Author's note: Hey, guys, thanks for the reads, & the reviews. I love getting those alerts. Please feel free to keep them coming, & let me know your thoughts as the story progresses.
Written by: SparkerLightning & StevenBodner
Chapter 48
Standing atop Night Blizzard, Cold watched as the pale object slowly came into view. At this rate, they would never quite reach the target, as they were slowing down as they closed in, but as long as they were close, that would be sufficient. His crew was inside, nervously checking, double-checking, and triple-checking, their calculations. Every minute their path, and the objects, were recalculated. Every minute their course was readjusted, to eventually put them right beside the white ship.
No matter how unlikely the boast was to be accurate, they wouldn't risk their flagship. Cold would be fine if their ship was destroyed, but why risk well-trained, and trusted, men, if it wasn't necessary. No, he was their king, their shield, their sword, and their god. If the ship attacked, he would defend his men, and he would destroy them with a single attack. He didn't care how strong they were, what capabilities they had, it wasn't enough then, and it wouldn't be enough now.
"Sir." A guard stepped forward, hand on his scouter. "Five power levels are detected, all under 100."
"Disregard their power levels, they can lower them at will." Cold instructed. "What else do we know?"
"Their ship isn't based on standard designs, so our diagnostic tools are somewhat limited, however..." The guard lifted a finger as he listened to the scouter. "It appears as if their ship is working on minimal power. Furthermore, a basic map has been created based on the results of our most sophisticated spectrometry tools, and it appears as if only two rooms, out of roughly a dozen, have atmosphere, only one of which has dense organic matter."
Cold cocked an eye ridge. "They don't maintain atmosphere?" He focused on the distant craft, attempting to feel their energy, but still not sensing anything. "Have they responded to our attempts at communication?"
"No, sir." Another guard stepped forward. "The communication officer reports that no response has been given, nor has our message been acknowledged."
"Something's wrong." Cold stepped forward, walking to the edge of his ship. "Once we're in range, grab their ship. Take us to the closest inhabitable planet for their species."
The guard gave a sharp nod, pressed a button on his scouter, and repeated the order.
Cold maintained his post as figurehead on the prow of Night Blizzard as they glided towards Capsule Cosmos. When the ship was near, roughly equal to the size of one of Cold's outstretched talons, it shook in the void. The enemy had been captured in an invisible to the naked eye cone of retracting energy, which quickly reoriented the ships to each other.
With Capsule Cosmos securely behind them, Night Blizzard took their unresponsive captives towards the nearest planet. It took several more hours, but in relatively good time they reached their destination. Cold stayed in place as his soldiers retreated to the shielded interior of the ship, the heat of entry didn't faze him as he anchored himself to the vessel below him with thin threads of ki.
While the Night Blizzard touched down gently on the purged planet, Capsule Cosmos was not so lucky. The tractor beam began pulling the Earth ship closer once they were in atmosphere, while also shifting it to be over head. The end result? Capsule Cosmos arcing down in front of Night Blizzard's landing site, crashing hard on its rim into the ground.
Cold watched as the ship sent a cloud of dirt and rocks into the ground. Barely noticing the soldiers approach from behind, he threw his senses forward, attempting, and failing, to detect anyone's energy.
"Did they survive the impact?" He glanced sideways at the nearest soldier as he slowly walked towards the edge of his ship.
"Yes, sir." The soldier confirmed. "Five power levels are still present."
"Goku, Nappa." Cold extended fingers at his side as he continued to walk. "Krillin, Chiaotzu, and Bulma." He paused for a moment before he continued walking.
"Turles." He narrowed his eyes as he jumped to the ground below. "Someone is missing. For their sake, it had better be the dominant Saiyan..."
At the crash site
Chiaotzu was the first to awaken. Sitting up he gasped in the fresh air, before plowing his head into, and threw, a thick piece of the ship's skeleton. The pocket he was in was dark, hot, and reeked of chemicals. The only light came from occasional sparks, being thrown from a glass filled square bowl.
He wasn't alone though. When the flickers of light illuminated the potential grave they had been thrust into, he could see the others. A tangle of limbs, heads, and clothes. They weren't wearing their seat belts, but they were alive. Chiaotzu could feel their energy, and slowly but steadily he felt it rising.
Unbuckling his belt, Chiaotzu levitated himself into the middle of their cockpit. Taking a deep breath, forcing his still slumbering energy to the surface, he formed a partial Kienzan in his right hand. Flicking it out he cut an X into the upper wall, before thrusting his left hand forward, pealing the ship open. It was already damaged beyond reasonable repair, so a little more damage wouldn't hurt.
As sunlight flooded in, his companions began to awaken. Krillin was first, pushing his way out from under the Saiyans, frantically climbing up the ship, out into the environment. Chiaotzu didn't join him. He was moving, he was alive, he was more concerned about the others.
His concern was misplaced, however, as Turles and Goku woke up next, at roughly the same time. Unlike Krillin though, they were calm. Turles let out a string of curses as Goku took in their new, and old, surroundings.
He turned to Chiaotzu, opened his mouth to speak multiple times, before finally getting the words out. "What happened? Where are we?"
"Stasis." Chiaotzu responded coldly. "I don't know where autopilot took us, the landing..."
"Left a lot to be desired." Turles finished his sentence as he knelt beside Nappa. Being the largest among them, he should have been affected the least by the gas, but this wasn't proper stasis gas. No, this was Earthling stasis gas, who knew how it worked.
Infusing a small portion of ki into his palm, Turles smacked both sides of Nappa's face. The right side with the back of his hand, and the left with the palm. By the third cycle, the bald Saiyan had opened his eyes. By the fourth cycle, he had caught Turles' hand and gave him a scowl.
"I'm awake." He growled as he pulled himself off his back, and sat upright.
Goku snapped his head to his side, looking through the metal, into the distance.
"Took long enough." Turles offered his hand, pulling Nappa to his feet. "How're you feeling?"
He smiled at Nappa as he looked around. Chiaotzu was standing on his seats backrest, and Krillin was overhead, eyes wide. Goku, was facing the same direction.
"Up." Goku spoke under his breath, a quiet order, as he rose into the air. Not questioning the direction, Nappa and Turles followed close behind, with Chiaotzu taking up the rear.
They took in their surroundings. The planet was covered in thick green foliage, a cross between dense bushes and fluffy moss. The terrain itself was relatively flat where they had landed. A large, light blue, lake was a short ways south of them, and a brown and red mountain range hooked from the east to the north. To the west were more fields of the plant that grew like grass, sitting in it, roughly a mile away, was a familiar round ship.
Halfway between them and the ship was a familiar being, flanked by two rows of armed and armored soldiers, Cold. He was in his third, what they knew not to be his full-power, form. They didn't know how long they were out, but it was too long, it was too late, Cold was here, and they had no means of escape.
As Cold closed in, projecting the aura of a blue whale approaching a dolphin, the team from Earth fell into a their most natural fighting arrangement. Goku was at the tip of the spear, ready to strike hard, strike fast, and shield those behind him. Turles and Nappa were behind him to either side, ready to attack when an opening appeared, but otherwise dedicated to defense. Krillin was in the rear, well-defended, where he could harass, hopefully distract, the enemy. Chiaotzu was in the middle, the most well defended, his only objective was defense. While this was their unspoken battle strategy, the Saiyans knew it wouldn't last. Everyone has a plan, until they're punched in the face, and here, now, they were all about to get walloped.
Cold lifted his right hand into the air, summoning a blazing white ki ball. While still approaching, he waved it over his head, and made no other aggressive moves. His men, identical in their uniforms, did not react to this request for parlay, nor did the Earthlings.
Cold continued his approach, until he stood only a dozen steps away, where he dismissed his flag.
"Greetings, all." He stiffened his posture, widening his stance, but grabbing his hands behind his back.
"Greetings, Cold." Nappa spoke first, stepping up to Goku's side. Not one blow was thrown, and their formation was already broken.
"I expected six of you, but we only detected five power levels in your ship before your, accident." He fought to keep a smirk from crossing his lips. The Earthlings would have to negotiate, or they would never leave this planet. "It looks as if you're missing someone, Bulma?"
"You won't be..." Goku started to say.
"...able to reach her any longer." Turles stepped up to Goku's other side, leaving Chiaotzu and Krillin now completely undefended. "We had an incident in our ship, as you may have been able to tell."
He gestured at the crash site over his shoulder, sneering as he did so. "Unfortunately, Bulma didn't survive the initial failure, and we haven't found her body in the rubble."
