Dolmit hauled Azher to his feet and nearly toppled over, himself. Azher searched the battlefield.

"Is he--"

"Yes."

"--and we're still alive." Azher closed his eyes with a grateful sigh.

"So far." One eye opened.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, apparently there's been some sort of coup on Geo. A bunch of Degradu supporters seized the palace and they say they have Deoge. They're coming to see if Degradu's still around; they've threatened to kill the king if he's not."

"Any sign of them so far?"

"I don't know. There was one Roc that showed up at the very end; tried to decapitate Denatu."

"That's what I call guts. I take it Denatu killed him?" Dolmit smiled.

"Didn't get a chance to. That fusion grabbed him by the neck and blew him away."

"You're sure Denatu's dead?" Dolmit gazed at the crater where Denatu had last stood.

"Regeneration only goes so far, Azher. I don't think there's a chunk big enough to regenerate from, and in any case there's no way he has enough energy for it. He's dead."

"Then I guess we'd better get ready for the Degradu delegation," Azher sighed. Dolmit glanced over his shoulder.

"Shouldn't we check on the Earthlings first? After all, we really owe our lives to them."

"Fine. Are they still where I left them?"

"Yes. Over there, behind--" 'the Roc?' Azher followed his gaze and started in surprise.

"That's the one that cut Denatu?" Dolmit nodded.

"We'd better investigate," Azher muttered wearily, lumbering off. Dolmit, in better condition, flew ahead, intercepting the stranger. Dolmit started to speak, but the other cut him off.

"Name and rank," he barked.

"Dolmit. No rank. What does it matter without an army?" The stranger grunted.

"Good point. I am Malak. What are you doing here?" Dolmit thought for a long moment.

"So much has happened that I don't know anymore. My most recent goal has been to survive; that accomplished, I have to find Degradu's 'diplomats'." Malak sighed.

"You're looking at them, I'm afraid."

"So you're going to kill me? Degradu's history."

"So is Denatu. For all I know, so is Deoge. I won't kill you just yet; not until I managed to sort out this catastrophe." Dolmit nodded.

"I think that's a common goal for everyone here," he murmured. Azher finally arrived, and once introduced, the three proceeded to the cluster of Earthlings. The spike-haired one with a halo stopped them.

"What do you want?" he snarled.

"It's okay," Trunks called, "I recognize them. They're not here to cause trouble." Still growling under his breath, Vegeta back off, returning to stand over the girl. Trunks carefully set Goten down beside his unconscious brother, biting his lip and as he fought back tears. Such a loss, such a waste--

Gohan stirred sleepily, then jerked awake. He blinked owlishly at the small crowd around him; then his eyes fell on Goten. Gohan reached out with a trembling hand and lightly touched Goten's face. A soft whimper escaped his throat, though he quickly choked it back. He cautiously sat up, taking deep breaths and forcing his fuzzy mind to clear. Trunks placed a steadying hand on his shoulder.

"You okay?"

"Better than some," he whispered.

"I'm sorry."

"Can we take him home for a proper burial?" A look of uncertainly crossed Trunks' face.

"I'm sure we can come up with something. The regen. tank should help him--" He trailed off.

"--keep?" Gohan finished with a forced smile.

"Yeah."

"You idiots." The two turned to see Vegeta staring at them, plainly disgusted. "You talk like he's dead."

"He is," Trunks said softly. 'Otousan, what are you doing? You're only making it harder on Gohan--'

"He looks like he is," Vegeta amended, 'I'll grant you that; but there's no way to be absolutely sure."

"What's your point?" Azher cut in. "If he's not dead, it's only a matter of time before he is, unless you can heal."

"Maybe." In response to their stunned expressions, Vegeta hastily added, "Not by my own powers, of course; I'll need a particular stone." Trunks understood immediately.

"A dragontear, but where could we find one?" He turned to the three Roc. "Do any of you know, perhaps?"

