A/N: Like I promised, this is the fic where I try to describe the moment Goku meets Serenity and she frees him from the dragon realm. This will most probably NOT be a one-shot, though. I'm highly considering making something longer out of this.

This fic is the prequel of my other fic "What Lies Ahead". I highly recommend you read that one before you read this. Even if they are two different stories, they're highly related to one another, and the events in WLA chronologically (ehr, at least I think so! You'll know why I'm doubtting if you read WLA). The events in this fic are more understandable and enjoyable if you've read WLA first.

Paths Crossing

It had been so many years since the last time he had seen his loved ones, anyone would have thought he would have forgotten everything about them already. But the small transparent sphere, that was always appearing before him whenever he summoned it in this often deserted area of the Eternal Dragons' Kingdom, would relieve his home sickness by showing him the faces of his friends and family -what they were doing, where they were- and that way he would know if they were well or not, see them as they aged, and eventually died.

They parted slowly, one by one, until there came a time that only his lively granddaughter remained: once a youthful teenager, now a withered old lady, she made it her business to maintain her heritage by teaching it to her mischievous grandson, who had been named after him, his very namesake.

And what a namesake he was.

Pity, though, he couldn't tell that to Pan. Or of how proud of her he actually was... She would surely die before he had any chance to return, they would never get another glimpse at one another again, and she was the very last of the very people he had sacrificed himself for.

The irony...

A grandchild was never supposed to die before their grandparent.

But, then again, when had ever their lives been what other people called 'normal'?

Reflecting, he decided that, if he had to make the choice again now, he would make the same. He had done it before in the past, thus being absent during his youngest's early years... True, that time it hadn't been the best decision, but this last time, though, it had been different: he had known there was no other choice.

So, this time, he didn't regret it.

Then why did he feel this strong need to be close to them, even from afar, just one single more time?

He was lonely, that's why... He would never have thought he would grow tired of training, yet he had. Shenlong had provided him with all the facilities, the souls of many legendary warriors had been summoned to teach him. He had learned quite a few new techniques and developed even some of his saiyan psychic abilities... Not to mention Bardock, the father he had never met, had come to him in spirit also and taught him of his people, giving him all the knowledge he would have had, had he been raised a proper member of the warrior race he belonged.

Yet it wasn't enough: he had no one to share it with.

No one to share the endless free time or the fact that he was finally an adult again...his body having aged slowly till it reached the appearance of a man in his thirties. He smiled to himself: such a simple fact would have made his long lost wife ecstatic: she really hadn't taken it well when he was turned into an adult in the body of a child.

Now, she would never be able to enjoy with him his regained adulthood.

So there he was, once again, comfortably meditating, sitting, like many times before, on the grounds of the never ending magical lands, gazing at his dear grandchild and her apprentice through the sphere. Pan was currently watching Goku and Vegeta Jr. go at it in their last encounter of the Martial Arts Tournament.

Just seeing those two brought so many memories of being the same age and preparing for the same tournament with his friends, then meeting his wife, Chichi, and starting his family... He felt a tightness in his heart. He lowered his head and sighed...

"You want to see them again, don't you?"

Goku inmediately raised his head at the sudden female voice and turned to stare at the stranger, but saw no one.

"Who's there?" he asked, already getting up and taking a fighting stance. Decades of being trapped in Shenglon's world had shown him not every visitor was trustworthy. Male or female.

"Please calm yourself" said the voice, so soft and melodious he felt himself unable to resist the impulse to obey "I mean no harm."

Goku looked all around him searching.

"Then please show yourself" he responded, letting his guard down a bit "I feel uncomfortable not being able to see you."

Not long had the words left his mouth, a bright silver light shinned before him, and engulfed all his vision. Goku covered his eyes with his hand, and when he lowered it, he found himself standing in front of the most heavenly and exotic creature he had seen in a long time.

Her hair and eyes were pure silver, so bright that it was almost blinding. Yet, one couldn't help but realize the hardness hidden in that penetrating gaze.

Her complexion so fair that she seemed ethereal, almost unreal... A fairy-like being so different than the grotesque looking ones generally roaming the Eternal Realm. She was wearing a white sailor fuku, a long cape reaching the floor from her shoulders, her right hand holding a long staff.

