A/N: Maybe you think now that I'm spoiling you, but I just decided today that, seeing as this story is slowly coming to an end, this is going to have the highest priority until it is finished. This way I can fully concentrate on my other stories and maybe continue another third one that I've left hanging far too long.

And again, did I ever say that the Dragonballs can fulfill wishes? No, I don't think I mentioned that anywhere… Whatever, I'm glad you liked that last chapter and I hope that this chapter isn't too bad. I'm not that proud of it, but I also don't know how I could have done it better without stretching it too much. I still don't know why I'm always writing stories with fighting scenes, because I think that I'm not really talented to write those scenes…

However, I hope you like it!

Have fun!

Chapter 39: The final Battle – Part II

While he was waiting until Frieza was ready to continue the fight, Son Goku heard the small voice of reason nagging in the back of his mind. This voice sounded suspiciously like General Kaiou, urging him on to obliterate Frieza now that he was distracted, telling him that this was no game. But Goku didn't listen to this voice. The Beast in front of him had coldheartedly killed one of his best friends and it deserved to suffer. It deserved to know that it had been defeated when at its strongest, by a merely monkey.

The voice was right. This was no game. This was war. A war fought to avenge the death of a dear friend and to show her murderer what true humiliation was.

The heat around them was sweltering, the steadily thicker growing black smoke burned in his eyes and lungs, but Goku ignored it all. Bits and pieces from the hangings at the walls and ceiling were falling down and the beams were already groaning dangerously. Goku chanced a small glance at the black chandelier with spikes protruding at the bottom and sides at the ceiling. Ropes that were hanging along the ceiling and went down the walls, where they were tied on level with the windowsills, were the only things that fastened the chandelier. He needed to watch out for it. There was no need getting crushed by it during the fight.

Finally, after endless minutes, Frieza seemed to be finished with gathering his strength, as he straightened his body and relaxed his fists, as well as the look on his face. Where before had been a look of deep concentration, there was now a look of lazy superiority. Goku gritted his teeth. It really seemed as if Frieza was still thinking that he would come out as winner.

"I hope you didn't need to wait too long. I'm now at full strength," Frieza informed him.

Goku didn't allow any emotion cross his face, as he replied, "We don't have a lot of time left. Let's finish this quickly."

"As you wish." Frieza took a step forward and it was then that Goku's gaze fell on what had been hidden behind the lizard the whole time.

Dragonballs! A couple of them were lying on a red velvet pillow on a pedestal, along with one of the magical maps, covered by a glass dome. Goku quickly counted them and noticed in relief that there were only six. Wherever the last one was, it certainly wasn't with Frieza, otherwise he would have used them already – and this would have been fatal.

However, this small moment of carelessness cost Goku, as Frieza had lunged at him unnoticed and embedded his fist in the Saiyajin's stomach. Blood and saliva was flying out of his mouth, as he gasped. The Icejin grabbed his head and brought up his knee, sending Goku stumbling backwards. Son Goku didn't block or dodge, as the Beast continued to assault him with his fist, much to Frieza's amusement.

He jumped back, allowing himself some time to gloat about his power, now that he was fighting at full strength. "What do you think now, Saiyajin? I'm only getting started!"

Goku, who had doubled over slightly after the attacks, slowly raised his head, and, despite the several bruises littering his body and the cut lip, only smirked. "That's what I thought. I would've been disappointed, if that was your best."

Frieza growled inwardly, balling his fists in anger at being again mocked by this monkey, who was clearly, in his opinion, losing this battle. But then also his lips curled up. "I'll pay you a compliment before you die. You were extremely strong for a Saiyajin. You would've been the best, if I wasn't there. But now you finally met your master. In only a few minutes this palace will collapse. Does it bother you?"

"Not at all," Goku only replied, parted his feet lightly and balled his fists, ready to attack or to defend himself. "I just want to kill you right now."

And he needed to defend himself, as Frieza again rushed him with a battle cry. Goku was ready to block his attack, but the Beast jumped over him, turned around and tried to hit the Saiyajin from behind. Goku, however, took a quick step aside and caught Frieza's arm with his own, trapping him. He threw his head back and hit Frieza hard in the face. While the Icejin was crying out in pain, when his head snapped back, Goku grabbed the arm tighter and bent it so much that it almost broke, before he shoved Frieza away from him into the fire.

Frieza managed to stop himself before falling and watched how Goku pulled out his sword. A snarl came over his lips and he attacked again, managing to hit the sword out of the Saiyajin's hand, sending it clattering along the floor.

