Fallen Comrades

"I found him, but he isn't coming willingly. He has a brat that has a tail. He might be of use to us if I can't get Kakarrot to come." Raditz devoured another pear and leaned against the tree trunk.

"What do you mean he isn't coming willingly?"

"I mean he refuses to come without a fight. I'll knock him out and bring him with me if I have to. Something happened to him when he was a baby. He forgot his mission and his identity. He's hardly saiyan anymore."

Raditz heard a growl over his scouter. He was glad he wasn't on the same planet as his prince at the moment. "Idiot! Fine, bring the brat if you can't get that useless fool. He's worthless without his tail anyway."

"Yes, sir." The display on his scouter showed two rapidly approaching power levels. "Looks like I've got company."

"Don't cut the transmission. I want to hear what happens."

"No problem, sir." Raditz stood up and stretched. He was several yards from the crater with his space pod in the middle. He saw the Namekian and his brother land at the edge of the crater. They were talking, probably trying to formulate some battle tactic. He snorted. They were never going to be able to kill him. He was far stronger.

"We have to get Gohan out," Goku insisted. He slid down into the crater and tried to pull the hatch open. He could see and hear Gohan inside, crying and whimpering. He was unable to get it open, so he beat against the pod with his fists.

Piccolo watched from the edge of the crater, not at all interested in helping his rival's son. He was here to fight a threat to the planet. Earth was destined to be his planet, he wasn't going to step aside and let an alien destroy the people that were to be his subjects. He pulled his turban off, then his cape. They made loud thumps as they hit the ground next to him. He stretched his muscles in a quick warm-up.

Raditz stepped out of the shade, eyebrow raised as his scouter indicated the Namekian's power level had gone up to 400. Still trivial, but an interesting trick nonetheless. Maybe he would get a challenging battle after all. Kakarrot was still in the crater, no doubt trying fruitlessly to break his son free from his prison. Raditz walked toward the crater.

"I see you've come sooner than I expected," he said. "Have you made your decision, Kakarrot?" He stopped at the edge of the crater and looked down at his brother.

Goku's head turned. "Let him go!"

"So I take it you've decided to come with me." Raditz laughed when Goku renewed his efforts to open the space pod. He was hard-headed. Definitely saiyan. He was undeterred by anything. "That's just as well. I doubt a half-breed would be any use in the planet trade."

"As much as I hate breaking up this little family reunion, I'd like to pick up where we left off," Piccolo snarled.

Raditz laughed again. "You must be eager to die, green man."

"Don't be so cocky." Piccolo turned and shouted down into the crater, "Goku, get up here! We'll defeat him and then you can get your kid back."

Goku sighed and pressed his hand against the porthole. "Gohan, don't be scared. I'll get you out of there, alright? Just wait, I need to take care of the bad man first." Inside, he could see Gohan nodding, though his frown only deepened. Goku climbed out of the crater and stood next to Piccolo. "So what do you think our chances are?"

Piccolo huffed. "They'll be better if you stop fooling around."

"I see what you mean." Goku sat down and pulled off his boots, wristbands, and weighted undershirt. He was surprised Raditz was willing to wait long enough for them to get ready to fight. He expected him to start attacking before they could warm up. He didn't strike him as the most honorable opponent, but maybe he made his initial judgments too hastily. Not that he didn't think he was evil. Brother or not, he didn't like him and wasn't going to take it easy on him in their fight because of blood ties.

Raditz's scouter told him Goku's power jumped when he removed his training clothes. It was now 416. Still stronger than the Namekian by some. It was impressive how their power could change after making such a simple change. Their power was suppressed by their clothes. He would have to remember that. It might come in useful later. He turned off the power readings and appraised his two opponents. Weak, but determined. It would be wise to stay on guard when fighting them. "Are you ready now?"

