Piccolo finally reaches familiar terrain. He leaps and ducks as he skillfully navigates the dense forest. "There!" He shouts to himself. With one final bound he makes it back into his yard. He eagerly approaches his home when he notices a disturbing sight.
"Oh god, why!" He finds the rotting corpse of his father, nearly a week old.
Just then Kami opens the door. He quickly follows Piccolo's gaze and lets out an embarrassed groan. "I'm Sorry, Piccolo. It seems in my old age I had forgotten to bury your father. Oh, what a fool I am."
Piccolo tries to be irritated, but all he can amount to is emotional discomfort. "Um. That's alright, mom. Don't worry about it. I'll take care of it."
Piccolo digs a grave for his father Goku and gives his respects. "I'm sorry, dad. I wasn't able to avenge you. I wasn't strong enough." He gets up and properly greets his mother with a hug. "There's something you had to tell me. Something important."
"Yes, that's right." Kami gives a very serious look to Piccolo, almost as if transforming into a completely different person. The sun sets behind him, creating an ominous silhouette.
Kami raises his hand, fingers spread. "Piccolo, I will now bestow upon you the truth. A secret I had hoped I would never have need to reveal to you."
Piccolo's anticipation grows. He attempts to say something, but silents himself so as to not interrupt.
Kami gestures dramatically as he continues. "Several years ago, Son Goku battled the mighty King Piccolo, my evil half. This part of the story you know."
Piccolo nods in affirmation. "It has been many times that father has mentioned his conflict with my uncle."
"What you do not know, is that in his final moments King Piccolo released an egg containing his reincarnation!"
Piccolo gasps. "You mean there's another Piccolo?"
"Yes, and he's standing right in front of me."
Piccolo freezes in absolute shock. "What are you saying? That's impossible! I'm your son, right mom?"
Kami rubs the boy's head. "Of course, of course. I have raised you as my son. Truthfully, however, I must regret, I did not always harbor such feelings for you."
Piccolo saddens from the news.
"For years I had kept your egg in secret. I felt no remorse for what lay inside. I sometimes wished to destroy it, even if it would result in my own demise. But then, I attended a tournament where I met your father, Son Goku, in person for the first time. It was in my battle with him that I had a change of heart. He reminded me of mercy. After I set off with him I had decided to allow you life, and I have no regrets for doing so."
Piccolo scratches his head. His mind is full of confusion, anger, sadness, and happiness. "I'm going to be honest, this is a lot to take in. But how does this help me defeat Gohan?"
With a mighty roar Kami screams. "Behold!" his robe drops to ankles, much to Piccolo's horror.
"What are you doing mom!" Piccolo retreats and shields his eyes.
"Come, boy! Kami and Piccolo must join as one!"
"You've gone mad!" Piccolo tries to run away, but a maniacal Kami follows just overhead with his appendages spread in a star formation.
"I'm sorry, Piccolo, but the fate of earth depends on this!" The old Namek collides his bare chest into his son's fleeing backside.
"Mommy, no!" It's too late. Kami laughs like a madman as his body glows and becomes translucent before disappearing forever.
An insane and indescribable power courses through Piccolo's body. He lets out a terrible howl as his new power transforms him. After a minute passes and the lights have faded, the now orphaned Piccolo departs the house he calls home. He walks across the property, downcast. He reaches a pond where he looks at his reflection.
"Darn It, why!" He wipes his tears and looks deep into his reflection. He feels his mother's presence with him. He examines his clenched fist. "If only I had been stronger before." He shakes his head back and forth. "I won't let your sacrifice be in vain, mom."
He looks up to see a cloud whisking in the distance. He reaches out to it and calls out to it. "Nimbus!"
Inside Central City, the law has completely broken down. An army of leather-clad muscle heads has joined in allegiance to the new god-emperor Gohan. People struggle to survive in what seemed like a post-apocalyptic nightmare. Dark clouds dominate the sky that almost makes night and day indistinguishable. Entering the city now is Tien. A thug intercepts his passage and demands payment for entry into the newly renamed 'Gohangrad'.
Tien pays the brute no mind. He walks around him.
"Hey!" the man yells out in anger to Tien. "Don't you walk away from me!"
Tien darts his eyes at the man behind him. "You are already dead."
