Chichi was staring at me with terrified eyes, silently pleading with me to explain just what was going on.

Unfortunately… I had no answer.

One moment everything had been fine. I had given Goku and Gohan the ability to regrow their tails and control their Oozaru forms. Even worded it so that Goten could do it and Pan as well. Even as Saiyan blood was watered down they'd be able to grow tails. It was a blessing that would help us out not just against Vegeta and Nappa but any other threats. I had worded it that it had to be the Son family so not to give Raditz the ability; while he seemed to be on our side now I didn't trust him to STAY on our side. And because I had said they needed Saiyan blood there was no risk of Krillin or Bulma suddenly becoming a Saiyan.

And yet… I had messed up.

Because there was Chichi… with a Saiyan tail.

"Kayos… what…"

"i… I don't know…" I looked at Isco. "You heard the wish, did I-"

"No sir," Isco said and I knew things were bad when HE sounded shaken up. "Your wish was perfectly worded."

"It can't be!" Chichi exclaimed, her tail wiggling about in agitation. Gohan blinked his eyes, still worn out from unleashing his power, and Chichi forced him to press his face to her shoulder. "Look at me!"

"I am!" I exclaimed. "King Kai! Kami! I know both of you are watching and can hear me! What the fuck happened?"

'I do not know," Kami told me in my head. 'I agree with your friend Isco… you worded the wish wisely.'

'And its not like Shenron to twist it to screw you guys over,' King Kai added. 'Besides… why would he?'

"I don't know but Chichi didn't start this morning with a tail!"

'…are you sure?' King Kai asked.

"YES HE IS SURE!" Chichi roared. "I am a human! Not a Saiyan!" She looked down at Gohan and paled. "Not that there is anything wrong with… I didn't mean…"

"Its okay, Chichi," I assured her. "We'll figure this-"

The entire building shook.

"Edwin!" Bulma cried out from Isco's speakers. "Are you still in the research facility?"

"Just outside of it," I said. "We have a problem-"

"We certainly do!" Bulma declared. "Vegeta and Nappa know you did something… they saw Shenron grant the wish and now they are moving towards the building! You need to-"

Everything around us began to shake and Bulma was cut off.

"Oh… that can't be good, sir," Isco said just as the building began to collapse right towards us.

~MC~MC~MC~

"Well, look at what we have here," Vegeta said as he stared at Kakarot. His clothes had burst from his body as he had grown larger, his body shifting into the mighty Oozaru. "Nappa! This is going to be entertaining!"

"It sure is!" Nappa taunted even as he held onto Raditz, locking a powerful forearm around the other Saiyan's throat, not allowing him to move. Raditz was of course fighting against him, desperately trying to free himself, but it was doing no good. Nappa simple had him in such an awkward position that there was no way for Raditz to break free of the grapple. "Look at your little brother, Raditz!" Nappa taunted at Kakarot finished his transformation. "He's about to do our job for us!"

Vegeta smirked. 'Only the most skilled of warriors can control their Oozaru form. Raditz took years to be able to look upon the moon and not be lost to his wild animal instincts. Kakarot is far weaker and has no knowledge of his Saiyan bloodline… there is no way he knows how to keep his mind intact.' He watched as the Earth-raised Saiyan finally stopped growing, towering over the trees and the building. 'As he goes on a rampage, murdering these pathetic earthlings, I will attack that structure and find out just how they called out that dragon! It said it had granted a wish… I want to know just what these Earthlings have been hiding!'

"Oh, here it comes!" Nappa said as Kakarot flexed his fingers. He looked over at the Namekian who was watching everything carefully, waiting to make his attack until he saw just what threat would be the greatest. "You know, you might have a chance if you shrank back down! Maybe he'd think you were just a-"

Kakarot suddenly leapt in the air, passing over Vegeta before landing behind Nappa and delivering a punch to the back of his head. Nappa cried out in shocked pain but also let go of Raditz who spun around and bite down hard on Nappa's arm, drawing blood and causing the elder Saiyan to scream in pain before the brothers lashed out with a series of kicks and punches that had Nappa toppling to the ground, dazed and bruised and bloodied.

"Seems like I'm in more control than you thought," Kakarot said, flexing his arm. "In fact… I think I might have more control than YOU do, Nappa."

Vegeta's brow furrowed at that as he took a step forward. "How… how could a low class wretch such as yourself gain such control!?"

"I'm not sure… but I think it might have something to do with my friends… the Earthlings you're always insulting." Kakarot fell into a fighting stance. "And now I'm going to show them that their trust and faith in me wasn't in vain!"

"Or show them how you will die here, just leaving a bigger corpse!" Vegeta roared, rushing at Kakarot. He had hoped that the sudden change in size would cause the low class warrior to be awkward and clumsy, unable to fully fight properly. But Kakarot had adapted insanely quickly to the Oozaru form and he easily dodged Vegeta's attack…

…which caused him to come face to face with the Namekian, who slammed his knee right into Vegeta's gut.