For a moment, he thought he recalled once seeing a somehow very similar drawing or picture, in a book on legends, long time ago. But he couldn't be certain. She honestly resembled what he had imagined angels or goddesses looked like as a child, and for several minutes the only thing he was able to do was stare at her in wonder.

"Son Goku?" She addressed him, looking at him straight in the eyes.

Goku nodded.

"Who are you?"

The stranger took a step towards him.

"The eternal dragon in charge of you told me you would be here. My name isn't important..." she told him, "all that is to be said is that currently I am known by many as the Queen of the Stars, Cosmos" she added after a while, though a bit dejectedly.

The saiyan didn't know what to respond to that. He also had never heard of such a title. He didn't know what it was supposed to mean.

He just repeated, "Shenlong sent you?"

"He did" she nodded.

He felt her aura and knew she was telling the truth, but asked himself if she could really be another trainer the dragon had sent to him. However, he seriously doubted it: she hardly looked like a fighter at all... At least, not a martial artist. What reason could the dragon have had to send her? Could it be this lady possessed a special knowledge she could teach him?

"Son Goku" she continued as she approached him, never taking her eyes of him.

"I've come to free you" she stated simply.

Well... now she had his attention.

He took a few seconds to digest it.

"Free me?" he repeated. Did the word freedom still mean anything?

The queen of stars, or Cosmos, nodded. She frowned "You're trapped here, aren't you? You've been for a hundred years..." she trailed off. He just looked at her in expectancy "Well, I've come to correct that. I'm setting you free."

Goku just wasn't ready to believe her. "You have that kind of power?" he inquired, somewhat doubtfully. She didn't seem to notice.

"I do". She said so emotionlessly.

The saiyan let out some breath he had been holding. His eyes traveled through the deserted landscape. Would he really ever be able to leave this forsaken place?

He looked back at Cosmos.

"Why?" was all he answered.

Cosmos' eyes seemed to soften. "Cause someone who has done as much good as you didn't deserve this kind of fate" she whispered slowly. "Someone like you should have never been meant for such an end."

Her new tone surprised him. She had sound a bit harsh before.

"You know about me?" His eyes searched hers. For the first time since her arrival, he seemed to really see her.

Cosmos merely smiled.

"I know all that matters" she said softly. He raised an eyebrow.

"Who are you, really?" he questioned. Cosmos' gaze fell sideways.

"I am everyone and no one" she answered "Who I am is not important, for I'm no longer who I used to be. Long time ago, I had an identity, one that was worth mentioning, though I lost it, but that is irrelevant" Goku only managed to open his lips slightly after such a speech.

"The only thing relevant is that I'll free you from this prison. Because I want to do so." was her final statement.

Then, not waiting for his reaction, she walked away from him. She had already advanced some steps, her cape flowing behind her. Goku was gonna start after her, intending on asking more questions, then she stopped and turned her head to him. Goku was taken aback by the rather unfocused look she gave him.

"I'll go to Shenlong now. I'll give him the pure energy he wants from you. That'll be enough to end your debt towards him".

With no other words, she just crunched and then jumped into the air gracefully. Goku couldn't understand what she intended until her cape seemed to start retracting in itself to take another form. A pair of pure white wings materialized on her back and she took off to the air, flying towards what Goku knew was the direction that lead to Shenlong's cavern.

For a moment, Goku just stared after her figure getting farther and farther away from him, then her words struck him with more force than anything in his entire existance. He quickly took after her.

"WAIT!" he yelled "What are you trying to do??!!" he went faster. A sudden feeling of dread filled him.

He knew she could no longer hear him. She had gotten so far away at such a speed that it amazed him. He would actually have to turn Super to manage to catch her. He was going to do so, when the spot that was the silver haired angel disappeared. Right before his eyes.

He stopped mid-air.

What? Where is she??!! He screamed in his mind. What if she had gone to another dragon? He wondered in anguish.

His heart raced. He had to find her, he had to prevent her from doing it. This was crazy! He had to stop her before...--

An enormous pillar of blinding light raised to the heavens, interrupting his thoughts. Goku's eyes widened like never before as he saw it getting larger and larger in every direction at an alarming speed, covering everything in it's path like a nuclear wave. He was so stunned he was only able to head backwards a bit, covered himself with his arms and screamed when the light engulfed him...