"What!?" Suddenly, a series of delayed blows appear on the man's chest to form a crane. The strikes burst open. The man's life freezes, failing to understand what has befallen him. He thinks he hears the deafening war cry of a bird, but is unsure if it's real or not. He collapses to the ground, motionless.
Unphased, Tien makes his way toward the ominous pyramid at the heart of the city. On his way, he runs into a commotion. A group of several thugs surround a little girl with pigtails and a Gi bearing the face of Mr. Satan.
"Give it up kid! Nobody disrespects the name of Gohan around here and lives!" The thugs close in on the girl with axes and other strange makeshift weapons. The girl takes the Satan fighting stance.
"Dodon Ray!" The whole group of thugs are caught dead in their tracks as the beam tears through them all in an instant. Not a single man is left standing.
The girl growls at Tien. "I had it under control! I could have taken those goons on myself!" The proud five-year-old huffs at the man who saved her.
"Whatever, I don't really care." He turns to the pyramid in the distance. "I'm guessing that's where the little monster is hiding."
"Yeah, that's right. I've got a bone to pick with the little freak, so you better not get in my way."
"You too, huh? I was about to say the same thing. What's your name squirt?"
The girl gives the man a good look before deciding to answer. "Videl"
The two fighters make their way down the long dark road leading to the seat of evil.
On the Pyramid's steps, Gohan stands with a rifle in hand. He delights anticipation as he looks down the scope at his prey. On the other side, a blonde man with his hair back in a ponytail and his butler hide behind a pole. They are unaware of the gun pointed at them. Gohan lets off a shot with a laugh. The Blonde man's head is blown apart by the shot.
"Your turn, uncle! Kill his butler!"
"Gladly, your holiness!"
Raditz pulls his own rifle up and aligns it to his target. The older butler panics "young master Zant!" he cries out before attempting to flee.
Raditz pulls the trigger, landing the shot right in the back of the man's head.
"Now isn't this fun, uncle!" Gohan releases his joy.
"Look, sire! New targets! The fools think to actually approach you this time!"
Gohan turns his head over his shoulder and gives a backward glance at the source of Raditz' attention. "Excellent eye, uncle!" Gohan lifts his rifle to inspect. "Oh? What do we have here?" He focuses on the man, Tien. "That attire. That third eye. He must be the one that 'wreck of a man' Shen spoke of, his former disciple. And what's this?" He moves his focus down to the girl now. "That's the same symbol my dearest brother wore to battle. Another Satan loving Freak? The poor little insect. I would dare say I might have even been attracted to her had I not seen that disgraceful garment. A change of plans uncle. I want you to go down and greet these little sinners. I'm in the mood for a bit of bloodsport."
"An excellent choice, your majesty. I'll give you a show that won't disappoint" Raditz leaps up with glee and spirals down toward the approaching fighters.
Gohan mutters under his breath in response to his departed uncle. "Pray that you don't."
The Saiyan lands at the base of the pyramid and impedes the path of the heroes.
Tien briefly examines Raditz before turning his attention to the toddler atop the gaudy structure.
"So, you're the little pipsqueak making a mess of things."
By now Gohan has taken his seat. He's reclined in a laid back manner. He shoots a brief face of anger before quickly returning to his smug display. "That's no way to talk to your new master. By what I've gathered you must be Tien Shinhan."
"That's right. If you know that much then you've probably guessed why I'm here." Tien keeps his attention firmly on Gohan. Raditz begins to boil a bit from being ignored. He looks to the girl, who also keeps her stern gaze locked on the Saiyan King.
Gohan continues. "Oh I could imagine what you think you're here for, but I assure you the reality will not unfold in your favor. Useless people like you have no place in my kingdom of heaven. Just like old master Shen, and that idiot father of mine Kakarot."
Tien Growls, taken offense to his words.
Gohan finishes his berating. "You're going to have to prove you have what it takes to fight me. Kill this weakling, Raditz, and I may consider humoring you."
Raditz spins his upper body around in shock. He slowly turns back to Tien, enraged. "You think this is going to be easy, do you? I am a Saiyan! Member of a warrior race! You are a mere earthling! I'll squash you like the ant you are!"
Tien gathers his energy while Raditz plots his strategy.
Gohan watches from his throne. He sips a fine glass of grape juice as the two warriors prepare to engage for his amusement.
