Chapter 4 - Null

ALIZA

HELD by the gaze of someone short, yet intimidating, with his eyes boring into hers under his widow's peak, she couldn't help but stare back. His forehead furrowed, and his eyes hung wide open while quivering.

Seeing Vegeta made a spark of excitement burn and travel through her veins, but at the same time, wonder and uncertainty followed in its wake. The wind swept through them, daring and bold. His slightly shadowed features hid something in his eyes. But what?

Was it fear? No, that couldn't be possible . . . Wait, how on earth was he here? Why?

She looked up, and gazed down at a stone plummeting down the ocean, from the precipice of where she was standing now. She gasped. How did she set foot here? One careless movement, and she would slip off and share the pebble's fate. She observed the features around her, including herself. The dark purple and red skies, the reddened earth, everything, was of different quality, of shade, and she didn't expect herself to be the same—that ghostly white skin of her arms.

It was all animated. She was in Goku's world.

Speaking of him, where was he? Wait, how did she get here? More importantly, why was she here?

No, it was just probably a dream.

Vegeta was now walking near her, his fists clenching. That made her move, and another pebble or two slid off and down toward the ocean. He was inching closer. Probably three more steps, and she'd be done for. "Okay, um . . . Hi?"

"Who are you?" was his only reply. He didn't stop walking toward her.

Afraid, she made the stupidest decision she had ever made. Dark bubbles fluttered around her, the cold water enveloping her, when she dived in the sea and submerged. But that's not the problem. She tried to wave her arms to propel herself upward, and she did it, miraculously. Now she regretted jumping off the cliff—she couldn't swim! That's the problem.

But what could she do? It may be foolish, but that's the only escape she could think of.

She looked above, and noticed Vegeta's demeanor getting etched and bolded against the violet rim of twilight. Detest—that was that "something" that hid beneath the shadows of his eyes. She could see it!

Well, that was what she thought, at least.

The dark ocean clung onto her as if holding her into a deadly embrace, swallowing her whole. She was now trapped, the bitter taste of reality barging in.

This wasn't a dream.

Choking, she raised her arms, and flapped her feet as fast as her rising adrenaline. A deep sensation throbbed against her every extremity. She didn't know why, but something made her close her fingers into fists.

Slowly, her hands balled, and light, blinding, emanated from her whole body and flashed in all directions. The cold grip of the sea vanished as it receded. Crouching against the sand from the bottom, she was stunned at what she saw.

A wall of water flowing heavenward around her, filled with fishes flapping their tales, as if displayed in an aquarium.

A sash of wet hair were slid away from her eyes with her finger. She sought for confirmation, anything to tell her that she was just seeing things. But it was indeed true. What she was looking at was real! She crawled near it, her hand gently touching the dark cascade as she approached. Her hands flinched away from its realness, making her gasp. And so the water consumed her again, flooding her from all directions.

The pressure was enough to make her feel a sharp pang on her head, and the urge to breath was getting stronger. She tried to hold her breath as long as she could, but she knew her chances of survival was thin.

Blackness . . .

After some slight munching, light flashed before her eyes, and an image of a green alien was the first thing she saw. He was kneeling before her lying body, and behind him just meters away was Vegeta. *Piccolo?*

"You almost got yourself killed. You shouldn't have jumped into the sea like that," he started.

Didn't he see the wall of water? If so, then she could be safe from further suspicions.

"How did you . . . Did you resuscitate—wait, how did I survive?"

He extended his arms to her, and she gripped it, no fear, no uncertainty. Standing up, she glanced at the two green antennas protruding from his forehead. And she stared deeply at his eyes darkened by twilight.

"Who are you?" she heard him say. A strange tug in her chest, she slid her foot backward a little, taken aback by his question. His hands had turned into fists, and that was what made her recoil a little. A familiar sack was within that hand.

Senzu beans, perhaps. If so, then that's how she survived!

Then she locked her gaze at the green alien, trying to muster an answer. "I'm Aliza . . . Aliza Keensley."

