Chapter three
The tournament was only days away. Goku sat in the shade of an old oak tree, the roots visible above the ground strewn with leaves. The tall, aged tree leaned away from the Breeze, its branches sagging in defeat from the merciless force of entropy. Goku looked upon this colossal being, understanding that it neared death. He'd been practicing with his aura, his power, his own force. He felt outward, as a newly blind man gropes for contact with a world made for eyes.
He felt the tree's slow and ancient life force. He felt Death's cold approach. He felt its small, but persistent, will to live. He was struck with awe at this life, unnoticed by anyone else upon this planet. He remembered back to the dream he'd once had.
The battle was over. Goku's ancestor, struggled, pinned to a tree by an alien enemy.
"Ye tell me ye'er the last Saiyajin? So shall it be. Ye'll die here, monkey! May thine corpse adorn the stars of my empire."
"Frieza! Though mine corpse adorneth the stars, and my blood cryeth to the Eternal from the ground, the chron of thine death shan't tick into infinity. A day will arrive when your own cadaver will adorn the stars, and all worlds will see it. And a great feast will be held on that day. Thine father will find thee, and fabricate a body for thee, but ye shall be struck down once more"
The emperor laughed raucously.
"Doth thou now claim to have the gift of prophecy? May your death hasten upon you, fore I tire of thine words."
Frieza created a cloud of energy, wrapped it around the unmoving warrior, and constricted it. The cloud expanded until it covered the Saiyan, and simultaneously imploded and crushed the being within, taking the tree with it. Frieza stood alone on the Barron planet Vegeta, and laughed hideously.
Goku flenched slightly, his mind clamoring to the present. The tree in his dream looked nothing like this one, but yet both were near death. Should he then end this one's suffering? Is that the right thing to do? He reached towards the tree with his aura, searching for an answer. He felt the life of the tree, and reached farther into it. He felt its slow pulse, and wanted to feel more of it. He dove deeper, allowing himself to become part of the tree's life. He wanted to invigorate this old being. He wanted to help it live. He poured his own energy into the pulse, feeling the tree enliven suddenly. The water circulated through the giant-a bit faster. The tree did not thank him, but it did seem to want more. It needed more life, it needed to keep living. Goku obliged, lending the tree more of his power. Water moved even faster through the veins of the oak, old parched wood cracking under the pressures of new life. Goku didn't notice. The tree demanded more energy, and Goku needed to give even more. More wood within the tree gave way, and still the water sped faster through the veins. The pulse of the colossal tree thundered in Goku's mind, filling him with happiness and strength.
Dear Reader, I'm so very sorry for what will happen beyond this page. If I could take back and reforge this tale, I would. But alas, the tale writes itself, and I am only the conciliator of this tale and its advent. Again, I say sorry.
Goku had floated up, higher than he'd ever ventured before. He alighted upon a large, sturdy branch, and sat there, caring for his old friend. The tree's pulse was now hammering quickly, as if it were a human who'd run a mile. Goku began to be concerned with this, but the tree didn't seem to mind. It cried out to him for more energy. It called to be fed more power. Goku no longer lived within the life stream of the tree, simply because the tree's life didn't need him there anymore. He could still feel the pulse though, dropping momentarily, then picking back up. Good, he thought. It's slowing down. Like a wave, the heartbeat slowed, then sped up again. Seconds passed in this fashion, and the beat became faint as it slowed for the last time. Goku felt this, knew that Death had rushed in for the kill. In his imagination, he saw the dark, hooded Death grin up at him. Thanks Goku, Death whispered. I'd been trying to claim this life for a while. Goku gasped as emotion welled up inside him, and the tree still moaned for power, still cried for strength. And as the echoes of its last heartbeat faded, the branch Goku sat on cracked and gave way. Goku, and the tree he'd tried to give life to, both crashed to the ground.