"Bardock, this… this is wrong," she said with a heavy voice trembling with fear.

"We doing this for him. Kakarot will perish if we abide by our moral principles now, Gine." he said, his voice hard and unmoved like stone.

"Paragus is not forgiving. He will kill us for this, and then…Kakarot soon after." Gine could feel her voice starting to break. "Do you think you alone are powerful enough to stop him?"

"It doesn't matter." Suddenly there was a massive shift. The already shaking floor beneath them began to crack and crumble, followed by multiple loud explosions. "We are all going to die on this ship anyway. If push comes to shove, all I will need to do is hold him off long enough for the warp pad to warm up and send Kakarot to Earth." Bardock spoke as he tried to stabilize himself, continuing to dial in the coordinates into the warp pad while connecting it to the ship's hyperdrive engine to power the trip.

"We don't have long. Is the boy ready?" he said, looking over at Gine now, who was tightly clutching the screaming infant in her arms.

She took a moment to look at him, watching him kick and fight against her with all his might, thinking of just how much like his father he is. "He…he looks so much you. Can you see it? It's a pity -she said now with a heavy expression carved onto her face- that he's so weak. Still, he is our son, weak or not; I do love him. However, un-Saiyan like that is."

Bardock was slightly taken aback and paused before saying, "Gine. You're wasting time we don't have. Either you place him on the pad, or we all perish."

She slowly walked over to the warp pad without saying another word and placed the infant onto it. "Goodbye, Kakarot." she then turned around, seeing her son for the last time, not daring to turn around.

As if almost on Que, the door to the Engine room exploded dramatically, revealing a beaten, bloody, and blood lusted Paragus staring daggers into both Gine and Bardock's eyes.

"BARDOCK!" the elder Saiyan screamed out with a harsh note of anger and rage. "How dare you?! You take what is mine and send your men to stop me from coming here! I saved your life. I am the reason we know the Earth is still habitable. If it was not for me, you would have never repaired or gotten the chance to fix the earth warp. Is this how you repay me? Betrayal?! I will not let this stand! You, Gine, and your damn son will die here before the Diamonds even get the chance to blow this damn ship to oblivion!"

Bardock kept a stoic face, looking down at the monitor and noticing that the pad still needed time to charge up. The technology being outdated millennia ago. He looked back to Paragus and stepped out from behind the podium to face him.

He stood in silence as the roof of the engine room suddenly ripped off. Blue and Yellow shrapnel floating about the artificial atmosphere created by the ship. Gine gasped as she looked up. Seeing space being polluted by large pink chunks of the metal cage that was her home and the stars now being overshadowed by two large metal arms that moved in and loomed over them.

Her eyes still wide open, she muttered the words, "There they are, Yellow and Blue. Those arms are bigger than I thought they would be." she now said with the corners of her mouth up turning into something resembling a smile and a chuckle laced with impending doom.

Suddenly Paragus darted forward, heading straight for the person in front of him, Gine. But just before he could land a hit, Bardock instantly appeared in front of him, blocking the blow from the older Saiyans fist with his forearm raised to his head. Wincing from the pain, Bardock took the opportunity to grab hold of Paragus and swing him around into the wall behind him. Not letting up for even a moment, Bardock took chase, knowing that if he let Paragus recover, this battle would be over all too soon.

Gine looked forward, noticing a figure in the now destroyed doorway of the engine room, which was previously overshadowed by the prominent figure of Paragus.

"Tomanna." said Gine as she looked the other Saiyan in the eye.

"Seeing you go this far, it's pathetic, Gine." Tomanna retorted back in response.

Not once breaking eye contact, she raised her finger and pointed at the child who was standing behind her, tightly clutching the armour of his mother.

"This was all done for Broly. He is the future of our race. His strength even makes Vegeta look weak. Paragus did all this so that Broly could have a means of escape as a precaution in case something like this would ever happen. You can't just hijack our plan. Broly will be the turning point in this war. Without him, there is no future for the Saiyans!"

Gine's eyes remained stern and unmoved as she took up her fighting stance. "Are you really trying to pull on the heartstrings of a Saiyan? Yet you call me pathetic? If you want something, you take it. There is no more future for the Saiyans. Look around you; this menagerie is being torn to shreds. Soon enough, Yellow and Blue will give the order to end it all. The only thing that matters now is survival. And Kakarot will survive. I will make sure of it."

"And what about Broly?! He's just a child! Look at him! He's not like other Saiyans, he may be strong, but his nature is meek, timid. Why can't we just send both our off-springs to the Earth if you are willing to go so far and die for this?!" Tomanna said, still attempting to reach through to Gine.

