Episode 66
A Decision to Make
Out in the vast, open areas of Namek, in an island which had a profound crater almost covering the entire the land mass, there were two henchmen, whom belonged to Frieza's army, just waking up from their very long sleep.
They were Zarbon and Dodoria and they had finally come to consciousness. Zarbon held his aching forehead as he slowly sat up, wondering where he was. Soon, Dodoria also began to wake. He also held his forehead.
"W-where am I?" asked Zarbon whose vision was still quite a blur.
Dodoria, however, clearly remembered what happened and was already getting angry. "That foolish Bardock!"
The two of them carefully stood up, trying not to hurt themselves. They turned around and noticed the huge hollow that laid only a few feet away from him.
Zarbon grunted. "Hmph. Bardock must've become too soft, he decided to spare our lives. That softness of his will get him into trouble when Lord Frieza finds him."
Dodoria realized they had completely lost track of time, but he knew they were far too late to even report back to Frieza.
"Should we-?" began Dodoria.
"I don't know," Zarbon was unsure. "If we show our faces again to Lord Frieza, then…"
"Then what are we supposed to do now?" asked Dodoria, frustrated.
Zarbon was thinking about Bardock. He wanted to redeem himself, but he was already convinced that there was no way he and Dodoria could beat this renewed and unrelenting Saiyan. Bardock had become ten times more powerful than them, and they both believed they were deemed useless as this point.
At full speed, they went their way with no sense of direction to go while figuring out if they should continue with their mission or not.
Back in the hideout, Bulma, Cargo, and Dende were now outside, but still near the cave if they needed to run back, but at the moment, everything was calm for them. The three were having so much fun, for once, the Namekian children were forgetting all their worries and the mayhem happening to their planet.
Bulma was playing hide-and-seek with them and she already found Cargo. Now both of them were looking for Dende. Dende was hiding behind a small boulder, being as quiet as he can be while trying his hardest not to giggle. When he realized they were just a few feet away from him, Dende then suddenly jumped up front and scared the wits out of the two.
"Aah!" both Bulma and Cargo shrieked.
"Got you!" Dende laughed.
And the rest laughed along with him.
"Come on, let's play another game!" Cargo insisted. He was about to head back inside the cave until he saw someone in front of the open. It was far too early to be having fun after all, as long as the evil forces were still on this planet. This someone he saw was none of their friends and so he can only assume he was an enemy of theirs.
It was Vegeta. His eyes were scanning the area. "I don't get it. Where were those clusters of energy I sensed earlier ago?"
Cargo should have hid at this point, but he was scared stiff, he did not know what to do. Soon, the Saiyan Prince locked his eyes at the Namekian child. Cargo was frozen with even more fear and he could not move his feet.
"A Namekian?" Vegeta whispered to himself. "That's impossible. No mere brat like that could carry such a high power level."
Bulma and Dende, who were still unaware of Vegeta's presence, came to Cargo and asked what he just saw, but once they noticed the unwelcomed guest in front of them, they were also frightened.
Vegeta noticed her and he can discern that she was obviously different from the rest, species-wise. He can conclude that they were some of Raditz's friends or acquaintances.
He began to grin with malice. "Well, well, it's funny to find an Earthling here lingering in these parts. I could tell you're from Earth because of your pathetic power level."
Bulma was shocked. "Oh no! It's…Vegeta! How-how in the world did he find us?!"
She then saw the DragonBall that Vegeta was carrying. "And he has a DragonBall, too! This not good…"
She, Dende, and Cargo were desperately thinking of a way to escape somehow while hoping that their friends would return soon.
"Come forward," Guru told Krillin. Krillin was hesitant at first, but he strolled beside him. Guru prepared to awaken the hidden powers sleeping inside the monk warrior by simply placing his hand on his head again. Due to his frailty, old age, and unfortunately, his illness, he cannot unlock all of Krillin's hidden strength as well as everyone else's, but just enough that will aid them in harder battles. The rest of their powers, they will just need to discover them and release them on their own.
Guru's hand faintly glowed. A few seconds later, Krillin's body was surrounded by this transparent light. His own aura emerged from his body while Krillin had an incredible feeling inside of him, like he had woken up from a long dream and was now rejuvenated.
