Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty
By Feraligreater328
Chapter 1: A Family Reunion
Snake Way...
Son Goku laid on the back of the Snake Way street cleaner, enjoy a welcomed respite from his endless run down the spiral stretch of road. The saiyan slumbered, trying to regain the energy needed to go and see King Kai. He had less than a year, at this point, to train and grow and learn the skills necessary to deal with the two wicked saiyans that would be invading the Earth.
He slumbered and snored, blissfully unaware of the bumps and corners that the bulky vehicle had to navigate. And, as such, the saiyan from Earth was totally unaware as one mighty bump sent him flying from the back of the vehicle and over the side of the road.
Goku snored, blissfully unaware that he was falling directly into Hell.
Hell, Bloody Pond...
Goku landed with a thud, the force of the fall knocking the wind out of him. He coughed and sputtered as he sat up, groaning and rubbing his aching back. "Wh-what's going on?!"
Goku got to his feet and looked around, taking in the sights. The pond of blood, the burning red sky, the mountain of spikes. "Is this...King Kai's place?"
From behind Goku, a voice called out. "Whoa! You actually survived that fall?! I was sure that you were on your way to a second death!"
Goku turned and stared in confusion at the source of the voice: a massive, blue fella with a single horn jutting from the top of his head. "Uh...King Kai?"
The ogre shook his head. "No. I'm not King Kai. My name is Goz!"
Goku cocked his head. "Goz, huh? So... you work for King Kai?"
Goz shook his head. "No! Ya damn fool! I don't work for King Kai! I work for King Yemma. He has me stay down here and help out with torturin' all the folks that end up here in Hell."
Goku nodded. "I see. That makes sense..."
And then, after a moment for this new info to settle into his thick skull, Goku began to panic. "HELL?!"
Goz smirked. "Now you're getting it. You've landed in Hell, my friend. Fell off of Snake Way from the looks of it."
Goku was in shock. As he tried to stammer out a response, Goz was joined by a fellow ogre. This red ogre, with two horns on his head, marched up and spoke to Goz. "Did I hear you right?! This guy fell off of Snake Way and didn't die a second death?!"
Goz nodded. "I know! It's crazy, huh Mez?"
Mez nodded. "Super crazy."
Finally, Goku managed to speak. "Wait a second! I can't be stuck down here in Hell! I need to get to King Kai so that I can train to fight the saiyans that are coming to Earth!"
Mez and Goz both turned to Goku. Mez scratched his head. "Saiyans huh? It's weird to think that so many of them managed to survive after the planet was destroyed...I thought we had seen the last of them decades ago."
Goz shook his head. "You can imagine our surprise when, out of the blue, a saiyan got thrown down here a month ago."
Goku flinched back. He realized that the two of them must have been talking about Raditz. But, that didn't matter. He had to think of a way out of this mess. Earth wouldn't survive unless he made it there to help. Goku spoke up. "Guys! Please! You have to help me get out of here! If I don't make it to King Kai's place, everyone I know is going to die!"
Mez frowned. "It's a pretty weird request to ask for a way out of Hell. Most of the time, when spirits are sent down here they're here to stay. But...Goz?"
Goz nodded. "Seeing as you were given permission to run Snake Way, we'll see what we can do. We'll try to get on the horn with King Yemma to see if we can get permission to let you loose. So, until then, how about I try and help you train to pass the time?"
Goku smiled. "Really?!"
Goz nodded. "You seem like a good guy, so we'll try and help you out. Mez'll go and call King Yemma and we can wrestle to help you build some strength!"
Goku was pumped. Not only were these ogres going to try and help him get back on track, but he would even get some training out of the deal. With a skip in his step, Goku followed the ogres away from the Bloody Pond.
However, as he and his new friends went off, none of them noticed the presence hidden behind a nearby tree. A fair hand gripped the bark of the tree hard enough for it to crack. Whoever this was, they were not best pleased.
Hell, Training Grounds...
After hours of grappling and sparring, Goku threw his new training partner onto his back. Goz gasped as the wind was driven from his chest. Goku smiled wide and snickered. "You're pretty strong, Goz!"
Goz chuckled. "So are you! Geez...I haven't been given this much trouble since that saiyan showed up..."
Goku, tired and out of breath, fell to his butt. "That saiyan you're talking about...was his name Raditz?"
Goz nodded and took a sip from his water bottle. "Yeah. He was a pain in the ass to deal with. Took forever to beat the power out of his soul, but me and Mez eventually managed..."
Goku was confused. "Beat the power out of his soul?"
