Ever since they had gotten their wish, Nappa and Vegeta had enough proof time after time that they had achieved a status that would never be touched by their peers. Wounds and marks that they had to endure subsequent to becoming immortal would have killed any other mortal easily, yet the two healed, grew stronger, and kept on fighting. There was no person alive that was ever supposed to kill the two, much less squeeze one's head to thick layers of blood. Vegeta, while shocked, knew better with this sudden realization than to just stand there with his jaw ready to drop to the floor.
Acting on his feet, Vegeta had his arms going back and forth like at rapid fire, launching blast after blast for Cold. The more he fired, the more Vegeta could feel his left shoulder going numb. He groaned through the agonizing pain and continued on until he felt that he managed to at least do some damage. The only thing Nappa's murderer did was defend himself by blocking all of the ki attacks coming his way. Of course, the Saiyan had no intentions of killing Cold with a barrage of energy attacks as all he did was kick up a huge smoke-screen.
Cold swiped his hand through the gust of smoke, scoffing at Vegeta's feeble attempts of attack. Given that he was unaware of energy sensing, Vegeta decided to use such to his advantage once more by blasting Cold's back with a full-on wave of ki. Cold fought through the aggravation and managed to turn around and smack the attack away. Vegeta drove his fist against Cold's stomach in hopes of catching him off-guard. Vegeta proceeded to duck under a swipe for the neck and retaliated by hopping up and using the tip of his knee to strike Cold in the center of his mouth. Whilst in mid-air, Vegeta span around to render Cold a solid 720 spinning kick to the cheek.
Cold stumbled briefly and maintained his ground, quickly reacting. He and Vegeta's fists collided, creating a shockwave so grave that it tore some of the audience to shreds - specifically those at the very front. While it not only poured rain but also blood, Vegeta and Cold grabbed at each other's hands, initiating yet another power struggle. The force Cold exerted onto Vegeta's hands rendered a grave stinging sensation go up his left shoulder, which gave the tyrant leverage over his opponent.
"The warlocks who gave you the illusion of holding immortality surely went all out just to play some sick joke on you." Subsequent to seeing Vegeta wince in pain once more, Cold capitalized and reeled the Saiyan in. Vegeta's internal organs almost burst on impact from Cold's knee to his abdomen.
Vegeta felt the mud digging into the open cuts on his back while sliding through the ground from Cold's attack. Freeza's father had more than enough time to attack once more but the delight he took in seeing Vegeta struggle to breathe was far too pleasing to pass up. Walking over to Vegeta slowly, Cold's eyes didn't move from the pool of mixed saliva and blood the Saiyan happened to be coughing up excessively.
"This is it...Vegeta's dead now…" one of the spectating soldiers mumbled. From a few, he got looks of uncertainty, but others nodded in agreement. From the moment Nappa had been disposed of, things appeared to be going downhill for the Saiyan since. As far as they knew, Vegeta was the last surviving Saiyan and with his death, there'd be no more. Those who worked in the Cold Force as soldiers had earned their stripes over the years by wiping out entire species and civilizations to extinction before, but to see the last warrior of a proud fighting race fall? It was historic.
Cold kicked Vegeta's left shoulder, forcing him on his back prior to stomping on his bloody wound. The more bones Cold heard cracking under the pressure made his smile grow wider, as did Vegeta's suppressed cries of agony. Cold couldn't recall the last time he had someone suffer from his power up close and personal - it had been so long that he almost forgot the sadistic gratifying feeling he received from such actions of torment.
"Open your eyes and look at me," Cold demanded. Vegeta's remained with his eyes shut tight as he did his best to tolerate the pain he was experiencing. Applying further pressure and going as far as to snap Vegeta's shoulder out of place, screamed at him, "LOOK AT ME, DAMMIT!"
Vegeta was slow to open his eyes, and despite his efforts, he only managed to open his right eye. As soon as he made eye-contact, he collected enough spit to send flying right at Cold's face, chuckling as he did. Though being one on the losing end of battle, Vegeta would find any way to try and get a rise out of his opponent. Much to his surprise, Cold's expression hadn't differed in any way. He couldn't care about the display of disrespect. Cold cared so little that he waited five seconds to begin wiping off the fluid from his face. "So like a Saiyan: you will try to hold onto anything remotely positive to keep your fear of death from penetrating your delusional fantasies - you loathe reality. You hold on to the smallest victory and somehow, in your simplistic, irrational line of thinking, you get some useless boost in personal morale and own twisted concept of integrity." Cold flicked his hand away toward Vegeta, who snarled in disgust at his spit being flung back at him. "Pathetic." Cold proceeded to turn his head over to the people watching on from above. Despite having his attention toward the crowd, he continued to speak.
