DRAGONBALL U.S.M.C., Part One
by Clarice_Lecter
PREMISE: What if everyone's favorite bumbling Marine turned out to be the most powerful Saiyan warrior of all?
CAST OF CHARACTERS
PVT. FIRST CLASS GOMER PYLE, a sweet, innocent babe-in-the-woods stationed at the Camp Henderson Marine Base near San Diego, CA. When Colonel Gray institutes a competitive martial arts program on the base, Gomer discovers fighting skills he never knew he had...which leads him to his ultimate destiny.
CORPORAL DUKE SLATER, Company B's second in command and Gomer Pyle's best friend. When he, Pvt. Charles Yellowbear, and Gomer are selected to represent the U.S. at the Budokai International Martial Arts Tournament in Osaka, Japan, Duke is the first to discover Gomer's Saiyan heritage...something Gomer himself does not yet know about.
SGT. VINCE CARTER, leader of Company B and the best friend of Duke Slater and Gomer Pyle. He is as shocked as everyone else when Gomer Pyle proves to be a natural in the competitive martial arts program, and he is also the head coach for the U.S. team at the Budokai Tournament...and is even more stunned when he discovers who Gomer really is.
SGT. EARL HACKER, leader of Company C and the guy in charge of the mess hall. He is also friends with Sgt. Carter, Duke Slater, and Gomer Pyle, and is the assistant coach for the U.S. team at the Budokai Tournament. One of his soldiers, Charles Yellowbear, is the third competitor for the U.S. team.
PVT. FIRST CLASS CHARLES YELLOWBEAR, a Native American recruit in Sgt. Hacker's platoon. He and Gomer Pyle became fast friends while competing in the base's track and field division, and leaps at the chance to join Duke and Gomer in the Budokai Tournament.
COL. ANDREW GRAY, base commander at Camp Henderson. His decision to incorporate competitive martial arts at Camp Henderson unleashes Gomer Pyle's natural abilities, and leads to the Budokai Tournament...and Gomer's ultimate destiny.
GOKU, a Saiyan-born warrior and past champion of the Budokai. He is an observer at this year's Budokai who quickly senses Gomer Pyle's Saiyan energy...and also senses danger with the bumbling Marine's presence at the Budokai.
VEGETA, a recently widowed former enemy of Goku who is also an observer at the Budokai, as well as a Saiyan. He blows the U.S. team off as pushovers until he sees Gomer compete...Gomer fights like a Saiyan, and it doesn't take long for Vegeta to connect Gomer to his true past. Vegeta is also in mourning over the death of his human-born wife and soulmate Bulma, who was a childhood friend of Krillin and Goku.
PICCOLO, another enemy-turned-ally of Goku whose first match at the Budokai is against Gomer Pyle. He soon realizes that as much of a fighter as Goku is, Gomer is much more...
KRILLIN, Goku's best friend. A Buddhist monk before he became a fighter, Krillin balances his fighting spirit with a sense of calm and a healthy dose of fear. Like his friends, he senses something different about Gomer Pyle the minute he lays eyes on him.
GOHAN, Goku's son and a competitor in the Budokai. He and his dad have fought many battles together, both in and out of the Budokai, and this is the first year Goku has let Gohan compete solo. He and Duke Slater compete against each other in the first trials, and become fast friends...
TRUNKS, the son of Vegeta and his late wife Bulma. He is also competing in the Budokai this year, but spends much of his time comforting his grief-stricken father.
FRIEZA, the son of the intergalactic warlord Kold and a longtime enemy of the DragonBall warriors. He has been killed and reanimated several times, and has been reanimated once again. His new mission is to crash the Budokai and destroy the Saiyan warrior Virekot, who is to become the Guardian of the DragonBalls...but who is Virekot?
