When I walk, the lightning strikes
When I talk, the earth starts to shake
When I think it, the morning becomes night
When I touch, the rubble begins to shine
Before you even know it,
there'll be claws digging into your back
Cool cool dandy
It's my Powerful dandy
Hohho - hohho - hohhoo
Cool cool dandy, without dreams
So, get lost right now!
I'm setting out to the infinite wilderness
Wishing for a world without people
Before you know it, your body will
Start to melt away quite fast
Cool cool dandy
It's my powerful dandy
Hohho - hohho - hohhoo
Cool cool dandy, even history...
Oh! Change right now!
Cool cool dandy
Powerful dandy
Cool cool dandy, without dreams
So, get lost right now!
- Shinichi Ishihara, "COOL COOL DANDY"
(Dragon Ball Z OST: Vegeta's Image Song)
Episode 32
Vegeta's Dangerous Pride
Just as Vegeta was about to end his fight against Broly with his finisher blast, he quickly looked up into the sky, noticing the enormous power closing in on their planet.
He's here.
Vegeta's eyes narrowed, pondering for a while before deciding that his fight with Broly was over.
As he lowered his hand, dissipating the charged energy blast he was supposed to use as his finisher move, he heard his father shouted in exasperation behind him, "What are you waiting for, Yon? This is your chance!"
Ignoring his father's angry words, Vegeta nonchalantly puts the tips of his right index and middle fingers over Broly's left chest. He gradually closed his eyes, calming his mind and body as he focused on the energy flow within himself. Broly watched in utter silence at what the prince was doing to him. He's completely out of power to be able to fight back so he has openly accepted his inevitable defeat.
"Could this be the final decisive blow?!" The announcer asked her quiet audience.
Vegeta's golden hair faded to crimson red. Before anyone could make a comment about the strange new transformation the prince just performed in front of them, causing the reading of his battle level to plummet down to zero, the sirens blared. As soon as that happens, all broadcast of the fight across Planet Vegeta and the entire universe have been cut off to static.
In an instant, Broly was completely healed by Vegeta's strange power. At the same time, King Vegeta let out a disappointed whine, leaning back on the backrest of his comfortable looking seat while Paragus finally let out a sigh of relief due to his son being saved by the bell. The former Prime Minister recognized that the odd healing technique was the same as what Vegeta used with him earlier this morning.
The referee declared, "Due to Broly being saved by the siren, the first battle in this year's Saiyan Power Assessment is considered a draw!" which prompted the audience to applaud Vegeta and Broly for the breathtaking battle they have witnessed. "Such a heated, furious battle! Truly, these two mighty and prodigious Saiyans have surpassed the limits of Saiyan strength and showed us the overwhelming power not seen for thousands of years! Congratulations to the both of you!"
The sirens continued to blare across the planet as Vegeta gradually opened his eyes and returned to his base form.
"How are you feeling now, Broly?" he asked his completely astounded former General.
Broly was busy looking over his completely healed body before he finally looked up to his prince with a grateful look, "Overwhelmed but much better. During our battle, there was this satisfying feeling. Though it is painful in my chest to know that you have completely overpowered me despite my best efforts. Thank you, Your Highness." he responded with a smile.
Vegeta grinned proudly at him. "Good to know, then. Now you know that sense of pride about your own strength within you. That is the true meaning of Saiyan Pride. You are a free man now, Broly. Use that power accordingly to what your pride as a Saiyan leads you."
He turned towards Paragus and imperiously commanded him to raise his hands. The former Prime Minister awkwardly did as he was ordered to. Vegeta raised his hands to use his ability to manipulate electromagnetism to break Paragus' ki restrainers.
The screens were abruptly replaced by a blank blue screen with the red insignia of the Royal Family Crest. The Royal Guards and the Generals moved to surround the Crown Prince, standing in attention. Everyone else rose from their seats while King Vegeta declared in a commanding tone, "Freeza is coming to destroy us all! But with all of us united and fighting together along with the Legendary Super Saiyan on our side, we will surely be able to take him and his Galactic Empire down! This is the time of the war we have long awaited! Prepare yourselves!"
The Saiyan audiences jumped into the arena to form several lines in front of the Crown Prince and his Generals. King Vegeta kicked off from where he was and stood beside his son. Bardock and Gine were together with Kakarot in front of Vegeta, next to Nappa and Broly, with Paragus on his side. Zorn stood in front of the King.
Prince Vegeta's voice resounded behind all Saiyans and in their minds as he declared with the commanding power of an alpha, "Remember this, no matter what happens, do not bow down to that bastard! Remember your pride as a Saiyan warrior and fight with everything you got until the end! Whether you go down or not, continue to hold into your pride! That is my royal command! And be warned that if anyone of you defies me, I will personally deal with him. Do you understand?!"
"Yes, your Highness!" the Saiyans responded in complete unison - except Paragus who was reluctant to even submit to the whim of the boy he wished for his son to kill. He was feeling uneasy, obviously due to his own humiliation and guilt. He looked at Broly's back for a moment, his son was as exultant as the rest of their kind about this war. Paragus thought that aside from Broly and Prince Vegeta, they were all crazy fools to even stand against Freeza of all people.
Saiyans are proud by nature, Paragus can understand that. But to be blinded by your own pride would be Vegeta's own undoing.
Dedicated to the pride and honor of being the most powerful warrior race in the universe, the fated battle begins.
A fleet of different but small spaceships appeared from the sky, followed by the Galactic Emperor's massive spaceship. From these ships, came out numerous amounts of armored alien soldiers, who were the escorts of the Emperor. They looked like they were charging right towards the Saiyans but they actually didn't. They simply land on the ground in front of the group of Saiyans as Freeza's massive spaceship docked behind them.
The Saiyans waited, a few of the lower class soldiers feeling anxious at the sight of the Galactic Army.
"They've really come. They've really come..." a few mumbled to themselves fearfully, their knees shaking.
Vegeta smirked cockily to himself, obsidian eyes burning with his excitement for this battle. "That's good. Freeza has landed. This is getting me more excited."
Several more of the Galactic Freeza Army soldiers came out of the massive spaceship and lined up in attention. A few seconds later, the rocky Dodoria and the beautiful Zarbon stepped out, followed by the scowling mighty Galactic Emperor, Freeza sitting in his hovering throne.
The maleficent presence of the hideous frost demon shook the knees of most Saiyans when they sensed the chilling and enormously maleficent aura radiating off the horned lizard man. His cold, red eyes gazed with boredom at the worthless monkeys in front of him, who seem to be taking a long time to fall to their knees and praise him.
Freeza waited, but unlike the last time he was in here, no one dared to kneel before him and show him the proper respect he deserved, not even the cowardly King Vegeta or any of his ministers. Not even Paragus himself. This disrespect completely irked and displeased him inside.
Still, Freeza remained calm outwardly and said in his usually polite voice that clearly masked his heartless nature, "My, my... Do the monkeys not recognize who is standing before them?"
The hefty Dodoria turned to his master slightly, then glared at the insolent monkeys and addressed them with an indignant shout, "What are you dirty, idiotic monkeys gawking at?! You are at the presence of his Majesty, the Galactic Emperor, Freeza-sama! Bow down and show him proper respect!"
Aside from Vegeta, Broly, Bardock, Gine and Kakarot, the rest of the Saiyans hesitated but decided to stand their ground, reminding themselves of their mantra about Saiyan Pride because they feared their Crown Prince's wrath more than the Emperor's.
"You fools! Do you monkey scums know what you are doing?! Those who refused to bow down before Freeza-sama shall suffer the Galactic Army's wrath! This is insubordination!" Dodoria roared.
"How is it insubordination when we have never sworn any alliance to you?!" Vegeta responded in an even more intimidating tone than Dodoria's. "We refused to be of any connection to your empire, therefore we are not obligated to submit ourselves and bow down before you!"
When Vegeta spoke up, defending his people for not bowing down, Dodoria and Zarbon's eyes shot to his direction. The Galactic Empire watched the earlier battle, and after realizing both of Vegeta and Broly's fighting prowess, they deemed the two Saiyans to be very threatening. Clearly, Vegeta can destroy the both of them effortlessly by now. The two soldiers' faces began to pale at the sight of him. Aside from Vegeta's enormous increase in strength and fighting skills, hearing his ruthless reputation being the Legendary Destroyer of Worlds being equal to that of their master, made them even more terrified of his upcoming revenge.
Even so, Dodoria did his best to ignore his fear and began to bluff, "Oooh! It is that arrogant little monkey prince who we have beaten to death the last time!" he mocked.
"How amusing to see that after he almost died at our hands, he still has that annoying big mouth. Never learned your lesson yet, Prince Vegeta?" Zarbon uttered in his soft, elegant voice.
"Are you looking for another beating from us?" Dodoria asked in a disparaging tone.
Vegeta let out a cocky smirk and snorted filled with haughtiness, "Hmph! Why don't you try me again and see if you'll get another chance of beating me?"
"How cocky." Zarbon chuckled.
Before the three of them get into an even more heated, childish squabbles, Freeza cut them off. "Enough."
The three arguing men shut up.
Freeza turned his cold, scarlet eyes to the Saiyan King and finally addressed the sovereign of this planet, "What is the meaning of this, King Vegeta? Did you just assembled an entire army to fight against us? Shall I remind you that we had a deal about your son? I only came here for the treaty and..." Freeza's eyes flickered towards the Crown prince he wanted for a moment. "Him, yet you wish to wage a war against the mightiest empire across the Universe? What foolishness is this?"
King Vegeta stepped up and declared courageously with a defiant tone, "I have decided for my people to never have anything to do with you or your empire. Also, I will never give my son to someone like you. I'd rather die fighting than surrender and submit ourselves to you!"
The Saiyans in front of him resounded his declaration of war, some stuttering even."We'd rather die than surrender and submit ourselves to you!"
Freeza let out an amused smile as he observed at each and every Saiyan who stood against him with a keen but terrifying gaze. He noticed that aside from the Royal family, the Generals and that Broly guy, the others are obviously reluctant. He could clearly see their pale faces and their hesitation to join this war.
"Sounds believable if 98% of your men aren't trembling before me." Freeza pointed out nonchalantly.
"Tch!" Prince Vegeta grunted in annoyance when he's taken notice of his people's obvious fear. "They're all fools." he growled. He raised his hand and roughly waved it in front of him, causing a gust of wind to blow away those cowardly soldiers in front of him like they were knocked bowling pins. The fallen men pitifully picked themselves up to look at their indignant prince in trepidation.
Vegeta's rage was pulsing as he gazed down at his men with a deathly, indignant gaze. "How dare you call yourselves Saiyans and yet you cower before a worthy challenge to your might! Where is your pride in your strength? We Saiyans are the mightiest race of warriors in the universe! Stop that pathetic show of cowardice and stand up!"
Freeza and his goons laughed at the sight of the angry Saiyan Prince threatening his own people. The Saiyans rose and out of fear of being killed by their prince, stood firmly against the enemy.
