Book 4: The Dissonance of The Earthling Saiyan

by Espeon804

Book 4. Humanity has proved itself a threat. Their ultimate creation backfires and becomes their worst enemy. A Bio-Android goes by the name of Cell - an insect like organism who absorbs anyone it can get to... but for what purpose? Saiyan, Human, Namekian, and Android are forced to join forces. This is indeed a dissonance. It seems that Goku is struggling with himself.

17. The monster of the night!

Chapter 17 Plot:

Chapter 17: "The monster of the night! Don't lower your guard!" What madness is this? Things should be moving smoothly, at least that is what the Saiyans believed. Unfortunately, as usual, the typical stubborn Saiyan makes things more of a burden than an easy sail. Kakarot has a good reason for this, at least he believes so. When nightfall comes, he encounters a beast that is far worse than the rampaging Great Ape! Could it be…?

WHAT'S INTERESTING IS…

There is a bit more history to the Saiyans past than originally thought. And that history includes everyone, even the unexpected. After all, the Saiyans were wounded by Frieza's hand. Saiyan were once a feared species, after all. They were monsters by night, as many say.

But everyone has their day and night side.

As things grow dangerous, Gine finds herself unable to stand by for much longer.

A/N: Espeon804 here with another great chapter!

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PUBLISHED ON: OCTOBER 30, 2019!

WORDS: 26,846

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SPECIAL CHAPTER THEME TIME:

Y'all know the drill. When you see the number next to a paragraph, add a link to a YouTube URL and listen to music as you read! I even added the name in case you don't feel like typing all those symbols. :)

Yes. I am begging you to do this today.

Today's theme is from a Nintendo DS game: "Pokémon Conquest" Please do listen! The OST is amazing!

I am so obsessed with the Nintendo DS soundfont. There are so many different variants, but you can always tell if it is from a Nintendo DS.

The game came out in 2012. Trust me, the music is a treat.

1) "Episode Opening"

/watch?v=PikBcXCAzZU

2) "Dark Battle"

/watch?v=p2ZFivX3m4k

3) "Dungeon Theme 1"

/watch?v=5J3AzXp3Og8

4) "Event Theme 5"

/watch?v=ToPrype8w18

5) "Fighting Battle" (My favorite btw)

/watch?v=S6F53jueV0g

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As usual, I don't feel all too great about it my chapters. But I HIGHLY recommend you listen to the music I posted above.

Please?

Pretty please?

Also, I had some trouble writing fighting scenes. So if it seems out of touch, you'll know why.

I think my mind is on that candy I won't be able to get anymore. I can't trick-or-treat anymore.

So I'll be passing out candy tomorrow. :)

YOOO! I AM SO HAPPY! YOU KNOW WHY?

*Book 1 has 21 chapters.

*Book 2 has 30. (51 in total)

*Book 3, 32. (83 in total.)

*And this is chapter 17 of book 4. Adding that together...!)

THIS IS CHAPTER 100 OF THE ENTIRE SERIES! WEEEEEEE!

*Runs around throwing confetti*

So then! Please enjoy this chapter. I have an important note at the end for ya! You have NO idea how much I appreciate you readers staying this long!

Thank yoooou!

Happy 100!

And Happy Halloween!

-Espeon804

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DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DB, DBZ, DBGT, DBZKAI, OR DBS! Akira Toriyama does!

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Key:

"Talking"

"Foreign Language"

'Thoughts'

"Telepathy"

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- Chapter 17: The monster of the night! Don't lower your guard! -

(1) Standing on top of the ship, Gine looks at the stretching forest before her. A light breeze blows against her wild and thick hair. The weather is quite pleasant. It would be a perfect day for a stroll if today wasn't so demanding.

She watches a few squirrels and birds hop across the field. One of the creatures seem to notice her, and they sprint for the trees immediately. The birds scatter from the ground and into the sky, soaring above her. After several seconds, the Saiyan closes her eyes and lowers her head.

"Bardock."

Calling the name gives her no answer. She lightly clenches her fists as she speaks again.

"Bardock… I know you've been watching. I know you can hear me. Answer me."

"... I can hear you. Seems you're still able to annoy me with your worrying after all." Bardock's voice responds within her head. It nearly surprised her. She isn't so used to telepathy.

It doesn't help someone else likes to use it when she least expects it.

Somewhat relieved that he did answer, Gine carries on. "Have you seen anything? It's been a while since you have. There's a turn of events I didn't expect at all."

