powerful blasts. Unheedingly he crushed the stone in his hand, and then picking up another stone next to him, he began tossing it up and down lightly in his hand. The strange feel of unnatural indentions in the rock caught his attention. Bringing the rock closer to his face he could just barely make out what appeared to be writing. "Hmm, I wonder what it says", he thought languidly. "Well, whatever." tossing the stone carelessly over his shoulder. "Humph, it's time I got back to training." He stood up, brushing the dirt off the back of his black spandex training shorts. Looking back up at the sky one last time, he proceeded to walk towards a large pile of boulders intent on turning them into dust.
"Umph," he grunted as the ground suddenly came up to meet his face. "What, I couldn't of tripped!" he thought, pushing his arms out to lever himself back into a standing position. But it was as if he was paralyzed and couldn't move a single muscle. He began to power up trying to us his ki to stand, but it seemed as is the gravity surrounding him had suddenly increased and he was flattened, his attempt at moving only a few inches almost futile. He suddenly heard movement all around him. There in front of him was a pair of black boots.
"I think we have found the culprit. Hand me the cuffs, he seems to be a strong one." came a voice from above him.
"We know, it is taking three of us to hold him, please hurry up and get those cuffs on and then we will knock him out," said a panting, slightly breathless voice from behind him. Vegeta could hear a clink of metal as a pair of cuffs where fastened around his outstretched wrists. Suddenly a wave of queasiness rolled over him, and then darkness overtook his thoughts of how he be caught without even having a chance to fight back.
Vegeta bolted upright in the bed, sweat dipping down his face. That damn dream again. It was humiliating enough that he had to be caught that way, but to relive it in his dreams. "Arraugh", he growled, throwing back the covers of his bed and stalking towards the balcony. He understood now how they had been able to capture him through the use of kinetics, but it still galled him that such a pathetic people could even catch him so unaware.
Propping himself up against the railing, he looked out into the starlit night. He had had this recurring dream almost every night since he had arrived here two weeks ago. "Had it really only been two weeks," he thought, the light breeze ruffling his hair. Leaning back slightly he rested his back against the wall of the palace, pulling one leg up to prop his arms on. Hearing a clinking noise, he looked disgustedly down at the wide gold bands that encompassed both his wrists. They were still suppression cuffs, albeit more decorative than the original ones that had been placed there when he had been arrested.
Bulma had placed them on his wrists the day after he had agreed to complete the tasks. He remembered that day all too well.
~ Flashback ~
"Here, we can take off those cuffs now" she said as she held out a pair of wide gold bands to him.
"What are those!" he demanded, looking down at the items she was holding in her hands.
"Well, these are your new suppression bands, they can be adjusted to allow you to use your ki freely", she said hesitantly, looking down at the bands in her hands.
"But" he growled, knowing very well that she had not finish what she was saying.
"But, they will not allow you to have all of your ki back completely. And I can adjusted then as required to give you more power or take it away." she looked up at him, cringing slightly at the angry loathing look in his eyes. "Well, I am sorry, but I still don't trust you enough to let you wander freely with the power that you have. Until that day, where I can trust you completely, you will have to wear these," she said her eyes flashing, reaching out she grasped each wrist and replaced the old cuffs with the new bands. Turning with the old cuffs in her hands, she said "I have set the power level to two for right now. Test it out and I will get with you later for modifications." Without looking back she left, her head and shoulders slumped slightly.
~ End Flashback ~
"Modification, humph", he thought, "More like torture." The bands did let him had use of his ki again but they hung heavily on his soul, pushing and tamping down his natural will to increase his power with every waking moment. He was unable to train like he wanted to, so that he could get stronger. These useless sessions that she insisted on where not increasing his physical power. They only stole time from his training, but he had to admit some of the stuff she talked about wasn't totally useless. Thinking back to last night's dinner conversation about teleportation. It sounded suspiciously like the techniques that the Yadrats' had used to teach that idiot Kakarott, what had he called it, instant transmission. Thinking about Kakarott, he wondered if that simpleton had missed him yet, not that he cared what he thought. But, right about now, he could use a good sparing partner to work of some of this aggression that he was feeling.
