Chapter 8

With a shuddering thud, Goku dropped Burter's motionless body to the ground. Krillin saw the blue-skinned alien's chest heave and fall but other than that there wasn't even a twitch.

He grinned widely. When Goku had dealt with Recoome like this it had still come as almost a shock how swiftly and deftly that defeat had been. Goku was so much faster and stronger - there was no contest. A single blow to Recoome's abdomen had brought the massive fighter to his knees and fold over.

Then Jeice and Burter had attacked him in tandem but Goku outmaneuvered them both before landing the decisive blow on Burter. Now, of all their opponents, only Jeice was left, and judging by the horrified look on his face he knew he was out of his league here.

Krillin felt like cheering but he didn't want to steal this moment from Goku.

His friend didn't keep up the pressure on Jeice and instead looked at him with a polite half-smile. "I think this settles it, don't you think?" he told the white-haired alien. "Your comrades aren't dead, don't worry, but they aren't in a shape to fight any longer. Now, just take them with you, leave the planet, and promise you won't bother us anymore."

Well, Krillin should've expected something like this. After all, starting with Piccolo Goku had made it a habit to give his opponents another chance and-

"Kakarot, you fool!" Vegeta yelled at him, anger and now dried blood contorting his face into a grotesque mask. "Finish them! Finish them now! Don't let them get away!"

Of course. The one who wouldn't even be here if Goku had handled him this way had to shout the loudest.

Goku was already shaking his head. "But they're no longer a threat. Even if they got up again I can handle them. There's really no reason to kill them."

Vegeta's only reply was a low growl, but Krillin didn't pay much attention to him. His fears had dissolved into thin air with every attack Goku had evaded and every punch he landed. His earlier panic and hopelessness forgotten, he couldn't believe Vegeta had to be so dramatic about it. After all, Goku would protect him as well if Jeice decided to attack them again.

He contemplated explaining as much to the Saiyan but before he could say anything, Jeice had finally made up his mind. He swirled around and sped off without another glance at his fallen comrades.

Goku blinked, honestly surprised. "Huh, so much for that. He just left his allies like this." He looked at the two with a twinge of regret. "And I'm afraid, I can't help you either. I'm out of senzu beans for sure."

Krillin couldn't say he shared that sentiment. He wasn't even happy Goku had used a senzu on Vegeta and he was their ally for the moment. Still, he wasn't about to scold Goku for it or remind him that one of these poor souls had broken his son's neck not too long ago while the other cheered him on. Krillin was simply too relieved how well things had turned out and how great it was to be reunited with his best friend.

"You were amazing, Goku. You've grown so much stronger! I hardly recognized you."

Goku smiled at him and opened his mouth to answer when a sudden movement made them both start.

Vegeta had launched himself in the air, hurtled toward them, and slammed his knee into Burter's throat, crushing his windpipe. In a fluid motion, he got up again, turned, and fired a strong ki blast into Recoome.

Krillin gagged when the smell of charred flesh drafted over to them, avoiding to look and check how little of Recoome remained.

"Vegeta! How could you do that?" Goku looked almost hurt. "I told you they weren't a threat anymore. They were completely helpless."

The other Saiyan spat at his feet. "You're so soft, it makes me sick. And to think I had even considered whether you might have been capable of being the legendary Super Saiyan... But you just don't have what it takes."

Goku blinked. "Super Saiyan? What's that?" he asked, putting the confusion Krillin felt into words.

Vegeta didn't seem to be in a mood to elaborate, though. Or for all Krillin knew he might have made the term up just to berate Goku. On the other hand, with his hands clenched into fists, his nostrils flaring, and his black eyes narrowed, he looked far too angry to make up silly words. "You could have stopped him. You could have rid us of a threat who is bound to cause more trouble as soon as he finds Ginyu or even Freeza himself. But, no, you want to show off. Well, Kakarot, you may have gotten stronger but I promise you, it won't be enough to handle Freeza. You have no idea how terrible he is."

Just half an hour ago Krillin would probably have agreed with him. But now? After everything they had seen? With three of these elite fighters gone and the remaining two driven off, Vegeta's fears felt absurd to him. In fact, he wondered why he had ever felt as frightened as he did. Why he didn't have more faith in Goku who had saved them time and again.