"You'll pay for that!" Nappa roared, storming at the Namekian, catching him around the middle and driving him to the ground. The green-skinned warrior moved to try and push Nappa off but the Saiyan warrior simply was bulkier than the Namekian even in his giant form and was able to slam his knees down against his arms, pinning them to his sides and keeping him from being able to raise them. That had Nappa laughing and his amusement only grew when Vegeta went in to attack Kakarot, preventing him from moving to assist.

"Piccolo!" Kakarot shouted as he and Vegeta locked together, the Saiyan Prince growling as he began to force the low class warrior back away from his downed friend.

"You need to be focused on me, Kakarot!" Vegeta taunted. "You might have learned how to control the might of the Oozaru, but even with the boost it has given you it is still NOTHING compared to my power!" Vegeta squeezed his fingers and Kakarot grunted and grimaced in pain as he slowly found himself forced downward. "That's right… on your knees before you prince! Where you belong! Where all of you belong!" He leered as he leaned in, forcing Kakarot to bend backwards. "None of this would have happened had you just known your place! Now though you are going to watch as Nappa destroys everything you care about, starting with your green friend over there! NAPPA!"

"Aw, but I was enjoying messing with him!" Nappa said as he pulled up the Namekian's head, the way Nappa had his body making the angle awkward and causing him to cry out in pain. Vegeta lessened his grip just enough to allow Kakarot the ability to focus on the Namekian as he grunted in pain. "But yeah, you're right Vegeta… this one is just about done."

He grabbed onto the Namekian's head.

"Let's see what's in that skull of yours!"

~MC~MC~MC~

Chichi stared at Kayos as he struggled to keep the building from falling on top of them.

He'd shouted out 'White Wall!' and caused a pale white barrier to form in front of him, catching the crumbling building that had been her home for the last year. She could see it crashing into the spell, steel and concrete being dashed along the surface, and she could also tell that it was pushing Kayos to the limit. His forehead was beginning to bead with sweat, his muscles were tense, and his body was hunched over as he pushed with all his might, forcing his will into the barrier.

And through it all… she heard Goku's screams.

'All of this… all of this is happening…' she thought as she clutched Gohan to her chest. The threats to her son. The attacks on her husband. The destruction of the place where she and Goku had solidified their marriage and made it into something so wondrous it made her heart burst. All of it was being taken from her…

…because of the Saiyans.

Chichi looked down at Gohan.

"Whatever happens," she said as she let go of Gohan and pushed him towards Isco, "DON'T open your eyes."

And with that Chichi threw her head back.

~MC~MC~MC~

Goku sank to one knee, his hands aching as Vegeta squeezed them again. He'd been trying to rip himself away, to get to Piccolo, but apparently his foe hadn't liked him not focusing all his attention upon him and thus returned to trying to crush his hands. Goku squeezed his jaw shut even as Piccolo began to cry out in pain due to the pressure Nappa was applying to both sides of his head.

'I have to… break free!' Goku thought. 'But Vegeta… I've never met someone so strong! His power… its so beyond mine! But… there has to be away! To save my family… my friends… and avenge Master Roshi-'

Vegeta drove his knee into Goku's chest, making him sputter and cough as he broke out of his thoughts.

"Come now, Kakarot, I don't want you to lose focus just yet! Nappa is about to show your friend the true power of the Saiyan Race!"

"Let him go, Vegeta!"

"But I'm not holding him!" Vegeta taunted. "And besides, if he were truly worth saving he would be strong enough to escape! Same as you!" He bent back Goku's wrists. "Now watch what awaits you if you continue to defy-"

A heavy concrete pillar smashed against Vegeta's head, causing him to cry out as he fell to the ground, releasing his hold. He tried to stand up but the pillar struck again, this time shattering against his skull and drawing blood.

"Get the hell away from my husband!" A new great Ape bellowed.

"…Chichi?" Goku said in shock before whipping around, remembering the peril they were in. He sprang forward, ignoring the pain in his hands as he reached out and grabbed Nappa's jaw and pulled back, causing the invader to cry out. He tried to bite down but Goku pulled harder, forcing his head back and finally ripping him off Piccolo. Chichi, meanwhile, moved over to Raditz who was still dazed from the attack.

"So," Piccolo said, "mind telling me how your wife suddenly has your powers, Goku?"

"I have no idea," Goku admitted, "but right now I'm not going to complain about it. Anything that allows us to have an advantage against Vegeta and Nappa is worth it in my book."

Vegeta got up, rubbing his face while Nappa pressed a fist to the side of his jaw, trying to crack it back into place. "A Saiyan female… so that's what you've been hiding on this planet, Raditz. What, you and your brother decided to share her?"

