Episode 51

Approaching Darkness

B-dmp…B-dmp…B-dmp…B-dmp…

In that unknown planet, where Vegeta went to have his wounds treated, he was placed inside an isolation chamber tank, which can help him to heal faster. Medicinal water to let his wounded flesh be medicated and his frayed nerves to be more relaxed surrounded him. His life meter ran very steadily. Vegeta had barely energy left to move, his senses almost completely shutting down from enduring such heavy combat. The only sounds he could hear now in his aching, unconscious mind was his heart beating.

As the Prince of all Saiyans slept, his mind was still in a state of rage. His dreams, as he slept, constantly became nightmares. He could never forget his humiliating defeat back on Earth. He recalled how Goku, a low-class soldier, was able to spill blood from a noble. Goku showed new, unrelenting strength no other Saiyan had possessed. Vegeta thought after all his years of training and fighting as a true prince brought him great reputation in which he can declare himself as the strongest being in the universe; however, his beliefs and pride had been proven wrong. They were all wrong after Goku, his older brother, Raditz, who changed at heart, their father, Bardock, who had survived the terrible destruction of their home planet, and the rest of their friends, who showed great courage and faith in battle even if they were about to lose, were able to stand up to him. In reality, Vegeta was beaten countless times. First, when Goku fired his powerful Kamehameha wave in his Kaioken state to overtake his Galick Gun. Second, when Yajirobe ended his Great Ape transformation as he sliced off his tail. And finally, when Bardock had suddenly gained a renewed power in him and defeated him with the dynamic Spirit Bomb. It was just his obstinate attitude and huge pride that kept denying the odds, but now, the painful reality had already set in.

The more he recalled these events though, the more rage burnt inside his heart.

"I will…I will return!" Vegeta screamed in his mind, his face started to show more this emotion of rage. "And once I do…I'll have my revenge!"

On Planet Earth, Goku himself was doing pretty well at the hospital. Even though he always tried his best to follow his doctor's orders of staying in bed, his love for fighting always had him sneak in some exercise drills while no one was looking. Of course, his wife was always there and she was constantly supervising him, but even with her being by his side, Goku could not help himself.

"Hyah!" Goku yelled, throwing an immediate punch in air.

Chi-Chi was surprised and she fell down from her chair. "Aah!"

And the other patients were disturbed from Goku's yell as well.

Goku was lying in bed, trying to rest, but he just could not lie still. He was trying to see if his strength had fully returned by throwing that punch, but he was disappointed that he had not fully healed yet.

After a long pause, he just realized his wife was angrily staring at him. "Huh?" he asked.

Chi-Chi was immediately in a bad mood after she fell from her chair, and so, she smacked Goku on the forehead.

"Goku, what was that all about?! You almost hit me!" Chi-Chi fussed at him.

Goku placed a hand on his head. "Ouch! That hurt…"

"Why can't you just stay still and take a nap or something? Act like a normal patient for goodness' sake! Don't you know every time you do that, you're bothering everyone?" Chi-Chi scolded at her hardheaded husband.

"But I'm not a normal patient!" Goku complained, struggling to do more punches, but the casts wrapped around his arms kept them close to him. "I'm a fighter! I really wish I could just get better already and leave this hospital now."

"Goku," Chi-Chi sat back on her chair and continued to do her hobby. One of her hobbies was sewing and she can be seen sewing a small sweater, "in order to make yourself better, you need to rest. And don't stress yourself out!"

Goku noticed what she was knitting and gave a cute smile. "Oh, it's that gonna be for me?" he happily asked her.

"Goku, do you really think you can fit into this?" Chi-Chi showed him the size of it. "But I'm about to make you one after this though."

Goku pulled the blankets over his chest to keep himself warm. "Really? Thanks!"

Even though Chi-Chi was still irritated with her husband at times, she admitted that she will always cherish his forever kind and innocent nature from him.

Far into the great distances of the galaxies and stars, Bardock, Raditz, Bulma, Krillin, and Gohan continued to travel in space, but they were very close in reaching the real Planet Namek. They were quite nervous to see what the planet had in store for them.

Inside the training area, Raditz was standing in the middle of the room with his eyes closed, his body unmoving. His mind was in a state of great awareness. For the past few weeks, he was learning how to detect people's energies by using his own senses and he was quickly mastering the technique.

Krillin and Gohan were in the gravity room, training with him, and they tried to sneak up from behind Raditz. They kept themselves in silence while preparing to attack him at will.

Raditz slowly opened his eyes and was able to detect Krillin's energy to his left. He immediately turned to that side and evaded his attack by swaying his entire body. Afterwards, Gohan, as unnoticeable as he can be, flew to him, his right hand drawn back. He thought he was going to get a successful hit, but Raditz blocked his punch with his elbow. The three briefly exchanged blows before ending their short practice.