CHUCK NORRIS
TANK ABBOTT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DISCLAIMER: The characters of PFC Gomer Pyle, Cpl. Duke Slater, Sgt. Vince Carter, Sgt. Earl Hacker, PFC Charles Yellowbear, and Col. Andrew Gray are the exclusive property of Andy Griffith Productions. The characters of Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo, Krillin, Gohan, Trunks, and Frieza are the exclusive property of Funimation, Inc. and other companies. Chuck Norris and Tank Abbott are real people. No infringement of any kind is intended.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sgt. Vince Carter sat at his desk, a worried expression on his face that very few people saw. Cpl. Duke Slater, his second in command, picked up on it right away. "Vince, what's the matter?" he asked.
"Nothin', Slater, I was just thinking about Pyle," Vince admitted. "In all the time we've both known him, have you ever seen him like this?"
Duke knew exactly what he was talking about. "Yeah, I know what you mean...who'd have guessed Lou Ann would be such a damn slut? Boinking with Monroe Eford the whole time she and Gomer were dating and all---!"
"And to think you and I both had a thing for her at one time...the way she strung him along makes me sick to my stomach. I mean, Gomer's always been a sweet kid---now look at him!"
It was a miracle Sgt. Hacker had decided not to press charges after Gomer had punched him out in the mess hall. Ever since the whole thing with Lou Ann had broken down, the normally easygoing hayseed had turned into a time bomb of rage. Anything and everything was setting him off these days, and it had them worried.
Vince was about to let his train of thought take him over when Col. Andrew Gray, the base commander at Camp Henderson, entered the duty hut. Duke and Vince stood and saluted him, showing him the greatest respect. "At ease," he replied with a firm, but gentle authority. "I wanted to talk to you about the fracas in the mess hall the other day..."
"Yes, sir?" Vince asked nervously.
"You do know that Sgt. Hacker has decided not to pursue assault charges against Pvt. Pyle...tell me something, Sgt. Carter, what's gotten into him? Why would Pyle suddenly become belligerent?"
"Well, sir, Pyle's having a tough time right now," Vince admitted. "His girlfriend---should I say, his ex-girlfriend---was seeing another guy behind his back...and not too long ago, he caught them in the rack together..."
"And he has no real outlet for his anger," Col. Gray interjected.
"That's right, sir," Duke chimed in. "I know Sgt. Hacker's dropping the complaint, but...well...is Gomer going to be court-martialed anyway?"
Col. Gray smiled. "No, he isn't. But I think I've found a solution to his problem."
He then went to the door and motioned in Sgt. Earl Hacker and PFC Charles Yellowbear. Hacker still had a bitch of a shiner from where Gomer had cracked him with his fist, but his eye was opening back up again. "Hi, Hacker," Vince now said.
"Hey, Vince," Hacker replied before turning to Col. Gray. "You want me to tell him, sir?"
"By all means, Sergeant, go ahead."
Hacker turned back to Vince and Duke. "Vince, Col. Gray's been wanting to bring in a competitive martial arts program to Camp Henderson for the past five months..."
"I know that, Hacker," Vince said, "so what's your point?"
"My point is, the program starts next week. There's a guy by the name of Chuck Norris coming here to supervise the program...besides boosting morale and giving the men an outlet for their anger, Col. Gray thinks this kind of competition will set Camp Henderson apart from the rest of the bases..."
"You mean martial arts tournaments? Like the Budokai in Japan?" Duke now asked.
"That's right, Slater, how did you know?"
Duke smiled. "If you'll all follow me, I'll show you," he said, motioning them all outside. He got Charles to stand opposite him and said, "I want you to try and charge me."
"Yes, sir," Charles obliged, charging at Duke like he was going to tackle him, football-style. That was when Duke made his revelation, through a series of martial arts kicks that sent Charles reeling.
Vince was shocked---and impressed. "Holy crap, Slater?" he asked.
"My dad started me out in martial-arts training when I was a kid," Duke now admitted. "He took me to see several Budokai Tournaments as I was growing up, and it's always fascinated me. That's how I know about it."
Col. Gray now turned to Vince. "So what do you say, Sgt. Carter? Do we put Pyle in the program or what?"
Vince chuckled. "Tournament fighting? Martial arts? Anything to keep Pyle outta trouble..."
"Ah am NOT havin' trouble with mah temper!!!" Gomer protested when Vince and Duke came to him with the suggestion. "An' what good would it do fer me t'take that Oriental class?!?"
