Two warriors stood patiently in the barren atmosphere of the Northern Wastelands. They had shown up early to what would be the landing site of Frieza and his father. They'd almost been the first to arrive at the scene. Piccolo was as vigilant as ever, however. He sat upon a rocky outcropping far off in the distance in a meditative state. His cape billowed behind him in the fierce wind.
More warriors showed up to his location as the hours crept along. First were Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu. Next were Yamcha, Puar, Bulma, and Vegeta. The latter invoked a nostalgic snicker out of Gohan. It wasn't every day you saw the Prince of All Saiyans wear a hot pink shirt emblazoned with the words 'Bad Man'. The young Gohan and Krillin blasted in at the end, sporting the armor they wore on the planet Namek.
They had sensed it. The incoming peril. It was hard to say who was more on edge. Those who had faced this immense power before, and knew what they were in for, or those who were currently feeling the strongest energy that had ever graced their minds, and knew not of the storm it brought.
Gohan remembered that fear. The feeling of utter helplessness. The return of a foe whose only usurper was nowhere to be found. The numbing panic that was the fact that there was an even stronger presence aboard the ship. It would be strange, this time, to be the one to vanquish that fear.
The spider-like ship hovered into sight, making its way to the ground. The two warriors glanced up at the assembled group of Earth's defenders. They didn't quite know what to do. Gohan saw the clench of Piccolo's jaw, and watched a sneer grace his visage as the namekian ran through every possible measure of action that could be taken.
"So, I take Frieza, and you take Cold?" Trunks asked. Gohan merely nodded, and focused his attention as the ship's ramp lowered, spilling out dozens of Frieza's soldiers.
Then they sauntered out. Frieza, an insidious smirk carved into his face. Most of it was metal plating and cybernetics now, courtesy of Goku. The rest of his body didn't fare too well either. The only flesh that still clung to Frieza's form was his right arm and fragments of his chest and torso. It almost made him look more intimidating. Frieza, the cyborg ruler of the galaxy. It meant nothing to those who know how he ended up in this state.
King Cold was another matter. His presence was commanding, and his stance regal. His navy blue cape swished and fluttered as he strolled down the ship's ramp. He was slightly larger than Frieza's second transformed state, with horns to match. His skin was a pale lavender color, similar to Trunks's hair, and the gem that covered his skull was a deep green. He spoke.
"Son, what are we doing on this filthy, little mud ball of a planet?" Cold asked, surveying the wasteland. Frieza sneered at his father's attitude.
"To find the Super Saiyan, Son Goku. My revenge is at hand, father." Frieza answered. His eyes were wild, betraying the authoritative pose he was trying to uphold. Frieza was here seeking vengeance it would seem, but if only to quell his own fear. Cold shrugged, and let his son continue with his quest. Trunks casually meandered over to the gathering of soldiers, and stood facing them, hands in pockets.
"Hiya, big fan," Trunks grinned as he strolled over to face the arcosian tyrants and their soldiers. He made no move attack, merely standing nonchalantly as the winds breezed through his hair. King Cold stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Frieza, right? And you must be his father, Cold."
"Oh, son look at this. One of this planet's disgusting natives has come to bid us welcome." King Cold chuckled mirthfully. "Should we make an example of him?" Frieza narrowed his eyes analytically. Something about this didn't sit right with him.
"The only people on this filthy planet who should know my name are that monkey and his friends," Frieza spoke with a sneer, "And certainly the only one who even might know about my father would be the arrogant princeling, whom I'm certain I killed," The bionic alien continued. His tail now waved behind him thoughtfully, the snaps and clicks of the metallic mechanisms ringing across the empty horizon. "So, who are you, exactly, to know these things?" Frieza questioned. His fingers twitched as he made the attempt not to immediately fire off a Death Beam and end this wretch who would dare block his path to revenge.
"Like I said, just a fan," Trunks shrugged. He gazed across the faces of Frieza's soldiers. They all had blasters raised, prepped and ready to fire.
"Impressive, I'll say, to know who I am and yet have the moxy to stand before me," Frieza drawled. He pointed to the soldier closest to Trunks, "You! Tell me this man's power level," He commanded. The soldier nodded and tapped the side of their scouter, waiting as characters flashed upon the display. After a moment he snorted, and let out a low chuckle.
"Sir, it's only five," He announced, and soon the entire gathering of soldiers erupted in a wave of laughter. Frieza himself smirked, and a cold stare fell upon Trunks.