"Woah, impressive!" Krillin told him. "You can really detect energies now. That's good. You just keep on practicing and you'll master it no time."

Raditz nodded.

"Uncle Raditz, do you know how to suppress your energy, too?" asked Gohan.

"Yeah, your grandfather's been teaching me that," Raditz said.

"Now you're learning the true skills of a real master," Krillin proudly pointed to himself.

Raditz and Gohan had no comment on what he said, however.

"Oh, come on, guys!" Krillin tried to convince them that he was, probably not the best master, but at least a good one.

The three had been training for an hour now and they decided to take five. Raditz sat near the door and drank water to hydrate himself. Krillin and Gohan were resting their bodies. As for Bardock, he was actually in his room, taking a quick nap before warming himself up for an intensive training session. He thought he may need this one last practice before stepping into Namek.

While taking their break, Krillin and Gohan were wondering for some time now about the words "galactic overlord" that they kept hearing about lately. They decided to ask Raditz about it.

Raditz took a long pause before he could finally answer them. Just hearing these two words always put him in unpleasant spirits. His emotion can be seen when he began to grip his water bottle tight.

Gohan and Krillin noticed his expression and now, they were more curious than ever to find out what had been bothering Raditz and Bardock lately.

Raditz could only say this for now. "That terrible emperor…was the one who destroyed the Saiyans' home planet…we've always been like this. We swore that we'll find him soon…to take back what's rightfully ours."

And then, he fell silent again.

Gohan and Krillin now looked at each other. They respected him as they decided not to ask any more questions about it. In time, they would just have to learn more about this emperor themselves. All they knew now was that he was definitely Raditz and Bardock's sworn enemy.

As for Vegeta, his healing process was almost complete. In fact, he was restoring to health much faster than usual. Perhaps his own Saiyan pride was the only part of his being now that was keeping him alive.

An operator soon came in who was definitely alien. He was wearing a white coat with a clipboard in hand. He was the one who was monitoring Vegeta's life signals. When he read the progress he was making, he was surprised. "Amazing. He's better already?"

The operator then pushed in a few buttons and the water inside the tank immediately went down the drain. Once the water was gone, Vegeta slowly opened his eyes bit by bit.

He was fully awake, almost reborn, but the heavy rage in his chest fired up even more. He tightened his fists. It was the time for the Saiyan Prince to rise once again.

Several hours had passed. Vegeta was in full recovery and he was now putting on his brand new Saiyan armor.

"Care to tell me what happened, Vegeta?" the operator asked him. "Or is the wound to your ego still too broad to be examined? Judging by the way your armor had received the fractures than be seen here, you were involved in a difficult battle…and that's putting to it lightly," he was examining his battle-damaged armor that he wore back on Earth.

Vegeta remained silent. He sat down on a chair and slipped on his new boots.

"If you're entertaining any ideas for revenge, I highly suggest you'd forget about them. I might not be able to put you back in one piece this time," he stated a true fact.

The Saiyan Prince was not paying attention to him at all. He was only thinking about his memories of his ravaging battle back on Earth. To feel the incessant mortification plaguing his mind, he abhorred the feeling of it.

After Vegeta wore his new Saiyan armor, he questioned seriously, "Tell me, is Lord Frieza here?"

The operator shook his head, saying he left to go somewhere with his henchmen, but he had no idea where he went exactly.

Vegeta crossed his arms. "I hope you're not lying to me. I'm in no mood."

"Perhaps Cui could help you find him," the alien suggested. "I think he's still at the training center. You better hurry now before he leaves as well."

The Saiyan Prince was not interested in meeting him. "I think not. I have more important things to do. If you ever hear a word from Lord Frieza, tell him that I've been looking for him."

"But Vegeta…," the operator said, but he was already leaving. He then looked at the table that prince was using earlier and realized his scouter was still there. "Hold on, Sir, your scouter!"

He continued to walk away. "Keep it. I have no use for it anymore."

Vegeta walked in the dimmed hallway with so many thoughts spiraling in his head. He had been meaning to go back to Earth at some point to have his revenge on Goku and his family, but he was also reminded about Planet Namek and its mysterious DragonBalls.

He was still thinking about his wish, his desire for immortality.

His thoughts were intruded when another alien soldier came up to him. He wore a similar armor to Vegeta only with a different color scheme. He had a green scouter on his left eye. His skin was all violet with a few black speckles on him and he had two, short antennas sticking out from his cheeks.

Vegeta hated to see him. He had no time to talk to Cui now.

"Well, well, Vegeta, I heard you took a beating recently. Hah, hah, hah!" Cui laughed. "Now that's unusual for an elite Saiyan like you. And if I heard correctly, you were also beaten up by a third-class soldier."

"Drop it, Cui!" Vegeta spat at him. If he had let his emotions take over his self-control, he would have pounded him to a pulp already. "This gossip needs to stop. I don't want to waste my time with half-wits like you."

