Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball or Dragonball Z.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

A large green planet surrounded by three suns lingered in space as a round space ship landed. It bore the name of Capsule Corps and held three visitors from Earth. The ten-day flight had been an intense journey for two of the three occupants.

Bulma had been stowed away in the lower half, feeling as though she was wasting away. Krillin had tried valiantly to keep up with Goku, but the first day had made it clear that it wasn't going to happen. The gravity was simply bumped up too much too fast as the Saiyan held nothing back in his training. Instead, he was forced downstairs where he resigned himself to image training.

Goku had hit his training with full force, reaching the limit of the gravity pump and pushing his body to the max. He was confident that whatever awaited him out on the planet would be achievable. There was only one power that felt above his own with the rest far below him. Two more were approaching, one feeling rather strong. Vegeta. They would be landing soon. Goku hoped to have a good head start before then, he was sure Vegeta had plenty of anger pent up.

"Anything on the radar?" Goku asked as they looked across the strange planet. Blue grass and green water in every direction. Strange trees sprouted up here and there amongst the hills and cliffsides.

"There's a-there's four clustered together!" she said excitedly. Krillin gave a small cheer along with her. Goku pointed towards the north and asked, "In that direction?"

Bulma blinked and looked back at the radar before confirming and asking, "How did you know?"

Krillin caught on and sighed as he answered for Goku, "Because that's where the highest power is."

"So?" she asked. Goku frowned and said, "I'd bet that its the Frieza guy."

"You can take him, though, right?" she asked nervously. Her voice had a small warble to it and her hands clutched the hem of her yellow vest.

Goku gave her a grin and said, "I may not have any other choice if we're to save Gohan, so, definitely."

Krillin huffed and said, "I guess we should go get this started. You want to-"

Goku was already heading off through the air, unbothered by any potential risks. Krillin groaned and looked towards Bulma with a grimace and said, "Uh, just try and stay safe, I guess?"

With those lackluster words, the fighter followed his friend. Krillin hurried to catch up to Goku and pointed out, "Uh, maybe we should take this a bit more-"

"Watch out!" Goku's large hand shoved the two of them apart as dual blasts ripped through the air they had just been in. Ahead, two armored fighters awaited them. From the armor and smirks, it was easy to say they were some of Frieza's soldiers.

"Would'ja looky here. We found some tourists," the bigger of the two goons joked. The smaller snorted, "Yeah, and they really picked the wrong guides, eh?"

Krillin sunk into his stance and started to plan with Goku only for the two to fall ground far below. Out cold, and with startling low life forces, they were alive but completely out of commission. Goku straightened up from where he'd taken the two out and said, "No time to waste, right? We can't leave Bulma alone too long or she'll wander off and do science stuff on something."

Krillin could only chuckle at his overly powerful friend's simple worry for his wife. His wife, a woman who went around packing heat at the age of sixteen. The distant memory of Goku saying Bulma had shot him upon meeting, in the head, surfaced also. Oh, how times change.

The two were nearing the high power levels and began to notice a smattering of smaller powers as well. Then several disappeared in a blink of an eye. Goku frowned and urged them on, unsure what they would find. As they landed, they formed a triangle. A group of Namekians away to the right and the strangers to the left with the four dragon balls.

"Oh, what are these...Ginjins? No, your eyes aren't right to be Ginjins. Not quite fanged enough to be Durins. You there, with the silly hair, you almost resemble a Sai-ah, yes, you're the little lost Saiyan that gave Vegeta the boot from that backwater mudball," Frieza commented, forgetting seeming to forget the Namekians momentarily.

"Well, I have watched the recordings of your little fight and I must say, I am impressed. I'm sure you've heard of me, my name is Lord Frieza. This is Zarbon, Dadoria, and the rest are collectively the peons. Now, if you will just kneel and keep silent, I'll address you after I wrap up here," the lizard droned on. And on.