"Ho..." Freeza was delighted at the sight of these weaklings trying their best to ignore their terror and stand against him. "I never thought that I will be greeted in such a manner when I return to this mudball you call a kingdom. Anyways, given the battalion of warriors you have set for us, it seems that you pathetic little monkeys are in for a war. I wonder if you will be foolish enough to attack if you know that one among you is in my hands right now."
The Saiyans stared into one another, confused whispers filled the air. One of them? One Saiyan is in Freeza's hands right now as a hostage? Who?
"Who do you mean?" Vegeta demanded Freeza.
The Emperor turned his head towards one of his strong men, "Dodoria-san. Take him in here, please." he told him.
The Saiyans waited anxiously for them to show which Saiyan he was taking as a hostage right now. A few moments later, Dodoria dropped the completely broken and bloodied body of a former Saiyan General assigned to protect the Second Prince of the Saiyans into the ground.
"Welcome home, monkey." Dodoria said as he grinned at the weakened Saiyan with sadistic delight.
The sight of his younger brother's general's terrible state irked the Crown Prince and those who know of him. The rest of the Saiyans growled.
Freeza said, still with his soft, polite manner, "You see, we caught him on some planet after he got separated from his young master several months ago. He's been sending distress signals to your planet's spaceport but no one was getting his cries for help. He was a great help to me finding out the truth about some things your people have been planning against me, you see. I learned many things from him. Like, for example, the stories about your prophecy about your Crown Prince being a destined chosen one to defeat the great evil me and save your people. Do you honestly think I have no idea what you filthy monkeys are planning? Seriously, I should have destroyed you all in one go by blowing up your planet to dust out in space! But then, after watching Prince Vegeta's earlier fight with his... former General, and saw that he could indeed become this Legendary Super Saiyan, my interest in him grew even more... even if he obviously wants to kill me."
Vegeta snarled, crouching down as he readied himself to pounce at Dodoria to save his brother's former attendant. There were hushed voices among his people that said Onio was a traitor for blowing the whistle to their enemy. Vegeta knew that is not the case. He could see Onio's pleading expression despite the bloodied and unrecognizable face that told him not to believe Freeza's lie. Vegeta turned his keen eyes at Freeza, focused his senses and ability of perception on the Emperor's ki to find out the truth. It was clear to him the Emperor was lying.
"Do you honestly think I would believe that lie?" Vegeta announced. "I couldn't care less where you get that information, but to set a trap for us Saiyans to fight against each other and make us think that one among our people betrayed us? That's unhonorable for someone of your high status, Freeza."
Freeza feigned ignorance at Vegeta's words, "My my... You dare to accuse me of lying?"
"You have no honor. You disappoint me."
Freeza's eyes widened in surprise for a few seconds before that expression melted into his neutral look.
"I see. You are indeed a perceptive one, just as the rumors say about you." he said. "But if there's anyone who was greatly disappointed here, it should be me. Here I thought that after the mercy I showed you last time, you would make up your mind and decide to join my army. I was wrong to give you a second chance. It's a shame how someone with your prodigious talents could have been very useful to me but turns out to be a fool blinded by his own pride. Fine with me then. If that's what you truly want, then I will let you have it!" he roared his last sentence furiously.
Freeza turned to Dodoria."You know what to do with that pest in your hand, Dodoria-san."
Knowing what that means, Vegeta roared, "Freeza, No!"
A cruel smile told Vegeta that the Emperor won't listen to him. Dodoria's eyes sparked with sadistic delight as a wide smile stretched across his rocky face. With one swift movement, he twisted Onio's head around, breaking his neck with a loud snap. He threw the disembodied head towards the stupefied Saiyans.
"Soldiers! Ready!" the Supreme Commander of the Freeza Army, Sorbet declared to all the Galactic Soldiers.
"Yastha Sektum!" Vegeta roared in pure fury at the sight of one dead Saiyan being helplessly killed by that brute, snapping his people from their shocks and replacing their stunned expressions into a collective outrage.
"Yastha Sektum!" King Vegeta imperiously ordered following his son's command, in which all Saiyan Soldiers fell into their fighting stances, prepared their weapons and powered up their ki to their maximum.
"ATTACK!" Sorbet shouted.
"HYAREH!" the King and Crown Prince of all Saiyans yelled in unison.
Both sides charged into one another, except for Freeza, Zarbon, Dodoria, Sorbet, Kikono and Beriblu, who watched the fray of the Saiyans against their entire army.
Above them, the aircrafts of the Saiyan Air Force ensued a combat in the skies, striking down several small ships of the Galactic Empire. The Freeza Army fought back. Beams clashed into one another. Some even exploding in the distance. There were several Saiyans and Freeza Army soldiers drifting in the skies too, firing their ray guns, ki blasts or swinging their weapons against one another. The same goes with those in the ground.
Freeza watched with gleam interest as he found his soldiers being effortlessly defeated by the Saiyans.
"How can this be?!" Sorbet gasped as he staggered backwards in shock. He never expected that they can be overpowered by the lowly monkeys despite their numbers.
"This ain't surprising. These Saiyans must have prepared themselves quite well. Perhaps, the death of Onio-san must have triggered an outrage in them as well." Freeza said. "They attack in groups, supporting one another. Their strength and fighting skills are great, but attacking in numbers like they are doing now is making them far more dangerous than they already were. They become unstoppable. Quite a strategy they have there."
"They really are pesky pests." Dodoria said.
"That is true. If only I was not curious about their Crown Prince I would have blasted this useless planet from space."
Zarbon and Dodoria were still astounded at the fact that their lord still wanted to get his hands on the Saiyan Prince.
"Look at him. Look at his fighting skills. He is such a unique gem. Dangerous, resilient and ruthless." the Emperor praised as he watched in awe at Prince Vegeta as he swiftly kill all of his enemies with one strike, without hesitation and mercy. The Prince's eyes were glowing a fiery red, showing his innate bloodlust. His face was cold and devoid of any emotion.
"He could easily kill everyone in here if he truly wanted to." Freeza pointed out.
"The same goes with Broly, milord." Zarbon said.
They watched as Broly and Paragus team up against their enemies. Yes, it is true that Broly has a lot of potential in him but Freeza insisted, "But Vegeta is far more different from Broly. I want the challenge in Vegeta's adamance and pride. It would be more fun to break someone like him, unlike someone who is already broken inside."
Bardock, Gine, Toma, Seripa, Totepo and Pambukin fought as one group. Zorn, Nappa and Kakarot (also Broly, with Paragus as a reluctant ally) as one group to protect and assist the Royal Family. King Vegeta worked with them by blasting enemies they are having a hard time with while Prince Vegeta directly attacks a few and killing them instantly with one swift strike.
"Freeza-sama. Dodoria and I will head out as well." Zarbon said, finding their men dwindle in numbers rapidly.
"Do as you wish." Freeza allowed them.
"Thank you, milord." Zarbon bowed down. He turned to Dodoria and announced, "Dodoria, let's go!"
When Vegeta finally saw them move, he let out a smirk. "Finally! A chance for payback!" he thought.
Zarbon and Dodoria powered up to their maximum strength as they walked regally towards the Saiyans. Zarbon instantly transformed into a burly, ugly frog like humanoid. His now hideous face was far from his beautiful bad boy image a few moments ago. That metamorphosis caused the Saiyans near them to be astonished not just by his sudden and unexpected change in appearance but also by the abrupt augmentation of his battle power that shoot beyond their own even as a group.
"I didn't know he can transform too..." someone quavered in pure terror as he stepped back fearfully. "That guy's power level just shoot up to 59,000!"
Vegeta snorted. That meant nothing to him. Grasping his chance to avenge his crushed pride these two fools have broken the last time they battled, he aggressively charged towards the two like a rushing, angry bull.
Roaring like a lion, Vegeta attacked Zarbon and Dodoria. Despite knowing they cannot hold a candle against him now, they still tried to defend themselves. Both suffered a quick but brutal death by the hands of the furious Saiyan. Vegeta remorselesly did to Dodoria what the cruel Dodoria did to the helpless Onio earlier.
"This is what you get for killing a Saiyan in front of me! I will never forgive anyone who dares to mock the Pride of the Saiyans, not even you or your master!" that's what Vegeta uttered to Dodoria before ripping his head off and proceeding to annihilate Zarbon with a swift punch to the gut that impaled through the monster's stomach. With a potent energy blast, Zarbon's body burst to pieces from the inside out.
In a matter of minutes, all the soldiers of the Freeza Army the Saiyans were fighting were dead on the ground. At the sight of his fallen army, Freeza clapped his hands, causing everyone to look at his direction. Kikono, Beriblu and Sorbet all stared at their fallen men with eyes that may fall from their sockets anytime soon, their faces pale in pure terror. They were astonished by how strong these Saiyans are. No wonder they are feared across the universe.
"I am not surprised about how easily you monkeys have beaten my lowly, obviously incompetent soldiers. You are a race of warriors after all. You wouldn't be called that for no reason. So I would like to congratulate you for your vast improvement, especially you, Vegeta-san." Freeza beamed with a pleased smile.
Vegeta's neutral expression didn't change as he glared at the Emperor in front of him with an austere gaze.
The Emperor grinned when he found that unimpressed look upon the Crown Prince of the Saiyans. "Aw, come on. Stop glaring at me like that. You know I've been vouching on you since the beginning, that's why I spared you last time. I heard of all your capabilities. While your people are indeed a powerful race of proud warriors, you still stand out among them all. Since the day I met you, I've been thinking of enlisting you in my Galactic Army and bestowing you the highest position as my Supreme Commander. Other than being my heir to my Empire, of course."
"Really? Supreme Commander? Heir to the Galactic Empire? Me?" Vegeta suddenly asked, showing gleam interest with Freeza's offer.
"Of course." Freeza nodded.
Vegeta turned his head over his shoulder towards his father with a lofty grin. They had a silent conversation for a moment, with the King shaking his head. Vegeta also saw Bardock and Kakarot doing the same thing. After a few moments of playfully thinking it over, the Saiyan Prince faced Freeza.
"Alright. You flatter me with your praises, Freeza." he said. "Sorry, but I will reject your offer. Just as I said last time, I will never bow down to you or even take orders from you. I have already made up my mind. I am going to annihilate you once and for all if you continue to persist in this meaningless treaty of yours. Also, if I destroyed you here, I can become the ruler of the universe in your place, so your offer meant nothing to me. Now, I'll give you a last chance to get off my planet and never return here again!" he shouted.
Freeza loured, having enough of the monkey Prince's disrespect to his authority. "This is the second time you have stood up against me of all people and you have blatantly told me to go away. I have no idea if you are truly ignorant of who you are talking to or if you simply lost your mind due to your terror but because you are too blinded by your high pride, you just deny it desperately. Do you honestly think a number of ants could beat a dinosaur?" he asked. He rose from his hovering throne, levitating off the eerie thing and descending into the ground. The invisible aura radiating off of him made the air have this chilling but vibrating hum, a sign of the Emperor's boiling ire.
Aside from Vegeta and Broly, all of the Saiyans paled and froze in complete terror as they perceived the Galactic Emperor's seething power.
"Of course. If those ants work together they can beat someone like you. Ever heard of teamwork?" Vegeta declared confidently.