"I'm sorry for your loss." Cold lied.
"But let's cut to the chase, shall we?" He crossed his massive arms over his chest, his muscles nearly protruding out above them. "You have not responded to my message. As I said, the offer only expires on your death. Will you accept, or will I need to, force your hands?"
"Message?" Turles addressed his own group.
"Right before the failure." Chiaotzu said. "A message was coming in."
"That's right." He smiled at the psychic. "We never heard your offer, but we're likely not interested in negotiating with you."
"That makes sense." Cold stepped aside, allowing the group a relatively unobstructed view of his ship. "My offer, is my throne."
He gestured towards Night Blizzard, at the dozen men moving his hefty seat to sit atop the craft. "I was unaware that you were responsible for reviving my son. If you do it again, one last time, I will give you my throne, I will give you my empire. Return my children to me, and this universe will never bear witness to my clan again."
Turles' eyes widened in surprise. That's not even close to what he had expected. He had expected the offer of a quick death, in exchange for surrender. He expected a painless life of servitude, for any of them who turned on the others. He expected, he expected something cold, from the frost demon, but this, this was reasonable...
"We can't do that." Goku butted in. "We no longer have Dragon Balls on Earth. We'd need to use the Namekian's, and I doubt they'd allow that."
Cold shook his head in disappointment as he stepped back between his ship, his men, and the usurpers. With a barely noticed hand signal, his men rushed towards the ship, through their scouters they were already giving orders to prepare for launch. "That's too bad. Namek has been destroyed. I guess I'll need to find an alternative method to get my sons back, and I don't think you'll be a part of that future."
As the armed soldiers retreated, the fighters from Earth tightened their ranks once more. They didn't close rank is tightly as before, they knew the formation wouldn't hold any real value, not in a fight like this, but the Saiyans still stood in a "V" formation around the more technical supporters. Cold took them in, studying their posture, their limb lengths, and their musculature. Physical bodies didn't indicate much, not in his world, but any indicator of the capabilities of the monsters that killed his children would be better than nothing.
As Cold ran his course tongue across the back of his first row of teeth, both Goku and Nappa transformed. He couldn't feel their energy, couldn't sense their ki, but he felt as it pushed against him. He felt the kicked up organic mat under their feet shred and bombard him. These monsters killed his children, they weren't to be underestimated, no matter how lowly Saiyans were.
Behind the Saiyans, the Kienzan monk and the psychic were preparing for battle as well. The monk was glowing with a faint aura, barely noteworthy, but the psychic was glowing blue, in the same manner the Super Saiyans were glowing gold. Cold doubted they could injure him, but he saw how Chiaotzu defended against Frieza, and he could only imagine what kind of tricks Krillin had up his sleeves. The third Saiyan, the self-proclaimed dominant Saiyan, was matching Krillin as far as impressive displays went. He had powered up, but despite his title, he seemed to be just another generic Saiyan, not worth too much attention from the frost demon.
Cold narrowed his red eyes, dismissing all others present. "Tell me, Super Saiyans, do you really think you have a chance of winning today? Or do you just intend to die on your feet?"
For the first time in a long time, he felt his heart pounding in excitement. He couldn't help but taunt these warriors, even though he knew that as a group, they were dangerous.
Turles' lips curled into a humorless grin. "Funny, your children said the exact same thing. And, well, I guess we see how that turned out."
Cold's expression soured in a heartbeat. He slowly turned his attention from the golden warriors to the black-haired nobody.
"Big words from the only non-Super Saiyan left alive. That quip just lost you the opportunity for a quick death. I assume you saw what Cooler did to Bulma. That will be nothing compared to what I do to you." He cracked his neck, knowing the words were empty, but unable to resist twisting the dagger.
"ENOUGH BANTER!" Nappa bellowed, smashing his fists together. "Talk is cheap, let's do this thing."
Taking a half step back, Nappa pushed his energy behind him, launching himself, fist first, towards Cold. Goku was directly behind him at first, and beside him at the moment of impact.
Nappa's fist smash into Cold's right cheek. Goku's slammed into his left. The two Saiyan's forward momentum seized immediately. They hung there in the air as a powerful shock wave coned out behind the tyrant. The flora inside the cone was immediately shredded, took to the air, and whipped in all directions in the turbulent air, hiding the three active combatants from view.
A half moment later, a high speed, low power energy wave burst out from inside the cloud. The material quickly burnt to a crisp, before being incinerated. As the embers turned to dust, Cold came back into view, half a pace behind where he was previously, but with a Saiyan fist in each hand.
"Slow and weak." He said as he shook his head.
Focusing on the orange Saiyan first, Cold released his grip on Goku. Thrusting his palm out, barely not reaching Goku, he forced a wall of ki down his arm and shot Goku backwards. Turning his attention to Nappa, he pulled the brute forward and down, smashing his knee into his chest, before throwing him back to their group.
By the time Nappa reached his team, Turles had already caught Goku out of the air, and Krillin prepared to catch Nappa. Thankfully for the monk, Chiaotzu wove a web of blue energy in Nappa's path, and caught him before he could crush the smaller fighter.
"That didn't work, Nappa." Goku rubbed his wrist as he got back to his feet and
shot a glare over his shoulder. "We need teamwork here."
"Don't go off halfcocked." Turles added. "Or you'll kill us all."
Nappa rubbed his chest as he walked back to Goku's side.
"Sorry, guys." He shook his head and flared his aura back to life. "I knew he was strong, but he's on an entirely different level than Frieza. Also, he's a lot more tactical and experienced."
Cold rose gently into the air, and slowly began circling the team from Earth. As he continued to evaluate them, they continued to talk. He was on their radar, but their attention had slipped, just slightly. Condensing his ki forced all eyes to focus back on him, just a half moment too late as a pair of eye beams were already closing in.
Nappa ducked left. Goku ducked right. Turles ducked. Chiaotzu and Krillin were too slow to react, but luckily for them, they were too low to be hit as well. The beams passed harmlessly between the group, knocking them all either off balance, or out of focus. Behind them they heard the telltale sound of rock sheering and falling, as the face of a nearby cliff began to slide.
Goku turned to face the tremendous noise behind him, concerned that the rocks could pose danger to Chiaotzu or Krillin. Thankfully, the struck mountain was plenty far away. Less thankfully, Cold was behind him, between himself and Nappa.
"You are correct, Saiyans." He spoke calmly, as if he didn't realize his movement was unnoticed. "Prodigious as Frieza was, he never really did bother to learn any proper combat tactics. He let his power carry him forward, and that was enough, well, until it wasn't. I though, I trained, so that I could train my men. When power wasn't enough, as it often wasn't for them, tactics were key."
As Cold spoke, his enemies turned to face him bodily. In addition, he sharpened his ki in his right hand. When he finished his lecture, he forced his ki out, forming a sharpened blade extending from his knife hand. He slashed at Goku first, who barely escaped Cold's reach in time, his gi was not as fortunate.
Cold's next strike came in high, allowing Goku to duck to the left to avoid the strike entirely. His follow up kick made him jump into the air, spinning over the offending limb. As he fell back towards the ground another, sideways, ki blade strike nearly bisected him at the waist.
As Cold struck, he disregarded all others around him. The psychic could slow him down, the monk could cut his skin, and together the Saiyans may be able to push him out of his path. They couldn't hurt him, and as long as he stayed focused, he would strike his target.
"Calamity Blaster!" Turles shouted from over Cold's head as he thrust his hands forward. A white wave of ki shot out of his hands, rocketing towards the frost demon's back. Without turning, without slowing his assault, Cold flung his left hand behind him, the shockwave carrying the virtually powerless attack harmlessly off into the distance.
From the corner of his eye, Cold saw the monk appear, a ki disc in each hand. The first sliced inches from his eyes, and the second glanced off his forehead, almost drawing blood. Jabbing at Goku's stomach, Cold put some distance between himself and his primary target. Taking advantage of the opportunity, he turned to face the Kienzan user.
A third disc tracked up his arm, stinging his flesh. The fourth was shattered upon contact with his ki blade, as were the fifth, sixth, and seventh. The remainder of the rapid barrage met a similar fate, not one more breaking through his defense. He had dismissed the weaker warrior, but if he was going to fight dirty, target his eyes, he would be considered just as threatening as the others. Closing in, cutting his way through the hail of potential debilitating attacks, he prepared to cut Krillin's head off with one swing of his fist.
