Chapter VIII: Discoveries galore

Disclaimer: 'Dragon Ball' as such, is not owned by me. Period.

AN: I'd like to personally thank 'supervegeta778', 'Wavern', 'XYZ', 'Kutasan' and 'Vic Mignogna' for their kind reviews in relation to the previous chappie. I truly admired the honesty that they put forth through their words.

I'm sure that some of you are growing a tad bit impatient with the pace at which things have been progressing.

All I can say in response (to that) is...

"Kindly hold onto your seats for now. Reason being that every time I start to rush things, they get far too poor… quality-wise."

There now, I hope that shall suffice!

Yosh, let us begin then –


"Good heavens! What do we have here?!" This is...

"...?"

Letting the pencil stub fall from her pursed lips, an obviously overworked Bulma Brief glanced over to where her genius father stood; eyebrow quirked upwards in slight interest and mild concern as she did so. Hm? What's he so worked up about?

Leaving the desk that she had previously been working upon, the bluenette made sure to fold the stack of blueprints, that involved a certain android, neatly before asking the all-important question; latter kept aside safely before her attempt.

"What's up dad?"

"..."

Wiping the sweat from his brow; tiny napkin always present within his coat pocket to be used at a moment's notice, Dr. Brief sighed deeply to calm his nerves before adopting a solemn tone.

"My dear, it seems that Dr. Gero was far more crafty than we had previously assumed. This…" the aged scientist pointed towards the half-open torso of the ginger-haired android, "… is the most extraordinary case of 'suicidal cybernetics' that I have ever seen."

"…" Say what now?

Left thoroughly puzzled by her father's statement, Bulma sauntered over to where he stood, both eyes narrowed, before stating her confusion to the man.

"But… what do you mean dad? Is 16's design really all that different compared to 17's and 18's?"

Stroking his chin with both eyes shut tight, the worried inventor glanced over at the incapacitated android before letting out a small sigh in agreement.

"I'm... afraid so."

Sporting an even more confused expression upon her attractive face, Bulma moved to respond before her father's next statement managed to silence her with an impressive finality.

"16… is the unfortunate carrier of a bomb that would make even the most powerful nuclear warhead seem like a mere catherine wheel."

"…!" Uh... hm.

Silence enveloped the laboratory for the next 5 minutes.

Neither father nor daughter let a single breath escape their respective lips during the above mentioned period. Such was the gravity of their predicament and the situation in general that they nearly forgot about the task that they had undertaken before that point.

"!" What am I doing? I should be thinking a way around this problem by now!

"Dad. Just how can you be so sure about all this? Surely Dr. Gero couldn't have developed such a dangerous weapon out of thin air?"

Getting back to his work upon the comatose cyborg, Dr. Brief stroked the furry head of his little feline assistant before replying, "Well, if my calculations are to be trusted, the neutron readings around this particular area…"

The man rested a sole finger upon the region that would have been the tall cybernetic creation's 'heart' before ploughing on.

"… are abnormally large and seem to be enclosed around an alloy that, more or less, serves as the outer layer of the bomb itself." How did he accomplish such brilliance in the name of world domination alone? (Sigh) If only he had used his genius for the betterment of humankind…


Unbeknownst to the Capsule Corp. founder and his flabbergasted offspring, a lavender-haired visitor from the future had just then decided to enter their lab's domain… eyes as wide as could be as his ears soaked in every word that had been uttered.

"…" I knew it. So that's why Krillin didn't find 16's blueprints at that evil bastard's lab. He definitely never intended on anyone finding out about all of his inhumane experiments.

"...?"

Feeling a presence behind her back, Bulma whipped her head in the direction of the newcomer before letting out a surprised gasp, "Trunks! Y-You heard-?"

Choosing to simply nod his head in reply, the young man frowned slightly before addressing his grandfather, "So what do you plan on doing now? If that bomb is somehow set off in future, the sheer devastation that'll follow is something I just don't wanna think about." As if we don't have enough problems already. This one pops up out of the blue when we least need it.

Understanding the fact that a decision would have to be taken, right then and there, the genius head of Capsule Corp. folded his arms before responding to his grandson's query. Alright then, I suppose it is time that I took care of this little issue once and for all.

"Well for now, I think it would be wise to let our friend here keep this little firecracker within his torso. Undisturbed."

"!"

