Author's Note: Okay, I'm sorry it has taken me so long to update. Besides school, I've been sick for the past three weeks and honestly haven't been able to get my mind to function to write. But I assure you this chapter was worth the wait. I really hope my readers enjoy this chapter; it's a bit of a different twist from my previous chapters. I also would like to thank SaiyanSoul for the inspiration given to me for this chapter. I had the concept but was not sure how I was going to get it to work. His reviews gave me a wonderful idea on how to pull it off. Well, enough from me. Hope you enjoy the chapter! Author out.
Is There Life?
Chapter 25: Birth of a Warrior
"That's how you knew!" Turan exclaimed, letting go of Aliya and advancing toward Piccolo, "That's how you were able to teach me about being a Saiyan; because you had been the Saiyan guardian!"
"Yes; that is how I knew. I also had a feeling that you would someday be reunited with other Saiyans, though I could not foresee it would be your own family," Piccolo responded.
"Okay, now that everything is clear about our past, I do have one more question. It's clear Turan was on Namek when we fought Frieza and he would have been transported here to Earth. But I don't remember seeing any race but Nameks," Vegeta asked, causing the Z Fighters to remember the small, forgotten fact.
"That's right! I had forgotten that. How did we not see you, Turan?" Bulma questioned, resting her head on Vegeta's shoulder. He pulled her closer and gave her a small bit of his energy, knowing the long night was beginning to wear on her and their child.
"You did see me. You just didn't know I was a Saiyan. Here, I'll show you," Turan replied. The Z Fighters watched as Turan began to warp his energy around him and a cloud of dust formed. When the dust cleared, a young Namek stood in place of Turan." Elder Moray taught me this. He told me to use it if visitors ever came to our planet, so I would be protected. I used it while we were on Earth, too. I was the other young boy Krillin and Gohan tried to save from Frieza and his henchmen."
As the others stood and began to talk excitedly about Turan's concealment and the prospect of the immense power the prophecy promised, Vegeta walked a distance from the group. This was not lost to Bulma and Goku, who stood together watching their husband and friend. "Something's bothering him, Goku," Bulma said softly; Goku nodded, focusing on Vegeta, "But what? And why? He's always prided himself in his strength and now he seems to be rejecting a chance to reach his ultimate potential."
"I don't think he's rejecting it at all, Bulma," Goku responded, gently placing a hand on her shoulder, "He's struggling right now. He's no longer the cruel warrior he was when he came to Earth, but this new side, this more emotional side, isn't him either. He is trying hard to be the Saiyan Prince and warrior he was born to be and yet still be a caring friend, father, and husband. It is that balance he must find before he can continue, before he will feel he is able to properly lead the Saiyans, and the Z Fighters, into battle."
Bulma looked briefly at Goku then returned her gaze to Vegeta. "Is there anything we can do for him, Goku? He's hurting; I can feel it. Please, Goku…" she pleaded softly, hoping not to alert the others.
"Let me talk to him, but what he may need is just time. He may have to find the answer on his own," Goku said. He and Bulma walked over to Vegeta, who was gazing into the night sky. Bulma gently rested her head on Vegeta's shoulder; he responded by taking her hand in his. He glanced at Goku standing on his other side. "Vegeta…" Goku simply said, knowing a question could cause Vegeta's temper to flare.
"This is the moment I've Ben waiting for, and yet, it seems something is missing," Vegeta responded after a moment of silence. He pulled Bulma closer to him when she shivered to the night air; they were a ways from the warmth of the fire. He turned to Goku, "All my life I have trained for this very moment, for the moment to become a Legendary Super Saiyan and not that it is here, I'm hesitating. It makes no sense. None whatsoever. I can't explain it. There is no reason for it. I can't find the answer, Goku."
"Stop it," Goku responded sternly, surprising both Bulma and Vegeta, "Stop saying that. If any of us is ready to become the Legendary Super Saiyan, it's you. Regardless of how you came to Earth and how many times you have tried taking me out, there is none thing you will always be and that is the Prince of the Saiyans. Even when it was just you, me, and Gohan, you took pride in that, but now…now you seemed to have lost that. You've become so human you have seemingly forgotten your true self – the Prince Vegeta."
