By PapaMedaMacha
The Lone Guardian:
It is Age 761. A few weeks have passed since the arrival of Goku's brother on planet earth. All is well for the moment as Bulma and her father, Dr. Briefs, put on the finishing touches on the brand new spaceship that she, Goku, Raditz, and their other friends will use to traverse the stars, to where Goku's father waits for his two sons.
It is a relaxing Fall afternoon at Capsule Corp. Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu arrive after sensing Raditz's power from the wilderness. As they enter the courtyard, they see Krillin sitting at a bench.
Krillin looks upward at the sky; he takes a sip of his Hetap. "Mmm boy, those two are really working it up there." Krillin takes another sip. "To think that they're more like them out there in space."
"Krillin!" called Chiaotzu.
"Huh? Oh hey! Chiaotzu and Tien Shinhan!" Krillin gets up to his feet as the duo approaches. Krillin looks up to Tien. "It's been four years; where've you two been?"
"Training in the mountains," said Tien. "Can't be slacking off even in times of peace, what with Piccolo still out there. But anyway," Tien crosses his arms. "We came here because we've been sensing these immense powers traveling around the world lately. Do you know anything about it? Is it Piccolo?"
Krillin's smile dropped, leaving only concern on his face. "Well…" Krillin trails off, then turns to look back at the sky. "Right now, it's complicated."
High up in the clouds, two brothers trade blows with each other in both a bonding and training session. Goku had grown dramatically stronger within the weeks. Still, it wasn't enough to beat Raditz at the moment.
The older brother lunges. Goku barely dodges and tries to follow up with an elbow to Raditz's back, only to hit an afterimage. Raditz flanks Goku on his side and kicks him back a few meters in the air. Goku, stunned at the moment, tries to regain his composure.
Raditz crosses his arms. "Seriously, Kakarot?" Raditz gives a mischievous smile. "Is this all you have to offer? After all this 'training' we've done?"
Goku softens his stance. "Well, it's not easy, you know. Before you showed up, I thought I was at the top of my game compared to one other guy. Then I learn that I'm an alien from a race of warriors that are stronger than I can imagine? Right now, I'm just trying to catch up!"
Raditz lets out a small scoff. "Hmph! Well, you need to catch up a lot faster than that, Kakarot!"
With a quick switch of posture, Raditz rushes Goku, catching him off guard. A fury of blows from Raditz develops as Goku is barely able to keep up. "FIGHT! FIGHT LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDED ON IT!"
Goku sees a pattern to his brothers flying fists for a split moment and pulls off a successful counter, breaking his brother's guard to his astonishment. Goku quickly closes in and tries to land a punch only to hit another afterimage. Raditz appears right above Goku and slams both fists down, hurtling Goku down towards Capsule Corp.
Krillin, Tien, and Chiaotzu stand in the courtyard aghast as they see their friend plummeting towards them. Just when it appears that Goku is about to collide with the ground, he's stopped abruptly in the air. The remaining air force from his collision picks up a thin cloud of dirt below him. Goku looks up towards what stopped him; it was Raditz.
Raditz holds Goku by his leg. He looks down at his brother; a look of consideration comes over him, along with a sense of dissatisfaction in his voice. "Because soon, it may very well be." He lets him go.
Goku falls to the ground, panting heavily. Krillin rushes over to him. "Goku! You alright, buddy?"
Goku lets out a slight chuckle; his voice caught between breaths. "I'm fine, Krillin"—Goku winces as he gets himself upright—"don't feel the bruises as much as I did last week."
Raditz lands on the ground, brushing himself off. "That's a good sign," he says. "Saiyans get stronger for each injury they receive in battle," Raditz looks down at Goku. "And I'd say that right now…" Raditz's voice trails off. He puts his hand up to his chin quizzically, then snaps his fingers. "You'd at least match me at sixty percent of my strength!"
All of this is happening while Tien and Chiaotzu are standing back at a short distance. They are bewildered by this mystery man and his terrifying strength, and not only his. Tien can now feel an even larger gap in power between him and Goku! A feeling that he hasn't felt since the last World Martial Arts Tournament with Piccolo. Had all his time training in the mountains for the past five years been for nothing?
Tien clenches his fist but then loosens it and sighs to himself. "How is it that I've fallen this far behind?" he thought.
Chiaotzu sees Tien's restlessness; he floats closer to him. "Tien?" Chiaotzu asks.
"I'm fine, Chiaotzu," Tien reassures.
Raditz finally notices the two and turns to them. "And who are you two freaks?" Raditz says nonchalantly.
The two of them twitch, feeling both insulted and unnerved. Krillin lets out a heavy sigh, and Goku gets up to his feet, looking sternly at his brother. "Raditz, you can't talk to my friends like that." Goku chides.