Trunks and Bulma only had a single thought racing across their psyche right then. Is he nuts?!

Raising a composed hand to calm both of his successors in tandem, the inventor promptly continued with his proposal.

"Seeing as it was originally intended to be used against Goku, I do not see the problem in letting it be utilized against someone like Cell… should the requirement ever arise."

...

Allowing the intriguing scenario to play out within their respective minds, both, mother and son, found the idea to be of a 60-40 ratio. Atleast, as far as the 'fine line' between success and utter failure was concerned.

Bulma, obviously reluctant, albeit on a more practical basis, promptly chose to speak her mind at that point, "Dad, I hope you know what you're doing. The repercussions of your decision can go both ways you know."

Nodding in plumb reassurance, Dr. Brief smiled gently to let his worried child know that the delicate situation would be kept well under control… atleast from his end.

"Do not fret my dear. I promise that, should this risky gamble get out of hand, you alone will be the one to have the final say regarding it."

Swallowing the tension that had risen up along his throat, Trunks merely kept his head steady as things played themselves out in front of his concerned eyes, Great, yet another thing that I need to take care of in my timeline. When will it end? knowing that any sort of suggestion from his side would undoubtedly be considered…

… but then subsequently shot down.


Outside the lab –

"…"

Keeping his scowl in place, the flame-haired male let out a bored grunt before taking strong steps in the direction of his precious 'Gravity Chamber'; previous conversation, that he had willingly overheard, falling back into the deepest recesses of his cunning mind as an intriguing plot developed within.

Hmm… interesting. That bucket of bolts could prove valuable after all.

Mind set on 'upping the ante' with his training, the mentally focused prince cracked his knuckles, an eager grin growing across his lips as a mysterious gleam shone within his dark orbs.

Hmph, it's about time that I took it to the next level. Not that Kakarot's going to rest easy in the meantime.


Inside the chamber –

Solitude.

Serenity.

Privacy.

The above three almost always left him… 'calmer' than before. Not entirely, but upto a sufficient degree at the very least.

The sheer vastness of the metallic chamber also made his blood race sometimes. It caused his eyes to narrow and pulse quicken with unbridled anticipation whenever he would lay his gaze upon it from an outward perspective.

Indeed, Vegeta was deeply indebted to his wife's genius father… for having built the spacious room to be used for his personal aspirations and goals.

The old man really outdid himself with this one. It's far better equipped than the last one at least. That blasted version really got on my nerves with its ridiculous limitations and faulty controls.

"..."

Typing in the code that would allow him to access the inner sanctums of his 'happy place', the saiyan prince seemingly ignored the computerized voice that greeted him.

- "Good day Prince Vegeta. What level of gravity would you like to breach today?" -

"Hmph." If I didn't know any better, I'd say that the damn thing was actually 'mocking' my lack of progress.

Shaking off the minor distraction by keeping mum, the determined male made his way over towards the small room onto his right, fists clenched and kept at his sides as he did so. I suppose a change of clothes is in order. I simply cannot afford to train in these ridiculous earthling outfits...

Frowning, as a recent (but not quite 'pleasant') memory popped up within his head, he mentally added, tone being of the resolute type... at any cost.

Having gotten dressed into his spandex outfit in double-quick time, Vegeta proceeded to get his warm-ups underway, mind constantly reminding him of the fact that he had yet to reach that stage of true 'ascension' as such.

Soon. Very soon I, Vegeta, shall be the one to claim the right over that level of power and might. Only me.

A confident smirk adorned the man's face at that point, Yes. It will be I who defeats Cell and reclaims the rightful position of the strongest warrior in all of existence!

Letting an abrupt sourness overcome his features, the proud saiyan soon let his thoughts take on a much darker route.

Not even that Kakarot can hope to halt my climb to the top this time! Not while I still have a single breath left within this body of mine! YES!

"…!"

Such was the raw adrenaline pumping through his body and mind, that his above mentioned (tense) mindset eventually turned out to be the unlikely 'catalyst' for his transformation into the very first stage of Super Saiyan.

BAUM!


"…"

Lifting both of his hands up to eye-level, Vegeta browsed over the sheer power flowing through his fingertips… as a whole; fingers being clenched and relaxed as his eyes scanned over every fine detail in relation to his appendages.

It left him quite baffled how, today, his ki felt 'different' to him. The experience was, frankly put, new to one such as him.

