A Failed Purge
A Failed Purge
Summary: When Raditz's spaceship explodes in the outer reaches of the solar system, Goku, his family, friends and an enemy are safe … if only for one year. AU, Challenge fic.
Warnings: Language, AU and violence.
Disclaimer: Dragon Ball Z and its characters are owned by Akira Toriyama, Bird Studios, Toei Animation, FUNimation and others. I don't own the characters or canon plotlines. I do not make any profit by writing this fan fiction.
Author's Notes: This is an entry for the Fireplace Writing Challenge 3: The Butterfly Effect, in which one canon event is to be changed, and the consequences of this change are to be explored.
I know the power levels are not consistent with canon, but I have an explanation for it. The Z fighters haven't been training much because they are in the dark about the Saiyans' arrival.
Many thanks to Mel for beta-ing this fic. I'd also like to thank Cass for helping me out of sticky plot situations.
In the depths of the Milky Way galaxy, a tennis-ball shaped spaceship was shooting towards a solar system. A large, hairy Saiyan warrior was within this one-man ship. His fingers were tapping shakily at the beeping controls; beads of sweat were running down Raditz's face. A red light was blinking rapidly, which did nothing to improve his situation.
"The ship's malfunctioning! Shit!" He slammed his fists onto the control panel. "GENERAL NAPPA! PRINCE VEGETA! I need your help!"
There were no answering voices from his Scouter. Come on – help me out! thought Raditz desperately.
Just as the spaceship shot past Neptune, the onboard computer made an announcement.
"Self-destructing in three … two … one …"
A loud boom sounded in Vegeta's ears on a distant planet; he winced slightly in an unusual display of weakness. Nappa looked at him; he had also heard the blast on his Scouter.
"Prince Vegeta, sir …" he began tentatively. "Should we check Earth's status?"
The duo was in a thickly-forested area, but Vegeta and Nappa had not come here to appreciate Nature. Discretion was a necessity for them at the moment, and this would not be available at the local military bases.
Vegeta frowned in the bald Saiyan's direction. He did not want to do the work of an ordinary scout, but he wouldn't trust Frieza's servants for this mission. Vegeta and Nappa had to do this on their own.
"Get your spaceship serviced and re-fuelled, Nappa," commanded Vegeta. "We're going to Earth."
"Yes, Vegeta." Nappa abandoned the guava he was munching on and lifted into the air. He shot off towards the nearest service station on the planet, remote control in hand.
Half-an-hour later and after some "persuasion" by the two Saiyans, their spaceships had left the planet without any of Frieza's more significant servants getting wind of Vegeta's plan. The local minions were easy to manipulate, thanks to Nappa and Vegeta's power levels.
I hope Kakarrot isn't too much of a disappointment.
Vegeta gazed into the familiar sight of space, his thoughts elsewhere. There are only three Saiyans left now. Raditz's demise was an unwanted failure – it has caused me, the Prince of all Saiyans, to set out on an otherwise avoidable mission. If only Raditz weren't careless; I'm sure he never bothered to get his ship serviced.
He thought of Planet Vegeta's destruction. Frieza will pay dearly … someday.
"Computer," he enquired, "give me the list of inhabited planetson the way."
"Yes, Prince Vegeta." A map appeared on the screen, indicating the planets he had asked for. "Trebuch, Sling, Arlia, Taura -"
"Do any of these planets have fighters?" Vegeta didn't want to listen to the names of hundreds of planets, even though there weren't that many inhabited ones.
"Arlia and Taura are inhabited by fighters, Prince Vegeta."
Arlia. Vegeta was reminded of something he'd heard while on an old mission. I've heard the fighters there are A-level. We should "test" them. Vegeta smirked at the prospect of a good fight while tapping a button on his Scouter.
"Nappa."
There was no answer.
"NAPPA!" Vegeta didn't have the patience to deal with a sleeping servant.
"NAPPA!"
Vegeta's voice alerted Nappa from his doze. The blackness of space, interspersed by sporadic stars and planets, was no stranger to this veteran Saiyan elite. But his Prince was someone who could not be ignored.