Thinking back to last night's dinner had also reminded him why he couldn't sleep quite as well tonight as he had other nights. He still was smarting over her passing out on him. How could she do that, "Well, she had been drinking quite heavily all evening after that encounter with Yamcha" he thought and knew what happened to frail humans when they imbibed heavily. Chuckling wickedly, he wondered how she was going to act in the morning when she woke up only in her underwear, thinking that maybe he should have left her completely naked instead.
Still chuckling, he stood up and stretched his arms high over his head. Turning he strode back into his room and was finally able to get some well- deserved sleep.
~~*~~*~~
"Ooohhhhh, my aching head." came a moaned response from the bed as Chi-Chi pushed open the curtains of the room letting the afternoon sunlight to pour in.
"Well, it's your own fault my lady, you know that you shouldn't drink so much wine." said an unsympathetic voice from across the room.
"Not you too, don't I have enough troubles with my father and that jackass Vegeta to have to defend my self to you now," came the pitiful retort back from under the covers of the bed.
"Yes, you do. But it is way past time that you get up and face this day. Remember you have to take Vegeta to the shrine today for the briefing about the first task and the appointment is only a hour away." Chi-Chi said as she yanked the covers off her moaning victim. "Now, also, do you want to explain why you are sleeping in your underwear instead of a nightgown"
"Huh, my underwear?" came the confused response. Looking down, Bulma discovered she was still in her bra, panties and garter belt with stockings. "I not really sure." she said as she stood up carefully, one hand on her head and the other on the bedpost. "I remember dinner. That encounter with that damnable Yamcha." Hearing a gasp, she looked to see Chi- Chi with a startled expression, her hands clasped over her mouth. "Oh, don't worry. He was just being his usually obnoxious self. I am not worried, yet."
Staggering slightly as she headed for the hot bath she knew would be waiting in the bathroom. Stripping off the offending undergarments, she sniffed quietly to herself, wondering how she had ended up in bed with only her underwear on. Sliding down into the steaming, frothing water she sighed as the heat began to loosen up the tightness in her muscles and relaxed the headache that was pounding behind her eyes. Leaning her head back against the ledge of the tub, she began to ponder the upcoming day's events. If Chi-Chi was right and the shrine appointment was only an hour away, she must have slept nearly the entire morning away.
Ignoring the nagging feeling that she was forgetting something important, she briskly washed and stepped out of the tub, snagging a towel of the steps next to the tub. Drying off, she wrapped the towel about her body and strode back into her room. Chi-Chi had left while she was bathing, but had left her shrine clothing out. Sighing heavily she picked up the heavy formal Japanese kimono. Even though she was a modern ruler and preferred to the more Westernize clothing, there where still occasions that dictated this type of formal dress. She dressed as quickly as she could with such bulky garments. With small steps, you could never walk all out in a tight kimono, she tread careful of the short train at the bottom, to the vanity. Sitting down on the small bench, she pulled open the top drawer and selected a matching ribbon for her hair. Pulling her hair up into a ponytail, she secured the ribbon. Looking at her reflection carefully she checked to see if everything was in place correctly. Her undercoat was a pure white that accented the dark blue of the kimono. Red and white flowers twined their way up from the hem on the left side to up and across her right shoulder. Her obi was a matching red and white sash that broke up the continuous blue of her outfit. The dark blue ribbon that she had just threaded through her hair contrasting nicely with her sea-blue hair.
"Well, at least I don't have to wear this for long." she sighed as she stood up and minced her way over to the door. "Damn, I hate walking in these things. I always feel like I have to take ten steps to match my normal one." Slowly, she made her way downstairs. "I hope that the jackass didn't give Chi-Chi a hard down about the formal clothing he has to wear." she thought, praying that she wouldn't have to fight him about this matter. Showing up to the Shrine of Aravas in any other clothing but formal dress could have serious repercussions. Such as Master Takeshi refusing to provide the documentation for the completion of the first task.