"You see all of these men? They know nothing of loyalty. They may act like it, though that is only just because of so - acting." Cold paused briefly before he continued to speak. "Only the ones in power can continue to herd them along as if they were cattle being led to their slaughterhouse...or whichever analogy you prefer to use. The point is, they are nobody's men. Only power rules. And as far as power goes, it is only received by the strongest." Cold looked back down at the beaten Saiyan. "Between you and I, the power goes to the latter."
"I…" Vegeta coughed. "B-Beg to differ…"
"As much as I'd love to choke you with your own tail, I've killed one too many Saiyans for the day. To give you the satisfaction of death by my hand would be all too rewarding for you considering all that you've accomplished up to this point." Cold's head jerked up. "SOLDIERS OF THE FREEZA FORCE! AIM YOUR WEAPONS AND PREPARE TO END THIS PRIMATE!"
"You gettin all that?" Kurent asked Jaco as they listened in on what was being heard below. "How can Cold give the order if Vegeta's in Freeza's place?"
"It doesn't matter - for years, the soldiers of Freeza's army has been taking orders from Freeza and plenty are also used to taking orders from Cold; not only are the soldiers conditioned, but they see one of them has the other on the ropes and they want to live. It's as simple as that."
"Only the most powerful rules all…" Kurent mused.
"Mhm."
The entire sight of Vegeta's view had changed. A great portion of the army - well over 1,500 soldiers in fact, had their blasters out, charged and ready to fire. There was nothing but a ball of light reflecting off his eyes. All of the people he had hoped to rule subsequent to Freeza's death stood shoulder to shoulder in a huge circle with the intent to end him once and for all.
Not a second later than when Vegeta was old enough to walk, the Saiyan had been trained in all forms of combat. He was not only taught and guided in the various forms of combat and military tactics, but he was also taught to read, write, do math, and know of his Saiyan history. Any other promising Saiyan given the luxury of being trained by top-tier ranking soldiers would have been put through brief lessons of history and other methods of learning, though their most primary objective had always been preparedness for efficient fighting. However, being a prince? Expectations for him were just so much higher that even children who coveted his position would be dying to go back to low-class status instead of elite. Regardless, everything Vegeta was being taught to do and did as a kid was initially given off as the illusion of him alongside his people for the simple cause of what Saiyans believed in - being the strongest.
Even despite Planet Vegeta's destruction, it hadn't been internalized by Vegeta who he was truly working for. Even then, he ignored Freeza's orders to return home when he was told. Sure enough, it wasn't only after he continued to work under Freeza who he truly realized what he fought for. Planet Vegeta's legacy? It would always be a tale spoken of amongst fellow Saiyan warriors, though under the rule of Cold, their legacy had next to no breathing room to go. It was gone when it was destroyed. Pride? Something all Saiyans had learned from when involved in Saiyan society. All Saiyans had pride in themselves, and only some had pride in others. Vegeta had pride himself, though not pride in other Saiyans - only in what his people stood for. Even after their destruction, that was something he could still hold on to. In fact, it was all he had.
This was something he was on the verge of taking back now. Not only by breeding, but destroying Freeza was the Saiyan prince picking up the pieces. He had no intentions of forming the same old model, but instead, of much stronger, efficient, and conscientious empire of warriors. All these years of doing battle in the name of Freeza and Cold made it long over due in his head. He wasn't going to allow himself to fall so easily.
"I-I can't go out like this…! I've come way too far!"
"My son had the pleasure of blowing up Planet Vegeta and its foolish people. It's only right I clean up his mess and have the job finished with you."
Vegeta's throat burned like never before, feeling as if a million red ants bit him in the exact spot. His feral growl was more primal than the roars of a pack of Great Apes. A man born into a race and culture built off battle and conquest, one day meant to rule them, had nothing going on for him except for the concept of strength and what it meant to him. The fact he was so easily fooled into servicing the man who destroyed what he was destined to rule over made his blood boil. Vegeta forgot that his left arm was even completely shattered as nothing but red was in his sight.