"Your son was rejected by Vegeta. An outcast doomed to spend his life on this metal shell with no hopes of ever leaving it. If anyone was going to go with Kakarot, it would be either myself or his father. Sending your monstrosity of a son would ensure that the Diamonds find them for sure. His strength would only spell demise for them both. The entire Saiyan race needs to perish if Kakarot is to live… This is the only way he has a chance at survival. Your son was never going to amount to anything, Tomanna. Nothing you do can change that." Gine's voice was calm, as if she had already made her peace with the situation and the inevitable outcome for all involved.

Tomanna could see no words she could say would ever get through to her foe. There was only one way she could save her son's life now. She had no choice but to fight.

"A Saiyan does not beg. We fight and take what is ours." she said, looking at Gine. "I am going to need you and stand back Broly. Protect yourself. Be strong."

The boy looked up, tearful and afraid while his mother stepped forward. He took one step back, covering his ears from the loud noises of the Diamond warships overhead, the fighting his father was doing and especially the cries of the infant on the warp pad. The baby crying a harsh and bitter tune as if he was in absolute agony, exhausting his lungs over and over again. That, out of all sounds was the most torturous to the young Saiyan.

Gine dashed forward, moving as fast as she could to end this as quickly as possible. Tomanna readied herself for the incoming attack, but suddenly Gine vanished from her line of sight, causing a brief moment of disbelief and hesitation within Tomanna. She suddenly found herself flying as Gine reappeared in the air behind her and delivered as devasting spin kick to the head of Tomanna. Not letting up, Gine was quick to making chase, delivery a flurry of blows to Tomanna's body before grabbing her by the hair and doing a triple spin mid-air and throwing her to the ground below.

In incredible pain, and slightly disorientated, Tomanna raised to one knee, and opened her eyes while looking up at Gine. Through her shaky and blurry vision, all she could see was two bright lights, both yellow with purple rings surrounding each of them. After blinking a few times, and regaining her composure, she then saw Gine, a burning white-hot aura covered her as she remained in the air, charging her signature attack at full power. Gine then brought her two arms together, the energy balls in each hand now coalescing as one, causing a loud and visible crack of white electricity to surround her hands. The purple rings become one and grew in intensity as a quiet hum could be heard irradiating from it.

"Double Sundae!" Gine yelled as she fired of the attack. Immediately the yellow ball blasted off and became a beam of light and the purple ring continued to follow it, now echoing itself with multiple concentric circles around the ray as if fired off.

Tomanna stood up, brushing off the beating she had just been given and smiled at the yellow and purple energy coming towards her. She quickly raised her hands in the air and screamed. With a sudden burst of power, a stream of white energy left her entire body traveling upwards to meet Gine's attack. It was violent and sudden, its size dwarfing Gine's Double Sundae entirely. The two energies collided, the impact of the beams clashing cracking the already crumbling walls around them and the floor beneath Tomanna.

It was apparent that this struggle wouldn't be long as Tomanna's beam was quickly making ground and pushing Gine back. In a final act of desperation, Gine separated the beam of her Double Sundae and blasted half of it off in the direction of Tomanna's son, Broly.

Realising what Gine was up to, Tomanna knew she had to make a choice. The fear in the face of her son as the Double Sundae rushed towards him told her what she needed to do. Redirecting her energy, she blasted off at top speed, making it in the nick of time to kick Gine's attack out of Broly's way, only allowing it to leave a deep gash on the side of his cheek, burning the boy. Broly fell backwards in pain as he rolled about and cried out with tears streaming down his cheeks for his mother. But before Tomanna could even react, she was meet with a surprised attack by Gine who tail had wrapped itself around Tomanna's neck, squeezing as hard as she could to suffocate her. She fell to her knees, unable to break free of Gine's Grasp. Broly watched in agony as his mother fruitlessly struggled to release the noose around her gasp for air. Now turning blue, Tomanna could feel her consciousness slip away as she looked up at Gine who now held a yellow, sharp piece of shrapnel above her head, ready to pierce her skull with it.

"H-How could you? He is only a child. Where is your honour?" Tomanna said with the last of her breath.

Gine tightened her grasp around her enemy's neck, "There is no such thing as honour, at the end of the world."

Knowing that she could not fight back any longer, Tomanna dropped her arms and closed her eyes, saying, "L-Look after…Broly, please."

Now ready to end it, Gine was about to bring down the shrapnel shard and finish her opponent off before she felt an incredible surge of sharp excruciating pain emerging from the Centre of her chest.

