Chapter 15

Bardock grunted weakly as he finished tying his headband to Trunks' wrist. He lifted his shaky free hand to grab the other two unconscious Saiyans. A sharp pain sparked in his face. He resisted the urge to grit his teeth, knowing it would only make the pain a thousand times worse if he moved any muscle in his face.

His body ached, his ankle was broken, and his face felt like someone drove a knife through it repeatedly. The giant gash on his left cheek was more than likely going to leave a nasty scar.

Trunks, Vegeta, and Goku were knocked out. Kibito's body was thrown somewhere; Bardock couldn't see nor sense him. The only thing he could see was his giant arm lying on the ground not too far from him. The Supreme Kai had been blasted away from them, and just like in the past, he couldn't sense him at all.

The worst part of it all; he couldn't sense Gohan.

He knew the moment Buu and Broly fused that it would more than likely mean the end of the universe if he didn't do everything in his power to stop them. Each and every single one of them tried everything to fight this new Buu.

The fused being of Buu and Broly, Buuly, was too strong for them. Broly by himself was stronger than Bardock in his Silver Saiyan form, as was Buu, so putting the two together only shut the door on any hope Bardock had of ending this ordeal quickly and painlessly.

None of them stood a chance.

Tears slipped down Bardock's face, stinging his face when it mixed into the cuts that littered his face. His father had to be alive. He didn't have the lingering hope that his father was alive like in the past, not when their enemy was this strong.

Where am I?

Bardock started at the new voice. He whipped his head up to gaze around the rocky terrain. He licked his cracked lips, asking hoarsely, "Who's there?"

Who the hell are you?

"Where are you?" Bardock mumbled as he tried to find the source of the voice.

That's what I'd like to know, jackass.

Bardock rolled his eyes, glad that movement didn't hurt him, "You're on earth. At least, I assume you are. I can't see you."

…Earth? I…I think that was the planet Kakarot was sent to.

A pause. Bardock narrowed his eyes, "How do you know that name?"

That's my son's name. How do you know that name?

"That's my grandfather's name," Bardock replied, staring at Goku's unconscious form. He blinked, realization setting in, "Wait, if you're Grandpa's dad, then that means you're-"

Right before his eyes, he suddenly saw a man who looked exactly like his grandfather, only with tanned, scarred skin and wearing Saiyan armor as well as a red headband similar to his own.

My name is Bardock. Who the hell are you?

Earlier at the tournament…

"We have to go now."

"Go where?" Gine questioned frantically as she stumbled to follow Pan who grasped her and Tekka's hands tightly.

Pan shook her head as she ran out of the waiting room, Krillin and Yamcha already in the stands with the rest of her friends and family. "I'll explain everything after we get out of here. There's a lot I haven't told you."

"What about the tournament?" Tekka inquired incredulously.

"I was gonna let my grandfather win anyway," Pan replied. "We have to fly to the stands to get everyone. Come on!"

Still in shock, the two humans followed her in the air towards the stands. Pan held up her hands when everyone began speaking, their voices overlapping and making it harder to understand their worries.

"Is it starting?"

"Please tell me Trunks is okay!"

"What are we supposed to do now?"

"Where's Papa?"

"I'm scared."

Pan closed her eyes tightly, her fists shaking at her sides. A headache pinched its way through her brain. "Guys!" She blurted out angrily, stopping everyone's speech. "I don't know what exactly is happening, but I do know that we have to get to the Lookout. That's the only place we'll be safe."

Despite her shock and the cold in her veins, Bulma shakily nodded, "Right. She's right, guys." She stood on unsteady legs. "Let's go."

It took a while to get to the jet copter. Most of that time was spent searching for Bra and Goten, and then later consoling them when they cried about Trunks. It took another 10 minutes to get them under control when they tried to follow Bardock and the rest of the Saiyans after finding out they went to go fight bad guys.

The group was pretty packed in the jet copter and the awkward silence didn't help anything. However, Pan was only focused on her father and brother's kis which were the same as they were when they first left the island. No spike in ki was good news, she assumed. It meant they either weren't fighting or were fighting someone who they could take in their base form.

A grunt from Piccolo took her attention. She leaned over, whispering questioningly, "Can you sense what's happening?"

"I believe Goku has turned into a Super Saiyan," Piccolo mumbled back, his eyes closed as he concentrated on the group far from them. "He must be fighting someone strong. He usually likes to battle it out in his base form before he takes it up to another level."

"Did you feel Vegeta's before that?" Krillin asked in the same whispering tone. "It seemed like he was fighting but his ki stayed the same throughout the whole thing."

The three blinked when they felt Goku's ki fall down to its regular base level. Pan sighed in relief, "I only hope none of the others have to go Super Saiyan." She glanced at the two, eyes glinting with curiosity, "Why didn't you two follow them?"

Krillin snorted, "Please. If those five can't take on this Buu guy then there's no way I could be of any help. When I tried to take on the androids, I think I lasted about 5 minutes before they killed me."

"I may be stronger than most, but even I can see that my skills would be useless against Majin Buu," Piccolo replied.

