Dr Brief's gravity room was big enough to allow two people to train it. It
was for this reason that Vegeta and Goku had decided that their sparring
sessions would be much more efficient if they took advantage of the
facilities at their disposal.
They'd only known each for a short period of time but had come to get a basic understanding of each other. Goku knew that Vegeta oozed both pride and confidence. In turn, Vegeta was able to respect Kakarotto's nobility but felt that he lacked a "cutting edge" quality that would make him an even greater warrior.
"You never told me what happened to your tail, Kakarotto," said Vegeta has he strolled around the gravity room in an attempt to find the controls that dictated the room. "So, what happened?"
"I had it removed a long time ago. The God of this Planet did it, in fact!" proclaimed Goku. He didn't really understand just how much power a Saiya-jin could with a tail.
"You sound as if you're impressed or even pleased by the fact that you had your tail removed? Tell me, did you know of the power that a tail gives to a Saiya-jin?" asked Vegeta. It was obvious that Kakarotto was unaware of his true potential.
Goku offered no response. He was curious at to what Vegeta meant by true potential.
"When a Saiya-jin looks at a full moon then the most incredible transformation is made, if their tail is still in tact," exclaimed the Prince as he began to get rather excited. "The Saiya-jin becomes what is known as an Oozuru. A 60 foot gorilla! Needless to say that such a transformation gives the Saiya-jin a dramatic power increase. In fact your power is increased ten fold! Just think Kakarotto, in Oozuru form, your power level would be over 500,000!"
Goku was shocked. It had been many years since Kami had removed his tail. Now, he realised why. If Goku had transformed then his power would be too great for the Planet to contain. There would have been no one to stop him from rampaging and eventually destroying the Planet. It seemed ironic that this was his life long mission after being dispatched by the Saiya-jin. Each day Goku learned something new about his past. Now though, it was time to look to the future.
"500,000!" he yelped in a rather shocked tone of voice. "Powers like that don't even exist!"
The Prince smiled. He knew that Kakarotto had become very naïve during his stay on Earth. 500,000 was almost nothing in comparison to Frieza. The trouble was that Vegeta didn't know just how strong the icy ruler was. All he knew was that the form that used as his public front was not his final form. Frieza had the ability to transform and become even stronger.
The duo paused as Vegeta took no notice of Goku's comment. He really didn't want to waste energy by talking. It was time to start preparing for the inevitable war that was destined to fall their way.
"Alright, Kakarotto!" exclaimed Vegeta as he threw his fist into the air. "We're going to start off at 15X Earth's normal gravity! After we are able to control our movements and spar effectively, we'll up it a bit!"
The Saiya-jin from Earth nodded. His knew that this was his fate. The path to becoming stronger had become entangled with Vegeta's. Destiny had brought them together but they'd control their own fate from here on in.
The floor seemed to drop a level or two as the gravity machine finally kicked in. The Prince looked towards Kakarotto - neither of them were phased by it. Their desire overpowered everything and that was why they were so much stronger than the rest of their Saiya-jin counterparts.
The ground moved hesitantly as the two Saiya-jin locked their hands together as they desperately tried to exert their skill on the scenario. Neither would move. Sparks flew from the Prince as he tried to tap into the power that gave him a slight advantage over Kakarotto. However, his opponent still managed to hold him off. Kakarotto's determination seemingly evened up the score.
The Prince gazed at Kakarotto as his eyes gleamed with passion. Yes, he was a true Saiya-jin! All these years hadn't changed his soul. Inside, he was still one of them. This was were it counted the most.
***
Despite the obvious respect shared by Goku and Vegeta, their peers weren't as acceptant of one another. Raditz, Bardock and Nappa didn't like the fact that the Prince had forced them to train with a Namek and a few Earthlings. They were weak and almost held back their training. It was Nappa who came worst off as Bardock and Raditz seemed quite happy to spar with each other.
"You're getting fast!" exclaimed Raditz.