Goku hopped up and down a few times, getting his blood flowing. He stretched his arms across his chest and behind his head. Finally, after cracking his neck, he smirked and lowered himself into his fighting stance. "Yeah, brother, I'm ready."

Piccolo sank into his stance. "Stop your babbling! Let's fight."

"I suppose you think shedding your weights will make you strong enough to win?" Raditz laughed and spread his legs as he moved into his own stance facing them. "You don't know the meaning of strength. Allow me to show you."

"Your arrogance will be your downfall," Goku warned him.

Raditz smirked. "Now watch closely. I'll only do this once." Before either Piccolo or Goku could react, he phased behind them and elbowed both of them in the back, knocking them both to the ground. He rested his hands on his hips while they staggered to their feet.

'Oh man, this is going to be harder than I thought,' Goku thought. 'I couldn't even track his movement.' He knew he was up against a tough opponent, but he had no idea what he was actually getting himself into. All he knew was that he had to save his son, and he refused to go with any so-called long lost brother to kill people on other planets to sell them. He was no mercenary. Even if he went down fighting, he would never let Raditz win.

…

Bulma groaned as she cracked her eyes open. She raised her hand to her pounding head. A migraine? Fantastic. She closed her eyes again and inhaled deeply, then slowly released her breath. She felt a cool, damp cloth pressed against her forehead. It was nice. Someone pushed her down onto her back. She was in her bed. That was odd, she didn't remember going to bed.

"Mind telling me what's going on?" she slurred.

"Kami, Bulma, you scared me," Yamcha said. "What were you thinking talking to that creep? He could have killed you! I bet you he wouldn't have hesitated to."

Bulma winced. "Would you be quiet?" she hissed.

Yamcha lowered his voice, but he continued scolding her, "And who the hell is Vegeta? You've never mentioned a Vegeta to me. And you expect some crazy space alien to know him? You must be out of your mind!"

At first Bulma was confused. She had no idea what he was talking about. But then a flood of memories rushed back and she remembered her conversation with Raditz, what he was asking of Goku, and that he knew Vegeta and said he would never come back to Earth. She was stricken with grief all over again, but not nearly as intense as before. Her emotions were dulled from her recent overload. She slowly shook her head and sat up, pushing away Yamcha's arm when he tried to hold her down. She felt better now, she wasn't crippled. She could sit up if she wanted to.

"So then what happened?"

"Raditz took Gohan. You wouldn't believe it, but Piccolo came too and he and Goku went to fight him. They're fighting somewhere a long way east of here. I can feel their ki." Yamcha sighed, then turned to Bulma with a nervous smile. "I'm sure they got it under control, B. So, what do you think, should we go ahead and finish the marriage? I mean, my best man and the ring bearer are gone, but we can finish without them, right?"

Bulma scowled at him and slapped his arm. "Yamcha, you jerk! Gohan could be in terrible danger and Goku's fighting someone crazy strong and you want to get married? Look, I'm as eager as you are to be married, but some things are more important! We have to go after them."

"Ok, ok! You're right, we'll go!" Yamcha conceded, waving his hands defensively. "But I think we should get Krillin and Tien to the infirmary first. They got hurt pretty bad. That big guy was really strong."

"What? They're hurt?" she shrieked. "Well, hurry up! We have to help!" Bulma jumped out of bed, nearly tripping over her dress again, and bolted out of her room, down the stairs, and outside to where her wrecked wedding was being held. Most of her guests fled when the commotion started, but her parents and friends were still there. Her father was standing next to her mother, who was sitting in chair sobbing and possibly having an asthma attack, and Master Roshi and Chiaotzu were both on the other side of the lawn tending to her fallen friends. Bulma rushed over to them and felt for a pulse on Krillin's neck first. He was still alive, just unconscious. She moved over to Tien and felt for his pulse. It was there, but it was weak. If he didn't get medical attention immediately he would die.