"Pyle, for God's sake, will ya LISTEN to yourself?" Vince barked back. "We all saw what you did in the mess hall---you, a private, punching out a sergeant! You're lucky you ain't in the stockade---!!!"
"Maybe ah oughtta punch you an' get it done with---if ya hadn't put me on detail, ah wouldn't 'a lost Lou Ann---!!!"
"It's not MY fault Lou Ann turned into a whore---!!!"
Before Gomer had a chance to land the first punch, Duke and two other Marines restrained him. "LET ME GO, DANG IT!!!!! I'm gonna KICK HIS ASS---!!!"
"Gomer, you're not kicking ANYONE'S ass, GOT IT?!?!?" Duke scolded. "Now listen to me---!"
"LET ME GO!!!!!"
"Gomer, for God's sake, LISTEN!!!!! Sgt. Carter's right---whether Sarge put you on detail or not, Lou Ann would have been sleeping with Monroe ANYWAY!!!"
"It ain't TRUE---!!"
Duke had no choice but to slap his best friend across the face. Shock registered in Gomer's eyes the second Duke's palm struck his cheek, causing him to calm down. "I'm sorry, Gomer, but it was the only way I could get you to hush," Duke apologized.
The other two privates released Gomer, allowing him to sit in his bunk. Then he began to cry. "Hey, buddy, it's all right," Vince said soothingly. "We're just as P.O.'d over what she did as you are, but we're not goin' around punchin' guys in the mess hall..."
"How could she do it?" Gomer wept. "How could she lie to me like that? All our time spent goin' together, an' I catch her in the bed with Monroe---!!!"
"Pyle, she's Monroe's problem now, not yours," Vince replied, "but holdin' in all this anger ain't doin' you a damn bit of good. You're worse now than the time you had that Welsh rarebit obsession---!"
"Yeah, that was awful silly, cravin' cheese toast 24 hours a day, 7 days a week," Gomer began to chuckle through his tears. "Ah am sorry ah hit Sgt. Hacker..."
"Gomer, it's done with, and Sgt. Hacker's not holding it against you," Duke now said. "In fact, your being in Camp Henderson's new martial arts program was his idea..."
"It was?"
"Yeah."
Gomer wiped his eyes. "Gawwwwwwwwww-llllleeeeeeeee..."
"So how about it, Pyle?" Vince asked. "You gonna give it a try?"
Gomer grinned. "When's it start?"
Chuck Norris arrived at Camp Henderson the next week, and Col. Gray gave him the list of men enrolled in the competitive martial arts program. "Corporal Duke Slater from Company B is a martial arts expert himself, and he'll be assisting you in the program," Col. Gray said.
Norris looked over the list. At the very top was the name GOMER PYLE, PRIVATE FIRST CLASS, COMPANY B. "Who's this Gomer Pyle kid?" Norris asked.
"He's a nice guy at heart, but he's filled with a lot of rage...Cpl. Slater and Company B's platoon leader, Sgt. Vince Carter, enrolled him after he punched out a sergeant..."
"And he's in the program to avoid a court-martial?"
"Sgt. Hacker, the guy he punched, suggested that he be in the program. I'm telling you, this kid can hit---you should see the shiner Hacker's got."
Norris read the list several times. "Where's the men now?"
"They're in the indoor gym, waiting for you..."
Norris smiled. "Let's see how they do in a series of miniature Budokais, for practice..."
The institution of the competitive martial arts program was a stroke of genius. And as predicted, no one took to the program more than Gomer. He adjusted to the training regimen quicker than anyone else, and discovered fighting skills he never knew he had. He turned out to be so good that Col. Gray began entering him, Duke, and Charles Yellowbear in several regional tournaments.
It wasn't long before Vince began noticing two strange-looking men in the stands, attending every tournament. Eventually, Gomer, Duke and Charles became so good that they entered the nationals. In between, Gomer participated in two shoot-fighting tournaments as well.