"I'm sorry, Vegeta," Nappa apologised quickly. "Your orders, sir?"
"I've made a minor alteration to our plans. We're halting briefly at Arlia to test the locals' fighting prowess." Prince Vegeta's voice carried the usual commanding tone; Nappa could almost see the familiar smirk on his Prince's face.
"Yes, sir," said Nappa. This trip isn't going to be a bore after all, he thought, glancing at the tiny screen of the on-board computer. Sure enough, Prince Vegeta had altered the flight plan a little.
One year had passed without much excitement for the two elite Saiyans. The Arlian escapade was useless and the planet Arlia was now space dust.
A massive, picturesque blue planet swirling with white clouds and green land masses greeted the Saiyans' eyes. Unlike the residents of this planet who had been deeply moved upon seeing this very sight a few decades ago, no such emotions prevailed in either Saiyans' minds. They were here for a purpose.
The Saiyan spacecrafts were heading into Planet Earth's atmosphere. Nappa and Vegeta were alert in their spaceships. What their Scouters were indicating was not what they had expected.
Kakarrot has failed! Vegeta fumed. His Scouter was indicating seven significant but weak power levels. The strongest one was 700. It must be him. Four other power levels were around 500; another one was 625. Weaklings. Kakarrot must be incompetent.
He and Nappa were heading towards an uninhabited, grassland area. The spaceships crashed into the ground, creating huge craters side by side. The spaceships did not suffer any damage. Once the smoke had cleared, the doors opened and the Saiyans stepped out of their spaceships.
Vegeta was in no mood to be excited at stepping out from a tiny, one-man spaceship, and neither was his servant Nappa.
Kakarrot is incompetent. There were millions of other power levels appearing on Vegeta's Scouter. They are insignificant. I must focus on the larger power levels. They're nothing compared to mine or Nappa's, but they will be taken care of.
Elsewhere on Earth, it was a sunny morning. The sea around a small island was fairly calm; there was a slight breeze. Two tall men were having a mock wrestling match in front of a cottage painted in a bright shade of pink They were surrounded by two other men and three talking animals.
A large ring had been drawn into the sand, indicating the boundary. A scar-faced man in an orange gi was very close to touching the line. He was being pushed out by another man in an orange gi, only this man was stronger, and his hair stood out in all directions. The first warrior's hair, on the other hand, was long enough to fall to his back. Neither warrior was giving up.
"Go for it, Goku!" said a short, bald man with six dots on his forehead, in the manner of a Shaolin monk. "Push Yamcha out of the ring!"
"Yamcha, you've got to win!" said Puar, a blue-coloured cat. She was bobbing up and down in the air in wild excitement.
A bald old man was engrossed in reading his favourite magazine. The monk, Krillin, took one look at its cover and turned away in embarrassment.
"Roshi, why aren't you interested in the match?" asked Oolong, a pig, who was eyeing Roshi's book.
"I've taught Goku to fight the real –" Roshi began, but he stopped abruptly. His eyes widened, and everyone in the group who could sense ki did a double-take in fear. Goku, who was winning, froze upon sensing two gigantic and evil ki signatures on the planet – much worse than Piccolo's.
Yamcha had stopped pushing Goku. Both of them were now standing side-by-side. Krillin, Roshi, Oolong and Puar joined them inside the sandy ring, which was slowly being blown away by the sea breeze. Umigame, being an ancient turtle, was too slow to move. They were stock-still; their eyes fixed to the North. That was where Goku was sensing the unfamiliar powers. Two seconds later, the group had more cause for alarm: the two beings were heading straight for Kame House.
Many miles away from Kame House, a green, caped and intimidating-looking demon was deep in meditation. All of a sudden, Piccolo's eyes flew wide open.
I'm sensing two ki signatures. They're …horribly powerful! Who're they, and what're they up to?
He could sense them heading towards Kame House. I'll wait and watch. I won't help Son and his friends.
Vegeta and Nappa were flying over a busy city with many high-rise buildings. The database is right this time, Vegeta thought. The weaklings can't fight for shit.