As he swung his arm though, he was forcibly relocated. Goku's arms had attempted to wrap around his waist, under his raised arm. With a quick inversion and eruption of ki, Goku got Cold onto his back, and slammed into the ground. Rolling with the throw, Cold was quickly back upright.
With one knee and one hand on the ground, Cold assumed a runners stance. He lowered his head, reinforced his horns, and charged Goku. Expecting to gore the Saiyan, feel his chest smash into his skull, he was not surprised when he hit a solid object. He was however surprised though when Goku was still several feet away. And he was even more surprised when blue psychic energy rippled out from his point of penetration, and the ripples recondensed and bounced him away from his target.
Cold growled as he took several light swipes at the energy wall. His fast strikes, his heavy strikes, bounced off. His slow, cutting strikes went right through it. As he prepared to force his way through though, Nappa lifted his right fist into the air, index and middle fingers extended. Nappa scowled as he lowered his index finger.
"Melt, bastard." He condensed his ki before forcing it out in an omnidirectional Volcano Explosion. Behind him the white energy was funneled up and around an oddly shaped barrier, forcing virtually all of the lethal energy forward.
A similar eruption of organic material filled the air as when Nappa first struck the tyrant, however this time they had no illusion that victory was claimed. Cold's silhouette shifted inside the cloud, portions of it fading away as the energy ripped through anything it could. When the dust settled Cold stood exactly where he had, completely unharmed. His cape though, his cape was virtually completely scorched.
Cold immediately noticed the impeded movement of the fine material. It should have flowed with the energy, like kelp in a storm. Instead, the surface was burnt, course, it was ruined. He snorted, smoke shooting from his nostrils.
"This, cape." He said as he disrobed. "Was a tribute, given by a now extinct species. One hair from each of their population was woven into it. It's quality was unmatched, no other garment of this quality, of any type, has ever existed, and none can ever be created. I made sure of that myself."
Cold gritted his teeth as he sunk further into his stance.
Before Chiaotzu knew what happened, Cold was through his barrier. The tyrant's knee had sunken into Nappa's armor, sending the brute into the sky. Watching him shrink into the atmosphere he turned his attention back to his remaining victims. The psychic had focused that blast, he was just as responsible. He slowly closed on the shrimp, looming over the insect.
"Let's try this again." He said as he lifted his reformed ki blade into the air once more.
As he brought his arm down to the right, he was thrown off target once more. A wild haymaker smashed into the side of his head. It didn't hurt him, but it distracted him enough to miss Chiaotzu entirely. Turning to face his attacker, he came eye-to-eye with a raging Super Saiyan. Nappa delivered the next haymaker to Cold's chin, slightly moving his head backwards. The next went for his cheek, and Cold calmly stepped aside. The subsequent attacks were just as accurate, missing their massive target by anywhere from an inch to a yard, in the case of one particularly noteworthy twirl.
With his punches harmlessly passing through the air, Nappa decided to go for a kick. Slowly three punches in a row he was able to form a ki blade on the tip of his foot, which he shot directly towards Cold's snowballs. Unfortunately for the Saiyan Cold, stepped backwards and wove his hand under his leg and forced it upward, throwing Nappa onto his back.
Having the perfect opening, Cold quickly concentrated his ki into his right index finger. Thrusting it forward the red beam shot out, spiraling towards Nappa's heart. But much to Cold's frustration, Goku popped in front of him, one hand on his forehead, the other swinging a ki infused arm, diverting the attack into the nearby lake.
"We're not going to die that easily." Goku said as he pulled his deflecting hand back to his side.
"That's good to hear." Cold grinned as he returned to his melee stance. "I'm not opposed to drawing this out, and I'm glad to hear you won't mind a prolonged death."
With another pop, Goku appeared directly in front of Cold, fists flying. Several punches connected with his face, from forehead to chin. Cold threw his arms up, guarding against the onslaught, but Goku simply lowered himself down the giant, redirecting his blows from the monster's face to chest. When Cold got his guard in place once more Goku, went to smash a ki ball into Cold's undefended face, but was blocked. His kick though was not, and sneaked under Cold's defenses, smashing into his gut.
For the first time in the battle, Cold was influenced. His armor cracked, and he himself was shot backwards. His breath was knocked out, and he tasted blood from where he bit his tongue.
Quickly regaining control, before Goku could launch a follow up attack, Cold swiped the back of his fist across his mouth. Blood, not just from his tongue, but on his lip. It wasn't from the Saiyan, not exactly, as it was the impact with his own teeth that caused the split. But either way, blood was drawn, his blood was drawn, and it wasn't from his own mistake. No, that was first blood for him, since the battle started, since this fiasco started, heck, since his rule started.
Slowly, almost sarcastically, Cold brought his hands together. "I am impressed." He grinned hungrily. "I haven't been punched that hard, kicked that solidly since..."
"I'm not here to impress you." Goku rubbed his fist as he mirrored his typical stance.
"Neither am I." Cold cracked his neck as he tensed his core. Taking three deep breaths, he erupted in power. His inflated muscles contracted, thickened, as his energy materialized on his body. In a matter of moments his armor had burnt away and his eyes were shrouded by a red visor of ki. His chest, as well as his elbows and knees, suddenly grew three-dimensional, crimson, diamonds, formed by solid ki.
As Cold transformed into his fourth form, his power broke through any and all limits that Goku thought the natural world would maintain. Goku took a half step back as the world began to tremble, his ki sense completely overwhelmed. It was like receiving a Solar Flare, but to his fighting spirit. He tried to wrap his mind around the power in front of him, tried to grasp just what he was dealing with, but all his senses returned was static. Pure cosmic static.
Without using Instant Transmission, Cold was beside Goku. His arm was swinging down, and if it weren't for decades of honed reflexes, Goku's head would have rolled. Instead though, he threw himself to the ground, losing several strands of hair.
Cold's foot was the next threat. Goku was in the shadow of death, and barely managed to avoid the ground quaking stomp. Flipping heels overhead, Goku sprung into the air, used his ki to lock himself in space, and smashed his heels into Cold's brow ridge.
Cold took a half step back, coiling his waist, shoulder, elbow, and wrist. A split second later he released the tension, rocketing a fist towards the motionless Goku. As his fist closed in, it stopped short. Once more, blue ripples surrounded his attack, spiraling around him…
"Go." Chiaotzu spoke under his breath.
Turles reacted first, not hesitating. He launched himself at Cold's head, knee posed to strike. Nappa reacted slower, but due to his Super Saiyan energy he reached the tyrant at the same time. Turles' knee passed effortlessly through Chiaotzu's barrier, catching its target off guard, smashing into the back of his head. Nappa's attack found his target just as easily, with just as much impact.
Cold bent at the waist. His arms wrapped around his core, and he tucked his chin. Painlessly he coughed up a glob of blood, landing on Nappa's boot.
Turles and Nappa momentarily made eye contact, amazed that their wild charge worked. That is until Cold through his arms out, snapped himself to his full height, and let out a short cackle. A pillar of white energy shot from the center of his crown, reaching into space and penetrating into the planet. As he cackled, the beam expanded, cycling down through him, and up into space around him. In a blink, it had thrown Turles and Nappa away, followed by Krillin, Chiaotzu, and even Goku.
"DON'T GET COCKY!" He called into the heavens as his attack fizzled. He knew they were alive, they wouldn't be that easy to kill, but he used the moment of solitude to catch his breath. That was the first time he exposed his Heavenly Rod in combat, and it took more out of him than he would admit.
Shielding his eyes with one hand, Cold turned his gaze to the skies. They should be coming down any second now, but they were nowhere to be seen. Slowly rotating, he noticed that his ship had left, as it was supposed to, and with the destruction of their ship, they were trapped here with him.
Hearing a pop behind him, Cold turned to face the Super Saiyans. They were alone. "Don't tell me that was enough to kill your three friends?" He asked with fake sincerity.
In answer, a flying roundhouse kick came in from behind him, targeting the same spot Turles had kneed moments ago. Unlike Turles' attack though, Krillin was violently smacked away by Cold's tail.
"I guess I spoke too soon." Cold shook his head as he turned to face his most recent attacker. "That was a smart move. Make me think you're dead, and attack from behind. It was a pointless move, as you are so utterly out of your league, but smart none the less."
Krillin slowly picked himself up. He felt as if that latest blow had dislocated his body. He felt as if he had crashed into a mountain, propelled into by a truck. He felt as if his soul was bruised.