The fire was surrounding them completely by now. Thick smoke rose to the ceiling. The door was completely blocked, as were the windows. It was getting hotter with each passing minute and the first beam crashed to the ground. It truly wouldn't take long, until the whole building followed its example. Time was running short, for both of them, because while Frieza was immune to fire, he certainly wasn't immune to the weight of a building crushing him.

Another fist collided with Goku's jaw and he stumbled backwards into a wall, just at the same time as other smoldering and burning beams directly above the Saiyajin came falling down, burying him underneath them.

Frieza laughed, though slightly gasping, a loud cruel sound, in victory over the Saiyajin. He couldn't have survived that. "That'll teach you! You could have never beaten me!" He looked around and frowned. He would need to leave the palace soon, if he didn't want to suffer the same fate as the Saiyajin. This certainly wouldn't be good for his reputation. However, first he needed to get the six spheres and the map that he had obtained.

But, just as he wanted to turn around to get the spheres, a rumbling sound caused him to look back. His eyes widened, as the beams fell aside and revealed Son Goku standing in the middle of them – a few burns covered his skin, but otherwise he appeared to be alright.

"Very well," Frieza muttered, when he had gotten over the initial shock that his opponent was still alive after this. "I guess I just have to kill you with my own hands, just like the woman."

"Woman?" Goku growled, stepping out of the rubble and advancing on Frieza. He balled his fists, as a new wave of anger washed over him, filling him with new strength and determination to finally put an end to this fight. His eyes blazed in fury and he yelled, "You're talking about Bulma!"

Frieza didn't seem him coming, as he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his jaw that sent him reeling. He tried to counter the attack and managed a blow at the Saiyajin's side, but it was too weak, as Goku immediately brought up his knee and the Icejin's head snapped back again. Son Goku dodged another punch directed at his head, dancing past the flames and sank his own fist into Frieza's abdomen. The Icejin doubled over and his eyes bulged in pain. He opened his mouth and spat out saliva mingled with blood.

But Frieza also used his chance of Goku's ducked position and, after he had quickly regained his composure, brought the side of his hand down at the Saiyajin's neck, sending him sprawling to the ground momentarily. Goku blinked, dazed, and then saw his opportunity. He swept Frieza off his feet, bringing him down as well.

For someone who might watch the fight, it would appear as if both opponents were evenly matched. This, however was not completely true, as it was visible in those brief breaks that, while Frieza was standing slightly slouched, with his arms hanging heavily at his sides, even if just for a split second, Son Goku was still standing straight, with his head held high and muscles almost bursting with still unused energy.

Both jumped up, a few feet apart until they both rushed at the other again. Son Goku performed a roundhouse kick, which Frieza dodged by ducking, but he got up too early, as the Saiyajin simply repeated the attack and this time hit him with full force at the side of his head.

Frieza wheezed, as he hit the floor hard and slid into the raging flames in the room. Goku heard a snarl and calmly walked up to where he might emerge every second, shoulders squared and his eyes not showing the slightest sign of fatigue. His breathing was calm and steady and he was more than ready for another round, but he had other plans.

He waited until Frieza had crawled out of the flames, but the Icejin had barely gotten to his feet, as Goku brought his elbow down and flung him back to the ground. Frieza never had the chance to recover. The Saiyajin simply swung back his leg and kicked him square across the room, where he hit the floor, hard.

Frieza jumped up again and landed on his feet, panting heavily. Goku looked as determined as ever, back in his defensive stance, but then, suddenly, brought his hands down and straightened his whole body, turning half away from Frieza. "It's over."

The Icejin stared at him in disbelief. "What… what are you talking about?"

"You tired too quickly after having reached your full strength," Goku informed him matter-of-factly. "There's no need to continue this fight." A smirked tugged at his lips, as he continued, "I fought well and I'm satisfied with that. I showed you that there is someone stronger than you and that this someone is a Saiyajin. I'm leaving," he said, completely ignoring Frieza's spluttering, as he tried to form a coherent sentence after Goku's announcement.

"You-you can't… This is…"

Goku dropped out of the level of the Legendary, his hair and eyes turning black again. "If you hurt anyone from now on or go anywhere near me or mine again, I'll make sure to finish this. Wherever you are, I'm going to find you and kill you."

He turned to around, walking slowly towards the pedestal with the Dragonballs, hoping that he could then get through the flames without getting hurt too much and leave the palace. He wondered how far his friends had gotten and how long he would need to catch up with them. Maybe there was still a horse left that he could take.