Vegeta passed him and was about to leave until Cui stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder plate. "Don't be hasty, Vegeta. I received an evaluation from Lord Frieza recently and he told me that he hasn't been happy with your attitude."

Vegeta scoffed. "Just let Frieza try to do something about it."

Cui became nervous by the Saiyan's response. He was surprised how he could be so open to be disrespectful to Frieza like that especially for not addressing him with the proper title. "Wha-what did you say? How dare you speak to Lord Frieza like that!"

"How dare you for wasting my precious time. Now take your hand off of me," Vegeta demanded from him.

Cui quickly let go of Vegeta as he was more nervous to hear this kind of tone from him. He soon realized that the words he spoken conveyed a much deeper meaning. Cui began to smirk and told him if he was planning to do anything behind Frieza's back or against the emperor himself, he was making a grave mistake.

Vegeta completely ignored him.

Cui had to remind him, "Your pride will really get to you again. Let me put it in simplest terms. Frieza is invincible!"

Vegeta's temper rose up and faced Cui. He thundered, "Enough already! Just tell me where he is!"

Cui replied in a proud voice, "To Planet Namek."

Vegeta's eyes narrowed. Did he just say Namek? He felt worried while also feeling more livid than ever. Why would Frieza be doing there in the first place? His question was immediately answered in his head though when he was reminded again about the special powers of the DragonBalls.

Cui knew exactly what he was thinking. He had always known that Vegeta and his companion, Nappa, had talked about plans for immortality before they headed to Earth and now, to see that look on his face had made him known what Vegeta's true intentions were at this moment.

He laughed at the Saiyan Prince again. "Hah! If you're thinking about the DragonBalls, then you might just be a bit too late, Vegeta. Lord Frieza might've found all of them most likely and when he does, we'll destroy the planet!"

Vegeta was greatly enraged. He cannot waste any time now. He needed to race against time before Frieza could have his way. He sprinted to the other direction, leaving everything behind. He must go to Namek as soon as he can.

"H-hey! Where are you going?!" Cui was caught by surprise. He was afraid that this Saiyan elite could try to thwart Frieza's plans and being one of his loyal servants, he must not let that happen.

Vegeta was still running, passing by the operator who was treating him earlier ago. He then noticed the red scouter in his hands. He stopped at a complete halt and stared at it for a moment. "Wait a sec…," he then suddenly snatched the device and ran off with it.

"What?" asked the operator, a bit confused.

"I think I'll be needing this, Doc!" Vegeta told him, using the scouter as his back-up. He quickly went outside and went back to his Saiyan pod. It had been thoroughly cleaned and repaired several hours ago. He sat inside his ship, plot in the coordinates, and without delay, he departed as soon as possible.

Cui came outside and tried to stop Vegeta from leaving, but he was too late. The Saiyan elite had taken off without leaving a trace behind.

Vegeta placed his red scouter on his left eye. He then declared to all of his adversaries, "I won't take any more orders from you, Frieza. Prepare yourself. I'll be the one who'll get all those DragonBalls and once I do, I'll be unstoppable!"

His space pod shot off once again into the galaxies.

There was now complete and utter silence, but evil continued to remain.

Four days had passed.

On Earth, at the hospital, Chi-Chi had a bouquet of flowers and she gave it Goku and had him hold it. She had to clean out the old flowers first placed on top of the window in Goku's bedroom.

Goku tried to smell the flowers, but instead, he sneezed. "Achoo!"

I hope you're not allergic to flowers," Chi-Chi said.

"No, the petals just tickled me," Goku rubbed his nose.

"You know, I was thinking, Goku," Chi-Chi began to say, sharing what was in her head lately.

Goku looked over his shoulder. "What is it?"

"Our little boy has been gone for almost a month now…," Chi-Chi said, sounding a bit sad.

Goku tried to see what she was trying to say. "…yeah? And…?"

"And I think I forgot to pack his toe-nail clippers," Chi-Chi now thought about it.

Goku almost got a cramp not because from his old injuries, but the fact that his wife was only thinking about the belongings she packed for Gohan. He was quite amazed by her impressive memory though of the things she packed in those bags.

"I'm sure he'll be fine without it. I thought you packed those clippers for his fingernails," Goku said.

"Yeah, but they don't work for toenails though," Chi-Chi said.

"I'm sure he's fine with what he got, so don't worry," Goku tried to ease her mind. He then began to chuckle under his breath.

"Hmm, what?" Chi-Chi asked him, uncertain why he was laughing.

"You're worrying over his stuff that he packed for trip, but I'm surprised you're not worried that Gohan's going to a strange, new world out there," Goku explained himself. He continued to laugh.

Chi-Chi growled at him. "Rrrgh, can't you read my face, Goku?! Of course I'm worried to death about that, too! Who knows if Gohan has to encounter some mean aliens out there!"