"Disappointing, do away him," Frieza commanded with a wave of his hand. In an instant triggers were pulled and every soldier presented had fired at the half-saiyan teenager. Trunks stood still as the blasts collided into him with no effect. After the soldiers stopped firing he looked down at his jacket and brushed away some dirt. Deftly, he unsheathed his sword and carved through the air almost imperceptibly. He let the sword drop to his side and a moment later the screen of the scooter that analyzed him fell to the ground in tiny, segmented pieces.
"I think your scouter is broken, try again?" Trunks asked. Frieza raised a brow in surprise. The second closest soldier turned towards his lord for confirmation. Frieza nodded slowly. The soldier's scouter beeped. After a moment the scouter exploded, and the soldier cursed in pain. Frieza smirked.
"My, my. So, you have the ability to alter your power level at will. Very impressive." The tyrant complimented, "Then, I have a proposition for you! Join me. Be one of my elites. You'll be resplendent in glory and power!" Frieza laughed, throwing his hands out in a display of joy. Perhaps he was a touch maddened by his experiences in the past year, but Frieza had lost his most powerful men to Goku and his entourage. Even once he was finished with this pathetic planet, he would have to start rebuilding his army. Trunks cocked an eyebrow and sneered.
"No," He said. He darted in with his sword and carved through Frieza's soldiers in a whirlwind of steel. He stopped his attack a foot short of Frieza. With a grin, he began to slide his sword back into its sheath. With a click, the sword was sheathed, and every single one of Frieza's soldiers fell to the ground dead.
"What-" Frieza didn't have time for words, barely dodging a kick aimed for his head. "You insolent worm!" Frieza yelled. He raised a single finger and from it shot a burning beam of purple energy. Trunks quickly drew his blade once more, holding it in front of him. The Death Beam bounced off of the steel and bored its way through the ship. Springing back to gain a distance, Trunks held his sword out in front him. Cold still stood in the doorway of his ship, an amused expression on his face.
"I heard you were looking for a Super Saiyan, Frieza!" Trunks yelled. With a shout, he began to power up. The ground cracked, and the air shook. Trunks's hair lifted into the air and his eyes flashed a cold icy green, his pupils fading away into verdant irises. Golden energy exploded out from him, and spread through his hair like wildlife. Frieza gaped in fear at what he saw before him.
"T-those eyes…" Frieza stuttered, stumbling backwards.
"This is the Super Saiyan you were talking about, son? Doesn't seem like much to me," Cold scoffed, an unimpressed look shot at the golden warrior.
"No, it's not the same one, father," Frieza corrected, his eyes went wide with madness and his hand shot into the air, "But he'll be just as dead soon enough!" He screeched, and with a spark of ki a supernova began to grow above his hand. With a scream of rage, he launched it at the Super Saiyan, watching with satisfaction as the burning energy crashed into his adversary and began to sink into the very earth. A moment later, however, the sphere began to rise once more. Climbing out of the crater was the Super Saiyan, the supernova held aloft in his hand. With the other hand, Trunks swung his sword upwards. The sphere split in two, and the energy fizzled harmlessly into the air. Frieza's face turned to a visage of rage and he leaped towards his half-saiyan adversary. There was a loud 'CLANG' as Frieza's metal fist collided with the flat of Trunks's blade.
"Let's end this, Frieza!" Trunks cried. Sparks flew as he dragged his sword away from Frieza's arm. Frieza's tail snaked out from behind him and struck for the jugular. Trunks ducked under the strike and cut the tail off at the base, giving a quick glance as it tumbled to the ground and skittered down the newly formed crater. Before Frieza even had the chance to cry out in pain or anger, Trunks brought his sword to the top of Frieza's skull and didn't stop until the sword had carved straight down between his legs. Trunks frowned and diced the former tyrant's vivisected body into small pieces. With a scoff, he brought his hand up and a golden blast of energy emerged, turning Lord Frieza to ash.
"I couldn't let you live much longer. Aside from all the obvious reasons, those metal pieces just remind me far too much of some people I can't stand," Trunks sighed. His hair fluttered back down to rest atop his head, and he chucked his sword up into the air. He slightly tilted his shoulder to assure the sword would slide back into its sheath.
