AN: Now it's getting good! Both Gohan and Krillin have nearly doubled or more than doubled their power thanks to the ascension. I realize that I changed some details from the original anime. Later on it may seem some of the characters will seem to go out of original character but you must realize that you change over time with your surroundings and/or what occurs to you over time. Due to the cascading effect the first changes caused, more follow suit, rippling through the timeline. With different things happening to different characters, you can't expect them to remain COMPLETELY the same as they would be in an entirely different universe. Take anyone who was raised and grown in an average family for example with average income. Go back in time and change that to make that very same person grow up in a powerful family with riches beyond imagination. Do you think they would end up turning out exactly the same? No they wouldn't. This just being a vague example but the point sticks.
The changes are already getting pretty big and more are to come until only parts of this story will resemble the original. But that's the fun! So any changes in the character of the characters will reflect those changes accordingly. Now on with the show!
Chapter Six – The Course of Action
Krillin and Gohan blasted through the skies of Namek with a speed they could have never have reached before Guru enhanced their powers. Everything they were before had been enhanced. Their speed, strength, eyesight, hearing, sense of smell and touch, balance, coordination, energy senses, control over their minds and bodies and energy, everything! They could channel their maximum power and still hide it from the scouters. It wasn't the same for anyone who could sense power levels however. That sense exceeded the scouters by far. Everything they were capable of before had increased by an equal amount. Krillin found the new senses hard to adapt to. Well maybe not hard, just different. He had grown up with Goku and knew how acute a Saiyan's senses were. He thought his might now rival either Goku's or Vegeta's. Gohan who had most of a Saiyan's senses already had better still now.
"I can see so clearly and so far. It was like I was blind before," Gohan said in awe.
"Tell me about it. I think I could read a book from a couple of football fields away!" Krillin laughed. Gohan thought that may be an exaggeration but maybe it wasn't. His senses were now far greater than they had ever been before.
"They aren't only better but different," Gohan noticed.
"What do you mean?" Krillin asked.
"I can now focus my mind on a target like never before. With a sharp intensity I never thought possible. My eyes are target-acquiring now. They're more sensitive to movement as well as light," Gohan said.
"I noticed. Everything about everything we were before has been enhanced," Krillin told his little buddy who knew this already.
"Do you think getting power this way is wrong?" Gohan asked.
"What? No way. You heard Guru, the power was always ours we just couldn't tap into it before," Krillin assured his friend.
"Yeah, you're right. Guru said he couldn't even scratch the surface of the power that's there though. I wonder how strong we'd get if we could tap all of it," Gohan pondered. Krillin shrugged.
"Who can say? Maybe one day we'll wish it to the surface," Krillin suggested.
"No. Guru said it was a Kai power to do that. Even if the Dragonballs could do it, I can't believe that would be right. It would be like going against the Kais," Gohan replied.
"Yeah, you're right. Well I'm not greedy I'm more than happy with what I can do now," Krillin smirked.
"You seem much more confident than before, Krillin," Gohan noticed.
"Yeah, I guess I am. So are you in case you haven't noticed," Krillin laughed.
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Vegeta finished searching the fifth settlement in a row. None of them had a Dragonball.
"Please! Don't kill us! We told you we don't have a Dragonball," an ancient Namek named Elder Darjran said. Vegeta smirked.
"I'm not going to kill anyone. I'm not here with Frieza. Let him kill you all if he chooses. I have better things to focus on. I need your Dragonballs to make myself capable of killing Frieza. He's the one who's killing you off," Vegeta laughed.
"If you speak the truth then leave us in peace. You know we don't have a Ball," the Elder spoke. Vegeta nodded. It was true, they didn't have one. Then Vegeta remembered something Bulma had mentioned before he and the others had left Earth. Something about a device that could detect the Balls and show their locations when one got within range. Vegeta reached into a pocket on his Saiyan armor and pulled out a capsule, pressing the button on top of it before throwing it before him.
PPPPPPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSSHHHHH!!
White mist cleared from sight and Vegeta saw a mountain of bags lying before him. He began searching them each one by one. Most contained a wide assortment of junk as far as he was concerned with the exception of a few extra sets of his armor she had made for him. He noticed there were some made for Krillin, Gohan, and Kakarot as well. They would need those to help him fight Frieza when the time for that came. He continued his search before he came across a device that might have been what he was searching for. Dragon Radar. It was round and flat, around two inches thick. It had only one button on its top. Most of the devices face was actually a green computer screen that was currently blank. Vegeta pressed the button once and it lit up suddenly.