Confused and her vision now going blurry, she saw Tomanna's child now behind his mother who was still on her knees before her. His body was bloody, lying on the ground, and unconscious. Blood now dripped out from her mouth before she began coughing it out violently. The pain stabbing at her tenfold with each cough. She stumbled backward and released her tail grip from the other Saiyans neck, finally allowing Tomanna a giant gasp of the little air remaining on the Zoo's escaping atmosphere. Gine looked down and saw the massive gaping hole in her chest from where the boy burst through her. Suddenly, she felt no more pain, she felt nothing at all. She fell backward onto the floor. Her large dark eyes looking at the countless Saiyans fighting back against the Gem invading forces through the torn rooftop of the ship. Her mind now, not going to her sons, not going to Bardock nor the family of her past. Instead, she softly mumbled the last words she'll ever speak, "S-Sadala. Sadala. I-I never got to go… home."

Her eyes went blank and the life left her body, putting an end to her tale.

Tomanna, now starting to come to her senses and released what had just happened, went to her son. He was no longer crying but silent and still, his body and mind unconscious. He was covered in blood, to which she tried to remove to get a clear view of his face. It was then that she felt it, the heat and brightness of a large dim blue light. She looked over to the still crying infant Kakarot and saw his naked body rise in the air and she realized it was too late. The old warp had gathered enough power and made its connection to one of the Earth's warp pads.

Fear and panic crossed her worried facial expression as she saw a yellow energy blast cross her line of sight, moving fast towards the infant but just barely missing him as his body vanished alongside the blue beam. His tiny self now traveling between space and time to reach the Earth. The missed energy beam hitting the last remaining support structure of the engine room.

Bardock now beaten, bruised and body broken, simply smiled. "You failed you old bastard. It's over."

Paragus knew he was right and a look of anger flashed in his eyes, "I will not let this stand! He will pay the price for your sins! I may have failed now but mark my words Bardock, I will find him. I will find him!… I WILL FIND HIM!"

Before the younger Saiyan could react, Bardock felt an electric shock down his spine and a darkening shadow eclipsing his vision. He knew it was about to happen again. The gift the Garnet gave him, the gift that gave him the foresight of the Saiyan race inevitable destruction.

The darkening shadows now completely encompassed his vision and when it lifted, he was no longer beaten on their broken ship but instead surrounded by an icy tundra. He could see a younger version of himself, also battered and beaten, fighting against another Saiyan. But this Saiyan was unlike anything he'd seen before, not a man but rather a massive beast transformed, completely overpowering him in this fight; with a greyed Paragus watching his battle on the side lines. But before he could see the end of his battle, his vision darkened once again and when he opened his eyes this time, he saw…Jasper. His view was in a first-person perspective now, but instead of anxiety or fear, all he felt was anger. Blinding hate and rage within him more than he had ever felt before, and with it…incredible power with seemingly no end in sight. He saw himself dash toward her, but as he was about to clash, his vision once again disappeared, and when it returned, he opened his eyes up to a view of a beach. Once again in a first-person perspective, and beside him, a Rose Quartz who coddled him. Confused, he could feel his real body dying, the life slowly leaving his body as his vision now gifted him a final glimpse. Before him stood his trusted and fierce comrade Celipa, a younger version of King Vegeta lastly, a man who mirrored the image of son Raditz. But they were hostile, each one of them ready to kill him without a moment's hesitation. It was over. That was the last image he saw. His vision darkened, but this time it was never to return. From there he entered into eternal darkness, losing himself forever…

Present Day…

"You need to move faster. Be precise. If you want to get stronger, you need to gain more control, use the strength you have with maximum efficiency! Remember, calm your mind, move like water and keep focus!"

The Saiyan fell to the ground, on his knees and out of breath. He was thrilled, he had never been pushed this hard before. He could feel his heart pound against his chest as beads of sweat dripped from all surfaces of his body. His tail was drenched and lingered in the air. He had failed again. This test was one he had been repeatedly failing over and over again for the past two weeks. His mind now went back to his second night over at the beach house, specifically to the time he met Pearl. He didn't think much of her, taller than him sure, but frail-looking and tiny. He couldn't have been more wrong. He would never make that mistake again. She was disciplined, with piercingly sharp accuracy, with the likes of which he had never before seen. In terms of raw strength, he knew he could best her, but the way she moved and how she attacked… their first sparring match barely lasted a minute, and he was out with one blow. It baffled his young mind how easily she beat him when he clearly had the power advantage. She didn't even find him worthy of drawing out her weapon from within her gem.

Goku, still on his knees, looked to the sky, who's blue lustre was soon robbed from him with the silhouette of Pearl looking down from with on high in disappointment.

"I only agreed to do this because of Steven and Garnet. They both have a vested interest in you. But you're wasting my time. It's taking you too long to pass this latest test. If you can't beat the Holo-Pearls, how do you expect to even put a finger on me. Aren't you Saiyans supposed to be fast learners? I expected better." she said, her tone emulating her disappointment in his performance.