Goku tried to calm her down again. "I know what you mean, Chi-Chi, but hey, our friends, his grandfather, and uncle are there to protect him. Not to mention, Gohan is quite the fighter, too, so I'm sure he's gonna be fine."

She cannot decide herself if her husband was being too overly positive about the situation or if he was too gullible to see what really lied ahead. She had to ask him back, "Tell me, Goku, aren't you worried about our boy also? And about your friends out there, even your dad and brother?"

Goku may be smiling and maybe it was always in his nature to smile even in times like these, but certainly, he also had feelings.

He was half-frowning as well. "…don't get me wrong, Chi-Chi. Of course, I'm also worried. Heck, even worse than that…"

There was a moment of silence. Goku was thinking deeply now while his wife stared at him in wonder.

"That's why…I wish I could get better soon. I have a bad feeling…they're going to encounter some trouble out there…," Goku thought to himself.

There was a knock on the door and Goku's doctor came in along with a few nurses. The doctor cleared his throat and told his patient, "Mr. Goku, your appointment for your vaccine shot is today at this time."

"Eep!" Goku cringed when he heard that. He shivered with anxiety. "Wa-wait, that-that's to-today?!"

Meanwhile, Bardock had finished his nap. He planned to get a quick snack before he resumed training. Still half-asleep, he made his way towards the kitchen. He saw Bulma in the main interior of the ship, sitting on her pilot seat. She was plugged in, listening to music and humming to it.

"Hmm," Bardock made his way towards the kitchen and grabbed all the food he can find. His definition of a quick snack was analogous to half of a Saiyan's lunch meal.

Bulma was able to hear him going through the fridge. She took off one of her earplugs. "Hey, Bardock, you're awake."

"Yeah," Bardock ran his hand against his hair. "By the way, do you know what day it is?"

"Hmm, I guess we're at day 22nd now. Our trip took less than a month, really," Bulma said.

"Namek should be pretty close," Bardock believed.

"Yeah, if we don't encounter any space objects or obstacles, we should be getting there in a couple of hours," Bulma read on the screen.

To hear that they were only hours from reaching their real destination, Bardock actually had mixed feelings about it.

Then out came Gohan, Krillin, and Raditz who just finished practicing their skills from the gravity room. They will continue to train though, but mentally this time such as meditation and image-training.

"Hey, Grandpa Bardock," Gohan greeted him. "Guess what? Uncle Raditz can sense energies now."

"Well, I'm still working on it," Raditz gave a soft smile. "They've been good instructors. I can't believe my own nephew can teach me."

Gohan laughed in response.

Krillin saw all the food that Bardock gathered from the fridge on the center aisle. "Woah, is that all for you? But we just ate lunch like three hours ago!"

Bardock chuckled, placing his elbows against the countertop. "Guess you'll never get used to a Saiyan's appetite, huh?"

"Probably not," Krillin laughed.

Bulma stood up from her seat and approached them. "Well, guys, I already told Bardock about this, but we're on day 22nd now, Wednesday of May. We should be getting to Namek in a couple of hours if everything goes well."

Raditz suddenly raised an eyebrow. He glanced to his right to check out the calendar that was attached near the window. "Isn't that the day…?"

"-that when we get to Namek?" Gohan finished for him. "Of course, Uncle Raditz!" he thought he was silly for saying this.

"No, not that. I just remembered that it's when Kakarot's scheduled for his vaccine shots," Raditz remembered.

Everyone in the room was surprised how he could have known that.

"He told me," Raditz simply said.

After thinking about it for some more, Bardock had finally remembered that, too, of this date. "Oh yeah, I do remember that, but if I can recall…didn't you tell me, Raditz, that Kakarot's…afraid of needles?" he emphasized that word.

Raditz considered what his father said. He did remember a time like that. He remembered back in their home planet when his brother was just born, he was given flu shots to protect him from any kinds of common illnesses. Raditz was there, he perfectly well knew of that memory.

Raditz was a teenager around this time, about fourteen years old, and he was assigned to go on a mission. To his relief, he will have to wait for approximately three hours before he needed to leave for his next assignment. Right now, he was resting and also visiting his baby brother, Goku, who was just born this very early morning about 4:30 A.M.

The young warrior had his arms crossed, standing there in silence. He was watching through the plate glass wall between him and his younger brother who was snuggled in his crib. His father, Bardock, was out on a mission with his crew. As all Saiyan babies were, Goku will be leaving on a mission in the next twelve hours. Saiyan babies always possessed a very high power level when they were born. For that reason, the strengths of Saiyan babies were usually taken advantage of by sending them off to their assigned planets with the inhabitants matching the infant's calculated strength. They may be too young and even too frail, but they were all destined to fight.

Then, a doctor and his assistant approached the sleeping Goku.