The Nameks watched as Vegeta stared into the device. The screen was now a grid of sorts showing a vague "map" of the immediate area it scanned around him. He realized it was blocked by most of the surrounding hills and buildings. Vegeta took a different cap from another pack and pushed its button, tossing it into the middle of the cargo. The thing opened up and began "sucking" everything inside it before closing once again. Vegeta then pocketed the device. The Nameks were awed at the technology.
"If its view is obstructed on the ground then it will work better from the air," Vegeta assumed. He flared his aura and blasted off into the sky before stopping to hover a thousand feet off the ground. The screen stretched its sketchy view of the area but not by far. He could tell by the area around him it only detected a radius of around a mile. He pressed the button again and was amazed to find the view widen once again by a greater margin. A small box at the top of the screen told him it now was reading the area around him up to ten miles. There was still nothing. He pressed it again and again until the Radar was scanning at a distance of a thousand miles in all directions, its maximum. Vegeta realized that his position was right at the center of the display. The Radar was detecting something now to the northeast but it was too far out of range to tell much more. Vegeta blasted off in that distance at max speed, his control over his energy sufficient to hide from the scouters.
After a ten minute flight if that, Vegeta saw it. A gold triangular arrow pointed to a dot on the screen with a number six hovering beside it. There were six Dragonballs gathered in one spot. Vegeta grimaced and directed his senses in just that direction. A true warrior usually kept his senses focused on all directions at once. It dimmed the awareness but it would still give a weaker warning from every where at once rather than a more intense one coming from one direction instead. It was where Frieza and most of his men were. Frieza had six of the Balls. This was very grave news but Vegeta wasn't too crushed by it. He could still hope. The last one was evading the tyrant for some reason. He should have asked that old Namek! Too late now, he thought.
If Frieza has six of the Balls already then I was right in assuming he would beat us here by a fair margin of time. The Nameks must be able to sense energy or at least some of them. They wouldn't know of Frieza otherwise. The bastard never leaves anyone alive in his wake. Perhaps the leader, this Eldest Namek, has it. But then again that would be too obvious. They would want to hide any Balls they had to ensure Frieza failed to make any wish he might want. Where could it be? Vegeta thought as he flew. A sudden sound brought his attention back to the Radar in his hands, which was bleeping furiously. A number one was blinking near the arrow now and it was moving at an impossible speed from the northwest. It was closing on Kakarot's power level, heading straight for him. Either power moving with the Ball could easily overwhelm his rival, which was a terrifying thought to the Prince. Who could these two be? Frieza had no one this strong. He was sure of that. These two together could beat even Frieza! The Ician would never keep such a threat around. Knowing he'd stand no chance if this force was a threat, Vegeta flared his aura and blasted off toward the unknown force.
)-(
Goku sensed it just then. Two horribly strong powers heading straight for him from behind. The Saiyan halted in midair and turned around to face these forces. The powers seemed so familiar for some reason yet radically different than anything he had ever felt. No he felt something close to it before. It reminded him of King Kai's energy or the energy from someone energized by a Kaio-Ken yet not like either at once. It was some how a fuse of the two with that feeling of familiarity thrown in. It was like he should know who these two were. The powers didn't feel outright evil but he couldn't be sure that meant anything. With as different these energies felt, who could say? Goku sensed Vegeta coming in to his left and frowned. So the he sensed it too and was hopefully coming to assist his rival in case it was a threat. He was glad Gohan and Krillin weren't here. Goku was sure with the help of Vegeta and the Kaio-Ken, he could hold his own against both of these fighters. If not then Vegeta could always transform. As though summoned by that very thought, Vegeta flashed into existence before Goku.
"You feel it, too?" Goku asked his fellow Saiyan warrior.
"Of course I do. Who could miss that?!" the Prince snarled. It was then that two specks of light appeared in the distance. With twin flashes of white-gold energy, they arrived. Both Goku's and Vegeta's jaws dropped in shock.
"Hey!" Krillin laughed. Gohan was beside him wearing a very identical smile of his own.
