Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ The Legend Of the Bond ❯ Chasing Victory ( Chapter 28 )

Vegeta and Kakarotto flew through the sky searching for any clue as to where their missing engine could be. Vegeta was tremendously angry at Kakarotto, faulting him for their situation and for his lax security. They both knew that the rebellion would be in need of every single Saiya-jin and soldier in their fight against both Vegeta-sei’s and Freeza’s fleets. But without a working engine to get them back to their desperate comrades, they were essentially stranded on this planet.

Kakarotto remained quiet, blaming himself as well for this mess. He had left the ship for only a moment and in that short time someone must have thought to play a nasty trick on them…but why that person didn’t just take the ship remained a mystery to both of them. Kakarotto had thought to check the ground nearest the ship but no trace of the engine could be found in that barren land. A disheartening thought came to Kakarotto that perhaps they were completely out luck.

“Prince Vegeta?” Kakarotto was apprehensive.

“What?!” Vegeta snapped.

“Is…there a…possibility…you destroyed it?” Kakarotto remained wary as he awaited Vegeta’s reaction.

With his blood boiling, Vegeta suddenly veered around and flew past Kakarotto, speeding as fast as he could back towards the ship. Unfortunately, there was indeed that possibility. Vegeta had taken pains in destroying any object that looked remotely useful; all the while thinking that he wouldn’t leave anything behind that would give Freeza even a small advantage and that, thanks to all that Bulma had provided, the rebellion had enough technology to see them through. Vegeta realized had only one option available to him now and he wasn’t even sure if that was indeed an option at all.

Vegeta glanced over his shoulder at the figure trailing a respectful distance behind him. Perhaps his anger and frustration at Kakarotto had been misplaced; certainly there was more than one way for a ship’s engine to disappear. Thinking back on Bardock’s message, Vegeta thought about the fact they had a spy among the rebellion. There was a possibility the infiltrator could have attached a teleporter to the engine for the sole purpose of stranding Vegeta and Kakarotto on this planet and delaying their rejoining with their comrades. And if that was the case then the spy must be someone of high rank, or someone with a high security clearance that could access his ship for the express purpose of tampering with it. There were only a few Vegeta could think of and he planned to deal them properly once he rejoined the rebellion.

As he landed next to the ship, he looked up at the bright blue sky and thought of Bulma. He fervently wished she was with him now; she would be able to get them off this Kami-forsaken rock. He longed to hold her once again in his arms, to be able to feel her near and to see her face…Vegeta…Vegeta…He could hear her call him through the bond they had, and it was the only thing keeping him from going off to get her himself, wherever she was…

Another disturbing thought occurred to him: what if she hadn’t escaped, that perhaps she was somehow being coerced into manipulating the bond to make it seem like she was fine? If she was still imprisoned on one of Freeza’s ships then the rebellion might inadvertently destroy it during a battle that could possibly be happening right at this moment!

Once Kakarotto landed behind him, Vegeta turned to him, scowling like he normally did when agitated. “Kakarotto, help me find some spare parts inside the ship. We’ll have to create a makeshift engine.”

Kakarotto was surprised at the notion. “Can you do that?!”

“I may not be as proficient as my wife, but I can put something together.”

“Gee, then why didn’t you say so before?”

Angered at the thought having to say something so unbefitting of his royal self, Vegeta closed his eyes and clenched his teeth, saying, “Because it was my last available option to lower myself to this!”

Looking a bit askance at Vegeta, Kakarotto wondered if his prince’s suggestion was driven by nothing more than desperation. More likely, he was horrible at constructing engines, which could eat up valuable weeks, if not months, before they could return to the battle. Shrugging resignedly, Kakarotto just smiled and said, “Ah, okie-dokie!”

Vegeta rushed into the ship, followed yet again by Kakarotto. They searched every corner of the interior, scraping and digging for any usable part. As they worked, Vegeta felt a slight panic bubble grow within him. Even if they ever did manage to piece together a workable engine, would they be able to arrive at the battle in time? As things stood, they were backed in a corner with no place to go.