Suddenly the euphoria disappeared from Goku's mind. There it was, that word again. Saiyan. That's what he was. Garnet told him that. She told him everything, including the war, even about a man she believed to be his father. His thoughts now went to his grandfather. He was the only father he knew. The whole Saiyan revelation weighed more on his mind that he initially thought it would. He wasn't happy nor sad about it. He didn't know what to think. Steven seemed to think it was a big thing. Maybe it was his reaction to this news that caused him to feel this way. Garnet offered for him to stay at the beach house, an offer to which he politely refused. Being trained by Pearl right now only came about because of his desire to fight strong people. He knew she didn't want to do it. Her being apprehensive about him being a Saiyan and all that. Only being pushed on by the others did she budge, right before kicking his ass. Steven said he had never seen her fight like that. She must really not like Saiyans then. That too, also makes sense. The only question that played on everyone's mind was… why was he here? Why wasn't he on the Zoo with the rest of his kind? Was he Abandoned? Why did they not want him? Where was his father? The truths revealed to him only brought about more questions asked by the other gems, and they were now being asked by him too.

"Hehe, don't worry, I'll get the hang of it eventually. I'm getting closer on each and every try. I can feel it." he said, his voice holding all of his optimism and bring it to the surface. "I'm just kinda pooped right now. I promise I'll get it next time" there was a huge smile now painted on his face.

With a look of confusion on her own face, Pearl simply asked him, "Do you need an intermission?"

"Huh? No, I don't want to go on a mission, I need a break." he said smilingly.

She let out an exasperated sigh before walking away and replying with, "Fine. Meet me back her in three quarters of an hour. I will adjust the Holo Pearls in the meantime."

Goku, meanwhile just slipped away and made his way back down to the beach house from the ancient sky temple using the warp whistle given to him by pearl. Warping was still a new experience for him. It was fast and quick, barely the blink of an eye and he'd be in an entirely new place. Just like magic, he thought, until Pearl shut that notion down faster than he could say it. Still, it was something surreal to the young boy, falling flat on his backside the first few times he did it. He once almost got the whistle confiscated from him for being, as Pearl said, "Too childish with it!" To which he replied, "But I am a kid, what did you expect?" he retorted while laughing. Reminding Pearl once again that while he was a Saiyan, he was indeed, still, a child. A child who grew up on Earth away from his own kind with hardly any knowledge on who or what he was. An outsider. A similar circumstance to Steven's upbringing. Something to which she could now relate to.

He made it down to the Beach house, his head hanging a little low from all the thoughts he could now feel that were holding him back during his training with Pearl. He could feel himself growing, he felt like a sword being refined, giving him more precision and cutting power. Yet, he knew that something just wasn't quite right, there was a wall, a ceiling he needed to break, what that ceiling was, he knew he'd have to search for that answer within himself.

Once again, the house was empty. He grabbed an apple and bit into it a tad too wildly. If Pearl was there to see him, it would give her shivers. That lovely little thought put a smile across his face. He found it hilarious how quickly she would become agitated with anything.

His eyes fell on the large portrait as he was approaching the front door, as they usually did. He stood still just in front of the door frame, his eyes staring at the picture of the giant pink lady. His face stopped moving as he just held the apple in his hand, not knowing why her painting had this effect on him. When he asked Steven about it, all he said was that she was his mother, Rose. That she wasn't around anymore. However, he found her still image calming, she seemed to be happy and at peace.

Suddenly shaking his head and biting into his apple again. He pushed passed it and he moved forward.

Widely opening the front door, his tail peeped up as he spotted Steven now sitting on a log at the beach. He made his way down the stairs and through the hot sand to Steven.

"Oh, hey there. Are you and Pearl done already? That was kind of quick huh? Did you pass her test? Steven greeted and asked curiously.

Gobbling down the remainder of the apple, Goku looked up and told him simply. "Oh, no. Haven't passed just yet. Pearl said I should take a break. It's been a lot of fun training with her." he responded happily.

"I'm happy to hear that." Steven said smiling, "I'm glad to see you having fun."

Goku paused for a moment before he responded, "What are you doing out here, Steven? Are you waiting for someone?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm waiting for my friend Connie. She's been busy the past few weeks so you haven't met her yet. I've told her all about you though, hehe."

"You have?" Goku said slightly confused, "How?"

"On my cell phone, we chat all the time on through text. Come on, (Steven patted on the log he was sitting on) sit. She's running a little late but she will be here soon. I would love for you to meet her."

Goku didn't say anything and just did as he was told. The cob of his apple now on the ground and his eyes glaring straight out into the Ocean.

"A-Are you okay? You don't seem like quite your usual self."

"I'm Okay. Just a little tired." he said turning to face Steven with a smile.