"Y-You have a Dragonball! A-And you're power it enormous!" Vegeta stammered. It took a lot to do that to Vegeta. The Prince suddenly recovered and wore his usual scowl. "How did you two manage to get so powerful?! I cannot believe our training did so much more for you than for Kakarot and I. Especially since both of you were far weaker when we began the training! And why does your energy feel so different? Even your auras have changed." Krillin and Gohan explained everything and this shocked both the pure-blooded Saiyans even more.
"This Namek can instantly raise power levels?" Vegeta demanded. They both nodded.
"He only said he would do it for us. He won't even do it for you, Goku," Krillin explained. Goku nodded, respecting the Guardian's decision.
"Well at least we got a Dragonball to hide from Frieza. With that in our possession, he can never make his wish," Vegeta smirked.
"That's exactly why Guru entrusted us with it from the start. I'm not letting the thing out of my sight," Krillin said with a firm nod.
"You had better not. I hate the fact that both of you are now stronger than either Kakarot or I. But I will admit you could better protect it with that power. But it won't last for long. With a bit of training I will surpass you!" Vegeta promised.
"Go ahead. The thing I want to know is what we do now," Krillin said.
"Are you serious, Baldie?! With the new power you two have and Kakarot and I to help, Frieza is nothing. I say we go kill him and his men now and be done with it. Then we can get his Dragonballs and make our wish," Vegeta said. Make my wish anyway, he amended to himself.
"That isn't such a good idea, Vegeta. Gohan here figures Frieza can transform into a stronger body of some kind like both you and he can. For all we know he might outclass us tenfold," Krillin said, shaking his head.
"What?! What ever gave you a stupid idea like that, brat?!" Vegeta demanded.
"Open your senses to his power, Vegeta. It feels like it's straining to get higher but something is holding it back. It feels the same way your power does as soon as a Moon Ball appears and you force yourself to remain only partially changed like back on the ship," Gohan told the Prince.
"He's right, Vegeta. It feels exactly the same way," Goku agreed and then opened his eyes. Vegeta noticed it now as well and had to agree.
"Damn! If he gains as much power from his transformation as I do from mine…" Vegeta whispered in something that came very close to fear. This was not something any of them were used to sensing from Vegeta.
"I don't think it's quite that big. Remember you stopped your change halfway before your power felt like that. Frieza's is like that all the time and I doubt he'd stay halfway between forms like that. He'd just burn up energy for no reason," Goku corrected.
"He's right! You were only at half power with you reached that point. Maybe that means Frieza will only gain double his current power," Gohan suggested.
"That must be it. His power is already ridiculously high. Any change he could go through would have to only double his current power. Maybe triple it at the most," Vegeta sighed with relief.
"Even if that is the truth, Vegeta, he still outclasses us," Goku sighed.
"And another thing we were told, Goku. Guru noticed a weakness with the Kaio-Ken attack. He says it's flawed in ways that could kill anyone who wields it," Krillin told his friend. Goku looked at him in surprise for a second before nodding as though he shouldn't have been so surprised at all.
"I thought it was so. While we were training on the ship I began to feel something wasn't right about it. With each higher Kaio-Ken we practiced, the feel of strain got stronger. I don't know what it is, but I think the attack can kill its user. It might have been luck we're all still alive right now," Goku stated.
"Guru explained as an imbalance that shouldn't be possible by the laws of nature. He said even if someone trains their body alone, they still train everything else if indirectly and not as effectively. The mind, heart, body, and soul are closely linked and held in a careful balance. He said that the Kaio-Ken deeply disturbed that balance and the result could be fatal. The higher the intensity the greater the imbalance becomes. He said the spirit is linked to the body as close as the mind is linked to the heart though they are all connected in one way or another. The Kaio-Ken powers up the spirit and energy by a certain amount while the body only gets a third of that boost. The result is an imbalance that shouldn't exist and for good reason," Krillin tried to explain though he barely understood it all himself.
"That makes sense. Damn! And I was hoping it would be our edge over Frieza," Goku said a bit angrily. "Let me ask King Kai something, you guys." They both nodded and Vegeta merely watched, taking it all in.
King Kai? Can you hear me? Goku asked telepathically.
Yes, Goku, I can. What is it? the Kai replied.
I want to know the history of the Kaio-Ken. It seems it has a weakness. A potentially fatal one, Goku replied seriously. He felt King Kai's surprise. And something else that hinted that he had heard this very same thing before from another source.