"All right, let's see here…Kakarot, that's your name. It's time for your shots," the doctor said. He gently held the newborn baby from his crib, wakening the child. He wondered where he was going.

Raditz watched as he was being taken to the check-up room.

The doctor placed Goku on the mattress and then took out the needles all sealed and protected in caps. He took out the first injection shot.

"Okay, Kakarot, this will hurt a little bit, but it'll be fine at the end," said the doctor.

Goku watched as the needle approached his little, plump arms. The sharp point had actually gotten him interested of this object. He was calm at first, but when the needle came in contact of his skin and the vaccine was injected, the people working in the building had to cover their ears.

"WAAAH!" Goku cried so loudly, his piercing wails can be heard throughout the entire building. It hurt so badly for him, he could not take it all.

"Woah! That's one loud Saiyan baby right there!" remarked the doctor.

"That's right. I've never heard such a loud cry before," said his assistant.

The young infant cried and wailed, pounding on his mattress. Unfortunately, the doctor needed to give him two more shots. When he tried to give him the rest of the vaccines, Goku learned very quickly that this needle was not to his liking. He squirmed around wildly, kicking everything that was in his way. The assistant had no choice but to call Raditz to the doctor's office in order to keep his baby brother calm.

Raditz did not want to help, but he had no choice, however. He entered the door while thinking to himself, "Why'd I have to? It's just a lousy needle. Even a low-class soldier can handle it."

Most Saiyan babies will feel little to no pain when they were given the vaccines they needed; a slight tear may come out from their eyes though, but apparently, Goku was the only one who showed, by far, the worse fear towards needles.

Raditz got a hold of his panicky and wild brother eventually, but Goku's fear of needles almost made him loosen his grip on him especially that he was just an infant, he cannot hold him too tightly. Goku was quite strong when he was a baby, but since he only possessed a power level of two, for the Saiyans, it was a definite sign that Goku was just a third-class warrior.

"Kakarot, stay still!" Raditz demanded.

And Goku would just hit and kick, trying to escape himself from this nightmare. Eventually, he got his needed shots, but took the doctor close to thirty minutes to complete the procedure. After that, Goku immediately became a quiet and calm boy as if nothing had happened.

"Now that's a sudden shift in mood," said the doctor, almost laughing.

Raditz felt really embarrassed. It was only a needle and his brother should not be so afraid of it, but then he also wondered, was he like that too when he was a kid?

"I have to ask my dad when he comes back," Raditz said to himself while taking his younger brother back to his crib.

After that flashback, the now full-grown Raditz rubbed his forehead. "Oh man…"

At the hospital back on Earth, it was exactly what Raditz had envisioned. Screams of fright can be heard across the hospital and yes, those piercing cries came from Goku. He almost looked like a child, exposing his greatest phobia ever: needles. Several nurses were called to restrain Goku on his bed and keep him calm, but it did nothing to calm his phobia for sharp objects. Goku's teeth chattered, his levels of anxiety way beyond than he could handle. He shook his head back and forth and screamed. Master Roshi was there including Chi-Chi. To their eyes, it was unlike Goku to be afraid of such little things.

"AAH! NO, PLEASE! ANYTHING BUT A NEEDLE!" Goku begged.

The doctor though had to do his job. He checked the syringe to see if the amount of liquid inside was the right amount. Goku helplessly stared at the pointed object and shouted once again after a short period of silence. "Eerr…AAH! Please don't do it!"

"Oh, boy…" Master Roshi sighed. "Goku, do I need to also train you not to fear needles?"

But the terrified, baby-like Saiyan continued to shout and cry which made the doctor scratch his head. "Please calm down! I haven't struck you yet!" he told him.

Chi-Chi felt very embarrassed. She thought that the behavior of her husband was displaying was just pathetic. When their child, Gohan, was born, he did not cry a single bit when he got his very first flu shot! Goku suddenly stopped screaming after hearing what she said.

"It's ironic how my husband can fight an epic battle to save the world," Chi-Chi said, "yet can't win over a tiny needle! I bet your father and brother are not like this."

"Yeah, but you don't understand!" Goku shook his head. "I've always hated needles! Sometimes about them when I was a baby…I don't know," he cannot remember anything, but that painful sensation always stuck with him since the day he was born, "I just really, really hate it!"

"Then what are you going to do about it, Goku?!" Chi-Chi asked, having another argument with him. "It's either you get this shot or get sick. It's your choice!"

Goku gulped hard, still quivering from fear. "But, Chi-Chi, isn't there another alternative to needles? Doc, tell me that there is!"

The doctor shook his head. "I'm sorry, Mr. Goku, but on this day and age, what we only have so far is just injection shots."

Goku cannot help but shriek again.