"That is disgusting," Chichi said, narrowing her eyes as she glared at Vegeta.

"I quite agree. You being forced to breed with these low class pieces of filth. Come here… I am a Saiyan Elite. The Prince of All Saiyans. Your royalty. Join me and I will make you my Queen." He beaconed Chichi to come over to where he stood.

"Never," Chichi snapped.

That caused Vegeta to become angry. "I said come HERE! I am your Prince and you WILL obey me!"

"You are my nothing," Chichi retorted. "Just an invader who has threatened my family."

"You will listen and you will obey!" Nappa roared, launching himself forward.

"Nappa, no!" Vegeta commanded, it clear to Goku that Vegeta's entire mindset had become focused solely on claiming Chichi. But Nappa rushed towards Chichi, hands stretched out as he moved to grab onto her. Goku tensed, lurching forward to stop him.

"KAIOKEN TIMES THREE!"

Nappa let out a gasp as Yamcha suddenly rocketed through the air, body cloaked in crackling burning red ki, slamming right into his chest. The Saiyan let out a cry as he was lifted off the ground before crashing back down, screaming in pain, hand going to his chest as the armor on his back exploded off, Yamcha flying on.

'He… he flew… right THROUGH him!' Goku thought in shock, realizing just what his friend had done.

"You… you little-" Nappa gasped out only for Yamcha to suddenly shoot downward, grabbing onto Nappa's tail and lifting him straight up. Goku winced at that, remembering how much it hurt when his tail was squeezed. He didn't know if Nappa had learned how to block out the feeling but even if he had Goku couldn't imagine it felt good having someone grab you by the tail and lift you clean up into the air.

"I will swat you like a bug!" Vegeta declared, storming forward only for Tien and Chiaotzu to suddenly pop up in front of him. Goku at once shielded his face when he saw them both place their hands near their heads.

"SOLAR FLARE!" the two fighters roared and Vegeta cried out in pain as the blinding light assaulted him, causing him to stumble back.

"Destructo Disc!" Krillin shouted and a large thin disc of energy burst suddenly from the forest, zooming right towards Nappa and, with a sickening 'slurk!' cut right through his tail. Nappa let out a scream even as he fell, his body shrinking down in size as he tumbled to the ground below.

"Damn you!" Vegeta roared, still stumbling about. "When I-"

That's when Bulma attacked.

Her mech raced right at Vegeta, spinning around him before unloading its full payload right at his rear. His armor began to fall off in great chunks, shrinking the moment it was no longer connected to him, but it wasn't that which was Bulma's main focus. Rather it was his tail, her bullets tearing through it, leaving it full of holes and ragged little bits of flesh. Vegeta screamed and roared even as Goku backed away, ready to leap into the fight but also trusting his friends to take the warrior down. Tien and Chiaotzu were peppering him with ki blasts to keep him off balance while Bulma set out every weapon she had.

"NOW ISCO!" Yamcha shouted and Goku looked up to see the droid's Fighting Body hovering near the artificial moon.

"This is one small step for robot," Isco intoned as he slammed his arms together, turning them into a massive laser cannon, "one… giant leap for robotkind!"

He fired and the moon exploded.

At once Goku gasped as he felt his body shrink down, wrapping an arm around Chichi as she also decreased in size and mass. Raditz was right beside them while Piccolo willed himself to return to his normal height; within half a minute they were all back to normal…

"Oh my god!" Chichi screamed, covering herself up. Goku looked down, blinking as he realized he was naked as was his wife.

"Calm down," Piccolo said with a roll of his eyes, holding out his hand. "Magical Materialization!" A beam of energy struck first Chichi and then Goku and at once the slight chill he'd been feeling disappeared.

Goku blinked as he and Chichi suddenly found themselves wearing replicas of Piccolo's own outfit. "Huh… that's neat," he said, patting himself while Chichi let out a sigh of relief. He looked to his wife and smiled. "So… I didn't know you were a Saiyan too, Chichi!"

"I'm not a Saiyan!' Chichi complained.

Raditz though shook his head. "You might not have been before but I can sense it… you have Saiyan blood."

"But I don't want Saiyan blood!" she whined, tail wiggling back and forth.

"Aw, its okay!" Goku said, wrapping an arm around her. "We'll figure it out and-"

"You two can flirt later!" Piccolo snapped. "Vegeta and Nappa are still around."

"Right!" Goku said at once, snapping back to focusing on the battle. "Come on!"

With that the four of them rose and rushed towards where Nappa and Vegeta must have landed.