Piccolo said the very same thing, the Kai replied. Goku relayed everything Guru had told Krillin and Gohan and the Kai gasped.
I never thought about it like that, Goku. No one has ever died using the Kaio-Ken before. At least not from anything like that, I'm sure. Some have due to purposely trying to take in more power than they could safely regulate, true. But no one else from any kind of imbalance, the Kai told his pupil.
But it still has that weakness. Is the way you teach the Kaio-Ken the way it was always taught? Goku asked.
Well… King Kai whispered before trailing off.
King Kai I need to know. I can't risk using the technique if it could kill either me or my friends, Goku replied a bit angrily.
I'll be honest with you, Goku. I reinvented the attack. There are scrolls called the Kai Histories. Ancient Kais from long ago knew so many techniques that made them a force far greater than any Kai living today. Greater than any force ever known from what I have read. At least until a dark force began killing them all off a very long time ago. After those ancient Kais died, their knowledge went with them. All we have about those techniques is written within the Histories. I used what I read there to try and recreate the Kaio-Ken due to its obvious potential. I very well may have gotten it wrong some how. Those Kais never mentioned anything about a flaw that could risk the life of anyone who used it. And they would have written that down had one existed at the time. I think I may have fucked it up, King Kai sighed angrily. He was mad at himself for the mistake anyone could have made trying to do what he had done. The fact the Kai had made a working attack from simply reading about it, regardless of its flaws, was remarkable.
I think you did but I can't blame you for doing what you did. The attack does have great potential if someone can figure out the right way to execute it. Has anyone up there had any luck? You said Piccolo noticed the flaw, does he have any ideas? Goku asked. Goku felt another, sharper mind take the helm while King Kai was now an observer.
Goku? Piccolo said.
I can hear you, Piccolo, Goku replied.
Good. I've been working on it full time, Goku. I'm getting closer with each try. I can now sustain a five times Kaio-Ken for up to five hours. King Kai says the limit is two. So I'm already making progress. I believe the original attack was not as limited. The true limit is five hours for anything beyond a triple I think so far. The way I execute the attack now has much less strain and the storms of anger that accompany the use of the attack are more intense. So is the focus. That anger is a weapon all in itself. It no longer takes every scrap of my will power to simply focus the flood of power. It seems the original wasn't as hard to control at all. It takes less than a third of the energy than it did before. I believe I can take it further with some new ideas but I haven't tried them yet. I believe a fifty times Kaio-Ken is the true limit for Mortals and a hundred times for a Kai. I also found out that up to triple times Kaio-Ken can be sustained safely for as long as the user has the energy. Yamcha and the others are able to hold a double all day after learning my way of using the attack, Piccolo said.
Piccolo, I should've known you'd be not only the first to see the flaw but also the one who repairs it, Goku laughed heartily.
I have always had a talent for this it seems. King Kai isn't too happy I'm better at this than he is. I'm trying to convince him to let me read these Histories he keeps whining about so I can see what other powers I can restore, Piccolo replied.
Absolutely not! For as long as memory goes back, Mortals are STRICTLY forbidden to read them! I've told you this, Piccolo. Even a Mortal with the maximum Kai Factor of five is not a Kai, King Kai finally piped in.
Why not just let him try, King Kai? What if he can bring all those old powers back to the Kai Line? You could always take the credit so Piccolo won't get in trouble, Goku suggested. Piccolo laughed.
I must admit it would be nice to have our powers back. If it wasn't for the disaster that killed off the greatest Kais a million years ago, we'd still have them at our disposal, King Kai sighed. Fine I'll let Piccolo, and ONLY Piccolo, read the Histories. But only the parts that hold writings of ancient Kai techniques. There are certain things that Mortals aren't allowed to know. Sound good?
That's great King Kai. Piccolo as soon as you learn the proper way of using the Kaio-Ken tell us how, all right? We can't risk using it until then, Goku told his Namekian friend and former rival.
Not a problem, Goku. As soon as I read about it in the Histories I'm sure I'll be able to correct any fuck ups the Kai made of the attack. I'll pass on any new attacks with the Kai's permission. This all still falls under his authority of course. He is still the reigning Kai over our section of the universe, Piccolo said.
