Chapter 22 – The One-Star Dragon

Every time Trunks tried to attack Nightros Shenron, he was already in a different place. The combination of the dragon's own powers and Goten's Super Saiyan 2 body made him very difficult for Trunks to fight.

"Aargh! Stop moving!" he yelled, punching what had previously been Nightros Shenron's head, but was now empty space.

"Stop moving?" came the incredulous reply from above him. "But that takes all the fun out of it!" Trunks flung a ki blast at the voice, but the dragon swatted it back at him and appeared in front of him.

"Fine," he said. "You want me not to move, I won't move. See if you do any better."

Fuming, knowing Nightros Shenron was toying with him, Trunks brought his fist back and slammed it into the dragon's face. There was a pause while he withdrew his fist. There was a slight grimace on Nightros Shenron's face, and his nose bled slightly. He wiped it with his sleeve and spat onto the ground.

"There," he said in disgust. "I hope you've amused yourself. But you see what I mean? Moving around is just more fun." He shot downward.

Trunks looked down and received a flying kick in the stomach. He attempted to punch the dragon's face again, but couldn't reach and flailed wildly. Nightros Shenron, his foot still in Trunks' stomach, flipped over quickly and sent him sailing toward the ground.

Trunks regained his senses just in time to come to a split-second halt. An instant later, however, he felt a foot hit his back, and hit the ground with a terrific crash.

He lay on the ground, unable to move: Nightros Shenron still had one foot on his back. He tried to push himself up, but the dragon only pressed harder. He began to laugh in his loud, deep voice, and Trunks groaned against the pressure. He was vaguely aware of his enemy changing his voice; he continued laughing ruthlessly, but now with Goten's voice. Something seemed to go off in Trunks' head at this point.

Nightros Shenron expected Trunks to retaliate. He did not expect the area immediately around them to light up with energy and rise off the ground. He did not expect that the chunk of land would suddenly shatter with a huge blast, or that the blast would come from Trunks.

Trunks wheeled around to face Nightros Shenron and hurled himself at him, punching and kicking simultaneously in different places, sometimes striking with all four limbs at once. The dragon was taken completely by surprise, and it was a moment before he regained himself. He caught Trunks' leg in one arm and blasted him with the other. Then he brought his elbow down on Trunks' head and kicked him away.

But, with a scream, an explosion of ki and a sudden increase in power, Trunks shot forward again and punched Nightros Shenron hard in the face. This time the dragon flew backward head over heels; he had been punched by a Super Saiyan 2.

"You're right!" yelled Trunks savagely, as he whipped around to the other side and performed a roundhouse kick on the dragon's exposed head. "Moving around is more fun!"
A few minutes earlier, Pan and Piccolo had been an effective team, keeping Rage Shenron at bay without overexerting themselves. Now, however, the dragon's anger was building.

The two of them circled around her, darting in for quick attacks when they saw the opportunity. Rage Shenron screamed in frustration, and they both charged in from opposite sides. Suddenly, the dragon shot a powerful ki beam at Pan while kicking behind herself at Piccolo's chest. Both attacks connected.

Rage Shenron grabbed Pan and threw her down into Piccolo, then swooped down and headbutted both of them into the ground. Piccolo flipped onto his feet and fired a series of ki boomerangs, but the dragon destroyed them with two blasts from her hands, which she then redirected toward her adversaries on the ground. Pan got up and countered both beams with two of her own. All four beams were deadlocked for a moment. Then Rage Shenron bellowed with anger, and Pan was overcome. There was a huge explosion.

Pan and Piccolo lay in a heap inside a crater. Rage Shenron flew down to them regardless. She picked them both up and hurled them into a nearby mountain, which collapsed on top of them. She charged toward the debris, which shot out in all directions just as she reached it. There stood Pan, breathing heavily and glowing with energy. Piccolo lay unconscious beside her.

The dragon and the part-Saiyan looked at each other with equal resentment in their eyes. They flew at each other and collided, attacking each other with more ferocity than either had ever known. Both of their power levels rose more and more, but Pan's was slowing down. She wasn't sure how much more she could take. Syn Shenron glared down at Goku with contempt.

"What...do you want?" gasped Goku.

"I wanted to meet you," rumbled the dragon.

"Why?" Goku demanded.

"To see for myself the man responsible for my existence. Before he dies. Alas, Nova Shenron succumbed to frail ideas like fair play and justice, and I had to kill him. It is regrettable, but this way I have the privilege of killing you myself."

He didn't look as though he regretted Nova Shenron's death at all. "How am I...responsible...for your existence?" Goku asked.

"You were a fool, Son Goku, and you have foolish friends. You should have remained dead all those years ago when Piccolo's Makankousappo killed you. In wishing you back to life, your friends created the energy that would eventually become me."

"But...that was a long time ago! The energy...should have become weaker...since then!" He began to inch his fingertips toward his pocket again.

"Indeed, it should have," continued the dragon, a smile spreading across his face. "So it is with the other shadow dragons, who were created from your defeated foes. Frieza, Cell, Majin Buu! Baby! The Demon King Piccolo! They are all dead! But you, Son Goku, you lived on, and not only that...you became far stronger than any before you. And the energy from that wish grew more potent, and here I stand, stronger than any before me. And now..."

Goku had managed to grasp the senzu bean from inside his pocket. In an instant, he withdrew his hand and shot it toward his mouth. Syn Shenron's eyes filled with fire, and he uttered a cry of indescribable anger.

