Hey guys and gals.

Sorry about the long hiatus between the updates, but between my workload in college (which is close to non-existent) and my laziness, it took this long to get this chapter out.  This chapter is easily twice as long as my previous chapters, and I've decided that the following chapters will be at least this long as to prevent my story from spanning over too many chapters.  Few long chapters will be much more manageable than many long chapters, and certainly more satisfying to you, my readers.

I promise to get at least one chapter out every week.  In the meantime, please read and review.  Any and all reviews are welcome and remember, the best reviewer gets a spot in the story.  It's a gimmick, but I'm hoping it works.

And most important of all, enjoy my story.

Keep that pen moving.

            A blue haired woman sat hunched over her desk lit by a single desk lamp in an otherwise darkened room.  She furiously scribbled various numbers and algorithms on a blank sheet of paper.  As useful as computers were, she despised using them when working on a new project.

            Her desk was neatly organized: a stack of papers stood on the left side of her desk so that she wouldn't knock them over accidentally when she was writing.  Her computer monitor sat further back on the desk, far enough back so that she could look at the screen for an extended period of time without driving herself blind.  The actual tower of the computer that stored all of its information lay to the right of the desk.  Tucked underneath the desk surface was another pull-out surface where the keyboard and mouse lay.  To the right of the pull-out surface were three desk drawers, the top drawer containing various rulers and writing utensils and calculator.  The second drawer contained numerous disks, each containing millions of bits of information.  The third drawer contained numerous hard copies of files, papers, and conceptual designs.

            A shelf hung over the desk, littered with book on various topics in sciences and mathematics – despite being a famed scientist and inventor, even she could not be asked to retain all the information.

            The desk itself was in the corner of the room, and a large window adorned the left wall.  Oftentimes, she'd look out the window and enjoy the view of the peaceful forest, while her mind wandered, gathering bits and pieces of inspiration seemingly out of nowhere.

            This was not her home, but she spent much of her time here.  This was not her laboratory, but she spent much of her time in research here.  This was not her bedroom, but she often let herself fall asleep here.

            Bulma, the head researcher of Capsule Corporation deigned the use of advanced technology in the early stages of research.  All of her concepts were conceived, considered, reviewed and refined in this small room of maybe 20 square feet.  She put them to work in the lab, and that was all that was done in the lab – the manifestation of the concept.  All other work occurred here.

            And Bulma was likewise working on a new concept design when she was interrupted by the opening of the door.

            A short bald man walked in through the door and greeted Bulma with a smile.

"Hey, Bulma."

Bulma turned from her workstation to face the guest.  When she recognized who it was, a radiant smile spread itself over her pretty face.

"Kurilin!  How are you?"  She raised herself from her chair and met Kurilin with a  big hug.  Bulma held on for a moment before pulling herself away and looking the short man in the face.

Kurilin chuckled.  "I'm doing just fine.  How are you doing?"

Bulma shrugged nonchalantly.  "Tired, I guess.  I've been cooped up in this room for a long time, working on this new project."
            The other man raised an eyebrow.  "Why aren't you at Capsule Corp?  I'm sure they have better accommodations than here in the Rebel Compound."

Bulma nodded thoughtfully before responding.  "I know, but I seem to work better here.  And ever since Kold's Empire took control of Earth and with it Capsule Corp, I just don't feel as comfortable working there.  Besides, the work that I'm doing right now isn't something that can be done at Capsule Corp.  There are too many eyes there."

Kurilin nodded.  "So what is this new project your working on now?"

Bulma's eyes brightened.  She simply loved explaining her work to others.  "Well, it isn't something for home use, that's for sure."  She smiled.  "It's actually a new type of battle armor."

"Oh, yeah?" Kurilin urged, "what does it do?"

Bulma took a deep breath before continuing.  "Okay, you know and I know that all human's have a basic metabolism, right?  That's the process that provides energy for our bodies to use.  But you know that all life emits a certain ki, another type of energy.  More complex the life form, the more ki that the life form produces, generally.  So, all human to a degree emit some ki.