Gohan, Raditz, and Bardock were amazed. They could definitely feel his power rising in large increments.
Guru let go of Krillin. "There, you should feel a whole lot different now. Your sleeping powers have been inside of you all along."
Krillin was astonished. "Yeah, I do feel a lot different. This is incredible. I have tons of power now! I don't know you did it, but thanks a bunch!"
Guru smiled. He then gestured for the half-Saiyan to come near him. "How about you, my friend?"
"Oh, yes, that's right," Gohan almost forgot why he was here. He went to Guru and like Krillin, the Eldest Namekian also unlocked his strength.
Guru was most fascinated by the boy's latent potential. "Oh, I could sense a lot of power in you. You'll turn out to be a great warrior, I'm sure."
"Really?" Gohan could hardly believe in his statement.
Krillin chuckled. "Well, just to remind you, Gohan, you're Goku's son after all."
In no later time, Gohan's powers were also unleashed while his blue, dazzling aura was emitted from his body. Gohan actually felt he was slowly becoming that other warrior, the one that tends to emerge every time his emotions, mostly rage, are at peak, but this time, he felt much calmer, more serene with a lot of determination and willpower.
"Amazing!" Krillin exclaimed. "Wait 'till your dad sees your brand new powers, Gohan. I bet he'll be really proud of you."
Gohan kept staring at his hands, which he then turned into fists. "Yeah!" he said proudly. He then looked at Bardock and Raditz and wondered what their reactions were. His grandfather and uncle both smiled as they were also proud of what he had become.
Guru then turned his attention to Bardock and Raditz. "I guess you're the last ones. Please come forward."
Bardock and Raditz came closer and as Guru placed his right hand on Bardock's head and his left hand on Raditz's, he gasped in even more surprise. Like Krillin and Gohan, they were carrying great potential, but there was something more inside of these two full-blooded Saiyans that even Guru could not decipher what it was, but at this moment, he was fully certain that this legend he had heard of from the past…was likely not a myth at all. He had a hunch that this legend will soon come to reality.
Bardock and Raditz, with Guru's help, felt this surge of newly-found potential that once laid dormant in them, but now ready to be utilized and overcome their foes. They were engulfed by their mist-like auras. Their eyes then met and they both nodded to each other, understanding what their next course of action will be and that was to finally confront Frieza and his men.
"That's so awesome!" Gohan cheered.
"Yeah, you guys are a heck a lot stronger than before. I bet we can take on any obstacle out there," Krillin was confident.
Guru laughed softly and so did Elder Moori and Nail.
Bardock gave his gratitude. "Thank you so much. We need to get going now."
"Wait a second. But how about this DragonBall?" Krillin held the magical orb in front of him.
Nail answered him, "If Guru has given it to you, you've definitely earned his trust and respect."
Guru agreed. "Like I said, use the DragonBalls to wish your friends back to life. The fate of our home planet rests in your hands now."
It was time for the Z-warriors to head on back. Elder Moori stepped out first, but before he left, he turned to their Grand Elder one more time. "Thank you very much for your help, Guru. I must leave and accompany our heroes back."
Guru nodded to him. "Elder Moori, please keep Dende and Cargo safe."
"I will," Moori said who tried his best to smile.
Krillin, Gohan, Raditz, and Bardock bid their farewells and wished for Guru and Nail to be safe.
Nail and Guru were left behind again. Guru kept smiling, trying to remain positive for the future. He then coughed again. Nail looked at him with concern, but Guru assured him that he was okay and that he should not worry about him.
Nail walked towards the window to watch Elder Moori and the Z-fighters take their leave. Moori placed his hands above the ground and soon, rays were formed and spread from underneath them. They were blanketed in this luminosity and soon, they were gone.
Vegeta was still questioning Bulma and the Namekian children. "You don't have to know who I am, but I do know you're one of Raditz's companions. I only came here for one simple question. Where did you hide that DragonBall?"
The three trembled with fear. They refused to speak about it and this made Vegeta immensely irritated.
"Don't test my patience now," Vegeta warned. "I know you're hiding one somewhere. Tell me where it is before I have to do this the hard way."