Bulma stared in shock at Goku. She had wanted him to help her help Vegeta, of not give him a lecture. She glanced at Vegeta, who still held her close. After a moment of silence, Vegeta spoke, "You're right…Kakarot," his words brought a smile to Goku's face, "When I sacrificed myself fighting Majin Buu, I realized how much I had lost, mostly with my son. I wanted to change that. I never realized till now how much I left behind in trying to be a better father to Trunks. He knows nothing about his heritage, his Saiyan heritage that is. I guess I left myself behind in trying to be there for Trunks."
"That's an understatement, Vegeta," Goku responded with a small laugh, "Gohan and I were beginning to think we were becoming more Saiyan than you and you know we're more Earthlings than Saiyans."
"Goku," Bulma began before Vegeta cut her off.
"It's alright, Bulma. He's right. In the past couple of months since Buu, I have forsaken my Saiyan heritage and my title. That's what's been missing. Thanks," Vegeta responded, stretching a hand out to Goku.
"No problem. Just one thing. Don't go back to calling me Goku. It just doesn't fit coming form you," Goku responded, reaching for Vegeta's hand.
"Deal," Vegeta said, grasping Goku's hand.
"Hey, look!" Sapienza called, pointing to the sky.
"Wow, pretty," Anna said as they all looked toward the seven suns of Planet Vegeta. A powerful radiance was coming from each of the seven stars.
"I believe it's time," Recknee said as Bulma, Vegeta, and Goku returned to the fire, "If we are going to unlock the prophecy, we must do it now while fate is on our side."
"It may be time, but without knowing the proper seven the prophecy speaks of, it will fail," Piccolo said, "Bora, Rema, and Vegeta begged me to put the safeguard in place so no one but their descendants, the correct descendants, could break through to the true power."
"Well, the answer is pretty obvious," Bulma said, moving closer to the fire, "First off, we know Vegeta, Goku, and Vichell have to be a part of it regardless. Also, I believe Gohan and Videl are the children for their respective lines, simply because they have both already broken through to a lower Super Saiyan level. King Vegeta will also have to be a part of it."
"And the last one has to be Trunks!" Aliya said excitedly, causing Trunks, Goten, and Anna to become hyper.
"No, he's not," Vegeta said flatly.
"But what do you mean, dad? I'm your only son. It has to be me," Trunks ran to his parents, grasping Vegeta's leg.
"If grandfather was the king in the prophecy, it would be you, but he's not," Mirai Trunks replied, gaining shocked expressions from everyone but King Vegeta, Vegeta, and Bulma.
"Mirai Trunks, what are you talking about? My husband is the king still. Your father is only the crown prince," Victoria was appalled at her future grandson's manners.
"It's alright, Victoria; Mirai Trunks is correct," King Vegeta placed a hand on her shoulder, "By official title, yes, I am still king and Vegeta crown prince. However, about nine years ago, the ancient kings approved of Vegeta and passed their power on to him. In essence, they crowned him king. And since it is these kings we are petitioning, Vegeta must stand in his rightful place as king. Sapienza will be the final of the seven."
The Z Fighters were amazed, and proud. Slowly, through much pain, Vegeta was entering into his birth right. "But, how did you know, Mirai Trunks? How did you know Vegeta had been elected king?" Tien asked.
"Dad told me. See, not too long before Goten and I came here, I had a very odd experience. I shared it with dad and he in turn shared that he had the same thing happen to him shortly after he and mom got together. He told me it meant I was now King of the Saiyans, even as few as there are in my timeline," Mirai Trunks replied.
"Wow, Vegeta. Why didn't you ever tell us?" Goku looked at his friend with searching eyes.
"It does not matter, Kakarot," Vegeta replied solemnly, bringing Bulma to his side, "None of it matters."