"Stop… We're not finished, yet!" Frieza yelled, outraged that this Saiyajin was going to abandon their fight like this. "I never lost a single fight!"

Pulling out his sword, he lunged at Goku before he could remove the glass dome from the pedestal. Goku barely managed to avoid being sliced and jumped aside, glowering at Frieza.

"You fool! I gave you one last chance!"

The transformation was not as spectacular as it had been the first time. Now simple golden flames surrounded Goku until his hair had turned the golden blond color and his eyes had become blue-green. Frieza growled and repeatedly swung his sword at the Saiyajin, who evaded it every single time to the Icejin's great annoyance and anger.

"I'll tear you to shreds!" he threatened, growling, but clouded by his anger and exhaustion, his movements were becoming uncoordinated and weaker with each blow.

Goku, who had just sidestepped another attack, replied to Frieza's futile attempts to kill him, "This is your last resort? Just keep swinging until you somehow, by luck, manage to hit me? You're not as good as I thought, Frieza."

They had only left the clearing a few minutes ago and already it seemed as if they were walking for hours. Silent tears were streaming down ChiChi's face. She had done it. She had abandoned her lover. Even though he had told them to leave, she still felt extremely guilty for leaving him behind. It shouldn't be like this. If she were a good wife, she would stand by his side, no matter how dire the situation.

Suddenly her steps fastened and she wiped away the tears, as she heard a quiet groan. "Gohan?" she whispered, when she walked next to Bardock and saw that her son had opened his eyes. He was still ghostly pale and he needed a lot of rest until he was fully recovered, but he appeared to be alright.

"Mom?" the young boy asked sleepily. "Dad?" He looked drowsily up at Bardock, who chuckled slightly.

"Not really. It's me, Bardock. Your grandfather," he told him softly.

"Where's dad?"

"Oh Gohan," ChiChi sighed, not really knowing how to tell him. "He's still back at the palace. Fighting this terrible monster."

"But he will defeat him," Bardock reassured him, when he noticed the slight widening of Gohan's eyes. The boy shouldn't be distressed in a situation like this. "He's The Legendary. He now possesses a power far greater than Frieza's. Don't worry about him. He will catch up with us."

The boy's eyelids already started to droop again, when he mumbled, "Alright." Moments later, he was again fast asleep. ChiChi gave Bardock a worried glance, but he only smiled at her.

"I meant what I said. I trust Kakarotto to defeat Frieza. You, as his wife, should do the same."

Though his words should have calmed her, ChiChi couldn't help but throw a look over her shoulder, and what she saw worried her greatly. Thick black smoke was rising into the sky, darkening the horizon though it was still early afternoon. Goku…

This cat-and-mouse game went on for a few more minutes. The throne room, as well as the rest of the palace, slowly began to disintegrate more and more. The hangings at the ceiling and walls were completely burned up, the chandelier had sunken a bit lower, only being held up by one rope, and it was almost impossible to see anything through the smoke. The burning in Goku's eyes and lungs got worse and he fought to suppress the coughing fits that threatened to overwhelm him. But while he was fighting with the effects of the fire, Frieza only fought with his steadily weaker growing body. There was only one thing that both had in common at this moment. None of them wanted to give him. This was now a battle to death.

"You really need to learn a bit more about sword fighting," Goku told calmly, his throat scratchy because of the smoke, after he had put a bit distance between them. He had said this as if informing him of a fact. Frieza however, took it as an insult, as mockery and snarled at him. "This is just a weak technique you're displaying."

"A weak technique?" Frieza questioned, as he bent down and picked up the sword that Goku had lost earlier in their fight. "Well then, let's see, how you fare against two swords…"

Without another word, the Icejin lunged at his enemy and swung the sword at him. Once again Goku dodged and, due to the force that Frieza had used, the one sword remained stuck in the wall, grazing the last of the ropes that were holding the chandelier. It shuddered violently, but didn't fall, yet. The other sword came down at him. Goku caught it with his bare hands and just the tiniest drop of blood ran down his palm this time.

A small grunt escaped his lips, as he pushed Frieza backwards, and then, with another powerful punch in his face, sent him to the ground. He landed on his back, hitting his head hard, and stayed there for a few seconds. Slowly sitting up and holding the back of his head, he blinked a few times to get rid of the dizziness.