"You know, it's okay not to be okay. You just had your whole existence unfold right in front of you. That could be a lot for anyone (He paused). I know what it's like to be different. To not have answers to the questions racing in your head. That's can be unnerving at times. You and I, we are more alike than I first thought. The only difference is, I've been dealing with this my whole life, and you, it's barely been a few weeks. You need to give yourself time. Time to learn to accept who you are."

Before Goku could respond, Steven's phone began to buzz. "Oh, it's Connie. It seems like she's around the corner. Come on. Let's go say hi." Steven said as he got up and made his way up the beach.

Goku followed, confused by what happened as he was still unfamiliar with cell phones but he kept his silence, deciding it would be best just to follow along for the time being. "So, is your friend Connie strong too?" he asked Steven who walked in front of him.

"Y-Yeah I guess. Connie is plenty strong. She is smart, knows how to think on her feet and catches onto things quickly. She may not be a fighter like you but she has her own strengths. Maybe, given a little training, she could become a good warrior, hehe."

"Wow. She sure does sound incredible." said an astonished Goku.

Connie image now came into view as Steven screamed her name from across the beach. She was dressed in her navy-blue shorts and white shirt tucked in as she held onto a duffle bag. She now began running towards the pair of Goku and Steven, Steven, whom she then grabbed into a hug as soon as she landed.

"Steven! Ah, it's been forever. Sorry about being a bit late. Dad and I were stuck in traffic. He would have stayed to say hello, but he needed to rush back to pick up mom from the hospital." she said now letting go from him.

"That's okay. It was just ten minutes anyway. No big deal." he said looking at her. "Oh, this is my new friend I was telling you about, Goku. Goku, meet Connie."

"Oh, uh-h, Connie Maheswaran. It's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard a lot about you from Steven. Will you be joining Steven and I for the movies as well?"

"Hey, you're so nice." Goku said smiling. "My name is Goku. Steven just told me about you before you got here, hehe."

Steven now feeling embarrassed adds in, "Oh, well I haven't actually had the time to… invite him to the movies with us. But it does sound fun. The more the merrier they say. That's if you okay with it Connie?" he said nervously.

"Well, yeah. I think it would be a good opportunity for me to get to know your friend here." she turned to face Goku, "Steven doesn't seem to have many friends his own age around here. Kinda like me." she said with a wink and a slightly mischievous grin.

"I've never had a movie before. What's it like? Will it take long, cause I gotta get back to my training with Pearl soon" he said innocently.

Connie was taken aback and surprised, "Never had a movie? You don't even know what a movie is, do you? That a little bizarre. Oh, I don't mean any offense. Now we have to take you with us. You're going to love it. You need to have your first movie-going experience on the big screen." she declared with a grin

Not really planning for a third party, Steven just hoped he had enough to pay for both himself and Goku. "Okay, I guess that settles it then. And don't worry too much about your training. I'm sure Pearl would be understanding, sort of."

"Yeah, also, sorry about my dad rushing off. I know I said he would take us but things just got a little out of hand. How we going to get there now?" she said looking at Steven.

"Don't worry, we'll figure it out. Let's get back to the beach house first so we can let the gems know we're leaving." he said already starting the walk back home.

Connie and Goku just followed along, with Connie asking him all kinds of questions, including his favourite foods, to which there were too many to list off. Eventually Goku pointed out the apple cob he dropped leading to Connie picking it up and lecturing him all about littering and how it was essential to keep things clean and protect their environment. Goku just looked at her in amusement, wondering how this girl was so knowledgeable. Once reaching the house, it didn't take long for Steven to pack his hamburger bag pack, filling it to max capacity with all the treats Connie brought as well as anything else he could find around the beach house.

"Okay, we're off." Steven said, smiling at the Garnet and Pearl "Connie says this movie is even better than the last one."

Amethyst, not paying attention, transformed into dog copter herself and flew over Garnet and Pearl hoping to grab a piece of Stevens snacks as she greedily yelled out, "Gimme, gimme, gimme!"

Steven immediately rushed in to defend his snacks, "Back off Amethyst. These are for only the 3 of us, we barely have enough as it is and we can't buy more."

"Yeah, I'm not allowed to buy anything snacks from the theatre, so we only have what we take now." Connie added.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me, Pearl, is it okay if Goku comes with us too? I know his busy with your training but I really want him to come along. Can he? Please, please, please?" he begged.

Pearl frowned a bit but eventually gave in, unwilling to break Steven's heart even although she liked keeping a strict schedule, "Well, if that's what he wants then… sure.'

Steven thanked Pearl repeatedly before stepping out of the house with Connie and Goku in toe.

"Well, I have been thinking about it and while we don't have a car and walking is out of the question due to how far the movies is, I have found us the best possible alternative!" he declared smilingly, "Ahem (he said clearing his voice) introducing… LION!"