Bardock had caught up to his son. His desire to prove that he was not a failure ensured that he'd received a dramatic power boost from their training. In fact, it was possible that if given a few more months - Bardock would surpass Raditz completely.
The eldest Saiya-jin of the group smirked as he continued to try and smash his way through Raditz's defences. His punching technique seemed to have improved greatly as they glided through the air with very little resistance from the wind. In truth, Raditz could hardly believe how fast his father was becoming. Despite his obvious speed increase, his strength hadn't increased as much. As a result, Bardock was fast becoming a lightening fast puncher but with very little substance behind the blows.
Nappa on the other hand was continually arguing with whoever he sparred with. It was usually Kuririn. Piccolo and Ten seemed to have teamed off to an extent and this left Earth's strongest human to spar with the beastly Saiya-jin known as Nappa.
"You're not hitting me hard enough!" screamed Nappa as he propelled Kuririn into a nearby wall with a thunderous left hook.
Kuririn slammed into the wall as you could felt the bricks crumble from behind him. However, it had little effect as Kuririn's resilience was improving as a result of the continual beatings he was taking at the hands of Nappa.
"I'm trying!" snapped back Kuririn as he growled at Nappa.
He didn't trust the Saiya-jin and wasn't entirely sure why Goku did.
Suddenly, Kuririn darted out of the way of a yellow Ki blast. If it had connected with him, it would have surely killed him. Nappa stood back and watched Kuririn dance around like an infant. He too wondered why they had to train with the humans. He knew that Kuririn was never going to win any wars for them. Only Kakarotto seemed to have any real strength - why not just persuade him to join them and vaporise the Planet?
"Hey! What's the big idea?" scowled Kuririn as he waved his hands with venom in Nappa's direction. "I could have been killed!"
"This is the way the Saiya-jin train! If you want to become stronger, you have to go through HELL to get there!" shrieked Nappa in response. "Stop crying or face up the fact that your Planet could be next!"
Kuririn didn't like it but he was right. Unless they were able to stop Frieza, then the Universe would fall to his complete authority. They'd all be slaves. He wasn't prepared to let this happen. Not when he could make a difference. However, Kuririn's main problem was that he didn't know if he COULD make a difference. He'd always taken the view that in the end it'd be Goku that'd bail them out. This wasn't your run of the mill battle though. They were preparing for the war to end the never-ending conflict in the Universe. They had to win.
***
"Yes, that's it, Kakarotto!" announced Vegeta as the pair exchanged kicks and punches.
They moved around the gravity room with such ease. Kuririn and Piccolo would have struggled to walk but Goku and Vegeta glided around and shot Ki blasts in every conceivable direction. It was as if the pair had no limits. Every time a new blow was landed, a smile would appear on both faces. This was their life.
"Enough of this childsplay, Kakarotto!" exclaimed Vegeta as the sparring stopped temporarily. "Let's go again, but this time at 25X Earth's gravity!"
Once again, the room surged with energy as gravity took its toll. The Prince wanted to see exactly what Kakarotto was made of. The best way of achieving this was by testing his limits and pushing him as hard as he could do.
Goku wasn't phased by the gravity. Sure, it was now a little harder for him to move but he could still walk around although he was having difficulty in doing anything more than walk. He knew this was the way it was meant to be though. Goku said nothing and prepared for yet another onslaught from the Prince.
***
"Quit pushing me!" exclaimed a rather battered and bruised Saiya-jin as he was thrown into the Saiya-jin palace's main room.
King Toma sat on the throne just as he had done ever since the demise of Vegeta. Toma didn't seem too impressed by the sight of such a lowly creature being presented by him by one of his guards. He peered down at the subject and sneered as he held his nose.
"Why have you been brought before me, peasant?" inquired Toma as he oozed with arrogance.
"King Toma! The Planet is in turmoil! Ever since you took over as King, Frieza's men have flooded the Planet and virtually enslaved us! My wife was KILLED for speaking out against Frieza! Did you hear me? KILLED!" screamed the little Saiya-jin. He wasn't too muscular and had jet-black hair. They were about his only distinguishing features. However, for some reason Toma continued to stare at his nose.