As Frieza readdressed the Namekian, Krillin whispered, "So, uh, what's the plan here? These guys seem pretty tough."

"See the pink one? I'm going to knock those dragon balls out of his hand. You snatch and get them out of here. I'll meet you back at the ship," Goku said softly but confidently.

"You two, what are you muttering about?" Zarbon asked sounding almost bored. Three fighters, Namekians who had flown in, turned their triangle into a diamond. With little preamble, they rushed forward, batting the weaker ones down. Dadoria was readying to put an end to it when Goku made his move. A single foot buried the large alien's gut sent him launching into a nearby bluff.

Krillin yelped as he moved, but move he did. The two over-sized orbs barely fit under each arm as he launched off. Goku had no time to follow on his attack as Zarbon intercepted. The feminine fighter was grappled and tossed aside. A multitude of tiny yellow rays shot around as each of Frieza's men cried. Frieza himself merely groaned. Their scouters lay in ruins while the oldest, stumpiest Namekian grinned and panted. The sudden burst having taken a toll on him.

"Stop!" Frieza commanded. Dadoria and Zarbon both paused the beginnings of their counter-attacks. The peons lay dead. Three out of three of the fighting Nameks remained, barely touched.

Frieza clicked a pointed nail on his hover-chair as he snapped orders, "Dadoria, get those Dragonballs. Kill the earthling. Zarbon, transform and end this monkey. Goku," he sneered the name, "You may could best Vegeta, but not a full power Zarbon. Enjoy the afterlife, ape. And you."

His gaze fixed on the older Namekian and spat, "Not only is the last of my present cannon fodder gone but my scouters with it. That was an action you and your entire race will regret."

Two beams, purple and fast, fired from his fingertip. The first found it's home in the nearest Namekian child. The second in the elder Namek. Goku acted fast and snatched up the third child just as a hole was blown in the home behind them.

Dadoria was already gone after Krillin and a beast-like yell from Zarbon saw him change into a large, toad-like beast as his power doubled. Taking on the right hand of Frieza would've been an easy job if it wasn't for the child in his arms, a child he refused to let die. The added presence of Frieza himself only stood to further complicate things. The more time he spent in the lizard's presence the stronger he seemed.

"Can you fly? If so, get out of here. I'll hold them off and catch up," Goku said. The child floated from his arms. Goku didn't give Frieza a chance to fire as he launched a blast at him first and rushed forward. The blast didn't connect but the enlarged Zarbon did as Goku hooked his arm around the alien's throat and hurled him towards Frieza. The three Namekians who had been fighting had disappeared, Goku wasn't entirely sure where to.

"Ha!" he rushed a Kamehameha and hit the jumbled pair. He took advantage of the tangle of limbs and blasted off after the Namekian child. A howl of rage could be heard far behind him. He overtook the child quickly with a yelled, "Sorry, gotta hurry!"

He snatched the kid closer and sped off a bit more before plummeting low and letting his power vanish, just to be extra safe, as he sprinted across the land. Running away felt unnatural to the Saiyan, an action that was new to him, but he refused to let another child go. Not too mention, he wasn't so sure anymore that he could take Frieza on currently.

"Where are you taking me?" the kid asked. Goku responded, "To my wife, I'm Goku, by the way."

"What's a wife?"

"It's not a food, I can tell you that," Goku said, trying to lighten the mood. The child simply stared and asked, "Food?"

"Uh, yeah, maybe we should be quiet until we get there. You know, just in case," Goku said, not able to play twenty questions while running and sensing Frieza's power climb in the distance. He mentally kicked himself for not grabbing the other two Dragonballs before he fled. Fled. The word just felt wrong.

Two pods blasted overhead, crashing far in the distance. Vegeta had arrived. Goku clenched the kid tighter and picked up the pace. He arrived at the ship to find Bulma and Krillin oogling the large Dragonballs. Goku set the kid down and ignored the questions as he spoke over both of them and asked, "The radar seems accurate here, right?"