Strange. Even at 300x normal gravity I shouldn't be feeling such a strain upon my limbs. Why is my transformed state feeling like such a burden all of a sudden?

Having no one around to answer his queries for him, Vegeta shrugged off his inner doubts before proceeding to power up even further.

Alright then, it's time to see if I can indeed push myself past the 1st and 2nd stages of my ascension... for a second time.

The target for the overtly determined prince was simply as follows...

Power up to the very maximum and try to see if the act put any undue strain upon his body… or mind.

Then try to maintain that level for as long as possible.

In spite of knowing quite well that even the 1st stage (or Super Saiyan 'Grade 2') would prove to be a huge challenge… particularly for him since his body size made having any sort of excess muscle mass quite a task in itself.

That, in short, was his initial plan that would eventually lead him onto the road to true ascension (as he put it).

An all-important path, which was supposed to end with him discovering the 5th stage of the Super Saiyan transformation (Goku's 'Full Power Super Saiyan' form being the de-facto number 4 in the line).

Hmph, that Kakarot may have discovered the simplest solution to counter the core problem regarding the legendary transformation. But it is I who shall be the one to push that idea even further. Even beyond what that clown can even fathom!

Now… Vegeta was certainly no fool when it came to things such as battle tactics and strategy. It would, undoubtedly, only be a matter of time before his sheer intellect and unquestionable experience upon the battlefield would bring forth adequate results for him.

"Grrr… I must succeed this time. It's imperative that I concentrate harder than before or else-"

Getting into a suitable stance, knees slightly bent as his torso leaned forward, Vegeta soon found powering up to be even more of a chore than he had ever thought possible. What the-?

"URRRGGGHHH…!" I feel like I weight a ton! Is the damn machine broken already?!

Unfortunately for the prince, that would only prove to be the start of his immediate troubles.

...

"Whizz! Whizz! Brrr!"

"Eh?" Are those-?

- "Lvl 1 Attack Bots activated" -

"...!" When did I give the command for-?

"Computer! Cancel that comm-!"

ZZAAAAP!


Ducking under a photon blast that, under the present 'gravity induced' circumstances, would've instantly deep-fried an average human, Vegeta simply clenched his teeth before turning around to face the other two humming nuisances.

Well, I guess powering up will have to wait for now. Time for me

Arm at the ready, the saiyan scowled slightly before aiming at the more annoying looking of the two… to blow off some steam.

"Take this!"

BLAAAAM!

Having held back a considerable amount of his destructive power, the male was rightfully satisfied to see the immediate results of his attack. Beautiful. That hit its mark quite well.

Landing his gaze upon the other bot, the very first one hovering right behind him, the flame-haired warrior smirked in amusement before leaping up and into the air; eyes locked onto the former of the two as a predatory gleam shone across them. This is simply too easy for me.

A half-decent amount of force gathered within his enclosed fist, the prince of all saiyans swiftly disposed of his hapless target before using his superior speed to appear in front of the very first bot that had dared to attack him.

"Begone."

"Beep! Boop! Brrr-!"

ZZAASH!

A simple right chop, that sliced right across the unfortunate robots interface, was all that it took. Either their coatings gotten rusty... or I'm just that much stronger than before.

Satisfied with his little exercise, the man promptly powered down to base before flexing his shoulders for a bit. Alright, back to work then.

...

Furrowing his brow, Vegeta let loose all of his innate frustration and rage... mind trying to harness his body's ability to surpass all limitations to the max.

Yes… that's it. Almost there.

VOOOOM!

A brilliant flash of yellow… and the mighty saiyan had transformed into the very 1st stage of super saiyan.

Perfect. It seems that the effort needed is a lot lower than the last time. Not that it was too long ago that I attempted it.

Flexing his defined muscles further, the male grunted and growled as sparks of static bio-electricity shot forth from the surface of his pulsating torso; vein bulging dangerously near his temple as the temperature within the chamber abruptly rose by a few degrees.

"Urgh…! Graaaa! HAAAA!"

FOOOOM!


For the first time since his humiliating defeat at the hands of Cell, Vegeta had unleashed his ascended super saiyan form in all of its glory. Flashes of the brightest yellow shooting in all directions as heavy pants escaped his agape mouth, making him stagger… albeit slightly.