"And what do you want ME to do about it?" snapped back the King with venom.
"I want to know were your loyalties are! Do you represent OUR people or are you YOURSELF nothing more than a SLAVE to Frieza?" growled the Saiya- jin as he crept forward towards the King. The guards restrained him once again as they pulled him back the neck. The Saiya-jin choked a little and fell to his knees. "You're KILLING our people!"
King Toma was disgusted by such a showing. Who the hell was this cretin to speak in such a manner? Toma was King. He knew that what the peasant said was entirely true though. He was nothing more than a slave in reality. However, at least he was alive. It was for that reason that he chose to blatantly ignore the pleas of the Saiya-jin that stood before him.
"Guards, I'd like you to take this stupid little thing and put him in the Royal Dungeons immediately. I grow tired of his murmuring!" proclaimed the King as he pointed to the doorway.
The guards nodded and picked up the little fellow by the armpits. It was arguably the most painful way of being carried. Then, came the statement that Toma had been fearing for quite some time.
"WAIT!" demanded the Saiya-jin as he spun around and faced the King once more. Toma sat up. "Your time will come very soon, Toma! Even as we speak, my son Zucchino is hurdling through space in an attempt to bring back the rightful ruler of this Planet! That's right! He knows where Prince Vegeta is and he's going to bring him home! THEN, you will PAY for your crimes!"
The King scowled with rage. He didn't quite know whether to express his shock or simply kill the fellow on the spot. Suddenly, his rage subsided. Perhaps he was bluffing? Yes, there was no way that anyone could know of the Prince's whereabouts.
Toma laughed once more.
"Take him AWAY!"
The guards left the room as Toma sat alone in the grand chamber. It hadn't been decorated since he'd come into power. Everything had remained just as it was for King Vegeta. It was ironic that at this point he chose to look up at the ceiling. His eyes came into contact with a haunting warning.
The huge mural of the Prince and rightful King of the Planet watched over Toma once more.
They'd only known each for a short period of time but had come to get a basic understanding of each other. Goku knew that Vegeta oozed both pride and confidence. In turn, Vegeta was able to respect Kakarotto's nobility but felt that he lacked a "cutting edge" quality that would make him an even greater warrior.
"You never told me what happened to your tail, Kakarotto," said Vegeta has he strolled around the gravity room in an attempt to find the controls that dictated the room. "So, what happened?"
"I had it removed a long time ago. The God of this Planet did it, in fact!" proclaimed Goku. He didn't really understand just how much power a Saiya-jin could with a tail.
"You sound as if you're impressed or even pleased by the fact that you had your tail removed? Tell me, did you know of the power that a tail gives to a Saiya-jin?" asked Vegeta. It was obvious that Kakarotto was unaware of his true potential.
Goku offered no response. He was curious at to what Vegeta meant by true potential.
"When a Saiya-jin looks at a full moon then the most incredible transformation is made, if their tail is still in tact," exclaimed the Prince as he began to get rather excited. "The Saiya-jin becomes what is known as an Oozuru. A 60 foot gorilla! Needless to say that such a transformation gives the Saiya-jin a dramatic power increase. In fact your power is increased ten fold! Just think Kakarotto, in Oozuru form, your power level would be over 500,000!"
Goku was shocked. It had been many years since Kami had removed his tail. Now, he realised why. If Goku had transformed then his power would be too great for the Planet to contain. There would have been no one to stop him from rampaging and eventually destroying the Planet. It seemed ironic that this was his life long mission after being dispatched by the Saiya-jin. Each day Goku learned something new about his past. Now though, it was time to look to the future.
"500,000!" he yelped in a rather shocked tone of voice. "Powers like that don't even exist!"