"I was just asking," Pan shrugged. "You two followed them in the past, but Bardock told me you didn't get to do much since you turned to stone. He didn't see you guys again until he got to the Lookout."

Krillin exhaled, letting his head rest against his seat, "Yeah. That sounds about right." He moved his gaze to the half Saiyan. "What about you? Did you go last time?"

Pan barked a laugh. She slapped her hand over her mouth, gazing sheepishly at her mother's glare. She turned back to Krillin, shaking her head, "No, no. Bardock basically forbid me from going. While I understand now, I was pretty pissed he left me out back then."

"What happened?"

"Let's just say everything that could've gone wrong did go wrong."

The three of them stiffened once again when they felt Gohan's ki spiking slightly. He had turned into a Super Saiyan. Luck was on their side when his ki went back to normal moments later. They sighed in relief at that.

Piccolo opened his eyes, nodding to the front of the jet copter, "We're here."

The jet copter lifted the rest of the way and landed on the Lookout. Pan was quick to get Tekka and Gine out of the copter. She sent a quick smile to Dende and Mr. Popo as she dragged her friends out of earshot from her family.

She exhaled shakily, clasping her hands together, "Okay, what do you guys want to know?"

"For one, where are we?" Tekka blurted out. He ran a hand through his messy hair frantically. "I mean, we flew so high in the air. So high. Really high. How can we even breathe up here? Where is here? Why is Piccolo green?!" He winced at Gine's sharp stare, "Sorry."

"Alright," Pan began. "My grandpa and Vegeta are Saiyans which was a warrior race on planet Vegeta. They're the last of their kind since they were wiped out by a tyrant named Frieza."

She waved her hand at the growing questions in their eyes. "Another time. My dad was the first half Saiyan, half Human hybrid, but when he lost his arm after fighting the androids, he took a serum that contained alien cells which caused his dominant cells, the saiyan cells, to take over his human ones, making him a full blooded Saiyan. He and my mom then had me and Bardock. That's how we're half Saiyans instead of quarter ones."

"So you're…you're half alien?" Gine piped up, her voice wavering slightly. "Why did you never tell us?"

"I was scared," Pan replied, shrugging helplessly. "I didn't know how you'd react, especially since we have the same powers as the androids."

"But you look so human. You all do, except Piccolo," Tekka commented. "What makes you different from humans?"

Pan sighed heavily, "Well for one, we're born with tails. I had mine cut off when I was four but Bardock kept his and my dad's grew back. They both keep it under their clothes so no one can see it. If either of them looks at a full moon, they turn into a giant monkey. We call it Oozaru. I've Bardock do it and trust me, it was frightening."

Tekka blinked, taken aback, "Oh wow. I wasn't expecting that."

"Not only do we have that but our ki is much stronger than humans'. Even at a young age, I was much stronger than you two are now," Pan continued. "We also have other forms we can take on if we have enough powers?"

"Forms?" Gine raised an eyebrow.

Pan nodded, gesturing to herself, "Right now I'm in my base form. At the tournament, when Bra and Goten turned into Gold Fighters, they were in their first Super Saiyan form. All of us can turn into Super Saiyans. When Trunks turned during his match, he went up to Super Saiyan 2 which is much stronger than the first one. I can't do that and neither can the kids, but the others can."

She stiffened suddenly. Bardock's ki was rising at an alarming rate. He must've been fighting someone strong if he had to go to his Super Saiyan 2 form already. Whoever it was, she only hoped Bardock beat them quickly.

Gine noticed the conflict in her eyes and asked, "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Bardock," Pan replied quietly. "He's in his Super Saiyan 2 form. His opponent must be strong because he hates turning unless he absolutely has to. It's why he's so much stronger than any of us."

"What does you being an alien have to do with all of this?" Tekka asked, getting them back onto the main subject.

Nodding, Pan got to the core of the conflict, "When the androids were around, Trunks went back in time to warn my grandpa about the androids. By doing so, he created another timeline where they defeated the androids before they killed everyone, but because of his intervention, they ended up facing a worse enemy; Cell."

She wrung her wrists and bit her lip, continuing, "What I'm about to tell you is going to shock you, and I'm sorry I never told you this before." She took a deep breath and met their eyes, gazing firmly, "Bardock is the one who killed the androids."

Shock was too little of a word to cover what the humans were feelings. The knowledge that their friend, someone who they knew was extremely strong, was brave enough to kill those cyborgs and at such a young age had them reeling.

Knowing that the two were speechless, Pan continued explaining, "After the fight, Bardock had a vision of the timeline Trunks was in. He saw Buu. He then used another time machine to go into the past and I went with him. We spent 7 years there before we fought Buu and it happened just like this. With flying lessons, a tournament, someone getting beaten up brutally, and someone getting their ki taken away before they left the island."

"So Bardock knew I was gonna get beaten up," Tekka sniffed, his eyes on his feet.