Suddenly, Goku heard the sound of a snapping rope behind him and his head immediately jerked up to the chandelier. "Frieza! Move!" he yelled, just as the last thread tore and the chandelier came crashing down. The Icejin looked up confused, but before he could move at all, he was crushed. He didn't even have time to scream. The spikes pierced his body, stomach, legs and one arm, pinning him to the ground. Blood began to seep through the wounds quickly, a puddle of blood spreading out underneath him. Frieza grunted, as he tried to lift the chandelier with his good arm, but it was too heavy and he was getting too weak too fast.

"Im-impossible," he gasped. He couldn't move at all. This was his end. First defeated and humiliated by a Saiyajin and then killed by his own stupidity. If he hadn't set this fire loose, this wouldn't have happened. "Damn… you… monkey…"

Son Goku stepped up to him, completely ignoring everything around him for the moment being, and looked down at Frieza with something that vaguely resembled pity. "What a pathetic end. But you asked for it." Giving the Icejin one last cold glance, he turned around and once again made his way to the Dragonballs. The heat and the smoke were really getting to him now and he needed to get out of this palace as soon as possible. "I'm leaving now."

"P-please." Frieza's weak, pleading words caused him to look back. "Help me… I… beg you…"

Goku gritted his teeth, fighting with himself. He knew that usually, it wasn't in his nature to just let a wounded and therefore harmless person die. But Frieza had not just killed anyone. He had killed Bulma and he needed to pay for this. "What are you saying? How many people did you kill? How many of them begged for their lives just like you are now?"

"P-please…"

Clenching his fists, not being able to stand hearing his pleading voice anymore, Son Goku walked back to Frieza. He stared at the pathetic being on the ground and the blood on the floor. No warrior deserved a death like this, no matter what he had done. Frieza had already been dishonored by having been beaten by a Saiyajin. Was it really necessary that he found his death by such disgraceful means? "Alright," he spat and almost effortlessly lifted the chandelier from him, not caring if he hurt Frieza by doing this, and put it down next to him. "You're free to go, if you still have enough strength. But I warn you, I never want to see you again."

Struggling hard, Frieza climbed to his feet, not allowing one sound to pass his lips, while Goku gathered the six Dragonballs and the magical map in a rag from the drapes that had fallen down before it had burned up completely. The lizard was watching how the Saiyajin carefully wrapped them up and then knotted the ends together.

"I didn't think you would help me."

"You can get through the fire without harm," Goku only answered, as he slung the package over his shoulder and walked towards the door, only stopping shortly to effortlessly pull his sword out of the wall. The exit was still blocked by flames, but Goku thought that, if he was moving fast, he might get through it unharmed. "Save yourself and be grateful that you're still alive."

"I don't think you understand…" Frieza chuckled evilly and tightened his grip on the sword that he was still holding in his hand. "I'm Frieza! The strongest being on the world! You must die by my hands!" With a roar, Frieza rushed at Goku and lunged with the sword at him.

"Fool!" Goku hollered, parried the blow and, after Frieza had lost the grip on his weapon, ran his sword through Frieza's chest.

Frieza grabbed his chest, still not believing what had just happened, when Goku had pulled the bloody sword out again. Blood was trickling out of his mouth, as he staggered backwards and fell. He remained on the ground unmoving.

Son Goku, didn't spare a single glance at the Icejin, as he sheathed his sword in the belt of his pants and hurried through the throne room. He covered his face with his arms, as he dashed through the door and ran along the hall, only suffering little burns. Debris was falling down everywhere, so that it was hard to dodge. More than once he felt a burning pain on his arms and back, but that didn't stop him. The building was coming down every moment and he still needed to find the way out.

Suddenly he saw them, the large double doors leading outside and quickening his pace, he knew that he was almost there. Fifty yards. Forty. It was getting closer.

Cursing loudly, Son Goku stumbled backwards, as the ceiling in front of him came crashing down completely, blocking his only exit. He looked back, but saw that high flames were now also blocking the hallway behind him.

There was a narrow corridor to his right, so he chose to try this one. There just had to be another way out! "Come on," he mumbled, slowly growing desperate, but he kept going. There were doors to his left and right side, but as soon as he opened one of them, he met high flames dancing in front of him. "Damn!" Goku swore, as he reached a dead end.

There was no way out, no possibility to escape. Behind him was the fire, in front of him a sturdy stonewall. It was over.

The wood above him groaned dangerously. He looked up and saw dents and cracks in the ceiling. Dust fell down on him and Son Goku, the Legendary Saiyajin, conqueror of Frieza, knew that it was too late.

"NO!"