"Yes?" Bulma replied as she eyed the two present orbs. Goku picked one up, flew straight up and hurled it hard at a long downward angle. In split second, the Dragonball was buried far in the ocean bed in the distance. He landed and said, "Vegeta's here with back up, this way no one but us can find all seven, right?"

"In theory, provided Frieza doesn't have a radar," Krillin pointed out. Bulma countered, "Then we still have to protect ourselves. Not the most elegant solution but it'll work. So, who's the kid?"

"I am Dende," the child said.


Vegeta shook the cold from his veins, hundreds of times being frozen had begun to leave lasting effects on him. The cold was getting harder to shake off. Still, he stretched and got the blood flowing again. Nearby, Serene was going through a similar procedure.

"Kakarot must've gotten started already. Frieza is livid, Zarbon feels half dead, and Dadoria is flying around over there like an idiot, probably on the hunt for something. Disgusting beast," Vegeta sneered with contempt.

Serene raised her brows and asked, "You really can sense power now, I just chalked it up to a concussion. Either way, what now? We can't hit Frieza without Kakarot, you as good as said so."

"Then we get his attention," Vegeta said lifting up and taking off. Serene sighed, weary of the mess they continued to make, but followed in the direction of Dadoria.

True to his word, the large alien was easy to find as he flew around, blasting islands to nothing. His face a twisted mask of nerves and fear. Vegeta stopped behind him and gave a sharp whistle.

Dadoria turned with a start but settled down when he saw it was just Vegeta. He tried to chuckle and said, "I didn't figure that backwater trash left enough of your precious pride intact to come here, Vegeta."

"Silence, you great, slobbering oaf," Vegeta snapped, ready to enjoy the beginning of his revenge. Dadoria ignored him as Serene came to a stop beside the prince.

"You too, Serene? You know, you could just stand aside and look pretty, and let me take this monkey out. With that scouter, Frieza would welcome you back, as would I," Dadoria tried and failed to talk her away from Vegeta while his eyes roamed her body.

"Let's stop this game. Vegeta, they've obviously lost their scouters, do what you came to do. No one is intervening," Serene said while floating away. Vegeta spiked his power and meet Dadoria head-on. The first clash saw the spikey pink being reeling away and realizing his mistake. The long-simmering rage that the Saiyan had held at last had a chance to escape through the new power.

Making sure that he would be more than easy enough for Kakarot to find as he beat his opponent into submission. The helpless, begging mess that was Dadoria could only yell and scream in pain as Vegeta grabbed an arm in each hand and planted his boot firmly on his neck. Laid out on the ground and his own arms serving as the braces for Vegeta to crush him, Dadoria's life left his body.

A rush entered Vegeta's head, the feeling of sensing someone's very essence vanish from existence. It was intoxicating. A natural high that was only bested by great sex and the rush of battle. He let the large wrists go and stepped back with a smirk.

"Wait here, Kakarot will be coming after me shortly," Vegeta ordered. Serene asked, "What? Where are you going? What am I supposed to do about Kakarot?"

"I'm going to find some insurance. As for Kakarot, well, I'd recommend that you don't try to fight him. Other than that, make sure he knows we have a temporary truce. You'll figure it all out," he said before taking off on his own. There was a cluster of powers not too far off when going top speed, and they felt rather at ease.

He landed smack in the middle of them all. Farmers hard at work and elders keeping the younglings in line. Vegeta looked around as one approached. Before a word could even get out of his mouth, Vegeta killed him with a simple blast. Panic ensued as would-be opponents rushed him and others tried to flee by air or foot. Vegeta left no fighters alive but did not bother to chase the escapees, Frieza's goons would take care of them with time.

The high was still running high as he searched the buildings and found the Dragonball sitting on a pedestal. He smirked, getting comfortable and cocky, as he gently lifted and said, "Why, you all shouldn't have. Since you did, just know that your deaths will give way to a greater future. My future."