Raditz begins the brawl with a forward charge. "How do you like this!" His attack collides with Tien, who barely holds his block. "I call it the Tuesday Tumble!"
He continues the followthrough of his punch, knocking back Tien. The evil Saiyan laughs at his opponent's apparent weakness.
Tien however, has already launched a "Dodon Ray" at Raditz, surprising him.
"Gyah! Uh, Monday B-Backhand!" He's able to swat the attack away just in time.
Tien pauses briefly, confused. "What are you… What are you doing?"
Raditz looks back with confusion. "What do you mean, human?"
"You don't have to name everything you do."
"Wha? You're doing it too! What was that you called it? Dildo Ray?"
Tien grits his teeth. "It's called the Dodon Ray! And the difference is I'm not just naming stuff on the fly, these are real martial arts techniques!"
Raditz tenses with rage. "You imply I'm shouting names at random? How dare you! I've spent over a decade developing my art!"
Raditz follows up with a series of "Holiday Bullets!" ki attacks that keep Tien on the defensive. Raditz finishes his volley with a pink sphere of energy that he launches at his opponent. "Saturday Crush!"
Tien just barely manages to deflect the attack, but it collides with the earth too close to avoid damage. While Tien dazed by the powerful blast Raditz closes in again.
"This one might hurt! Monthly Migraine!" Raditz lunges forward with his hands clenched together.
Tien manages to time his counter perfectly. The moment the hairy one lowers his arms, Tien thrusts his knee right into his foe's neck. The Saiyan releases all his spit.
Raditz recoils and grasps his neck, desperately gasping for air. Tien releases a barrage of punches to his foe's torso.
Each blow resets Raditz recovery. Once the arms take a break from beating him down, he is met by another surprise. A second set of arms spring forth from Tien's body that join in on the action with a machinegun-esque battering to Raditz' face.
Gohan looks embarrassed. "Uncle, your display is simply appalling. I fight the urge to look away from your disgrace. If my bleeding heart endures this much more I might have to crush the both of you."
Raditz's fear gives him the adrenaline to break free from the assault. He lands a muffled "Reekday Rakeup Crawll!" kick to Tiens Jaw before backflipping into a spin. His whole face is swollen, making it hard for him to speak.
Raditz then launches a high powered beam of ki at Tien, but he is too dazed to make his aim, or even say a proper attack name. It's a complete miss. Tien uses the opening to propel himself into the air. Raditz darts his puffy eyes around for a moment, having lost sight of his opponent.
"Up here!"
Raditz is hit in the chest by Tien's whole body as he collides with an aerial headbutt.
"Drat's… renough!" Raditz releases a shockwave from his body to separate the two. Gohan looks in amusement, taking notice of what his uncle has not.
Raditz resorts to sending an aimless flurry of blasts in Tien's direction that creates a dust storm. This time, he prepares to finish the fight. "Dris wrone's go-ring to string a rittle!" Raditz pulls both hands up this time and charges two spheres of energy. "Drouble Srunday!" Just as Raditz is about to launch his finisher the dust begins to settle enough to see his target. Tien's hands are raised as he shouts "Solar Flare!"
Gohan, knowing what attack was in store, realizes too late and is unable to shield his eyes. Both Saiyans are blinded and cry out in pain. Raditz' attack launches with a flail and collides with random buildings. While blinded, Raditz feels an insane pain in his tail. He doesn't need his eyes to know what has happened. Tien has gripped his tail with all his might, sending pain throughout Raditz so great that he is paralyzed.
Meanwhile, Gohan starts to get his vision back, only to be face to face with the blurred image of a boot.
"Dynamite Kick!" The toe of Videl's boot makes direct contact with Gohan's exposed eye. His head is sent backward and smashes against his own throne. He had completely failed to acknowledge the girl's presence as she had made her way up the steps during the battle.
"That really hurt!" Gohan snaps at the girl in outrage. He instantly bolts to his feet with Videl's throat in his hand.
Back on the ground, Raditz struggles to look back. He manages to form words. "Rou cheated!"
Tien faintly laughs.
Raditz growls with animosity. "Does'in matter!" His vocabulary starts to return a little as his swelling goes down. "You're holding my tail, you can't fight! The moment you let go I'll be ready, and trust me, you won't like it!"