His toughest opponent so far had been veteran shoot-fighter Tank Abbott, who outweighed him by one hundred pounds. Because of Gomer's wiry build, it was feared that Abbott would tear him apart...in the end, Gomer outfought him, outclassed him, and outlasted him, becoming Camp Henderson's first-ever shoot-fighting champion.
The strange, spiky-haired men also attended the shoot-fighting matches, as if they were scouting Gomer's every move...
"I'm telling you, Vegeta, he fights like a Saiyan!" Goku argued as he and his traveling buddy, Vegeta, settled into their hotel room. "You saw him yourself..."
"I know, Kakarot, but how can it be?" Vegeta replied, calling Goku by his Saiyan name. "After all, he's supposed to be a rookie---he's only just started competing! Besides that, he's a hayseed! The way he fights, you'd think he'd done it all his life---!"
"Exactly."
Vegeta brought out his fight program. "PFC Gomer Pyle, United States Marine Corps," the sometimes cranky Saiyan prince whispered, storing the name in his memory. He then let his mind travel back to the match with Tank Abbott...
Then he remembered when Goku's infant brother, Virekot, was placed in a ship for Earth, just before Frieza came along...
Virekot, the younger brother of Radditz and Kakarot, was born during the Saiyans' war with the intergalactic warlord Kold, his son and second-in-command Frieza, and their band of outlaws. Virekot was to have been the most powerful of all the Saiyan warriors, even more powerful than Radditz, Kakarot, and the young Prince Vegeta combined.
According to prophecy, Virekot was to eventually become the Guardian of the Universe's DragonBalls...a man pure of heart, despite the Saiyans' savage nature. He was also to be the greatest fighter of them all.
Consumed by curiosity, Vegeta looked up Camp Henderson's website on his laptop computer and brought up the online dossier of PFC Gomer Pyle.
He had been an abandoned newborn, discovered in a field just outside Mayberry, North Carolina 32 Earth years ago.
"32 years," Vegeta thought to himself. "That's how long ago Virekot went aw---!"
Vegeta stopped himself. He looked at the picture of Gomer Pyle, then let his memories return to Virekot's departure. Could it be...?
END OF PART ONE
by Clarice_Lecter
PREMISE: What if everyone's favorite bumbling Marine turned out to be the most powerful Saiyan warrior of all?
CAST OF CHARACTERS
PVT. FIRST CLASS GOMER PYLE, a sweet, innocent babe-in-the-woods stationed at the Camp Henderson Marine Base near San Diego, CA. When Colonel Gray institutes a competitive martial arts program on the base, Gomer discovers fighting skills he never knew he had...which leads him to his ultimate destiny.
CORPORAL DUKE SLATER, Company B's second in command and Gomer Pyle's best friend. When he, Pvt. Charles Yellowbear, and Gomer are selected to represent the U.S. at the Budokai International Martial Arts Tournament in Osaka, Japan, Duke is the first to discover Gomer's Saiyan heritage...something Gomer himself does not yet know about.
SGT. VINCE CARTER, leader of Company B and the best friend of Duke Slater and Gomer Pyle. He is as shocked as everyone else when Gomer Pyle proves to be a natural in the competitive martial arts program, and he is also the head coach for the U.S. team at the Budokai Tournament...and is even more stunned when he discovers who Gomer really is.
SGT. EARL HACKER, leader of Company C and the guy in charge of the mess hall. He is also friends with Sgt. Carter, Duke Slater, and Gomer Pyle, and is the assistant coach for the U.S. team at the Budokai Tournament. One of his soldiers, Charles Yellowbear, is the third competitor for the U.S. team.
PVT. FIRST CLASS CHARLES YELLOWBEAR, a Native American recruit in Sgt. Hacker's platoon. He and Gomer Pyle became fast friends while competing in the base's track and field division, and leaps at the chance to join Duke and Gomer in the Budokai Tournament.
COL. ANDREW GRAY, base commander at Camp Henderson. His decision to incorporate competitive martial arts at Camp Henderson unleashes Gomer Pyle's natural abilities, and leads to the Budokai Tournament...and Gomer's ultimate destiny.