King Kai, can he? Anything to help us kill Frieza would help not only us, but all Mortals. He wants to become immortal. If he succeeds, he'll be a threat to the entire universe. I'm sure that falls under your power to influence, Goku told his Kai teacher. A Kai was not allowed to interfere directly with events in the Mortal Cosmos unless the threat was enough to threaten the entirety of it ALL.
You're right, Goku. Depending on which techniques they are, I'll let him do it. Certain ones even I can't allow Mortals to learn. There is a higher Kai than even I, King Kai said.
The Grand Kai? Yeah, you told me about that. Anything you can do will be a big help. I got to go now, you guys. Things here have to have my attention, Goku told them. They both bade him farewell.
"Well?" Krillin asked after Goku finally opened his eyes.
"Piccolo realized it was flawed long before even I did. It seems King Kai tried to revive the attack from lost information in the Kai Line. He did a fairly good job all things considered but he didn't get it perfect. The original attack increased everything equally and was far less limited. Piccolo figures he can get it right as soon as he looks over this information King Kai used to resurrect the attack," Goku explained.
"It figures. Nameks seem to have a talent for all of that. As soon as we showed Guru and Nail the form, they noticed the flaw right away," Krillin laughed.
"Did Guru say anything else about the attack?" Goku asked the bald man.
"He made us promise to never go over a five times Kaio-Ken ever. He really didn't want us using it at all to be honest. He said a triple is relatively safe with our control but not completely. He recommends keeping it less than a triple," Gohan answered.
"Then that's what we'll do. Now where do we go from here?" Goku wondered.
"If you all would pay attention… Frieza's men are on the move," Vegeta barked. They all sensed he was telling the truth.
"They're heading for the largest settlement left. We can't let them kill all those Nameks!" Krillin gasped.
"We won't," Goku agreed.
"That has to be Dodoria and a few of Frieza's weaker fighters. We could reach them in no time if we leave now," Vegeta barked.
"His power feels like it's around 32,000," Gohan said.
"That's exactly what it is. Everyone knows that blob's power. He brags about to throughout Frieza's entire empire. By their standards, he's considered quite strong. By ours, he's nothing," Vegeta agreed. With that they all flared up and blasted off toward this Dodoria person. Vegeta and Goku both noticed they had to fly at nearly maximum speed just to keep up with either Krillin or Gohan. This didn't go well with the Prince of course. It was yet another wound to his pride. Only the hope of better training making him even stronger kept him from chewing nails. It wasn't long before they watched five powers descending into a small city below. It wasn't a city by usual standards but as close to one as Namek had.
"Where is the Dragonball?!" Dodoria demanded immediately after landing with his henchmen.
"We do not have a Dragonball here," a young Namek said.
"Where is your Elder?" Dodoria demanded, dismissing what the man said as a clear lie.
"Lord Dodoria, there are a few weak powers closing on our location. They're here!" a henchman told the leader. Dodoria turned to see Goku, Vegeta, Krillin, and Gohan landing together beside them.
"Vegeta?! So you decided to come here after failing on Earth, have you? Well you won't be getting any of the Dragonballs here. Master Frieza already has six of them," Dodoria laughed. It then he noticed the Ball resting in Krillin hands. "A Dragonball! Give it to me!"
"Fat chance, fatso! Come and get it if you think you can," Krillin taunted. Dodoria grunted in irritation while pressing a button on his scouter.
"You all have a power level of 7,000. Pathetic. Even all together you stand no chance against me," Dodoria laughed. "And I was sure you were much stronger, Vegeta."
"I want to take care of this one, you guys. If you don't mind of course," Krillin said. He tossed the Dragonball to Gohan who caught it easily even though it flew toward him at three times the speed of sound.
"Just you? You have to be joking," Dodoria laughed. He threw his hand forward and all of his men attacked as one. Krillin threw a golden disk of energy that hacked them all in half.
"All so easy," Krillin sighed.
"Those were merely grunts. Do you really think I'm as weak as they were?" Dodoria laughed, confident.
"No, but you are just as stupid. You could be a hundred times stronger than those idiots and you'd still be weak to me," Krillin yawned. This pissed Dodoria off to no end. The fat pink menace roared out in pure rage while lunging forth in an assault of his own, attacking with what he thought would instantly overwhelm the overconfident little fool who dared to challenge him!