Tien replies with only a grin. He looks past Raditz to something high above them. Raditz follows the path of his gaze and drops his jaw in surprise.
"What! How is that even possible!" The Saiyan begins to panic as he tries to comprehend the unnatural sight. Behind him is Tien, yet somehow also above him is Tien.
"It's called the multi-form technique. You were too stupid to even notice. I did this back before I landed that headbutt on you."
Raditz looks up in terror as the Tien in the air puts his hands into the shape of a diamond. He barely has time to think before his foe shouts "Tri-Beam!"
With that, the battle is over. The paralyzed Raditz is smashed into the earth with such intense force that his body crumbles.
The victorious Tien shifts his attention to the pyramid. Rolling down its steps is a bruised Videl. A sadistic Gohan follows her descent casually.
"Look at you. Wearing that disgusting joke of a uniform. It makes me laugh almost as much as it makes me want to puke." Gohan kicks the downed girl. "I can understand my idiot green brother falling into the lap of that putrid mistake of a man, But to see such a lovely young girl under the delusion of his greatness brings a tear to my eye." He raises his hand to strike her again.
"You leave her alone!" Tien lands between them.
Gohan Shrivels his face in disgust. He looks down at the hole in the ground where his uncle's body lay. "Oh? It seems you may amuse me yet! If it's a fight you want-" Gohan giggles with sadistic delight.
Tien changes his posture to a more offensive one. "A Fight? No, I'm not going to fight you. I'm going to kill you."
Gohan bursts in laughter. "You? Kill me? Have you not been paying attention?"
Tien doesn't wait for his enemy to break from his laughing fit. "I've been saving this for you! My ultimate assassination technique!" Tien's hand reaches for the Saiyan's head with his fingers extended like a knife. Surrounding his hand is a field of Ki dense enough to cut even a mighty Saiyan such as Gohan.
Gohan doesn't even respond until the strike pierces his skin. As blood escapes his forehead he jolts back defensively with near-instantaneous speed.
"You mother-!" Gohan explodes ferociously. The steps beneath Tien's feet shatter.
Before he can react, Gohan strikes him in the chest. The man is sent flying through several buildings.
Now bloodied and angered, Gohan turns his attention toward Videl. She manages a trembling fighting stance before the mighty aura of the enraged Gohan.
"You should know, no opponent disappointed me more than your master. Weak, pathetic, these words don't even do him justice. That man was a waste of life."
Videl's trembling stops. The comment sparks a rage of her own. "That 'Waste of Life' is named Hercule Satan, my father! And I wear his insignia with pride!"
"Oh-ho-ho! So the spawn of Satan comes to join her father in hell! Let my blessed hand guide you to the afterlife!" Gohan charges a powerful ball of energy in his upturned palm. He snickers and swings his arm to face the girl. The sphere almost touches her nose.
In an instant that seems to last forever, a burst that lights up the city from space engulfs everything in sight. Gohan keeps his hand outstretched, even as the light fades. His body is frozen in disbelief. He wanted to convince himself that he imagined it, but there was no mistaking what he had seen. Even as just a blur, the sight of the green man in an undersized Gi was etched into his mind.
Piccolo slows his flying nimbus as he approaches a rooftop. He sets down the astonished girl.
"Are you alright, miss?"
She blinks twice in utter loss. There was no way in her mind that she should have survived that. All she saw was a burst of light from Gohan's palm, and then suddenly being in the arms of a stranger. After a moment she notices he is wearing the same attire as her, it's even the same size. The one that bears the smiling face of her father. "Who are you? What's your name?" she asks.
"I'm just a friend."
She gives the Namekian a thorough look and continues to speak. "I guess I'll call you… Big Green."
Piccolo tries to hide his irritation and just responds with "Don't call me that ever again." He quickly jerks his head in the direction of Gohan with a no-nonsense attitude.
Gohan's emotions begin to settle, now finding the situation humorous. "Bravo, brother. You've gotten quicker since last I bent you over backward."
Piccolo's face shows no humor. He glides over to Gohan's pyramid and takes foot on the steps. "You are no brother of mine."
Piccolo prepares his stance before the demented little devil. Both warriors could sense the finality of this encounter. By the end of this exchange, one of them will be dead.