Freeza chuckled in amusement as if he was hearing the funniest joke he's heard his entire life. "Hohohoho! That's a funny one. I guess the rumors were true when they say you are a joker."
"I know you are aware of this, thus your fear of the Saiyans fighting as one against you." the prince remarked.
"Is that so? Are your people even willing to die for you just to try incurring my wrath? Look at them, they're all paralyzed with fear." Freeza pointed out.
Vegeta turned to see what has suddenly become of his people and what he found made him furious. He roared at them, "That's it! I have no use for pathetic cowards such as yourselves! How dare you claim yourselves as Saiyans?! Get out of my sight before I decide to annihilate you all at once! Just go and watch in the sidelines if you want. I will take care of him alone!"
Without any word, the Saiyans scampered away from the battlefield like scared mice. Vegeta stared with a dumbfounded expression as no one was actually left behind him. Not even his father, Bardock, Kakarot or Broly.
"Ha! Great!" Vegeta snorted to himself. "I can take care of him alone. I don't need your help! Damn you all." he grumbled like a spoiled brat not getting what he wanted for his birthday.
He faced the Emperor, forcing his earlier mortified expression to his neutral look, trying to hide his humiliation about his earlier words.
"I do not require any help from those pesky cowards I call my people anyways. I believe that I alone would be sufficient enough to send you to hell." he stressed.
Freeza questioned with a sarcastic look and tone, "What? Are you telling me that you alone is suffice to beat me?"
Vegeta smirked a smug one as he answered with a mocking grin, "That's right! I didn't know you have a problem with either your hearing or your understanding."
Freeza chortled, astounded by this boy's asininity, "Hohoho... Of course, not. I was just too stunned by such absurdity. After your speech about unity and teamwork, here you are claiming that you alone can defeat me, Lord Freeza? I just can't believe your stupidity. Hohohohoho..!"
"Laugh while you can, Freeza! For it will be the last thing you'll ever do." the prince warned. "That's right! Keep smirking! Soon, I am going to wipe that disgusting smile off that hideous joke you call a face! What stands before you right now is your greatest nightmare! I am the fulfillment of the Saiyan's prophecy and a three thousand year old legend! The harbinger of your death, brought to life! The legendary golden warrior, the Super Saiyan!"
For a moment, Freeza's laughing expression changed into one of pure stun. Those words... It's almost the same as what Vegeta told him in his nightmares. The similarities gave him the creeps. He quickly regained his composure though.
"Of all the things you could have said, why does it sound so familiar to me? Apparently, you have no idea how terrifying I am, foolish Vegeta-san." Freeza said before he yelled. "Is that so?! Then allow me to show you what real hell is!"
Vegeta grinned widely in anticipation and urged the Emperor to do as he declared, "Very well then, show me! I am looking forward to it."
Freeza's malevolent purple aura burst to life and with a mighty roar, his power level quickly skyrocketed, causing the ground to rumble and crack underneath his feet. The sky slowly darkened with ominous thunderclouds being summoned by a heart of pure evil.
"This is bad! Everyone, stay even further away from the battlefield!" shouted Zorn. Everybody, except Vegeta, jumped back a few miles away to try to escape but...
"HRAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"
As Freeza's loud howl resounded in the distance, his destructive aura blasted outwards for several miles, reducing all of his dead men and numerous Saiyans who had a slow reaction time into atoms. Not even their final screams were heard, overwhelmed by the ear splitting sound of energy eruption
Vegeta stood at the same spot as he were before, without even budging or batting an eye at all. He watched in anticipation as Freeza transformed his body three times continuously. Nobody had any idea that the Galactic Emperor was this powerful! No wonder why he was feared across the universe!
Freeza's battle power rapidly rose as his body morphed into a giant. His skull elongated greatly, his facial features twisting into an even more hideous look, his nose and purple lips combined to form a crude beak. The deadly looking black horns at the sides of his head receded, replaced by white, bone like spikes. Several more of the same spikes grew out of his spine, curving outward. His trembling body hunched while his ear piercing screams escalate into a choir of cries of extreme agony.
Soon, his body began to crack apart like it was an egg about to unleash the monster being developed inside of it. As this happens, Freeza's body flashed red, unable to control his growing powers any longer.
With a mighty cry, Freeza released a shockwave that shattered his 'shell', causing a destructive explosion of power. His malevolent purple aura bursted upwards into the skies.
When the smoke finally cleared, Freeza appeared in his true form. From his horned pink, purple and white demon lizard appearance earlier, he was now just a simple and sleek looking lizard-like humanoid with white and purple skin. He looked pretty harmless but one could literally feel his overwhelmingly terrifying power through the immense, chilling pressure he was emitting.
"What do you think, Vegeta-san? This is my true form. The previous one you saw earlier is just a camouflage to contain my full power, which I am having a great difficulty to control." Freeza announced.
Vegeta let out a disinterested sigh, "Ah, so you transform like us Saiyans, huh?" he remarked with a cocky smile. "So what about it? You just removed some of your skin, only to shrink down into a harmless looking lizard! You're nothing special."
The Saiyan heir's words filled with hauteur insulting his mighty power grated the nerves of the supposedly self-composed emperor. "You sure are cocky, Saiyan." he growled. "Then show me this legendary Super Saiyan you have been bragging about."
Vegeta's dark eyes changed into scarlet, filled with excitement for shedding his opponent's blood with his hands. He smiled as he stated, "Now that is a request you're going to regret! Huuuuurgh!"
With a concentrated look, he focused to his energy deep within himself, Vegeta summoned his legendary power from the depths of his being, calling forth all of his rage, the catalyst for the legendary transformation and letting it flow through his entire being. It answered to his call and soon enough, the power began to bubble through the surface, enveloping his form with an intense golden light. Each strand of his dark brown hair above his head rippled with the excess flow of his energy, changing its hue to a glowing gold. In front of him, Freeza's eyes widened and his jaw dropped in complete horror.
As Vegeta's glowing red eyes turned into jade green, he reared his head back and shouted with all his might into the skies, "Hyaaaaaaaaaah!"
A burst of golden light shoot straight up into the dark clouds, and returned as a huge, powerful bolt of lightning striking the Saiyan Prince to fill him with the overwhelming legendary power of a Super Saiyan.
'The brat sure has a knack for showing dramatic power ups and transformations.' Bardock thought grimly as he watched Vegeta's transformation. He's the only one among the Saiyans who was obviously unimpressed by the overdramatic show off by their transforming prince instead of being in complete awe.
When the thunder exploded, filling their surroundings with excess yellowish white lightning snapping across the battlefield, Vegeta stood proudly in his Super Saiyan state.
For a few moments, the proud Prince Vegeta and the entirely astonished Emperor Freeza stared at one another. Noticing the Emperor's opening, Vegeta crouched down, like a cat ready to pounce at his preferred prey. And then, with blinding speed that not even Freeza was able to see, Vegeta kicked off the ground and sent an unexpected punch into Freeza's unguarded belly.
The attack almost folded the unprepared Emperor into half.
"The sleeper has awakened to send you to the depths of hell, Freeza. Prepare yourself." Vegeta declared in a cold voice as he raised his eyes focused on his fist to stare up at Freeza's huge eyes. "What's the matter? Surprised?" he asked with smirk.
"Kkkgh!" Freeza was too stunned to say anything. He could only let out a squeaking sound, as if he was trying his best not to puke whatever bitter thing was collecting in his throat from his abdomen. Was it blood or an acid reflux?
Clearly, Freeza was taken aback by the unexpected strength of that attack.
Watching the great Emperor in agony made Vegeta's beastial sadistic urge boil to the surface and he slowly pulled his fist, the one buried deep into Freeza's gut, causing the lizard humanoid to let out a long, pained grunt. He smashed the same fist into Freeza's chin and then the other on the left side of his face.
"Fu... Freeza-sama!" Sorbet gasped in disbelief when he found his master being helplessly pummeled by the monkey prince.
"Get into the ship, now!" Kikono called out to his remaining two comrades, Sorbet and Beriblu. They ran inside their ship and watched the ensuing battle through the window.
Vegeta began to pound his fists against Freeza's face and torso with superhuman speed as they blasted off into the dark skies. Shockwaves released from each hit rumbled across the battlefield. The prince swivelled downwards to grab and pull his opponent's heel to spin and hurl into the ground. Freeza shoot towards a thick wall that got reduced to rubble upon his impact.
Vegeta floated above the debris of rocks where Freeza plummeted. His muscular arms crossed over his chest plate as he calmly gazed at the smoke of dust with a confident smile. A burst of purple light suddenly exploded from the debris, reducing them to atoms. Freeza appeared, scowling as he looked up at Vegeta.
The Saiyan Prince chuckled, "Hehehe... Come on, Freeza. I was curious to see the extent of your true power." he challenged the Emperor.
Freeza was irate at the dirty tricks done to him by this damn, boastful monkey, "How insolent of you! You just got some cheap, dirty shots at me and you already think you are superior? Your arrogance will be your undoing!"
Vegeta titled his chin upwards, still with that pompous smirk as he gloated his enemy, "By all means, don't hold back on my account."
"Fine with me then!" Freeza gritted his teeth, flaring his aura to life. He blindly rushed towards Vegeta, blasting off the ground engulfed by his cataclysmal energy. He threw a punch towards the prince, which Vegeta effortlessly dodged by simply cocking his head to his left side.
Vegeta calmly grabbed Freeza's wrist with both of his hands. Freeza staggered back in stun. Vegeta shouted at him, "Too slow!" and using his hold, flung Freeza into the clouds. The Prince watched the Emperor scream and disappear from his sight. Using his Hibiktus technique, Vegeta followed Freeza's trail, and attacking from above, he proceeded into rapidly pounding his fists over the helpless Freeza's face until they reached the ground. Freeza tried his best to fight back, but he was completely overpowered by the Super Saiyan.
Vegeta continued his assault, burying Freeza into the deep crater the Emperor's impact was creating, several cracks appeared around the hole, which kept on getting bigger. The prince roared like an Oozaru as he unleashed his wrath at the Emperor, incessantly beating him to a pulp.
Finally, when the prince halted his attacks, Freeza was on his behind on the ground, surrounded by dust and debris. He was entirely taken aback by the overwhelming strength of his opponent. Vegeta towered over him, gazing down at him with a pair of cold, narrowed green eyes. A displeased expression and a deep scowl on his face.
"Are you serious? Is that really the true level of your power, oh great and mighty Emperor of the Universe?!" Vegeta started to gibe. "If that's the limit of your strength then I'm greatly disappointed." he paused to spit on the ground in utter repulsion of the miserable state his enemy was in. This act offended the Emperor greatly. "And here I was hoping I can finally have a good fight! It was rumored what kind of power you possess and here I came wondering what an exceptional demon you are but it seems that the stories about you are nothing but exaggerated gibberish lies! Apparently, there is too much of a gap between our powers. I didn't expect you to be this pathetic! This fight bores me! Killing you in here has become such an inconsequential matter."
That did it.
Freeza finally had enough of this monkey's unbelievable pompousness. How dare he insult and humiliate him, the Great Emperor of the Universe like this?!