GOKU, a Saiyan-born warrior and past champion of the Budokai. He is an observer at this year's Budokai who quickly senses Gomer Pyle's Saiyan energy...and also senses danger with the bumbling Marine's presence at the Budokai.
VEGETA, a recently widowed former enemy of Goku who is also an observer at the Budokai, as well as a Saiyan. He blows the U.S. team off as pushovers until he sees Gomer compete...Gomer fights like a Saiyan, and it doesn't take long for Vegeta to connect Gomer to his true past. Vegeta is also in mourning over the death of his human-born wife and soulmate Bulma, who was a childhood friend of Krillin and Goku.
PICCOLO, another enemy-turned-ally of Goku whose first match at the Budokai is against Gomer Pyle. He soon realizes that as much of a fighter as Goku is, Gomer is much more...
KRILLIN, Goku's best friend. A Buddhist monk before he became a fighter, Krillin balances his fighting spirit with a sense of calm and a healthy dose of fear. Like his friends, he senses something different about Gomer Pyle the minute he lays eyes on him.
GOHAN, Goku's son and a competitor in the Budokai. He and his dad have fought many battles together, both in and out of the Budokai, and this is the first year Goku has let Gohan compete solo. He and Duke Slater compete against each other in the first trials, and become fast friends...
TRUNKS, the son of Vegeta and his late wife Bulma. He is also competing in the Budokai this year, but spends much of his time comforting his grief-stricken father.
FRIEZA, the son of the intergalactic warlord Kold and a longtime enemy of the DragonBall warriors. He has been killed and reanimated several times, and has been reanimated once again. His new mission is to crash the Budokai and destroy the Saiyan warrior Virekot, who is to become the Guardian of the DragonBalls...but who is Virekot?
CHUCK NORRIS
TANK ABBOTT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DISCLAIMER: The characters of PFC Gomer Pyle, Cpl. Duke Slater, Sgt. Vince Carter, Sgt. Earl Hacker, PFC Charles Yellowbear, and Col. Andrew Gray are the exclusive property of Andy Griffith Productions. The characters of Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo, Krillin, Gohan, Trunks, and Frieza are the exclusive property of Funimation, Inc. and other companies. Chuck Norris and Tank Abbott are real people. No infringement of any kind is intended.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sgt. Vince Carter sat at his desk, a worried expression on his face that very few people saw. Cpl. Duke Slater, his second in command, picked up on it right away. "Vince, what's the matter?" he asked.
"Nothin', Slater, I was just thinking about Pyle," Vince admitted. "In all the time we've both known him, have you ever seen him like this?"
Duke knew exactly what he was talking about. "Yeah, I know what you mean...who'd have guessed Lou Ann would be such a damn slut? Boinking with Monroe Eford the whole time she and Gomer were dating and all---!"
"And to think you and I both had a thing for her at one time...the way she strung him along makes me sick to my stomach. I mean, Gomer's always been a sweet kid---now look at him!"
It was a miracle Sgt. Hacker had decided not to press charges after Gomer had punched him out in the mess hall. Ever since the whole thing with Lou Ann had broken down, the normally easygoing hayseed had turned into a time bomb of rage. Anything and everything was setting him off these days, and it had them worried.
Vince was about to let his train of thought take him over when Col. Andrew Gray, the base commander at Camp Henderson, entered the duty hut. Duke and Vince stood and saluted him, showing him the greatest respect. "At ease," he replied with a firm, but gentle authority. "I wanted to talk to you about the fracas in the mess hall the other day..."
"Yes, sir?" Vince asked nervously.
"You do know that Sgt. Hacker has decided not to pursue assault charges against Pvt. Pyle...tell me something, Sgt. Carter, what's gotten into him? Why would Pyle suddenly become belligerent?"
"Well, sir, Pyle's having a tough time right now," Vince admitted. "His girlfriend---should I say, his ex-girlfriend---was seeing another guy behind his back...and not too long ago, he caught them in the rack together..."
"And he has no real outlet for his anger," Col. Gray interjected.
"That's right, sir," Duke chimed in. "I know Sgt. Hacker's dropping the complaint, but...well...is Gomer going to be court-martialed anyway?"