"Don't push yourself too hard." Turles called from off to the side. They were slowly surrounding Cold, spreading out, making a spider web like trap… which Cold would rip through as if it were, well, a spider's web.
"He's too strong, just stay back and support us." He spoke quietly, knowing his words would carry over the now silent battlefield.
"I know, I know." Krillin shook his head as well as he tried, and failed, to dust himself off. His clothes were burnt, and would never be the same again. "I had to try, though."
Reaching behind his head, Cold grabbed a falling foot out of the air. Looking over his shoulder, he wagged a finger at Goku.
"I told you, pointless." He returned his attention to Krillin, holding up a finger as if to wait a moment, and shot himself backwards, away from the monk. When he had Nappa and Turles in a straight line he dropped Goku, thrust his palm into his chest, and shot him like a bullet at his friends, scoring two direct hits.
Immediately following the Saiyan projectile was a twisting Death Beam. Unlike Goku though, it didn't strike its target. Instead, it was slightly redirected, and shot off into space, a slanted ripple of blue energy shown where Chiaotzu's barrier was.
Cold clinched his fist, growled, and disregarded the toughest of the chew toys, instead turning to the rag doll.
"I've had enough of your interference. Time to die!" He spread his fingers, pointing all at Chiaotzu. As he walked, he fired. One step, five shots.
Chiaotzu's eyes widened in horror, and quickly the outline of his spherical shield was clear to see. Each attack that dug into his barrier, sent a shock through his system. He couldn't hold this, not for long. Disregarding his rear shielding, he turned his focus forward. He sharpened his shield, turning a dome, to a semi sphere, to an elongated cone. The Death Beams began glancing off, in all directions. They weren't penetrating, weren't getting through. He was safe… he was…
When Cold reached the tip of the cone, he wrapped his palm around the invisible barrier. Forming a ball of energy in his palm, in the barrier, he shattered it into dust. Maintaining the Death Sphere, in his right hand he charged the snow defenseless psychic.
As Cold closed in, Chiaotzu was rushing backwards, the Saiyans were untangling themselves, and Krillin was acting. Getting between his good friend and the devil himself, Krillin slammed his fingers to the sides of his eyes. "Solar flare!"
Cold's eyes flew to his eyes and he sank to one knee. He wasn't struck, he wasn't damaged, but he lowered his center of gravity. He reinforced his place on the battlefield. He made himself immobile. This was proven when Goku appeared in front of him.
Goku popped between the still retreating Chiaotzu and King Cold, hands already at his side.
"Kame..." He reached inside himself, funneling all available energy into his hands. "Hame..." Kaio-Ken crossed his mind, just for a moment, but he couldn't risk it, not now. "HA!"
He shouted as he thrust his hands forward. At point blank range the beam only had to travel a foot before hammering into the top of Cold's skull.
Cold growled as the attack washed over his head. The attack broke over his head, washing down his back, sides, and over his face. Cold froze, no longer rubbing his eyes, as the attack burrowed into the ground behind him. As the Kamehameha began to fizzle out, he heard the other Saiyans launch their own moves.
"Break Cannon!" Nappa called before he exhaled a massive energy wave from his mouth.
"Kill Driver!" Turles exhaled as he formed the ring of electrical energy. Once prepared, he spun the attack at Cold's back.
The two attacks closed in at the same, slow, pace. Cold clamped his eyes shut, throwing his hands out to either side. A disk of red ki formed in each, perpendicular to the ground. Nearly removing both of Goku's hands, the disks expanded around their wielder, completely encasing him in energy. The Kill Driver expanded over the shell, closing once more on the other side, before collapsing in on itself. The Break Cannon began to penetrate the hasty defense, but cracks began to form, which redirected the attack away from its occupant.
"Smart move." Cold said as he let his shield down, and rose to his full height once more. "Again, pointless, but very smart."
Slowly he let his energy reach out around him. His family had always had telekinetic powers. They weren't nearly as precise as Chiaotzu's, but his were far more powerful. Where Chiaotzu was a precisely placed guard, his was a steel sledge, and he was about to drop the hammer on them.
The ground shook under the Earth team's feet, and all five of them took to the air at once. They didn't move nearly far enough, nearly quick enough, and their lives turned upside down.
Cold ripped the ground out of the planet, as much as he could, as quickly as he could. A massive hemisphere of rock shot up and out, the crater it left behind was 30 miles across, and over 15 miles deep. Keeping an eye on his two primary targets, he shredded the stone around them, making sure only to capture the less irritating fighters. Goku, Nappa, and Turles, were quickly encased in a massive stone monolith, The rock flowed like water, forcing them from the edge of the now sphere of planetary crust towards its core. Once Cold could feel them, the few things he couldn't control in his tens of trillions of tons of rock, he clinched his fist once more, crushing down, before releasing his grip.
Cold waited for the thousands of cubic miles of rock to settle behind him, keeping his gaze on his prey. When the noise had quieted, and his targets' faces were still frozen in horror, he closed the distance between them.
"You two irritated me." He said calmly. "You used any tactic you could to bring me down. You knew you couldn't do it alone, so you used your tricks, and your unusual powers, to aid those who might have once stood a chance. I can respect that."
Krillin and Chiaotzu still did not move. Moments ago, they were practically at ground level. Now, they were watching a lake drain into a pit many times larger than the largest mountains on Earth.
"I like you two, and if we had met under different circumstances, I would have allowed you to live. Whether you joined me or not, you would have earned your lives."
Their senses betrayed them. They sensed ki, but no one could survive that.
"But, because you both partook in the deaths of my sons, I'm afraid you will not be allowed to live." He took Krillin's head in his left hand, and Chiaotzu's in his right. Using his tail to add momentum, he spun himself into a blur before launching the support fighters into the hole he had created.
He met them at the bottom, fists extended, catching them both in the stomach. They still did not react.
"I want to hear you scream." Cold said. "And once I do, I will let you die. Now, who's going to be first?"
Chiaotzu looked down at the tyrant, and let himself go limp. He was a warrior, one of the most powerful psychics in the universe he dared to think, and he wouldn't let a little pain get to him.
Krillin looked down at Cold, and opened his mouth. His lunges were empty, and nothing came out.
Behind him, in the monolith, Cold heard a rumble. He turned to face the landscape, dropping Chiaotzu and Krillin to the ground. Chiaotzu stayed limp, his mind had already made peace with what was happening, and his body was just waiting to die. Krillin slowly rolled onto his back, Cold was at the top of his vision, and the wall of stone took up nearly all of the rest of it.
A crack formed in the wall, and Krillin's senses were screaming at him. There was life in there. Someone lived. Their energy was incredible. Cold was insurmountable, but whoever was in the rock was approaching that same level.
Light blue energy began to seep through the crack, mixed with deep crimson wisps. A moment later it spread, the material shot upward, forming a mushroom cloud that flared in low orbit. The sun was overtaken, and night had come as a cloud of rock began to stretch over the planet, a blanket of solid stone.
In the center of the mushroom cloud, the cause of the final sunset on this planet, was a golden warrior, a crimson warrior, and an orange warrior. As soon as they were free, Goku returned to Super Saiyan, and Turles dropped his Kaio-Ken as well. He had trained with it, practiced with it, and he knew not to overuse it, not that it would make a difference in the actual combat here.
"GOOD SHOW!" Cold called out to the trio of Saiyans as they shot back to the initial battlefield. He didn't know if they could hear him, but he didn't particularly care. Krillin began to climb to his feet, and Cold flared his aura, forcing him back into the ground, alongside the unmoving Chiaotzu.
He began to clap as the Saiyans closed in, landing a few dozen feet away.
"Good show." He said again. "I am amazed you could survive that, and, by the look of it, relatively unharmed as well."
Cold stepped forward, keeping his aura up, his enemies down.
While what little clothes the Saiyans had left was torn and burnt, or both, they themselves were in relatively good shape. Turles was covered in small cuts, not a single square inch of his body wasn't bleeding, but nothing was deep, nothing was lethal. Nappa was in slightly better shape, his limbs were shredded, but his trunk, and his head, were relatively untouched. Goku was the best out of the three of them, Cold assumed it was his aura that kept him safe, but he was no worse now than he was when he was sent into the rock.
"Back off, Cold!" Goku stomped two steps forward. "Back off, now!"
"No." Cold said, crossing his arms. "I don't think I will."