"Yamcha, do you have your cell phone?" Bulma asked. He nodded and handed it to her. She started dialing the number for the Capsule Corporation infirmary. There was always a small staff of doctors and nurses on the grounds in case of emergencies. One never knew when an experiment would go horribly wrong. Right now she was grateful for her father's precaution. While the phone rang, she addressed her fiancé, Roshi, and Chiaotzu. "Guys, carry Tien to the infirmary, now. He needs help right away. Krillin will be ok, leave him for now. I'll have my staff bring him. Let's go."

"Sure thing, Bulma," Yamcha said. He and Roshi lifted Tien and carried him inside the compound with Chiaotzu hovering around them, directing the way to the infirmary.

Bulma heard someone pick up on the other end, finally. She rolled her eyes. For being an emergency response team, they weren't in any hurry to answer the phone. She dismissed that thought. There were more important matters to attend to right now. "Hello, this is Bulma Brief. I have a patient on the way to the infirmary right now. He's in critical condition. There's another man who needs help on the west lawn, send someone to get him as soon as possible." She hung up and knelt down next to Krillin, not caring that she was getting grass stains on her wedding dress. She grabbed his shoulders and shook him. "Krillin, wake up. Wake up you bald-headed midget! You can't die again!"

She was still trying to rouse Krillin when Yamcha ran out and grabbed her arm. "Come on, Bulma, we have to go help Goku fight that guy. It feels like he and Piccolo are getting hit hard. Their energy is getting low."

"Oh no." Bulma rose to her feet and, with no second thought, reached down and tore her dress to shorten it so she wouldn't keep tripping when she tried to run in it. She bit her lip as she heard the satin ripping, but reminded herself she could have another dress made if she wanted. It was replaceable. Her friends weren't. "Let's go. Can you carry me? That'll be faster than a plane."

"Yeah." Yamcha scooped Bulma up in his arms and blasted off to the east where he felt an intense battle raging between three huge power levels, one far greater than the other two combined, especially now that they were decreasing. Things weren't going well for Goku and Piccolo, that much was obvious. He pushed himself to go faster before it was too late.

…

Vegeta sat down on a fallen log and started a small fire with a blast of ki from his finger. He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. He was tired. He'd spent the past three days purging the planet from one side of the planet while Nappa worked from the other side. The days were short on the little planet. It felt like he had only been there for a single day, but the sun had set and risen three times. Across from him, Nappa sat on another log. He was covered in sweat, gore, and dirt. Vegeta was sure he was too, but he couldn't see himself and didn't care to look.

Their purge was quick and easy once they figured out the underground networks. The people lived in large, open caverns that were easy to demolish, killing everyone within them. Vegeta didn't mind that it had gone so fast. He was tired of killing. The constant adrenaline rush left him feeling sluggish. He was crashing. Even his saiyan physiology couldn't stand the ongoing stress for weeks and months on end.

"Nappa, go find something on this miserable planet to eat," he grumbled. He was hungry again. He wasn't going to tell Frieza they were finished with the purge yet. He was afraid that if he did, he would immediately be ordered to go clear another planet. Technically they still had 18 more days to finish their current mission. If he could spend a day or two resting and eating, he would. Then he would report to Frieza that the planet was ready for sale. Nappa grunted and got up and stalked away from their makeshift campsite. Vegeta watched his receding back. When he disappeared into the dense jungle he only had the transmission from Raditz's scouter to listen to. So far the only thing he heard was some taunting, badmouthing, howls of pain, laughter, and the soft sounds of fists connecting with flesh. Nothing terribly interesting.

Vegeta snorted when he heard the howls of pain coming from Raditz instead of the other warriors he was fighting. Apparently one of them got his tail. The fool, he should have trained himself years ago not to let that be a weakness, but he never bothered. Now he was paying for it. He sighed and shook his head when he heard Raditz begging Kakarrot to let go of his tail. How embarrassing. His saiyan pride stung with every cry for mercy his comrade uttered. At least he wasn't there to witness it first-hand. Had he been there, he might have blasted Raditz unconscious himself. 'Fool. A saiyan warrior should beg for mercy from no one.'