"You refused to join my son, so I can't be foolish enough to believe you're any more inclined to join me. You've a vendetta against my family clearly, so I suppose I'll have to do away with you," Cold called. He sat on the ramp of his ship, elbows on knees and his chin rested on folded hands. Malevolent purple energy began to creep around him, his power level quickly soaring. A steel hand wrapped around Cold's horn, and with a violent jerk there was an audible 'SNAP' as the arcosian's neck was broken.
"I'm not going to let you power up, that would be a little too much for us," Gohan admitted. He let the horn go and watched as the body tumbled to the ground. Now you see, arcosians are very hard to kill. Even with a snapped neck, Cold wasn't exactly dead. The snapped neck had, however, functionally destroyed the king's brain stem and no longer allowed his brain to send signals to his body. Gohan glanced down, retching at the sight of the still twitching body. Quickly, he raised his hand and shot out a large blue energy blast, doing away with the body for good.
"See, that's why I did that right off the bat," Trunks said, strolling over to his mentor. Gohan shrugged sheepishly and pointed over to where the Z-Fighters had ascended into the air and flew over to their location. As soon as they touched ground Vegeta stalked angrily up to Trunks and grabbed him by the front of his shirt.
"You! Who the hell are you?" The shorter man seethed. Trunks frowned and his eyebrows knit together in confusion. He turned his head towards his mentor and Gohan merely sighed and shook his head. He had tried to tell meeting his father might not go all that well, but Trunks was too optimistic for his own good.
"Goku will be here in around forty minutes somewhere over that way," Trunks pointed over yonder, deciding to ignore the angry demands of his father. He pulled away from Vegeta's grip and jumped into the air, beckoning for the group to follow him. Gohan kept his head lowered, attempting to keep his face out of view. As the others hesitantly began to follow Trunks, he took up the rear. After a few minutes of flying, the party landed. "I'm pretty sure this is the place," Trunks commented, scratching his head. "The landscape all kinda looks the same around here," He admitted.
"Haha, yeah, that's why we fight out here so much! No one's gonna be angry about all the rocks you break if they all look the same anyways," Krillin joked, trying to break the tension between his friends and the powerful strangers.
"This is the place," Gohan intoned. He knew. After all, he'd been to his father's crash site many times. They frequently fetched steel to use from Cold's ship for Bulma, and it was one of the few places he could go to mourn his father that the androids never came near.
"Alright, enough beating around the bush. Who are you two?" He pointed at Trunks. "You're a Super Saiyan, something that up until ten minutes ago we were all sure that only Goku was," He stated gruffly, causing Trunks to scratch his head in thought. Piccolo turned his finger towards Gohan, "And you, you killed that guy with Frieza in mere moments." He then crossed his arms, awaiting an answer.
"Well, you see, we can't really give you the full story. Only Goku can hear that, I'm sorry to say," Trunks said. Piccolo's stare tightened in disappointment.
"Hey, that's a Capsule Corporation logo on your jacket. Has a saiyan been working for me right under my nose, and I didn't even realize?" Bulma asked, stepping closer to observe Trunks. Trunks swallowed nervously, uncomfortable under the gaze of the past version of his mother.
"Um, no, not quite. It's my mother's jacket. She worked there," Trunks lied, stepping back a foot. Before Bulma could ask any further, Vegeta let loose a loud, arrogant laugh.
"So, you wear women's clothes do you, boy?" Vegeta cackled, a mocking look sent at the teenager.
"Looked in the mirror lately, Vegeta?" The older Gohan asked. Vegeta's attention turned towards him, and his laughter was replaced with a scowl.
"With that hair it's easy to tell that one is just some halfling spawn of a third-rate lackey," Vegeta said, waving dismissively at Trunks. Trunks frowned indignantly in response. "And you look well enough like a saiyan. You look a bit like that clown, Kakarot, even," The prince scoffed, then pointed down at this timelines Gohan, who was nervously fidgeting with his fingers while he patiently waited for his father, "And by all accounts I'm sure that's Kakarot's only progeny." Future Gohan sighed at the man, wishing for him to hurry up with his accusations.
"What are you getting at, Vegeta?" Gohan asked curtly. Vegeta broke out into a grin.
"Well, by all accounts, you must be Raditz's spawn!" Vegeta declared, "You're too old to be Kakarot's, but you look too much like him for it to be a coincidence," He said, supporting his theory, "And I told Raditz that he was eventually going to end up with some long lost spawn if he kept at it the way he did." Gohan sighed and laid his face in his metal hand. It was almost funny that Vegeta could see the similarities in Gohan and his father, but not those between himself and his own son.