Dende and Cargo quickly hid behind Bulma's legs, hoping that Vegeta would leave and not bother them. Bulma had no idea what to do and she felt her voice just left her, but she found enough courage to say, "You're-you're not planning to harm these children, do you? Leave them alone! They didn't done anything wrong to you!"
Vegeta chuckled with malice. "Do you really think I care about them? Or any of the lives here in this worthless planet? If you just tell me where the DragonBall is, I might spare your lives."
Bulma backed away a bit. "He's totally not gonna leave, but I can't tell him where the DragonBall is!"
The Saiyan Prince gave them another chance to talk, but no answer was given still. He warned Bulma one more time that he will definitely harm the children if they refuse to answer him.
However, this bright light came to view, which spread across Vegeta's back. He felt this and quickly turned around, wondering what that was. As soon this blanket of light faded in front of him, he saw Moori, Raditz, Bardock, Krilllin, and Gohan. They had returned from their short journey.
Once she saw her friends, Bulma immediately screamed. "Guys! Help us! Vegeta's here!"
Indeed, the Z-warriors found the royal Saiyan elite standing in front of them.
"Vegeta?!" Raditz shouted almost with disbelief.
"What?!" Krillin and Gohan exclaimed in unison.
"Oh no, Cargo, Dende!" Elder Moori was worried for them.
Bardock began to clench his fists tightly. He also saw the DragonBall that Vegeta was carrying around his arm.
Just seeing them made Vegeta quite satisfied especially to find his arch-rival standing in front of him, yet he continued to hold hatred for his former comrade and his family who were daring enough to humiliate him from the past.
"Raditz," Vegeta smirked spitefully. "I was just about to kill your friends here for not telling me where the DragonBall is."
"Hey!" Krillin tried to stop him. "Don't you dare lay a finger on them!"
Vegeta then spotted the DragonBall Krillin was carrying in his hands. "There's only one reason why I'm here and that's to get all seven DragonBalls. I already have five, one of them I'm holding right now. And it seems I found the sixth one."
Krillin growled in response while trying to protect the DragonBall he received from Guru.
"And I know that you're hiding another one somewhere. You better tell me where it is now or you can say goodbye to your friends here!" Vegeta abruptly placed his hand in front of Bulma and the Namekian children. He immediately formed a flashing sphere at the center of his palm as he prepared to destroy them.
"AAH!" Bulma screamed while Cargo and Dende held tightly on her, trembling with fear.
"NO!" Moori shouted.
"No! Stop it!" Gohan demanded.
Raditz was about to take action and attack Vegeta himself.
However, Bardock stopped all of them instead and told the Saiyan Prince, "Fine, we'll give you the last one."
"What?!" everyone was shocked.
"Father, what are you saying?" Raditz questioned him.
Vegeta seemed satisfied with his answer. He immediately dropped his hand and proceeded not to obliterate their friends. "At least someone here's being wise. Now, go take out the last DragonBall and all of you better follow me including that old man over there," he glanced at Elder Moori.
Everyone was now staring at Bardock, questioning why he would just give up the DragonBalls like that after all the efforts they had done. Before they could ask why he made a decision like this, Bardock suddenly told Bulma, "Hey, Bulma, get the DragonBall."
"Bardock, are you nuts?!" Bulma raised her voice. "You can't just let him have his wish-"
"Stop talking and just do it," he said firmly.
Bulma realized she had no choice but to do as he says. She ran inside the cave, entered her mini-home, and with hesitation, she picked up the DragonBall and went out with it. Bulma came out from the cave, staring at Vegeta with fear and doubt as she rolled the DragonBall to him. He stopped moving it with his foot and he picked it up with his other arm.
"Krillin, keep that DragonBall you're holding. You'll have to give it to Vegeta later," Bardock then said to him.
Krillin refused at first. He really wanted to question him why he was letting Vegeta have his way, but for some reason, he could not argue with him at this time.
"Now, follow me," Vegeta immediately lifted himself in air as he carried both of the wishing orbs underneath his arms. He flew high in the skies and led the way.
Bardock, Raditz, Krillin, and Elder Moori had to follow Vegeta from behind. Gohan was about to leave as well, but before he did that, the young boy said to Bulma, "Guys, I'm so sorry about this. Be safe, okay?" and with a confused, more sorrowful look in his eyes, he finally followed his friends and family.