~~*~~*~~
Vegeta paced back and forth across the balcony, angrily awaiting that foolish woman. He was still steaming about the clothing he had been forced to wear today. If he could have found something else to wear, he would have, but the blasted servant had stolen all of his clothes and left him this ridiculous outfit. Never had he been forced to wear, what had she called it, a hakama and gi. He understood the gi part as Kakarott always wore a gi with trousers, but this hakama; it looked more like a skirt than pants.
Growling under his breath, "When I get my hands on that woman." A small sound behind him made him turn suddenly and all thoughts of destruction fled from his mind. "Oh my, and I thought she looked unbelievable last night." he thought looking at Bulma dressed in the dark blue and red flowered kimono.
"I see that Chi-chi left you the clothing for our appointment today. We are going to the Shrine of Aravas for your first briefing on the upcoming task. Come on now, we are going to be late if we don't leave right away." she said as she swayed across the room towards the door, trying not to stare back at him in amazement at how handsome he looked. And she thought he looked great in training clothes, "Dammit, I need to stop thinking like that. He is just another male idiot who has cause a lot of trouble for me right now."
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Vegeta stormed after her out of the palace.
~~*~~*~~
The ride to the shrine was completed in tense silence. When Vegeta had climbed into the car after her, he had proceeded to rant and rave about how Chi-Chi had stolen his clothing and left him the preposterous clothing he was wearing. Bulma had gotten so angry that she had shouted in his face that he was a pig-head jackass, and who supplied his clothing in the first place and that he had better be grateful or he could just go naked and hungry. That had temporarily shut him up. But the byproduct of their argument was this silence, so thick you could almost cut it with a knife. Never had she been so angry with someone. Not even when her father thought he could send her away from Aravas for schooling.
The car stopped in front of a large forested area with an archway opening upon a stone pathway that led back into the treeline. Stepping out from the car, Bulma ignored Vegeta following her as she started up the long pathway to the shrine.
"When we greet Master Takeshi, you must do as I do. We cannot afford for your consistently arrogant attitude to offend him. If I sit you must sit, if I bow you must bow." she said glaringly, as she stopped at the top of the pathway that opened onto a large complex set among the trees.
"I will do no such thing, woman. I bow to no man." Vegeta growled, glaring back at her.
"Vegeta, I am not going to argue with you about this. Either you do as I say or you will have to face the consequences of your actions. Master Takeshi is not know for his compassion." Bulma grimaced to herself, remembering her training sessions with the old master.
"Humph, like I care." he snorted.
"Well, don't come crying to me when he takes care of your arrogant attitude." she sniggered, knowing that they were in for a bumpy ride.
"Princess, it is wonderful to see you again." came a soft voice from behind them. Spinning around, Bulma squealed as she threw herself into the arms of a monk standing behind them.
"Koji, oh my word, you have grown up. When did that happen? I haven't seen you since I was training here. How have you been? Are you a monk now or are you still an apprentice?" she yelled, as she continued to hug and dance around the young monk.
"Bulma, if you would take a quick breath and hold on for a moment I could answer your questions." replied the cheerfully smiling monk. He was certainly happy to see his old friend, but caught a scowl over her shoulder from the man standing behind her. "Master sent me to escort you both. We can talk later and catch up about the old days, but now we must be going." he said bowing courteously to first Bulma and then Vegeta.
Koji turned on his heel and led them across the open courtyard toward a small house situated back in the trees. Pausing at the doorway, he bowed again as he slid the door open and gestured for them to proceed inside. The room was a large open training room, with large ornamental signs depicting various fighting techniques. At the front and center of the room, was a large circular stone with strange markings, which sat upon an altar with incense burning in front. Kneeling on a pad in front of the altar, was an old man, his long white hair reaching down his back and almost brushing the floor, tied back at the center of his back with a black thong that matched his black hakama and gi.
"Master, I have brought them." Koji said as he kneeled and bowed behind the old master, his head almost touching the floor beneath him.
"Leave us." came a strong voice, a voice that seemed to whisper from every part of the room.