"Why you insolent monkey! You have such a bossy mouth that talks big for someone of lowly primitive status like yourself! For your information, this isn't even my final form! If you really want to fight me then I'll let you have it!"
Vegeta raised an eyebrow at him, "Really? And here I thought we are fighting seriously already. So you are not fighting with your true strength all this time when you clearly said a few moments ago that you are using your true power?"
"Yes, this is my true form but isn't my final form. I am still hiding my latent abilities in which I achieved while training for this day. You see, when I learned about your so called 'prophecy', I decided to bide my time training to release my latent potential in order to prepare myself for our battle, Super Saiyan. Do you honestly think I will allow a lowly simian like you defeat me so easily?! Of course, not! During my training, I was able to unlock my hidden powers by undergoing a metamorphosis. Just as how you called yourself as the golden warrior, I, too, have the same golden transformation!"
"Are you saying that despite this obvious gap between us, if you reach this golden form of yours, that you would be able to beat me?" Vegeta asked with a sarcastic tone.
"Of course! Just like what they say, fight fire with fire. In our case, fight gold with gold!"
"Hmm..." the Saiyan Prince muttered to himself.
"What do you say, Vegeta-san? You are the Crown Prince of a warrior race, the strongest of your kind. I'm sure you would want to see me in my most powerful form! All your life you've been bored being this powerful, no one can hold a candle against your great might and challenge your superiority. Here is your chance to get rid of that boredom and test your strength against mine! Allow me to transform to my golden form, Vegeta-san and you can enjoy the good, worthy fight you've been waiting for so long." tempted the devilish Emperor.
Vegeta eagerly listened to Freeza's tempting offer, considering them in his mind. The Galactic Emperor's words were true. All his life, Vegeta found himself in the state of complete boredom until he spent his time teasing and falling in love with Bulma and discovered a worthy challenge in Broly's unexpected might. His quest in regaining his title as the strongest of his kind had been enjoyable while it lasted, the challenge Broly's power brought to him served as a goal to spur his already dead motivation to be ignited once more. But after he had overpowered Broly in their second match, Vegeta's boredom as a warrior returned once more. Without a proper challenge or goal, all the power he had meant nothing to him but just a symbol of his own self-pride that allowed him to feel superior to the weaklings around him and subjugate them to do what he wants out of their fear of incurring his wrath. This was the reason why he disguised himself as Sadara, in order to fend away his boredom and have some fun with causing trouble, playing around or being thought of as the same level as his people.
But it really wasn't enjoyable enough to satisfy him.
Vegeta always wanted a challenging conflict to test out his full strength and prodigious abilities on someone that can hold their own against him. It would be more satisfying if that someone was stronger than him so he can be motivated to break through his limits and discover a new level of strength on his own. So if Freeza was telling him that he could beat him in this Golden form of his, it would give the prince what he wanted the most.
A challenge worthy enough to make his seething Saiyan blood boil with uncontrollable excitement. A fight without him holding back his strength. A battle which would push him to surpass his limits!
"Listen to what your Saiyan blood is telling you." Freeza goaded him like a demon whispering to Vegeta's ears, tempting him and offering him the greatest innermost desires of his heart.
The remaining Saiyans behind them panicked, seeing their Chosen One hesitate and think about his decision. No! He must not let Freeza do that!
"Just what do you think you're doing, Yon?! Now is your chance! You must not let him reach his full power! It's the time to attack while he's powerless against you! Kill him now!" King Vegeta yelled at his son.
Vegeta, hearing his father's words, turned his head in his direction. "Already?" he asked with a tone of complete boredom.
"Of course, you brat! Don't tell me you are considering of allowing him to reach this golden form of his?! Don't be a fool! Finish him now!"
"Tch! How pathetic of you, Papa! Don't you want to see his true strength? I want to fight him at his best! To see the true power of the man once considered as the most powerful in the entire universe and to test out my own unrestrained might against him without holding anything back! I want to kill him when he has used everything he has, make him suffer, break every bone in his body and crush his spirit, to humiliate him by making him realize that no matter his strength, he is truly no match for the Prince of all Saiyans and the Legendary Super Saiyan's powers! That way I can truly enjoy this battle until the end!"
"Are you insane?! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Bardock cut in, "Listen to me, brat! You have to finish him now before he gets the upper hand against you! Remember, only you have the power to destroy Freeza!"
Vegeta smirked, "I know that."
"Then stop hesitating, Yon! If you don't use that power now and you allow Freeza to power up, it could become your undoing!" King Vegeta shouted.
"Listen to what your father's telling you for once, brat! You cannot afford to lose this chance! Don't waste it!" Bardock insisted.
Paragus grunted on the sides, shaking his head. "That haughty, stubborn little bastard. He's bound to fail his mission if he allows Freeza to use his latent potential." he turned to his son and told him in a low voice. "Broly, prepare yourself. If Vegeta allows Freeza, you can have your chance of stealing the win from him."
Broly just gave his father an angry look. Really? His father is still on that worthless rivalry? He sighed.
"JUST SHUT UP!" Vegeta roared as he waved a hand to create a gust of potent wind that blew the two Saiyan adults away. He had enough of them telling him what to do in his fight! Didn't they all ran away to make him battle the Emperor alone instead of fighting with him in unity? "Don't you dare order me around?! This is my fight and only I can decide what will happen in here! If anyone of you gets in my way before I could satisfy my thirst for blood, then I will take it all out on you!"
The Saiyans stared at their prince as if he just grew a second head. He can't be doing this! Not now!
Bardock began to pale, as his wide eyes suddenly rolled backwards. His mind being filled by new ominous visions of the outcome of the fight as Vegeta finally made up his mind about his decision, which eventually changed the course of his future.
Vegeta returned his attention to his nemesis and declared, "Fine, I will call your bluff and intentionally fall into your trap. There's no pride and joy to feel in celebrating if I defeated you in this pathetic state you are in now. Go on and transform."
As Freeza spread his legs apart and put his arms down on his sides, palm facing forward, he smiled a cruel one as he began to power up to his golden form.
"Very well. You just made the right decision! Now, feast your eyes on this! Consider yourself lucky, you are the first one to see this new, glorious transformation of mine!"
"I'm looking forward to it."
Behind Vegeta, Bardock screamed an ear-piercing cry, "Nooooooooooo!"
"Hyaaaaaaaaah!"
A yellow-orange aura burst out of Freeza's body, bracing himself while he shouted a resounding yell. Dust, small rocks and debris began to levitate around them. The swirling dark clouds gave of flashes of yellow lightning, striking the ground near Freeza. The ground trembled once again under their feet, it's intensity grew just as Freeza's power peaked.
Suddenly, his energy exploded and Freeza's body began to flash a golden light. Its radiance too bright, blinding everyone's eyes watching him. A destructive phenomena occurred across Planet Vegeta, and so as the neighboring planets near the Saiyan homeworld. Freeza's immense, evil power can be felt across the galaxies and the otherworld, causing Saiyans and aliens, even otherworldly beings alike, to fear what's about to happen.
Vegeta, who was shielding his eyes with his arms from the blinding light of Freeza's energy, was beginning to feel it as well. He didn't expect that Freeza was still hiding such an ominous and massive level of power!
"Yes... Yes! That's it! The stronger my opponent is, the greater the thrill of the fight!" he thought to himself excitedly.
When the light finally dimmed, Freeza appeared with the same pose as he did before powering up. He looked pretty much the same as his true form only for his white skin to become a shining, metallic gold.
Sensing Freeza's new power, Vegeta staggered back in trepidation, lips quivering in terror. "What is this?!" he asked himself inwardly. He didn't expect for Freeza to have his own 'Super Saiyan' like transformation, allowing him to unleash a power Vegeta could never comprehend.
"Bardock! Bardock!" Gine cried out to her mate, who was on his back, leaning upon her shoulders. She tried to shake him off his screaming as his mind filled with his new visions.
"This is bad! The intensity of Freeza's ki just got even more powerful than Prince Vegeta's!" Caulifla declared.
The Saiyans stared with dread, agreeing to her words.
"Ugh! This is what happens when that rascal becomes too arrogant of his own strength!" King Vegeta groaned in exasperation.
"Prince Vegeta may be arrogant by nature, but what happened earlier is very unlike of him. He's allowed his rational mind to be blinded by his own inner Saiyan needs. I'm afraid to say this but the way Prince Vegeta acted, he is not himself. He's being controlled by the primordial urges the Super Saiyan transformation brought forth in that state of his." Kakarot said.
"He's going to be beaten! That haughty fool!"
"But how about that Super Saiyan god form? Vegeta still has that power of a deity, right?" Nappa said, which confused Kakarot and the others who weren't able to meet or understand Yamoshi and his words.
"The thing is he is unaware that he possessed such powers. He probably won't be able to use it." King Vegeta said.
"But didn't Yamoshi said that he was going to tap into that power when the right time comes, your Majesty?" Zorn asked.
"The truth is that Vegeta won't be able to tap into that power unless he calms himself down and control his own bloodlust. His godly powers won't come out if his heart isn't pure and righteous!"
"What?!"
Freeza observed Vegeta's pale and fearful reaction, "Now now, Vegeta-san. What happened to that high spirit of yours earlier? Hohoho..." he chuckled. "I cannot blame you for being so terrified after witnessing my overwhelming power. Obviously, I have more power than you now. If you can scan my battle power in this state with the scouters, you will get a reading of one hundred quintillion karos!"
"Impossible!" Vegeta denied, not wanting to believe Freeza's claims despite sensing it himself. "Not even you could get that powerful! I am the Legendary Super Saiyan, the most powerful warrior in the entire universe! The prophecy foretold my victory against you!"
While he initially thought Freeza's power could help him satisfy his boredom and have a proper challenge to surpass his own limitations, he didn't expect for Freeza to unleash this much power in him. There's no way Vegeta could pull out that much power even if he shatters his own limits!
"Do you honestly believe that, you fool? Perhaps, you didn't know, prophecies can change accordingly to one's decision." Freeza said. "And I just played my trump card by manipulating your most dangerous weakness, that arrogance and pride of yours, to change that prophecy. Why don't you look at your seer friend. He seems to be having a pale face."
Vegeta turned his face to look at Bardock, who just recovered from his visions. And he knew the meaning behind that look of disapproval in the man's face. He has genuinely failed. This would only mean that no matter what Vegeta did, he was not able to break through his barriers. He was bound to be beaten. How can this be? Vegeta just couldn't believe it.
"No way..." he tried his best to deny the hard truth to his reality now. Clearly not knowing what to do, he had no other choice but to fight Freeza, even if he knew he's going to be beaten now.
His pride... He's still holding on to that pride of his. He will not give up here! He will do his best. He is a Saiyan after all. The more he's on a pinch, the more he could break his own limits and become stronger. He stubbornly believed in that.
He knew he just have to pull off a miracle somehow, and find a way to turn the tables back.
Freeza was astounded by such adamance. He didn't expect for Vegeta to continue fighting despite his terror. Instead of giving up and surrendering himself to submission, the Saiyan was obstinate enough to brace himself for a second round. This completely pissed Freeza off.