The Prince smiled. He knew that Kakarotto had become very naïve during his stay on Earth. 500,000 was almost nothing in comparison to Frieza. The trouble was that Vegeta didn't know just how strong the icy ruler was. All he knew was that the form that used as his public front was not his final form. Frieza had the ability to transform and become even stronger.
The duo paused as Vegeta took no notice of Goku's comment. He really didn't want to waste energy by talking. It was time to start preparing for the inevitable war that was destined to fall their way.
"Alright, Kakarotto!" exclaimed Vegeta as he threw his fist into the air. "We're going to start off at 15X Earth's normal gravity! After we are able to control our movements and spar effectively, we'll up it a bit!"
The Saiya-jin from Earth nodded. His knew that this was his fate. The path to becoming stronger had become entangled with Vegeta's. Destiny had brought them together but they'd control their own fate from here on in.
The floor seemed to drop a level or two as the gravity machine finally kicked in. The Prince looked towards Kakarotto - neither of them were phased by it. Their desire overpowered everything and that was why they were so much stronger than the rest of their Saiya-jin counterparts.
The ground moved hesitantly as the two Saiya-jin locked their hands together as they desperately tried to exert their skill on the scenario. Neither would move. Sparks flew from the Prince as he tried to tap into the power that gave him a slight advantage over Kakarotto. However, his opponent still managed to hold him off. Kakarotto's determination seemingly evened up the score.
The Prince gazed at Kakarotto as his eyes gleamed with passion. Yes, he was a true Saiya-jin! All these years hadn't changed his soul. Inside, he was still one of them. This was were it counted the most.
***
Despite the obvious respect shared by Goku and Vegeta, their peers weren't as acceptant of one another. Raditz, Bardock and Nappa didn't like the fact that the Prince had forced them to train with a Namek and a few Earthlings. They were weak and almost held back their training. It was Nappa who came worst off as Bardock and Raditz seemed quite happy to spar with each other.
"You're getting fast!" exclaimed Raditz.
Bardock had caught up to his son. His desire to prove that he was not a failure ensured that he'd received a dramatic power boost from their training. In fact, it was possible that if given a few more months - Bardock would surpass Raditz completely.
The eldest Saiya-jin of the group smirked as he continued to try and smash his way through Raditz's defences. His punching technique seemed to have improved greatly as they glided through the air with very little resistance from the wind. In truth, Raditz could hardly believe how fast his father was becoming. Despite his obvious speed increase, his strength hadn't increased as much. As a result, Bardock was fast becoming a lightening fast puncher but with very little substance behind the blows.
Nappa on the other hand was continually arguing with whoever he sparred with. It was usually Kuririn. Piccolo and Ten seemed to have teamed off to an extent and this left Earth's strongest human to spar with the beastly Saiya-jin known as Nappa.
"You're not hitting me hard enough!" screamed Nappa as he propelled Kuririn into a nearby wall with a thunderous left hook.
Kuririn slammed into the wall as you could felt the bricks crumble from behind him. However, it had little effect as Kuririn's resilience was improving as a result of the continual beatings he was taking at the hands of Nappa.
"I'm trying!" snapped back Kuririn as he growled at Nappa.
He didn't trust the Saiya-jin and wasn't entirely sure why Goku did.
Suddenly, Kuririn darted out of the way of a yellow Ki blast. If it had connected with him, it would have surely killed him. Nappa stood back and watched Kuririn dance around like an infant. He too wondered why they had to train with the humans. He knew that Kuririn was never going to win any wars for them. Only Kakarotto seemed to have any real strength - why not just persuade him to join them and vaporise the Planet?
"Hey! What's the big idea?" scowled Kuririn as he waved his hands with venom in Nappa's direction. "I could have been killed!"
"This is the way the Saiya-jin train! If you want to become stronger, you have to go through HELL to get there!" shrieked Nappa in response. "Stop crying or face up the fact that your Planet could be next!"