There were the sounds of a small scuffle, then the loud shrieks of pain from another man. He didn't recognize the voice, so he figured it was Kakarrot. What a weakling. His lip curled at the disgraceful sound. He heard bones crunching. Raditz wasn't having any mercy on him even though he was his brother. Vegeta nodded his approval. They were blood brothers, but a true saiyan would have no attachments. It didn't matter who Kakarrot was. He was a disgrace to their race, a soft weakling, a betrayer to the throne of Vegeta-sei.

"Raditz, you fool, don't fucking kill him. He's useless to us if he's dead." Vegeta wasn't sure his telepathy could cross several hundred light-years, but it was worth a try. He wasn't going to distract Raditz with a transmission via his scouter.

"Not going to kill him – yet."

Vegeta grumbled. He was going to punch that fool if he killed the only other known living saiyan. Of course he wasn't worthy to be a member of their squadron, not now at least. But he could be persuaded to change his mind about certain issues. Vegeta raked his hand through his hair and looked up when he heard Nappa returning with something to eat. He almost grimaced when he saw the other saiyan's catch: giant insect…things. They looked like enormous praying mantises. Was that the reason the former people of the planet lived underground? They were afraid of giant bugs? Granted, they were grotesque to look at, but probably edible. He'd eaten worse, by far.

"Is that the best you could find?" he asked.

Nappa shrugged and tore the creatures apart and started roasting them over the fire Vegeta created. "They were the first thing I found. Anything's got to have more flavor than those other things we ate."

"Granted." Vegeta crossed his arms over his chest and, while waiting for the food to be cooked, returned his attention to the scouter transmission. His eyebrow raised slowly when he heard Raditz mention someone with a power over 1370. That was certainly unexpected. Who on that planet could be so strong if not Kakarrot? How bizarre. "Seems Raditz is having some trouble convincing his brother to join us."

Nappa grunted and stoked the fire. "What's going on?"

"Seems a bunch of weaklings have ganged up on him. He should be able to manage." Vegeta shrugged and grabbed one of the legs from the fire and bit into it. The exoskeleton was tough to break through and the flesh was disgustingly soft, but it had decent flavor. Vegeta nearly choked when he started laughing as Raditz exclaimed something about being hurt by a toddler. Was he serious?

"What now?" Nappa asked.

Vegeta threw his head back and laughed boisterously. "That fool just got attacked by a fucking child!" Vegeta took another bite of his food. "And it hurt him."

"What an idiot," Nappa muttered. A small smirk played on his lips as he shook his head and tore into one of the mantis carcasses. One thing was certain: When Raditz returned, with or without his brother, he would never live this humiliation down. Being one-upped by a child, how pitiful. At least the kid had a pretty high power if he was able to do damage to a saiyan warrior.

…

"Where the hell did that brat's power come from?" Raditz wheezed. He clutched his stomach with his hands and panted for air. His armor was cracked where Gohan's head hit him. He was breathless more from surprise than the blow, but it did hurt.

Goku's eyes widened in shock and alarm. Gohan somehow managed to break free from the space pod and attacked Raditz, but now he was out cold and in harm's way. His brother didn't look too pleased with his little stunt. Actually, he was powering up an attack to use against him. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, giving him the energy to jump to his feet and grab him from behind, preventing him from attacking his son or anyone else, at least for a little while.

"Piccolo, use that attack on him again! I'll hold him, hurry!" Goku groaned when he felt Raditz elbow him in the ribs. He held on tighter, unwilling to miss this opportunity no matter how much pain he was in. He had to protect Gohan at all costs.

Raditz growled and thrashed around, trying to break free from Goku's hold. "Fool! As if he has enough power to kill me!"

Goku chuckled. "He does if you can't dodge it."