"It turns out, that the energy produced during metabolism is actually very similar to ki that all life forms produce, except that ki has a much higher frequency.  What that basically means, there's more of it in a smaller space," she explained as she brought her hands closer together, as if squashing some imaginary thing.

Kurilin nodded blankly.  Bulma saw that the other man understood very little of this.

"Okay, think of it like this," she said as she walked over to her computer.  She turned it on and started the audio player program. 

She clicked on a button, producing a pitch.  "This is the note A.  Its frequency is about 440 hertz per second."

Kurilin nodded again.

She clicked on another button, producing a higher note.  "This is the note D.  It's higher pitch, likewise, has a higher frequency.  This is kind of like what ki is, compared to just regular energy."

A small smile formed on Bulma's lips as she said, "Now look."

Bulma produced a microphone from her desk and hooked it up to the computer.  She spoke into the microphone.

"My voice is louder, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

The smile grew larger as she took the microphone away from her mouth and held it to the speaker.

A sharp, teeth-rattling squeal filled the room, forcing Kurilin to cover his ears and scream, "Hey!"

Bulma quickly shut off the microphone, killing the sound, and chuckled.

"What'd you do that for?" Kurilin complained.

"It was an example of positive feedback."

"Positive feedback?"

"Uh huh.  What a microphone does is, it amplifies the sound, which is then produced by the speaker.  When you take the microphone to the speaker, it creates a kind of cycle – the speaker produces a noise, very small, imperceptible noise, the mic amplifies it, sends it to the speaker, and the speaker produces it again, which is again captured by the mic.  And what you heard is the noise, amplified many times over.

"You have to understand that the initial sound was very, very quiet, yet the result, as you well know, was very painful.  So, I thought, what if you applied this to ki?"

Bulma took in a deep breath before continuing again.  "The actual mechanics of this is very complex, but in its simplest form, this is what it says.

"What if you created a kind of microphone for ki?  A kind of input-output system.  Ki goes in, ki comes out, but greatly amplified.  What I did was, I created an input – a mic, if you will – and instead of just producing an amplified version of it, I feed it back into the person, stimulating him to create more ki.  He produces more, the mic captures it, feeds it back in, and the ki keeps on getting amplified through positive feedback until it hits a given threshold, where resulting ki is manifested in a physical form.

"According to previous data stored in the computer and further testing, it turns out that we actually can create this.  We're thinking about making a blaster attachment to it, so that people who don't know how to control ki can use it, too.  And that'll be the major issue, really, controlling the created energy.  But we think that through training and practice, they can at least use the blaster.  Hopefully, we'll be able to modify on this model to enable flight and faster movement.

"Another problem, and this one may be the only one stopping us, if at all, from creating this armor, is that it'll be very draining for the user.  According to tests, ki-stimulation is very difficult on the subject – they get tired very quickly.  We're thinking about adding a power-pack to alleviate this problem, but the fact is, the suit may only be effective for maybe half an hour, a whole hour, if we use the power pack."

Bulma reached up and brushed her lush blue hair out of her eyes and looked up at her guest.  "So, what do you think?"

Kurilin smiled in return.  "I think it's great.  Will anybody be able to use it?"

Bulma nodded.  "Yes.  Depending on how ever many suits we'll be able to put out,"  Bulma sat down at the desk and turned to face the computer as she continued, "but people like Hope won't be able to – he's too powerful.  He'd just blow the suit up as soon as he  turns it on."

Bulma typed in a command at the computer and pulled up a chart.  "But the problem comes with the research.  We simply don't have enough money in research.  We're trying to get some grants from various private ownerships, but they don't have a lot of funds either.  Besides, they are very hesitant about funding for a project they know nothing about, and we can't risk telling them."