Connie's mouth dropped as the giant pink cat stepped forward, "You have a pet lion?! T-That's insane! Is that not dangerous?!"

"Oh, no worries there, Lion is a sweetheart. Isn't that right Lion?" Steven said rubbing up against the cat who was seemingly uninterested in whatever was going on with Steven and his companions.

"Connie, still in disbelieve, now found herself lost for words, saying the only thing she could think of, "Hehe, that so very cool!"

"A Lion? Why is he pink? He reminds me of that big pink lady hehe." Goku added in nonchalantly.

"I don't know, his always been pink since I found him. We think he belonged to mom but I can't say for sure. It would explain things though. He doesn't behave like a regular lion. And he sort of just does his own thing." Steven responded to Goku's question.

"Anyway, let's get on him, and he'll take us to the movies." he said now already on Lions back waiting for Connie and Goku to join while Lion casually yawned.

Now with the other two on the big cats back, Lion suddenly burst off without warning, running at top speed throughout the town before making a sharp left turn heading straight towards the ocean.

"Steven!" Connie said worryingly

Steven slightly confused kept his silence as lion pounced onto the surface waters of the sea.

"Woah, so cool, he can walk on water. What else can he do?!" asked an excited Goku.

"This is new to me too. As I said, Lion just pretty much does his own thin- Woah!" Steven was cut off as Lion once again took off running deeper into the ocean before roaring letting out a pink portal to which he immediately jumped into."

"What happening here Steven?! Where is he taking us?!" asked a panicking Connie.

"I-I-I don't know, maybe it's a shortcut. His never done anything like this before!" he said as he and Connie were barely managing to hold onto Lion's mane.

Goku, who was all the way at the back, was immediately blown off Lion when they entered the portal as he had nothing to grip onto, only still staying attached to lion by wrapping his tail around Lions own tail at the right moment while his body was rapidly flying in the air.

Suddenly they exited the portal and the glow in Lion's eyes faded as the trio fell to the ground that was wet with water, soaking them and the hamburger bag pack.

"Where are we?" asked Connie as she looked around, "Is this one of those magic Gem places you told me about Steven?"

As she said this, the platform before them immediately began to light up in shades of pink as Connie stepped onto it, to which Steven gave his response to her question, "Yep, definitely a magic Gem place."

Suddenly a podium began to slowly rise up from the floor of the platform, glowing before it finally gave way and materialized. Connie examined the stand and noted its surface had a hand shape carved into it. She placed her hand perfectly into the carving, but nothing happened. When Steven and Goku and appeared behind her she turned around and looked over at both of them.

"So… I don't know what this thing is supposed to do. My hand didn't work. This is a magical gem place so maybe it needs a magic gem hand? Steven?" she said looking at him, while putting both her hands up and stepping to the side, suggesting he give it a try.

With a look of curiosity, Steven stepped forward and placed his hand on the podium carve-out, and in an instant, the whole place lit up even more, in more extraordinary shades of pink than they had seen previously.

"Woah!" they all exclaimed in amazement.

"Now what?" asked Steven looking at Connie

"I don't know, I thought more would happen than just a fancy light show." Connie said now slightly frustrated. "What's even the point of us being here. We going to miss the advertisements leading up to Dog Copter."

"No, no, I'm sure there must be meaning to all of this. Lion wouldn't bring us here for no reason at all, especially not on purpose. Would you Lion?" Steven now said looking at the big cat whom promptly ignored him and continued to clean himself in the corner

"Hmmm, what if we just…" suddenly Goku began to poke Steven in the gut, as if just on a whim until suddenly the shocked Steven notice another piece of the platform rise into the air, revealing… a suit of armour?

"Armour? W-wait, how did you know that would work?" Connie asked the young Saiyan.

"I don't know. I've come across some magic stuff. Especially in the temple. Weird things always seem to make them work." he replied

Leaving Connie dumbfounded, Goku and Steven himself began poking different areas of Steven's body, which caused many parts of the floor to rise up, revealing an array of armours and dangerous weapons of all sorts. The two boys began playing with the weapons in excitement. One pretending to be a villain and the other a hero, as they battled it out.

While it wasn't uncommon, for Goku and Steven to have their fun, to Connie, this was the first time she had seen steven play so rough, and now they were using weapons that could hurt either one of them. Which almost did happen, as Steven hand slipped and let go a mace and nearly hit Connie, barely missing her by a few inches.

Just like that, the fun was over, as Steven knew they were getting out of hand. "C-Connie, I'm so sorry. You're right. We just wanted to have a little fun." there was a pause before he continued, "We should get out of here now, we've been here for nearly 45 minutes. And I think Dog Copter is out of the question now."