"You would die too. Are you sure you want to make that sacrifice for this mudball?" Raditz twisted in Goku's grip and nearly got away, but Goku was unrelenting.

"I do what I have to."

"Idiot! It's not worth it!" Raditz glanced over at Piccolo, now with one arm and badly beaten, who was powering up his Special Beam Cannon. He had to admit, it was a doozy of an attack. If he hadn't dodged it the first time he used it, he probably would have been dealing with a severe injury that would have seriously handicapped him. If the green man managed to summon that kind of power again and make a direct hit, he would be lucky to survive. He was weakened through a few lucky blows from Kakarrot and Piccolo, and then that attack from the hybrid brat. It was infuriating.

Goku squeezed Raditz tighter, refusing to let go. "Don't tell me you're afraid to die."

Raditz scoffed. "It won't kill me. You, maybe, but I will live." He swallowed hard when his scouter gave a new reading on Piccolo's power. It was over 1400. Just because it wasn't enough to kill him didn't mean it wouldn't hurt like hell. He wasn't looking forward to it. He renewed his efforts to free himself.

"I don't think you will," Goku told him. The truth was, he wasn't sure if Piccolo's attack would be enough to kill Raditz. It didn't matter. It would injure him badly enough that even if he died in the process, Piccolo would be able to finish him off. He wasn't thrilled about leaving the planet with Piccolo still around and no one strong enough to defeat him, but he knew the others would wish him back with the dragon balls. He just hoped he would be back before Piccolo could take over the world and destroy half the population. He hoped his family would be safe. He didn't want to leave them, but he had to do this to save them from a greater threat than his old rival. There were greater threats out there, and his brother was one of them. Unfortunate, but true.

Raditz snarled. "You're more of a fool than I thought. You'll die. Good riddance. You're a disgrace to our race."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Fool."

They both sucked in a deep breath when they heard Piccolo yell, "Special Beam Cannon!"

…

Bulma was not a huge fan of flying with Yamcha. The way he held her didn't make her feel well-supported and she was afraid he would drop her and she would fall to her death. She was going at speeds greater than any of her capsule vehicles could go with only his strength keeping her from falling out of the sky. She also didn't like the wind whipping in her face or the fact that her hair got horribly tangled. She didn't like how cold it was higher in the atmosphere. In all, flying was an unpleasant experience for her and she wished she didn't have to do it. Alas, sometimes it was a necessity. Right now, it was necessary to get to the battle between Raditz and Piccolo and Goku before anyone got killed.

It seemed like they had been flying forever when Yamcha told her he could feel one of the smaller powers, either Goku or Piccolo, fading, and that a fourth enormous power level sprang up out of nowhere. Then a few seconds later, the largest power level, presumably Raditz, lowered substantially. Then one of the lower power levels, again either Goku or Piccolo, started rising to new heights, probably in preparation for some ki attack. He hoped it was Goku using a kamehameha wave, but he didn't think it was Goku's power that was rising. That only left Piccolo, which could be either good or bad.

"Yamcha, come on, we need to hurry," Bulma urged. "Something terrible could be happening."

"I know that, Bulma," he said. He was already flying as fast as he could. There was nothing he could do to get them there sooner. "We have to trust Goku to hold him off 'til he gets help."

Bulma frowned and closed her eyes. She couldn't feel ki like the others. It was a skill she had never developed though they tried teaching her how. Now she was wishing she took their lessons more seriously. She wanted to get some idea of what was going on.

"We're almost there, don't worry."

"I'm not worried," she murmured. She didn't quite believe herself. "Goku can beat him. He's never lost when it mattered before. He won't start now."

She felt Yamcha's body tense all of a sudden. She opened one eye and looked at him. His expression was not comforting. His brows slowly knit together and his mouth hardened. "What? What's wrong, Yam? Do you know what's going on?"