"Stop that now!" Goku practically yelled, startling Bulma and Trunks, who both backed away as Goku advanced on Vegeta. Goku grabbed Vegeta's shirt and flung him to the ground; the others were in too much shock at Goku's actions to stop him, "This will never work if you keep acting like that. If we're going to unlock this power we need to save Aliya and the Earth from the counts, you are going to have to reclaim your birth right. Quit this nonsense and remember the prince and warrior you are."
Vegeta's anger began to boil at Goku's words. He stood and powered up, working his way one-by-one through his transformations to Super Saiyan Four. "Kakarot! You will pay for the day you crossed me!" Vegeta yelled, flying in an attack at Goku. Goku smiled as he quickly transformed to Super Saiyan Three and fired an energy wave at Vegeta, however, the blast did not hurt Vegeta. The beam Goku sent was absorbed by Vegeta, connecting the two saiyans. As the beam grew stronger, Goku transformed to Super Saiyan Four.
"Oh, wow. This is it! Whoever knew my dad baiting Vegeta would work? Alright, guys, power up and use your energy to connect with Vegeta like dad has," Gohan said to the others Bulma has pointed out. Vichell raised her power level as high as it would go (since she couldn't transform) only to be shocked to transform to Super Saiyan Four when she connected with Vegeta. The others experienced the same when they connected with Vegeta, first king Vegeta, then Sapienza, next Videl, and last Gohan. Soon the Z Fighters stood around a Super Saiyan Four circle with Vegeta suspended in the air in the middle by the six energy beams.
Piccolo smiled, raising his hands toward Vegeta. "I never thought I would see this day, old friends," Piccolo allowed Katanala to speak through him, "Please, friends of old, hear my cries. The day has come. Your seal will finally be broken and you will be free:
Bora Rema Vegeta
Ancient lines from ancient times
Hear us as our powers combine
And restore the ancient chords
Upon your names we call, fair lords
Vegeta Rema Bora."
As Piccolo finished speaking, the radiance coming from the suns of Planet Vegeta converged into a single beam and came directly down upon the hovering Vegeta. He yelled as it hit him, a new energy flooding his body. Vegeta struggled to focus, unaware the others had worked to break the final remnants of the seal when his anger flared. He searched the field bellow him for something to focus on, but before he could find something, a searing pain ran through his entire body. It took all Vegeta had to keep himself from passing out.
Little known to Vegeta, his six friends were also struggling to keep their energy beams focused on him. "I…I can't hold it much longer!" Vichell cried out, not use to the physical strain as she was not a fighter.
"Stay strong, Vichell. Hang in there. We have to hold this until Vegeta breaks through," Goku responded as he and King Vegeta moved in to support Vichell.
"It's too much! We can't…we can't keep this up!" Videl cried out as she fell to her knees.
"You can do this, Videl. Just focus," Gohan pulled his wife to her feet and supported her with his free arm.
"We have to do something to ease the strain on all of us. We can't survive at this intensity and who knows what this is doing to my brother," Sapienza looked up worriedly at Vegeta, who was still struggling to keep consciousness against the seven beams of energy.
"On my mark, lower your energy beams but keep connected with Vegeta. Let's try to get him on the ground and give him some footing. It's not much, but it's a start. Ready? Now," King Vegeta gave the order. Slow and steady, the six Saiyans lowered their prince to the ground.
Bulma rushed to Vegeta's line-of-sight, careful not to get too close to the energy beams. "Come on, Vegeta! Concentrate," she called out to him, trying to reach him, "You can do this! You just have to focus!"
Vegeta struggled in his pain. Bulma was calling him, but where was she? And what was she saying? His world was fuzzy, blinded by the radiant light surrounding him. He needed her, but he couldn't seem to find her and it infuriated him. He fought harder against his seeming bonds.
The others watched as Vegeta cried out in agony. "This isn't working. He's fighting it," Victoria said as she stood next to her daughter-in-law, both of them helpless to comfort their loved one.
