20: Frieza's Attack

Goku's Instant Transmission plopped them right in the heart of the battlefield. Humans were screaming and running in all directions. Garbage was strewn about, as if forever forgotten. Cars were haphazardly ditched in the middle of the road, no longer useful in the immense traffic jam that had engulfed the city streets.

Vegeta took a step forward and opened his mouth to speak when a stampede of terrified humans barreled into him. The Prince disappeared in a matter of seconds, the humans having successfully trampled him like he was nothing more than some cheap litter that lay on the ground. Goku had jumped back and out of the way, and now watched with wide eyes as the humans stormed past.

After the last human clumped past him, he hopped off the top of a car he had found refuge on and bent down, grabbing Vegeta by the front of his armor and pulling him to his feet. "You...okay, Vegeta?"

Vegeta's hair was spiked in all directions, and dirt smudged his face and white armor top. He blinked, then quickly fixed his hair. "This is why I dislike humans. No order whatsoever."

"You can't really blame them, Vegeta." Goku said with a shrug. "It's human instinct to run and flee."

"Pathetic." Vegeta grumbled, then turned his gaze upward. "Anyway, I'm going to assume that's the enemy."

Goku followed Vegeta's line of sight, and a stern glare replaced his calm expression. Turles's ship hovered gently a few hundred feet above the ground, casting an impressive shadow among the towering buildings that engulfed West City. The massive vessel looked wildly out of place, with its black and dark grey contrasting with the whites and blues of the city. But that wasn't what shocked Goku to his core. What made him reel back was the entourage of Frieza Force soldiers shooting and destroying anything they laid eyes on.

"What the!?" Goku shouted. "Frieza Force baddies? But...why are they coming from Turles's ship?"

Vegeta sighed. "It appears Turles has made friends with the white lizard of death. Either that, or they struck a deal with each other over Basil."

"What do we do now? There's so many of them." Goku said, looking around wildly. "They're coming from every direction."

Vegeta grabbed Goku by the chin and jerked his face to the left. There, a few feet away, was Tien, Launch, and Krillin. The three were holding their own quiet effectively against the Frieza Force swarms, what with Launch shooting everything with rocket launchers, her blonde hair flying madly around her head. Krillin shot Distructo Disk after Distructo Disk in every direction, cutting the soldiers off at the knees and chest. Tien fired multiple beams while simultaneously dodging blows from much larger opponents. They battled on with powerful vigor and robustness, their desire to protect not only the city but the planet surging them forward.

Goku gasped and smiled. "Oh!" He hurried over to the group, taking out clusters of Frieza Force soldiers along the way with Ki blasts and mighty kicks. "Hey, guys! Need some help?"

"Goku!" Krillin cheered. "Where the hell have you been? They've been destroying the city in handfuls."

"I hope they don't stop, 'cause this is hella fun!" Launch laughed as she fired another volley of rockets at an incoming swarm of soldiers.

"Where's Basil?" Tien shouted over the roaring of soldiers and the bang of Launch's guns.

"She's on Lord Beerus's planet." Vegeta replied, firing a strong blast at a rather small soldier. "He'll never find her, so she's safe."

"Anyone got a plan?" Krillin asked, looking to each of them expectedly.

Goku shook his head. "No, not really. But has that ever stopped us before?"

"Yes, it has." Tien said pointedly. "Many times."

"Nevermind that!" Vegeta slapped Goku upside the head and pointed up to the sky. "Look who's come to join the fight."

Goku whipped around to face the large vessel and bit his tongue. Beside Turles's Crusher Corps ship now hovered the unforgettable crab-like vessel that could only belong to Lord Frieza himself. The saucer-shaped ship inched itself closer to the ground, its legs retracting from their hiding places. Dust and rock were swept up in the strong whirlwind that the ship brought with it, and the door opened up. Smoke seeped from it, coating the ground like a transparent, untouchable blanket.

"Oh, crap." Krillin muttered, taking a step back. "N-now what do we do?"

"We blow his ass up like the Fourth of July!" Launch shouted, exhilaration written all over her face. Then, with the dust that had engulfed the five fighters, she gave a hearty sneeze. Her hair instantly whipped back to its blue self, and her eyes grew larger and more innocent-looking. Instead of the fearless women that had stood moments ago among the men, now stood a kind woman with a heard of gold.

The boys stared at her with wide eyes.

Launch blinked, then looked around her. "Um...what's going on?"

"No, we need the badass Launch!" Krillin jumped over to her and swiped under her nose. She gave a gentle, quiet sneeze that the group barely heard, and kind Launch was replaced by angry Launch.

"Ah, hell yeah! Let's kill some aliens!" Launch snatched up her rocket launcher and aimed it at Frieza's ship. Without another word, she fired a barrage of missiles, each making contact with the foreign craft. Black smoke filled the air, as well as the sound of ear-splitting explosions that shook the ground like an earthquake.