He nodded slowly. "It's Goku's power. I can't feel it anymore." He swallowed. "I can feel the other guy's power dropping, which is good, but Goku…"

"Goku?" Bulma felt file rising in her throat. She swallowed it back, refusing to believe anything bad had happened to her little Goku. He might be hurt, but he was alive. He couldn't die. He was indestructible. Practically immortal.

They didn't say anymore as they continued on to the battle scene. Neither wanted to believe what they thought was the only explanation for Goku's power suddenly dropping from Yamcha's perception. The good news was, Raditz was apparently in the same condition. Maybe it wasn't what they thought. Maybe it was actually Piccolo who died. Maybe… maybe… Several minutes later Yamcha landed in the open field near a giant crater where the fight took place. He set Bulma on her feet and looked around for his friend, but he didn't see him. Not until he checked the ground, at least. When he spotted Goku's body lying in the grass, he ran over and knelt down next to him and felt for a pulse. Nothing.

"Bulma," he croaked out, "Bulma, I think he's dead."

"Of course he's dead, you moron."

Yamcha twisted around to see Piccolo standing behind him, holding his left shoulder with his right hand. He could see rivulets of purple blood trickling between his fingers. He nearly gagged. Piccolo lost his arm in the fight. At least that would give him an advantage if they got into a fight. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Piccolo sneered at him. "I mean I killed him. Both of them. It was his choice."

Bulma staggered over to where Goku's body lay and fell to her knees. She couldn't breathe. She felt like her lungs couldn't take in any air. Her best friend, dead? It wasn't possible. It just wasn't possible. She refused to believe it. She fought back the tears that were trying to fall. She had to be strong. At least until she told Chi-Chi and Go—Gohan! She looked around frantically, searching for the little boy.

"Where's Gohan?"

"The kid's over there," Piccolo said, gesturing with his head. "Don't worry about him. Listen, before he died, the saiyan said there's two other saiyans that were listening through his communication device. I mentioned the dragon balls and they're probably going to come to get them. He said they're a year away, and they're even stronger than him, so we need to train. I'm taking the boy with me. He's got potential."

Yamcha stared at Piccolo incredulously. "You can't take Gohan! What about his mother?"

"What about her?" Piccolo snorted. "She'll live without him. It's only a year."

"That's a long time," Bulma muttered.

"Whatever." Piccolo turned away from them and screamed as he grew a new arm. He flexed it and clenched his new hand into a fist. He walked over to Gohan's prone form and unceremoniously picked him up, threw him over his shoulder, and flew away.

Yamcha jumped to his feet. "We can't let him get away with this!"

"Yamcha!" Bulma shouted, "Don't worry about it right now! He doesn't mean to hurt Gohan, so let's concern ourselves with this." She sighed heavily and stroked Goku's hair. "You would sacrifice yourself, you big dope."

"Do you think he's really dead?" Yamcha asked, pointing to Raditz. "I thought I felt a trace of his ki a few minutes ago."

Bulma looked over at the huge saiyan and frowned. She hoped he was dead. She hated him. He was the reason her friend was dead, the reason his son was taken away by a psychopath, and the reason she wasn't currently enjoying her wedding reception. He ruined her whole day, her perfect wedding, and her – her whole life! She clenched her teeth and stood up, stomped over to his body, and kicked him hard in the side. She wished he could feel it. She might not be the strongest fighter on the planet, but she was pretty strong in her own right. Her nose wrinkled when she saw the gaping hole on the right side of his chest. It was almost exactly where Goku was hurt in his fight against Piccolo at the last World Martial Arts Tournament. She took the scouter off his ear and pushed the button to cut the transmission it was still sending to his comrades on some other planet.

She shrieked and jumped away from his body when she thought she heard a low groan. A stream of blood ran out of the corner of his mouth. He was dead, wasn't he? She inched closer to him and poked him with her toe. He flinched. She screamed. He was alive.

"What?" Yamcha yelled. "What is it, B?"