"What you did to me earlier... I will pay you back a hundred - no, a thousand folds! Prepare yourself!" Freeza announced.
Ignoring the uncomfortable, twisting feeling in his chest, Vegeta forced a smirk, "I... am looking forward to it! Do your worst, Freeza! And don't disappoint me this time."
Why is he still smirking that way? Freeza wondered. Has Vegeta finally snapped and lost his mind due to terror? Or is he hiding some kind of childish trick upon his long sleeves?
Freeza smiled a cruel one, "You don't have to tell me. I will certainly do it."
Both warriors fell into their fighting stances.
Behind them, the desperate Saiyans watched their prince continue his fight despite obviously fearing for his own life. They began to wonder the same things as Freeza was asking himself. Has their crown prince become desperate and crazy? There is no way he could beat Freeza in this state, unless he can transform even beyond the Legendary Super Saiyan state. It simply wasn't enough to match Freeza's new power now.
Vegeta flared his aura and powered up to his maximum Super Saiyan strength. Kicking off the ground lightly, he sent a leg sweep towards Freeza's side, which the Emperor easily blocked with his wrist, causing a shock over the Prince's face.
"Huh?"
Snapping out of his frigid state, Vegeta threw a right hook which Freeza also blocked. He growled to himself. Feeling indignant, he released several more relentless attacks but it failed to break his opponent's defenses.
"Heh!" Vegeta smirked cockily. "Seems you have improved so much! That's more like it! I can literally feel my Saiyan blood boil over now with excitement."
Or more like, perturbation, but Vegeta won't allow himself to show that.
As if to prove his words true, he allowed his basal instincts to take over him. His jade green eyes changed color into a glowing scarlet. Vegeta's mind started to become clouded by that primal mind, the same mind that made Broly go berserk and uncontrollable. However, unlike his General, the Saiyan Prince was not completely taken over by his animal side yet. Though his actions would eventually become more destructive, feral and violent - with such unrestrained strength in them.
Freeza noticed Vegeta's battle power rise with that small change, but it still wasn't near from his own. The prince striked the Emperor with all his primal might, Freeza could feel the savage strength in Vegeta's attacks. He loved that wild look on his face too. Vegeta began to act like an untamed animal unleashed to shed blood to satisfy its seething thirst.
But all of Vegeta's attacks were futile against Freeza. It simply felt like a love-tap to the lizardman's mighty, metal skinned body.
The Emperor distanced himself from the ballistic Saiyan by leaping away. Getting even more livid, Vegeta raised his palms forward and fired a furious volley of energy blasts, chasing Freeza with it.
"Look out!" Nappa screamed.
"Get to the ground, all of you!" King Vegeta commanded.
Everyone collapsed prone to the ground and with defensive stances as Freeza zipped in a bee line towards the Saiyan audience. Vegeta kept on firing, not caring where his blasts hit any longer, whether it be close to his father, his friends or his people.
"That rascal!" King Vegeta shouted.
"You won't get away from me!" the prince roared.
Shooting up into the skies, Freeza stopped and made a defensive stance against the blasts that followed him. But he didn't expect the other blasts that rained down on him from above. Those caught him off guard and as the blasts burst into a cloud of smoke, Vegeta appeared before him charging up his ultimate attack.
A fully charged, planet shattering Galick Gun!
"Eat this, you bastard!" he roared as he thrust his arms forward, releasing the planet destroying electromagnetic cannon from his entire body.
"What?!" Freeza shrieked in utmost shock. His agonized scream was completely overpowered by the intense eruption of the electrifying ki attack as he took the devastating blast head on.
"He did it!" Everyone watching below declared joyously.
Vegeta floated in the open air, panting heavily. Finally waking up from his earlier primal state of mind, he watched at the smoke created by his most powerful attack just yet.
Once the smoke has cleared, Freeza was not there. Finding his enemy gone, Vegeta threw his head back to cackle boisterously, declaring his own victory.
"Bwahahahahaha! Ahahahaha! How's that, Freeza?! Not even someone as powerful as you can escape an attack like that if you dropped your guard! Ahahahaha-gwack! "
Wha... What the?!
Vegeta felt a sudden pain piercing through his chest. He saw a small beam of purple energy coming out of his left chest. It entered from his back - and penetrated through his heart, out of his left chest. Blood burst out of that hole following the fading of that beam, and out of his mouth.
Vegeta fell face first on the ground, his blonde hair fading back to dark brown. His eyes returning to its obsidian hue and his golden aura dissipated like flame being put out with one single blow.
"What did just happen?" He questioned himself inwardly as his eyes stared in shock at the ground he collapsed into.
"Perhaps, you should stop lecturing others and take your own advice, Vegeta-san."
Freeza's cold voice said those straightforward words above him and Vegeta shifted his eyes to see him appear without any scathe at all. How could his most powerful attack not have any effect on that monster? For some reason, Vegeta once again felt the humiliation of defeat, just like how he's lost to Broly in their first fight.
"What kind of monster is he?! I've used up all my ki into that Galick Gun and he's still standing! This despicable demonic reptile!" he thought to himself.
"So this is the level of your legendary power, eh? It looks like my training made me too strong for you, Mister Legendary Super Saiyan." Freeza said as he circled around Vegeta, like a predator observing his prey before finally killing him. He watched with cold, remorseless eyes at the Saiyan's sufferings as he coughed a tremendous amount of blood out from his mouth several times.
"Let me borrow the phrases you said to me a while ago. 'If that's the limit of your strength then I'm greatly disappointed. Here I was hoping I can finally have a good fight. It was rumored what kind of power you possess and here I came wondering what an exceptional monster you are but it seems that the stories about your legendary might are just nothing but a child's fairy tale. Apparently, there is too much of a gap between our powers. This fight is dull. Killing you has become such a frivolous matter.' that's correct, isn't it?"
"Damn it all... Damn it all!" Vegeta growled through his clenched teeth, feeling terribly upset with Freeza's way of taking his earlier words back at him. "This can't be happening. Isn't the Legendary Super Saiyan supposed to be the mightiest warrior among all? Aren't I supposed to destroy him according to the Saiyan prophecy? But why is it that even with this power, I still don't have what it takes to fulfill my mission?" he pondered to himself.
"So, how does it feel to choke on your own arrogant words, monkey? You should have listened to your ape father's advice and finished me off when you had the chance. But what did you do? You let your pride and arrogance blind you. I didn't know it was easy to manipulate someone like you. That legendary power you possessed was put into waste due to your foolishness. Ohohohohohohoho!"
Vegeta snarled on the ground, completely pissed off. He summoned all of his remaining strength to pick himself up the ground. His red blood dripped into the soil from that grotesque gaping hole in his chest.
"No... I will not lose to someone like you..." Vegeta growled. "I... I'm not... Uuuurgh!"
He struggled to get back to his feet.
"No! Vegeta... Vegeta is going to get killed!" Bardock declared, causing everyone to stare at him.
"We must go and protect the prince!" Gine said.
"Protect the prince!" the Generals cried out, which were repeated by the rest of the Saiyans.
When Broly heard of Bardock's words, he literally went into shock.
"Oh? What's this? Still have some fight left in you? You really are a tenacious pest. Not even with that hole in your heart could bring you down." Freeza said as he watched Vegeta's strenuous struggle to get up.
When the prince was finally back to his feet, his shoulders slumped forward and his face contorted into one that's trying their best to endure the pain and the bleeding hole in his chest. Vegeta shook his head, hoping to clear his blurring vision. His breathing heavy, ragged and wheezing. He braced himself for another round. He clenched his throbbing muscles, which felt heftier than usual. His body shook as his teeth gritted in his exertion, summoning every ounce of rage he was feeling right now, concentrating his ki.
"Hraaaaaaaaaahh!"
In a flash of golden light, Vegeta instantly became a Super Saiyan. However, unlike his previous transformations to the legendary state, this one only brought him a dangerous toll on his body. Forcing himself into transforming only made the pain greater and he could feel each of his muscles throbbed, as if crying out for him to stop this madness. He stubbornly fought against it, fueled by sheer will and pride.
"You... I will... I will not allow you to defeat me!" he snarled, a furious look on his face. His golden aura flared wildly, forcefully building up his energy despite the agonizing torture he was doing to his own body.
Getting back up after being fatally wounded would normally astound his people for his amazing tenacity and unbelievable sheer will. Everyone stared in awe as their supposedly beaten future king was back on his feet to continue fighting, even with that bleeding hole in his chest. Despite their feelings of admiration for Vegeta's fiery will, they worried for his safety. They just couldn't stand watching him do this. It's not normal at all!
Despite his situation being in a pinch, Vegeta didn't regret his decision of letting Freeza reach his golden state. He was glad to get to fight Freeza in his true strength, which he considered to be another wall for him to surpass if he ever survived this battle. What angered him the most was the humiliation of his pride after allowing himself to be manipulated and made a fool by this dirty bastard. For that, he will never forgive Freeza.
Vegeta put his head down. His dark thoughts slowly clouding over his mind once more. Gold-colored smoke rose from the bleeding hole on his left chest, slowly healing the gaping wound in a rapid pace, much to everybody's astonishment. The same energy flow totally regenerated his body.
Feeling the Prince's seething wrath about to be unleashed, Kakarot shouted, "Oh no, Vegeta! Calm down and don't let your primal rage control you!"
It was too late to stop the warrior prince. Vegeta snapped his head upwards and roared like a rampaging Oozaru, his golden aura exploded outward, the flaring of his energy grew wilder than normal. Sparks of white electrical discharge snapped off the intense wave of energy as he summoned a hurricane around him. He flexed his arms on his sides, all of his throbbing muscles began to bulge slowly and dramatically.
"You're not going to defeat me, Freeza! I am the Legendary Super Saiyan!" he screamed.
Vegeta's aura exploded once again, his ki building at an alarming rate, causing his aura to enlarge in size. The golden hue darkened as the sparks of yellowish white electricity turned into deadly bolts snapping around his form rapidly. The ground began its fearsome tremors as the prince finally unleashed his wrath. He screamed incessantly as his body burned with a fiery inferno. His blank eyes rolled backwards as he felt his muscles continue to expand, bulging beyond normal, turning his small, lean figure into a hulking monster. For some reason, this transformation reminded them of Broly's display of berserker might during the opening fight of the Annual Power Assessment.
"He's going to kill us all if he doesn't control himself! He has to calm down!" Nappa cried out.
"He's charging up his ki in a forceful manner. If this keeps up, he's going to blow himself up! He has to stop this immediately!" Zorn said.
Hearing this, King Vegeta screamed lengthily at his furious son, "Stop it, Yon! Control yourself before it's too late!"
Sensing the danger, Freeza decided to end this fight once and for all. "You annoying pest! You just didn't know when to quit! Why don't you just drop dead!"
The Galactic Emperor furiously charged towards Vegeta and knocked him out with a swift punch against his solar plexus. Unlike the arrogant prince, Freeza wasn't one to wait until his enemy becomes stronger than him. He nips the bud while he can, not letting himself lose his chance to defeat his adversary.
