Disclaimer: Well, we all know how this goes, don't we? ^_^ Obviously, I don't own Dragon Ball Z. Point made. Nothing else to say.

Dragon Ball X

Chapter One: A New Saiyan Appears

A dark spaceship raced by Jupiter, but it did not go unnoticed.

"What!" shouted King Kai as he jumped up from his seat. Bubbles stopped parading around King Kai's reconstructed but still tiny planet at the unexpected outburst, and an unsuspecting Gregory flew straight into his back. "Oh no," muttered King Kai to no one in particular. "How can this be?"

"What's wrong King Kai?" asked Gregory as he picked himself up off the ground.

"I'm not sure," announced King Kai, "but it seems as though someone is headed straight for Earth, and they don't want to be detected either. I can't get an accurate reading on anything. I have to warn Goku and the others. They must meet this stranger."

* * * * *

Back on Earth, two shadows raced through a forest. Suddenly they burst out into the clearing; Trunks and Goten were intent on reaching the house before them. They reached out as they neared the house and touched it at what appeared to be the same time. After doing so, they promptly collapsed, panting, on the ground.

"I beat you!" announced Trunks, in between taking huge gulps of air.

"No way!" countered Goten, also gasping for breath. "I beat you!"

"I was ahead!"

"But I caught up!"

"You want to settle this?" asked Trunks, with a half-grin, half-smirk.

"You bet," replied Goten, returning the gesture with a grin of his own.

They raced at each other, but before they could even start, Chichi called out from inside the house, "Don't even think about it!"

They both froze at the sound of her voice. They turned around to face her and smiled innocently.

"I told you two already, no fighting except in the training room!"

"We weren't fighting," protested Goten, trying his best to look sincere.

"Yet," added Trunks under his breath.

"Hmm?" she asked, having only half heard his statement.

Trunks looked up, surprised. "N-nothing."

She looked at them both a minute longer, trying to decide whether or not to pursue the matter. "All right," she said finally. "Come on inside, and wash up. Lunch is ready."

They exchanged a quick look of relief before running inside. Chichi laughed to herself quietly. It's amazing what good friends those two are, she thought. It was quite remarkable how they were together all of the time.

For a while Goku and his family had lived in one place, while Vegeta and his family had lived somewhere else. The only problems with this had been that Goten and Trunks were always together, and Goku and Vegeta spent long hours in the training room at Capsule Corporations. Annoyed with the situation, Chichi and Bulma had decided to move in together, a bit further from civilization then Bulma was used to but much closer than Chichi was used to. A training compound had been built to accommodate their husbands' needs. Everyone was happy with the arrangement, even Vegeta although he pretended not to care.

* * * * *

Meanwhile, in the training room, Goku and Vegeta were sparring, as usual. Bulma entered as far as the outer hallway. Goku and Vegeta are probably training under at least 300 times the normal gravity, she thought. She looked in through the window to see how they were doing. Goku was throwing punches at Vegeta who dodged them all with little effort. He retaliated by firing an energy beam at Goku.

"Catch this one," challenged Vegeta.

Goku gave no response, only prepared himself to meet the beam that rushed through the air towards him. He held out his hands to stop it but then decided to cancel it out by throwing an energy beam of his own.

"KAMEHAMEHA!" he shouted, bringing his hands together to fire the blast.

The two beams collided in a brilliant flash of light. When the smoke at last lifted, Goku and Vegeta were standing at opposite ends of the room. Bulma decided to use the momentary pause in their sparring to talk. She pushed a few buttons on the panel on the wall, turning on the intercom. However, before she could say anything, Goku had already charged at Vegeta. Oh well, she thought, may as well be now. It appeared that they would not be done anytime soon.

"Vegeta, Goku," she said through the speaker.

Vegeta looked towards the window, as a surprised Goku slid to a stop.

"Lunch is ready," she announced.

"Finally," rejoiced Goku. "I'm starved." He promptly walked over to the gravity machine and turned it off. Vegeta, however, was more reluctant to stop, but with food on Goku's mind, to continue the fight would be useless.