~~*~~*~~
The sky rumbled and turned dark as night. Clouds began to form and push relentlessly against the heaven as if Kami himself was angry with the world. Lightning flashed and stuck the portal entrance, the guards crying out as the bolt smashed through their bodies, flinging them about as if they were rag dolls. They were dead before they even before their bodies struck the earth beneath their feet. Rocks began to fall as more lightning struck again and again, destroying the entrance. Leaving only a large blackened gouge in the earth and no sign of any living creature. The wind howled, like laughter, cackling and whipping furiously. A large circular rock, positioned at the top of the entrance, its ancient writing still as clear as the day it was created, was flung unmercilessly down to the ground. The center word only just barely visible before the shattering impact of hundreds of lightning bolts struck it.
Mind
~~*~~*~~
"Two of the Seals are destroyed, and only the one who started this chain reaction can stop it. If you cannot repair the damage you have created, we are all doomed." came the whispered voice that seemed to surround them. "The South Seal has collapsed."
A gasp behind his seemed to waken the old man, kneeling in front of the altar, from his trance.
"The Seal of the Mind has been destroyed by the wind and fire of the air. This only came to pass because the Seal of the Body was destroyed by you." Master Takeshi said as he turned his dark gaze upon Vegeta who was leaning arrogantly against the doorway, not having followed Bulma and the monk into the room.
"Who cares. So what if some stupid Seal has been destroyed." Vegeta looked contemptuously down at the old man in front of him.
"Vegeta!" Bulma cried. "You agreed to listen and right the wrong you have created. The Seals are important." Turning back to Master Takeshi, "Master, I thought we still had another week to fix the damage to the Seal of the Body."
"No, the damage must have been extensive to cause the reaction period to shorten. All of the Seals are now doomed. You must create each one anew. A time of darkness will befall of world and only from the ashes can we rise again." voiced the cryptic reply. "Do you know the story of the first creation of the Seal of Aravas." he said as he waved a hand towards the large stone seal on the wall in front of him.
"This is the Seal of Aravas, the Center-Stone of the Four Corners of the world. When first we came to this land, danger abounded, the Tormenter of the Darkness cloaked the land with his evil. The first Monks of Aravas were tasked to create a Seal to ensure the safety of the kingdom. They created four seals to guard each corner of the kingdom. To the North, the Seal of the Earth, The Body, designed to ensure that the passageways thought out the kingdom would be guarded from the eyes of our enemies. To the South, the Seal of the Air, The Mind, designed to turn a side those with evil thoughts bent on destruction. To the West, the Seal of the Water, The Soul, designed to strengthen those pure of heart to help protect the kingdom. That is why the training for many of our warriors is completed in the west. The fourth corner of the seals is the Seal of Fire, the Heart. This seal is our last defense should any of the other seals fail. It provides destruction to the enemy, consuming them completely, leaving no trace of them behind." Tiredly, Master Takeshi turned back to the altar with the Center-Stone.
"And this is the Center-Stone of Aravas, the main control for all of the other Seals. As you see, it is crumbling from the loss of now two seals, the Body and the Mind. If it collapses totally, the Tormenter of the Darkness will awaken and destroy all of those before him. Not only here in Aravas, but the whole world." he sighed heavily turning back to face Bulma and Vegeta.
"But, Master, how do we stop the collapse." Bulma appealed.
"For the first task, you both must descend into the depths of the Cave of Atonement and retrieve the ancient scrolls of Miogi Tanagwa. They will contain the information on the restoration of the four corner seals."
~~*~~*~~
Author's Note: Well, here we are at the end of another chapter. The next chapter will be the first task adventure. Please let me know what you think about my fic, I really would like to know. Flames are even welcome.
- DBZ Vegeta
Disclaimer: I do not own or claim to own any part of Dragonball Z with the exception this fanfic.