Bulma, Dende, and Cargo were left behind again, shocked and hopeless.
While following Vegeta from behind, Krillin took speed to come closer to Bardock. "I can't believe this, Bardock. Are you out of your mind? Are you actually going to let him make his wish?!"
"-he won't," Bardock interrupted.
"Huh?" Krillin was more confused than ever. "I don't get it. You just freakin' gave him the last two DragonBalls he's looking for!"
"Like I said," Bardock repeated himself, keeping his eyes fixed on Vegeta, "he won't make his wish."
Moori, Raditz, and Gohan also heard what he said and thought if he actually had a plan in mind.
Vegeta soon led the Z-warriors to where all he hid the four DragonBalls. With his left hand, he used slight force to remove the soil covering them. He then placed the other two DragonBalls on the ground while Krillin kept holding the one he received from Guru. Now, all seven DragonBalls had been collected.
King Cold and the Ginyu Force continued to wait for their opportunity and now, they did not have to wait anymore. Ginyu came up to King Cold again and said eagerly, "Your Majesty, we're in luck! All of the DragonBalls are in the same spot, but it seems like we have some company to deal with. We should go over there now before anything else happens to the DragonBalls."
King Cold released his arms from his chest and started to move forward, but without a sense of hurry. The Ginyu Force trailed behind him, but wondered why he was not in a rush. As they made their way slowly towards the DragonBalls with King Cold having that ever suspicious grin on his face, Burter's scouter turned on and tracked down two people coming their way. Burter informed King Cold about it and before they know it, they found Zarbon and Dodoria coming their way. The top henchmen of Frieza came to a halt once they realized they found King Cold and the Ginyu Force.
King Cold took a moment to put a name to their faces. "Oh, you're…Zarbon and Dodoria, right? You look badly bruised. Did something happen?" he joked around.
"Your Majesty!" Zarbon and Dodoria bowed with great respect.
"If you're thinking of returning to Frieza, I would have to say you may be far too late," King Cold told the truth.
The two stayed in silence and were deeply ashamed for their failures. But Dodoria wanted to prove himself. "We'll get revenge, Sir. We'll get Bardock and make sure he's gone for good!"
King Cold was not at all interested at in hearing their excuses, but he also had no intent of punishing them whatsoever. That was his son's job since Zarbon and Dodoria belonged to his army after all.
"If I was Frieza, I would've killed you on the spot already or at least banished you two, but since I'm not him, then I guess…you're more than welcome to join us, but I guarantee you, you will not survive for long," King Cold was blunt with them, already predicting their fates.
Zarbon and Dodoria became speechless again while holding only disgrace in their names. Was there any chance for them to redeem themselves? Perhaps their current enemies were just way out of their leagues.
All seven DragonBalls shimmered underneath the sun. The Saiyan elite then pointed at Moori. "You there. I know that you need a village elder to summon the dragon since he knows the secret password for it."
Elder Moori did not do anything.
"Well?" Vegeta was expecting for him to make the ritual already. "Don't make me wait all day long. I need to have my wish so I can gain eternal life."
"And why do you need it?" Moori asked him in a solemn tone.
Vegeta stomped his foot and said in a livid tone, "How ignorant can you guys get? Don't you understand?! All of you must know, especially you, Bardock and Raditz," he looked at them for a moment, "that Frieza and his father are here on this planet and there's no way we can beat those two unless I become immortal! It's the only way to wipe them out of existence."
Krillin raised both eyebrows. "Are you saying we should join forces with you? There's no way that's ever gonna happen! Besides, why should you get eternal life and not someone else who would use that power for good?"
"He's correct," Moori sided with him. "It's not like you will save this planet when you gain eternal life. Even if you do use the power of immortality to wipe out Frieza and his men, I know what you'll do next. You will abuse that power, kill every single creature that stands in your way, and make yourself the ruler of the universe."
Vegeta was getting more and more impatient with them. "I don't need to hear this lecture from you, old man. Just summon the dragon already or else, you planet will continue to fall into grave danger, do you want that?!"
Elder Moori refused to give in and just kept to where he was. Vegeta cannot believe he must also waste time dealing with this nonsense. His anger reached its peak and was about to lose control of his emotions.