If only he had only gone after Freeza right after his fight with Zarbon like he had wanted to, as he so brashly boasted during that meeting. And if only the repulsing cold reptile had not sneaked away in order to hide from him at the last minute. It was obvious to Vegeta now that Freeza had done so that he could prepare for this surprise attack on two-thirds of the rebellion‘s fleet. The realization made Vegeta want to yell until he was hoarse, but he was jolted out of his frustrated and unhappy thoughts by Kakarotto, who suddenly turned to look at Vegeta with a guilty look on his face.

“He-he, I forgot, we don’t need to build a new engine. We can just use something I learned from Chimo.”

Vegeta, who was about to punch Kakarotto for his foolishness, forgetfulness, and bad timing, could only stare at the taller Saiya-jin with a perplexing expression of hope and anger on his face. “What the hell are you babbling about?”

“Shunkaido!” Kakarotto declared with a huge smile. He then placed his right index and middle fingers to his forehead, frowning with serious concentration, before quickly putting his hand on Vegeta’s shoulder. In the moment that a very irked Vegeta moved his own hand to remove Kakarotto’s impudent touch from his shoulder, they vanished. Within seconds, the two of them reappeared next to a very surprised Bardock on the bridgeof Vegeta’s flagship.

Vegeta turned to Kakarotto and grabbed him forcefully by the collar. “Why didn’t you say you could do that before? We wasted a lot of precious time, thanks to your idiocy!”

Grinning sheepishly, Kakarotto scratched the back of his head. “Sorry about that! It was the last thing Chimo taught me, but it didn’t come to mind until the last moment.”

Irritated, Vegeta shoved him backwards before releasing the grip on his collar. He then turned around to focus his attention on Bardock, who bowed to him.

“What is our current situation?” Vegeta’s look was stern and fearsome; he wanted to finish this war now.

“Captain Chimo’s gambit is keeping most of his fleet intact, but they are in a stalemate, unable to go further. Our fleet is heading towards Godan’s star, but at our current rate of speed, it will take some time before we arrive, and if we plan to catch the enemy from behind, it might take weeks.”

“Weeks? Hmph, this is ridiculous! Chimo might not even try to put up a fight at this rate.” Vegeta stared at the main viewscreen on the bridge, which was currently trained on the battle. He glared at the viewscreen and concentrated, determined to find a way to defeat the enemy.



Bardock turned his attention to his son, who was standing next to him with an expression of concentration that nearly matched the prince’s own. “Kakarotto, I received a recorded message from your wife sometime ago. You may retrieve it at the com unit.” After informing his son, Bardock quickly turned back to Vegeta, who remained silent.

Kakarotto promptly went to the com unit and placed the receiver earpiece into his ear, wondering what his wife had to say to him. Lately, she’d been yelling at him at every opportunity to come home and protect her and their son rather than fight in the war, so he figured the message would probably be about the same. Before he could listen in, a soldier a few feet away from him began to yell.

“Captain! Your Highness! I have just received an update that Freeza left his fleet a few hours ago!”

Vegeta, Bardock, and Kakarotto looked at the officer with wide and worrisome eyes. Vegeta was the first to respond, demanding, “Where is he going?”

“I-I’m not sure, Your Highness. There was no discernment of his ship or any flight path we could make out before his ship went out of scanner range.”

Clenching his fists, Vegeta was confused and frustrated. Under his breath, he muttered with gritted teeth to keep his voice from rising. “Where did you go, you foul bastard, and for what evil purpose?!”

Kakarotto nearly put down the earpiece, thinking that it might be better to listen to his wife’s message later when things were quieter, but something in his gut was telling him to not put it off. Kakarotto activated the communication device and paused to hear the recorded voice of his wife as it came through the earpiece.

“Goku-sa! I just heard from Bulma! She is on a planet called Namek-sei, and she found these dragon balls that grant wishes! I’m going there to pick her up. From our current location, our ship’ll probably take a little less than 3 weeks to get there. If that prince of yours wants to come too, the coordinates are XF…GY-254-6…397-A. And don’t forget to hurry up so you can come home and take care of me and Gohan!”