~MC~MC~MC~

Nappa let out a groan. Or at least he tried too. Instead it became a half groan/half cough, a wad of blood shooting past his lips. It splattered onto the ground as he tried to right himself, staining the dark soil. His fingers clenched and he forced himself to rise only to cry out in pain as he felt the torn up flesh on his left pec stretch and rip. More blood was now pouring onto the ground though not coming from his mouth. He tried to reach for the wound but lifting his hand up caused him to lurk and slam back down onto the ground.

"B…bastards," he got out. He pressed his face against the ground, not caring that rocks were digging into his cheek. "Kill… kill you all."

"You… can't even get up, Nappa."

"Vegeta," he whispered, forcing himself to look up.

"Look at you… because of your failure not only have you been wounded… not only have you lost your tail… but now I have been mangled as well!" He twisted at that and Nappa let out a horrified gasp at the sight of Vegeta's tail. While much of it was the same the base was in utter ruins, with bits of flesh tangling from the multiple holes and gashes that littered it. As such Vegeta didn't even as the strength to lift his tail up, leaving it to drag behind him.

"Vegeta…." Nappa repeated, horrified. "Those filthy humans-"

"No Nappa, it isn't them who are to blame," Vegeta said darkly, limping towards him. Nappa could now see that there were cuts and gashes along the Saiyan Prince's legs, most likely from the human in the robot suit firing upon the base of his tail. "You are."

"I… no Vegeta!" Nappa exclaimed. "I would never hurt you!"

"But you did. Because you were so utterly pathetic, so weak that you couldn't crush those earthlings where they stood, they were able to get their cheap shots on me." He huffed. "And you. Don't deny it… you are bleeding out of your chest. Your tail is completely gone! You are a disgrace!"

Nappa shook his head, reaching out for Vegeta. "No… no we just need to get to some healing pods and we'll be fine. Then we can return and make this right! Crush those earthlings! Kill Raditz and his brother! Claim the Saiyan female!"

"Oh, that will all happen," Vegeta said as he reached down. For a moment Nappa didn't see the Prince but his King. Just a flash but it was there: King Vegeta offering him a hand if he just would submit, giving him a new chance to live and serve. "Just… it won't be the two of us."

The open hand glowed with energy.

"V-Vegeta?" Nappa got out.

"Do you know how much I HATE it when you call me that?" Vegeta snarled. "I am Prince Vegeta… and your disrespect… has come to an end."

"WAIT!" Nappa screamed.

But it was too late. Vegeta fired… and all he knew was agony.

~MC~MC~MC~

"Careful," I warned Bulma as we arrived at the clearing where Vegeta and Nappa were. Or, at least, the clearing where Vegeta was… along with what I could only assume were the atomized remains of Nappa after Vegeta's blast. The gouge that had been cut deep into the earth, still burning in spots and the sandy soil turned to glass spoke of just what Vegeta had done to his partner. "A cornered animal is the most dangerous. We've already lost one person today…"

"Right," Bulma said, checking over her mech suit. It had plenty of damage and one of the arms clearly wasn't working anymore but there was enough that was operational that I was willing to let her approach Vegeta. The others were near us as well, all cautious as they approached.

"Gohan?" Chichi whispered.

"With Isco," I assured her. "He's safe and Isco is flying him away from here… he'll only bring him back the moment one of us gives the all clear."

"Just in case," Isco said from his Fighter Body, "I go offline."

"Thank you," Chichi said in relief before narrowing her eyes, her worries and concerns disappearing as she glared at Vegeta. "Now I can focus on him."

"You… you think you can match me?!" Vegeta snarled. "Me? You pathetic… worthless… meaningless… nobodies!" He threw back his head, an aura of energy blasting out of his body and nearly sending all of us flying. The ground cracked all around him and trees toppled as he unleashed his wrath. "I am SICK and TIRED of all of you thinking you have any hope of matching me! I am VEGETA! PRINCE OF ALL SAIYANS! AND YOU WILL SUFFER FOR DARING TO STAND AGAINST ME!" With that he let out a roar, pulling his hands back. "GALICK GUN!"

"Kame-" Goku began hurriedly, clearly ready to try and intercept the beam with one of his own.

I flew right in front of him.

"Oh this better work…" I muttered.

"FIRE!"

"WHITE FLAG!" I roared just as Vegeta thrust his hands out, my own hands twisting as I activated the Ki capture spell. At once I went stiff as I felt Vegeta's raw power flood through me, making me feel like I had just awoken from a nightmare. My heart was thundering in my chest and I couldn't see around me due to the brightness of the attack and my lungs were freezing up, unable to figure out what to do. I could feel my body straining to contain the blast… it was nothing like I'd ever felt before. When Goku had struck me with the Kamehameha in our battle against Dr. Wheelo I had felt buzzed, energized. But now I felt like every nerve ending was on fire, begging me to stop the spell. But I knew I couldn't… at best stopping would allow Vegeta to strike the others. At worst it would vaporize me.