Krillin promised himself he wouldn't doubt Goku again. "Are you sure you're not seeing this too bleakly?" he asked Vegeta, careful not to seem too dismissive of his overdramatic proclamations of doom. "You saw how powerful Goku has become. These guys didn't stand a chance against him. The way I see it, there's no one stopping him now."

Next to him, Gohan was nodding vigorously to every word he said, but Vegeta merely scoffed. "So sure of that are you? Well, go ahead then! Challenge Freeza and see for yourself."

Krillin's shoulders sagged. He glanced at Goku, hoping for a word of confidence but Vegeta wasn't done yet.

"What's even worse is that he is immortal now for sure. It's been a while since Ginyu left with the Dragon Balls and he's bound to have gotten his wish by now. Defeating him in this state will be next to impossible. We can only hope we'll be able to evade him."

At that, something in Krillin's eyes lit up. "I don't think he already made his wish."

Vegeta came a bit closer. "What? How would you know that?"

"Well, assuming the Dragon Balls here work the same as those on Earth, when you have gathered them and Shenlong appears the sky turns dark. That hasn't happened here. The sky is still as bright as ever."

"Shenlong?" Vegeta looked equally confused and annoyed. "What is that? Does something come out of the Dragon Balls when you have them all?"

To Krillin's delight and satisfaction, Goku ignored him and kept staring into the sky thoughtfully. "That's it! You're right, Krillin. The dragon hasn't been summoned yet. Freeza probably doesn't even know the password."

"You need a password?" Vegeta croaked, clenching his fists even harder.

Krillin might have felt more inclined to explain everything to him if Vegeta had been a bit more forthcoming with information himself. But since the Saiyan seemed to function on a need to know basis when it came to the abilities of the Ginyu Force and liked to hint at strange terms like the "Super Saiyan" he mentioned earlier without explaining himself, Krillin was content with discussing the situation with Goku and Gohan instead. "Exactly," he said as Goku turned towards him, beaming widely. "I don't think Freeza bothered to learn how the Dragon Balls really work."

"That means we can still get our wish." Goku looked so giddy Krillin couldn't help but cheer.

"Yeah!"

"We can bring back all our fallen friends."

Gohan whooped with joy, grabbed Krillin's hands, and jumped up and down. Krillin laughed with him, allowing himself the first moment of true hope and happiness in quite a while.

Unfortunately, they hadn't made it yet. "Goku, first of all, we need to get the Dragon Balls back."

"Right."

"Finding them shouldn't be a problem if we go and fetch the Dragon Radar, but ..."

Goku looked at him expectantly. "Yes?"

"This Ginyu guy took them to Freeza. That means getting them back will be rather ...", he struggled for the right word, "tricky."

Nodding thoughtfully, Goku turned around again. "Hey, Vegeta, you were with these guys for quite a while, right? Do you know a way we could go about it?"

The other Saiyan folded his arms and sneered. "I thought you wanted to go and defeat Freeza."

Goku didn't react to the mocking undertone and simply nodded again. "I'd like to see if I can do that, but first we have to bring back those you killed on Earth. It's the reason we came here after all. And besides, King Kai didn't want me to fight Freeza at all." He sighed.

"You'd really waste your wish on useless trash like them, huh?" Vegeta had the gall to roll his eyes. "Even if you manage to revive them what good will it do you once Freeza decides to go to Earth? He'll simply kill everyone again. Better wish for me to have eternal youth and immortality, so I can deal with him."

Krillin realized he was clenching his own fists and his resolve to play nice with Vegeta was slipping. How could he talk like this about their friends for whose deaths he not only bore responsibility but who also were each a much better person than him? Yes, even Piccolo. "You've got to be kidding me! As if giving you this power was any different from giving it to Freeza."

Vegeta smirked and opened his mouth to reply when the tingling of an approaching ki made him take note. They all perked up and looked in the direction the ki came from. So far nothing could be seen but their senses were clear about this.

"Two strong powers are coming our way," Gohan piped up.