"He's not dead!"

"What?" Yamcha ran over to Bulma and looked down at the saiyan's body. He gasped when he saw his chest barely rise and fall with shallow breaths. No, he wasn't dead. Not yet, anyway. Just unconscious. He started gathering a ball of energy in his hand to end his life once and for all. He was about to throw it when he felt a hand restraining him. "B? What are you doing?"

"Don't kill him, Yam," she said. "Look, I hate him as much as you do and I want him dead, but think. If we keep him alive, I can study him. Maybe learn some sort of weakness we can exploit when the other saiyans come."

"Bulma, that's way too dangerous. He would hurt you. He might kill you! No, there's no question. Bulma, he will kill you if you keep him alive. Don't do it."

She stepped between Raditz's body and her fiancé-should-be-husband. She shook her head. "No, I have a way I can keep him in a coma for as long as I want. Don't worry about it. He won't be any danger to me or anyone else. Trust me."

Yamcha released the energy he had gathered. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"No, but I think it would be unwise to let this opportunity slip away. He said the other saiyans are stronger. I have reason to believe him." She crossed her arms over her chest. Memories of Vegeta as a young boy flitted through her mind. If he was that strong then, how strong would he be now as an adult? She hated to think. Was he really as bad as Raditz said he was? Was he a horrible killer? Maybe she could talk to him, make him change. She wanted to believe she could, but she knew it would be stupid to hope for such a miracle. They needed to go into battle prepared. If that meant learning about saiyans from Raditz, then so be it. He was their key to their salvation from the others. "Let's take him to Capsule Corp, ok?"

"I still don't think this is a good idea," Yamcha grumbled as he took Bulma in his arms. "I'll take you back to the compound and come get him with a jet. Carrying him all the way wouldn't be easy."

"Yeah," Bulma agreed, "he is kind of huge."

"That's an understatement."

"Well, it's settled then. Let's hurry so he doesn't have time to regain consciousness and sneak away." Bulma didn't like the idea of taking Raditz into her home and treating his injuries. He didn't deserve that service. But a live saiyan was much more useful to her than a dead one.

…

Vegeta stopped chewing. That was certainly some interesting information. There were magical balls on Earth that had the power to bring people back from the dead? The power to grant any wish at all? He tossed the empty piece of exoskeleton aside and swallowed. If he could go to Earth and make a wish using these 'dragon balls,' then perhaps he could get the power he needed to finally kill Frieza. It was worth a shot. He smirked. "Nappa, how would you like to be immortal?" he asked.

Nappa looked over at his prince, eyebrow raised. "It would be great, Vegeta, but how?"

"Let's take a little trip to Earth. I hear they have a wish-granting dragon." He stood up and brushed bits of exoskeleton and ash from his armor. "Besides, I need to avenge Raditz. The fool got himself killed." He sighed, somewhat sadly, and crossed his arms over his chest. It was unfortunate that in one battle two of the four remaining saiyans died, pitted against each other. He shook his head and started for his space pod. "Come on, Nappa, it'll take us a year to get there. We need to make sure we have a good head start so if Frieza sends any of his goons after us we won't find a destroyed planet and a welcoming committee when we arrive."

"He'll know where we're going. He could reroute our pods when he finds out." Nappa grabbed the last piece of their meal roasting over the fire and followed Vegeta to the pods.

It was a risk Vegeta was willing to take. Anyway, something told him Frieza wouldn't kill him for going to Earth. He couldn't explain it, but it was a gut feeling, an instinct, and he had never been wrong before. Along with that, he couldn't explain the feeling of apprehension that grew with every step he took closer to his space pod and his next destination, as if there were some invisible force pushing him away. At the same time, it felt like it was something he should do, something that perhaps he should have done long ago. The conflicting feelings were confusing him. He didn't know what to think. So he focused on his anger. The earthlings killed Raditz, one of his only comrades, one of his anchors to reality, a man who had become more than a comrade, but a friend, almost a brother. He knew he should have had attachments, and he honestly hadn't thought he did, but when he learned Raditz died, he felt a deep pain in his chest. He was going to get revenge. Immortality, maybe, but definitely revenge.