Vegeta sighed heavily. "Kakarot, your friends are weird."

The smoke cleared instantly as an angry Changeling emerged from the open hatch of his ship. His red eyes surged with hatred and impatience. He glared at the fighters of Earth as he balled his hands into fists. His tail flicked angrily back and forth, further communicating his annoyance. "You little cretins! You're gonna destroy my ship!"

"What do you want, Frieza?" Goku called to him.

"It's obvious, isn't it, monkey?" Frieza replied, stepping down the steps to the ground below. "That female Saiyan your harboring. I want her."

"And it's probably obvious that we're not going to let that happen." Tien snapped, crossing his arms. "She's with us now."

"What a shame," Frieza chuckled darkly. "She'll never know the truth."

"Truth?" Vegeta repeated. "What truth? We've told her everything."

"Everything?" Frieza laughed. "I doubt that's true. Does she know who the real heroes of this universe are? No, you just told her it was you, didn't you?"

"We are the heroes, Frieza." Goku assumed his battle position, hands tightly balled into fists. "You're not touching her."

Frieza smiled. "The fact that you believe that amuses me, monkey." A red glow surrounded his hands, and two purple saucers appeared, spinning just inches above his palms. "Now, I'll watch all of you d-"

Whatever Frieza had intended to say, whether it be an insult of a sheer battle cry, was cut off as a fairly large figure latched onto his long, white tail. The mysterious figure launched the Changeling into the air with so much force that dirt and rock erupted from where Frieza had once stood. The figure spun Lord Frieza above their head several times before they let go, sending the white lizard-like creature flying into the distance, his shrill cries soon inaudible.

Goku and company gaped at their mystery savior in shock, none of them able to form a single sentence.

The figure stepped toward them, the green fur around their waist waving in the slight wind.

"BROLY!?" Goku cried, eyes wide.

"When the hell did you get here?" Vegeta shouted.

"Cheelai said you needed my help." Broly said in his usual monotone of a voice.

"Well..." Tien began, but his voice trailed off.

"I'm gonna go find him so I can kill him." Launch stated, then took off in the direction Broly threw Frieza.

"No, Launch, wait! That's not the smartest idea!" Krillin shouted as he chased after her.

Vegeta and Goku exchanged a look, then Goku grinned. "Let's go find Turles."

Broly cocked his head to the side, raising an eyebrow. "Turles?"

"I'll tell you all about him." Goku grabbed Broly and Vegeta's arms and started walking along the cracked road. "See, he's a bad guy who tried to kill me in the past. I thought he was dead, but I guess I was wrong, huh?"

Vegeta sighed. Kill me now.

...

Basil paced back and forth with her arms crossed stiffly, her tail dragging behind her. Her eyes were clued to the ground, and her facial expression was anything but sweet and relaxed.

I wanna fight with Goku! Why won't Piccolo let me go? He got to go a few minutes ago and said it was important, but I'm not allowed to help? It's so unfair. Goku said that we had to fight to protect Earth. If the planet was under attack, then shouldn't I help them save it?

She groaned aloud and kicked a rock as hard as she could. It flew into the air and vanished into the sky, possibly never to be seen again. She sighed and resumed her pacing.

I wish I were strong like Goku and Vegeta. Then they would let me fight with them. But I guess I'm stuck here until I'm stronger. But how do I get stronger without someone to help me?

She perked up, realizing that Mister Whis and Mister Lord Beerus were still present on the planet. Piccolo had departed a few minutes ago claiming he had to provide aid for Goku and the others. Basil had begged him to take her with him, but he had refused without a second glance. She smiled as she jumped into the air and flew the short distance to where Lord Beerus slumbered. Whis stood just outside the tree, smiling down at a butterfly that was perched on the tip of his finger. Basil touched down barely an inch in front of the angel, causing the butterfly to flee.

Basil stood as straight as she could, forcing herself to be serious despite her excitement. "Mister Whis, can you train me like you do for Goku and Vegeta so I can help them? Pretty please?"

Whis smiled and chuckled. "A little eager, aren't we?"

"I want to help." Basil said firmly. "I'd feel bad if I just sat here while they did all the hard work to keep this planet safe. I don't want it to end up like my home planet."

Whis looked deep into her energetic and desperate eyes and sighed. "Alright, Basil. But I must warn you, it will be very tough on you."

Basil grinned as wide as a child. "Okay."

...

Orange City High School was a mad rush of panicked students hurrying to get home, or at the very least, get to their cars so they could get as far away from the city as possible. Frieza Force soldiers broke windows and doors, smashed lockers and clobbered students as they gleefully made their way down the many hallways and up the many flights of stairs. Their blasts tore through the walls and metal doors as if nothing stood in their way.