He had finally reconciled himself to Kakarrot's Earth name, although he often forgot and called him by his saiyan name. Vegeta looked around the mostly empty room as his mind wandered. There had been very few fights for a long time, and he missed them. After all, he was a saiyan; it was in his blood to fight. He needed the thrill a fight brought him, and this peaceful existence was not settling well with him.

"You coming, Vegeta?" asked Goku, as he stood by the door.

"What?" questioned Vegeta, turning around to face Goku.

"You coming?" he repeated, moving closer to the outside.

Vegeta didn't answer, but he did walk towards the door.

* * * * *

Back in the house, Chichi had just finished setting the table, which was fairly laden with food.

"Now," she said to herself, "where is everyone?"

"Hey Trunks! Wait for me!" called out Goten, racing through the hallway.

Trunks turned around to wait for Goten. "Well, hurry up," he urged impatiently. No sooner had he finished speaking than Goten dashed in.

"WHOA!" shouted Goten as he tried in vain to stop. He was, of course, unable to do so and ran into Trunks, knocking them both over one of the kitchen chairs.

"OWW!" they both complained.

"Why didn't you stop?" asked Trunks, rubbing the back of his head.

"Because I couldn't," returned Goten, holding his hand against his forehead.

"What have I told you two about running in the house?" demanded Chichi, obviously peeved.

Goten and Trunks looked up at her as they stood up slowly.

"Um, that would be, not to do it," answered Trunks, as he picked up the fallen chair.

"That's right," she replied. "And what were you doing?"

"Aww, come on Mom," whined Goten. "We weren't really running."

"Oh, and what would you say you were doing?"

"Um... we were just walking... really, really fast."

Trunks laughed but stifled it the moment he noticed Chichi's expression. Fortunately for them, Gohan walked in with his wife Videl at that moment.

"Gohan!" exclaimed Goten, as he jumped up and raced towards his older brother.

"What did I just say about running in the house?" demanded Chichi.

"Wait!" exclaimed Gohan, but it was too late. Goten jumped at him, knocking him over. "Calm down Goten. We were only gone for a day," he said laughing.

"Well?" asked Goten. "What's the surprise?"

"Yeah," added Trunks, walking over to join them.

"Surprise?" questioned Gohan, pretending not to know what they were talking about.

"Come on," prompted Goten, "you told us that you were going to bring us a surprise this time."

"Well, we did," he started, as he began to stand.

"But we're not going to give them to you till Friday," interrupted Videl, looking down at her husband with an amused expression on her face. Honestly, how old is he, she thought to herself.

"Why not?" whined Goten, clearly disappointed.

"Can't you at least tell us what it is?" pleaded Trunks, equally dismayed at the added delay.

"No," replied Videl, her arms crossed. Goten looked over at Gohan, hoping for some small glimmer of hope, but Gohan shook his head.

"Why not?" repeated Goten.

"Because, little brother," began Gohan, "Mom made me promise not to give them to you till Friday."

"Friday?" asked Goten.

"Yes, Friday," interceded Chichi.

"But why?"

"Because you and Trunks have that project for school to finish, and if they give them to you now, you'll never finish it," stated Chichi, as she placed her hands on her hips, a sure sign that further prompting would only invite an outburst.

However, he was at least spared from further lecture by the arrival of Goku, Vegeta, and Bulma, for once without Bra trailing after her. No doubt Pan and Bra were taking a nap.

"Gohan, Videl!" exclaimed Goku, surprised. "When'd you get back?"

"Just now," replied Gohan, but before he could say anything else, he was interrupted by none other than King Kai.

"GOKU!" shouted King Kai, his voice carried from the other world.

"What? King Kai, is that you?" asked Goku looking up, startled.

"Yes Goku," replied King Kai, "I've contacted you to warn you."

"Warn me about what?"

"There is a spaceship headed for Earth at this very moment."

