Kakarot blinked his eyes open. His vision was still fuzzy and he sat up a little too quickly. He felt gentle hands pushing him back to his horizontal position.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"We're back in the caves, Kakarot," his mother said soothingly. "You're lucky we got you here in time. Zarbon wasn't holding anything back when he attacked you."

"He wasn't aiming for me," Kakarot shrugged. "If only I'd had time to block." He paused, then asked, "How's Chi-Chi?"

"She's fine," Sona reassured him. "She's here too. There is one thing, though," she said slowly. "I'm afraid Gohan is-" Sona clenched her jaw. "Gohan is our first casualty." She put a comforting hand on her son's shoulder before she disappeared. Kakarot sat up again, slowly this time. He could see Chi-Chi's silhouette outside of the tent. He walked to her and sat wordlessly beside her. After several moments, it seemed Chi-Chi was pulled out of her thoughts and finally realized he was there. She flung her arms around him, gently kissing his jaw.

"Thank Kami you're safe," she whispered. "For a moment I'd feared the worst." She rested her tear streaked face against his shoulder. "I thought you'd be dead just like-" her voice cut off. Her eyes gained a sudden distance, as though she were millions of galaxies away. Kakarot could hardly imagine what she was feeling. He had shared a connection with Gohan and was sorry to hear that he was gone. Gohan was the only Earthling that had taken an immediate liking to him. It was Gohan who had presented him with the four star ball. It was Gohan who protected Chi-Chi when he couldn't. Whatever remorse he was feeling for Gohan's passing must have been a million times worse for Chi-Chi.

"You know what he said to me?" she asked, her voice heavy and cold. "Right before he-" she paused, unable to say the word. "He doesn't want to be wished back."

"Wished back?" Kakarot asked. "You mean with the Dragonballs?" Chi-Chi nodded.

"He said he'd lived his life exactly the way he wanted. He didn't have any desire to be wished back. Said he'd be a waste of a perfectly good wish." She sighed, pulling her knees up to her chin. Kakarot wrapped his arm around Chi-Chi. There really wasn't anything he could say to make the situation better. He thought that, perhaps, it would be best if he were silent for now.

As a low level, Raditz had never had the opportunity to spar with someone as high up in the ranks as Zarbon. He found that in this battle, he was faring very well. He could tell Zarbon was wearing down. Raditz continued to move as quickly as possible. He delivered a powerful kick to Zarbon's stomach, sending him staggering backwards.

"I suppose you think you're quite strong, don't you?" Zarbon snarled. He straightened himself. "I would consider you a formidable opponent if I were in my true form. I'm not even at full power," he chuckled darkly. Raditz's hopeful outlook was dampened. Zarbon wasn't the bluffing type.

Raditz heard a sharp voice addressing Zarbon through the scouter. Frieza. He must be watching the fight somewhere close by. Quickly, Raditz looked around, but couldn't see him.

"New strategy, Zarbon," Frieza said, cutting him off in the middle of preparing to transform. "Seeing as you're still alive at least the old strategy wasn't horrible."

"What's our next move?" Zarbon asked, slightly annoyed.

"While I was en route to watch your little battle, I decided the best way to stop this rebellion would be to stop the leader. Target the leader. Not physically, but emotionally. Hurt the ones he loves. I know the best place to start. Cui and Appule are on their way with our new technology. Their target is Bardock's mate. Once they have her, all of you will return to the ship. Don't waste your time with any of the fools there," Frieza commanded. Zarbon smiled. He wouldn't waste his time. He'd transform and make quick work of all the idiots surrounding him.

"Yes My Lord," he responded, turning his attentions back to Raditz.

"Oh, and Zarbon, don't bother transforming, it's a waste of energy," Frieza said. Zarbon growled to himself. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Cui and Appule touchdown. Bardock and his mate had returned moments earlier. Perfect timing.

Zarbon was eager to see how well Frieza's new technology worked. As much fun as it would have been to just torture Saiyans for the hell of it, Frieza did have a purpose for it. He was able to discover their weaknesses and develop weapons and nets strong enough to catch them. It was brilliant, really.

Bardock's mate, who had touched down later than Bardock, was still making her way back to the large group of Saiyans when Cui and Appule overtook her. She struggled, but her efforts were futile. Frieza's new toys had worked just as well as they'd hoped. Before anyone could react to Sona's capture, Zarbon, Cui, and Appule were in the air, dragging Sona behind them. Zarbon felt oddly triumphant. This rebellion was going to end just as soon as it had begun.