Steven walked back over to the podium and began to try and remember what he poked on his body so he could poke it again and reseal the weapons. He didn't want anyone to accidentally stumble onto all this old gem technology and end up hurting themselves or others.

Goku, on the other hand, was preoccupied as he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He now walked over to it, looking at what appeared to be a pink cloud, trapped inside a glass cage. As he approached the cloud, it seemed to become more visibly active, moving more and more about inside the glass prison and he got closer. Now that he was standing right in front of it, it stopped moving, but its form was shifting. Like a runner who stopped to take a few deep breathes. Goku just simply stared at the cloud before asking it, "You're not happy in there, are you?" he paused almost as if he expected the cloud to talk to him

"You can understand me, don't you?" he asked the cloud another question to which this time, it responded by moving up and down slowly.

"W-Why are you in there? Did you do something bad?" the cloud didn't move, simply choosing to stay still, its form now shifting less and less and stabilizing, as if it was calming down.

"Do you want me to get you out?" he asked. Again, the pink cloud simply moved up and down.

Goku now fell silent, with a look of deep thinking on his face before an abrupt outburst of his fist against the glass cage, smashing it into pieces.

The sudden loud breaking and smashing of glass as it hit the floor made both Steven and Connie turn to where Goku was, only to see the room fill with a rush of what looked like pink smoke to them which was darting all over the place.

Finally, the cloud pulled itself together and condense itself to reduce its size as it nuzzled up to Goku's face to thank him for freeing it.

With Steven and Connie now having rushed over, they saw the sight of this cloud next to Goku before they asked, "W-what is going on? Are you okay? We heard a huge noise."

Goku looked at the two with a smile on his face, "Oh hey you two, look, I made a new friend. Cloud, say high to my friends." he said happily

"Cloud?" asked Connie, unsure that was the creatures correct name.

Now looking at the label, printed on the side of the glass chamber, she read out aloud only word written there, "Nimbus."

The Cloud peeped up, as if to respond to what Connie was saying. Goku noticed this and looked down at it, "Nimbus, is that your name?"

The Cloud began to move up and down in a fast motion, almost excitedly. "Hehe, Nimbus, I like it. Sounds cool." Goku said smiling down at the cloud and holding it in both hands, not really questioning how it was possible that he could even hold a cloud.

Suddenly, Nimbus flew around Goku and swept him off his feet. Flying the boy around the room as Goku smiled and laughed in delight.

Now back on the ground, Nimbus stopped near Steven and Connie who Goku prompted to get on and Nimbus responding by expanding itself to make more space. Connie, while skeptical about the cloud that was previously locked in a glass cage, was still eager to feel what it must be like to soar the skies, abided by this and took a seat on the cloud. However, just as Steven laid his hand on the cloud, Nimbus retracted itself, dropping both Connie and Goku on the floor as it Cowed behind the pair of them from Steven.

"Huh? W-What's wrong? What's happening?" asked a confused Steven.

Connie looked over her shoulder, noticing Nimbus's form, shifting around, almost as if it was shaking and quivering in fear. "I think, it's scared of you Steven."

"Huh? Scared of me, why?" he responded, now even more confused.

"I don't know. When you touched it, it seemed to be afraid. You are a Gem. Maybe it recognized you or something." Connie responded.

"Yeah, but shouldn't that make it feel more connected to me. I mean, it's a pink cloud, so it's got to be connected to my mom somehow." said Steven.

Before Connie could think or say anything in response, Goku pulled Nimbus closer to him and said, "Don't worry little guy. Steven here is good friend of mine. And his really strong too. I'm sure you would like him if you just gave him a chance." he said trying to relax the cloud.

Still, Nimbus refused to budge, pressing itself against Goku even harder now.

"I don't think his ready to let you on just yet Steven." said Goku. "We can try again later back at the house."

"Back at the house? You mean you want to take it back with us. Do you really think that's a good idea? I mean, the Gems are barely able to handle a pink Lion being around…some of the time, a pink cloud will definitely make things more difficult." Steven said worryingly.

"Well, I don't think Amethyst would mind." Goku said smiling.

"Pearl would." Steven retorted.

"I'll just say Nimbus here will help me in my training, wouldn't you Nimbus?" He said looking at the cloud, who was still unresponsive ever since its interaction with Steven.

Steven remained quiet. Unsure what to say.

"Come on, if we leave him here, he's just going to get lonely and bored. And you want Nimbus to like you right?" Goku asked trying to convince Steven.

"Just so you know, you explaining this to Garnet." Steven said tiredly.

Connie looked at Steven, "Uh, from what you told me, are you sure that is a good idea?"

"It will have to be. Maybe they could explain why Nimbus is so afraid of me."