"A spaceship?" echoed Goku, his curiosity aroused at the prospect. "Do you have any idea of what it might be?"

"I'm afraid not, Goku. Whoever it is, they're able to hide themselves from detection."

"Well, do you know when it will be here?"

"According to my calculations, it should land about 200 miles northeast of your current location in less than in hour."

"One hour! That doesn't give us much time at all."

"I know. Good luck, Goku."

"Right. Thanks, King Kai."

"What's going on?" asked Videl, confused by the sudden appearance of a voice with no speaker. No matter how long she lived with the Son family, she wondered if she would ever be able to get used to all their quirks.

"It looks like lunch is going to have to wait. The spaceship's going to be here in less than an hour," said Goku, a grim look on his face.

Vegeta looked up. Finally, he thought, a battle.

"Oh no," complained Bulma. As was to be expected, her sentiments were the exact opposite of Vegeta's. "Not another battle."

Gohan looked at his father. "What do you think, Dad?" he asked. "Will it be a new enemy?"

"I don't know," replied Goku, scratching his head. "I can't even sense a power approaching."

"Well, it has to be something," interrupted Vegeta, impatient as always. "Why are we still standing here? We should be on our way already."

"He's right," conceded Goku. "We better get going."

"Can we come?" asked Goten, barely able to keep himself from jumping up and down. There had been any fights in ages, and he could only hope he wouldn't have to miss this one.

"I don't see why not," answered Goku, with a shrug. His attitude was, however, a bit too casual for his wife.

"What do you mean!" objected Chichi, giving Goku an indignant look. "Of course he can't go! It's too dangerous!"

"That goes for you too, Trunks," added Bulma, equally concerned.

"But Mom... we never get to do anything fun," complained Trunks, disappointed by her refusal to the question he had not yet even asked.

"Fun!" outburst Bulma, not at all pleased. "How can you call fighting fun? Vegeta, I swear, this is all your fault. You're the one who put these crazy notions in his head that fighting is fun!"

When Vegeta didn't answer, Trunks used the silence to continue his plea.

"Please," begged Trunks. "We'll be careful. Honest."

"Come on Mom," pleaded Goten.

"Well..." began Chichi, her resolve starting to weaken.

"Please!" they pleaded in unison.

"Come on Chichi," said Goku, joining in. "They'll be fine. We'll look out for them."

"I give up," conceded Bulma. "Trunks, you can go. But," she continued, turning to face Vegeta, "he better come home in one piece or I'll--"

"Calm down, woman," replied Vegeta. "He'll be fine."

"What about me?" asked Goten, looking at his mother. "Can I go, too?"

"I suppose," she relented, sighing at her defeat.

"All right!" cheered Goten.

* * * * *

Fifteen minutes later Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Goten, and Trunks were flying towards the location. Videl had stayed behind to keep Chichi and Bulma calm. She also knew that if the opponent was very powerful, she would only get in the other's way.

Despite Vegeta's normal stern outward expression, it was obvious he was pleased at the prospect of a fight. Goku, too, looked forward to the opportunity to do battle. Gohan was a little less eager for battle, but, as always, he was ready. Goten and Trunks just looked excited because they were actually being allowed to go.

"There," called out Goku, pointing towards the ground. "Should be somewhere around here." That said, he descended, and everyone else followed his lead. They landed in a desert-like plain in what appeared to be the middle of nowhere.

"Sense anything yet?" asked Gohan, looking up at the sky. He half expected to see a spaceship appear, but he knew it was still too early.

"No, not yet," replied Goku.

"Must still be too early," commented Vegeta, breaking his usual silence.

"How much time's left?" questioned Gohan.

"About twenty minutes," answered Goku.

Goten and Trunks stood still for a little while before they got bored and sat down on the dusty ground.

"What do you think it'll be?" asked Goten, hoping to find some sort of a diversion with which to pass the time. Twenty minutes seemed like an eternity to him.

"I don't know. Maybe it's not really anything," answered Trunks, his answer noncommittal.