"(Pant!) That's the way… (pant!) yes, that is the way it should be." I've done it again. Now… for the final touch.

Narrowing his eyes, muscles and body tissue aching like never before, the physically exhausted saiyan kept up with the output of raw ki as his aura flared out even further, effectively making the room turn pure blonde in an instant.

"Hnn! HAAAA!" I know that it is foolish to attempt this form. But I must know all of my limits beforehand! It's the only way!

Clenching his fists till they bled, Vegeta ignored the droplets of crimson liquid that escaped his enclosed hands, mind far too focused on drawing out all of his innate, latent power.

Through sheer 'brute force' if necessary.

Almost… there… gah...!

Shoulders vibrating dangerously, forearms turning into mounds of massive muscle, thighs stretching apart painfully, chest expanding to support all of the excess mass…

… it definitely did not take long for a mentally-prepared Vegeta to unleash the 3rd stage of his super saiyan form that day.

Not that it was a 'pain-free' process mind you.

"A-Aarh! Hrraaa! Finally…! Ha...! Ha...!" Success.

...

Standing up to his full height and observing his monstrous physical change with righteous scrutiny, Vegeta scoffed at the sheer stupidity at work.

"Bah! Just what am I even supposed to do in this useless state?" No wonder that someone such as Kakarot came up with that novel idea when he did.

Promptly moving his fingers across his bicep and exploring the rest of his huge left arm, the prince shook his head in disappointment once more.

"Forget movement, just 'maintaining' this form for 10 simple minutes is going to prove troublesome. What a complete and utter waste of energy."

Having expended most of his reserves already, the flame-haired male immediately released his hold over the state, body shrinking down by a good way as his aura calmed… and eventually dissipated into nothingness; hair and eyebrows returning to their natural black color, emerald eyes into onyx.

Phew! That took long enough… hmph.

Glaring at both of his open palms before snorting at the bloody smudges adorning them both, Vegeta soon turned on his heel and marched straight towards a much-needed shower.

Anything to make me forget about that last attempt.

Recalling how his rival had confidently declared his superiority over him upon the lookout, a few days ago, the furious prince nearly slammed a fist upon the 'delicate' metal wall that coated his precious gravity room's interior.

Grrr, I can't believe how foolish I was! Pursuing such a fruitless idea of ascension when even that clown could manage it so easily!

Just the mere 'thought' of Goku (as well as Gohan) achieving something he himself could not, or was unable to, made Vegeta absolutely livid from head to toe. It made his saiyan blood boil with the hunger to compete… to prove to his opponents and adversaries that he was as good, if not better, than they were.


Truly, the situation was such that the mighty warrior's patience had worn thin (again!) and he had successfully reached that point where his level of desperation had started to peak (once again).

Darn that Cell! If only… if only I had more time at hand. I'd show him what fighting a true saiyan feels like!

Sighing after what felt like a long while, the mentally tired man finally chose to call it a day, mind inwardly knowing that it would be futile to attempt another round of exertion, seeing as he had reached a blockade of sorts... yet again.

In short, simply wasting away all of his energy, in one more training session, was most certainly out of the question.

Hmph, I've hit yet another blasted wall in my path towards greater strength. How convenient.

Sarcasm dripping past every syllable, Vegeta soon found his mood begin to sour by a good margin; eyes as cold as ever as he turned off the machine that regularly helped him to overcome his limits.

It won't serve me well at this rate. I've got to get that woman to make a better one soon. One that alters the training field slightly and has some sort of simulation built-in. Hmm... that actually sounds good.

...

The seemingly unsurpassable wall that blocked the proud prince's march towards 'true ascension' had definitely thinned in recent times… yet it still remained as tall a climb as ever.

Definitely still a problem for the man in question.

Smirking to himself as an amusing thought crossed his mind, Vegeta finally exited the dark room; single hand wiping at the trail of blood that had managed to trickle past the corner of his mouth, courtesy of his prior scuffle against certain mechanical opponents.

No matter. In the end, I shall be the one standing all the way at the front, challenging that artificial freak of nature to a rematch.

Lifting an enclosed fist up to his eye-level, prior dissatisfaction at a 'less-than-fruitful' training session long forgotten, the determined ruler of all saiyans made a resolute declaration…

"Just you wait Cell. I'll avenge my honor that you tarnished and then, I'll tear you apart limb from limb. Count on it."