He looked down at the trash by his feet. "You know, Saiyans, that was your one, and only, chance to survive. I had no idea you were still alive. I was going to kill these two, personally, and leave. You could have gotten away, you could have gotten stronger, you could have gotten revenge. Now though? Now I won't stop until I've seen your corpses with my own two eyes, and cremated them myself, like this."
Cold focused his aura down and out. He solidified the edges, forming a dome around himself, Krillin, and Chiaotzu. Slowly he reached into his core, he drew his power to the surface, and he pushed it out.
The humans couldn't take it. It was too much energy, too much heat. Their skin began to blister.
"STOP!" Goku charged at the dome, smashing his fist into it. Sparks flew, but no damage was apparent. He whirled back and delivered a ki infused kick, again, sparks flew, and no damage was apparent.
"Make me." Cold grinned as he broke through yet another limit.
Krillin and Chiaotzu closed their eyes. They couldn't take it. Their skin began to darken.
Turles and Nappa were frozen in place. If Goku couldn't break in, they wouldn't stand a chance. If Cold had even a tenth the power he was displaying now, they wouldn't stand a chance. They hadn't bitten off more than they could chew, they had bitten off more than they could even pretend to be able to handle.
"STOP IT!" Goku howled, bashing into the barrier again, and again, and again. Tears began to well up in his eyes.
"No." Cold said again, climbing to yet another height.
In a flash, the burning pain had settled, and now, both of them, just felt cold.
"LET THEM GO!" Goku's aura began to spark, and his power began to climb as well.
"No." Cold leaned forward, looming over the Saiyan. "You took my sons."
Col began to push. He couldn't fight at this level, not in this form, but he could focus his power. Instead of creating a beam, he was creating a furnace.
Steam began to rise from Chiaotzu's face as his tears were immediately vaporized. His mouth fell open, and his last breath escape. Tien left a letter, the real Tien, he burnt it, like he was being burnt now. Soon though, soon this would end, and he could apologize, he could beg forgiveness. Hopefully the next life wouldn't be this hot … he was a Crane student, but he thought he made up for it.
As Goku felt Chiaotzu's life slip away, his hair shot upward.
"CHIOATZU!" he screamed. He pulled his fists together over his head, bashing at the shield with both fists. "LET MY FRIENDS GO!"
Tears poured down his face, as steam continued to rise from the psychic's corpse.
Cold closed his eyes, pushing his aura one level higher. The ground under his feet started to shift. As a solid, it was rock. As a liquid, it flowed. As a hot enough liquid, it began to become a gas, and Krillin began to sink.
Krillin caught his breath, released the requested scream, and fell silent.
Cold held his aura for a moment longer, ensuring the two fighters were dead. He turned them first to bone, and then to dust. The process only took a few seconds, a few seconds in which Goku had let out a scream of his own.
The Saiyans hair stood on end. Electricity filled his aura. Anger filled his blood. Hatred filled his soul. Cold was a monster. Cold would die. His eyes bulged as his body was overcome with new levels of power. His lunges burned and his vocal chords were shredded. He had ascended, and he would not stop until he had killed the demon in front of him. Winding up, waist, shoulder, elbow, wrist, he smashed another, full body, punch into Cold's barrier, this time it shattered like glass. The aerosolized rock bloomed out, quickly cooling back into a liquid, and then small particles of dust.
Seeing Goku's transformation, feeling the birth of a titan, Nappa snapped out of his daze. "What the hell was that?"
Turles took another breath to ground himself. His nephew, his blood, was standing tall, toe-to-toe, with Cold. His energy was more chaotic, more furious, hungrier, and just as powerful. "His father was all about rising above his station, breaking through limits. And, Goku, he just did it again."
As Goku realized he actually opened the barrier, as Cold realized he was vulnerable, Goku struck. His fists were flying, his knees were striking, and his elbows kept any retaliatory blows away. He hammered the tyrant's chest, face, and stomach, and Cold couldn't get his guard in place in time. Cold blocked low, Goku struck high. Cold blocked high, Goku smashed his foot into the red diamond on his knee.
Maintaining the assault, Goku pushed Cold back, away from Chiaotzu, away from Krillin. He wasn't allowed in their presence, he would pay for what he did to them. The Dragon Balls were gone, Chiaotzu and Krillin were gone. It could have been Gohan, it could have been Chi-Chi, it could have been anyone. Cold didn't care, he was cold-hearted, he was ruthless, he was a monster, and he would pay.
Goku landed a fierce spear kick to Cold's stomach. The king grabbed at Goku's foot as he doubled over in pain, but the limb was already retracted and replaced. As Cold lowered his head, Goku took the bull by the horns and smashed his face into his knee, before lifting it, and smashing it again, and again, and again.
Cold lashed out, jabbing between Goku's legs, forcing the Saiyan back. When he lifted his head, his brow ridge was intact, but the shining ki was covered in gushing blood, seeping from his crown, his nose, and his chin.
Cold kept an eye on the Saiyans, the two nothings, and the powerhouse in front of him. He needed time, he needed distance. He kept his guard up, took three steps back, and turned to retreat. Not forever, not for long, just long enough, long enough to gather his thoughts, go through his tactics, and find a new way to destroy this monkey. But Goku was there, behind him, lowering his hand to his side.
He had one blue ki ball in his right hand, and quickly formed another in his right. Goku shot into the air as he fired both Kamehamehas at once. The first hit Cold's left shoulder. The second smashed into his gut. Both together smashed him into the ground. Goku felt the impact, he saw the crater being formed. He screamed, in rage, in agony, in hatred, and pushed more ki into his hands, into the attack, into Cold.
Slowly but steadily, the attack narrowed. Goku lost his focus, he lost his target, and eventually, his Kamehamehas faded.
Cold was there, in a crater of his own, a grave of his own, still breathing, still alive. How dare he, how dare the bastard live when Krillin was dead, when Chiaotzu was dead.
Cold coughed as he forced himself upright. It had been ages, longer than he could remember, since he had been struck so hard, knocked back so far, and, and actually winded. It made sense now. This Saiyan, this monster, killed his sons, and Cold could understand why.
"I get it!" Cold screamed. "I get it, how you killed my sons. You're not a Saiyan, no, you're something else, something new, something beyond. You, you would have won today, if I were my sons."
Cold spat out a tooth. He had always taken pride in his white teeth, but the shattered remnant was more blood than anything. "If I hadn't prepared, since my sons hadn't prepared, death was the only answer. But, unfortunately for you, I am not my sons. I did prepare. I didn't assume I was strong enough. I wasn't. I'm not. Not now, not in this form."
Immediately, Cold's ki constructs began to reform from the top down. The three points of his crown fanned out, from the front to the back of his skull, creating a reptilian fringe. The visor over his eyes crept like lava down his face, framing his eyes, and covering his nose and mouth as it jutted outward. In a matter of moments his face had been replaced by an extended, sharp, beak. Resulting from the same visor, his eyes had been shielded by unmoving purple tetragons.
His chest diamond expanded next. Thin tendrils of energy wove both over his shoulders and under his arms, connecting directly at the base of his neck. The thin upper cables quickly expanded down, and away from, his back, forming a pair of nearly knee length insectoid wings. The cables under his arms branched, weaving a web down his chest, stomach, and protecting his groin.
Tendrils came from his elbows next, weaving up to meet his shoulders, and down to his hands. When they reached his wrists they began to cluster, thicken, and at first, they formed red gloves over his hands. Once his fingers were completely encased though, they sharped, extended, creating extremely malleable, extremely sharp, talons.
His knees were next, weaving a similar web to his chest and elbows, protecting his legs, and reaching to his feet. Similar to his elbows giving him gloves, which formed into talons, his knees encased his feet, first giving him a pair of ruby red boots, before reshaping into hooked talons of their own.
"That is your third form." Cold's beak clicked as he spoke. "This, is my fifth!"
"Let's see you draw the blood of a royal now, Saiyan!" He shot into the air, quickly becoming level with Goku.
Cold charged, talons drawn back, ready to slash. His first swing came up short, his second was too high, and his third was over extended. Goku ducked under the massive arm, spinning behind the tyrant, and peppered him with a barrage of high energy ki bullets.
Cold started his defense by folding his wings in on himself, absorbing the hits. As he turned he began swatting them away, not finding it necessary to let the regicidal beast wear down his endurance.
Familiarizing himself with his new, untested form, Cold slowly refined his movements. He went from letting the blows glance off his protected arms, to sending them wide. With a little more control, he was able to turn them back towards their source, but couldn't quite get them to head back directly, and even if he did, they'd be shot down by the next blast in line. Instead, he decided to let three blasts threw. Taking the hits, he took his time as well, preparing his Death Claw.