"Yes, good job, I'm Raditz's kid," Gohan said tiredly, earning a grin from the prince. "How does it feel knowing that the son of Raditz killed King Cold, father of Frieza and ruler of the known galaxy?" Gohan asked dismissively. At this, Vegeta scowled and turned away to glare at the horizon. The young Gohan perked up at this information, and looked excitedly at the man whom he thought to be his cousin. He jumped up and bounded over to where Gohan sat, extending a hand.
"I guess that makes us family, then. I'm Gohan!" The child said, awaiting a handshake. His elder counterpart offered his hand and gently shook his hand. Future Gohan panicked, he hadn't been prepared for anything like this.
"Right, I'm, uh, Bruss," Future Gohan said, trying as quickly as possible to come up with a name. Gohan smiled.
"It's nice to meet you, Bruss!" He said.
"Right, you too, Gohan," Future Gohan responded.
"This is a weird day," Yamcha said. "But, ya know, at least we didn't have to fight Frieza, right?" The former bandit laughed, nudging Tien in the ribs. The triclops looked at him skeptically.
"Yes, it would have been a most challenging fight indeed. It's probably for the best that it was avoided," He admitted.
"Pah, of course you fools would say that. I would have relished ripping that bastard's head off my own two hands!" Vegeta input. Everyone there knew Vegeta didn't stand a chance at killing Frieza. Most of them also didn't stand a chance against Vegeta either, however; so they decided not to comment on it.
After some more chatter, everyone caught wind of the spherical ship hurtling towards the ground. Everyone cautiously backed up as it collided with the earth, causing a small crater and spraying dirt into the nearby vicinity. With a sudden 'HISS' the door of the ship began to open. Everyone waited anxiously to see its occupant. The pod was empty.
"What!?" Trunks yelled in bafflement. Gohan snorted, having forgotten about the technique his father had picked up. In his timeline he used it to jump right into the battle with Frieza. Gohan supposed he didn't see a need to do that, having sensed them taking care of it.
"Where is he?" Krillin asked Trunks. Trunks just stared at him in bafflement, having no answer to the monk's question.
"Whatcha guys lookin' at?" A familiar voice asked. Everyone turned around to see Goku, standing between Yamcha and Tien with arms draped over the two mens' shoulders. Yamcha stumbled back in surprise and Tien snorted.
"New technique, Goku?" Tien asked, turning his head to look at the man. Goku grinned. Instantly, he had vanished from the spot, and moments later appeared right next to Krillin sporting Roshi's signature sunglasses.
"That's right! It's called the Instant Transmission. The ship I took was one of the Ginyu's and it was predestined for this planet called Yardrat, and its inhabitants taught me the technique while I recuperated," Goku explained. Tien didn't know what a Ginyu was, but nodded along all the same.
"I suppose that's where you got that ridiculous outfit?" Vegeta asked his rival.
"Haha, yeah my gi got pretty torn up in my fight with Frieza, so the Yardrat set me up with these new threads," Goku said, looking down at his clothes, "I guess their fashion sense is kinda weird, but I'm sure you know all about that, Bad Man," Goku sniped with a cheery grin. Vegeta ground his teeth.
"Enough about the shirt! Woman, is my battle suit clean yet?" Vegeta asked Bulma, who was fiddling with her curls. She paid him no mind. The others waited a moment to see if she would respond.
"Oh, is he talking to me? Sorry, my name is Bulma," The scientist said. Vegeta kept his mouth clamped shut. Trunks slowly approached Goku.
"Goku, me and my friend here have information we need to share with you. In private if you please," Trunks requested. Goku cocked his head to the side, then smiled.
"Sure! Just give me a moment to give this back," Goku answered. He was gone for a moment, then returned. He was standing on a higher cliff face waving his hand for them to join him. Trunks looked at his mentor who nodded, and they flew up to speak with Goku. The duo glanced down to make sure they were far enough away from the group.
"Ya know Piccolo can probably still hear us, Namekians got sharp ears," Goku commented. Gohan nodded, he was expecting as much.
"That's fine, Piccolo can be trusted with this information. He's smart, and he's probably on to us anyways," Gohan explained. Goku nodded, and then he wrapped his hands around the back of his head.