Goz nodded. "Yeah. King Yemma makes us beat all of the evil power out of troublesome souls before we throw them into the soul purifier. Some give us more trouble than others. Like, when the saiyans all died way back when, that was a full year of chasing souls around with our clubs and beating 'em into submission. Managed to get most of 'em...a few wondered off and they're just stuck in limbo now..."
Goku nodded. "I see."
Goz sighed. "So, we had just beaten the power out of that Raditz guy and we were about to do some torture and then throw him into the soul purifier...but then he just went missing..."
Goku was shocked. "He went missing?"
Goz nodded. "Yeah. His loss. He could've been reincarnated as a better person...but instead he's just stuck in eternal damnation now..."
Goku shrugged, ultimately uncaring. "Oh well. You won't get in trouble for losing him, will ya?"
Goz sighed. "King Yemma'll probably dock mine and Mez's pay, but that ain't too bad. Might lose my gym membership for a month, but it's fine."
Mez came walking up, a grim look on his face. "Eh. I'll cover ya for the month, Goz. I have some money saved up."
Goz smiled. "Thanks brother. So, what did King Yemma say about our friend here?"
Mez frowned even harder. He turned to Goku and shook his head. Goku tensed up. "Wh-what's wrong?"
Goz sighed. "Was the line busy?"
Mez sighed. "No, but King Yemma is currently really backed up on paperwork. He won't be answering any calls for the next 8 months..."
Goku gasped. "8 MONTHS?! What does that mean?!"
Mez sighed and helped Goz to his feet. "That means, Goku, that we can't let you leave until we get word from King Yemma. In other words, you're stuck down here with us..."
Goku's eyes widened. "But...I have to get to King Kai's place. I have to train...my friends are going to..."
Mez shook his head in shame. "I'm sorry Goku. I wish there was something we could do...I'm so sorry..."
Goz gave Mez a pat on the shoulder and sighed. "Don't beat yourself up, Mez. I'm sure that Goku understands that you can't just break the rules. We have to do our jobs. Right, Goku?"
Goku looked miserable. He laid back and stared up at the distant yellow clouds. "Yeah...I guess I don't want you guys to get fired..."
Goz frowned. "We'll...we'll give you some privacy Goku. Me and Mez'll head back to the office and try to figure something out. Maybe...try to shave a few months off of the wait...or something..."
And with that, the ogres stumbled away, leaving Goku to stew in the bad news. Eight months. He was losing eight months of valuable time to train and try and get stronger. At this rate...he'd never meet King Kai in time. And that meant that he might not be able to deal with the saiyans properly. Discouraged, Goku laid there and tried to think about what to do.
And then he jumped to his feet. "No! I can't wait for that!"
Goku glared up at the distant sky and slapped himself on the cheeks. "It's pretty far, but I should be able to fly that high."
Fire filled Goku's eyes. "No! I have to fly that high!"
Goku powered up and, with a leap, he took to the air. He had to make it for his friends and his family. He couldn't let anything stop him. He flew at top speed and, slowly, the clouds got closer. Goku gritted his teeth as he exerted all of his power to fly high up. "I have to go and see King Kai!"
Finally, Goku reached the cloud and smiled. He was home free. But, then, to his horror, something stopped him. An invisible barrier. He could see Snake Way. It was close enough to touch...but he couldn't make his hand go through. With a massive recoil, the barrier sent Goku shooting back down to the ground.
He landed with a heavy thud and groaned in the crater that he had made. "D-dammit...what was that...?"
And then, to Goku's surprise, a distinctly female voice answered him. "That was the Morality Barrier. You cannot pass through that barrier so long as you harbor a selfish desire for getting through..."
Goku turned to the voice. "A selfish de-"
Goku stopped mid-sentence from shock. Approaching him from behind was what was clearly a saiyan. She had jet black hair, a swinging tail, and gentle yet furious eyes. She marched towards Goku with purpose. Goku took a fighting stance. "Another saiyan?! I thought Goz said-"
With all of her strength, this female saiyan reared back and slapped Goku right across the face. She screamed in desperate anger as tears streamed down her face. "HOW COULD THE BOTH OF YOU BE SO STUPID?!"
Goku held his stinging cheek as the woman began to weep. She wiped tears from her face and began to hiccup. "We tried so hard for you...we did everything we could to make sure you both lived..."
The woman screamed at Goku. "How could you and your brother kill each other like that, Kakarot?!"
Goku flinched. This woman called him by his saiyan name. A name that only Raditz had called him by before. Goku was confused. "Wh-who are you? And how do you know that name...?"
The woman clenched her teeth, tears still streaming. "How do you think I know that name you damned fool? My name is Gine! I'm your mother!"
Goku gasped in shock as Gine continued to cry her eyes out. "M-M-MOTHER?!"
Proofreading: StevenBodner