"Goku, stop it. Please. Vegeta's not ready. You're hurting him," Bulma pleaded with her life-long friend.
"If they stop now, the power will be lost forever," Piccolo stated plainly, "Vegeta need to calm himself and quit fighting the power. Then, and only then, will he control it."
Bulma and the Z Fighters watched as Vegeta fell to his knees, still in excruciating pain. A silent tear rolled down Bulma's cheek as Trunks took her hand. "Talk to him, mom" Mirai Trunks said after a few seconds, "Keep talking to him. If any of us can get to him, it will be you. I'm sure he feels he needs you right now but he must be blinded by the energy waves."
Mirai Trunks's words gave Bulma an idea. "Mirai Trunks, can you put up a shield around me strong enough to protect me from the energy beams?" she asked her future son.
"Not by myself but maybe if Trunks and both Gotens helped me. Are you going to try to get to dad?" Mirai Trunks answered tentatively.
"Yes. Shield me," Bulma replied. The four boys nervously gathered near Bulma. As they put a shield around her, the six in the circle condensed the space between their energy beams to try to give a gap for Bulma to walk through. Everything was now ready. Bulma took a deep breath before walking toward her husband; this was the hardest thing she ever had to do.
Vegeta struggled with his blinding world. He could no longer hear Bulma. Had something happened to her or had she merely quit calling out to him? He desperately needed her. She was his anchor, though he would never admit it. If only she would speak again, he could try to focus on her to try to get out of the cruel tap he as in.
Bulma slowly and cautiously walked toward Vegeta. The mere ten feet between them seemed to go on indefinitely. She placed a hand on her child as their daughter kicked her, seemingly in fear. "Easy, little one. There is no reason to be scared. We're going to try to help your father," Bulma said softly, as much to calm her own fears as well as those of her child.
Vegeta thought he heard a small cry, soft but steady. Where was it coming from? For that matter, where was he? He tried to search once again for Bulma's ki signal, but it was a loosing battle. The cry grew louder and Vegeta stopped short. The cry. It was his daughter. Something had happened to Bulma. Vegeta fought even harder against his light cage.
The Z Fighters held their breath and Bulma stopped when they saw Vegeta lash out in pain again. "Bulma! Be careful!" Yamcha called; this was getting too dangerous for Bulma to be involved.
"I know, Yamcha! But I have to try to reach him!" Bulma returned, yelling to be heard over Vegeta's cries of pain and agony. She took another tentative step toward him; now she was a mere four feet from him.
Vegeta's energy was failing him. In a desperate act to conserve some energy, he tried to power down to Ascended Saiyan only to find he was caught on the Super Saiyan Four level. "When I get out of here, Kakarot is dead!" he said to himself through clinched teeth. Vegeta collapsed to his knees, glad to fin himself on firm ground. "I have to get out of here," he thought, "But how? The more I fight, the harder it becomes. I don't understand but I know that fool Kakarot has to be behind this." Vegeta gathered his energy for one more try at breaking through the barrier surrounding him.
"Mother!" Mirai Trunks cried as a burst of energy came from his father. He broke his part of the shield and raced to protect his mother. He reached her just in time, catching her as they both crashed to the ground. "That was too close from comfort. Are you alright?" Mirai Trunks asked as he helped Bulma to her feet.
"I'm fine. Thanks for catching me," Bulma turned wearily to face Vegeta, who was on his knees panting, "How can we help him if we can't even reach him?"
"It must be the way the prophecy works. I guess all we can do is wait," Mirai Goten replied as Bulma and Mirai Trunks moved a safe distance from Vegeta. Bulma stifled a sob as Mirai Trunks held her gently.
Vichell fell to her knees despite being supported by Goku and King Vegeta. "Vegeta!" she cried out, "I'm sorry, Vegeta! I can't hold it any longer." She collapsed and her energy beam faded out; however, it was soon replaced by another. Goku and the others looked to see young Trunks standing over Vichell, connected to his father by an energy beam and at Super Saiyan Four.