It didn't faze Vegeta at all. So what Freeza did was to wrap his long, thick tail around Vegeta's neck and strangle him with it. The Saiyan valiantly fought against his grip, kicking violently as he struggled and choked when Freeza tightened his hold.
Freeza created an orange colored energy orb in his right hand while watching Vegeta's struggles cruelly. He pressed the sparking ki ball towards Vegeta's chest, which eventually enveloped the helpless Saiyan in a sphere of immeasurable torture. When Freeza's tail released him, Vegeta's ear-piercing anguished cry rang across the battlefield.
Phoooooooom!
Once the sphere has erupted and the smoke was cleared, Vegeta's shaking knees collapsed to the soil. His transformation eventually cancelled out as the rest of his body fell forward. He was left in his base form, knocked out cold. His dark eyes blank and lifeless while his mouth gaped open. His body trembled slightly, probably due to the pain or fatigue caused by the torture or his own transformation earlier.
"Yon-aaaaaaah!" screamed King Vegeta, Bardock and Kakarot when they found the Prince's lifeless-looking body on the ground.
Freeza stood above Vegeta's unconscious body and said, "What a waste. I thought you could be useful to me because you are different from the others but I guess I was wrong about you. If I cannot break your will and make you submit to me even after I have showed you my true might, then I must not let you live and grow into an even more powerful pest. I gave you your chance and you blew it away. You said you'd rather die than serve me. If that's what you want then I will gladly give it to you. This is the end for you, Vegeta-san."
As Freeza was about to blast Vegeta to the next dimension, Kakarot, with Bardock, King Vegeta, Nappa, Zorn, Caulifla, Cabbe, Renkon, Bardock's crew and the remaining Royal soldiers and guards behind him, instantly appeared between Vegeta and Freeza. They all crouched down in their defensive stances to protect their prince. An intimidating feral look upon their faces as they pulled their lips and bared their fangs at Freeza. A spine-chilling animalistic hiss reverberate through their sharp teeth. The other Saiyans appeared around them, surrounding the Emperor in a circle. They snarled at him, daring him to do what he was planning to do to their prince or they will finally fight in unison to defend their future King.
"Oh... What is this? Defending the honor of your crown prince against me, huh?" Freeza said to the Saiyans, causing them to snarl back at him dangerously once more. "After you have left him to fight on his own, you are now here to protect him? Oh well, no matter. I was thinking whether I should be giving you a chance to become a part of my army but after your blatant disregard for my authority and standing up against me like this, I guess it doesn't matter to me anymore.
"No matter how many of you monkeys stand against me, you're all going to die anyways!"
In his mind, Bardock was trying to figure out a way for them to turn the tables and have Vegeta unleash his latent Super Saiyan god abilities. He scanned through the memories of his visions, the one Yamoshi sent him the time Vegeta was taken over by the Saiyan deity's spirit. He remembered the figures of six Saiyans gathered in a circle, channelling their energy into the Chosen One. Bardock wondered if that's the ritual of summoning Yamoshi to awaken within Vegeta.
"This is bad! Vegeta-niisan's heart has stopped beating! We have to get him out of here and resuscitate him now!" Cabbe cried out. He cradled the prince in his lean arms while he checked on his vitals. The prince wasn't breathing anymore and his heart was still. He's dead but there is still a chance to save him.
Broly turned his head towards Vegeta after hearing Cabbe's words. He stared at the Prince's lifeless body with huge, shocked eyes, Cabbe's statement resounded at the back of his mind. No! This can't be happening! Prince Vegeta cannot be dead! This... This feeling of unspeakable dread in his chest felt exactly the same as when he learned from Beets that Paragus has killed Vegeta, the mind numbing news made his heart pound with fear and regret once more.
He turned towards Freeza, the sight of the despicable monster who killed his best friend infuriated him greatly. If Vegeta was unable to crawl his way out of death's door this time, Broly will never forgive himself for simply standing on the sidelines and not helping him. He simply abided by Vegeta's wish to fight Freeza alone, and not interfering while he still can was a grave mistake on his part. He foolishly waited until Vegeta was unconscious however, it seemed he was entirely wrong to let it turn out this way.
Overthinking about his failure to protect his future King and the man he considered his best friend and savior of his life, his aspiration, the only person aside Paragus whom he truly cared and loved, Broly finally snapped. He cried out a lengthy "No!" into the dark skies and exploded into his Super Saiyan form.
Unlike the form he used during his fight with Vegeta earlier, Broly's muscle mass only increased slightly. His hair stood up into jagged spikes, glowing neon green for a short moment before it becomes golden in color, similar to Vegeta's. His eyes were no longer blank and entirely white. Jade green irises were visible now. This implied that Broly is finally able to become the same Super Saiyan as Vegeta, and is now in full control of himself and his power.
Everyone stared at Super Saiyan Broly in awe and disbelief. Did he just unlock the true Legendary Super Saiyan form? Has Broly finally become their Chosen One?
"What?! Another Super Simian getting in my way?" Freeza grunted in irritation.
"Hm!" Broly snorted as he moved with lightning speed and appeared between his people and the Galactic Emperor.
"Kakarot," he called his friend without looking at him. Kakarot, who was kneeling next to Vegeta's body, raised his head to see Broly's back. "Take Prince Vegeta away from here and find a way for him to recover as quickly as possible. I will try my best to stop Freeza until he returns to the battlefield. Go now."
"Broly..." Kakarot breathed. He wanted to celebrate Broly's ascension too, to congratulate him for achieving the true Legendary state, but he knew that isn't the time for now. He could sense that Broly was in grave danger, considering how even Prince Vegeta himself was not able to beat the monstrous Freeza even in that Legendary form of his. "Broly..." Kakarot said his name once again. "You... You can't possibly..."
"Just go, Kakarot! Now! While I can still control myself!" Broly shouted at him.
Kakarot staggered back at the angry tone Broly used which he never heard from him before. Perhaps, it was an effect of finally becoming a Super Saiyan. "Yes, sure..." he muttered. He quickly grabbed Vegeta and touched his forehead with his right index and middle fingers. He focused his ki senses to where the traitorous Paragus was left watching.
"I won't let you escape!" Freeza raised his left arm to fire a blast at them, not wanting to let Vegeta escape but Broly appeared right in front of him to grab his wrist and twist his arm with no mercy at all. Freeza screeched in pain. At the same time, the other Saiyans disappeared as Kakarot teleported away.
"And I won't let you kill Vegeta no matter what." Broly growled at Freeza. He gave the Emperor a dark, menacing glare as he towered over him.
Once the Saiyans were back to where they were watching the fight earlier, Cabbe got up and began to resuscitate his older cousin using the procedure for cardiopulmonary resuscitation. "Hang on, Vegeta-niisan! You have to live! Come on!"
Back to the battlefield, Freeza regarded Broly as they stared at each other, face to face.
"I see that you are Vegeta's rival and the son of Paragus-san over there. Broly-san, isn't it? Your father's story about you was correct after all. You indeed possess such an amazing latent battle power within you, which is by far, even more powerful than Prince Vegeta could ever imagine. I wonder... Does your crown prince know that you are stronger than he is?" Freeza said with a smile.
Broly's frown deepened.
"Oh, did I hit a nerve now? I know you've been holding back your true powers when you were fighting him in... What do you call that match again?"
"Annual Power Assessment."
"Yes, that. Your father once told me that he wanted you to develop your powers in order to overthrow and kill the Royal family but it seems that instead of doing that, you ended up protecting him instead. You've waited until Vegeta was knocked out before you decide to jump in between us and save him so he won't realize that you are more powerful than he is. I see that you cared so much about your pompous future king. Is protecting him and his useless pride your reason for gaining this overwhelming power of yours?"
"I don't answer to the enemy of my people." Broly said with an emotionless tone.
"Stubborn like your prince, I see. You do aspire to be like him for some reason. I hope you realized what kind of fool he is due to his arrogance and pride, it only led him to his defeat. He doesn't deserve all the praise. After witnessing his humiliating defeat, you should know that not even you will be suffice to defeat me."
"Probably." Broly responded. "I don't really need to defeat you. It's Vegeta's destiny to do that. I am simply standing before you to distract you."
"Oh? Do you honestly believe Vegeta will be able to survive?" Freeza chuckled. He didn't know that this monkey is even capable of making jokes. Nobody has ever survived that kind of assault from him. His last attack was always meant to end the target's heartbeat and breathing.
Broly smiled, "You have no idea how many times Vegeta had crawled out of death's door only to return even more powerful than he was before. That's just how he is."
Freeza eventually lost his patience with this damn Saiyan. He pulled his arm off Broly's grasp and yelled, "Enough jokes already! Let's just get this fight over with!"
Soon enough, Broly began his battle against Golden Freeza. At first, Broly was having the upper hand against the mighty Emperor. He was thrashing Freeza around like he was his own personal punching bag. He was fighting with all his might, fueled by his fiery desire to draw his attention away from his prince.
Greatly overpowered by Broly, Freeza began to be alarmed. What's with this Saiyan? While Vegeta was unable to scathe him even with all his strength, Broly was doing it to him while being on the same state as the prince. He cannot understand! Was Broly simply stronger than Vegeta?
Below them, Paragus was the only one cheering enthusiastically for Broly as he watched his son pummel the Galactic Emperor with his might. Aside from those who were taking care of Prince Vegeta, or those who were even worried for his well-being, those who didn't care much about him watched in awe of Broly's immense power and just as Freeza's thoughts, beginning to question themselves if Broly has indeed surpassed the Saiyan Prince's prided might.
Freeza tried to control his anger. He won't be pushed to lose his composure while being beaten by this lowly scum! He has to think of a way to get the upper hand. Broly could be immensely powerful, but there's got to be a weakness to his abilities. The Emperor began to observe the rampaging hulk, realizing that unlike Prince Vegeta's finesse fighting skills, Broly's attacks lack the refined art of mastery. His hits, though they pack a lot of power, were all over the place. Broly was charging aggressively at his opponent, without any reservation or thought at all. Freeza formulated a strategy so he could eventually wore the Saiyan's stamina off, and in turn, weaken him enough to beat him.
Freeza baited Broly the same way as Vegeta did to him in the Annual Power Assessment. He wanted Broly to use his true power. Without any second thoughts, Broly gave in, transforming into his gargantuan full-powered Super Saiyan form. He was hoping that he could buy enough time for Vegeta's recovery.
~=o-O-o=~
On the ground, Cabbe continued to resuscitate the Saiyan Prince. He was getting desperate by now. King Vegeta harshly pulled Cabbe off his son and continued the procedure on his own.
In the corner, Bardock was reminiscing the visions from Yamoshi. He began to speak with Zorn and Nappa about this as they were also there when Vegeta was possessed by Yamoshi. The King's General told him that the chief historian scholar would probably know of the ritual Bardock was talking about. Caulifla and Renkon overheard what they were talking about and confirmed it themselves.
Bardock told his son to bring the Chief Historian Scholar here. Kakarot obeyed his father's orders. King Vegeta declared that his son's heart started to beat again, but still in a life-threatening state. Bardock asked the King to stand aside and let him continue keeping the Prince's heart beating. He told the King to question the Chief Historian Scholar about the ritual on how to summon Yamoshi. King Vegeta pulled away and let Bardock do the work.