"So, Gohan, what's up? I guess something's gone wrong in the future, huh?" Goku asked. Gohan looked at his father in shock, and Trunks turned to him slightly confused as well. Goku let out a hearty chuckle. "C'mon, we may more or less be the same age, but I'd know my son when I'm looking at him!" Goku said, "I mean it's like I'm looking in a mirror. A really cool mirror," Goku joked.
"Dad…." Gohan said, his face a mixture of emotions. Goku smiled softly at him.
"I'm not as dumb as everyone thinks I am, ya know? Just ain't all that smart on the books 's all. If you're here it means something went wrong down the line. I wouldn't put it past Bulma to build a time machine!" Goku laughed. Trunks saw the difficulty his mentor was having, and stepped forwards.
"That's right. Three years from now on May Twelfth at Ten AM, two androids will appear in South City. These androids are monsters, Goku," Trunks explained, gritting his teeth. Goku's expression darkened, his eyes flitting down to Gohan's arm. "Far stronger than anything you've ever faced. They've brought ruin to our future, barely anyone is left alive anymore. They killed everyone who you'd even think to stand a chance, except Gohan and you." Goku cocked an eyebrow at that.
"What happened to me, then? I certainly wouldn't have ran from the fight, even if it'd kill me," Goku said. Gohan clenched his fist and looked his father in the eye.
"That's part of why we never stood a chance. You die of a heart virus, dad, you never even joined the fight," Gohan said. He looked down mournfully, remembering his father's last breath. Goku grimaced.
"A heart virus, eh? That's a bummer! Always figured I'd go out in a fight like that time with Raditz," Goku explained, then he thought for a few seconds, "Oh, I guess that counts," Then the man shrugged. "So ya came back to warn us so everybody's trainin' our butts off, but what's the point if I'm just gonna die anyways?" Trunks dug into the pocket on his jacket before fishing out a purple capsule.
"This is the antidote. My mother developed it, but it was far too late to have been of any use for you," Trunks explained, setting the capsule in Goku's hand. He observed it for a moment before sticking it away in a pocket.
"Well, that's a relief! Who's your mom, anyways?" Goku asked. Trunks looked to Gohan with a look that asked if it was safe to say. Gohan nodded.
"My mother is Bulma," Trunks revealed. Goku nodded along.
"Ahhhh, I can see it now. Makes sense, don't think I ever seen anyone else with purple hair like her and her dad," Goku admitted. "So, your dad then? I'd say Yamcha but I know Gohan's energy signature and he wasn't the one that went Super down here." Goku said, scratching his head in thought, "So your pa's gotta be a saiyan and it ain't me which means…." Goku glanced down to the prince, who was still angrily glaring off into the distance. His eyes widened in shock. "Oh my God." Trunks nodded.
"Yes, my father is Vegeta. My name is Trunks, but Goku you cannot tell anyone these things, as it may cause me to never be born," Trunks explained. After recovering from the shock of the discovery, Goku nodded. He made the motion of zipping his mouth closed, and tossing away the key.
"We're going to need you and everyone else to train as hard as you can, dad. Trunks and I are going to head straight for May Twelfth to meet up with you guys on the battlefield," Gohan said, his eyes locked with his father's. Goku pumped his fist.
"You bet! I guess I'll be seeing y'all in three years, huh?" He asked. Gohan nodded.
"It'll be good to fight alongside you again, dad. Even if only for a while, even if you aren't technically my father," The rugged half-saiyan said resolutely. Goku smiled at his son, and let out a small chuckle.
"Oh, Gohan, you silly boy. No matter how old you are, or what future you're from, you'll always be my son," Goku said, and with that, he popped back down to explain the situation to his friends. Gohan looked skywards, as a single tear rolled down from the corner of his eye.
"That closure enough for you?" Trunks asked teasingly. Gohan jokingly shoved his student as they began to trek away and find a spot where no one would see them vanish.
"Oh, and your confrontation with your father went well?" Gohan asked. Trunks rolled his eyes as he pulled out the capsule for his time machine.
"Whatever, old man, at least I'm not the same age as my dad," Trunks said, earning a snort from Gohan. The time machine sprang to life, and a few minutes after they climbed in, it vanished from the time stream.
Hiya.Sorry to anyone who enjoyed the King Cold fight from the original, but I thought this made more sense contextually. Next up will be the Cooler mini arc, which I promise will not be as similar to the movie as it was last time!