As soon as the message ended, Kakarotto raised his head and looked over at Vegeta, happy that there was some good news he could give him on this stress-filled day. “Prince Vegeta! Bulma…it’s Bulma!”

Surprised and not understanding what the silly Saiya-jin was saying, Vegeta rushed to stand next to Kakarotto once again. “What is it? What about Bulma?”

“Great news! Chi-chi said that Bulma got away from Freeza! She is on this planet called Namek-sei!”

Vegeta closed his eyes briefly as relief washed over him. Bulma was safe! He took a deep breath to bring himself back to the present and the task at hand. Thankfully, she was safe, but he couldn’t fully relax just yet. Now he had to bring this rebellion to its rightful victory before he could be reunited with her for good.

“Chi-chi also mentioned that there are some kind of magical…items on the planet, too,” Kakarotto added, but everyone on the bridge just looked back at him as though he was daft to say, let alone think, such a thing.

Vegeta felt the same way. “Fairy tales do not amuse me, Kakarotto.”

But Kakarotto just stubbornly shook his head. “I don’t think it’s fake. Chi-chi said something about these balls being able to grant wishes.”

When Vegeta heard Kakarotto say the word “balls”, his mind immediately honed into that familiar term. However, “balls that granted wishes”, “magical items”, those ideas seemed to dangle on the edge of his thoughts. In an instant, a nauseating gut feeling sprang up from within him. “Com Officer!” Vegeta barked at the soldier, who was frightened by the harsh tone in his prince’s voice. “Did that last message for Kakarotto come in on an encrypted and secure line?”

“I-I’m not sure, Your Highness. Let me check.” The soldier didn’t waste a second and quickly danced his fingers over his control panel. When the results came up on the display, he turned pale and gulped. As he turned to face Vegeta his voice shook. “N-no, Your Highness. The message was sent via an unsecured channel and according to our sensors…it was traced….picked up by one of the Ice-jin fleet ships.”

That gut-wrenching feeling grew stronger, because Vegeta knew exactly where Freeza was heading. He scrambled towards one of pilots, anger and aggravation mixed with a growing fear was resurfacing yet again in the pit of his stomach. “Pilot! How long will it take to get to Namek-sei?”

The pilot looked calm and keyed in a request for information about Namek-sei. “I don’t have that planet in my database. Do you have the coordinates?”

Before a frustrated Vegeta could say anything, Kakarotto spoke up. He too was worried for both Bulma and his wife. “I know it! It’s…um...XFGY-254-397-A!”

Vegeta and the others on the bridge were all amazed that Kakarotto could remember anything so complex. The pilot quickly entered the coordinates and instructions to calculate the time and distance to the target planet. After a few tense-filled moments, he turned to look at Vegeta, his face emotionless.

“Your Highness, according to our calculations, using our fastest available ship going at top speed, it will take about a month and 14 days to reach that destination. Given the last known coordinates of the traced message signal, the enemy ship already has several hours jump on us. I’m sorry, Your Highness, but you will not be able to overtake that ship, even if you leave right away.”

Sick to his stomach at the thought of Bulma being yet again in danger, Vegeta fumed and clenched his fists. Then an idea came to him: the only way to make it in time would be to leave immediately with Kakarotto to follow after Freeza. Even if Freeza did arrive on Namek-sei ahead of them, as soon as their ship got within range, Kakarotto could use the technique he learned from Chimo to transport Vegeta directly in front of Freeza. Then he would finally face-off with his greatest foe, the lizard that had enslaved his people and himself, and the one who had separated him from his beloved. Now was the time to act, to end all of this!

“Prepare a ship for me and Kakarotto! We depart at once for Namek-sei! Bardock, continue to follow Chimo’s battle plan. When I return, I will bring Freeza’s head back with me!

“Yes, Your Highness.” Bardock bowed, feeling uncertain. His thought of those terrible visions, centering about the death of someone close to the prince and which seemed to be connected to this very situation. Could they be foretelling a huge loss in the war for the rebellion or for its victory?