"Good-bye, Vegeta." Cold looked up, nodded, then rushed off into the sky and ahead of all his men. By the time he was sky high and looking down, he had spotted all their attacks striking Vegeta simultaneously. A grandiose, crackling, fiery mushroom cloud of a burning explosion took place - appearing as if that single area had been nuked.
Cold needed to know he was dead, though. "Scouters! Use them and make sure he's dead!"
And so, in unison, hundreds of scouters began beeping at once. At the very exact same time, the beeping stopped and their heads were guided to look toward the middle of the sky in the center of the smoke protruding from the burned crater below.
Vegeta swiped his hand through the smoke and drove his fist through the stomach of the first person he laid eyes on. His blood-covered teeth had lines of thick saliva that showed nothing but insatiable hunger. Not for food, but blood.
Vegeta reeled his arm back in and shot into the sky before he could be blasted. The man left with a hole in his stomach was reduced to ashes when he was struck on sight. Vegeta drove his head into the chin of another soldier up above, knocking his head loose. Turning around, he smacked away one ki attack, re-directing for the single purpose who launched it at him.
Vegeta continued to do this, swatting balls of ki back to the area they came from. Like dominoes, dozens upon dozens of bodies began to fall. Rocketing into the sky once more, Vegeta dodged yet another strike, which coughed up more smoke in the aerial battle.
"DON'T JUST FIRE AT HIM! GANG UP ON HIM!"
Upon hearing this, Vegeta started to slow the rate at which he elevated himself. Subsequent to looking down, he spotted a few thousand men all coming for him at once. There was great reluctance on the faces of many who attacked Vegeta. Many knew this as a death wish, but none desired to disobey the man who "proved" his superiority to the Saiyan.
Vegeta's body was circled with a bright, blue aura prior to bursting and crackling once he reached his limit. Channelling a great sum of energy into his arms, Vegeta stuck them out at the side. "One move you're sure to regret!"
Mercilessly, Vegeta flew at them head on with as fast as his body would allow him. The pulsating and vibrant ki surrounding his arms and shoulders sliced through everyone at arm's length. The Saiyan closed his eyes and continued to fly into everyone full-force, decapitating every single individual he came into contact with. By the time he opened his eyes, he could feel he was at the very end of the line; it appeared as if more blood poured on the terrain rather than blood.
The last man had his eyes poking out and blood-shot red from the fear surging through every fiber of his being. Vegeta's face was covered in nothing but blood - whether it be red blood, purple, or even blue - it did not matter. Vegeta saw this solider as no different and swiped his head clean off his shoulders. After turning around, Vegeta watched as a few handfuls of the shaken subordinates stared and watch while the many dismembered bodies of their comrades fell so helplessly. The Saiyan cut them absolutely no slack and charged his signature move.
"GALICK GUN!"
Solely by driving himself through the crowd, Vegeta eliminated approximately half of those who came after him. With his overwhelming attack consuming a greater number of individuals, he had reduced to what was over 4,000 men to only a few hundred.
All of them, scattered through the sky, had caused hell and turmoil on planets themselves - murdering the weaker and the innocent with no sense of remorse. Bloodshed wasn't foreign to them.
But this? To see even soldiers who were making a name for themselves fall so easily had their bodies in a state of paralysis. Vegeta's body shook in anger to the point that the fresh blood leaking off every inch of his body was being put off like water when a dog shook itself dry.
In the palm of his right hand, he formed a small bright light of energy. "You all perish here and now." Vegeta flung his hands to the sky, grazing some people by the nose before coming to a sudden stopping point. "BURST AND MIX!"
The light expanded that of ten sizes, going as far as to temporarily blinding those directly underneath it. Once his blood started to get super hot, Vegeta laughed out loud deviously at what was to be witnessed next. "All of you…" Vegeta growled. His body shook as his eyes started to go bloodshot red. "All of you are dead…" He groaned in pain as his teeth started to expand out in the form of fangs. His muscles bulged and throbbed while his ligaments elicited even further pain as he started to grow in height. The Saiyan's face formed into that of a snout and fur replaced virtually most of his body.
"What are you waiting on!?" Cold bellowed. "KILL HIM!"
As the beast continued to grow, the soldiers took the order and started headed right for Vegeta. By the time they were within ten yards, the Saiyan had already completed his transformation. The vicious roar that came from his vocals were so strong and impactful that it ripped at the armor and skin of those within proximity. Another yell followed by the Saiyan resulted in a purple aura surrounding him, which was hot enough to reduce the remaining subordinates to ashes.