Chi-Chi cannot take anymore of his endless screaming, she decided to leave the room for a moment. "Just stop it, Goku. You keep complaining that you wanna get out of this hospital, so you had better take that shot or else. I'm gonna leave you for a while. I have things to catch up on," she then suddenly left the room without another word. The truth was, she was still irritated at her husband and so, she needed time to keep cool.

"Chi-Chi, wait," Goku tried to stop her because he wanted her to be near his side, but it was too late. He sighed sadly. "Ooh…," and he had quickly forgotten about his shot, too.

The doctor continued with his task."Now, I promise. You won't feel a thing if you just relax your muscles."

And when he gave Goku that vaccine he needed, Goku just realized it was not over yet. "WAAAH!" he cried out desperately.

A few hours later, the Z-warriors were now seen all strapped in their seats. They were minutes away from entering Planet Namek. Bulma had a good grip on the steering wheel, their ship all set for landing. She was making all the necessary adjustments and calculations using the controls and computer system. Their entrance will only take a few minutes and in that moment, their hunt for the DragonBalls will begin.

"All right, guys," Bulma was very excited. "Make sure you're all buckled up. It's gonna get a little bumpy."

Krillin and Gohan were just as thrilled as Bulma was. Raditz kept himself calm and a smile can be seen on his face. He glanced at his father to see how he was reacting to this, but it was the complete opposite of what he thought of. He saw him with his hand was on his forehead and he was looking away as if he did not want anyone to see what he was feeling.

Raditz grew concerned about him. He had a huge guess it must be his gift of foresight, giving him visions all at once.

And yes, he was right. Bardock was seeing visions again in his head and they filled his mind. He kept seeing the same visions for the past few days and even now, he continued to witness them repeatedly. He was seeing that vision again of that noteworthy foe facing a being in golden light. He also saw that image once more of this enemy, gazing at these orange-colored gems in front of him. Not only that, he was seeing other visions of unfamiliar aliens who appeared to have evil intentions. There was only one vision, which made him very worried. He saw these innocent creatures, lying on the ground helpless, injured, and some lying in their own pool of blood.

"Are you ready, guys?!" Bulma asked all of them, getting them motivated for their adventure.

"Yeah!" Krillin and Gohan shouted in unison.

The half-Saiyan turned around. "Are you ready, Uncle, Grandpa-? H-huh?"

Gohan also saw what was going on with his grandfather. He, too, was concerned about him. "Hey, are you okay, Grandpa Bardock?"

Raditz wished he could say something to his nephew, but he cannot.

Finally, the visions had left Bardock and all that was left behind in his conscious now was complete emptiness. Bardock knew his eldest son and grandson were seeing the behavior he was displaying now, but he did not want Gohan, even Krillin and Bulma to know about his secret yet. Trying to act as normal as he can be, he released his hand from his forehead and looked up front, displaying a serious look to give the impression he was only vigilant to his surroundings.

"I'm fine," Bardock said.

Gohan doubted his words though while Raditz wished he could do something to help him out.

"All right, prepare for landing!" Bulma announced.

Their ship slowly passed the exosphere and quickly entered the atmosphere. Light streaks of spark and cosmic fire surrounded the ship as the gravity of the planet pulled them immensely. Their speed increased every second, creating a heavy turbulence. After passing through the white clouds and tall canyons and mountains, they surfaced on flat grounds with success.

The Z-fighters took a while to adjust themselves before realizing they had officially entered a strange, new world, a lone planet called "Namek." This rush of thrill filled their hearts, they were pumped up to begin their adventure.

Everyone cheered.

"Whoo!" Bulma raised her arms up high. "Now somebody needs to give me a nice compliment about my landing skills! 'Cause I sure got 'em!"

They unfastened their seat belts and immediately explored their surroundings through the window. This was definitely the real Planet Namek and its appearance was accurate with King Kai's description of it when he said that the planet was still going through a lot of changes after enduring instability and radical changes in the atmosphere in the past. The planet had about two to three trees on each cliff. The surface had a few, tall grasses sticking out from it. The sky was colored mint-green and the bodies of water looked dull and opaque.

Bardock placed a hand on the glass window. "It's just the same as it was thirty years ago…"

"And more than that," Raditz said.

Bulma was packing all the necessary belongings for their trip. "Okay, now we're not sure how much there's oxygen in Namek, that's why I brought along these oxygen tanks. If they ever run out, we can refill them with more air and…huh?" she realized that she may be talking to herself. She turned around and noticed that the exit door was open. Gohan, Krillin, Raditz, and Bardock were already outside.

Bulma was so shocked, her hair literally spiked up and became so aggravated with them, she ought to give them a piece of her mind.

Gohan touched the grasses with his hands. "It kinda looks like Earth."

Krillin placed his hands inside his pockets. "It does sorta look like home, but this silence is way too creepy. So, Bardock, Raditz, you told us you've seen pictures of this planet before."

"Yeah," Bardock replied.

"It really looks all the same," Raditz looked around, "as it was before."