**********

King Vegeta watched impatiently from the bridge of his flagship as the fleets continue to engage in one relentless battle after another. The Ginyu Force was proving to be Freeza’s most powerful asset in this confrontation, as the Saiya-jins were battling only sporadically. As powerful as they were by themselves, the members of the Ginyu Force were becoming lax in their fighting, unnecessarily dragging out each of their individual fights instead of moving on quickly to the next one.

The king knew, off course, that the long, stretched-out battle before him was not because the Ginyu Force was too bored or lazy to settle down and finish it all off, but because the Saiya-jin king’s own son had formed a remarkably strong and wise rebellion. Nearly a month had passed since the war first began and, after witnessing the sheer tenacity and cleverness of their opponents, King Vegeta had begun to feel a silent swell of pride growing in his chest. His son had managed to amass a vast army of powerful and talented warriors, and not one of them could be underestimated.

After Freeza’s departure, King Vegeta had thought long and hard about his son and Freeza. The king knew that his son was very similar to him in temperament, although he was disappointed that Vegeta did not think that he, his father, was trustworthy. In retrospect, the king believed that he done what was best for his people, the only thing he could do to insure their survival. True, initially he wanted this alliance with Freeza in order to advance Saiya-jin technology, since they had been severely lacking in that respect, but it was also something he had to do. At the time, Freeza was the dominant being, the alpha and the omega of the universe. To have refused the offered alliance with the Ice-jin would have also written the immediate death sentence for his home planet and its inhabitants. At one point, King Vegeta had bristled under Freeza’s cruel mandates, and like his son, wanted with all his being to overthrow the Ice-jin tyrant. Before he could execute his own rebellious plans, he learned the hard way not to underestimate Freeza, and his dream of freedom had received a terrible and rude awakening. Ever since, the king remained ever subservient, never raising a hand against his cold emperor.

But now was not time to reminisce about his past decisions! His son, the prince, had done what he could not all of those years! Prince Vegeta was destined to be the Legendary and he had found his Bonded One! The realization of the prophecy, that his own son was indeed the one who could defeat Freeza for good and free Waku-sei Vegeta and its people from his dastardly rule. King Vegeta deeply regretted that his son had not confided in him about his rebellion and that he might never meet the one that the gods thought was the equal to his son, the woman who would lead his son to great power. Despite those regrets, he was still the king of the Saiya-jins, and whatever was going to happen, he had a war to win! He took a deep breath and turned to address his crew, which operated and commanded the whole royal Saiya-jin fleet. He scanned around, looking at their obedient and expectant faces. Then he smirked at them proudly, and began to change history.

“Now is the time, my Saiya-jin warriors! Let us release every ounce of our great power, our fleet, and our pride upon that bastard’s forces and assist my son’s rebellion!”

As soon as the king finished issuing his enthusiastic orders, a great power surged through Waku-sei Vegeta and blew it to bits.

**********

Bulma decided, with great effort, that she was going back to the fields to help the Namek-jins in their diligent planting of those cute little trees. The tender saplings were not planted for food or nourishment, but to secure the ecological balance of their planet. It had been almost a month since she had contacted Chi-chi, and her body had grown a good deal since then. She was almost eight months along in her pregnancy and was still too stubborn to rest even though her weary body would demand much from her during all hours of the day. She was content to work and do something useful while she waited for Chi-chi’s arrival. Nail was never far off, so if she ever had trouble with standing, he was there to help her up. When she wasn’t on her feet, she was usually sitting in dirt, which she wasn’t too thrilled with. In between plantings, she worked side-by-side with her friends as they tried to improve their homes.

On this particular day, Dende had just run by her, giggling and playing with his friend on the edge of the field, when a sudden pain shot up her spine. She had no idea what caused the pain. The worry and fear it caused made her stop what she was doing and to stay as still as possible.

Nail, who had been chatting with Muuri not too far away, noticed her abrupt change in movement and went to her side immediately. When Bulma felt Nail’s touch on her upper arms, bracing her gently, she jumped with surprise; her mind had been on the pain.

“Nail, don’t scare me like that, please.” Bulma tried to act as if nothing was wrong, but her voice was shaky.