Raditz chuckles. "So, these are your friends, Kakarot? Stars! You are a magnet for the weird ones, aren't you?" He turns to the pair and starts to approach them. "And if that's the case, then you must be decently capable, right?"
Chiaotzu hides behind Tien as he puts on a battle stance. Raditz stops and pouts. "Oh? Afraid of me, Triclops?" Raditz puts both of his arms up in front of him as if to reassure Tien. "I promise I don't bite... much." He puts on a malicious grin as he cracks his knuckles.
Krillin is noticing this rising of tensions and rushes over between the two. "Now, now! No need to fight, everyone! We're all friends here." Krillin says pleadingly.
Raditz crosses his arms. "Oh, come on! I was only having a little fun! You, Earthlings, are so paranoid." He begins to walk away. "I'm going to check on the spaceship with that engineer woman."
As soon as Raditz cuts the corner, getting out of the sight of the others, he lets out a heavy sigh and wipes sweat off his forehead. "Although…" He says quietly. Raditz stretches out his arms. "Sixty-percent might be a little too modest," Raditz laughs nervously. "You're catching up fast, Kakarot!"
Meanwhile, at a far distance, Piccolo stands on top of a West City tower, listening to everything that transpired at Capsule Corp, and watches in silent frustration.
Just a little less than a month ago, only two people on earth were the strongest—him and Goku. But now, he's been left in the dust.
Now with Piccolo hearing that Goku's strength had reached even greater heights in less than three weeks? It was maddening and all because of this spaceman!
Piccolo clenches his fist tightly; his ki flares up for a moment. "Dammit, all…"
"Piccolo." A voice says from behind.
Piccolo keeps his composure; he knows who's talking to him. "It's out of character for you to be down here instead of on your precious Lookout, old man," Piccolo says without turning around.
It's Kami. He floats there behind Piccolo, stern-faced. "This is necessary; I need to confirm my thoughts with you. Whether you decide to listen to them is your choice, but it would only deepen my concerns about the situation."
Piccolo's sight was still fixated on Capsule Corp. He only lets out a grunt as a response.
"It appears that very soon, Goku and his friends will be departing for the stars," Kami raises his arm, gesturing at Piccolo. "Would you have any interest in following suit?"
Piccolo lets out a laugh at the notion. "Why would I care about that nonsense?" Piccolo chides.
"Because you've seen the difference in power that this visitor has." Kami turns his gaze towards the open sky. "The Saiyan, Raditz, his power is vast compared to our own, but from what I can understand…" Kami trails off. He reverts his gaze to Piccolo. "…the others he speaks of, out in space, their strength outclass even his."
There is no reaction from Piccolo.
Kami sighs, "If you truly show no interest in what lies beyond the Earth, then what do you plan to do in Goku's absence?"
Piccolo's life is predicated on the will of his father, King Piccolo. His purpose is to take vengeance against the man who killed him and to enact world dominance in his stead. With Goku going off-world, and with the other Z-Fighters in tow, what would happen to Earth where Piccolo was left with free reign?
There's a moment of silence between the two.
"…There's a multitude of things I don't know as of now, but it is right to assume that there are indeed strengths that we've yet to see," Piccolo says, surprising Kami at the notion that he just agreed with him. "I don't care for what goes on beyond Earth, but seeing Goku and his friends planning to leave it behind…" Piccolo begins to laugh; he turns to Kami with a malicious smile. "Well, then I suppose taking over is the next step for me, is it?
Kami appears unmoved, although his grip on his staff begins to tighten. He knows what Piccolo is trying to do by making that declaration. Trying to get a rise out of him would give Piccolo some entertainment. However, Kami has a retort to this threat.
"And should they return?"
Piccolo's face twitches slightly. Kami almost looks amused with himself. "Have you not considered that possibility? If they were to return, even stronger than they are now, what would you do then?" Kami asks.
Piccolo is getting frustrated. Both at the fact that he knows Kami is, for some reason, getting amusement from this and that he knows he's right. Seeing how things were progressing at Capsule Corp, it is likely that Goku and his friends will get far stronger from this journey. But just how much stronger is unknown to him. With the way Goku has been progressing over the past few weeks, caution is essential for Piccolo.
Piccolo grits his teeth. "Then I'll get stronger as well! I will ensure my future as king of the world by pursuing strengths that not even my father would've conceived. Within a year, I will reach those heights, and then no one, not even Goku, will be able to stop me!" Piccolo shouts.
Kami at first felt unnerved. He can tell that Piccolo is now steadfast with this new goal. It's worrying. If he should become as strong or even surpass Raditz, Kami wouldn't have a chance at stopping him. At least not as he is now at the moment.
This sudden thought struck something within Kami. An idea that he would never have considered or, at the very least, try to attempt due to its selfish nature. However, if he were to do it, he would need one final thing from Piccolo.