"RRRAAAAARGH!" he howled, kicking Goku's arm as hard as he could. Goku felt it crack in several places as he flipped over four times to a spot thirty feet away. The senzu was far out of his reach. His strength completely gave out, and he collapsed, back in Base form.

"I will not make the same mistake as countless others before me!" screamed Syn Shenron. "You will not transform! You will die, here and now!" He was hovering directly over Goku, pointing at him.

"Now listen well, Son Goku. I am going to fire a thin beam at you. At this angle it will pierce your heart and the Earth's core." He brushed distractedly at the back of his head for a moment. "You will die instantly, while the rest of this miserable planet will perish slowly, horribly, not knowing at first what it is that's boiling them to death. But they will come to realize it, and the screams will echo all over the world." He brushed his head again, growling slightly. "How does it feel to be on the brink of death, Son Goku?"

"Nothing...I haven't...already experienced," murmured Goku, closing his eyes.

The dragon's finger glowed. "Indeed," he said. "Now, goodb--WHAT IS THAT!"

Goku's eyes snapped open. Syn Shenron was rubbing the back of his head vigorously. Now Goku could see a small, concentrated beam of ki burning it. The dragon wheeled around to see what it was, and the beam caught him in the eyes. He roared in pain.

"Hyaah!" cried Vegeta as he flew down and kicked Syn Shenron hard in the face. He stumbled backward a few steps, clutching it. Vegeta landed a few feet away and turned his head to Goku.

"Why haven't you used the true Super Saiyan form, Kakarot?" he asked. "The one you were trained to use!"

"I...I never achieved it!" yelled Goku. He was in complete shock.

So, apparently, was Vegeta. "W-what?" he stammered. The confusion, however, quickly melted into a delighted grin. "It finally happened, then, Kakarot. I had given up hope that it would."

"What?"

Vegeta raised his eyes to the full moon and clenched his fists. "I've...SURPASSED YOU!"

The entire Earth shook as an enormous rumbling filled Goku's ears. A bright light had enveloped Vegeta; the ground was cracking all around him as he yelled louder and louder. Goku was thrown backward. He didn't think he would have survived if he hadn't been watching so intently. The enormous ki flying out in every direction split the sky, and lightning shot across it. All over the globe houses crumbled, trees whipped across the streets, terrified families hid for their lives in their basements. Syn Shenron stood rooted to the spot, transfixed in horror.

When the light began to fade and the trembling died down, Goku lay still, open-mouthed. Vegeta was still standing there, but he was changed. His hair had grown a little down his back and shoulders, though it remained black. Thick, dark red fur covered his neck, back, and arms, leaving his chest bare. There were small patches of red behind his eyes, and--most noticeably of all--a long, furry tail extended from his behind. Had it been there before?

He smiled at the stunned expression on Goku's face, then turned back to Syn Shenron, who wore an identical one. Vegeta looked as though he wanted to say something, but he could only laugh.

"V...Vegeta...?" stammered the dragon.

"Vegeta!" Goku blurted out. "How did you...I mean...you're a Super Saiyan 4!"

Vegeta glanced down at Goku disdainfully. "Super Saiyan 4, Kakarot? Don't make me laugh! If you knew the power I'm feeling right now you wouldn't dare compare it to the Super Saiyan!"

"But how did it happen?"

"The Kaioshins took me to their planet just after you left, Kakarot. As I trained in my cave, my mind was completely at ease, and they were able to collect my consciousness while leaving my body on Earth.

"They told me all about the ancient Super Saiyan of Legend and the form he had achieved, and the means to achieve it myself. They assumed that because of my past I would be more...predisposed to rage than you, and they were right! All it took was one memory, and the anger in my heart was revived! And here I am," he finished with rapture, enjoying his new form.

"What memory?" asked Goku. Vegeta grinned still wider.

"Our last battle, after Babidi tried to enslave my mind," he said. "I was already at my full power; the conditions were perfect! You withheld your true power that day, Kakarot. But I hold nothing back now."

"But you never achieved Super Saiyan 3!"

"I told you, Kakarot! This is a form far beyond anything the Super Saiyan forms can do! I didn't need to progress to that level in order to reach this one! You watch, Kakarot; I think you'll find that this form can get the job done by itself."

"Oh, yeah?" said Syn Shenron, who had recovered from his shock. "Let me put that to the test."

"Very well," replied Vegeta. He crouched, and the dragon did the same. With a flash, they had both disappeared. Goku saw them reappear high above the ground, flashing across the sky with extreme speed. Goku hadn't yet seen what Syn Shenron could do, but it looked to be far more than Nova Shenron. After a few seconds their movements became impossible for Goku to follow, and he gave up.

At that moment, Syn Shenron and Vegeta reappeared on the ground, fifty feet apart.

"HAAAAAAA!" they both cried, drawing their fists back and rushing at each other.

Their fists collided with a noise like a crack of thunder. Visible shockwaves emanated in all directions from the point of impact, splitting nearby mountains neatly in half, and rupturing the Earth itself. Both of their faces were focused on the other, teeth clenched.

The damage was over. Vegeta and Syn Shenron stood there, fists still connected, standing still in the dark, lightning-filled sky, wind swirling around them. Finally, the dragon withdrew his fist and yelled in pain, clutching it with his other hand.

A low laugh slowly escaped Vegeta.