Everybody continued to stay where they were until…

"What are you DOING?!"A furious Bulma screamed at them, almost making them fall on their backs. "You guys went out without asking me if it's okay to go out?! What if you just ran outside without ANY OXYGEN?!

Everyone was startled by her sudden holler.

"Bulma! Come on, you freaked us out!" Krillin told her.

"Please don't do that again, Bulma," Gohan asked her a favor.

Raditz and Bardock growled in response.

Bulma scoffed. She demanded them that they stop moving and keep to where they were until it was safe for them to go. She then took out her Dragon Radar and pressed the button on top. The screen turned on and to her amazement as well as everyone's, there were already five DragonBalls neatly placed in one common place! Only two DragonBalls were spotted in different locations.

"Wow!" Bulma grabbed their attentions. "I guess we don't have to do extra work, guys. Most of the DragonBalls can be found in one spot. I have a hunch that these Namekians are keeping them for safety reasons or something."

"I just hope they're not thinking of making any wishes at this time," Krillin chuckled a little.

"I'm sure they won't. All right, guys!" Bulma laughed with joy, knowing that their wishes will be granted very soon. With so much happiness in her, she decided to dance with Krillin. Krillin was taken by surprise at first, but he soon danced along with her although he felt quite timid to do so.

Bardock and Raditz watched them with amusement while Gohan laughed along. They were almost convinced their adventure will pose no problems at all.

Abruptly though, the instincts of the Z-warriors had heightened as they unexpectedly felt this cluster of enormous energies from a far distance. To their worry, these life forces they were sensing were not ordinary, but were not trustworthy either. In fact, they were filled with such…malice.

"What is this?" Raditz questioned, turning around.

Bulma and Krillin stopped dancing and wondered what was going on. Bulma thought her friends were getting a little too tensed these days. She reasoned with them that these energies they were sensing must be the Namekians who lived here. Considering Piccolo possessed a high power level before, she supposed that his fellow people could have the same kind of strength as his, too. She assured them there was no threat at all.

But the Z-warriors needed to be honest with her. There was this one power level that was quite tremendous and no question, menacing. They can never come from the Namekians after learning they were usually peaceful creatures.

Krillin felt out these life forces and he, too, became quite anxious about them. "You guys are right. They're…enormous actually!"

"And really different," Gohan sensed.

Bardock stood dormant, in troubled silence. All he could hear now was the beating of his anxious heart. He did not like the feel of this.

"…!"

Suddenly, in just the blink of an eye, two shadows swiftly moved in air. And before they knew it, two laser beams were shot of nowhere and they blasted their ship.

"AAH!" Bulma screamed, holding her hands over her head. She immediately hid behind Krillin and Raditz for protection.

"What?!" the rest turned around and quickly noticed there were two alien beings who looked nothing like Namekians. Instead, they were dressed in armors similar to Raditz's and Bardock's. They had launchers attached to their right arms as their choice of artillery.

"Intruders, I see!" one of the two soldiers said. This one looked human in form except his face was abnormally elongated. He also had blue skin and spiked, blonde hair.

"You're not welcome to this planet now that our great emperor is close to conquering it!" said the other soldier who looked like an aquatic reptile with purple skin and a skinned axe on his head. "You guys must be tourists."

"Emperor?" all of them asked. To Krillin and Gohan, they had made the connection somehow after Raditz had mentioned to them about this galactic overlord who destroyed the Saiyans' home planet.

Bulma shivered in complete fear. "What are they?!"

In spite of everyone's confusion, only Raditz and Bardock knew where these soldiers belonged to which army. Upon realizing this, they felt their hearts racing even more, their hands almost fidgeting, their minds, felt like were about to go in a whirlwind of panic. Planet Namek may now be going through even more dangers and tribulations than anyone else had expected.

"It can't…be," Raditz almost whispered.

While the two soldiers continued to snicker evilly, they finally noticed the two full-blooded Saiyans. They were completely silenced at first, but they did not take long to grasp who they were facing.

"H-hold on. Isn't that…Raditz?" asked the blue-skinned soldier.

"Yeah, it is him!" said his companion. "What is he doing here? I thought he went on a mission or something."

Raditz reacted to what they said by looking at them intently in the eyes.

The soldiers were a little intimidated by his gaze. "It seems to me, he's here on Namek for a bigger purpose than we're thinking."

After making more assumptions about Raditz, when they laid their eyes on Bardock, the blue-skinned soldier was greatly shocked. He trembled in fear, his voice shaking. He cannot believe his eyes.

"N-no way! I-I know him!" he shouted.

Then reptilian soldier had no idea why he was shaking like that though. "What's the matter? You know that guy next to Raditz? He looks like a Saiyan to me."

"He is a Saiyan! Worse! He's B-B…Bardock!" he trembled.