A quick glance at Vegeta, she tried asking Piccolo, her gaze stern and unflinching, "Why am I here?"

A splash below the cliff was the only answer. Piccolo had seemed to not know how to respond. "The water, how did you do that?"

He *did* notice! And maybe so did Vegeta.

Vegeta crossed his arms. The waning moonlight seemed to focus on Vegeta, his deathly glare visible despite his darkened face, and she couldn't help but feel somewhat queasy. His shadow had been casted, and it seemed to have succeeded on keeping her as nervous as hell, too. "Let's get on with this already!"

"I used my energy to manipulate water!" Aliza said, defending herself. "I've been . . . practicing."

That wasn't a lie. She could have just flown away, but she knew that wouldn't be of much help either. She discovered she could fly when she reached fourteen, but her sister would always tell her not to tell anyone. Her dad later found out, shocked at first, and just shrugged the fact off. There was one time when . . .

Never mind.

"Practicing, you say? Then how about we test what you're made of."

"Not so fast, Vegeta. We don't know what we're dealing with right now."

"I don't care if we don't know! The party has started minutes ago, and we need to settle this. Now!"

She didn't like the sound of that. She wished she didn't answer it that way, but then again . . .

"Vegeta, unless she's doing something dangerous, let's just keep an eye on her for the time being. Maybe she has the idea why Goku disappeared."

Aliza's eyes hung wide open. Did she hear that right? Did Goku really disappear? The thought of it made her disappointed, a lot, and worried. She didn't notice it, but her lips managed to part and free the hushed words out of her mouth. "Goku's gone?"

"You know him?"

She shouldn't have said that. She already knew Piccolo had a keen sense of hearing, probably a hundred fold, much to her dismay. "Er . . . no, but I heard him at . . ."

She needed to think, fast. Piccolo's gaze were needles, and Vegeta's were just raw horror. She couldn't stop imagining how the characters from her favorite show would try and beat her up. No, they were not like that. They were—

"At where?" Piccolo forced her to answer.

Oh no. She needed an excuse she could formulate. But what? Her mind spun, thinking about all the possible information she could possibly get. After for what seemed like ten seconds, she managed to think of one: during the first part of the series! That's it!

". . . the 23rd Martial Arts Tournament! Yeah, I heard him there! And," she stopped, staring at the green man, "you were there. We ran away from you." That's it; she must act as if she were afraid. "A-a-are you Piccolo?"

"Yes, but—"

She screamed, cutting him as she tried to act scared. The screaming, the acting, they were all so foreign on her tongue. He seemed to be convinced with her act, though, so she continued screeching, running for a few seconds, but Vegeta was already in front of her, making her stop abruptly to stop herself from falling and crashing against him.

Aliza quickly tried to regain her balance, her arms flailing and swaying, but gravity seemed to pull her down onto him. She finally screamed genuinely, waiting for her awkward bump as she closed her eyes. Yet only a slight push was made, enough for her to regain her balance, and that's it. She opened them in half relief. Apparently, Vegeta's forefinger had stopped her fall, and she was somewhat thankful for that.

Somewhat.

It was awkward, very awkward. She knew her features was just displeasing to the eye, and she didn't want him to look her up close. He already even scowled at her.

And if she did crash onto him . . .

"Where do you think you're going?" Arms crossed, he waited for her answer with a glower.

"Who are you, anyway?" She moved away, slowly.

Vegeta smirked, and that kind of made her feel safe, the expression showing the pride of a Saiyan prince desperate to be felt respected and to be perceived as formidable. "I am Vegeta, the prince of all Saiyans—"

"Saiya-what?" She shouldn't have said that. She knew already, but she still showed fake ignorance; she should have just let him do the talking.

"A Saiyan!" He clenched his fists in front of her. "I'm one of the last of our kind, and I," he rambled on, "have surpassed even the gods!"

This was her chance. "So . . . you're strong?"

A pause. Looked like it didn't go according to plan.