“What’s wrong? You’re behaving differently.” Nail’s voice was even and soothing, like Vegeta’s, and that was all she needed to relax.

“Oh, I just felt–” but before Bulma could explain her pain, it happened again, causing her to gasp aloud. Nail held her more firm so she wouldn’t fall over. The pain had spread out from her spine and was making her feel a bit dizzy.

“Dende!” Nail yelled to the young boy since he was the closest healer near the field.

Dende ran up to them, looking both confused and worried. Nail’s voice was very stern when he called for him, causing the young Namek-jin to panic slightly. When Dende got closer, he slowed, his eyes going from Bulma’s and Nail’s faces then to the ground around where Bulma sat. It was wet, like there had been a leak.

Nail saw the direction of Dende’s gaze and immediately reached out with one hand to feel the ground. With a look of worry, he brought hand up to his nose and sniffed it. In one quick movement, he rose up, holding Bulma in his arms as he lifted her off the ground.

Dende continued to look confused and worried. “What’s the matter, Nail? What’s going on?”

As he began heading towards the village, Nail paused for a second and looked back at Dende, saying, “I’m not sure, but I think her egg is hatching.”

Dende went from confused and worried to surprised and worried. He ran after Nail who had suddenly taken to the air, as he was faster flying than walking with his delicate cargo. Bulma was only half-aware of what was going on. The intermittent waves of pain were coming closer together, and the lightheadedness that came with them increased as well. No one had ever told her what a normal birth would be like and she didn’t quite feel that she was indeed undergoing labor. She thought she would be giving birth after nine month’s time, yet she was pretty certain that only eight had passed. Soon, everything turned into a blur, and all there was to focus on was the pain. Then a sense of panic settled into the process. She didn’t know if this panicky feeling was normal, nor if the Namek-jins would know how to help her through it.

Nail took her inside her small temporary home that Muuri had given her and gently laid her down on the bed. Dende followed right behind, along with most of the village, though they didn’t go past the front door. Unfortunately, not one of them had a clue as to how help Bulma and the young one inside her. None of them knew what a live birth would be like coming from within a person, rather than hatching an already expelled egg. All they could do was wait and watch. Some hoped that Bulma would regain her senses and tell them what to do. Muuri followed Dende into the hut and kneeled beside a straining Bulma.

“Let’s do what we can to help her, Dende.” Muuri’s voice was calm, but also concerned. Dende just nodded stiffly. They both stretched out their arms and held their hands over her pain-racked body. Soon the soft, healing light spread from their open hands and enveloped Bulma.

Nail, furious at his inability to help her as well, rushed in frustration from the hut. While outside, the others stood back and watched in silent puzzlement as the agitated young Namek-jin paced back and forth for what seemed like hours. Why, he asked himself repeatedly as he paced, had he not bothered to ask Bulma what he should do when the time came for her egg to hatch? Just as he was about to jump into the sky to head over to the Grand Elder’s home, he saw something coming towards the hut that completely took him by surprise.

**********

The battle was raging fiercer and bloodier than ever after the Saiya-jin fleet received the king’s orders to turn on Freeza’s fleet over a month earlier. For everyone involved, there seemed to be no end to the fighting. What gave the rebellion forces hope to keep on fighting was the knowledge that Freeza, having left weeks ago for an unknown planet, was no longer with his fleet in the battle zone. And the news that Prince Vegeta had gone after him, hopefully to confront and destroy him, was reassuring to most of the rebellion warriors.

Even the Ginyu Force, which finally got back to serious fighting a bit too late, was feeling the devastating effects of the combined rebellion and Saiya-jin fleets’ power. The section of Bardock’s fleet that had successfully rounded behind Freeza’s forces finally got the upper hand for a moment, and pressed their advantage to deplete the Ginyu Force of all its members…but one.

On this day, Bardock, Chimo, King Vegeta, and Seripa were all involved in a difficult aerial fight against him, but the powerful and crafty Captain Ginyu was proving to be a most formidable enemy. It was becoming increasingly clear to his battle-weary opponents that he was truly the foundation around which not only the Ginyu Force, but of Freeza’s fleet, had been built.