Needless to say, Vegeta found himself visiting the gravity room once again that day… although much later in the evening.

Post lunch... and at a time when he could ponder over his present predicament in peace; innate desire to surpass Goku, and eventually Cell, pushing him on as he toiled like a man possessed by an otherworldly force.


Several miles away, by a calm waterfall -

"…"

Is that it?

Eyebrow quirked upwards in mild amusement (and a decent amount of boredom), the tall male uncrossed his arms before flying over to the spot that he had been told of.

Heh, Kakarot's pathetic spawn turned out to be useful for once.

Said spot was the one which Piccolo 'himself' often used to meditate by… with his young pupil regularly paying him visits whenever possible AKA whenever his mother wasn't breathing down his tiny neck, ordering him to focus upon his studies and such.

Looking around the area once more, Broly sighed, feeling his head start to throb slightly. Great, this'll do.

Adopting a sitting position, both legs crossed as his hands covered both of his respective knee caps, the saiyan soon found his cluttered mind beginning to clear. Aah… my head felt like it was gonna 'burst' a short while ago. This feels great.

Hearing the calming sound of gushing liquid falling all around his stationary frame, the warrior felt his ears grow numb from all that his current surroundings had to offer.

It was a stark contrast to all that he had seen, heard and lived by… for most of his developing years and adult life. The chirping of the birds, which he had found to be highly annoying and irritating before, seemed to be growing on him as well.

Damn, this planet will make me soft and vulnerable well before I get to lay my hands on that infernal Cell.

Grinding his teeth due to his ever-rising impatience, mind not quite accustomed to spending several hours in frozen meditation, Broly at last opened his eyes wide; arms still in their prior positions as before. Alright then… that should do it.

Getting up from his position, the 'now relieved' man took a good look at his hands before letting his ki burst into life, mouth starting to move as he did so, "Hm, if I remember right, it used to hurt to do this before."

Observing how his aura flared outwards, green hue enveloping his entire form as he did so, Broly smirked slightly at the improvement that he saw.

Hehe. Well now, who knew that a couple of days of sitting still would do that for ya.

Finding a gradual change occur in his immediate mood, he then hopped down and onto the soft grass in front of him… before thinking further, All things considered, transforming into that, again, is definitely out of the question… if I wanna have some real fun.

Having successfully gotten his intended job done and dealt with, the man cracked his sore knuckles before pondering over something that had been bothering him for quite some time.

Come to think of it, I think that I've also gotten quite used to that idiot's presence around me as well.

"…"

What the hell's gotten into me?! When did I actually start 'tolerating' that bastard's existence?

Scratching his head, innate frustration 'more-than-visible' to anyone bothering to look, the puzzled male thought it wise to take a break by the riverbed.

I bet his harpy poisoned my food. Yeah… that has got to be it!


A few 'tense' minutes later -

Having calmed down considerably, all things considered, the mentally confused saiyan laid back down onto the cool grass... back allowing the gentle blades to rub against the former in tandem, as the sweet scent of raw nature wafted up his receptive nose.

Unsurprisingly, it did not take long for the semi-dozing man's customary musings to follow suit.

"If this place didn't have this much of relaxing stuff to offer (Yawn!)… I'd have probably blown it all up out of sheer boredom... long back."

For one such as Broly, that would certainly have been an understatement at that stage.

"…!" Wha-?

Springing up into a sitting position, head whipping towards his right, the reluctant ally of the 'even more' reluctant Z Fighters felt his eyes widen in sheer and utter disbelief.

He truly could not feel the need to even move at that point it would seem.

"…" This distinct ki, I'm sure it's that guy, Cell.

Further concentration upon his target at that moment provided even more shocking results for the legendary warrior… literally catching him off-guard yet again.

What?! Why is his power different from before?

Dark orbs narrowing dangerously at the startling discovery, Broly clenched his jaw tight as the genuine tension in his psyche rose…

… from his frozen gut, all the way upto his flustered brain.

Is the asshole actually training too?

[Countdown: 2 days to go]


AN: Yep, there you have it.

No questions this time around it would seem.

Well, no biggie… at the very least I got some awesome reviews instead, LOL!

On a different note, the next chapter will be the 'last' of this collection (that deals with the thoughts and feelings of all the Z Fighters) folks.

Then… the REAL battle shall begin! :D

Ta-ta!