It must be like that explosion that created the universe... This must mean she did it. Why, God, why couldn't I stop her.

Those were his last thoughts before he lost consciousness.

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A ray of sunlight broke through his eyelids, and Goku opened his eyes slowly, only to shut them again and lift a hand up to the back of hi head, where a sudden pain had started to develop.

"You should try to take it easy, saiyan warrior. Taking such a burst of Primal Energy head on at a single time is very hard on a mortal"

Goku didn't turn to his side. He didn't need to do it to know who the owner of the voice was. He just stayed half sitting on the ground clutching his poor mistreated head.

"What do you mean, Shelong, what 'Primal Energy'?"

"Primal Energy is very much like Ki energy and magic energy united. It's the type of energy the universe was made of, the energy of creation ". The booming voice answered.

Goku grinned half heartedly while still massaging his skull. He, I knew it… Then he stayed still.

"What?" It came out as a muffled cry. Shenlong just chuckled.

"Look around you, little mortal" he suggested "Does this still look like the Eternal Realm to you?"

Goku opened is eyes fully and looked all around himself. Indeed, the giant figure of Shenlong was floating at his right side, high up above him. But the landscape he lied his eyes on wasn't the Realm of Dragons he had gotten used to wake up in, no. It was a deserted beach, golden sand reflecting the rays of the sun as much as the deep blue waters all around it.

Goku just stayed still, taking it all in. A few minutes later he reacted.

"Is... are we on Earth?"

Shenlong stayed silent for some seconds, his ruby pupil-less eyes apparently concentrated on his charge.

"Yes."

Goku turned to look up at him.

"Why, how?" his gaze fixed on the dragon's. Shenlong's was the same.

"Don't you know, 'little one'?"

Goku looked at the dragon questioningly. It had been decades since the mythical creature had last called him by that nickname. It had been given to him because of his rather small size the moment he was taken, a hundred years ago, but he was logically no longer called that way after he regained his adulthood. The dragon was acting somewhat strange...

Then it hit him.

"Cosmos" Goku whispered "She did this."

"That's right." Shenlong answered. "She did what she said, she freed you. You're no longer forced to stay in our world."

Goku looked to the ground with shame.

"Why did you let her?" he murmured bitterly "She didn't have anything to do with the dragonballs, did she? Why did you let her do it?"

"It was her will. I complied."

Goku turned to him furiously. Never before had he thought he would be capable to talk in that manner to the dragon.

"'You complied'?! You let an innocent woman sacrifice herself! All you and your species care about is getting your damn pure energy! You don't even care where it comes from!" He stood up and faced the enormous being in complete fury. "You just take what you need and ignore the suffering you're causing!"

Shenlong remained emotionless "It is true we dragons need the energy of a pure heart in order to maintain our world, we turn that energy into the Primal Energy I spoke about, which keeps the balance of our dimension. But achieving that is nothing irrelevant, little mortal. Without the balance, our dimension would turn unstable and it would affect all the other dimensions. Yours also."

Goku just snorted.

"From the moment you took me you've been telling me how the sacrifice of another mortal would save me! Well, if you so wanted the energy you needed, you could have kept using ME!" he yelled "She gave her life force so that you let me go, but the deal was only between you and me! Now, you practically let that woman kill herself! "

The dragon didn't seem phased at his outburst.

"The woman is not dead." it replied simply.

Now Goku was lost. He blinked "What do you mean?"

"Serenity didn't give her life force. She tried to, yes, but the Ginzuishou didn't let her. It wouldn't let the Kibou no Hikari to end her own existence. She, too, is important for the balance. So the sacred powers of the Moon Goddess trapped within the silver jewel prevented the moon child from taking her life, and gave us the Primal Energy needed to keep the balance for a millennia." Shenlong answered "In a way, we've all gained from the kindness of Selene".

"What are you talking about? Who are Selene and Serenity?"

"Selene is known as the goddess of the moon, but she's more importantly the Goddess of Light. Serenity, your woman, is her descendant."

"That's her name? She would only say they called her Cosmos..." Goku thought for a while "She descends from a goddess? From one of the Kais?"

It was almost as if Shenlong was shaking his massive head.