They had passed over the city in seconds. His Scouter was ignoring the weak signatures behind him; concentrating on a group of four closely packed power levels.
Very soon, they were closing in on their targets.
"Nappa," said Vegeta into his Scouter, "Kakarrot's power level must be the strongest one. Take out the other three when I give you the signal."
"Yes."
They had now reached their destination. Three humans, three animals and one Saiyan were staring at them in fear.
Wordlessly, Vegeta and Nappa descended on to the island. Vegeta's eyes were on Kakarrot, the tall Saiyan with spiky hair and an orange gi, identical to the ones worn by two other humans standing on the beach.
Goku looked at the gatecrashers with worry. The two people who had arrived had huge amounts of ki.
His sharp eyesight could discern the intruders' features as they were descending. One of the men was large, bald and towering. In contrast, the other man was much shorter. He seemed to make up for his height with his spiky hair, which started from the prominent widow's peak on his forehead. Both of them were wearing a peculiar sort of upper-body armour, with wide shoulder plates and crotch protection. Brown belts were tied around their waists.
The intruders landed upon the island.
"Kakarrot," the shorter one said, pointing at Goku for a moment. "You have failed in your mission."
"My mission?" said Goku blankly. "Who are you and what are you talking about? My name isn't 'Kakarrot', it's Goku."
The shorter man raised his eyebrows. "You're telling me you've forgotten all about your mission?" A flock of seagulls was flying into the South, well above the island.
"What mission?" Goku was sure that the blank looks on his friends' faces had shown up on his own face.
"You were sent as an infant to destroy all life-forms on this planet."
Goku gasped in surprise, and so did the others. Oolong was shaking now; his cowardice was well-known.
"I'm an alien? How is this possible?" asked Goku.
"That's nonsense!" Yamcha spoke up. "Goku is no alien, and he sure as hell won't destroy the planet!"
"That's right!" squeaked Puar.
"Enough of this crap!" the short, spiky-haired man snapped. "Kakarrot, you are a Saiyan who was sent to purge this planet, but you've failed miserably! You're one of our race, but only a third-class warrior."
"How can you be so sure?" asked Yamcha.
"You're testing my patience, human," warned the short Saiyan. A ki ball appeared in his gloved right hand. Yamcha stepped backwards, but remained resolute. "It's time I introduced myself. I am Vegeta, the Prince of all Saiyans."
Goku couldn't think of any response to Vegeta's pompous statement.
After a while, Yamcha spoke up again. "How can you be sure Goku was sent to kill everyone on this planet, Prince of all Saiyans?"
Vegeta's eyes flashed in anger as he growled and sent a quick ki blast at Yamcha, killing him instantly.
Goku felt his blood boil. His ki flared up as he, Krillin and Master Roshi jumped at Vegeta, who moved into the blue, cloudless sky in a flash.
Goku and the others attempted to throw punches and kicks at the Saiyan Prince, but to no avail. Vegeta was simply too fast for them. All three of them were now in the air, but Vegeta was on the ground. Oolong had dragged a sobbing Puar into the house, while Umigame was simply too slow. Luckily, the elite Saiyans hadn't bothered about him.
Vegeta simply folded his hands and smirked at Goku, who brought his hands together for a move he had used many, many times. Krillin and Master Roshi did the same.
"Ka-me-ha-me-HA!" Three beams of ki escaped from the Z Warriors' hands and hit the smirking Saiyan, resulting in a blinding explosion.
The smoke cleared, only to reveal an unscathed Vegeta, who had a purple, menacing ki aura around him.
"I should've known," whispered Krillin. "We don't have a chance to win."
"Krillin, don't say – LOOK OUT!!" yelled Goku. They had forgotten all about the larger Saiyan.
Goku went into a defensive posture when he saw the two ki blasts. The giant Saiyan's arms were extended above him, and he had a fiendish smile on his face, which was enhanced by the blazing white aura surrounding him. Goku looked on in absolute horror as Krillin and Master Roshi were obliterated right in front of his eyes.