Little did they know that among the normal, everyday humans, two half-Saiyans snuck around to get to a specific locker. A plan was molding into action without them even having to say anything to each other.

While a large, blue-skinned soldier barked and snarled at screaming students, Trunks pried his locker open as quickly and quietly as he could. He reached in and grabbed his sword, which sat snugly in its red scabbard. It was a long-sword that Trunks took everywhere with him, with an olive-green leather-wrapped hilt and a silver metal bar that stood as the hand guard, the ends curving upwards. He would be lying if he said it weren't his prized possession.

Goten tapped Trunks on the shoulder. "Be stealthy. He might alert the others if he sees you."

"Got it." Trunks nodded firmly and crept up behind the boulder-shaped soldier, his footsteps barely audible. Goten kept his eyes on the cowering students, making sure the soldier didn't do away with any of them.

In one swift motion, Trunks jumped up, his sword raised high above his head. He pounced atop the soldiers back and dug his sword in between the shoulder blades. Dark blue blood bubbled from the wound, and the solider cried out in rage and pain. He spun around this way and that, trying to knock Trunks off.

Goten shot out from his hiding spot and tackled the soldier's legs, and the three hit the ground with a loud thump.

"Run!" Trunks shouted to the students, who didn't need to be told twice. They took off as fast as they could, each of them screaming at the top of their lungs. Trunks dug his sword in deeper, wrapping his legs around the soldiers waist, while Goten had the soldiers thick, muscular legs pinned to the ground.

"Little...bastards!" The soldier growled as he thrashed around, blood beginning to seep from his mouth.

"Are you with Turles?" Trunks asked, tightening his grip on the handle of his sword. "You're Frieza Force, and Turles doesn't work for Frieza, right?"

"You'll die." The soldier snapped. "Frieza will make sure of that. Turles, too."

"Turles and Frieza working together?" Goten said, then groaned. "That's wonderful."

"Why did Turles team up with Frieza, of all things?" Trunks asked, but he got no response. Him and Goten looked at each other with confused looks before realization sank in. Goten immediately let go of the soldiers feet and jumped back.

"Ew, I touched a dead guy!" He rubbed his hands on his jeans frantically.

Trunks pulled his sword from the now dead soldier and wiped the dark blue blood off with the sleeve of his shirt. "Gross."

"What do we do now?" Goten asked. "I mean, Turles AND Frieza? That's a whole lot of bad guys to fight, if you ask me."

"We should probably let Goku and the others know." Trunks said as he slipped his sword in its sheath.

"I'm pretty sure he already knows." Goten said, then gasped. "Oh my gosh, I need to find Valese!" Then he darted down the hallway, his footsteps echoing as he stomped around the corner.

"Goten, wait! Seriously!?" Trunks shouted, then sighed and hurried after him.

...

Frieza spat out dirt and sat up, wiping a smear of dirt from his face. "How dare they. I am Lord Frieza. They DARE disrespect me like this?"

He stood and wiped more dirt from his pure white surface. Looking around, he came to realize that the stupid Saiyan had thrown him right where he wanted to be. Capsule Corp loomed before him like a giant present that was just waiting to be unwrapped. Capsule Corp was home to many advancements in technology that would no doubt aid him in eliminating the annoying Saiyan presence.

He smiled to himself and headed for the front door.

The inside seemed vacant. Everything was spotless and pristine. Frieza walked slowly down one of the many hallways when a voice made him stop dead in his tracks. It was a female voice that he recognized, then placed the voice with a name and a face. The blue haired girl from Namek, and his resurrection. Bulma, he believed her name was. She was a human, if his brain serviced him properly. She was in one of the rooms talking rather loudly to someone who was either not responding or was speaking very quietly. Frieza couldn't hear what the other was saying, so he assumed the other was on the phone.

She must not know I'm here, Frieza thought with a devilish grin.

Suddenly, a quiet gurgle made him jump. He turned to see a room where a door was slightly ajar. Slowly, he made his way to said room, peeking his head inside. It was filled with baby toys and bright colors. It made the evil overlord grimace. Stepping into the room, however, his grimace was replaced with a smile.

A pink crib was place in the far corner, and inside it was a tiny Earthing. It was female in nature, as Frieza noticed the blue hair in a tiny ponytail. The child was sucking on their hand and rolling around on their back, completely content with itself. Upon seeing Frieza, however, the baby got a curious look on it's face.

Aw, the second offspring of that human and Vegeta. Frieza reached into the crib and pulled the child out by the back of their clothing, holding it away from his face. How disgusting.

The child stared at Frieza with wide, unblinking eyes, then she smiled and reached for him. Frieza glared at her and held her farther from his body. "You're a repulsive creature."

The child blinked.

Frieza smiled. "But...while you disgust me...you could aid me greatly in my master plan."

Seeing Frieza smile made Bulla smile, since she had no idea he was the bad guy she was supposed to be afraid of.