He chuckled as he tossed it into the nearby lake and started the flight back. He was well aware that he would have to let the high go soon. Kakarot might be a pest, but he was a useful pest that would not cooperate if he continued with this. He could only imagine the bloodthirst Frieza would have if he possessed the capability to just sense an enemy's life vanish in your very grip.


Gohan leaned against a building on a distant world, a wild world as the mission briefing described it. He was forced to agree. The occupants, while little more than beasts, were tough. Their attacks were above average but that wasn't the issue, it was their actual toughness. Everything just rolled right off of them

He looked at a nearby body, it was encased in strange shell-like skin. Black but when the light caught it just right there would be an array of colors like an oil sheen. Every blast, kick, punch, even bites, had barely fazed the strange inhabitants. Still, perseverance saw him through.

Another new planet claimed and ready to be civilized in the name of Lord Cooler. He tapped the button on his scouter, the lens had been busted by a nasty blow to the face nearly right after landing but the communications still worked. He hoped.

"This is Saiyan reporting a mission success. I plan to head off after I heal myself up. Should I wait for more orders or am I good to go?" he rattled into the comm.

"Job well done, Saiyan. Take shelter in your pod, my dashboard shows you to still be supplied with sufficient regeneration chems. Once your healed head off for coordinates that we will be sending you to link up with the Armored Squadron. These are orders directly from Lord Cooler."

Gohan groaned and drug himself to his feet as he cut off the link. He grumbled as he summoned his pod and climbed in. He slipped the air mask over his face and set his pod to orbit. As the small ship hurled out to circle the planet, a green gas filled it rapidly while a natural sleep overtook him.

He wasn't sure how much time had truly passed when he once again awoke to find himself healed. He knew it had been a couple of days. He was parched and starving. The healing gas in his ship was never as quick as a tank, but it was a lot better than laying planet-side and hoping he woke up again.

A blinking light notified him of a new message. He scanned quickly and hit the accept button as the ship launched off once again to another unknown planet. Cyro-sleep took him quickly.

The flight seemed to go quickly in his cold sleep, but he knew the moment he woke up that it was anything but. The majority of his navigation equipment was on the fritz, some blanked out entirely. His comms picked up only static. The only thing working reliably was the numerous devices that collected info on his surroundings, and they weren't of much help as they told him what he already knew. He was lost, deep in space and far from even the remote edges of the Cold Empire.

"Maybe local channels?" he flipped a few switches on his pod's communication gear and said, "This is Second Vanquisher Saiyan of Lord Cooler's reign of the Cold Empire. Does anyone hear me?"

"Hey, Saiyan, long time no smell."

"Looking for a snack little ape?"

"Shut it you two. Saiyan, you're a bit off course, correct by two-point-eight degrees horizontally and point-three vertically."

"Yes, sir, Captain Salza," Gohan said as he corrected his pod manually. The planet was vibrant to see even from space. Lush green with a nearly equal amount of water covered the surface. The atmosphere was pure, Gohan didn't need a machine to tell him that. By all rights, the planet looked untouched by anyone. Questions immediately sprang to his mind.

His pod hurled through the atmosphere and crashed into the air and into formation near the Armored Squadron. He climbed out after his pod gave the clearance that he could breathe outside and stretched. The limbs of his uniform were ruined by the creatures trying to chew on him every chance they had. His armor had spider-webbed cracks running across the chest and the one-shoulder guard was ripped away.

"A word before you greet your comrades," Cooler's voice said through what remained of his scouter. Gohan stopped and waited as Lord Cooler continued, "Three things. First, you are not their subordinate on this mission. For now, you will report directly to me. Second, you are not to participate in any ridiculous posing, preening, posturing, or similar activities. Both of these reasons are to keep you from being assimilated, which is made one of, with their group. That's not what I need of you."