"It's no use. I can't hold it," came Videl's cry as she, too, collapsed. Just as she broke her beam, Goten replaced it with one of his own, transforming to Super Saiyan Four as soon as his beam connected with Vegeta.
"I hope Vegeta is beginning to fair better than us. At this rate, we will never break through the prophecy. I'm finished," King Vegeta released his beam and fell to his knees.
"It's alright, sire, I have it covered," Turan stepped up next to King Vegeta and replaced the lost energy beam with his own. As soon as Turan's beam connected with Vegeta Turan not only transformed to Super Saiyan Four, but a radiant light also surrounded the ten fighters, removing them from the Z Fighters' sight.
"No! Vegeta! Trunks!" Bulma cried wildly as she ran toward the light.
Mirai Trunks caught her. "Mother, no. Wait. I have a feeling they are going to be alright. Just wait a minute," he said softly, trying to reassure her.
Vegeta's energy was completely gone, but somehow he still maintained the Super Saiyan Four transformation. "There has to be a way out of this wretched place," he panted, talking to himself. He pushed himself up onto one knee and then slowly stood. "Attacking the barrier didn't work and neither did an energy blast. What do I do now?" Vegeta thought and then had to shield his eyes as the light became more intense than one of Tien's Solar Flares.
"Huh? What happened? Where are we?" Gohan stood in amazement at the brilliant light then he noticed they were no longer connected by the energy beams to Vegeta.
"Gohan? What are you doing here?" Vegeta asked and then looked around, "What are any of you doing here?"
"Maybe we could answer…"Vichell stated and then stood, "if we knew where 'here' was."
"I have no idea. I was transported here when that fool, Kakarot, attacked me with an energy wave," Vegeta glared at Goku.
"Attacked? What are you talking about, Vegeta?" Goku asked, bewildered.
"Don't play the fool with me, Kakarot!" Vegeta advanced on his fellow Saiyan, "You know what you did!"
"But Vegeta, Kakarot didn't attack you," Vichell tried to stop her friend.
Vegeta stopped and looked at Vichell. "What are you talking about? You saw him attack me," he responded, barely keeping his temper in check.
"No, he didn't," Sapienza carefully approached his brother, "You mean you don't know what's happening?"
"Does it look like I know what's going on?" Vegeta snapped, turning sharply to Sapienza, who quickly backed away.
"Calm down, son," King Vegeta reached out toward Vegeta, "It's the prophecy. We were trying to break it."
"Well, thanks for informing me," Vegeta said through clinched teeth, glaring at Goku; then, speaking more clearly, "Looks like all you guys managed to do was get us trapped in this place. Nice going. There's no way out. Physical force won't break it. Neither will energy blasts. Instant transmission seems to be disabled as well. So, do any of you wise guys have an idea?"
"What if we combine our energy? That's what got us in here," Gohan suggested.
"Maybe. But which ones? The prophecy speaks of seven yet ten of us are here. Vegeta apparently was sent here with the original six, but the rest of us did not come until King Vegeta, mom, and I dropped out and Trunks, Goten, and Turan took our places," Videl pointed out.
The ten Saiyans were stumped. Vegeta was fuming, wishing he had been clued into what was going on. He was worried about his wife and daughter, though he said nothing. Trunks walked over to his father's side; only then did Vegeta notice Trunks was at Super Saiyan Four. "What the?" Vegeta exclaimed and then looked around to see all ten of them were at Super Saiyan Four, "How did you all transform?"
"It happened when we connected with you. First Goku, then mom, and so on around. I think it surprised us as much as it did you," Videl answered.
"How bizarre," Vegeta thought, looking around at the others, "So, are they all just sharing in my transformation or can they now reach Super Saiyan Four on their own? And does it have something to do with this strange place or not? None of this makes sense at all."
"Well, what do we do now? We can't just stay here but we don't know what to do," Sapienza asked the others.