As the third blast exploded on his skin, he swept his talon across his field of vision. The inbound blasts were sliced to pieces, but the Saiyan was nowhere to be seen. Turning quickly to the left, Cold caught Goku mid kick, pinning his leg between his left knee and right elbow. To his disappointment, no bones shattered. To his joy though, the Saiyan's face was right there. Hastily preparing another Death Claw, he lashed out behind him.
Unfortunately for Cold, Goku had expected just such retaliation, and caught Cold by the wrist before he was cut to shreds. A heartbeat later both warriors released an Explosive Wave at the other, the turmoil of which sent them both flying back several arm's lengths.
A heartbeat after that, they were back where they had started, no longer tangled. Goku landed several punches to Cold's jaw, torso, and shoulders. Cold landed several kicks to Goku's ribs, knees, and shins. Goku left bruises. Cold left shallow gashes. Neither fighter was slowed, neither fighter was demotivated, and both were taking advantage of every slight gap in the other's defense. The tactical battle had devolved to a slug fest, where the only thing that mattered was punishing the enemy, and if they were struck, if they were brutalized, in the meantime, well, at least the other guy got it worse.
Taking advantage of his smaller size, shorter reach, Goku stepped into Cold's guard. He took several blows to the back and side of his head, but the beast's belly was exposed. One, two, three… thirteen, fourteen… Goku lost count, he uppercutted Cold's stomach, he dug for gold, he tried to break through the monster's body, and his head was throbbing… his head was on fire … but he was making progress, Cold's webbing was breaking away, cracking, exposing the soft flesh underneath.
Losing patience with the gut-wrenching barrage, Cold sneaked his tail around, wrapping it around Goku's foot. He tightened and yanked it in one motion, inverting Goku. With his guard down, and in the proper range, Cold slashed down Goku's body, toes to nose. Three lines of blood showered Cold. He went for another strike, with his other hand, but Goku twisted himself free, taking a hit from Cold's palm instead of his talons, sending him rocketing towards the ground.
"Is that it?" Cold asked as he rubbed his stomach. When he pulled his hand away, the webbing had been completely restored.
Goku did not respond. Nappa and Turles stood a safe distance away. The eldest Saiyan, the Super Saiyan, both nothing more than observers.
"Is that the limit of your new form?" Cold reached inside feeling the iceberg of energy inside, knowing he hadn't even reached the waterline. "I tell you what, Saiyan. You should double your power, because..."
His muscles bulged for a moment before returning to their former state. "... I just did."
The masculine Valkyrie was surrounded by a blazing aura. The air around him shot upward as it came in contact with him. A down flow of air propelled all loose material away from him at extreme speed, leaving him in an empty patch of ground no matter where he went.
Nappa allowed himself to fall to the ground. What the hell kind of world would allow a being like this to exist? No, it was too much, it wasn't real, it was a dream, a nightmare, it had to be.
Turles stepped closer to his side, putting a hand on his shoulder. Leaning over, the eldest Saiyan began to whisper in his ear.
Opening his beak, Cold formed a ball of energy in his mouth. Nodding his head three times, feeding enough energy into it to stretch his mouth to the maximum, Cold locked onto his target. With the flick of his tongue the ball shot forward.
It was too fast. It was too strong. No, it couldn't be dodged. It couldn't be blocked. It would burn right through him. It would turn him to dust, like Krillin, like Chiaotzu. No, no, he couldn't let it, he had to win, he had to resist. He had to overcome.
Goku spoke his first words since ascending. "Kaio..." A red aura shot up around him. "Ken!"
He shot his cupped, empty, hands out, as his red Kaio-Ken mixed with his golden Super Saiyan 2 energy, leaving him with a deep orange aura. The attack smashed into his hands, bent his elbows, nearly reached his chest, but was stopped, inches away. Goku felt it, felt the heat, felt the density. He felt the hatred behind it, the power, the burning agony it would inflict on him, the burning agony it did inflict on his hands and arms… it was nothing. It was nothing compared to the pain of every cell in his body protesting at once.
He let the attack knock him backwards, dismissing the Kaio-Ken as soon as the ball would safely fly over his head, and rotated to get back upright. His body was on fire, every cell, every drop of blood, every hair, burning, screaming in pain, in resistance. They weren't compatible, they couldn't blend. The first time, the pain of the rocks, the thought that he had lost his friends, it had masked the pain. But now, nothing could cover it. His new form was too new, too powerful. His body couldn't handle the multiplier to his strength, to his speed, or, or to his mind. He was angry, he was rabid, and he'd die, he'd self-destruct, if he pushed Kaio-Ken on to this new form. There had to be another way.
Disregarding his impending death, ignoring the certainty of failure, Goku gathered his ki and multiplied it once more.
"Kaio-Ken… times… five!" He shredded his vocal chords as he charged towards his destiny. Sparks flew from every punch, both from his aura, and the air igniting as it was compressed in front of his movements. Never before had he thrown such powerful punches, if he missed, if he directed his power downward, he had no doubt he could destroy the planet in a single blow. Strike after strike after strike was raining down upon Cold, at a completely unsustainable rate. He'd been in rainstorms and suffered less impacts from drops of water, than he was delivering to the monster in front of him.
Cold kept his arms up, redirecting most blows, but taking the occasional hit. His chest would be bruised, his muscles would be soar, but he would survive. He would thrive. He would kill the slayer of his bloodline. He saw the desperation, the futility, in the monkey, and he was willing to let him lash out, wear himself down, before going in for the kill.
Distantly, unfrozen from their horror, Nappa and Turles moved into action. Turles initiated his plan, focusing a large part of his energy into his palm, before throwing the Power Ball into the air. Distracted by the stellar being in front of him, Cold did not see the Saiyans transforming behind him. Goku, on the other hand, saw the brown and golden Oozaru, but did not consider them a factor in his revenge.
Cold performed a perfect block, sending Goku's fist to the side, Goku to the side, off balance. He followed the motion by spinning himself around, smashing his wing into the irate warrior, sending him flying. As Goku closed on the rim of Cold's crater, over the Power Ball, over Turles and Nappa, Cold shot a barrage of high-powered blasts after him. Each ki bullet landed a breath after the last, accelerating the Super Saiyan faster and faster.
As Goku flew, the Kaio-Ken energy bled away, leaving him in his ascended form. Cold was giving chase, staying close, until he smashed heavily into the cliff. The impact formed a deep vertical crater, showering the ground below in heavy material.
As Goku began to slide down the gentle curve of his massive dent, he was caught. Cold wrapped his scaled, purple, tail around his neck. He placed the red spike at the tip against the base of Goku's neck.
"Do you regret it?" Cold demanded of his prey. "Do you regret killing my sons? Do you regret coming here? Do you-"
Goku sank his teeth into Cold's tail. Forcing his mouth shut, twisting his neck, sliding his jaw side to side, he growled as he made eye contact with Cold, ripping a chunk of flesh from his fifth appendage.
Cold whipped his tail out, intending to send Goku flying into the wall once more, but only succeeding in releasing him. As he inspected and nursed his tail, he failed to realize the red tint enter Goku's aura once again. He didn't fail to notice the double fist smashing into his head though. The tyrant was knocked back some, swung his tail behind him, and prepared to deliver his killing shot.
Goku's eyes were wide, his aura was golden once more, and he wasn't looking at Cold. No, he was looking over him, behind him.
Cold spun in place. Half a rotation later a massive brown fist clubbed into his head, right where Goku had struck. Falling out of the sky, towards the ground, another fist smashed into his back, straining his wings.
Unlike Goku, he didn't get berried when he hit the ground, instead he bounced, several feet into the air. Luckily for him, a golden fist smashed into him next, driving him into a potential grave. As Cold rose, he was smashed down again, by a fist, a foot, an energy blast, by everything Nappa could throw at him.
The brown ape was diving towards the ground, and Goku flew beside his head. "Turles, you guys have to get out of here. You're not strong enough to be here."
"Shut up." Turles growled, his voice far deeper than usual. "We are Saiyans, we will not run from this battle!"
Goku shook his head, turning his attention to the battle below.
Cold kept rising, and Nappa kept knocking him down. But it wasn't working. Cold was scratched, bloody, and bruised, but that was from his assault, in Kaio-Ken, it, it wasn't changing. He'd take a direct hit, a Mouth Beam, unguarded, and get right back up.