"Well, it has to be someone," persisted Goten.

"Well... maybe they're peaceful."

"I don't know about that. Why would they be hiding?"

"I don't know. Maybe they're running away from something."

* * * * *

Out in the cold, dark space, the much talked about spaceship had just flown by Mars. The inside of the ship was dark. A small figure sat alone, hidden by the shadows. An automated voice broke the silence.

"Prepare for arrival in ten minutes." The figure got up and walked slowly over to the control panel where it pressed a few buttons on the control panel. "Landing sequence set," confirmed the machine.

The figure then walked back to where it had been and sat back down, once again hidden by the shadows.

* * * * *

Back on Earth, Trunks and Goten were going crazy with the waiting. They were both lying down on the ground staring up at the sky, hoping something, anything, would happen soon.

"How much longer?" Goten asked Gohan for what must have been the 100th time.

"I already told you," returned Gohan, glancing over at him only briefly.

"Well, I forgot," explained Goten, sitting up.

Gohan sighed but then answered, "Probably another ten minutes."

Goten looked disappointed at the news but said nothing more.

"Vegeta," said Goku, "You sense anything yet?"

Vegeta remained silent. He seemed not to have heard.

"Vegeta," repeated Goku, a bit louder this time.

He looked up, almost startled. "What?"

"Can you sense anything yet?"

"No," he answered.

Goku looked at Vegeta. It had taken a long time to convince Vegeta to change sides from evil to good, but now he was one of Earth's strongest defenders. However, he had always remained a bit distant to everyone except Bulma and his son. Trunks was very different from his father, but little else could be expected from their two very different backgrounds.

At that moment, a tiny speck, which they could only assume was the spaceship, appeared in the sky. It grew in size as it descended and confirmed beyond doubt that it was a spaceship.

"That's it," announced Goku, though everyone had already seen it. "Let's go."

It grew larger and larger, lighting up the sky. Finally it landed, created a rather large crater on the fortunately unpopulated ground.

Inside the spaceship, the automated voice stated, "Landing sequence complete."

The small figure stood up and went back to the control panel. It entered in a few more keys, before the computer's voice once again broke the silence.

"Scanning the area... The planet is Earth."

At this announcement, the figure looked up. It entered in a few more keys.

"Scanning for high power levels... There are three very high powers and two smaller ones present in the immediate area. Location: 75 ft. west."

"I still can't figure out what it is," said Goku, his voice quieter now than it had been. "I felt a power level for a second, but then it just faded."

"Whoever it is," added Vegeta, "they're trying to hide their power, but there's only one person."

"I want to know who's inside," whispered Goten to Trunks.

"Shh!" warned Gohan. "The door's opening."

All five of the fighters tensed. The door opened slowly, revealing the darkness from inside the ship. Then the small figure appeared in the door.

"What!" exclaimed Trunks, taking a step back.

"No way!" added Goten, his eyes wide.

"It's... it's a girl!" finished Trunks as he stared back at the visitor.

The person inside the ship was, without a doubt, a girl. She wore dark clothes, which made her difficult to see while standing in the doorway of her ship. On her back she carried a sword, which was still in its sheath. She was shorter than Goten and Trunks and appeared to be younger than them as well. Her blue eyes darted about as she observed her surroundings. She bit her lip as she tried to meet the stares of those who had found her.

The five warriors looked unsure of what to do. They had been ready for fierce warriors or little green men from outer space, anything. Anything but a little girl.

"Who are you?" asked Goku, surprised though he was.

She forced herself to look back at them. She sensed something about them; they shared a similar trait with her. They could be trusted, at least for now.

"I am Azuri, a saiyan from Planet Xenon," she introduced herself, as she stood up straighter and raised her head to look back at them.

The statement left a look of complete surprise on everyone's faces.

And that's all she wrote. ^_^ Heh heh... well, that's it for Chapter 1. Did you like, hate, didn't care? Tell me. It doesn't help if I don't know. ~_^

~Azuri

dbzazuri@yahoo.com