I grit my teeth and held my hands out in front of me, willing myself to hold on.

"You thought you contain me, Earthling?" Vegeta mocked over the roar of his Galick Gun. "You thought you could match my power? I am VEGETA! There is not a single force on this planet that can match me! Now you can die with all the rest of your pathetic, miserable-"

"Kamehameha!"

A beam of ki fired out, just missing me and striking Vegeta in the shoulder. He cried out, bracing his legs to try and keep from falling over, and unfortunately for me he was still able to keep the Galick Gun going.

"The only miserable one here," Krillin said as he took a step forward, "is you."

"You… you think that-"

Vegeta jerked back as Tien and Chiaotzu attacked with twin Neo Dodon Rays, causing him to skid back slightly as they joined in pushing him back. I felt a small bit of relief but still was struggling to hold the White Flag.

"You… you can't-"

"KAIO-KEN TIMES FIVE!" Yamcha screamed behind me. "Ka…me…ha..me…ha!"

Now Vegeta truly was on the backfoot as another beam shot out just to my right, blasting into Vegeta's chest and causing his legs to wobble.

He didn't even get to say a word before Goku stepped up, firing off his own Kamehameha.

"DOUBLE SUNDAY!" Raditz roared even as Piccolo unleashed the Special Beam Cannon.

"Its okay, Kayos," Chichi assured me as she pressed her hand to my back and I felt some relief come to me as the pain lessened. "We are all here with you…"

"GET SOME!" Bulma roared as her and Isco unleashed their laser cannons on Vegeta.

"Hold on… hold on…" Chichi whispered to me… or perhaps she screamed it. At that point I couldn't tell, thanks to the roar of so many different attacks happening. But I focused, feeling all my muscles tearing from my bones as I struggled-

Vegeta let out a scream, his beam suddenly jerking up and away from me.

"NOW KAYOS!" Goku roared.

"GALICK GUN FIRE!" I shouted as I blasted the ki attack right back at Vegeta. The prince of all Saiyans had only a moment to stare at me in shock before the redirected blast hit in right in the stomach, lifting him off his feet and sending him hurtling through the air, disappearing over the horizon in seconds.

I dropped to my knees, Chichi grabbing hold with glowing hands.

"Healing… abilities…" I got out. Her visage blurred, like I was looking through distorted glass.

"Yeah…" she got out. "I just… reacted… didn't even realize what I was doing." She smiled softly, not bothering to stop as she worked to heal up my muscles.

"WOOHOO!" Krillin cheered. "We did it! We defeated Vegeta!"

"Do you think he's really gone?" Tien asked.

"When I first brought out my mech I hit him with a tracker," Bulma informed us, her suit splitting open to let her out. The entire thing slumped and pieces fell off of it as she did so; there would be no using it a second time, though I had a feeling Bulma wasn't concerned. She would probably take it as chance to upgrade it, learning from the mistakes. "If he does move to come back we'll be ready."

"And we'll be at full strength since we still have the senzu beans!" Yamcha declared only to sway. "Whoa… and… and I think I might…" Goku at once grabbed him, holding him steady.

"Hold on Yamcha!" Goku declared. "You aren't looking that good."

"Chichi…" I groaned out. "Heal him up. I'm good."

"No way man!" Yamcha declared rather forcefully. "Chichi, stay with him."

"What?" I said, frowning at that. I didn't get why he was saying that. "Yamcha, the Kaio-Ken-"

"Is nothing. I just need rest and a senzu. You need that and more!"

I stared at him, blinking. "What?" I repeated.

"You don't know," Piccolo said, sounding surprised. He walked over to a piece of Bulma's mech and ripped it off, rubbing it with the front of his shirt before bringing it over for me to stare at.

It took me a moment to realize that he wanted me to see my reflection.

Even longer to realize that what I was seeing WAS my reflection.

My face was a mass of bruises and burns. My left eye was nearly swollen shut, which exclaimed why it hurt to blink. I had a busted open lip and cuts on my cheeks. My clothing was torn to shreds and the skin on my chest and arms was deep red with spots of black. My hands were curled up tight, looking more like claws than fingers.

"…fuck," I whispered as Piccolo took the metal away.

"You took the brunt of his blast," Chichi whispered, rubbing my back, still channeling healing magic into me. It made me a touch frightened what I must have looked like, if this was my visage with her healing me. "He turned Nappa to dust with it."

"Not my… smartest move."

"It was reckless and stupid," Piccolo snorted. "I keep telling you, you aren't a fighter. You are a sneak."

"Hey, lay off him!" Krillin declared.

"I meant it in the best possible way," Piccolo stated. "And what do you care? I at least like him. You think he'll poison us."