Bulma bit her lower lip and frowned.  "Kold takes 51% of all gross income for all companies.  We don't see the money put to use at all.  We have to downsize, reducing actual production.  It's difficult to even get raw materials to work with because the Empire controls all of that.  So ultimately, Capsule Corp is a private corporation only in name."

She growled in frustration.  "If we just had something to finish the research, we could at least start working on the prototype."

Kurilin smiled down at her benevolently.  "I think I might be able to help you there."

Bulma raised an eyebrow.  "Really?  How?"

"Well, I recently entered and won the Tenkaichi Boudokai," Kurilin replied proudly.  "I have about one hundred thousand credits to work with."

"That's great!"  Bulma exclaimed genuinely.  "That really ought to be enough to finish all the research.  We're in the last steps in research anyway.  We could have a working prototype in about 6 months!"  Bulma paused and gasped.  She looked up at Kurilin with a worried expression.  "You entered the Tenkaichi Boudokai?  Isn't that dangerous?  What if one of Kold's men found out about you?"

Kurilin smirked.  "Well, that's the idea."  Kurilin looked directly into Bulma's eyes.  "Guess who else was there."

"Who?"

Kurilin's smirk grew into a full smile.  "Piccolo."

"Piccolo?  He's alive?"  Bulma was shocked.  "That's means Kami is, too."  She gasped.  "And the dragon balls…"

Kurilin firmly shook his head.  "No, Piccolo destroyed them when the saiyans killed Goku.  The saiyans in turn killed Piccolo."

"How did Piccolo come back?"

Kurilin shrugged.  "Your guess is as good as mine.  I've not talked to Piccolo yet, and King Kai didn't mention how Piccolo was able to leave his planet and the afterlife.  I think Enma Daio granted him a second life, but I don't know how he bent the rules."  Kurilin ran his hand over his bald pate.  "The point is, King Kai had Piccolo and me there at the tournament for a reason.  We were supposed to get Kold's attention."

Bulma was completely baffled.  "Why?"

"We need to take down Kold's Empire.  We can't get to him, so we'll bring him here.  Apparently, we're supposed to get some new help.  As a matter of fact, I was going to Kamesennin's island to check one of them out."

Bulma nodded.  It made sense, in a crazy reckless sort of way.  Of course, reckless in the suicidal sense.  "So, you're heading out?"

"Yeah," Kurilin replied.  His expression turned grim.  "Things are in motion now.  If everyone does their part, we should come away in pretty good shape."

            All this space.  Billions of star systems capable of supporting life on one or more of their satellites.  Out of those systems, only a million actually retain life.  And of those, only a hundred thousand have intelligent life forms.  And they all fall into about five thousand different civilizations.  Soon, all that will be under our Empire under Emperor Kold.

            Zarbon stared intently into the blackness sprinkled with numerous stars.  He knew of course, that he was only seeing the light from those stars that had traveled millions of years just to reach his eye.  Realizing such a fact made looking into the stars almost a surreal experience.

Standing in the bridge of the flagship Imminent Doom, Zarbon found himself reflecting on many of the recent events:  the fall of the Kapria system and with it, the fall of its neighboring systems, the inter-system trade in the north galaxy finally falling under Kold's Empire, and… the unusual activities on the planet Earth.

While the activities on a single planet had no real significance in the grand scheme of things, Emperor Kold demanded that a close watch be kept on the particular planet.  This arose from several factors.

First, the planet Earth had bred some extraordinarily strong fighters.  When Prince Vegeta had been sent to the planet, he had encountered strong resistance.  Radditz, the saiyan warrior who'd been sent before him, had failed completely.  This forced Vegeta, much stronger fighter, to personally attend to the planet.  Although Vegeta had succeeded in taking over the planet, he had lost his personal guard, Nappa in the process.  Vegeta had not returned in such good shape either.  As a matter of fact, after his battle for Earth, he requested a taskforce to be sent in to finish the job.  Vegeta always finished an assignment personally.

This caused some worry in Zarbon, despite having successfully taken over the planet.  It was he, as a matter of fact, who'd requested close watch over the planet.  Kold had initially rejected the idea, but the following events changed his mind.