With it being just he and King Cold, Vegeta locked eyes on the tyrant. "Your turn."
Cold just hissed as he rocketed for Vegeta. "OVER MY DEAD BODY!"
"Exactly!" Vegeta roared. Unsuspecting to Cold, the Saiyan used his tail and smacked him down into the ground. Despite landing on his feet, Cold was punted dead center in the chest by Vegeta's oversized feet. All oxygen was kicked away from him and he struggled to breathe. Not even moments after being sent into the air, Vegeta's hand came down, crushing against Cold's back and knocking him down into the ground once more.
Vegeta raised his boot and stomped on Cold. He didn't stop there and continuously raised his feet, stomping him incessantly, each strike shaking the planet even more. Cracks formed through the ground that was starting to split in half. Subsequent to one last stomp, Vegeta grabbed Cold by the tip of his only horn. His body remained hanging, seemingly lifeless.
"The fact you thought you could ever kill me…reveals how dumber you are than your own dead child." Vegeta lifted his hand and opened his mouth wide. "I'll bid you a death far worse than the one you gave Nappa!"
The realization of what was to come next had Cold squirming, though to no avail. "W-Wait, p-please! Y-You don't have to do this, Vegeta!" He saw the Saiyan taking him in slowly, relishing in the last panicking moments of Cold's life. "I-I'll GIVE YOU THE WHOLE UNIVERSE! JUST SPARE MEEEE!"
Cold hung mere inches before Vegeta's salivating mouth. "It was mines to begin with!" Letting go, Cold tried to gain all the strength he had left and fly away, but Vegeta's front teeth caught the bottom half of his body. Cold didn't even as much as let out a squeal when he felt the Saiyan's fangs ripping right through him. Subsequent to being put in a state of shock, Vegeta opened his mouth once more and held his tongue out so that Cold could slide right on in. One final bite was all it took to call it an end.
The oversized Oozaru's sharp, giant front teeth bit the very middle of Cold's neck. The force was enough to slice Cold's head from his shoulders. Not even a second after said head plopping out of Vegeta's mouth, the Saiyan raised his arms to grab it. Slowly, Vegeta brought Cold's face close to his fully red eyes. This view, compared to the sight of Freeza's body floating in space, was just as amusing, though he didn't allow himself to laugh like a maniac. Instead, the smile on his face that showed his blood-coated fangs was enough for one to understand just how satisfied Vegeta was.
Vegeta kept on chewing until he felt all of Cold's bones completely liquidized.
The taste of Cold was anything but delightful, although the taste of victory was what made him sweet. There hadn't been a greater feeling in Vegeta's life than putting King Cold through the digestion process of his body.
"I-I've heard stories…" Kurent said. "B-But this…? He's no ordinary Saiyan - he can't be!"
"He never was an ordinary Saiyan," Jaco said. "He's the Prince of all Saiyans." He looked at Kurent's way.
"Then that just about does it - no wonder he's looking to make an empire of Saiyans. He wants to get what he's been missing out on his entire life."
"That's not a bad conclusion to come to. But we'll be sure to be ready for it."
Kurent revved up the engine to their ship so that they could prepare for their departure. He scoffed at Jaco's comment before asking, "How and why? There's no way to prepare for a bunch of monsters like him running around."
"Even while the Saiyans were a thriving race, we've had orders for different members in different districts to be on the lookout for any Saiyan children and to be sure to terminate them before they could grow into being too powerful. If he plans on going back to their old system, then all we have to do is remain efficient and we'll keep their destructive culture at bay until we find a way to eliminate the real threat - him."
"That'll only work so long," Kurent said.
"A Saiyan's lifespan is practically equivalent to an Earthling's," Jaco informed. "Assuming he was just a small child at the time of Planet Vegeta's destruction, then we only have to hold out for a good 60 years - at max."
Kurent just shook his head. "That's not even remotely a good idea."
"But it's our best shot."
Kurent nodded. "True." Going in forward drive, the two Galactic Patrolmen rocketed off the planet, en route to headquarters.
Freeza and his father had many individuals, entire planets, civilizations, and intergalactic networks under their thumb. Because of their insane power and influence, many folded and abided by their set of rules in their unfair and unjust systematic organization. Though still, it didn't mean that everyone would take much liking to them, just like those that put themselves out to work for the tyrant.