"NAPPA, GET OUT OF THERE!" Goku shouted as he reached inside, feeling his remaining ki reserve.
Nappa ignored him, taking another swipe at Cold. It appeared to be a direct hit, but Cold didn't move. No, he just took the strike, he resisted it with no effort.
"Good night, monkey." Cold pointed a single talon at Nappa, quickly charging and launching a Death Beam.
Before impact, once again, Goku was there. With two fingers on his forehead, he swung his right arm at the incoming attack. While he did get it off target, it wasn't' nearly as easily as before. A spray of blood shot from his arm where he had touched the attack. Goku cursed under his breath, running a ki ball down his arm, burning the wound shut.
While the Saiyans were distracted, Cold noticed the only source of light on the planet, it wasn't easy to miss. Extending an open palm to it, he summoned a ball of red ki, and while Goku nursed his arm, he shot the Death Cannon. Faster than a bolt of lightning, the Death Cannon destroyed the Power Ball.
Turles landed heavily behind Cold, chuckling under his breath. "Congratulations." Reaching down he grabbed a massive rock.
Cold turned to face him, preparing another Death Cannon. "Shouldn't you be reverting right about now? I thought that's what happened when you lost your source of Blutz Waves?""
"If that were a moon? Yes. If someone inferior created the Power Ball? Yes." He tightened his grip, tensing his muscles. "I took it to the next level. The artificial nature of the Blutz Waves take longer to metabolize through, so Nappa and I will stay like this for at least another hour."
Turles swung the rock, and Cold blew it up with little fanfare. The shower of dust overtook him, and when it settled, he was gone.
"If a Super Saiyan Great Ape can't hurt me, what hope do you have." Cold spoke from directly behind Turles' head.
As Cold swung his Death Claw at Turles' neck, Goku swung his knee. With Kaio-Ken energy blazing once more, he buried his knee between Cold's wings, halfway down his back. Not that he would admit it, not that it was noticed, but Cold's beak opened in a silent scream as the attack dug into him.
As Turles spun at the commotion, Goku delivered a follow-up attack, a haymaker to the exact same spot. With Turles out of the way, Goku pushed a wall of ki along with the attack, launching Cold towards Nappa.
Nappa powered a ki ball in his right hand. When Cold was in range, he hand fed it to the tyrant, bouncing him back towards Goku. Turles was there though, in the path. He smacked Cold towards the ground, impaling his hand on the tyrant's horns, and not sending him anywhere.
Cold blazed his aura, burning Turles' palm, before dancing backwards to avoid a follow-up attack. Forming a Death Beam, he shot it at the beast, who was already dodging. It wasn't a clean miss though, as he clipped his right ear.
In retaliation, Turles opened his mouth, a hasty Mouth Blast already formed. As he fired, Cold rushed forward. As the attack left his mouth, Cold went down. As the beam passed over Cold's head, the frost demon launched up from below, sending the Oozaru flying, and cutting the attack short.
Goku appeared where Turles was, steam rising from his eyes as his skin cracked and fizzed. Swinging down with a cross chop, he aimed for Cold's beak. It was protruding, it was narrow, it was weak, and could be leveraged off. The attack fell short as Cold's massive right hand closed around his wrist, stopping it in place.
Taking advantage of his firm grip, Cold yanked Goku off balance. He had hoped to pull his arm off, but no success. He had expected to pull it out of its socket, but no success. That red aura was doing more than he had thought, he really needed to learn to sense ki. No matter though, Goku was off balance, and firmly in his control. Aiming his elbow's diamond between Goku's eyes, Cold gouged the Saiyan's forehead. The resulting blood instantly burnt up, leaving a crusty, deep red, scab, on an already burning face.
Carrying the motion forward, he flung Goku off to the side. As he fled, Cold repeated his already proven tactic, bringing his palms together in front of him, firing a barrage of ki bullets at the retreating form, peppering the already destroyed body with even more burn marks.
The pain was gone for Goku. He had overdone it, he had burnt himself out. He could sense Cold, he could sense Turles and Nappa, and he could sense himself, but that was it. He couldn't see the sky, he couldn't hear the attacks being fired at him. He could taste, but his mouth was full of blood. He knew this was it, he knew he'd never see another battle. He was okay with that, it was a good battle. He had broken through his limits. He pushed Super Saiyan to new heights, and while it likely contributed to his downfall, he pushed it even further with Kaio-Ken x5.
But five wasn't his maximum. He'd gone higher, many, many times. With Super Saiyan though, it didn't work so smoothly. It left him injured, it would leave him incompatible with life. But if he was going to die, why not push it further anyway? What was stopping him.
Regaining his awareness, slightly, he opened his eyes. It felt like mosquitos were biting him, but no, they were ki blasts. They didn't hurt though, he saw the damage, but didn't truly feel the pain. He could work with this. "Kaio-Ken… times… ten!"
At basic Kaio-Ken his red aura mixed with his golden energy, it led to orange. At the fifth level, the gold was overpowered, and his aura was just red. Furthermore, his skin was failing. Now, at ten times power he felt himself being shredded. His power was magnificent, his power was on the same level as Cold, he thought, but, but whereas Cold could easily fight at this level, he had minutes, at most.
He flipped in the air, charging Cold. His aura kept him safe from the blasts, or at least he thought it did. He imagined the cone of his energy deflecting them in all directions, but in reality, he just plowed through each attack.
Not realizing the difference, Cold let the first punch through, which he immediately regretted. His arm was on fire, it was slowed, and it, it was injured. The Saiyan actually injured him… in his fifth form. Something had changed, and this had to end.
Goku maintained the offensive. His attacks were slower than they could have been, but far more powerful than they should have been. Every impact sent Cold back, every punch took a chunk out of his endurance, and every kick decreased his mobility. His guard was down, but dead men didn't need to protect themselves. His forehead was sliced through yet again, the blood boiling off before it dripped into his eyes. His chest wounds were ripped open, and resealed, repeatedly, during his assault. Cold's talons caught his feet, caught his shins, and shredded them. His kicks lost power as he lost blood, as his muscles were put through the blender. He didn't need them, he still had his fists, and if he lost them, he still had his head. Cold would pay, Cold would pay, Cold would pay.
Goku released his flight for a moment, falling several feet, ducking under a head removing Death Claw. From his lower stance he had the perfect shot, Cold's arms were too high, and his feet were too far apart. Putting all his energy into one hell of a low blow, he closed his fist, and sank it several inches into Cold's groin.
Cold let out a scream as he was shot into the sky. He let out another as Nappa's tail came out from nowhere, smashing him back towards the ground. Once again he bounced off of, rather than penetrated into, the ground, and Turles was there to meet him. His massive foot came crashing down on the tyrant, who barely rolled out of the way, landing in an extremely low squat. A normal Saiyan would never sink to such an attack, but hey, that must be the human influence. If you can't win fair, win dirty. He could respect that.
Goku was there again, nearly formless. The red blur swung a kick into Cold's ribs and sent him flying, sent him rolling, across the pot marked ground. Cold stayed down, he was moving, he was getting to his feet, but he was down, for a moment. He had to take every moment to breathe he could. Goku dropped his Kaio-Ken, his Super Saiyan aura was still electric, and his hair still stood on end, but he was panting, he was barely holding his fists in the air, he saw his body, and he refused to process it.
Cold studied the Saiyans as he forced himself up. Goku was dead, he couldn't live, not with the injuries he has. He had inflicted far too much damage. Hell, the Saiyan inflicted too much damage on himself. But he was there, on his feet, tired, but still ready for more. The Oozaru were behind him, one on either side. The brown one, the weak one, was keeping his fists shut, nursing the puncture wounds in the only way he could. The other one, the potentially dangerous one, was panting, his aura was still there, but not nearly as strong as it was.
If Goku fell, this would be over. But he didn't, he refused to. If the Dragon Balls could grant any wish, then could he be immortal? Could he have made the wish? That must be it, as long as his body was in one piece, he would continue to battle. And while Cold was strong, he had his limits, and he knew that he was at his. He couldn't keep this up, not indefinitely. He could keep chipping away at Goku, but it wouldn't be enough. Only total destruction, only complete erasure, would be sufficient, and right now, that was impossible.