Kami narrows his eyes."Within a year, you say?" Kami asks. "So then, what happens when that year goes by?"
Piccolo responds, gloating. "Well… If Goku isn't back by then, what do you think?"
A cold gust of wind flows between the two. A silence fills the air between the two that's so thick, the bustling ongoings of the city below them are an afterthought. They stare each other down.
Though small it may be, this moment would shape both of their futures for better or worse.
Kami closes his eyes and lowers his head. He lets out a small chuckle and smirks. "Then…" There's a taunting enthusiasm to Kami's voice; he looks back up to Piccolo. "You better get started."
Then with that, Kami disappears. With those last few words from him, it left Piccolo slightly uneased. It's not like Kami to act smug. Piccolo thinks on it for a moment but eventually blows it off. He flies off to the wilderness to begin his training.
Meanwhile, on the Lookout, Kami arrives back and approaches Mr. Popo, who's tending to the garden.
"Mr. Popo." Kami greets.
"Oh, Kami!" Mr. Popo puts his watering pail down. "Did everything work out?"
"Not exactly," There's regret in Kami's voice. "Mr. Popo, I need you to gather the Dragon Balls and bring them to the Lookout."
Mr. Popo was put off by this request, immensely so. "W-what for, Kami?" Mr. Popo asks.
Kami reverts his gaze from Mr. Popo. He knows this isn't himself, but right now, as the Guardian of Earth, uncertain futures require necessary actions.
"To even the playing field," Kami said.
Months past, and the Z-Fighters accompanying Raditz are now out into space for their battles against the Frieza Force. Piccolo's training goes well back on earth; however, ever since he spoke with Kami, there was this mental itch that had embedded itself into Piccolo's psyche.
He had already moved on from that conversation, but it was the last thing Kami had said that truly stayed with him.
It wasn't just the words themselves; it was the tone and mocking nature of it that had set this feeling inside Piccolo. It made him feel as if he wanted to meet Kami's taunt with the result of recognition. A realization that then had Piccolo seething underneath it all.
The only way for him to take care of this itch was by relentless training upon hours and days end, to the point of exhaustion. Or at least, to where he couldn't move anymore. Which then, he would resort to meditation. A very potent itch indeed.
He had managed to split the charge time of his Makankosappo in half, a technique he had initially developed to use against Goku. A sure shot way to skewer your enemy despite the difference in power. Then he started the development of a new technique called the Hellzone Grenade. Still, the move was in its infancy and not easy to pull off. It required everything Piccolo had to concentrate on his Ki control.
By Piccolo's estimate, he had at least surpassed Goku ten-fold from the last time he had seen him. But there's a drawback from all these propositions made for himself, which he has come to terms with. It's easy to put yourself above others when you haven't seen how they've progressed, and there's no way of knowing how far you've come when there's no one around to test your strength.
The Multi-form Technique gave some perspective for Piccolo but ultimately isn't a viable alternative. The split in power for each clone created has been proven useless.
Piccolo, at this time, has reached a dead-end.
Out in the wastelands on top of a mesa, Piccolo is in deep meditation. He was running through constant image training routines. Trying to find any errors in his form and always finding none.
He gets frustrated and lets out a yell and demolishes the mesa beneath him, reducing it to rubble. "This is getting me nowhere!" Piccolo said.
He begins to think if this is enough for him. Should Piccolo start his campaign for world domination? Piccolo exhibited every show of power to himself in the wild proved that he had far surpassed Goku when he had left earth. So then maybe he could.
At this point, Piccolo has had enough time mulling it over in his head and decides to head back towards civilization to begin his late father's work. He jumps into the sky and takes off.
About an hour has passed now; Piccolo continues flying, feeling rather indifferent for what's to come. Piccolo begins to think back to the end of the World Martial Arts Tournament when Goku gave him the Senzu Bean.
That is until he senses something,
"Huh?" Piccolo stops in mid-flight. He begins to feel ample power, equal to his own, approaching him from the east. "Has Goku already returned?" He thought. "No, this power feels different. Almost like—" Piccolo gasps "—Kami!?"
A figure begins to appear in view as it fastly approaches Piccolo. It was indeed Kami, but something was completely different about him. Besides this incredible power, he looked younger! All evidence of what once was an old man replaced now with this nearly identical doppelganger to Piccolo!
Piccolo is there floating in the air, stunned at what he sees. Young Kami stares Piccolo down. With the same stern look, he had when they last met.
It takes Kami to break the silence between the two finally. "So, where are you heading?" Kami asks.
Piccolo finally stops gawking at Kami and mutters to himself. "Heh, can't believe you'd take a page from my father."
Kami gets annoyed, "What was that?"
"So, you used the Dragon Balls to make yourself younger." Piccolo laughs. "You must have been desperate then if that's what it took to get as strong as me."