In hot fury, he flew towards the larger Saiyan, aiming to kill.
Vegeta's Scouter informed him of two other power levels approaching the area. All of a sudden, Kakarrot's power level jumped to 2,000, right after the deaths of his two human allies.
Kakarrot rushed at Nappa in a mad rage and threw a vicious punch at Nappa, who blocked him with ease. Three blows in quick succession to Kakarrot's stomach managed to put an end to the third-class fighter's insubordination – temporarily. In the meantime, Vegeta had descended, and was now walking towards Kakarrot's struggling form. The sand had soiled the latter's disgustingly orange clothes.
"If you don't co-operate with us, we will destroy this planet." Vegeta looked down on him in a mixture of disappointment and fury.
"Why … should I … co-operate … with you?" choked Kakarrot.
"You have no choice, Kakarrot." Vegeta turned towards the newcomers, who were descending. A three-eyed human and a clown boy with weak power levels are not worth fighting. Without breaking into a sweat, he killed the newcomers with precise ki blasts.
He sighed in exasperation, for another fighter was heading towards this area. A power level of 625. What an excuse for a power level.
"Piccolo's coming here …" whispered Kakarrot. "He won't help …"
Sure enough, another fighter arrived and landed on the island. What surprised Vegeta, apart from this man's bravado, was the fact that the new arrival was no Earthling.
The persistent sea breeze was causing the tall being's white cape to wave behind him. His posture was confident; his pink arms were folded. The green man's face and black eyes did not show any emotion; he was looking back at Vegeta sternly. His white and purple turban did not hide his pointed, prominent ears.
"What brings a Namek, of all people, to this planet?" Vegeta asked.
"Piccolo," whispered Kakarrot behind Vegeta, "get out of –"
A kick from Nappa forced Kakarrot to shut up again.
"Namek?" asked the green man known as Piccolo. "I've lived on this planet all my life."
Vegeta was mildly intrigued, but this was no time to ask a Namek to tell his story. "Leave this place. Our business with Kakarrot here does not concern you." He pointed towards the prone Saiyan.
The Namek had the audacity to smirk. "You want to kill Son here, is it? I'm going to do that."
"Kakarrot is not expendable at the moment." Vegeta walked towards the Namek. "However, you are. He's right, you know." Vegeta stopped abruptly. "You should save your skin, Namek."
"Running away isn't one of my habits," the Namek retorted, discarding his turban and cape away, leaving him in a purple gi.
Vegeta smirked. "If you want to play games, Namek, it's your choice." He powered up, savouring the slightly troubled expression on the Namek's face.
The Namek flew straight up to Vegeta, and to his surprise, phased behind him. The Namek punched him once, and would have succeeded in landing a punch again if Vegeta hadn't blocked him.
Vegeta applied a deathly grip to the Namek's folded hand, causing the Namek to scream in pain. "You're more intelligent than the rest of this planet's pathetic fighters. I'll give you credit for that." With that, he threw the Namek into the air and blasted him into the afterlife.
Through half-closed eyes, Goku watched as Piccolo let out a deathly, painful scream. I tried to warn him! He felt remorse at the demise of his enemy.
"Nappa," said Vegeta, who had now come near Goku, "check if there are any other fighters on this planet. I'm going to locate Kakarrot's spaceship." Goku's eyes were fully open now, he tilted his head. Vegeta took out what looked like a TV remote from his armour. He frowned. "Frieza … he's going to pay for destroying our home planet. There are only three of us left … three of us. Not nearly enough to revolt! I wish there was a way …"
"There are no other significant power levels, Prince Vegeta," said Nappa.
Something Vegeta was ranting about registered in Goku's brain. "Do you want your home planet and people back, Vegeta?"
The sea breeze continued to blow as Vegeta looked towards him, openly curious. "Is that possible?"
"Yes," said Goku. "We used to have seven orbs on this planet, called the Dragonballs. If all of them are gathered, the Eternal Dragon emerges and grants one wish. It can grant almost anything."