Col. Gray smiled. "No, he isn't. But I think I've found a solution to his problem."
He then went to the door and motioned in Sgt. Earl Hacker and PFC Charles Yellowbear. Hacker still had a bitch of a shiner from where Gomer had cracked him with his fist, but his eye was opening back up again. "Hi, Hacker," Vince now said.
"Hey, Vince," Hacker replied before turning to Col. Gray. "You want me to tell him, sir?"
"By all means, Sergeant, go ahead."
Hacker turned back to Vince and Duke. "Vince, Col. Gray's been wanting to bring in a competitive martial arts program to Camp Henderson for the past five months..."
"I know that, Hacker," Vince said, "so what's your point?"
"My point is, the program starts next week. There's a guy by the name of Chuck Norris coming here to supervise the program...besides boosting morale and giving the men an outlet for their anger, Col. Gray thinks this kind of competition will set Camp Henderson apart from the rest of the bases..."
"You mean martial arts tournaments? Like the Budokai in Japan?" Duke now asked.
"That's right, Slater, how did you know?"
Duke smiled. "If you'll all follow me, I'll show you," he said, motioning them all outside. He got Charles to stand opposite him and said, "I want you to try and charge me."
"Yes, sir," Charles obliged, charging at Duke like he was going to tackle him, football-style. That was when Duke made his revelation, through a series of martial arts kicks that sent Charles reeling.
Vince was shocked---and impressed. "Holy crap, Slater?" he asked.
"My dad started me out in martial-arts training when I was a kid," Duke now admitted. "He took me to see several Budokai Tournaments as I was growing up, and it's always fascinated me. That's how I know about it."
Col. Gray now turned to Vince. "So what do you say, Sgt. Carter? Do we put Pyle in the program or what?"
Vince chuckled. "Tournament fighting? Martial arts? Anything to keep Pyle outta trouble..."
"Ah am NOT havin' trouble with mah temper!!!" Gomer protested when Vince and Duke came to him with the suggestion. "An' what good would it do fer me t'take that Oriental class?!?"
"Pyle, for God's sake, will ya LISTEN to yourself?" Vince barked back. "We all saw what you did in the mess hall---you, a private, punching out a sergeant! You're lucky you ain't in the stockade---!!!"
"Maybe ah oughtta punch you an' get it done with---if ya hadn't put me on detail, ah wouldn't 'a lost Lou Ann---!!!"
"It's not MY fault Lou Ann turned into a whore---!!!"
Before Gomer had a chance to land the first punch, Duke and two other Marines restrained him. "LET ME GO, DANG IT!!!!! I'm gonna KICK HIS ASS---!!!"
"Gomer, you're not kicking ANYONE'S ass, GOT IT?!?!?" Duke scolded. "Now listen to me---!"
"LET ME GO!!!!!"
"Gomer, for God's sake, LISTEN!!!!! Sgt. Carter's right---whether Sarge put you on detail or not, Lou Ann would have been sleeping with Monroe ANYWAY!!!"
"It ain't TRUE---!!"
Duke had no choice but to slap his best friend across the face. Shock registered in Gomer's eyes the second Duke's palm struck his cheek, causing him to calm down. "I'm sorry, Gomer, but it was the only way I could get you to hush," Duke apologized.
The other two privates released Gomer, allowing him to sit in his bunk. Then he began to cry. "Hey, buddy, it's all right," Vince said soothingly. "We're just as P.O.'d over what she did as you are, but we're not goin' around punchin' guys in the mess hall..."
"How could she do it?" Gomer wept. "How could she lie to me like that? All our time spent goin' together, an' I catch her in the bed with Monroe---!!!"
"Pyle, she's Monroe's problem now, not yours," Vince replied, "but holdin' in all this anger ain't doin' you a damn bit of good. You're worse now than the time you had that Welsh rarebit obsession---!"
"Yeah, that was awful silly, cravin' cheese toast 24 hours a day, 7 days a week," Gomer began to chuckle through his tears. "Ah am sorry ah hit Sgt. Hacker..."