"Well… not anymore," Krillin said before walking over to me. "Anyone who jumps in front of my family to save us… well, they are okay in my book." He moved to pat me on the shoulder before realizing there really wasn't a good place to touch me at all. He finally settled for a nod and I did my best to return it. "Still think he spends way too much thinking how to hurt but…" He shot me a look and I tried to chuckle at that only to groan.

"Don't worry guys, we'll all be right as rain soon!" Goku declared. "Thanks to Kayos and Chichi we still have plenty of senzu beans for Kayos and Yamcha! And the rest of us just need to heal up a bit. Relax for a few days."

We all stared at Goku in shock.

"What?"

"YOU are suggesting resting?" Tien said.

"Heheheh," Goku chuckled, blushing a touch. "I guess that doesn't sound much like me, now that I think about it!" He took a breath and grew more serious. "But yeah… we all need to rest. If Korrin can get us more senzu beans great but I'd rather hold onto them, just in case." His mood grew even more gloomy. "And… we need to do something about Master Roshi."

The gang grew all solemn at that but my mind was racing. 'He died once. Can't be brought back even with the Dragon Balls. But he can with the Namekian ones… I just don't know how to tell the gang about them. Maybe using the Scroll? But what if it suggests another option? And would that be a bad thing? If there is another way, one that doesn't risk Namek, maybe we should take it? Yeah, would be nice to have a second set of Dragon Balls but-'

My arms flared with white magic.

"Kayos!" Bulma cried out and I let out a strangled cry of pain as the magic began to flare around me. A new pain flooded my system and I felt the wounds Chichi had been healing break open once more as I fought back a scream. "What's happening?"

"Fool saved the world!" I heard Baba declare as I curled in on myself. "Do you idiots realize how much good magic he just created for himself protecting this planet? He's going to have to do a lot of evil deeds if he is determined to stick with keeping a balance!" There was a pause. "Aw, he'll be okay… this is going to hurt him like a bitch until he's processed all that magic!"

I didn't have time to respond to that as the world went white and all I could do was pray it would be over soon.

~MC~MC~MC~

Vegeta groaned as he hauled himself out of the crater he'd landed in. Old lessons he'd been taught, ones he hadn't used in years, flooded back to him.

'Assess your injuries first. Even if a threat is coming you must know how hurt you are and where. You can't fight back if you don't know what will work and what won't. Only a fool goes into a battle unprepared and that includes your body.'

The comment was so odd. He couldn't place who had said it. Of course that might have been because his brain felt like it was about to burst out of the back of his skull.

'Concussed,' he thought to himself, raising his arm to shield his eyes against the light of the star that warmed the stupid planet. But that act caused his stomach to lurch and Vegeta twisted to the side, vomiting upon the ground. Some of it sprayed onto his boots and that just made him angrier, a snarl ripping through his throat that only made it hurt worse thanks to it aggravating the already tender muscles that were now soaked in bile. 'Damn it all,' he thought as he stumbled against step, falling to his hands and knees. 'Get up!'

His body betrayed him and sent him toppling forward, landing on the ground face first. Something cut into his cheek and he could feel warm blood oozing onto his skin. He rolled to try and get into a more comfortable position but that only caused him to scream in pain when he jostled his right shoulder.

'Dislocated… more likely broken,' he thought. 'Get up… get up and kill them all.'

He just laid there.

'Never fight on someone else's terms. Only fight when YOU are ready to fight. And if you can't you do all you can to make them your terms again.'

'Stupid fucking voice,' Vegeta thought. Or maybe he mumbled it. He couldn't be for sure. In any case he was realizing that the fight was over and much to his own bitterness he had lost. Been utterly beaten by the humans.

It didn't matter that they had ganged up on him. Vegeta had fought on countless planets where he had to take on entire battalions. Armies. Once an entire hive mind that controlled every person on the entire planet, so that they functioned like a single entity. And he'd never been beaten. He'd always won! And it wasn't a 'scrape by with the win' sort of victory. He hadn't had a fight where he'd felt the threat of defeat since he was 13 years old and that was only because he'd sought out the challenge! And yet the earthlings had done it. They had driven him back and injured him and prevented him from claiming victory.

'They are probably celebrating right now,' he thought darkly. 'Raising toasts to their defeat of me! Thinking that I've crawled off to die in some hole!'

That got him to shift up, even as his head spun and his stomach whined in protest. He coughed, sending a wad of acidity goo to the ground, and went for the control of his pod before remembering that it was in his right pocket.

Vegeta groaned.

It took 10 minutes of wiggling but he was finally able to reach with his left hand and retrieve the remote. It felt like hours and every second that passed by saw him cursing the humans… and especially cursing the Sons of Bardock.

