The Woes Of Dreams

The Crystal

EDITED: 07/24/23

22- The Crystal

Dende paced across the Lookout nervously. He felt so ashamed. He was the Earth's guardian, but he hadn't even realized the Horosha were close until they had entered the atmosphere. Even now, he couldn't tell where they were exactly. Their ki's and presence were perfectly hidden. And the worst - Pan was gone, and Dende couldn't feel her either!

Dende had been lucky enough to somehow manage to contact the Horosha and ask them to meet the Saiyans on a deserted island. Their response had been short and simple, but it left Dende shivering. There was something about them that was ancient.

"Dende," Mr. Popo's voice broke him from his pacing. He turned to see Mr. Popo holding one of Baba's crystal balls. "The Saiyans will be arriving on the island in a few seconds."

Dende walked over to Mr. Popo and peered down into the crystal ball. The sun had been set for hours and the sky was dark and full of stars. The half-moon provided little light, but Dende adjusted his eyes just as the male Saiyans arrived. All of them looked tense and ready for battle.

Goten glanced around and frowned, "They're not here yet?"

"Doesn't look that way," Gohan muttered.

"They have Panna," Trunks said, his fist clenching.

"We don't know that," Goku began.

"She's disappeared!" Trunks spat, "None of us can even sense her. How else do you explain that?"

The Saiyans froze as something in the distance appeared. Dende could feel the tension in the air all the way from the Lookout and his pulse quickened. It made him sick.

The Saiyans glanced up, expecting to see a spaceship, but there was nothing but the stars glancing back at him.

A wind blew past the Saiyans, and Dende blinked as slim figures appeared out of thin air. They were seven feet tall or more. Their long, skinny arms almost reached their knees. They seemed so nimble and fragile, that if the wind blew strong enough, it would knock them down. The strangest thing about them was that their body was transparent silver, and although they had head-like shapes on the tops of their bodies, they had no faces. No eyes, noses, or mouths.

The Horosha moved in union. They stepped and moved all at the same time, and with grace that left Dende a little in shock. They stopped five yards away from the group, and Dende could feel the bumps along his skin as he waited for someone to make the first move.

"Where is she?" Trunks demanded. "Where's Pan?!"

There was no answer from the Horosha. Their body's moved like trees in the wind, but they did not tip over.

Goku stepped forward, his shoulders tense. "My name is Goku," he began. "Many decades ago, I found your crystal."

"We are well aware of who you are, Son Goku." The Horoshas' voices were hundreds of whispers into one. Dende was beginning to realize that they were in fact, all connected. They walked, talked, and moved like one giant organism.

"I'm sorry," Goku's voice was tense. "I'm so sorry. All of this is my fault. If you have my daughter, please release her."

"We do not have her," the Horosha answered.

Trunks let out a growl. "Where the hell is she then?"

"We all know why you're here," Vegeta spoke up. "For the crystal Kakarot took years ago. And we know that you know that it's inside Pan."

"Yes," the Horosha answered simply. "But we do not have her."

"Where is she then?!" Trunks howled.

"We know you came for the crystal," Goku's voice was growing high with anxiety. "But please understand, the crystal saved Pan's life twice. If we remove it from her, she could -"he choked, his shoulders shaking. "She could die. If you can promise us that taking the crystal out of her won't kill her, then we will gladly move out of your way and let you have it."