There was constant rebellion and uprising that had to be put down.  A couple of times they had come close to succeeding, but Zarbon had taken care of the problem by sending more powerful soldiers.  In fact, Earth required some of the stronger fighter's in Kold's Imperial Army to maintain control.

As nearly as he could tell, the rebellion was led by a man who rivaled many elite fighters in the Imperial Army.  One man was already a handful, but recent findings revealed that there were two more fighters who were almost as strong as he was.  Notably, they had both revealed themselves during the world fighting tournament held every few years on Earth.  The tournament had been held several times previous, but they had never revealed such powerful fighters.  One of the warriors, a Namek, of all races, was calculated to be as strong as, if not stronger than, many of the fighters in Kold's Elite Guards.  The second, a human, was considerably less powerful, but still was on the level of many elite fighters in the Army.

These developments led Kold to impose an embargo on planet Earth, restricting any ships from entering or leaving the planet.  It seemed, that without a way to get off the planet, the earthlings were doing their best to make as much trouble as they could.  They seemed to figure that if they could not make an impact off-planet, then they'd bring trouble upon themselves and make an impact that way.

It was brave and bold, to say the least.  If the gamble paid off, word could get out and cause all kinds of rebellion on other planets.  If they failed, the planet would surely be destroyed, if only for all the hassle they caused.  Zarbon had no intention of them succeeding in their gamble.

Zarbon had sent a taskforce of some elite fighters and Dodoria.  Dodoria was a powerful fighter, but not too swift; perfect for the role of enforcer.  Zarbon knew that that may not be enough, so he'd notified his immediate superior, Freeza.

Freeza was Kold's second son, and the commander of the Imminent Doom.  Ruthless and vicious, the most frightening characteristic about him was that he was completely and utterly unpredictable.  It made working under him difficult, but Zarbon, through his wits, had avoided the wrath of the tyrant Icejin.  Sending a preemptive taskforce was just another precaution.  Whatever the case may be, Zarbon refused to be caught unprepared.

And so it was for Zarbon, always planning ahead.  Soon, he'd plan far enough ahead to overcome Freeza.  A man was nothing if not his ambition.

Zarbon contemplated all of these things.  He was the most powerful being after Freeza and as such, he was given much power and control.  But he wanted more.  Ultimately, he'd surpass Freeza, carve out his own sector of the galaxy, ruling it as he saw fit.  This problem on Earth was minor nuisance in the big picture, but a nuisance that had to be destroyed as quickly as possible.

In a deep secluded part of the forest, Akira stood at the edge of a cliff, overlooking a river.  Akira often came to this spot whenever he had time to himself.  Ever since training had started, he had lost all communication with the people he had known.  He knew that for a long time yet, he'd not be able to go back to them.  While he wished he could have told at least his aunt and uncle, he needed to focus wholly on his training.  And that's the kind of sacrifice I need to make.

            And the training with Piccolo was going as well as he could have hoped.  Akira knew his power increased exponentially.  Although I wouldn't know it, what with all the weighted clothing I have on all the time.  Piccolo gives me heavier clothing just to keep me uncomfortable.  I don't even know how much my clothes weigh now.

            Akira grimaced.  His skill and technique had improved beyond belief.  When he looked at his reflection in the water, Akira saw a chiseled young man look back at him, and he knew he'd grown physically as well.  He even improved when it came to the efficiency of motion and the sphere of awareness.  He was able to achieve finer control in his sphere and anticipate more incoming attacks.  While it was not nearly a hundred percent – the ugly bruises that adorned his face and body indicated at least as much – he was able to avoid attacks that only weeks ago would have destroyed him.

            At the same time, Akira knew he wasn't quite there yet.  He'd be able to, in the sparring matches, realize moves before Piccolo acted on them, and evade them handily.  Akira even got bold enough to attempt a counterattack.  But whenever he got too close, Piccolo would just turn it up one more notch and beat him senseless.