Seal of Aravas By DBZ Vegeta
Chapter 5 - The Seal and The First Task
He sat on the dusty ground with his back against a broken boulder enjoying the hot sun that beat down on his pleasantly tired body. Stretching his arms high above his head, he settled back down with right wrist propped on top of his upraised knee, his other leg stretch out along the ground. Tilting his head backwards, Vegeta reveled in the heat caressing his skin, he hadn't felt this warm since he had left Vegetassi. Idly stretching out his left hand he picked up a piece of broken rock beside him, rubbing his fingers absentmindedly across the rough surface. It had been a great workout today. The area was far from any civilization, which made it extremely helpful, since he did not have to hold back on his power. The area surrounding him bore testament to that thought as a large stretch of land was covered in gigantic craters from his powerful blasts. Unheedingly he crushed the stone in his hand, and then picking up another stone next to him, he began tossing it up and down lightly in his hand. The strange feel of unnatural indentions in the rock caught his attention. Bringing the rock closer to his face he could just barely make out what appeared to be writing. "Hmm, I wonder what it says", he thought languidly. "Well, whatever." tossing the stone carelessly over his shoulder. "Humph, it's time I got back to training." He stood up, brushing the dirt off the back of his black spandex training shorts. Looking back up at the sky one last time, he proceeded to walk towards a large pile of boulders intent on turning them into dust.
"Umph," he grunted as the ground suddenly came up to meet his face. "What, I couldn't of tripped!" he thought, pushing his arms out to lever himself back into a standing position. But it was as if he was paralyzed and couldn't move a single muscle. He began to power up trying to us his ki to stand, but it seemed as is the gravity surrounding him had suddenly increased and he was flattened, his attempt at moving only a few inches almost futile. He suddenly heard movement all around him. There in front of him was a pair of black boots.
"I think we have found the culprit. Hand me the cuffs, he seems to be a strong one." came a voice from above him.
"We know, it is taking three of us to hold him, please hurry up and get those cuffs on and then we will knock him out," said a panting, slightly breathless voice from behind him. Vegeta could hear a clink of metal as a pair of cuffs where fastened around his outstretched wrists. Suddenly a wave of queasiness rolled over him, and then darkness overtook his thoughts of how he be caught without even having a chance to fight back.
Vegeta bolted upright in the bed, sweat dipping down his face. That damn dream again. It was humiliating enough that he had to be caught that way, but to relive it in his dreams. "Arraugh", he growled, throwing back the covers of his bed and stalking towards the balcony. He understood now how they had been able to capture him through the use of kinetics, but it still galled him that such a pathetic people could even catch him so unaware.
Propping himself up against the railing, he looked out into the starlit night. He had had this recurring dream almost every night since he had arrived here two weeks ago. "Had it really only been two weeks," he thought, the light breeze ruffling his hair. Leaning back slightly he rested his back against the wall of the palace, pulling one leg up to prop his arms on. Hearing a clinking noise, he looked disgustedly down at the wide gold bands that encompassed both his wrists. They were still suppression cuffs, albeit more decorative than the original ones that had been placed there when he had been arrested.
Bulma had placed them on his wrists the day after he had agreed to complete the tasks. He remembered that day all too well.
~ Flashback ~
"Here, we can take off those cuffs now" she said as she held out a pair of wide gold bands to him.
"What are those!" he demanded, looking down at the items she was holding in her hands.
"Well, these are your new suppression bands, they can be adjusted to allow you to use your ki freely", she said hesitantly, looking down at the bands in her hands.
"But" he growled, knowing very well that she had not finish what she was saying.
"But, they will not allow you to have all of your ki back completely. And I can adjusted then as required to give you more power or take it away." she looked up at him, cringing slightly at the angry loathing look in his eyes. "Well, I am sorry, but I still don't trust you enough to let you wander freely with the power that you have. Until that day, where I can trust you completely, you will have to wear these," she said her eyes flashing, reaching out she grasped each wrist and replaced the old cuffs with the new bands. Turning with the old cuffs in her hands, she said "I have set the power level to two for right now. Test it out and I will get with you later for modifications." Without looking back she left, her head and shoulders slumped slightly.