Doubt crept into his mind. He knew his limits better than anyone, and he knew not to push them. If he hadn't used a tactic a thousand times, he couldn't be certain of it in battle, and what he was going to do, was as new to him as this new ascended Super Saiyan was to Goku. He could do it, he could go further, but at what risk? He couldn't regulate his power, he couldn't hold himself together. If he transformed, he'd have minutes, possibly seconds, before he was completely exhausted. And if he fought it, right now, without the practice, if he tried to hold the energy in, it would erupt. His body was strong, his body was the strongest in the mortal realm, but he could only take it for so long before he popped like an over inflated balloon.
But if it were that or death. If it were that or let the Saiyans go. Let the killers of his children go. He would push through the limit, one final time. He'd rather die than let these monsters live.
The world beneath him began to tremble as his red aura condensed against his skin once more. Shifting, lightening, it solidified on him, completely encasing his body. From the tips of his crown to his beak, to his wings, talons, and every other square inch of his body, he was crimson. But, then it shifted, slowly. It went from red to orange, and another moment later, from orange to gold. Once encased in a similar energy to Goku, his aura came back to life, far larger than before.
Not bothering to taunt, not wasting the moments of power he had, Cold shot each palm forward. Barely missing Goku, two massive Kai waves picked up and carried Turles and Nappa away. They were insignificant in his previous form, and more so now.
Goku charged forward, through the blasts. The wind held his hair tight against his body, and as he approached he activated his Kaio-Ken once more. Forming a ball of ki in his palm he threw the attack at point blank range.
Cold grabbed Goku's wrist, letting the ball explode on his chest. The impact pushed him back, but he dragged Goku along with him.
Goku propped his weakened feet against Cold's arm, pulling at his own wrist. No result. He formed another ki blast in his free hand, smashing it against Cold's talon. No result.
Cold ripped Goku out of space, down to his level. Eye-to-eye, nose-to-beak. Cold studied his sons' killer. He was mighty in his own way. If his sons were to die, at least it was by the hands of someone so mighty. Firing an eye blast at Goku's face, the Saiyan barely turned his head in time. The attacks hammered against his head, and Cold let him go.
Goku was dazed. He was lost. His mind was swimming, his blood was boiling. Cold ascended. He had pushed beyond Super Saiyan, but Cold went one step further as well. Goku knew this was it. One last push. One last attack. Then, then he was done. His body had failed him. He had lost the fight, or he didn't survive it. But, but that was okay. He just had to do this, one more time, one more attack. Kill Cold, if the others survive, even if just the Earth survives, he won. He, he lost, but his goal was met. He did his job. He kept his son safe. He kept his wife safe. Krillin was dead, Chiaotzu was dead, but, Nappa would die, Turles would die. No, not yet. He had to push, just a little further.
Cold was there, overhead. He was preparing his Death Beam. He was preparing to put Goku down.
Goku tried to stand, but his legs failed him. He used his ki to pull himself into the air, move himself upright. Pulling his hands to his side he closed his eyes, finding his target through his ki sense. Why waste energy processing sight, this was it, everything was going into this last blast.
"Kaio-Ken." He gritted his teeth as he spoke. "Times… twenty."
His mind left his body. Goku watched as he prepared his attack.
"Kaaaaa." He began the familiar incantation. The energy ball formed immediately, crimson red.
"Meeeee." It began to radiate thick beams of light.
"Haaaaa." The thick beams vanished. No energy was being wasted. Everything into this attack, everything to kill Cold.
"Meeeee." His aura was siphoned from his body into his attack. His body was still red, his hair still had a faint golden tinge, and electricity still rose and fell over him, but there was no need to waste energy maintaining a transformation for a dead man.
Cold formed a Death Ball in his right hand, wound up, and threw the rapidly growing attack.
"HAAAAA!" Goku thrust his hands forward, launching the overpowered Kamehameha. As it raged forward he continued to feed it. Don't hold back. Kaio-Ken, Super Saiyan, life energy. All of it, here, now. If this fails, it won't matter if he had anything left, his body didn't, and he knew that.
The two attacks met between the titans. Neither one gave an inch as the power blended together and multiplied. Goku leaned forward, allowing himself to sink to the ground, reinforcing himself with the weight of a planet. Cold leaned backwards, bracing his right arm with his left.
Minutes seemingly passed as slowly, barely noticeable at first, Cold's hand began to shake. He was exerting all the energy he could, but no matter how much energy he had to let out, it still had to funnel through him, and, and he couldn't let it out fast enough. He was losing ground, the Saiyans were going to win…
A hand closed on Cold's left shoulder. Risking a glance, he saw the grin of his youngest son. Frieza looked as if he was on fire, with the way the energy clash's light played across his skin. Spinning up a Death Ball of his own, he joined his father in repelling the Kamehameha.
It wasn't enough. The attack slowed, but kept coming.
Another hand, Cold's left shoulder.
It was Cooler, in the form that inspired Cold to continue his own training. Cooler smiled at his father, before launching his own attack into the mix.
Together, father and sons, they fought against the regicidal Saiyan. Slowly the Death Ball reversed course, and began to eat up the Kamehameha as it closed on Goku.
"One, last, push." Cold encouraged his sons. "And we, will have, our, revenge!"
He shouted as the Death Ball shrank in his vision.
"KAIO-KEN… TIMES… FIFTY!" Goku shrieked in renewed pain as his body protested. Seconds, that's all he'd have, but that's all it would take.
The Death Ball stopped in its track. The Kamehameha resisted, it pushed back, and it pushed through. The frost demon's attack was repelled, rocketing back towards Cold.
Goku collapsed the moment before impact, but, but it was enough. The momentum was enough to carry the attacks forward.
Cold's work became red, became pain, became overwhelming energy, struggling to get in, struggling to break free. It was too much, he couldn't take it, and his mind went blank. He joined Goku, watching his body in the core of the explosion. It maintained its shape. It maintained its form. It withstood the attacks, and, and the pain was unreal, but it was temporary.
Cold hit the ground next, and a second later it was his once more. He didn't think this kind of power was possible, but, if this was mortal, what, what were the gods capable of?
Forcing himself to his feet he spiked his aura once again. It was a waste of energy, but he couldn't hold it in. No, he had to release the pressure...
He didn't know how long it took, but he walked to Goku.
The Saiyan was on his back, barely recognizable. His chest was rising and falling, and his heart was beating, but, but he was dead.
"You did it." Cold grinned as he gracelessly sat beside Goku. "At my absolute maximum, you overpowered me. You couldn't hold it, you couldn't sustain it, but, but you were there. For a moment, you were the strongest living being in the universe."
Goku didn't react.
Turles and Nappa made their presence known. Nappa roared and Turles cursed… Cold fired a pair of Death Beams, dispatching the two Oozaru.
"Enjoy your afterlife while you can, Goku, because when I can reach you there, I will." He touched his finger to Goku's forehead, but hesitated for a moment.
His body had stilled.
He had died.
Cold allowed himself to fall backwards, looking into the sky. His energy swelled within, threatening to burst. Pushing his palms together he gathered his remaining ki between his hands, forming a double Death Cannon. Releasing it into the cosmos he drained himself until his golden aura faded, and he returned to his fifth form. A moment later, he reverted further, and further, and further. He fought to maintain his second form, his public facing appearance, but lost it as well.
He admired the stars through the hole he had formed in the orbiting rock cloud. His men probably wouldn't recognize the signal, but hopefully they'd realize he was alone on the planet. Hopefully the opening was enough. He was done with this planet, he wanted his bed, he wanted his bath, and he wanted his …
A mystical, tinkling, swooshing sound rang out from under him. Reaching back he pulled an unmarred mirror from against the rock. He left it on the ship… but the divine will be the divine.
"Greetings." He barely managed to whisper into the communicator as the surface distorted, revealing the Destroyer and his attendant.
"You have my attention." The god spoke.
Author's note: I've been looking forward to this match up for quite a while, and I hope we did it justice. The battle choreography was scripted by my amazing co-writer / editor, Steven Bodner. I gave him about 10 bullet points, and he gave me thousands of words to go off of.
Author's note 2: While this does mark a massive divergence from canon, I assure you that we know exactly where this story is going, and while things may vary from the current plans when they actually come up, this story is expected to continue through the Android Saga, Cell Saga, Buu saga, and to at least BOTG.
Author's note 3: I've been asked where we're at in the timeline, and thought I'd take the time to answer that here. Cooler came to Earth in Darkness, roughly when Frieza did in Canon. It then took ~1 year to find Bulma, and ~1 year to get to this battle today. So, we're ~2 years after the appearance of Future Trunks, and ~1 year before the appearance of Androids, at least, compared to canon that is.