            Additionally, Akira had proved himself terribly inadequate when it came to ki-manipulations.  He was able to control ki as far as sensing it, and seeing where it fit in with his surroundings.  He was able to see the web of ki that Piccolo always referred to.  He knew it existed, within and around him, but when it actually came to manipulating it, he could not even manifest it in the form of a single spark.

            This drove him to meditate upon it nightly.  Piccolo reassured him that his ability would grow eventually, but for Akira it would not come soon enough.  As good a fighter as he'd become, he had not improved as far as his ki-level was concerned.  And Akira knew that as long as he failed to touch the ki that resided in him his ki-level would never increase, and he'd be ineffective in the upcoming battle against Kold's men.

            Which was what ultimately brought him here.  It was one of those rare days when Akira had a day off from training.  Regardless, he found himself here.  Not to meditate, but to finally come to terms with his ki-ability.

            His theory lay in the idea that he'd not be able to access that energy reservoir unless he absolutely had to.  Only when he left himself no option of failure, and only then, could he succeed.

            The river below him was usually quiet and calm – which made for a great meditation spot – but today, it was coursing with fierce energy.  The rainstorm from the night before had flooded the river; the flowers and the rocks that adorned the riverbanks could no longer be seen beneath the churning water.  Akira knew that there was no way that if he ever fell in, he'd not be able to swim his way out, much less upstream.

            With that in mind, he stepped off the edge of the cliff, weighted clothing and all.

            The icy cold water clutched at him, and Akira's muscles clenched in the harsh shock.  It soaked him, held him, and suffocated him.  He fought back an urge to scream and forced his body to swim.  He pointed his body opposite the current and began to make his way upstream.

            It took tantamount strength to even keep himself afloat.  In an instant, Akira began to doubt his decisions – and in that moment, Akira knew that he'd just committed himself to death.  Fury and panic both stabbed into his brain.  Consciously forcing the panic from his heart, he let the fury drive his determination.  There's no room for failure now.  Therefore, I have no choice but to succeed.  There is no try.  Now do it!

            Akira reached deep within himself and searched for that well of energy.  He let his physical form slip from his mind, and for the first time in his life, he opened himself fully to his environment.  While his body fought furiously against the current, Akira forced his mind away from his physical form and concentrated instead on his surroundings.  He felt the energy of the river, threatening to pull him down to the icy cold depths.  He felt the energy within him, the energy of his emotions, of his physical being.  And finally, when he had no more energy, he found it.

            Akira was no longer conscious of his physical surroundings.  Instead, he noticed the ki that was created by life all around him.  He let his doubts flow away with the river, and he finally believed.  He no longer considered the possibility of using ki, but the inevitability of using ki.  Finally, he had it.

            The power that sprang forth from his core filled Akira with warmth.  His vision cleared, and his heart began to pound with unbound energy.  He felt the ki fill him, and when his body could contain it no more, he felt the ki pour out of him.

            Akira understood what was happening more by instinct rather that any rational thought.  He embraced this new found ki and covered himself with it.  It was easy to finally control it and manipulate it now that he had access.  He let every fiber of his being become infused by ki and began to swim strongly.

            This strength was nothing like he knew before.  Piccolo told him that he could tell Akira all about ki, how to access it, how to use it, but that Akira had to come to realize it on his own.  That could not be taught.  Piccolo had shown him the door, and Akira had finally opened it.

            He slid easily upstream against the current, but he knew he could do more.  Akira let more ki pour forth and used it to surround himself.  He glowed with electric energy.  The air and the water crackled with energy.  Akira's heart filled with warmth, passion, happiness, and intensity all at the same time.  After he collected enough ki, he let it explode out of him.

            Surrounded now by a crackling blue-white aura, Akira shot upstream, heedless of the water coursing down against him.  He added more ki and shot out of the water and into the sky, exhilaration racing through his veins.  He had done it.  He had finally stepped through that last door into a new world.