Kuririn didn't like it but he was right. Unless they were able to stop Frieza, then the Universe would fall to his complete authority. They'd all be slaves. He wasn't prepared to let this happen. Not when he could make a difference. However, Kuririn's main problem was that he didn't know if he COULD make a difference. He'd always taken the view that in the end it'd be Goku that'd bail them out. This wasn't your run of the mill battle though. They were preparing for the war to end the never-ending conflict in the Universe. They had to win.
***
"Yes, that's it, Kakarotto!" announced Vegeta as the pair exchanged kicks and punches.
They moved around the gravity room with such ease. Kuririn and Piccolo would have struggled to walk but Goku and Vegeta glided around and shot Ki blasts in every conceivable direction. It was as if the pair had no limits. Every time a new blow was landed, a smile would appear on both faces. This was their life.
"Enough of this childsplay, Kakarotto!" exclaimed Vegeta as the sparring stopped temporarily. "Let's go again, but this time at 25X Earth's gravity!"
Once again, the room surged with energy as gravity took its toll. The Prince wanted to see exactly what Kakarotto was made of. The best way of achieving this was by testing his limits and pushing him as hard as he could do.
Goku wasn't phased by the gravity. Sure, it was now a little harder for him to move but he could still walk around although he was having difficulty in doing anything more than walk. He knew this was the way it was meant to be though. Goku said nothing and prepared for yet another onslaught from the Prince.
***
"Quit pushing me!" exclaimed a rather battered and bruised Saiya-jin as he was thrown into the Saiya-jin palace's main room.
King Toma sat on the throne just as he had done ever since the demise of Vegeta. Toma didn't seem too impressed by the sight of such a lowly creature being presented by him by one of his guards. He peered down at the subject and sneered as he held his nose.
"Why have you been brought before me, peasant?" inquired Toma as he oozed with arrogance.
"King Toma! The Planet is in turmoil! Ever since you took over as King, Frieza's men have flooded the Planet and virtually enslaved us! My wife was KILLED for speaking out against Frieza! Did you hear me? KILLED!" screamed the little Saiya-jin. He wasn't too muscular and had jet-black hair. They were about his only distinguishing features. However, for some reason Toma continued to stare at his nose.
"And what do you want ME to do about it?" snapped back the King with venom.
"I want to know were your loyalties are! Do you represent OUR people or are you YOURSELF nothing more than a SLAVE to Frieza?" growled the Saiya- jin as he crept forward towards the King. The guards restrained him once again as they pulled him back the neck. The Saiya-jin choked a little and fell to his knees. "You're KILLING our people!"
King Toma was disgusted by such a showing. Who the hell was this cretin to speak in such a manner? Toma was King. He knew that what the peasant said was entirely true though. He was nothing more than a slave in reality. However, at least he was alive. It was for that reason that he chose to blatantly ignore the pleas of the Saiya-jin that stood before him.
"Guards, I'd like you to take this stupid little thing and put him in the Royal Dungeons immediately. I grow tired of his murmuring!" proclaimed the King as he pointed to the doorway.
The guards nodded and picked up the little fellow by the armpits. It was arguably the most painful way of being carried. Then, came the statement that Toma had been fearing for quite some time.
"WAIT!" demanded the Saiya-jin as he spun around and faced the King once more. Toma sat up. "Your time will come very soon, Toma! Even as we speak, my son Zucchino is hurdling through space in an attempt to bring back the rightful ruler of this Planet! That's right! He knows where Prince Vegeta is and he's going to bring him home! THEN, you will PAY for your crimes!"
The King scowled with rage. He didn't quite know whether to express his shock or simply kill the fellow on the spot. Suddenly, his rage subsided. Perhaps he was bluffing? Yes, there was no way that anyone could know of the Prince's whereabouts.
Toma laughed once more.
"Take him AWAY!"
The guards left the room as Toma sat alone in the grand chamber. It hadn't been decorated since he'd come into power. Everything had remained just as it was for King Vegeta. It was ironic that at this point he chose to look up at the ceiling. His eyes came into contact with a haunting warning.
The huge mural of the Prince and rightful King of the Planet watched over Toma once more.