When that name was spoken, the purple-skinned alien somehow recognized that name. He thought it was that name, which came from a tale that was brought up a long time ago, but it seemed like the person who carried this name really existed. "Wait, you mean the Bardock?!"

"I thought he was killed along with the entire Saiyan race!" believed his comrade.

At that moment, Raditz and Bardock knew they had to step in. Now that these soldiers had located their presences, they cannot let them escape and leak any information about them.

The soldiers began calculating their power levels using their devices worn over their left eyes, which were their scouters. Raditz and Bardock had tried to suppress their powers, but due to their alarming discovery about the true nature of where these enemies actually came from, their strengths reacted to their emotions and were able to give these soldiers a glimpse of their true potential.

"Impossible!" the soldiers cried out.

"I-I thought they're just low-class warriors, but these numbers are extremely high!" the reptilian alien exclaimed.

"We-we need to report this right away!" the blonde-haired alien told him.

The soldiers took instant action and decided to escape, but Raditz and Bardock cannot let them retreat. Without warning, they teleported in front of soldiers and stopped them immediately.

"AAH!" they screamed with fright.

Without a single word, Raditz landed a straight punch towards the reptile's abdomen while Bardock went for a dynamic sidekick to the hips of the blue-skinned alien. The two were instantly knocked out and they fell into the rivers.

The two full-blooded Saiyans then levitated in air, the winds brushing on their faces as they watched the waters splashed and glistened underneath Namek's sun. They just cannot rid of these disturbing feelings they were having now. They could foresee terrible peril ahead.

Krillin, Gohan, and Bulma recovered from their shock first before they could bring out their voices again.

"Raditz! Bardock! What's going on?!" Krillin asked, looking up high. "Did those aliens actually know you? But how can they?"

Raditz did not answer him since he was still in deep thought about what just occurred here.

Bardock shook his head. "I got a feeling they're one of the allies…of our worst enemies."

"Worst enemies?" Gohan repeated.

Raditz began to clench his fists. He slowly shifted his vision towards his father in which he did the same back. Without the need for verbal expression, they understood what they had to face in the future.

All of a sudden, they heard Bulma sobbing and weeping. She saw the damage that was done to the engine of their ship. "No, I can't believe this! They just destroyed our only ship! Our only way to get back home!"

"What? No way!" Krillin cannot believe that this was true. He ran to the ship and checked it out for himself to see the kind of damage that was done to it.

Raditz landed back on the surface and examined the ship as well. After making a thorough analysis, he concluded, "No, it's not totally broken. It's just been slowed down, but we'll need to make repairs to the engine. I don't how long that'll take though…"

"Really?" Bulma sniffled between words. "Okay, if you say so. Ugh! I can't believe those ugly freaks!" she referred to the soldiers earlier. "And I thought we'll have no problems for this trip."

Gohan bit his lip in worry. "I don't think that's possible now, Bulma."

Bardock continued to levitate in air, his eyes searching for an object or anything that would surely give him a sign that the enemies they will likely to encounter today were the ones he kept constantly seeing in his visions. Soon, his eyes caught something from a distance. He noticed…two Saiyan space pods. One was landed on top of a canyon while the other was landed meters away from it.

Bardock gave a serious look. There was no denying the reality now. They had to face the truth. "…this is just not our day, guys."

"What do you mean?" Krillin asked who heard him.

Bardock kept his eyes fixated at that particular angle. Raditz and Krillin glanced at each other, wanting to confirm what he was seeing. They took flight and once they saw what Bardock had seen, they grew even more shocked.

"Wait, aren't those Saiyan pods?!" Krillin asked anxiously.

Raditz knew one of those ships belonged to his once former companion, but now his sworn enemy. "…it's…Vegeta…"

Bulma and Gohan heard what they said and they immediately panicked.

"WHAT?!" Bulma was terrified.

Gohan shook his head. "No, it can't be. What's Vegeta doing here?!"

Bardock's fists tightened. He just hated all what he was encountering now. "Those visions…they're coming true after all…," he whispered to himself. Soon, his gasped in fright to realize that if his vision of Vegeta arriving to Namek was true, then did that mean the rest of his visions were coming to existence as well?

"Guys, it's best if we all suppress our energy!" Krillin notified his friends quickly. "If that's really Vegeta, then we're in for some trouble. We can't let him sense us or any of those weird soldiers that we just met not too long ago."

The Z-warriors quickly basked their strengths inside and kept them to a minimum to make them almost non-existent.

Bulma cried even more. "No, this all a DREAM! Why is this happening to us?! WHY?!" she wailed.

"I don't understand," Gohan told his family and friends. "Why would Vegeta come to Namek in the first place?"

"If you remember, Gohan, he'd always want to look for the DragonBalls to wish for eternal life," Krillin became infuriated. "I think that's why he's here!" he raised a fist. "I bet he'll stop at nothing now to get that wish!"