"Just do as I say ALREADY!" the angered Saiyan Prince was about to hurt the villager elder on purpose to instill fear in his mind and have him give in to his wishes until Bardock, without warning, teleported in front of him and sent a sharp and painful strike to his face.
"Bardock!" everyone exclaimed.
"…!" Raditz's eyes widened.
Vegeta was completely caught off-guarded and he crashed to the ground. To his shock, he felt a significant amount of power from that attack already. It reminded him of that same pain he received back on Earth where Bardock did his unbelievable Spirit Bomb rush attack on him.
Bardock fixed his wrist guards. "You think I'll let you have your way that easily, Vegeta? I don't think so. Sure, we Saiyans have always planned to seek revenge on that mindless emperor, but I'm not gonna let someone like you continue that line of becoming a selfish tyrant yourself."
He went to his fighting stance. "You have to deal with me first if you want to get your wish."
Vegeta stood up with haste and lost control of himself. All of a sudden, he drew his left arm back, electrifying as he gathered enough energy to build a dangerous technique that could greatly injure Bardock. "You will regret attacking me!"
King Cold's scouter had detected this sudden burst of power. To him, it was now their chance to strike.
"Go," that was his signal. His purple aura enclosed him and he darted across the skies, leaving heavy winds and trails of his aura behind. The Ginyu Force took a while to react and then, they tried to catch up with him with his almost unpredictable behavior. Zarbon and Dodoria went ahead and tagged along with them.
Vegeta discharged his electrifying beam from his hands and hit Bardock with it. Bardock appeared to be chained in this almost inescapable electrification, but he was able to free himself from it without any effort at all.
"What?" Vegeta was shocked.
Bardock rushed towards him, charging forward with a clean punch straight to his stomach and struck him again with his left hand. His opponent was pushed back a few feet, but he moved forward and tried to retaliate. Their fists collided instead, creating a shockwave that almost crumbled the ground.
"Woah!" Krillin exclaimed.
Gohan kept close to Elder Moori. Gohan closed an eye as these winds almost battered his face.
Vegeta prepared for his next move before Bardock can until someone came in and went for a striking kick to his chest, yet the prince was lucky enough to be able to block it in time. The one who attacked him this time was Raditz.
Vegeta swept him away and was able to hit him back, yet Raditz countered with a palm strike straight to Vegeta's chest, pushing him back once more.
The Saiyan Prince stared at him, hating to have to deal with this hindrance. Raditz and Bardock then stood side-by-side, ready to stop Vegeta if he decides to make his assault again.
The three Saiyans were about to turn up the heat for this unexpected battle of theirs until, just before their fists collided again, a sword came out of nowhere that stopped them in the middle of their fight. There was this shadowed figure holding this sword in which he then made a diagonal strike with it, unleashing a thin, razor-sharp energy towards the Saiyans. They were fortunate enough to evade it and instead, it sliced a huge mountain behind them.
"Saiyans…they can be so reckless, letting their passion for fighting get the best out of them," that dark figure remarked. He put his sword back in his sheath. Underneath the sun, it revealed to be King Cold along with the Ginyu Force, Zarbon, and Dodoria.
Vegeta's eyes widened to see all members of the elite force now in front of him as well as Frieza's mysterious, power-seeking father.
Gohan did not know why, but their sinister appearances made him feel afraid. "Is that-is that Frieza?" he asked, trembling a little.
"No," Krillin gulped hard. "That's Frieza's father. I know those two," he quickly glanced at Zarbon and Dodoria, "but I don't know who those are!" the Ginyu Force was very much unknown to him.
Bardock cursed, "Darn it, guess my plan didn't go too well," the reason why he let Vegeta have all seven DragonBalls first was that he and his friends could easily get to them and then at the end, he would bring the Prince of all Saiyans to utter defeat with his newly gained powers. Once defeated, he and his friends would then immediately use the DragonBalls to wish their friends back to life along with Elder Moori's help.
Bardock admitted that this plan of his was very risky and unfortunately, it was not successful. Now with King Cold and the Ginyu Force standing in front of the Z-warriors, they were thinking on how they should deal with this situation. And with all seven DragonBalls exposed to their worst nightmares, was there any chance for them at all to make their wish?