~ End Flashback ~
"Modification, humph", he thought, "More like torture." The bands did let him had use of his ki again but they hung heavily on his soul, pushing and tamping down his natural will to increase his power with every waking moment. He was unable to train like he wanted to, so that he could get stronger. These useless sessions that she insisted on where not increasing his physical power. They only stole time from his training, but he had to admit some of the stuff she talked about wasn't totally useless. Thinking back to last night's dinner conversation about teleportation. It sounded suspiciously like the techniques that the Yadrats' had used to teach that idiot Kakarott, what had he called it, instant transmission. Thinking about Kakarott, he wondered if that simpleton had missed him yet, not that he cared what he thought. But, right about now, he could use a good sparing partner to work of some of this aggression that he was feeling.
Thinking back to last night's dinner had also reminded him why he couldn't sleep quite as well tonight as he had other nights. He still was smarting over her passing out on him. How could she do that, "Well, she had been drinking quite heavily all evening after that encounter with Yamcha" he thought and knew what happened to frail humans when they imbibed heavily. Chuckling wickedly, he wondered how she was going to act in the morning when she woke up only in her underwear, thinking that maybe he should have left her completely naked instead.
Still chuckling, he stood up and stretched his arms high over his head. Turning he strode back into his room and was finally able to get some well- deserved sleep.
~~*~~*~~
"Ooohhhhh, my aching head." came a moaned response from the bed as Chi-Chi pushed open the curtains of the room letting the afternoon sunlight to pour in.
"Well, it's your own fault my lady, you know that you shouldn't drink so much wine." said an unsympathetic voice from across the room.
"Not you too, don't I have enough troubles with my father and that jackass Vegeta to have to defend my self to you now," came the pitiful retort back from under the covers of the bed.
"Yes, you do. But it is way past time that you get up and face this day. Remember you have to take Vegeta to the shrine today for the briefing about the first task and the appointment is only a hour away." Chi-Chi said as she yanked the covers off her moaning victim. "Now, also, do you want to explain why you are sleeping in your underwear instead of a nightgown"
"Huh, my underwear?" came the confused response. Looking down, Bulma discovered she was still in her bra, panties and garter belt with stockings. "I not really sure." she said as she stood up carefully, one hand on her head and the other on the bedpost. "I remember dinner. That encounter with that damnable Yamcha." Hearing a gasp, she looked to see Chi- Chi with a startled expression, her hands clasped over her mouth. "Oh, don't worry. He was just being his usually obnoxious self. I am not worried, yet."
Staggering slightly as she headed for the hot bath she knew would be waiting in the bathroom. Stripping off the offending undergarments, she sniffed quietly to herself, wondering how she had ended up in bed with only her underwear on. Sliding down into the steaming, frothing water she sighed as the heat began to loosen up the tightness in her muscles and relaxed the headache that was pounding behind her eyes. Leaning her head back against the ledge of the tub, she began to ponder the upcoming day's events. If Chi-Chi was right and the shrine appointment was only an hour away, she must have slept nearly the entire morning away.
Ignoring the nagging feeling that she was forgetting something important, she briskly washed and stepped out of the tub, snagging a towel of the steps next to the tub. Drying off, she wrapped the towel about her body and strode back into her room. Chi-Chi had left while she was bathing, but had left her shrine clothing out. Sighing heavily she picked up the heavy formal Japanese kimono. Even though she was a modern ruler and preferred to the more Westernize clothing, there where still occasions that dictated this type of formal dress. She dressed as quickly as she could with such bulky garments. With small steps, you could never walk all out in a tight kimono, she tread careful of the short train at the bottom, to the vanity. Sitting down on the small bench, she pulled open the top drawer and selected a matching ribbon for her hair. Pulling her hair up into a ponytail, she secured the ribbon. Looking at her reflection carefully she checked to see if everything was in place correctly. Her undercoat was a pure white that accented the dark blue of the kimono. Red and white flowers twined their way up from the hem on the left side to up and across her right shoulder. Her obi was a matching red and white sash that broke up the continuous blue of her outfit. The dark blue ribbon that she had just threaded through her hair contrasting nicely with her sea-blue hair.