"Low… class… filth," he ground out as he pressed the button. He waited, knowing that if the remote had been broken he would be done for. He wasn't going to heal properly lying on Earth's muddy ground. He HAD to get to a Frieza Station. Find a healing pod. Get to one of the medic. Get patched up and fixed up and then he could make his next move.

After several long moments the remote beeped and Vegeta rolled his head back and let out a sigh.

'I should have never tried to speak with them,' he thought bitterly as he waited for the pod to show up. 'That was my mistake… treating them like creatures worthy of sharing words with me. I won't make the same mistake again. I'm going to get healed up and then I will return and reduce this planet to glass. And then-'

And then.

That was the question.

'My plans to deal with Frieza have been reduced to ashes because of those fools! Raditz has allied with these Earthlings and will DIE for what he has done. And Nappa…'

Nappa.

Vegeta… Vegeta didn't know what to feel concerning Nappa. He had been a part of his life for so long that he couldn't remember a time when he hadn't had the other Saiyan looming behind him, desperate to show how well he could please him. Making his suggestions and preparing things for them…

'I suppose I'll have to do it on my own,' Vegeta thought. 'It can't be that hard. Nappa did it after all!' He turned his head as he heard a whooshing and shut his eyes in relief when he saw the pod land a couple yards away from him. Vegeta slowly rose to his knees, pushing off the ground only to topple back down. 'He was just holding me back, the bastard. A weakling, just like Raditz. He couldn't handle those earthlings at all… he just kept distracting me, needing me to save him time and again! Whimpering and whining about Saiyan Honor and Saiyan Pride… as if I do not have both of those already! I am Vegeta, the Prince of All Saiyans! I don't need him playing nursemaid for me!'

He dragged himself into the open pod, biting back a scream of pain as he settled in the seat, feeling his tail scrape against the seat. He squeezed his eyes shut and focused on his breathing, remember how Nappa had taught him to do that to ignore-

It didn't matter.

None of it mattered.

'Better this way,' as he activated the pod's door, letting it seal shut. 'Now I can train how I want. Not have that bald bastard telling me to rest or to slow down. I'll build up my strength, break past my limits, and return to this planet on my own to get my revenge. I'll claim Kakarot's bride and at long last will become the King of All Saiyans. And there is nothing on this planet that will be able to stop!'

~MC~MC~MC~

"Hmmm… finally awake I see," Piccolo said as I shuffled into the common room. "And here I thought you'd waste the day lying in bed."

"Unlike Namekians I can't rip off parts of me that are hurt and regrow them," I commented, though I was careful not to make my comment too biting. With the threat of the Saiyans gone there was always a chance that Piccolo would decide the time for alliances was over and he should begin tearing into all of us. "I also got a bit confused waking up in a room I didn't recognize and walking down halls I've never been down before. Threw me off."

Piccolo stared at me for a moment before saying, in a surprisingly soft voice, "The Research Facility was destroyed during the attack. Bulma considered bringing some capsules for housing but in the end we decided it would be better to head to Capsule Corps. Rooms are better set up for all we need and it also would give you the medical attention that you might have needed."

I frowned at that, rubbing my bare forearms. "Did I need medical attention?"

"No," Piccolo said with a slight smirk. "We forced a senzu between your lips. Goku got a bit worried that you didn't instantly wake up but Baba explained that your body needed time to adapt to all the new magic you gained."

"Right," I said. "That's gonna be… interesting." I held out my hand and focused on lighting up a single finger with white magic.

The glow nearly blinded me.

"Fucking hell!" I roared, snuffing the magic out. Piccolo grunted, lowering his arm he'd raised to shield his eyes, and shot me a dark look. "I didn't think it would be that bad!" I complained. I waved my hand like I had stuck it in a pot of hot water. "Damn it all, I was going for as low as I could!"

"It's a power boost!" Goku declared, popping his head in from what I assumed was the kitchen. He had a platter of meatballs, each one with a toothpick stuck in it and dripping with sauce, and even as he looked at me he popped three more into his mouth, spitting out the toothpicks before he quickly munched them down. "I've had the same thing happen… you suddenly get a power boost and have to figure out how to deal with it."

"This is a little different than what you've gone through, Goku," Piccolo replied with a roll of his eyes. "Or any of us really."

"Uh," I said, raising my hand, "someone mind cluing me in? Because this is my life and I'm getting a bit nervous about how you guys are throwing around the word 'big'."

"But none of us said the word big," Goku replied fully entering the room. He held out the platter and motioned for me to take a meatball.

I did only to realize what had just happened.

"Oh god, I'm dying aren't it?"

"What?!" Goku exclaimed. "You are? But Bulma and Baba said you were fine!"

Before I could say a word Goku rocketed out of the room, screaming for help, and Piccolo glanced over at me and huffed. "Wonderful, you just scared him."

"HIM!?" I exclaimed. "I'm terrified!"