…

Meanwhile, within the foggy darkness of Hell, Bardock has his eyes glued on the crystal ball before him. He sees Gine standing where she is. He responds with a bit of bitterness. "No. Nothing. It's unusual that it's been quiet this long. I didn't think Paragus would just show up on Earth. Tell me how the hell he managed to survive the demise of our race?"

"That's what I was hoping you could explain. Then again… you can only see what's yet to happen." Gine responds to him. "Broly has grown up. He seems like a kind-hearted individual. I can only worry if his power has skyrocketed since the last time we heard of him."

"That's exactly what I've been wondering." Bardock shares the same concern. "Is that why you are calling me? I thought you came to Earth for other reasons."

"I did. I was prepared for these events… all except this one. I guess even you wouldn't know how to handle- guh!"

Bardock staggers back and grabs his head as a powerful ring tears through his head. It overwhelms his mind and cuts off their communication. Passing Saiyans nearby are a bit startled as he drops to one knee.

'Dah! What the hell..? This one is…!'

He shuts his eyes as several images flip through his head. He holds his breath, feeling his body freeze up as his tail twitches and puffs against his will. The terrible chills run through his spine…

… no words can describe how much he dreads this feeling.

After several seconds, it all stops, and he gasps as he takes in a huge breath. His eyes are wide in confusion and slight shock.

"Bardock? Bardock! What happened?! This ring just pierced my ears! What was that?! Are you alright?!" Gine's concerned voice seems to annoy him further.

"Quiet… it… it happens whenever I least expect it. I swear…" Bardock grumbles as he slowly rises to stand. He shoots a glare at those starring to push away drawn attention. Once he sees no one is watching, he goes on. Well, almost. The right idea seems to come to mind.

"It… just happened now, didn't it?"

…

…

Gine grabs her wrist with one hand, squeezing it lightly as she is left in silence for a few seconds. Unable to endure the anticipation, she pushes him. "Answer me, Bardock. What did you see?"

"... Gine. I have a question."

"Huh?" Gine was expecting a response. "Like what…? You didn't even answer my own-"

"You retired from fighting for a reason. If you return to it, you might find yourself being pulled back to the past. I know how much you hate to remember it-"

"Does it involve me?"

"No. It doesn't. But I have a feeling you can't avoid this as you did the others. What I foresaw is different this time around. It doesn't take place years from today. It takes place within a few hours or more. The future… doesn't look so good."

Hearing his response makes her freeze. After taking in everything he said, she replies slowly. "So… you mean… something bad is going to happen…"

"Gine… I know you're not a pacifist. You never were."

The woman sighs lightly. Those words…

"You're right… I'm not…"

"How long do you plan on staying in the sidelines? I noticed that with each passing day, you get more stressed and frustrated. A Saiyan can only have so much patience."

"I'll be fine." She assures him.

"Are you sure? Well, if you say so. Just try not to get worked up enough to cause a power outage."

"Very funny." Gine shakes her head.

But he isn't wrong. From all the terrible things that keep piling up… it is stressful. And now, after hearing what Bardock saw…

- 0000 -

Soft blue eyes stand out in the dim room. They change direction, taking in their surroundings. A tiny pout fills the silence.

Baby Trunks lays on the bed, completely immobilized by the brick resting on his tail. His mood isn't the best. He only stayed quiet because of the horrible screeching he heard earlier, and his father saying funny words.

Raditz lifts the towel enough to peer inside. It seems Zhanshitao had calmed down.

Fangs attack the cage bars with a loud clang. Raditz jumps back as the small creature screeches again. The towel falls back on the cage.

Nevermind.

"Aw, come on! Stop being such an ass!" Raditz doesn't even know what to do at this point. He turns away from the cage and walks over to Baby Trunks. Lifting the brick off him, he picks him up from the bed.

Baby Trunks is pleased. He giggles as his tiny hands touch his father's face.

"Stop. Stop." Raditz shuts one eye as Baby Trunks pats his face. "Stop touching me. Stop. St-" He pauses as the baby grabs hold of his nose. He sighs and gives up as he walks out the room. "I'm going to need a hundred lollipops after this…"

In the main room, Kakarot sits at the very corner near the door leading outside. He is focused on cleaning his Power Pole with a simple cloth. He ignores the few space soldiers that walk in and out of the ship, transporting crates filled with what his nose identified as food. He overheard Paragus saying how he would like to return the favor by treating them to today's dinner.