"You … used to have them?" Vegeta's eyebrows narrowed slightly in confusion.
"Well …" Goku's eyes fell on Vegeta's "belt" again. He realised it wasn't a belt, but a tail. "Piccolo was the connection to the Dragonballs. When you – when he died, the Dragonballs were inactivated."
"The Namek." Vegeta's eyes were on the sea; he was deep in thought.
Goku had no doubt now about his Saiyan blood. It did explain why his son Gohan had a tail.
Vegeta's mind was processing everything Kakarrot had just said. He isn't the lying type.
I've heard of rumours that Planet Namek has something called the 'magical balls'. The Dragonball story of Kakarrot's must be true, then. In that case, we know where to look for another set.
Focusing on the remote in his hand, Vegeta located Kakarrot's spaceship. Royalty has its advantages.
"Nappa," he said after a minute. "I've located Kakarrot's spaceship. The co-ordinates should be on your Scouter. Find it and pilot it here."
"Yes, sir."
"Kakarrot," Vegeta told the other Saiyan, who was now getting to his feet. "You're coming with us." When Kakarrot tried to protest, he continued, "or this planet dies. Your battle isn't against your own people now; it's against Frieza's ever-expanding empire."
Kakarrot showed no further dissent.
In ten minutes, Nappa had brought the spaceship to the island. Vegeta and Nappa were in the process of summoning their own spaceships.
"Get inside," said Vegeta roughly. "The spaceship is voice-command based. You should find armour-containing capsules inside.
"For the majority of this journey, your Saiyan status will remain concealed. Understand?"
Kakarrot nodded, and stepped inside his spaceship. The door closed after he sat inside it.
Now for the final part of the plan, thought Vegeta, stepping in his own space pod.
A few seconds later, the spaceships had crossed beyond the Earth's atmosphere.
"Nappa," Vegeta said into his Scouter, "take control of Kakarrot's spaceship. Inform me when you're out of the solar system. I'm staying here for some time; I have some business to do."
"What is our new mission, sir?"
"We're heading for the nearest re-fuelling station. From there, we go to Planet Namek. Make sure Kakarrot's Saiyan heritage is hidden until you get the say-so from me."
My business here shouldn't take more than a few minutes.
Back on Earth, it was a pleasant afternoon at the foot of Mt Paozu. This lush green area was full of the calls of birds. A gentle breeze was wafting into the modest cottage of the Son family.
A black-haired woman was standing in the hall. Half of her hair had been tied into a bun at the back of her head. Son Chi-Chi was standing by an open window, enjoying the sight, sounds and fresh air entering the house. She was holding a neatly folded, spotlessly clean apron.
I hope Goku will be back for dinner, she thought.
"Gohan," she called to her son, turning towards the stairs. "Lunch is ready! Have you finished studying?"
"Yes, mom," her five-year-old son responded, coming down the stairs. Gohan's hair was trim, unlike his father's. Chi-Chi glanced at his hands, which were clean. He can't succeed in life if he learns to fight. My studious son. Chi-Chi was full of pride. Just after he descended the last step, he froze.
"Mom," he said, pointing to the window, "what's that?"
Chi Chi looked out of the window once again. She could see a bright purple light in the sky. Normally she would have said, "It's beautiful", but not today. It disconcerted her. "I don't know, Gohan."
The purple light had now transformed into a gigantic beam heading towards the earth, away from the Son house.
"It reminds me of Goku." That was Chi-Chi's last response.
Vegeta looked on in satisfaction. He was standing on the door of his open spaceship; its shield had been extended on command. The planet below him had been destroyed without a hitch, thanks to a well-executed Galick Gun attack. The remains of Earth were scattering all around like deadly asteroids; his ship's shield was guarding itself, apart from allowing Vegeta to breathe.
If Kakarrot rebels, he will have no home planet to return to. It is time for me to meet my servants again.
Vegeta shut the door of his spaceship and blasted off. Immortality is now mine! You will suffer, Frieza – you will suffer. The Dragonballs of Namek were going to be his and his alone.
The End