Chimo saw an opening and grabbed Ginyu from behind, but was immediately thrown off. King Vegeta followed with a solid volley of ki blasts, but only a few managed to hit his target, causing minimal damage. Moving in like a blur, Bardock aimed a kick at Ginyu’s head, but it missed contact by an inch or two. As soon as his kick missed, Seripa flew in from behind and tried to land a punch, but unfortunately Ginyu was too fast for her and dodged her attack as well.

“None of our attacks are working,” King Vegeta observed, flustered from the knowledge that he was too weak to even kill someone like Ginyu.

Chimo just nodded. He was deep in thought, watching as Bardock dove in for another attack.

Seripa looked towards her king. “Then what should we do, sire?”

“Do nothing, pretty monkey, for you will all soon be defeated!” Ginyu shouted at her with a large smirk painted on his purple face. He was chuckling, as he seemingly dodged all Bardock’s rapid-fire attacks with careless ease.

Seripa snarled and scowled back at Ginyu. More than just mad at him for his continued taunting of them, she wanted nothing more than to rip that smug bastard apart limb-from-limb with her own hands. Grimacing, the king understood her frustration all too well, but realized that Ginyu was too powerful and could not be defeated like this.

Chimo floated beside the king with a similar look on his face. “King Vegeta,” he asked, “how much would you be willing to sacrifice for us to defeat Ginyu?”

The Saiya-jin king looked at Chimo, slightly surprised at the question. Then, for a fleeting moment, Chimo looked directly into the king’s eyes and saw a tiny spark of pride flicker within their dark depths. “I have recently lost my planet and my once-numerous and powerful fleet is nearly decimated. I have very little left to hold onto except the hope that somehow, someday soon, Ginyu and Freeza will be defeated...and my people will be avenged!”

“Then I hope you will do as I tell you,” Chimo said, his voice calm and reserved.

One of the king’s eyebrows arched up while a small smirk pulled at a corner of his mouth. His head nodded slightly with a silent understanding, sensing that if Chimo did have a plan in mind, then it could very well be that this desperate bid for victory might just be their last. “You have a plan?”

“Send Bardock and Seripa away. We have to do this alone; just you and I…”

The king’s smirk grew a little wider as he nodded once again.

**********

Vegeta’s ki was radiating off his body; the unusual red tint of it seemed to broadcast into the cramped space just how angry he was. The fast, but somewhat compact, ship that he and Kakarotto were using to chase after Freeza hardly left any room to move, so Vegeta remained sitting, trying hard to be patient. But the combined news of Vegeta-sei’s destruction and his father’s decision to turn on Freeza and ally with his rebellion, kept running through his mind over and over again, becoming almost too much for the Saiya-jin prince to bear.

His oddball Saiya-jin companion sat behind him, deep in silent medication. If only he could be like Kakarotto and empty his mind of all of his troubling thoughts as easily, but Vegeta was on edge. Something was bothering him besides the fact his planet and most of his people for whose freedom he had been fighting had been wiped out, and that his father had actually been on his side this entire time. Not only did Vegeta have a heavy feeling of loss looming over him, there was also a sense of real dread that he didn’t even know what destroyed his planet. And whatever it was, it seemed too powerful to not be of some concern. It might even be the same entity that had given Fukusa such trouble when they were near Vegeta-sei, and that thought made Vegeta even more unsettled.

On top of it all, the worst feeling was the pain he felt coming from Bulma. The once-comforting idea that she may have been safe now felt like nothing more than a dreadful lie! Someone must be hurting her to cause her such pain! Somehow this whole thing must have been set up as part of Freeza’s evil plan to lure him to this remote planet – all of this talk of magical Dragon Balls must be nothing more than a ruse! However, he could not fully deny the existence of a similar legend that he heard over the years, but could never fully remember because of its insignificance. Regardless, the very fact he was not any nearer to Bulma so that he could beat the life out of whoever was causing her this unbearable pain made him want to reach back and forcefully shake Kakarotto from his meditative trance and command him to use his strange power to instantly take him to her side. But he knew he had to bide his time, because doing something that impulsive would either foul up their plans to sneak up on Freeza or play right into his cold hands. At least Vegeta knew in his heart that she was alive and he was getting closer to her.