When Kakarot returned with the scholar, King Vegeta started to ask him questions about how they will summon the Super Saiyan god out of the Crown Prince.
The Chief Historian Scholar said, "A Super Saiyan god is a savior created when five righteous Saiyans combine their power into another Saiyan with a pure heart. The ritual requires the five Saiyans channeling their pure energy and inner light towards the chosen one, or in this case, towards his Royal Highness. The six Saiyans must gather in a circle, direct their palms towards his Royal Highness and instill their energies and their inner light to him. With that, the Crown Prince will undergo a rather painful transformation as Yamoshi's spirit come over him to bless him with his overwhelming divine power. While this happens, his mortal body will rise to the level of gods. Once he has ascended to the realm of the deities, his form will be enveloped by the aura of a god and his heart will burn with the flames of righteousness and divinity. When his godly power awakens, his hair will flare and shine like a crimson fire and his eyes will ignite a scarlet blaze filled by his fiery will, signalling that the flaming haired, burning eyed divine warrior has ascended."
"You mean, like that red haired form he changed into when he healed me?" Renkon said.
"...Or himself." Caulifla continued.
"Yes. Just like what you witnessed. Perhaps, being the direct descendant and reincarnation of Yamoshi, Prince Vegeta was able to tap into that godly power he inherited from him subconsciously but cannot unleash it at its full capacity and control it for him to use permanently. In order for him to do so, the ritual to call forth Yamoshi's spirit within him must be done."
"I see." King Vegeta understood. He turned to face the rest of his people and declared, "Listen! I need five Saiyans with righteous hearts to gather around the Crown Prince and do as the Chief Historian Scholar said!"
The Saiyans looked at each other, confused. They weren't sure who among them have righteous hearts. Some suggested the following: Bardock, Gine, Kakarot and Cabbe. Kale and Mizuno suggested Vegeta's fiancé, Caulifla, but she argued that Kale is a better candidate. Kale timidly refused, flustered that her 'ane-san' ('sister', but not blood related sibling) thinks she is more pure hearted than her. Kale knew that it wasn't the case. She was hiding an impurity to herself, a speck of self-hatred about her inability to keep her loved one for herself. She insisted that Caulifla do it and help the Crown Prince, though she secretly hates Vegeta for 'stealing' her beloved 'ane-san' from her, she knew the survival of her entire race and planet on depends on Prince Vegeta's might.
The Saiyans mentioned, aside from Bardock, agreed to try the method as instructed by the Scholar. But they lack another one. Kakarot suggested Renkon but the royal guard denied of having a pure, righteous heart with a flustered look upon his face, which indicates he was hiding a rather perverse mind. Nappa couldn't say he is a pure heart since he held a bitterness in his heart due to a past he wished he could just erase after his wife and child were murdered many years before Prince Vegeta's birth and serving him as his attendant. Zorn also had the same sentiments as Nappa. While King Vegeta knew his own guilt, cowardice and ambitions made him not righteous at all. Kakarot wondered what happened to them that made them think they don't deserve to be called as righteous. Not even Vegeta, their chosen one, is a true, pure heart, per se.
One female child happily volunteered to help. A child who has recently trained in her hopes of serving the Crown Prince one day after he has helped her greatly in the past. She just appeared out of nowhere with her father, who trained her upon her request after he was discharged from the public hospital. Kakarot recognized her to be the child they met at the public hospital after the troublesome drama Vegeta caused the night after the lantern fest. The Ministers also recognized her to be the child they have wrongly accused of poisoning the King.
Eschallote.
The five Saiyans gathered around the Crown prince in a circle, put their hands forward, their palms facing down towards Vegeta's chest.
"Everyone, pour your inner light and your energy into his Royal Highness!" the scholar ordered.
"Yes!" the five Saiyans around the unconscious prince nodded.
~=o-O-o=~
For the third time, Vegeta found himself surrounded by darkness filled with nothing but his own desperation once again. The heaviness of his body being pulled down by the forces of death towards the inevitable door to afterlife.
With the pride of the Saiyan Warrior race, even more with his own pride being the Crown Prince and the chosen one greatly wounded and humiliated, Vegeta cried his tears of regret.
"If only Freeza was not able to transform... No... If only I have listened to papa and Bardock, I would have been able to kill that bastard. But I was a fool, blinded by my own pride and arrogance. I let Freeza achieve that power. I was completely wrong about it. I'm sorry."
These self-blaming thoughts resounded through the endless blackness. His heavy heart filled with his regret and frustration at his own failure to fulfill the promise he made to his people. He was their only hope of defeating that evil man, and yet, his overconfidence has become his undoing and brought him to the inevitable. He was the reason why his people are going to die, why the universe will continue to live in terror under the Galactic Emperor's tyrannical rule.
He could imagine how disappointed everyone is at him. For this reason, he wondered if death would be better than to live a life of disgust, humiliation and mockery among his own people. He didn't want to suffer that kind of life where everyone, even Bulma, his father and his friends, would look down on him in sheer dismay.
Suddenly, he could hear a faint voice somewhere, echoing from the darkness that surrounded him. It was a soft, warm, female voice so familiar to him, louder than any of his thoughts had ever been.
It was calling his name.
"Vegeta," the feminine voice called. Suddenly, a pair of warm hands appeared out of nowhere and touched his face gently and lovingly.
"Ma... Mama?" the prince mumbled, recognizing the owner of the voice belonging to his mother, who was already dead a long time ago. Oh yes, is her spirit in here to finally escort him to the afterlife?
"Focus on your senses, my son. Can you hear your people calling for you, crying out for your help?" she said.
In the distance, Vegeta could hear the faint voices of his father, Bardock, Kakarot, Cabbe, Gine, Caulifla, Nappa, Zorn, Renkon, Eschalotte... Those voices were backed up by several others he cannot recognize. They were all calling out to him.
"You are the Chosen One, Vegeta. Wake up. Open your eyes and come back to your people." the voice of his mother told him. "Save them. Only you are capable of doing so, my son." the prince felt his mother's gentle touch over his left chest.
"Please, call out to that fiery deity spirit sleeping within you. Summon him. Feel his powers flow, the flames of righteousness burning deep in your heart, fill it with your pride and determination to end this fight. Brace the blazing fire scorching within you and awaken your true power!"
What does she mean by that? Vegeta couldn't understand. For some reason, he could feel the warmth in her hand grow even hotter, as if his heart suddenly became ablazed by an unexpected fire she lit upon it. Following his mother's instructions, he welcomed the feeling, unknowingly summoning the powers of the deity spirit that resided within him.
It's burning hot! Like a glowing red iron. He could feel his heart start to pound at a frantic pace. The scorching feeling begin to spread out from his heart into his veins, burning every single part of him.
It hurts! The agonizing pain bewildered him greatly. What is this... This overwhelming heat of power flowing through him?! It felt familiar, like the strange calm energy he used every time he heals people, however this one, was an intensified state of that. That power is growing immensely potent at a rapid pace!
Just like fire, it's uncontrollable!
"Hurry! Do it now, or Planet Vegeta will be destroyed by Freeza!" his mother's voice commanded him.
In reality, Vegeta's crimson eyes snapped open. He found Kakarot, Gine, Cabbe, Caulifla and the young Eschallote gathered around him with focused expressions, their glowing hands reaching out towards him. Abruptly, their bodies were engulfed by their Saiyan power which appeared as an electric blue aura flowing through each of them as they channelled and combined their energy with his.
Ooh the pain! It's become unbearable! It felt like every single cell of his burned in the inferno like surface of the sun. Vegeta did his best not to cry out or scream for help. Confused and not knowing what was happening to him, he fought back the tears in his eyes. He refused to open his mouth to demand anyone what they are doing to him or it would only turn into ear-piercing screams of his agony.
He tried to focus his mind into other things, just to help ignore the pain. The first thing he wanted to know was where Freeza was. He tried searching for his nemesis' energy, and felt that he was fighting with... Broly?
Even in his state, he could feel Golden Freeza's overwhelming strength. Broly was as powerful as ever, but still nowhere near to Freeza's level. Studying the fight, Vegeta found Freeza moving around in hypersonic speed as he swiftly evaded each and every potent attack from Broly. The Emperor was obviously trying to tire Broly's stamina out, especially with that sluggish hefty form the Super Saiyan was using. Vegeta began to worry for his former General's well-being when he realized that Broly is going to die anytime soon. That fool!
But then, what made him any different from him? He was also a fool himself for allowing Freeza to manipulate his arrogance in order to gain the upper hand on him. Vegeta desperately wished to go in there, to return to the battlefield, to turn the favors back to him, to save his friend and finish Freeza once and for all. However, this burning pain of his body stopped him, rendered him helplessly incapacitated on this damn ground.
Somewhere near him, he heard Bardock's stern voice as he scolded him, "Concentrate, you brat!" Vegeta was confused and taken aback by that harsh voice. What? Concentrate on what? The pain? Suddenly being reminded of that pulled his thoughts back to the excruciating agony.
"Focus on the power being transmitted to you and combine it with your own!" Bardock was telling him.
He hesitated at first. He didn't know what was happening in the first place. He didn't wish for these five Saiyans to share their powers to him like this. His pride was making him reluctant. He wanted them to stop this in an instant.
But then, he suddenly remembered his mother's words in that dream. If he doesn't follow Bardock's instructions then Planet Vegeta will be destroyed by Freeza. Of all things, he cannot afford that to happen. He cannot lose in here. He must save everyone... save Broly, now. Many of his people's - no, the entire universe's hopes entirely depend on him now. They believed in him, placed their hopes of victory and salvation from Freeza's might in him. And for them, he must not fail. This is his second chance! A way for him to turn the favor of victory in him. He needs power, more power to rise above and shatter his limits. And his only other way as of now was to accept their power into him.
Despite knowing this, Vegeta didn't want to let go of the thing that defined him as he is. It's just that he came to realize another meaning for pride. It's not about his selfish definition of being overconfident, cocky and arrogant with his strength and power. It's about him and his people. It's the Saiyan Pride of being an honorable warrior race that bonded each one of them. This being the true source of their power. And that, he's going to use to breakthrough his own limits.
For some reason, Vegeta heard his mother's voice in his ear. "Do it, my son."
Vegeta did as he was told by Bardock. He accepted their energies into himself, and connected his own with theirs. He could feel the ki coming from Kakarot, Gine, Caulifla, Eschallote and Cabbe flow through him. He allowed it to come, mixing the energies with his own ki. Along those energies and the unbearable pain of his body, he could feel his bond with his people get even stronger and... something else. Something quite familiar, like the same warm, calm and relaxing power he used to heal Broly, Renkon and Paragus. It was there again. He welcomed it and when he did, he felt the pounding of his heart suddenly sped up and it bewildered him so much it made his earlier resolve not to scream shatter.
"Woah! Oooh! Aaaurgh! Graaaaaaaahh! Uwaaaaaaaaaaahh!"
