It had been several months since Doctor Mu had taken Cooler to his laboratory. In the time since then, the prince had truly become something terrifying. As he stepped out of the ship's loading ramp into the cold vacuum of space, his new nanoskin shone like a beautiful emerald.
The flesh and bone that comprised his body had now been replaced with wires and circuitry, the outer shell both flexible and sturdy. He thought of how beautiful he must look, a diamond in the rough universe. In time, his visage would encompass the entirety of Universe 7, and his empire would reign for all eternity.
But before he could do that, he had to attain more power. More power that would allow him to stomp out even gods, let alone meddling saiyans that dared to encroach upon his might. Mu, being the creator of the technology that now was the prince, had suggested a test of epic proportions.
Taking a small ship, the scientist and the tyrant traveled to the South Galaxy, a sinister plot concocted. "The largest planet in this system is the Gete." the doctor explained, his voice coming from inside Cooler's own mind. "The planet is home to billions, with technology that rivaled even the tuffles. If you can manage to absorb some of it, it will augment your own power to levels you could only dream of."
Cooler's anger towards the doctor had subsided as they made progress on his new body. He truly understood that all the pain, all the suffering, had been for the better, now that he had this unrivaled power. Not only could he analyze and counteract his opponents' techniques, but he could also repair and adapt to any damage they dealt to him.
"This won't take long, keep the ship a safe distance away." he replied back in a calm tone. He leapt from the ship, diving headfirst into the planets atmosphere. Combined with his energy, his body could withstand re-entry easily. The heat that cascaded over his form felt splendid.
In a few seconds, tall buildings appeared in his view. A wonderful visage of a city, shining and vibrant like his new body. Had he not been on a mission, perhaps he would take this world as his capital, teach its citizens ways to be useful in his empire. But he could always save the view to his databanks to replicate later.
Initial impact sent shockwaves and debris flying all around for miles. Any beings close to him were vaporized without even knowing, a peaceful death. In their wake were shadows left behind from the powerful energy, yet another way to showcase how Cooler's power now far surpassed his on Earth.
Acting fast, he detached segments of his body and threw them at any buildings or other tech he saw. While these left him a bit vulnerable, he knew that no power on the planet could stop him. The self-replicating nanotech would eat away anything mechanical it came into contact with, making more of itself for Cooler to use at his discretion.
Soon after, the armies of Gete arrived to defend their beautiful home. Tanks and jets appeared, firing energy attacks at the green jewel demon relentlessly. Wanting to put on a show, Cooler allowed their attacks to drill holes into his body, feigning weakness. He fell to the ground, some of his nanotech appearing to disintegrate. One of the tanks hatches opened, a buff soldier climbing out, an energy cannon clasped in his arms. These beings looked like giant slabs of meat, bumps all along their body, an unpleasant sight.
"Damn invaders, not even the death of Freeza can save us." he said in a gruff tone, cautiously approaching the fallen prince. Cooler tried his hardest not to laugh. Finally, the soldier made his way to the cyborg, nudging his body with his foot. Thinking that now was the time to strike, Cooler suddenly leapt to his feet and plunged one finger into the being's temple. Wanting to test his powers yet again, he filled his body with nanotech, as if injecting him with medicine.
The soldier's body convulsed, not even having time to make a sound as his body went through its death throes. To the prince's surprise, an unexpected outcome came from this spontaneous experiment. Rather than just kill the grotesque being, his nanotech sapped his energy away instead. As the soldier's life came to an untimely end, Cooler could feel new energy emerge within his metallic shell. Not only did Mu's technology allow him to surpass his own mortal limits, but he was able to steal power from both technology and mortals!
His metallic body began to glow brightly like a sun, before hundreds upon hundreds of energy blasts shot from him, decimating both the army, and the remaining buildings of the city around him. As the glow began to dim, Cooler found himself on the ground, panting, feeling as if he ran for thousands of miles. "Your majesty, you mustn't overload yourself!" the voice of the mad doctor chimed in from within his ear. "Your power may be vast, but if you expend too much too fast, you'll overheat."