"I understand, My Lord, and the third thing?" the young boy asked. Cooler answered, "You have served well so far through multiple instances that should have broken you if not outright kill you. I feel it's only a fair reward as you go to your most deadly assignment yet to return your name. If you fall in battle from this moment onwards it will not be as Saiyan, the slave of Cooler, it will be as Gohan, trusted and vital servant."

Gohan surprised even himself as he replied in a neutral tone, "Thank, My Lord."

He was on-duty, after all. Cooler ended the contact without another word. A large grin spread across his face as he celebrated the return of his lost name. Still, out of sight of anyone, he could afford the momentary joy, but soon enough it was time to return to reality. The Armored Squadron was waiting on him, after all.

Grouping up with the three strange fighters, Dore was the first to greet him. The green giant of a fighter moved towards him with a surprising amount of grace. He stopped just shy of the young half-blood and held out a fist. Gohan meekly bumped it.

"Still a bundle of nerves, eh?" he rumbled. Gohan chuckled nervously and said, "The last time I ran a mission with you I was buried in a mountain and nearly snapped in half."

"Ah, that was a helluva fight, young Saiy- I mean Gohan," Salza said as he approached, his blonde hair swaying in his face. He made a sour face, his blue face twisted in disgust, and said, "There's a storage crate on the rear of my pod for you, go get re-equipped. I'll brief you afterward," Salza ordered.

Gohan nodded and headed for Salza's pod. Attached to the rear of the pod was a long, fat cylinder by heavy wires and fibers. The lid opened to reveal a whole new loadout. A black bodysuit with the new armor model to accompany it. The scouter was shiny with a red lens.

As he finished getting changed and geared up, two things caught his eye. The first was an emblem on his chest plate. Over the left breast was a purple shape resembling a spikey crown. The second was a strange clunky bracelet of beads that had been hidden under everything else. He picked it and carried it back to Salza with a questioning look.

"Ah, good you're outfitted. I bet you got some questions, eh?" the captain encouraged. Gohan nodded and held the bracelet out and pointed at the crest with the other hand. Salza grinned explained, "That crest denotes you as one of Lord Cooler's personal soldiers. Not quite a royal guard, but no other officer can directly order you. Think of it as a perk in return for high risk."

Gohan nodded slowly and asked, "The bracelet?"

Salza helped him put it on as he continued, "That is a...do you know what contingencies are? No? Okay, well, it is a backup plan, kind of. See these green beads? Chomp down and you'll find yourself healed up. Not all the way, but it gives a bit of a boost. A mortal wound is still going to kill you."

Gohan nodded and asked, "So, not as good as a regen tank?"

"Right but better than nothing. The black is the last resort. You're moving on up in the world which means you're starting to learn about some serious things in life. If you know for sure that you are going to be caught and interrogated, or tortured, then chomp down on that one. It'll kill you instantly," he said solemnly as he held up his own wrist to show his own.

Gohan paled and said, "What exactly are we doing here?"

The trio looked amongst themselves before Salza finally said, "Lord Cooler has decided to try a test run against the Universe's Royal Forces, the Galactic Patrol included. This is considered, in normal words, a new-life planet. There is no sentient life here, nothing like us that is. The King of the Universe has his eye on this planet. We have staked a flag and sent out a signal claiming it.

Our job is to hold this planet from the forward scouts and vanguard. Lord Cooler is readying an army that should arrive around the same, a bit later honestly, than the main forces. We hold them off, however is necessary. Keep in mind, these guys coming are strong, as in on the three of our's level strong. So, Gohan, you ready to probably die?"

Gohan groaned, "I guess I don't have much of a choice."

As the four started hashing out plans and positions, all the young half-blood could think was how much he wanted Tris and Iza were there to back him up. A part of him knew why, though. Cooler had encouraged his solo missions. He had out-paced and out-stripped his comrades. He had blown past their levels a few months ago. Still, he was nowhere near Salza's level. The old feeling of fear was slowly creeping into his heart once again.