"Well, at least I don't have to wear this for long." she sighed as she stood up and minced her way over to the door. "Damn, I hate walking in these things. I always feel like I have to take ten steps to match my normal one." Slowly, she made her way downstairs. "I hope that the jackass didn't give Chi-Chi a hard down about the formal clothing he has to wear." she thought, praying that she wouldn't have to fight him about this matter. Showing up to the Shrine of Aravas in any other clothing but formal dress could have serious repercussions. Such as Master Takeshi refusing to provide the documentation for the completion of the first task.
~~*~~*~~
Vegeta paced back and forth across the balcony, angrily awaiting that foolish woman. He was still steaming about the clothing he had been forced to wear today. If he could have found something else to wear, he would have, but the blasted servant had stolen all of his clothes and left him this ridiculous outfit. Never had he been forced to wear, what had she called it, a hakama and gi. He understood the gi part as Kakarott always wore a gi with trousers, but this hakama; it looked more like a skirt than pants.
Growling under his breath, "When I get my hands on that woman." A small sound behind him made him turn suddenly and all thoughts of destruction fled from his mind. "Oh my, and I thought she looked unbelievable last night." he thought looking at Bulma dressed in the dark blue and red flowered kimono.
"I see that Chi-chi left you the clothing for our appointment today. We are going to the Shrine of Aravas for your first briefing on the upcoming task. Come on now, we are going to be late if we don't leave right away." she said as she swayed across the room towards the door, trying not to stare back at him in amazement at how handsome he looked. And she thought he looked great in training clothes, "Dammit, I need to stop thinking like that. He is just another male idiot who has cause a lot of trouble for me right now."
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Vegeta stormed after her out of the palace.
~~*~~*~~
The ride to the shrine was completed in tense silence. When Vegeta had climbed into the car after her, he had proceeded to rant and rave about how Chi-Chi had stolen his clothing and left him the preposterous clothing he was wearing. Bulma had gotten so angry that she had shouted in his face that he was a pig-head jackass, and who supplied his clothing in the first place and that he had better be grateful or he could just go naked and hungry. That had temporarily shut him up. But the byproduct of their argument was this silence, so thick you could almost cut it with a knife. Never had she been so angry with someone. Not even when her father thought he could send her away from Aravas for schooling.
The car stopped in front of a large forested area with an archway opening upon a stone pathway that led back into the treeline. Stepping out from the car, Bulma ignored Vegeta following her as she started up the long pathway to the shrine.
"When we greet Master Takeshi, you must do as I do. We cannot afford for your consistently arrogant attitude to offend him. If I sit you must sit, if I bow you must bow." she said glaringly, as she stopped at the top of the pathway that opened onto a large complex set among the trees.
"I will do no such thing, woman. I bow to no man." Vegeta growled, glaring back at her.
"Vegeta, I am not going to argue with you about this. Either you do as I say or you will have to face the consequences of your actions. Master Takeshi is not know for his compassion." Bulma grimaced to herself, remembering her training sessions with the old master.
"Humph, like I care." he snorted.
"Well, don't come crying to me when he takes care of your arrogant attitude." she sniggered, knowing that they were in for a bumpy ride.
"Princess, it is wonderful to see you again." came a soft voice from behind them. Spinning around, Bulma squealed as she threw herself into the arms of a monk standing behind them.
"Koji, oh my word, you have grown up. When did that happen? I haven't seen you since I was training here. How have you been? Are you a monk now or are you still an apprentice?" she yelled, as she continued to hug and dance around the young monk.
"Bulma, if you would take a quick breath and hold on for a moment I could answer your questions." replied the cheerfully smiling monk. He was certainly happy to see his old friend, but caught a scowl over her shoulder from the man standing behind her. "Master sent me to escort you both. We can talk later and catch up about the old days, but now we must be going." he said bowing courteously to first Bulma and then Vegeta.
Koji turned on his heel and led them across the open courtyard toward a small house situated back in the trees. Pausing at the doorway, he bowed again as he slid the door open and gestured for them to proceed inside. The room was a large open training room, with large ornamental signs depicting various fighting techniques. At the front and center of the room, was a large circular stone with strange markings, which sat upon an altar with incense burning in front. Kneeling on a pad in front of the altar, was an old man, his long white hair reaching down his back and almost brushing the floor, tied back at the center of his back with a black thong that matched his black hakama and gi.