"No. The Kais aren't deities. They're the ones that took it upon themselves to guard and watch over your dimension when the elder deities became omniscient. They aren't mortals either, but they're lower creatures compared to the gods. They just administrate what the deities helped create"

"They didn't create everything, then? Who did?" Goku was puzzled.

"I can't answer that question, little one. We the eternal dragons don't know more than mortals".

"But, if this girl is the descendant of a goddess, then what is she?"

"All you have to know is that she's the one charged with the balance between good and evil. Because of her purest heart, she was destined to become the Universal Protector... Saiyan warrior, this isn't a simple mortal we are talking about. She's been predestined to exist since the beginning of time. As Selene's child, she now holds the purest heart in the universe. It is that quality what makes her willing to make sacrifices like the one you just saw." Shenlong looked at the saiyan intensely.

Goku was stunned beyond words "This is so much..." he murmured "But that's beside the point. Someone almost gave their life for me... and they don't even know me" he looked at the dragon expectantly, as if waiting for it to explain.

"Cosmos must have found out about you and decided to do this. The reasons for her decision, though" it stated "are hers alone to understand. Not even us can tell what the Kibou no Hikari is thinking"

"Kibou no Hikari?" Goku questioned

"One of the many names she's been known by."

"So many names..." Goku wondered. "She said her identity was not important since she no longer was who she used to be. What did she mean?"

"The story of her life is well known among my kind. She used to be a gentle ruler from a planet very similar to your Earth. Then, Chaos, the entity known for being ultimate evil, attacked her people and killed everyone important to her, leaving her as the sole survivor"

"You mean, she's all alone?"

"As the Universal Protector, she must fight evil in solitude for eternity. As I said, Chaos, this entity, is the incarnation of ultimate evil. The being that infuses hatred, cruelty and all the dark feelings among mortals. All the enemies you have fought, little one, were just mortals like yourself who were tempted by its darkness. Cosmos, the legendary warrior, is its predestined opponent, though it isn't known if she'll ever be able to defeat it. Chaos wanted to know if the prophecy was true. It suspected Cosmos could be dormant within the descendants of Selene, so it decided to awake her. That's why it slaughtered all Serenity's loved ones. It knew that was probably what it took for Cosmos to awaken."

"She went through all that... alone... And she's still alone? That's no better than how I was" Goku whispered.

"As I said, it wasn't her choice. It was a matter of fate"

Goku seemed deep in thought, digesting all this. He turned to Shenlong.

"So now I'm free?" he asked.

"You are" came the plain answer.

Goku's eyes widened slightly. Could he have been asleep and dreaming? He had hoped for that single thing for so long, thinking it wasn't possible, and then, one day, this Serenity woman appears out of nowhere and frees him. Just like that. It was almost unreal...

"Where is she?" he asked "I have to go in search for her. I have to at least tell her how thankful I am, there must be something I can do for her in return!"

"I do not know the exact place she has gone to. What I do know is that she has left to continue what she's been fated to, purify evil."

"Please, Shenlong, there must be a way to track her down... I have to thank her! She just did something for me that nobody else was ever able to, and it almost ended up killing her. I'll also try to help and protect her from this Chaos being if I can. She's just one person! She shouldn't have to face all that alone, I can't forget about her after what she's done"

This was interesting. Shenlong would have smiled. Mortals were such unique creatures.

"Very well" he said "I'll tell you how you can find her"

Goku accepted "I appreciate it, Shenlong. I won't be able to live with myself if I don't do this. So, how do I find her?"

"There's someone who might be able to tell you of her whereabouts. It's someone who has known her since birth: the Queen of the Silver Kingdom"

"Alright" answered Goku "where do I find this queen?"

"Within her castle of the White Moon. I'll take you there" Shenlong offered. If Goku had been paying attention, he would have noticed a weird gleam in the dragon's red eyes. "But you'll have to continue from there by yourself "

"Thank you".

With that, Goku mounted on Shenlong's back. The eternal dragon lifted some more and started flying at an amazing speed, until both it and it's charge disappeared completely in the blue of the midsummer sky.

THE END

2nd A/N: Well, this text was mainly to describe how Hikari came to be. In other words, explain some of the facts told in "What Lies Ahead".

I'm open to suggestions if they don't change the basic idea of the story. Tell me what you think in a review, ok?

Jay