…

He blinked his eyes open. He rubbed his eyes. When he reopened his eyes, he saw the same thing as before. He was surrounded on all sides by yellow, puffy clouds that reminded him of his nimbus. He was standing on a narrow paved walkway through the clouds, along with hundreds of small wisps of white mist. Strangely enough, the mist made sounds similar to voices, but they sounded faint and distant. All the puffs of mist were moving in the same direction, which was the direction he was facing. He looked down the path and saw a huge building with the word "WELCOME" over the entrance. He didn't recognize it. He rubbed the back of his neck and cocked his head to the side. What a weird place.

"Where am I?" he wondered aloud.

"You're dead. This is the check-in station between dimensions."

Goku turned to the side and saw Kami standing behind him. He smiled. "Kami! What are you doing here? You're not dead, too, are you?"

The Guardian of Earth shook his head and pushed Goku forward, guiding him down the pathway toward the imposing building. "No, I'm not dead, Goku. I brought you here to make a special request of King Yemma. As you can see, you still have your physical body, unlike the ret of these souls." He gestured with his hand to all the tiny blobs of mist.

"Wow! These are people?" Goku bent over and poke one. It shouted at him indignantly. At least, he thought it was shouting. He reeled back and apologized. He walked alongside Kami as he made his way to the front of the line. "So what do you want to ask King Yemma?"

"I want you to go train with King Kai. You see, there are more saiyans on their way to Earth. They'll arrive in a year. You are not nearly strong enough to defeat them, but if you train with him you will gain much power. If your friends wait a year to wish you back to life, you will have plenty of time to train and prepare for them."

"Oh," Goku said, rubbing his chin. "I guess that makes sense."

Kami glanced over his shoulder. "Goku, you're not going to have to do this alone."

"What do you mean?"

"Tien Shinhan will be joining you."

"You mean…?"

"Yes, Goku, he died from the wound he received from Raditz."

The light-hearted saiyan scowled when he heard the name of his brother. His hands clenched into fists at his sides. "Raditz. Where's he? I haven't seen him."

Kami sighed. "That's because he's not dead."

Goku never felt so helpless before in his entire existence as he watched Tien Shinhan making his way through the crowd of disembodied souls toward Kami and him. He wasn't on Earth and Raditz was still alive. Was he hurt? Would he be able to kill anyone else? Could Piccolo finish him off? What about Gohan? Would Raditz take him away? What would Chi-Chi do if she lost him? For that matter, how would she deal with knowing he was dead? His brows furrowed as his determination grew. He was going to make it to King Kai and train as hard as he could for a year. When he was wished back to life, he was going to show those saiyans what it meant to mess with Earth. They would pay for the pain they caused.

A/N: Raditz is a lot stronger in my AU than in canon, which is why he was able to survive. Why, then, couldn't he defeat Piccolo and Goku? Same as in the CU, he severely underestimated them, which allowed them to get the advantage. The stronger warrior isn't always the victor. Besides, I, like many of you, like Raditz and want to keep him around, so there. Still, Vegeta thinks he's dead and now he's bent on revenge. That ain't canon, folks. :)

So how far can a saiyan's telepathy work? Apparently a few hundred light-years.

Further updates: I'm working on chapter 51 now. Chapter 50 took a long time for me to write. It was kind of fluffy and I'm out of practice writing fluff. I'm also looking for jobs and I should have an interview this week for a job that seems promising. If I do get a job, I will unfortunately have less time to write, but I won't abandon my stories. It might take longer to update and such. But since I don't have a job yet, there's no use worrying about that, is there?

Beta-read by lilpumpkingirl.

Review!