"Master, I have brought them." Koji said as he kneeled and bowed behind the old master, his head almost touching the floor beneath him.
"Leave us." came a strong voice, a voice that seemed to whisper from every part of the room.
~~*~~*~~
The sky rumbled and turned dark as night. Clouds began to form and push relentlessly against the heaven as if Kami himself was angry with the world. Lightning flashed and stuck the portal entrance, the guards crying out as the bolt smashed through their bodies, flinging them about as if they were rag dolls. They were dead before they even before their bodies struck the earth beneath their feet. Rocks began to fall as more lightning struck again and again, destroying the entrance. Leaving only a large blackened gouge in the earth and no sign of any living creature. The wind howled, like laughter, cackling and whipping furiously. A large circular rock, positioned at the top of the entrance, its ancient writing still as clear as the day it was created, was flung unmercilessly down to the ground. The center word only just barely visible before the shattering impact of hundreds of lightning bolts struck it.
Mind
~~*~~*~~
"Two of the Seals are destroyed, and only the one who started this chain reaction can stop it. If you cannot repair the damage you have created, we are all doomed." came the whispered voice that seemed to surround them. "The South Seal has collapsed."
A gasp behind his seemed to waken the old man, kneeling in front of the altar, from his trance.
"The Seal of the Mind has been destroyed by the wind and fire of the air. This only came to pass because the Seal of the Body was destroyed by you." Master Takeshi said as he turned his dark gaze upon Vegeta who was leaning arrogantly against the doorway, not having followed Bulma and the monk into the room.
"Who cares. So what if some stupid Seal has been destroyed." Vegeta looked contemptuously down at the old man in front of him.
"Vegeta!" Bulma cried. "You agreed to listen and right the wrong you have created. The Seals are important." Turning back to Master Takeshi, "Master, I thought we still had another week to fix the damage to the Seal of the Body."
"No, the damage must have been extensive to cause the reaction period to shorten. All of the Seals are now doomed. You must create each one anew. A time of darkness will befall of world and only from the ashes can we rise again." voiced the cryptic reply. "Do you know the story of the first creation of the Seal of Aravas." he said as he waved a hand towards the large stone seal on the wall in front of him.
"This is the Seal of Aravas, the Center-Stone of the Four Corners of the world. When first we came to this land, danger abounded, the Tormenter of the Darkness cloaked the land with his evil. The first Monks of Aravas were tasked to create a Seal to ensure the safety of the kingdom. They created four seals to guard each corner of the kingdom. To the North, the Seal of the Earth, The Body, designed to ensure that the passageways thought out the kingdom would be guarded from the eyes of our enemies. To the South, the Seal of the Air, The Mind, designed to turn a side those with evil thoughts bent on destruction. To the West, the Seal of the Water, The Soul, designed to strengthen those pure of heart to help protect the kingdom. That is why the training for many of our warriors is completed in the west. The fourth corner of the seals is the Seal of Fire, the Heart. This seal is our last defense should any of the other seals fail. It provides destruction to the enemy, consuming them completely, leaving no trace of them behind." Tiredly, Master Takeshi turned back to the altar with the Center-Stone.
"And this is the Center-Stone of Aravas, the main control for all of the other Seals. As you see, it is crumbling from the loss of now two seals, the Body and the Mind. If it collapses totally, the Tormenter of the Darkness will awaken and destroy all of those before him. Not only here in Aravas, but the whole world." he sighed heavily turning back to face Bulma and Vegeta.
"But, Master, how do we stop the collapse." Bulma appealed.
"For the first task, you both must descend into the depths of the Cave of Atonement and retrieve the ancient scrolls of Miogi Tanagwa. They will contain the information on the restoration of the four corner seals."
~~*~~*~~
Author's Note: Well, here we are at the end of another chapter. The next chapter will be the first task adventure. Please let me know what you think about my fic, I really would like to know. Flames are even welcome.
- DBZ Vegeta