Cosmic Crisis 3 - A New Enemy

Chapter 16 - Déjà vu

Trunks stared intently as Orion headed towards the wall.

"They'll never let him in." Trunks reassured himself. Then, much to his disbelief, the guards offered a friendly nod as he passed through, unscathed. Trunks' jaw dropped.

"Surely you haven't forgotten already!" Sirius hissed. "He is very closely tied with them."

Trunks clenched his fists.

"We have to get in." he said, and started walking towards the gate through which Orion had just entered. Sirius grabbed Trunks' wrist and pulled him back into the alley.

"You can't make any contact with the people inside, Trunks! You could change history, even with one glance." Sirius argued. Trunks allowed his hands to drop to his sides.

"Fine. But let's go." He said. They dispersed into their two groups and headed for the two different entrances.

As Trunks, Sirius, and Goten approached, the guards at the entrance acknowledged them. The three naturally stopped in preparation for the impending interrogation.

"Where do you three think you are going?" one of the guards asked. He was wearing the familiar armor, much like the kind Sirius had on, but more elaborate.

"We are here to attend the board meeting." Sirius explained. "Concerning the affairs of the alliance."

The guard looked at them suspiciously.

"And who are these two?" one asked.

"Ambassadors...from New Vegeta." Sirius replied quickly.

"I was asking them, not you. Besides, they look a little young to be ambassadors." The guard replied cockily.

"You can check their ID's, if you want proof." Sirius replied coolly. Trunks almost choked. They didn't have ID's! Sirius was bluffing! Oh Dende-sama...let this work.

The two guards faced each other and turned their backs to the trio as they muttered a short conversation.

"You may pass."

Trunks, Goten, and Sirius quickly passed though to avoid being misconstrued by anybody else.

Meanwhile, Reena and Ceres approached the west gate after making sure that the others had gotten though. Two male guards were standing at the gates, looking rather bored. When they caught site of the girls, they perked up.

"May I help you two?" one said, clearing his throat. Ceres smiled seductively and inched closer. Reena rolled her eyes in disgust at Ceres' methods of manipulation.

"We'd like to enter through this gate." Ceres said.

"What makes you think you're qualified to do so?" the guard challenged. Ceres took on a defensive stance.

"We have obligations we were asked not to reveal." She replied aggressively.

"Oh really?" the guard challenged. "You think that your intentions are too covert to reveal to guards?"

Ceres didn't reply.

"Well this is our job. We can't let you in unless you have a legitimate reason."

"How about this legitimate reason?" Ceres said. There was a few seconds of silence as the guards looked at her with a confused expression.

"I don't see any-"

The guard suddenly broke off as his face lost all emotions and his pupils dilated. Reena recoiled and the other guard got into a defensive position. Suddenly, he too lost all expression on his face and his pupils enlarged. After a few more seconds, they fell to the ground, unconscious. Reena looked at Ceres, who had a satisfactory smirk on her face.

"What the hell did you just do to them!" she demanded.

"Relax, Reena. They will be fine in a few minutes, and they won't remember a thing." Ceres said confidently, proceeding to walk through the gate. Reena checked the pulse of the guards before following cautiously through the palace walls.

The five all met up in the garden, near the corner of the walls, and hid amongst the various plants, trees, flowers, and shrubs.

"Where do we go from here!" a nervous Trunks hissed.

"Just calm your nerves, nothing big is going down as of yet." Reena snapped back. Goten looked at her in shock. The group of five looked up at the enormous palace doors, which were hidden behind large marble columns, and sat in front of the substantial stone staircase.

Trunks thought to himself. *It looks just like an ancient roman palace*

As thy made their way to the doors, a group of what appeared to be soldiers of rank exited the palace. Trunks' breath caught in his throat as he noted the young men that passed by. Included in the group of 7 or 8 were Sirius' younger self, and Orion. Sirius immediately stepped into the shadows cast by one of the far walls to avoid making contact with...himself, and the others tried to act casual as the men passed by them, just 20 feet from where they were standing. Most paid them no attention, or didn't give them a second look as they were hustled out the doors and through the gates where the guards of the west gate where starting to get a grip on reality. After the coast was clear, the five relaxed, and Sirius came out of hiding. Trunks could hear his heart beating wildly in his chest.

"That was way too close." Goten said, taking a deep breath.

"It shouldn't be this bad from this point on. In fact, we got a break, because two of our biggest threats, Orion and Sirius, have already left." Reena explained. They all entered warily through the doors, and into the grand foyer. Trunks and Goten had to be pushed through the doors after seeing the interior; they were frozen in shock.

"We need to set up some sort of base." Sirius said. "We still have a day, after all."

"How long is a day on Vela?" Goten asked.

"Almost the same as Earth, maybe an hour or so shorter."

"Well where are we heading right now?"

"The east wing."

"Where Nat lives?"