"Why do you think you are dying?"

"HE OFFERED ME FOOD!"

Piccolo… began to laugh.

No a chuckle. Not a snicker.

An honest to god laugh.

It was terrifying.

"Oh… oh this is hilarious." He let out a long breath… before he began laughing again.

"I am so glad my impending death is at least giving you some entertainment."

"You aren't dying," Bulma said as she came into the room… or rather was pushed into the room by a panicked Goku.

"Are you sure?" Goku asked desperately. "Because you said he was fine and then Kayos said he was dying-"

"Because you gave up some of your food, Goku!" I exclaimed. "I assumed that was the mark of death!"

Bulma glanced over at Goku, raising an eyebrow. "Okay, that does explain your panic, Kayos. Especially if no one told you that those meatballs were marked for you, in case you wanted something. Normally a senzu leaves you not needing to eat anything for days but we weren't for sure how your magic would react to it… sometimes Goku gets a senzu and the first thing he wants is lunch."

"To be fair that is just Goku," Piccolo argued.

"So, are you hungry Kayos?" Goku asked, eyeing up the meatball.

"No, but thank you Goku," I said, relieved that I wasn't going to die a horrible death. "So… I'm just… supercharged?"

"Far more than that!" Baba declared, popping up from behind the couch.

"JESUS, WOMAN!" I shouted, pressing my hand to my chest. "Don't fucking do that!"

"You should have been able to sense me! We'll need to work on your magical detection next."

I glowered at her. "Goodie. So… mind telling me exactly WHAT is up with me then?"

Baba scoffed. "I told you when we first started that doing good deeds or evil deeds increases your good and evil magic. Are you really so stupid to think that saving the world and everyone on it wouldn't boost your good magic to insanely high levels?"

"…not really," I admitted. "I mean, its just the right thing to do-"

"Idiot!" Baba said, throwing a pillow at my head. "Every single person on this planet, save for the people in this ugly building-" Bulma let out a yelp of protest at that, "-owes you their lives! That is a lot of goodness that just got pumped into you!"

"Okay, okay!" I complained. "So saving the world results in good magic overload. What exactly are we looking at, then?"

"A lot of training!" Baba declared. "You are going to have to relearn every one of your white magic spells, so you don't overpower them. We also need to begin amping up your evil magic, assuming you are still going with this foolish notion that you are the 'silver sorcerer'." She made sure to pump as much derision as she could into those two words.

"I am. Never leave a tool on the table." I looked to the others. "So I guess I'll be doing a lot of training."

"That's great!" Goku declared. "And hopefully soon you'll understand your powers enough that we can spar!"

"…yay," I said dryly. Rolling my head back and forth I looked at the others. "So… we have a lot to talk about, I guess. MY magic boost. The return of your tail Goku. Figuring out what the hell happened to Chichi. Preparing for Vegeta's return, if he does return. And what you are going to do now, Piccolo."

"What I'm going to do now?" he asked.

"You helped us save the world," I said. "And you are welcome to help us keep saving the world. But I also understand if you want to go off on your own now."

"Piccolo would never do that!" Goku declared. "He's one of us now! He's one of our greatest fighters!"

"I will-" Piccolo began only for Goku to continue on.

"And Gohan would really miss you! I mean, if you want to spend some time training on your own you can but you have gotten so much stronger training with us!"

Piccolo looked utterly flustered by all of Goku's comments, backing away slowly like his praise were swinging swords. He opened his mouth to speak-

"BULMA!" Krillin shouted, racing into the room, Tien, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu just behind them. "BULMA!"

"What is it?" Bulma asked. "What's the big deal, Krillin? Kayos needs his rest-"

"Not with this news!" Krillin exclaimed. "You know how you told us to go get the dragon balls?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"They are all in one place!" Krillin declared.

"One… place?" I said slowly. "That means-"

Krillin nodded, swallowing. "Someone has already gathered them."

~MC~MC~MC~

"I AM THE ETERNAL DRAGON! STATE YOUR WISH AND I SHALL GRANT IT!"

The figure smirked, his mouth lined with only a few teeth, his wrinkled features twisting as he grinned. "Return me to the prime of my youth."

"YOUR WISH HAS BEEN GRANTED! FAREWELL!"

But the figure didn't even watch as the Earth Dragon disappeared, instead laughing as he felt his old withered body regain the strength and vitality he'd once had. He looked at his hands, watching as the gnarled things swelled up even as his fingers uncurled, the pain that had caused them to constantly ache even as they bent into useless clawing things disappearing. He was able to stand up straight, the blurriness that had affected his eyes fading away. He felt his power raising as he no longer needed to channel all his energy into keeping his broken body moving.

"YES! YES! LORD SLUG THE ALMIGHTY HAS RETURNED!"

Next Time

Lord Slug