Despite a fight for the Universe having just ended, which a lot knew about, and many others didn't, there was a group of people all too cognizant of what was going on who still went about with their lives casually.
Four people were feasting on food, all of them being of the same skin complexion and dread-locked hairstyles - three male and one female. They all ate their meals in silence given that they had absolutely nothing to discuss at the moment.
After all, they were just waiting on a special someone to come in and deliver them some news. Weeks had passed since they heard of Cold going to face off against the Saiyan who claimed to kill Freeza. Big updates like these took time, so they were patient rather than anxious.
Through the doors came a man in a hat and a long-coat, about as short as a dwar would be, stepping aside to let in a familiar face. The sight of Kurent brightened up everyone's eyes except for the smallest of the group of four waiting. His glare was as intense as death itself, though Kurent learned to get used to his behavior over the years.
"Long time no see, Elec," Kurent introduced himself. "Also, Gas, Oil...Macki." He winked.
Macki crossed her arms and chuckled. "The Galactic Patrolman outfit suits you, Kurent."
Elec, after washing down his food with a glass of wine, wiped his mouth and greeted Kurent. "It's nice to see you still alive and kicking. We've been hoping that you have some valuable intel for us?
"Working for the Patrol has its pros and cons but if there's any place to get any intel, it's definitely that one. Aren't you glad to have trained me to be able to pass all their qualifications?"
"Elec will be the judge of that when he gets to hear what you have for us," Oil told him.
"It's not about what I have to tell you, but what you have to see." Reaching into his pouch, Kurent pulled out a rectangular device with a screen on it. Interested, Macki stabbed her chicken with a fork and leaned back into her chair. "I have to be back on duty soon and I wouldn't have all the time in the world to tell you play by play what happened in the fight. My partner and I recorded the footage and as you'd expect, they made a myriad of copies. I kept one for myself and installed it into here."
With the click of a button, a holographic screen popped up in the middle of the room, which reacted naturally to the light and darkened so that they could see what was shown in best quality.
"It all starts here with them and the two Saiyans meeting before everyone," Kurent explained as he rolled the beginning of their greeting.
"That man looks like the spitting image of Freeza," Macki gasped.
"Given that we were able to record the fight between Vegeta and Cold specifically, you can see that this Saiyan is much stronger than pretty much any other that has ever been known of."
"Isn't Vegeta the name of the home of the Saiyan tribe that was wiped out?" Gas thought aloud.
"Must mean he's of royal descent," Elec concluded, keeping his eyes on the footage that Kurent rolled through.
"Vegeta claimed himself to be immortal and went as far as ex-communicating himself from the Freeza Force so that he could overthrow him and snatch the empire away. He claimed something called the Dragon Balls had given them eternal life. It all seemed to be true at first but then…" Kurent rolled the footage to the part where Cold dismembered Nappa. "That happened."
Macki's face winced as well as Oil's. Elec and Gas were the only ones who showed no kind of reaction at the primitive manner of which Nappa was killed. What did catch their attention was the sight of Cold drinking his blood. That made their stomachs turn upside down but they kept on watching.
After rolling the footage to the point where Vegeta eliminated all of Cold's forces and even Cold himself, Kurent ended the tape. "From what I understand, Vegeta has already started breeding a race of women on this foreign world - I forget its name. He definitely intends on bringing the Saiyan tribe back to flourish."
"We appreciate the information," Elec told him. "Please be sure to come back to us or just send us a message when something else interesting comes along. We don't want to take up too much of your time before your bosses start snooping around for you."
"Of course," Kurent bowed. "Glad I could be of service."
Having done his duty, Kurent turned around and left the room. Once Elec was sure he was out of ear sight, he looked at all three of his siblings.
"So, what now?" Gas asked his older brother.
Elec didn't come with an immediate response. His eyes ended up staring at the door that was closed behind Kurent on his way out. Pondering to himself, he had to think about all of the information conveyed to him and how that connected to potentially other things out and about in the Universe. The main thing that ate at him was how in the hell could a Saiyan rise to such power and eliminate Freeza. Sure, Saiyans loved to fight, but Freeza and Cold were simply in a league of their own - always has been. As far as he was concerned, there was something more to this. And from what he could connect, the so called Dragon Balls played a vital role in all of the recent events.
"Is there anything you'd like to be done?" Macki asked.
This didn't take long for him to answer at all. Grinning, Elec replied, "Actually, yes, there is. Give our old pal Granolah a ring; I have a very special assignment for him."