"Precisely."

They all walked down the tall, sleek corridors, their boots clanking and echoing off of the marble floors.

"This place is decked out." Trunks commented. "Nat is so laid back, I can't imagine her living some place like this."

They suddenly heard voices from unseen rooms ahead, and they seemed to grow closer. Sirius grabbed the two girls and dodged behind a wall, leaving Trunks and Goten, who immediately followed. They hushed their breaths as two figures passed by. One was a female about Trunks' height, with long, gold, cascading hair, which caught the light as she walked. Her blue eyes sparkled as she spoke.

"The queen." Sirius whispered softly. Trunks looked again. He could see Natalie in her. There was another woman with her, who was about the same height, maybe a few inches taller, with dark blue hair and light blue eyes. Trunks could hear Reena shifting behind him. As soon as the figures passed, they all relaxed a bit, and stepped slowly into the hallway once more. Reena hesitated, and then followed. She looked disengaged.

"What's wrong?" Goten asked, taking her hand in his. Trunks tried not to smile obnoxiously. Goten had a crush...

"That was her mother." Ceres whispered in Trunks' ear. Trunks looked up at Reena, who still had the distraught expression on her face. Goten slipped his arm around her shoulder, underneath the masses of dark purple hair that tumbled down her back. He turned back to the hallway, and began to walk.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked, moving to stop him. Trunks didn't bother turning back to the group.

"I can feel her ki." He said, his voice in a trance-like tone, as he continued to walk towards the end of the hallway.

"Trunks no, someone will see you!" Sirius hissed, and grabbed Trunks' arm. Trunks turned to him, his eyes filled with torment and anguish. Sirius stepped back.

"I want to see her." He said, his voice full of sorrow.

"No, Trunks. Not now. Besides, you'll see her...before we leave." Sirius said. "I promise."

Trunks clenched his fists, causing his nails to dig into his palms, and dropped his hands to his sides. Goten, Reena, and Ceres joined Sirius.

"Stop looking at me like that!" Trunks shouted. Sirius slapped his hand over Trunks' mouth.

"I said stop, you're making a scene. If anyone finds out what we're doing, they'll have us removed!" Sirius said. "Not to mention the fact that they will tighten security again, making it that much harder to get back in."

Trunks had to force himself to comply...he told himself it was the best thing to do if they wanted to save Natalie, and the fate of their world. He cursed to himself. Why was everyone so interested in her anyway! Why can't they just leave her alone!

"He's not interested in her like Orion is...or was." Sirius said, as if he read his mind. Trunks turned and looked at Sirius.

"What do you mean?"

"Hermes doesn't even care for her. The only reason he wants her is because of his own greed...and his greed is satisfied with power, which he can easily tap into using her." He replied. "She is merely a pawn in his game."

To Trunks, this almost sounded worse. At least Orion had made sure she remained safe...for the most part. But he was still angry, because, of all people, Hermes chose her.

Trunks was snapped back to reality when Sirius dragged him around the same corner again.

"Sirius I'm sick of your-"

"Shut up!"

Trunks stopped talking just in time to see Orion walking down that hallway, heading in the same direction that they had been. Trunks' breath caught in his throat and he forced himself to remain calm. He couldn't let Orion let him know that he was there. Just when Trunks thought he was in the green, Orion suddenly stopped, and looked around.

*Shit, he found us* Trunks thought to himself as he started to break out in a nervous sweat. Finally, after what seemed an eternity of suspense, Orion turned back and continued walking. As soon as he was out of sight, Trunks sighed heavily and shakily. After a few more moments of suspended silence, Reena spoke up.

"I'm sick of this stupid hiding." She said, somewhat annoyed. "At this rate, we MIGHT get to the end of the hallway before next week."

Everyone stared at her. She then proceeded to walk into the hallway indiscreetly, and started walking. Sirius, again, moved to put her to a stop, but Ceres grabbed his wrist and looked at him as if to say "no you don't". Trunks and Goten immediately followed, then Ceres, and Sirius trailing behind, still proceeding with caution and making sure to watch for approaching figures.

As they neared the end of the hall, where it made a sharp turn to the left, two people suddenly walked around the corner, taking the group of five by complete surprise. Trunks stopped in his tracks when he recognized them, but Goten pushed him to keep him moving, trying to avoid suspicion.

"Hey...who were those people back there?" the girl asked as she passed the five, looking back and stealing one more glance while she continued to walk in the opposite direction.

"Who them?" the other said, also turning for a moment. "I'm sure they are just here for some meeting. Don't worry about them, Carina."

"Orion quit being so stupid, we could at least introduce ourselves." She whispered harshly.

"No, we'll meet up with them later. Come on, we'll be late." Orion said, and slipped his hand into hers as they continued walking. As they were about to turn the corner, Carina stole one more glance at Trunks before she was pulled around the side, and out of sight.