"Looks like the result of your handiwork." Vegeta snorted. "This is what you get for letting Jeice get away. He went and alerted Ginyu who is, unfortunately, quite an opponent. Even for you, Kakarot."

There it was again. That feeling of cold dread in his stomach. Trust Goku to handle this, Krillin reminded himself, but the confidence he had felt as soon as the immediate threat in form of Jeice had left had taken a blow when he felt these two powers approaching. "This might be a challenge," he conceded. "Please be careful, Goku."

He expected another snide remark from Vegeta, but the Saiyan stared into the distance, his brow furrowed in thought. "Wait a second, where is Freeza? I thought he'd be in his ship. That's where Ginyu took the Dragon Balls, so why isn't Freeza there as well? At least, it feels as if he left."

Krillin sent out his mental feelers and nodded silently. Freeza's presence was gone from the place from which Ginyu was speeding towards them right now. It seemed that Vegeta was getting better at sensing ki or maybe he was better attuned to Freeza, so he'd notice his absence first.

Goku slowly turned around, then he pointed towards the horizon in another direction. "I can feel a strong ki in the distance. Maybe that's where he went."

Krillin stared at the light blue hills and the greenish sea beyond them that looked like pretty much any other place on this dreadful world. Then it hit him. "Oh no," he breathed. "That's where the Grand Elder resides."

Both Saiyans looked at him in confusion.

"I think Freeza tried having his wish fulfilled and when it didn't work he set out to find the last Namekian survivors so they can tell him how to do it," Krillin explained his train of thought.

Vegeta lifted an eyebrow. "So there are still survivors?"

Krillin was ready to glare at him, but to his surprise, Vegeta seemed more pensive than gleeful or eager to do something about the existence of a few remaining Namekians. That didn't mean that Krillin didn't prefer discussing this with Goku though.

His best friend was so much more attuned to his line of thought. "Is this Grand Elder the one who created Namek's Dragon Balls?" Goku guessed.

Krillin nodded. "He is. Which means this is really bad news."

Gohan caught on just as well. "Oh no, once he finds out how to use the Dragon Balls Freeza will surely murder the Grand Elder and the others. And when the Grand Elder dies the Dragon Balls will grow inert and all will be lost."

Vegeta's jaw dropped. "What?"

In case they all survived this and the Saiyan didn't try to kill them again Krillin decided he'd give him a lesson about Dragon Ball lore, so he wouldn't be lost all the time.

Right now though, they didn't have much time, because this was the moment Ginyu and Jeice landed on a hill nearby.

For a moment the two groups simply stared at each other, then each did a hasty briefing among themselves.

"Krillin," Goku said, "take Gohan and get the Dragon Radar from Bulma. Then go and find the Dragon Balls."

Gohan nodded eagerly. "Freeza probably didn't take them with him. They should still be around his ship, hopefully unguarded."

"Yes. I'll keep them busy and join you if I manage to defeat them."

The uneasy feeling in Krillin's stomach grew. "What do you mean 'if'? You should be more than a match for them by now," he said, trying to sound cheerful and encouraging.

Goku's smile was grim but determined. "Right." Then he turned towards their other ally. "Vegeta, you can take on the red one," he said, tilting his head into Jeice's direction. "You were so badly hurt that getting healed should have given you enough of a power boost to be handle him."

To Krillin's surprise that elicited a content grin from Vegeta. "So you knew about that?" For the first time he sounded happy with his fellow Saiyan.

Goku nodded. "That we get a lot stronger when we almost die? Yes, I figured that out."

Just like when Vegeta had explained this biological quirk when he fought Zarbon, Krillin felt a twinge of envy. But this time there was also a sense of relief as this gave them at least some chance at survival.

Still, he couldn't say the thought of leaving Goku behind with Vegeta was a comforting one. As strong and tenacious as their ally was, Krillin couldn't shake the image of Nappa dying at Vegeta's hands once he was no longer of use.

"Get moving!" Goku whispered in his direction and Krillin knew his doubts and fears would have to take a backseat for now.

"Good luck!" he replied, then him and Gohan took off into the skies.