"It's why he told you to forfeit if things got too rough," Pan stated. She frowned, "I know you're mad at him for letting that happen but he hates himself way more because he couldn't do anything. In the past, it was our mom that got beaten up. He knew about it and he still couldn't do anything. Everything that happened, everything that will happen, he's seen and he's trying his best to make sure no one dies."

She exhaled, cracking her neck, "Now short versions. Piccolo and Dende are from Namek, a planet my dad has gone to. Dende is the guardian of this planet since Kami, the last guardian, fused with Piccolo. Yes, Dende is god on this planet. The Lookout is where he and Mr. Popo live. The sensu bean we gave you was from Korin who makes them. He actually lives below here. Majin Buu is who Bardock is fighting and yes, he is insanely strong. Last time it took Bardock, me, and my dad to kill him."

She clapped her hands. "That about cover it?"

The Lookout suddenly began to shake intensely. The winds picked up, causing them to almost fly off. Pan dug her feet into the tile and put her arms around her friends, making sure they didn't fly away.

Moments later, the tremors finally stopped. The group sighed in relief, some even slumping to the ground.

Piccolo gasped, staring at the sky with wide eyes, "What's going on? Bardock's ki is massive but it's draining way too fast."

"Oh no," Pan breathed in disbelief. "He's in his Silver Saiyan form."

"Silver Saiyan? What the heck is that?" Yamcha questioned.

Pan bit her lip, walking over to them as she explained, "When Bardock was in the Other World, instead of going Super Saiyan 3, he made his own form; Silver Saiyan. The only bad thing about it is that it drains him way too fast."

Krillin shook his head as the ground shook again, "If this is him going all out, I don't ever want to be on the other side of his fist."

This was getting serious. Pan put up her hands, stalling her friends' questions, "I'm sorry but I need to pay attention to this. I haven't felt Bardock fight like this since the last time he fought Buu."

She side stepped them and made her way to where the other fighters were. She closed her eyes, focusing on Bardock's rapidly falling ki. Judging from the other fluctuating ki, she could safely assume it wasn't Buu. It was evil, immensely so, but it there was an end to it while the past Buu's ki always felt endless. But that didn't make any sense.

She frowned tightly, "I don't understand. Why is he fighting so hard against a henchman and not saving his power for when Buu awakens?"

"Something tells me that whoever it is, they're giving Bardock a run for his money," said Piccolo, his arms crossed and his brow furrowed. "Your brother's a strategist. I doubt he went into this fight headfirst."

"This is crazy," Krillin mumbled. "It's almost like I can feel his energy in the air; like I can touch it with my fingertips."

The four were startled when after a huge spike in Bardock's ki, it suddenly fell way too fast to be safe. He was back in his base form but his energy was much too low.

And then she felt it. The endless dark ki she always associated with the bad side of Majin Buu. He had finally awoken.

Piccolo swallowed dryly, "So that's Buu?"

"Yeah," Pan whispered, a bead of sweat falling down her face.

As they continued focusing on the new battle, Bulma walked over to them, her eyes filled with concern and slight frustration, "Pan, what are we supposed to do while they fight? What if one of them dies? Shouldn't we be getting the dragonballs?"

Pan flinched, lifting her hands, "Bulma, please. Bardock said he would deal with Buu. I think we should hold off on getting the dragonballs since the last time we got them, we didn't even get to wish for anything. And no one has died yet."

"So you say," Bulma huffed. Her bottom lip trembled. "Oh, I just hope Trunks and Vegeta are okay. I know they act tough but this Buu guy seems really powerful."

"He is," Pan sighed heavily. "But don't worry. Bardock knows how to deal with him."

"Oh no!"

The two of them whipped their heads around to gaze at Piccolo. His green skin seemed to be a shade lighter as sweat dripped down his face.

Fear raced through Pan's heart. "Piccolo, what is it?"

Piccolo shivered, "Can't you sense it? That Buu thing and the man Bardock was fighting seemed to have fused. Their ki is the most powerful thing I've ever felt."

It was then that Pan felt it. The endless ki that she knew as Buu was now much darker than it had ever been. For a second, she thought Kid Buu was back, but there was something about it that made the power familiar. While she could sense that Bardock's ki was back to normal, she knew he wasn't going to last long against this new fused villain.

Almost an hour later that consisted of them pacing and sitting on their hands while the humans tried to pass the time by doing whatever they could, they suddenly heard a grunt from under the Lookout.

She, Piccolo, Yamcha, and Krillin ran over to where a blood hand latched onto the edge of the floating platform. They were taken aback when Bardock's bloody face appeared. Seeing his struggle, they recovered quickly and helped him up the rest of the way. She tended to her brother while the others took Trunks, Vegeta, and Goku.

"What happened?" She asked frantically. She took stock of who was with him and furrowed her brow. Her heart twisted. "Bardock, where's Dad?"

Bardock swallowed, shaking his head weakly, "I don't…I don't know. He was too strong…so strong. I couldn't…" His eyes rolled to the back of his head as he passed out in her arms.

"Bardock! Bardock!" Pan called out. Tears stung her eyes as sorrow and anger fought in her in chest, trying to take precedence.

This was new ground but they were still paying the same prices.