**********

Chi-chi jumped out of her tiny spaceship and onto the blue grass of Namek-sei and looked around. Gohan was strapped into a carry-sack onto her back; his own little eyes widened curiously as they focused in on the clouds floating above him in the green sky. Chi-chi had a feeling that the aliens on this planet weren’t going to be a threat to her, but her delay in arriving and the wary sense of something ominous about to happen only reinforced her cautiousness. She reached into the ship and took out a large-barrel laser gun. Holding it next to her body, she activated the button that re-encapsulated her spaceship. Gohan remained unusually quiet, for which Chi-chi was more than grateful.

Chi-chi had no idea where to find Bulma, so she began walking, hoping to run into someone who could point her in the right direction. Luckily, it didn’t take her long before she came upon two tall, green, Namek-jins working in a garden near a small domed structure. They both stopped in their labors and looked at her funny as she strode up to them. Still unsure and a little scared, but determined to help her friend, Chi-chi slowed her steps as she approached, smiling her friendliest and most reassuring smile.

**********

King Vegeta was rapidly losing ground against Ginyu. His punches and kicks had grown more haphazard, with no real pattern or style. Of the two, the king looked far worse. His armor was hanging in ragged pieces by the ridges and shoulder plates; his gloves were gone and what was left of his cape and clothes was either torn or bloody. Ginyu was half-laughing at the king’s futile attempts to kill him with just his bare hands. King Vegeta didn’t look like he was going to last much longer, despite his dogged resistance. At one point in the middle of their skirmish, the king had managed to rip off Ginyu’s scouter, which he immediately tossed away and to the side, but any small victories like that one were becoming increasingly scarce.

Not too far away and half-hidden by the surrounding debris, Chimo was capitalizing on Ginyu’s lack of a scouter, using all of his concentration to power up. He was pulling in the ki’s of every nearby being to form them into a devastating ki attack to throw at Ginyu. If there was even a small mistake in this plan, it would fail, but Chimo had one other, last option as well. Oddly, it was also something he wanted to use…as it would finally release him from this never-ending torment.

The king didn’t know when his waning strength would finally give out, but he wasn’t going to let up when Ginyu’s defeat seemed so close. Luckily for him, his crazed fighting style was not allowing his opponent to pay much attention to anything else.

Earlier, a very unhappy Bardock and Seripa had left on the king’s command. Before they departed, he had given them specific orders that, in case he would perish in battle, Bardock, the third-class Saiya-jin that his son trusted, would lead what remained of his people until Prince Vegeta came back with Freeza’s head. Of course, the king hoped his son’s return would be soon. The prince, his son, had proven to King Vegeta that he could lead their people, that he probably was, for many years, a skilled leader. But it didn’t matter any more. All that mattered now was giving Chimo enough time to gather his attack and defeat Ginyu, which in turn would lead to the defeat of Freeza’s forces. His son would truly be proud.

Ginyu looked to be getting tired of playing with King Vegeta. Putting more power into his attacks, Ginyu began to maul over the King, causing what was left of his armor to shatter. The king was being pushed back, unable to even defend himself. One attack followed another, and the King felt each blow grow in strength. His bruised and bleeding eyes looked like they didn’t want to stay open any longer.

Chimo watched on as the king was being beaten to death and clenched his teeth with anger, impatient that his plan was taking so long. Sadly, there was a part of him that felt a small enjoyment in the beating the king was receiving. The dismissive way Vegeta had treated him, how he had taken the lives of his people, and how the Saiya-jins’ involvement in brining this mess the universe was in to a head made seeing the king hurt somewhat satisfying to Chimo. Suddenly, a small pop sounded from behind Chimo, which signaled that his attack was ready.

“GINYU!” Chimo cried out with all his battle rage, at the same time hurling a large blue ball of energy towards the combatants.