Taken aback by the staggering pain, he cried out lengthily but quickly regained his control. He bit his lower lip to stop himself from screaming ceaselessly. He began to convulse against the ground due to the impossibly searing temperature of his body. His back arched upwards, being pulled by his burning, pounding heart.
He could feel the power of the five Saiyans around him combined with his own. His strength began to build up, greater than he had ever felt.
Abruptly, his entire body began to be enveloped by a burning red light and Vegeta felt the heat at a more intense state than before. Soon, the fire inside his body began to pull away, as if his heart was sucking all heat from all over his body, only for it to gather in that one single organ just to stimulate its most intense beat and blaze. It was more than enough the Saiyan Prince could ever bear. He couldn't take it anymore.
He cannot control it any longer.
"Aaargh! Uuurgh! Gurhrk! Grrraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaauurrghhhh!"
Letting go, he threw his head back to scream lengthily and incessantly at the skies. The red glow burst upwards to part the whirling dark clouds away. An electrical storm strikes down from there and exploded into the Saiyan Prince's powering up form.
And then, it happened.
As soon as the potent red bolt of lightning striked him from the skies, Vegeta stopped screaming.
The burning feeling in his heart faded as its earlier rapid beating calmed and slowed down. The red glow surrounding his body faded into a pulsing fire, showing his dark brown hair changing color into crimson red from its roots up to its tips. Fluttering scarlet flame embers floated from his fire like hair down to his body. He slowly opened his eyes. His irises blazed a fiery color around the dark colored pupils. It appeared larger in size than his normal black irises against the narrowed, slanted shape of his eyes. His usually sharp, intimidating face now looked relaxed, calm and younger. The Saiyans stared at Vegeta's floating form. His divine energy dissipated the dark clouds away, allowing the light from the sun to breakthrough and enlighten their surroundings. They were unable to sense the level of his ki any longer, but the calm, yet powerful pressure he was emitting was more intense than his Super Saiyan aura. He appeared to be leaner than his normal body build as well.
In the battlefield, Freeza noticed that the skies had cleared but he doesn't have the time to ponder about it as Broly continued to assault him ceaselessly.
As he descended to the ground, Vegeta stared at his gloved hands in wonder, amazed by the odd and overwhelming feeling of his new powers flowing through him. Unlike the violent, rage-filled feeling of his Super Saiyan transformation, he felt more serene and clear, like the calm, gentle water of the streams behind the Royal Palace. Despite the tranquility of his mind, in his heart burned a sense of righteousness that urged him to punish the unjust and cruel monster threatening his world.
"What did just happen to me? What is this incredible power?" he asked particularly no one. He was confused by his transformation, as well as the tone of his own voice. It sounded smooth and pleasant, unlike his normally cold and imperious voice. Vegeta didn't like that tone.
"You finally did it, my son! You have finally become a Super Saiyan god!" King Vegeta said. The Crown Prince looked up at his father with a perplexed gaze, silently questioning him what he meant by his words.
"Super... Saiyan... god?" the prince who has ascended to his first steps to the realm of the gods, repeated in puzzlement.
"It is a form greater than the Legendary Super Saiyan." Bardock explained. "By channeling the energy of five righteous Saiyans through a ritual and summoning for the fiery spirit of the deity of the Saiyans, combining it with yours, you have become a Super Saiyan god. Because of this, you have gained a tremendous amount of power by possessing the divine powers of a deity within you."
"Ritual? Spirit? Divine powers? Deity?" Vegeta was still confused. "Are you telling me that I have become a god now?"
"Probably." Bardock said. "But then, you are chosen to become the vessel of Yamoshi's will and spirit, aside from being directly descended to his lineage, of course."
Yamoshi? Vegeta suddenly remembered that strange dream he had yesterday about him meeting Yamoshi, the figure behind the legend of the Super Saiyan. The ancient Saiyan who was his ancestor, told him, "I have foreseen this a long time ago and so my spirit wandered for so long, searching for a righteous and powerful Saiyan to be the vessel of my power. And when I saw you fight against Freeza, I immediately knew you were the one I was looking for. And so, I put my spirit unto you. It took a long time for me to awaken within you, but I am amazed that you are able to tap into my powers on your own. Why am I even surprised? You are my descendant after all. My blood flows through your veins as well." (See Episode 30)
Vegeta wondered how Bardock knew of Yamoshi but then realized Kakarot's story about him suddenly being possessed by Yamoshi's spirit and speaking ancient Saiyago.
"I see." Vegeta muttered in a seemingly disinterested tone. So that explained the overwhelming powers he never have felt before that's flowing through him by now. "So this is how it feels to be a deity." he muttered in awe to himself as he observed his new form. He realized that he was completely healed as well, cured by the divine energy he now posessed. And because of this, he knew that the Zenkai boost ability he had as a Saiyan only raised his level of power even further beyond what he could have imagined. It was simply astonishing!
When he found the grinning Eschallote's presence, Vegeta was surprised. He felt her ki among the five Saiyans who shared their power with him to reach this Super Saiyan god and he could tell the girl was training to become stronger.
"You've trained well, Eschalotte-chan." he told her with a pleased smile.
"Yes, your Highness! Papa has helped me train a lot!" she told him happily. Vegeta regarded the girl's father, who bowed down before him in respect. The prince raised his hand to rub at the girl's spiky hair, smirking proudly at her.
"I see. You did well, girl." he said. "Now, I'll talk to you later, okay? I have a business to finish."
"Go and show that monster who's great and badass, your highness!" Eschallote cheered, which caused the others to chuckle at her delightfully.
"Sure." the prince winked at her.
Vegeta whirled around to observe the fight between Freeza and Broly. He could sense Broly's energy declining rapidly by now. The prince frowned, though it didn't look as intimidating as it normally does. Did Freeza just get stronger than when he beat him earlier?
Broly's stamina has dropped significantly and Freeza saw this as his opportunity to finish the resilient Saiyan once and for all. He raised a finger towards Broly and fired a death beam to the exhausted Saiyan.
Using his Hibiktus technique, Vegeta teleported towards the ensuing battle and effortlessly moved the beam away with his finger.
"What?!" Freeza yelped in surprise when he found his beam being hurled away in the other direction. It detonated in a nearby rock formation which got reduced into debris.
"Your Highness!" Broly almost squealed at the sight of his prince back from the dead.
Vegeta turned his head over his shoulder to regard Broly's presence behind him with a nod.
"Impossible! Why are you here?! You're already dying! How come you're here, all healed?!" Freeza demanded as he looked at the Saiyan Prince up and down, unable to believe his eyes.
Vegeta turned to Freeza with a stern look in his eyes as he studied the Emperor's power for a moment, weighing the level of his strength and comparing it with his own now. Though Freeza's energy has depleted significantly due to the damage Broly did to him earlier, it is obviously higher than even his new godly powers. This ain't just enough to beat Freeza as well, not even after having five of his kind pass on their powers to him. As prideful as he is, Vegeta despised the fact that he unwillingly took their energies in order from him to achieve this godly level of power. Still, he knew that no matter how much power he miraculously pulled out, he will never be a match to Freeza's overwhelming strength. He has to find a way to match that ridiculous power of the Galactic Emperor. He didn't wish to ask anymore help from his people either.
Vegeta turned to Broly and pointed his right index and middle fingers on the larger Saiyan's chest. He healed the beaten warrior instantly. Freeza's eyes almost dropped out from its sockets as he noted the display of instant recuperative ability. He didn't know Vegeta has the power to heal others!
Also, what is that red haired transformation?
"You did a good job, Broly. I'll take it from here now-," Vegeta said to Broly but he was eventually cut off when the larger Saiyan grabbed his arm and pulled him to embrace him protectively. Broly whirled around so his back was between Vegeta and Freeza.
Vegeta saw several purple beams bombarding at their direction. It hit Broly's unguarded back, as if the beams came from a machine gun.
The attacker filled with psychotic, murderous rage as he repeatedly yell the word "Die!", laughing manically at the Saiyans. Freeza has finally snapped and was completely overwhelmed by rage. These annoying pests just wouldn't die! If they kept on rising back up to their feet, get healed the way Vegeta and Broly did, they will only get stronger! He has to kill them now before anyone of them produce another transformation and gain more ridiculous abilities!
Vegeta's red eyes shifted towards Broly's face, "What are you doing, idiot?! Let me go!" he yelled at him. He tried pushing Broly off but he just wouldn't budge.
Paragus, as well as the other Saiyans below, gaped at what was Broly doing. He was shielding the prince from the frenzied attack of the wrathful Galactic Emperor.
"Broly! Stop this and release me this instant! That is a royal command!" Vegeta yelled at Broly once again.
Instead of doing as he was told by the Royal Crown Prince, Vegeta only perceived the younger Saiyan's iron grip on him get even more desperate as Broly felt the beams contain more power than the first barrage.
"You fool! Take your hands off me, now! Leave me alone! Are you defying my royal command! Let me go!" Vegeta hollered at him, pushing Broly with more vigor only to be as futile as before.
Freeza leapt into the skies and pointed a finger to the clouds, charging up his ki and forming a fiery orange sphere of destructive energy that grew and grew into a massive ball. This is what he called as a 'supernova' for it has more than enough power to destroy an entire planet, along its neighboring worlds.
"Woah! That packs a lot of power!" Kakarot gasped in fright.
"Just what the hell is Broly doing?! Why won't he let Vegeta go! That damn imbecile!" King Vegeta seethed.
The Prince watched as Freeza prepared to launch that thing on their planet. "Broly! Let go and let me take care of Freeza or we're all going to die!"
This time, Broly's grip finally eased. He lowered his eyes to gaze down at his best friend and smiled at him warmly, tears began to fall from his eyes, "I'm sorry, your Highness but I must defy your royal command this time."
Confused by Broly's words, Vegeta's red eyes widened slightly.
Broly, just like Vegeta has observed earlier, knew that not even the Prince's newly awakened godly powers will be enough to dominate and finish the immensely strong Galactic Emperor. The prince had also used some of his powers to heal him up, so it has probably significantly dropped as well. That's why Broly persisted on protecting him this way instead of letting him fight like he wanted. (Note that Broly was unable to feel Vegeta's godly ki so he based his observations through the pressure the Prince emitted.)
Vegeta taught him the meaning of choosing your own fate, of deciding what he truly wanted to do with his power and his Saiyan Pride as a warrior, without being told or influenced by others.
And this was the result of that choice.
Before Vegeta could open his mouth to berate the larger Saiyan, Freeza hurled his supernova towards the two Saiyans, intent on destroying not only them but the entire planet as well.
"DIE PLANET DIE!" the crazed Emperor bellowed, a psychotic excitement appeared on his expression.
Broly finally let go of Vegeta, kicked him out of the way before whirling around to catch the immensely powerful supernova in his two hands as it ripped through the air with unstoppable force.
Vegeta rolled several meters away but because he was in too much pain due to Broly's steel grip earlier, he was unable to move just yet. As he found that satisfied smile across Broly's lips as he faced the devastating sphere, Vegeta's loud, lengthy cry for Broly resounded. "Stop!"
Pwwooooooooooomm!
The spherical supernova ball, which held the fate of Planet Vegeta, crashed against Broly's mighty hand.