"You left me with limited options, Piccolo. I needed to make sure that the Earth can be safe from all threats, including you." Kami left those last words to hang in the air.
"What?" Piccolo mocked. "Should I feel honored then?" Piccolo's words were getting more aggressive. "It's only when there's no one left on earth to fight me that now I'm a threat? Is that it?!"
"That's not entirely true," Kami reassures. "I tried to train one named Yajirobe, but he fell a little short on the strength curve. And for the desire to fight, to be honest. No, this is an omen that must finally be remedied by my own hands. Now I ask again, where are you heading in such a hurry, Piccolo?"
Piccolo has had enough of this dawdling; he takes off his turban and throws it to the wayside. "Let's just get this over with, once and for all!" Piccolo snarls.
Kami sighs and readies himself. Piccolo is the first to charge, followed up by Kami, and then they clash.
The fight continues with a now broken wasteland. New crevices in the Earth had formed from their fist's shockwaves, mesas that once stood tall now left shattered in half due to the fighters energy blasts.
Both of the fighters have now reached the end of their reserves. The final bout comes to its climax with a close-quarters brawl between the two, with Piccolo being on the backfoot.
Piccolo tries to push forward but has little luck, Kami taking advantage of Piccolo's rage by constantly parrying and countering his incoming punches.
It is sunset, and it appears that Kami has won this battle through wit and patience. However, he underestimates Piccolos' tenacity.
The last counter from Kami has Piccolo staggering back and reeling. He looks up to Kami; he sees that he too clings on barely, despite winning.
Piccolo brings his arm back, "One more," he says to himself. And with everything he has left, Piccolo bets it all on one punch.
Piccolo lets out one final battle cry and charges Kami. He gets into range; Kami pulls a successful counter into Piccolo's temple, but he doesn't stop. Piccolo slams his fist into Kami's side with his full body weight, and there is a deafening crack.
Kami grits his teeth, hard. He tries to stay upright, but he goes limp, leaning in on Piccolo.
Piccolo steps to the side and lets Kami fall to the ground. Kami's breathing is shaky and shallow but is still able to cling to life. A weak smile comes across Piccolo's face as he begins to fall forward, with his vision fading.
The deathmatch ends in a draw.
Several hours pass, and it's now nighttime. The moon above shines brightly on the wasteland, casting blue shadows into every crack and debris scattered among the dust-covered grounds. Piccolo stirs and begins to wake. He flips himself over on his back and lets out a loud wince. Every part of his body was aching and was telling him not to move anymore.
Piccolo stares deeply into the starlit night, with pride whelming up inside. He had beaten Kami, though it was unplanned, and had proven himself. To who? Piccolo didn't know the answer. But all of this was short-lived.
"Well…" Kami said. "You're awake."
At Piccolo's feet sat Kami. Cuts and bruises covered his body. "How do you fair?"
Piccolo only scowls as he tries to move his head to look at him. "Why haven't you killed me yet?"
"Because the Earth still needs its guardian."
Piccolo and Kami were once one being but were split in two because of the emerging evil in the original's heart. Even though being separated, however, their souls were still tied together. If Piccolo died, then Kami would and vice-versa.
Piccolo gives up trying to raise his head out of the pain. "Then why haven't you imprisoned me with the Mafuba? Far more effective with what it did to my father."
Kami ponders this for a moment, thinking the same thing. "I—The thought had crossed my mind." Kami stutters. "But I was told differently not to do so. As much as I'd like to deny it, you have some promise, Piccolo."
"Heh, what fool told you that?"
"Goku, actually. I spoke with him after our last confrontation. I was concerned about the choices I would make and told him about my plan to deal with you…" Kami then laughs for a moment. "Do you wish to know what he said?"
Piccolo was about to respond until Kami cut him off. It seems Kami's de-aging brought back some youthful rudeness. "He told me, 'Try giving him a chance! He's not King Piccolo after all.' I thought little of that when he told me, but watching you training over the past few months—" Kami lets out a heavy sigh "—It made an impression, and it spurred me on in my own training. And it wasn't just because of my duty as Guardian to do so; you, honestly, got me excited to match you in combat Piccolo."
Piccolo is left stunned at this confession. Him inspiring Kami? Normally that fact alone would disgust him, but now it felt strangely gratifying. However, he would never admit this to Kami.
Piccolo could not find the words to send back. Kami struggles to get to his feet. Holding his side, he walked over to a position where Piccolo could see him.
Kami kneels to Piccolo's head. "Perhaps there is some truth to what Goku said—" Kami admits, "It would be such a waste to deny that much potential from the world. And maybe, if you're willing, we could test ourselves again, against each other," Kami stands up straight and turns away from Piccolo, "Even, if possible, not as enemies."
Kami takes off into the night sky, leaving Piccolo there to think to himself. For himself. About what it means to be yourself.