Cooler still knelt on the ground, beginning to regain his breath. "Calm down, these limits are temporary." the prince said to himself. Unlike his brother, Cooler knew the value of training and becoming stronger. This setback would only last for a short time. Reaching a hand up, he summoned the nanotech he had thrown around back to him. It all rushed to him as if telepathically, rejuvenating him as it locked back into place. That's when he had an idea.
"Doctor Mu, how much energy can I absorb?" he said into the open air. The doctor responded immediately. "As long as you don't absorb it too quickly, you should theoretically be able to take on infinite energy." This made the prince think, formulating a dastardly plan in his head. Without warning, he thrust both hands down, firing a mighty beam that trailed for miles beneath the crust of the planet. He flew in fast after the trail, his body offering protection from the dangerous heat as he dove closer and closer to the core of the world. Finally, he found himself floating in front of a massive orangish-red ball, a sight to behold for anyone, even a galactic tyrant. He stood there for what felt like an eternity, the beauty of Gete's core mystifying.
"Cooler! Cooler! What's going on?" the doctor's voice suddenly cut in, interrupting the prince's trance. He shook his head to clear his mind, before staring down at the molten ball once more. Carefully and deliberately, he started to absorb the energy of Gete itself. The heat was intense, even for his cybernetic body. He could feel the metal melting and bending, but the energy he was receiving from the planet was counteracting, no, overpowering the damage. Even now, he could feel himself getting stronger, little by little.
On the surface, the world began to shake, the temperature dropping immensely. The inhabitants all around the globe started to drop dead as cosmic radiation seeped into the atmosphere, gradually growing stronger by the minute. Cooler continued to take in as much energy as he could, when he could feel his own body beginning to splinter. Had he gone over his limits again, had his body failed him?
As he was about to scream out in frustration, he noticed another hand next to him. And then his vision split. Next to the prince, stood another prince, absorbing the energy, same as him. The two looked at each other in confusion, before they both split simultaneously. Now there were four Coolers in Gete's core, continuing to absorb the energy of the planet. That was when the prince remembered what the mad doctor had said about the nanotechnology that made up his body, how it would self replicate. He couldn't just repair himself, he could replicate himself as well. As all of them began to smile a sadistic grin, the planet gave way.
"Prince Cooler? Prince Cooler, respond immediately!" All reading had gone dark back in the ship, Mu not being able to detect the energy signature of the cybernetic emperor anymore. Had he been too idiotic to not realize his current limits? Had whatever he'd done been too much for even Mu's sophisticated technology? He was sure he could survive the explosion of a planet, but that wouldn't explain the absence of it now. The doctor sat back in his chair in despair, one more experiment resulting in a failure.
That was when he heard a ping. Then another, and another, and another, and so many more. He looked at his sensors and saw what looked to be dozens of blips converging on his location, approaching fast. He readied himself for combat, his own body augmented with various defenses.
The loading ramp for the ship opened once more. The doctor looked towards it in anticipation, before noticing the familiar shape of the figure standing before him. Cooler stepped onto the ship, his body perfectly fine, perhaps even more robust than previously, a grin plastered on his face. "Sorry to scare you, Mu. I simply had to store the energy somewhere." This statement confused Mu, before he noticed the noises reverberating throughout the ship. The metal was twisting and contorting, turning a greener color as well. Before long, the chamber looked much sleeker, what looked to be wire inside transparent glass littering the walls, flowing with energy.
The prince smiled once again, proud of his evolution. "I managed to replicate my body once I started to absorb Gete's core. Combine that with my technology absorption, and I've now merged with this ship. Now it is me, and I am it." As if to demonstrate, an arm formed from inside the ship, forming a cup in its hand, which Cooler sat down upon. "I thank you once again, Doctor Mu. Your technology is fascinating, and now I am truly understanding what it's capable of. You have my appreciation."
With this, Mu began to form a smile of his own, before madly laughing out loud, which Cooler joined in on. The two continued laughing wickedly as the ship carried them away back to Mu's laboratory, intent on completing more experiments to further their revenge against the saiyans.
Over the next few weeks, reports spread over the South Galaxy of a massive ship that would come to planets, before destroying them entirely, leaving nothing behind as it did the planet Gete. Not even the power of Freeza's empire could rival the terror of The Big Gete Star.