"Did either of the shape-shifters have one? Those that could afford them sometimes wore them like amulets," Dolmit suggested.

"Well, if Denatu was wearing one, it's blown to hell and back now," Malak mused aloud. "What about Degradu?"

"No, but the other one was carrying something," Trunks replied.

"Other one?"

"Denatu's son." Azher was the first to piece it together.

"The one that attacked me; the one that knocked out Dolmit! That must have been him, but I had no idea Denatu even had a son. What did the boy want?"

"Apparently, just to get the hell out of here. He refused to fight his father, so Denatu killed him."

"The kid didn't even try to defend himself?"

"He sort of threatened Denatu, but those were his last words. He said it wasn't over, then died just before Denatu dealt the final blow."

"Hang on," Malak interrupted, "he died before Denatu killed him? Isn't that a bit strange?" Trunks shrugged.

"Not really. His chest was crushed halfway to the ground at that point; he was already on his way out. Anyhow, it's a moot point: he's dead, however he managed it. The important question is what he was carrying."

"I'll check," Malak volunteered. With brief directions from Trunks, he sped away.

"Do you think it would help Goten, Vegeta?" Gohan asked guardedly.

"I don't know," Vegeta muttered, "but it's at least worth a try."

"What about Takira?" Vegeta's only response was to look back at her. Extending a hand, he used ki to lift her slowly, bringing her to him. Without taking his eyes from her, Vegeta spoke.

"No. She'll have to pull through on her own. It's the only way she'll prove herself worthy of this." Drawing her closer, he looked deeply into her half-lidded eyes, then in a decisive movement, pressed his ghostly lips to her cold forehead. A strange aura, shimmering blue, surrounded them both with a wavering light. Vegeta broke away as the light faded, lowering her gently to the ground. Trunks stepped up behind him, face full of questions.

"What did you do?"

"Returned something she gave me many years ago," he said with a finality that forbade argument or comment. Trunks hushed, watching not Takira, but his father's face, trying to decipher his meaning. He was forced to give it up, however, as Malak returned, grinning triumphantly, a worn string necklace clutched in one hand.

"This what you were looking for?" he asked. Trunks took the necklace, inspecting the stone.

"Well it looks right to me. In fact it looks almost exactly like--"

"Good kami," Vegeta gasped. "That's Takira's. How the hell did he get his grimy hands on it?"

"It was a shape-shifter that killed her as a Saiyan," Gohan suggested. "He could have taken it. It must have been traded or stolen until it got here."

Malak listened to the Earthlings babble, confused. He couldn't fathom what they were talking about, but it sounded like that Vegeta character recognized the necklace. It looked like it, too: he was staring at the stone, a thousand emotions passing briefly beneath the thin poker-faced mask. When at last he spoke, his voice seemed unusually rough.

"Drop it on Goten. I want to see if this works." Trunks placed the small stone over Goten's heart, then drew back, helping Gohan to his feet so he could do the same. Gohan braced heavily on him, watching Vegeta intently. The Roc withdrew a respectful distance.

Vegeta glared at the prone figure at his feet. The boy really did resemble Kakarot. Old debts, acknowledged and ignored, rose to Vegeta's mind like restless spirits. Perhaps now he could lay them to rest.

'You'd better damn well wake up, boy; it's not only your soul on the line here.' Getting no response, Vegeta began to power up, calling upon all the strength he could summon. The fight with Denatu had sapped a good deal of his energy, but he was still the strongest of any being present. He rose a short distance into the air, looking down at Goten through the rippling golden aura that had become nearly second nature to him. Lifting his arm to the heavens, he gathered the energy into a ball, silently chanting the old incantation:

"Live, damn you!" Vegeta screamed. Abruptly the stream cut off; Vegeta fell to the ground, spent. It seemed like an eternity before Trunks stepped forward, pausing briefly by his father, then kneeling beside Goten. He frowned, eyes searching. The necklace, the dragontear, was gone--

--and Goten was still dead.