"Gomer, it's done with, and Sgt. Hacker's not holding it against you," Duke now said. "In fact, your being in Camp Henderson's new martial arts program was his idea..."
"It was?"
"Yeah."
Gomer wiped his eyes. "Gawwwwwwwwww-llllleeeeeeeee..."
"So how about it, Pyle?" Vince asked. "You gonna give it a try?"
Gomer grinned. "When's it start?"
Chuck Norris arrived at Camp Henderson the next week, and Col. Gray gave him the list of men enrolled in the competitive martial arts program. "Corporal Duke Slater from Company B is a martial arts expert himself, and he'll be assisting you in the program," Col. Gray said.
Norris looked over the list. At the very top was the name GOMER PYLE, PRIVATE FIRST CLASS, COMPANY B. "Who's this Gomer Pyle kid?" Norris asked.
"He's a nice guy at heart, but he's filled with a lot of rage...Cpl. Slater and Company B's platoon leader, Sgt. Vince Carter, enrolled him after he punched out a sergeant..."
"And he's in the program to avoid a court-martial?"
"Sgt. Hacker, the guy he punched, suggested that he be in the program. I'm telling you, this kid can hit---you should see the shiner Hacker's got."
Norris read the list several times. "Where's the men now?"
"They're in the indoor gym, waiting for you..."
Norris smiled. "Let's see how they do in a series of miniature Budokais, for practice..."
The institution of the competitive martial arts program was a stroke of genius. And as predicted, no one took to the program more than Gomer. He adjusted to the training regimen quicker than anyone else, and discovered fighting skills he never knew he had. He turned out to be so good that Col. Gray began entering him, Duke, and Charles Yellowbear in several regional tournaments.
It wasn't long before Vince began noticing two strange-looking men in the stands, attending every tournament. Eventually, Gomer, Duke and Charles became so good that they entered the nationals. In between, Gomer participated in two shoot-fighting tournaments as well.
His toughest opponent so far had been veteran shoot-fighter Tank Abbott, who outweighed him by one hundred pounds. Because of Gomer's wiry build, it was feared that Abbott would tear him apart...in the end, Gomer outfought him, outclassed him, and outlasted him, becoming Camp Henderson's first-ever shoot-fighting champion.
The strange, spiky-haired men also attended the shoot-fighting matches, as if they were scouting Gomer's every move...
"I'm telling you, Vegeta, he fights like a Saiyan!" Goku argued as he and his traveling buddy, Vegeta, settled into their hotel room. "You saw him yourself..."
"I know, Kakarot, but how can it be?" Vegeta replied, calling Goku by his Saiyan name. "After all, he's supposed to be a rookie---he's only just started competing! Besides that, he's a hayseed! The way he fights, you'd think he'd done it all his life---!"
"Exactly."
Vegeta brought out his fight program. "PFC Gomer Pyle, United States Marine Corps," the sometimes cranky Saiyan prince whispered, storing the name in his memory. He then let his mind travel back to the match with Tank Abbott...
Then he remembered when Goku's infant brother, Virekot, was placed in a ship for Earth, just before Frieza came along...
Virekot, the younger brother of Radditz and Kakarot, was born during the Saiyans' war with the intergalactic warlord Kold, his son and second-in-command Frieza, and their band of outlaws. Virekot was to have been the most powerful of all the Saiyan warriors, even more powerful than Radditz, Kakarot, and the young Prince Vegeta combined.
According to prophecy, Virekot was to eventually become the Guardian of the Universe's DragonBalls...a man pure of heart, despite the Saiyans' savage nature. He was also to be the greatest fighter of them all.
Consumed by curiosity, Vegeta looked up Camp Henderson's website on his laptop computer and brought up the online dossier of PFC Gomer Pyle.
He had been an abandoned newborn, discovered in a field just outside Mayberry, North Carolina 32 Earth years ago.
"32 years," Vegeta thought to himself. "That's how long ago Virekot went aw---!"
Vegeta stopped himself. He looked at the picture of Gomer Pyle, then let his memories return to Virekot's departure. Could it be...?
END OF PART ONE