"I've been thinking about that. Since we know from Vegeta's experience that force doesn't work, I think we need outside guidance, most particularly from the Namek. He seemed to be the one with the most knowledge of what was going on. Do we have any way of being able to communicate to them?" Vichell laid out an idea.
"I thought of that, too," Gohan answered, "But it won't work. I'm telepathic with Piccolo and I've been trying to reach him. I haven't been successful."
"Not even the telepathy form a Saiyan bond seems to work. I've been trying to reach Aliya and haven't had nay success either," Turan answered. The ten friends were downcast; what were they going to do now?
"Oh, Piccolo, why aren't they coming out? What's taking so long?" ChiChi turned to the Namek.
"I am at as much of a loss as you are, ChiChi. I only placed the final seals and safeguard on the Super Saiyan power. Bora, Rema, and Vegeta didn't even tell me how it would fully work for fear of me being tortured for the information," Piccolo answered. The Z Fighters all stood close to one another, anxiously awaiting news of their friends.
Goten approached Goku. "Daddy, are we going to get out of here?" Goten asked, slight fear showing in his eyes.
"Of course we are, son," Goku answered, picking Goten up and then turning to Vegeta, "We've been in tighter scrapes than this, right, Vegeta?"
"Don't start with me, Kakarot," Vegeta said flatly, pushing past Goku to the edge of the barrier. He cautiously set his hand against it. This time it didn't hurt him but rather, he could feel himself absorbing it; it gave him an idea. "Trunks, come here. I want you to give me a little bit of your energy."
"Um, okay," Trunks replied. He moved near his father and connected with him using an energy beam.
Vegeta felt the amount of energy he was absorbing from the barrier increased. "Alright, Trunks, enough," Vegeta said, removing his hand and turning to the others, "Alright, since none of you can seem to come up with an idea, I have one. When I placed my hand on the barrier, I began to absorb it. The amount increased when trunks joined his energy with mind. Try connecting with me again. Maybe I can pull us through this. Once you are outside the barrier, break contact. Is everything clear?"
The others nodded and moved into position to give their energy to Vegeta once again. One-by-one they connected with Vegeta; first the six others in the prophecy; then Turan then Goten. Trunks was last to join, taking his father's hand and giving his energy by direct connection. Vegeta briefly smiled at his son and then turned to the barrier, placing his hand on it. As an immense amount of energy began to flood his body, Vegeta hoped his body would hold together.
"Look! Something's happening!" Yamcha called from his spot near Bulma and Mirai Trunks. They watched as the barrier grew suddenly brighter and then began to shrink Vichell was the first to reappear. She broke her connection and nearly fainted, saved only by her father, who caught her. Slowly, one-by-one the others reappeared and also broke their connections. Soon, only Trunks and Vegeta remained inside the energy barrier.
"We're the only ones left, dad," Trunks said, looking at Vegeta. Vegeta nodded, focusing on absorbing the remainder of the barrier. Suddenly, his legs gave out and Vegeta fell to his knees. "Dad!"
"Focus, son," Vegeta replied, still absorbing energy from both the barrier and Trunks, "You must focus for us to get out of here."
"Let me help you. I can take part of the energy from the barrier, too. It would just go straight to you since I'm giving you my energy," Trunks wanted to help his dad. Vegeta nodded and wrapped his tail around Trunks to give his son some stability. Trunks placed his hand on the barrier as Vegeta stood once again. Soon, father and son were engulfed by a blinding light.
Bulma felt her heart leap when she felt Vegeta's presence again. She took a few steps toward her husband and son. She smiled when she saw Trunks. He ran to her, Vegeta having pushed him away as the last part of the barrier was collapsing in on them. Mother and son stood in awe as Vegeta appeared. No longer Super Saiyan Four, Vegeta was surrounded by a radiant fire more golden than anything they had ever seen. His hair was gold as brilliant as the finest metal and when he opened his eyes to look at her, Bulma saw his eyes were matching gold. She smiled at him. He had done it. Vegeta had become the Legendary Super Saiyan.
Author's Note: Alright, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please review!