Ginyu looked curiously towards Chimo. He released his grip on King Vegeta’s armor, smirking as he did. King Vegeta just floated in upper atmosphere, unable to move, unable to open his eyes. He had heard Chimo cry out and knew what was coming next. Thinking only of the son whom he would never see again, the king let out his last bit of energy with one final breath. His limp, dead body then floated peacefully among the stars.

“Fool, I can easily dodge that slow ball!” Ginyu taunted, staying right where he was. He was going to prove his point, and not move away from the blast until it was within seconds of hitting him.

Chimo knew that the power of the ki ball would kill Ginyu if the blast could hit him dead-on. He also knew Ginyu was aware of the power contained in the ki ball, or else he would never be so boastful and willing to prove his ability to easily dodge it at the last second. Focusing his remaining energy reserves, Chimo placed two fingers to his forehead and concentrated. In less than a heartbeat, he had emerged behind Ginyu to tightly wrap his limbs around his enemy’s body and clenching onto him for dear life.

Angered and surprised, Ginyu cursed and struggled, trying to get the Godan-jin off him, while forgetting to pay attention to the large, blue ball of energy coming straight towards him. But when it got closer, the ball’s intense radiation made Ginyu spin around and made him realize what kind of danger he was in. Too slow and too shocked at the realization of how he just signed his own death certificate, he didn’t move.

Both Ginyu and Chimo felt the heat and the pain of the blast as it consumed them. The sensation was similar to being slowly burned alive. Once the blast fully hit the two, it imploded, then immediately exploded in a massive circular wave, spreading and swallowing up everything nearby. King Vegeta’s body got caught in the wave of hot energy and was slowly cremated. The enemy ships that also got caught in the wave were ripped apart and most of the debris turned to dust within seconds. Those who were far enough to see the blast but not get hit by the killer wave stopped their fighting and watched in horrified fascination, now mesmerized by the blinding lights.

When the light died down, everything was still and quiet. Ginyu and Chimo were floating motionless among drifting bits of debris, both barely alive. Chimo was hanging on by a thread but had managed to keep his hold of Ginyu. The Godan-jin winced in agony and frustration. He had obviously been wrong about a few, but very crucial things. He’d misjudged Ginyu’s knowledge about the power of the Genki Dama and that its mighty blast would be enough to kill his purple-skinned enemy.

Barely above a whisper, Ginyu chuckled, coughing as the dry words caught in his mouth. “I’m still alive! You-” he paused, his voice becoming raspy, “failed!”

Chimo closed his eyes, as he painfully remembered the faces of his beloved family, the people of Godan-sei, and of all the rebellion allies relying on him. In one swift motion, he released his right arm from around Ginyu’s body and lifted two fingers to his forehand.

“No.” That last, defiant word echoed in the now empty space where Ginyu and Chimo had hovered. A few moments later, that echo also faded into oblivion.

Somewhere, far from the battle, an ancient star went supernova much sooner than nature had intended. The beauty of the stellar explosion seemed to reflect in the setting sun on the planet Godan; its surface peaceful even though the rest of the universe was at war.

Not long afterwards, the rebellion forces began to take control of what was once the strongest imperial fleet in the universe.

**********

Freeza stepped onto the blue grass of Namek-sei. His beady red eyes scanned the green sky, knowing whatever happened with regard to his forces in the last several weeks, it didn’t matter. He no longer cared that his fleet, his empire was doomed, for soon he would be immortal and more powerful than ever before. The rebellion might take over his empire for a while, but he was certain that he would take it right back from them. And when he did, he was going to make them all pay heavily for their brazen impudence and treachery.

His second-in-command emerged from the spaceship and stood behind Freeza. Zarbon rather liked the planet’s scenery, although it probably wasn’t going offer very much by diversion for someone as sophisticated as he was. In the distance, he could see what looked to be a village, made up of a cluster of white, round huts with purple windows, surrounded by several fields populated by small, blue plants. No doubt, that would be as good a place as any to begin their search for those so-called “Dragon Balls”. While he waited for his leader to make the next move, Zarbon fussed about with his attire, brushing off imaginary bits of dust from his armor and cape before smoothing down several stray strands of green hair.

Freeza stared at the distant village and smirked. Soon, revenge would be his.