Connie and Steven got onto Lion's back, with Goku now sitting on Nimbus with his tail already entwined with Lions, "At least this time I'll be sitting comfy, right Nimbus?" he asked laughingly.

Expecting to arrive back at home, Lion's portal opened up and the three of them suddenly found themselves at the movies. Seeing the crowd walk out of the last screening of Dog Copter for the day. Disheartening Steven and Connie whom both thought that Lion had done this on purpose. With Steven commenting, "Well, at least he did take us to the movies, hehe…"

Later…

"Alright, it's taken me a while since this is happening earlier than expected but, here we are." said Garnet.

"I still don't understand what I did wrong. Did I do something to Pearl to make her not like me now?" said Goku in response while sitting atop of Nimbus.

"I think it got less to do with you and more with your friend over there. Pearl is still trying to come to terms with a few…life events that have occurred lately. Seeing Lion was something new to her, but now this as well. I fear it may all be too much for her. Rose kept many secrets." she said, replying to the boy and now also glancing at Steven on the side-lines.

Steven awkwardly not knowing what to say, just shied away and turned his gaze towards the ground.

Goku looked down towards the cloud and patted the Nimbus as one would do a pet. "Nimbus didn't do anything wrong. Why would she be upset with such a nice cloud? Is it because she fell right through and couldn't sit on it?" he said, now turning his gaze to Garnet.

"Hehe, I think that's got a little something to do with it, yeah. But it's a lot more complex than you are able to understand right now." Garnet paused thinking how comical it was to see Pearl fall flat on her backside when herself and Amethyst could mount the cloud. "Right, so tell me kid, what did Pearl teach you before your training with her was so abruptly interrupted?"

"Well, things were going pretty well until the final part of training. I had to fight the Holo-Pearls at full strength while they were set with the full intent to kill. Or at least that what Pearl said. I couldn't beat it head on. I tried using all that Pearl taught me, about using the strength I currently have with precision and that accuracy stuff and whatnot, I manage to take down a few but not all. I just couldn't beat them all. I didn't even get to the test which would have been my rematch with Pearl." said the disheartened young boy.

"Ah, I see. And what was going through your head at that time, during the fight with the Holo-Pearls?"

"Hmm, I guess I kept on thinking how since I am a Saiyan alien that I should be able to win. That I'm supposed to be a warrior or something. That's why I like to fight so much." he responded.

"That settles it then. It's easy to see that these truths have been a distraction for you. Hindering your progress and performance. Unlike Steven here, you were unaware of your origins, whilst Steven knew who he was from the day he was born. I guess Pearl didn't take into account how such information can affect a person. The human side of it all. You know Goku, even though you are a Saiyan, you are more human than you realize. This planet, being human. This is who you are now. I don't need a third eye to see that." she said with a smile.

He looked back at her; eyes wide unsure what to say. Steven suddenly appeared next to him and placed his hand on Goku's shoulder and offered him a warm smile. "Garnets right you know. The Crystal Gems are all about embracing your truths and accepting yourself for who you are and what you want to be. We are the outsiders. And so are you. So, in that way you just like us, one of us in fact. This may be strange and new, but there's no need to feel all alone. I'm sure the future has some bright and wonderful moments waiting for us all to enjoy together, isn't that right Garnet?" Steven said turning his attention to her.

Garnet adjusted her visor and smiled. "Yeah, the future is looking brighter than ever-" she abruptly stopped her speech. The atmosphere surrounding them took a sudden tonal shift as Garnet began to shiver. Her visor, though covering most of her features, could not hide the look of horror painted across her face.

"B-Brighter, bright- bright… than eee-ever…" she kept on repeat the words in a stutter, fear-stricken her tongue and holding her body and mind prisoner.

"Garnet?! What's happening to you, what's wrong?!" said steven who rushed over to her.

Goku stayed put on the cloud, not sure what to do or what was even going on.

Garnet! Talk to me! Must I go get Pearl? Amethyst? What must I do to help you?!" asked a troubled and panic-stricken Steven

"O-Oozaru. Oozaru…" she said, muttering the words.

"Oozaru? What is that? What are you seeing?" fear getting the better of Steven as he began to shake Garnet back to her senses.

She fell to her knees, tears streaming down her eyes from beneath the visor. "So much death and destruction, the city, the people… he slaughters them all. He just w-won't s-stop. Alexandrite, she is scared, I-I am scared, doubtful. Unsure of what to do. We must protect Steven! This Saiyan, he, he needs to be stopped!"

"Alexandrite? Who is that? Why is she scared? Please, Garnet, snap out of it and let me know what's going on, how I can help you!"

Goku, still sitting legs folded atop his Nimbus cloud looks straight at Garnet unblinkingly, knowing that even with her visor still on, she was glaring directly at him, and instantly he knew, that he was the source of all the pain she was experiencing.