She should have chosen her words—

"I am invincible!" he shouted. And with that, his hand swiped through the air slowly, forcefully as a huge gust of air pushed her away like a wave she could barely withstand. Euphoria settled in her, and she couldn't help but feel the wind caressing her whole body. She enjoyed it like never before. The sensation was far from surreal.

Then she gasped as the wind became more violent. Her foot lost contact from the ground, levitating her fully into the blackness of the night. And before she could look underneath, she was already meters away from below. She screamed, her eyes hung closed as she braced for the inevitable impact. Then the gust flew away from her, and so she was falling. A screech rang, and a turbulent surge of air whispered around her. She watched the land below her, and it was only a mere second away before she could reach the clutches of death.

She was going to—

She landed. But no pain could be felt, not a sensation of skin scraping against rocks. Only warmth. She opened up her eyes, and there she saw the green antennas. She looked up.

"You don't have to be scared of me. That was a long time ago."

"Thanks . . . Piccolo."

He released her, and Aliza screamed, groaning in pain. He turned his head. "Vegeta, don't just go around while bragging about your strength and kill them."

"Well, I'm sorry if someone wants me to show my true strength." Vegeta, who was behind Piccolo again, smirked, not showing any sign of danger anymore.

A thin strand of hair was on the bridge of her nose, and she tucked it away as she stood up, pouting at Vegeta's usual cockiness. "I already know you're," she muttered, more of a whisper, and she inwardly flinched as she noticed what she was going to say. She must remain as if she didn't know him!

"You already know he's what?" Piccolo asked, his eyes now staring at her like before.

"Nothing important." Aliza had her arms crossed and stared at the vain prince. "Yeah, and you looked like you'd seen a ghost when you saw me!"

That was her desperate attempt for a retort. How convenient . . . She could just shut up for her own sake.

"Don't you dare belittle me, you brat!" You act like you and Piccolo know each other," he said. And with a smile, he continued, "So was it all an act all along? Speak now, Earthling; what are you hiding? Or I'll have to blast you off the face of this planet."

She never felt so scorned, especially from the people she admired, or just liked, or just love-hated. She didn't expect her dim-witted response would take such an effect on him. All for the name of pride, she guessed.

Wait, maybe this *was* just a dream, and she could wake up any minute now. But still . . . Whatever it was, she needed to know where Goku was. Yes! She was going to try answering him with this: "I'm just . . ." she paused, bowing her head as she tapped her forefingers together, "looking for Goku. I'm a huge fan, but seems like he's nowhere to be seen anymore."

She felt her heart racing; she knew she shouldn't have said that. There may be a ring of truth to what she said, but she couldn't help it. That might be her chance to escape their suspicions. Oh, let this be a dream! She looked up at Vegeta, who was now stunned.

"You, a fan of Kakarot?!" He laughed all his breath out, choking afterward. "Are you even that serious?"

The all familiar feeling weighed her down again—shame.

"Enough!" Piccolo inserted, giving a glare to the both of them. "Aliza, if you plan to see Goku tonight, then forget it. He already has a wife."

She blushed. "I know! I didn't mean it that way. I—"

Vegeta roared into a laugh again.

Piccolo just kept his stern look at her. "It's already nighttime; you seemed to be lost. You can live in Bulma's house for the time being."

His eyes seemed to reflect suspicion, but she let that slide for now. After all, she knew who they were.

"Can you fly, Aliza?" Vegeta challenged her.

"I'll try." She tried manifesting her gift at long last. Maybe this was the perfect time. She closed her eyes, inhaled, exhaled. Then once she opened it again, she was levitating.

Joy. That's what she was feeling right now, and she glided all the way through the air as she followed them. For the first time, aside with her circle of friends, she felt like she belonged. And after for what seemed like minutes, she reached the city.

Knees buckled, she landed, and there she saw the dome-shaped yellow building towering over here. Capsule Corp. She couldn't believed she was here. Grinning in excitement, she faced Piccolo, only to see the look of what seemed like suspicion getting fiercer. Vegeta seemed to be like that, too.

"What?"

"We can't sense any energy from you."