Food sounds okay. The people… not so much.

His focus remains on his staff, until he hears approaching footsteps. A shadow looming over him is enough to make him look up.

Paragus stands in front of him, wanting to talk, it seems. "I want to apologize for giving you a bad first impression, Kakarot. Comparing you to your brothers was rather rude."

Kakarot frowns. "Tell me why Zhanshitao attacked you?"

"Zhan- wait. It has a name?" Paragus is a bit surprised. The subject was changed in an instant. Seeing Kakarot's expression not so welcoming, he moves on. "Well, I don't have the foggiest idea."

Kakarot resumes to cleaning his staff. The cloth itself is somewhat stained with blood, which slightly alarms the newcomer.

He doesn't try to mention it. "That's a nice fighting staff you have there."

"Big brother told me Saiyans aren't the type to make small talk." Kakarot responds, somewhat annoyed.

"Hm. I suppose you're right." Paragus agrees. "Though I heard you were raised here since you were a baby. From what I know, Earthlings enjoy small talk, so I figured-"

Kakarot points one end of his staff towards the Saiyan with a hardened expression. "Call me an Earthling, and I'll stop being nice."

Paragus actually steps back. Kakarot didn't sound so friendly there.

Two soldiers see this, and they quickly rush to Paragus' side with intentions to protect him. Kakarot looks at them both before adjusting his stance. One soldier steps forward.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." One soldier warns the other.

The warned soldier ignores it. They aim their weapon, only for the Saiyan to swiftly knock it from their hand with the staff. They find themselves knocked off their feet after being swept. They fall on their back with a grunt. The weapon stabs the ground between their legs, and they scoot back immediately.

"If one relies on an energy blaster, then they aren't that strong." Kakarot frowns. "At least, that was what I learned. Attacking a Saiyan wasn't very smart. Who are you?"

The soldier stands places their hands on their helmet. Slipping the helmet off, the face revealed is…

… a woman?!

Kakarot steps back twice, not expecting this. She isn't a Human, obvious by her green skin and snow-white hair. Her purple eyes just stare at him.

"Cheelai." The woman mutters, a bit uneasy. "You have a point there."

The one next to her removes his helmet as well. A mustard-brownish alien. From his face, he can be judged as scrawny. Holes are on the side of his face as ears… and his eyes are completely yellow, with black slits as the pupils. They shift over to Cheelai. "I told you that we aren't welcome."

Kakarot decides that they are harmless. Regardless, they should know a Saiyan such as Paragus is able to defend himself.

"I made it clear not to attack these Saiyans. You wouldn't try to shoot Broly." Paragus frowns at them. "This Saiyan here could have killed you. Let's put our weapons away now. Lemo?"

The brownish alien clips his weapon back in place along with Cheelai.

"Well, you surprised me there, Saiyan. I guess I really should have known better. I've been around Broly for a while." Cheelai says. She grows a little more comfortable, wearing a small smile. "You don't seem half bad yourself. Sorry for attacking."

Kakarot looks at her for a few seconds. "I guess… you were just looking after Paragus."

"You got that right. I know he can take care of himself but, we look after each other here." She says. "So uh… how about putting the fighting staff away?"

"We clearly are no threat to you." Lemo adds.

Paragus sighs. "Come on, Kakarot. It's only fair."

Kakarot frowns as he seems prepared to attack Paragus again. "Why should I lower my guard against a person I hardly know? You're a Saiyan, right? You know talking will do no good for convincing."

Paragus wasn't expecting this, clearly. He apparently knows exactly what Kakarot is talking about, because his fingers clench together to form a fist. His expression makes it clear that he isn't so fond of situation. "You're challenging me? I doubt anyone would want us to fight here."

"We had a few." Kakarot says. He prepares to make his move.

"No, no. Goku. Put the weapon down!" ChiChi is quick to rush to the scene. She gently grabs the staff and guides it away from the target. After managing to set it to the ground, she turns to face Paragus. "I'm sorry. He had a bad history with this planet recently. A group of people did bad things to him so… he doesn't trust anyone so easily like he used to."

"I see…" Paragus sighs as he finally relaxes.

"Trust me. Goku here… well, I guess you'll call him by his Saiyan name, but he's actually really nice. We just have a lot going on that made him grumpy."

"I understand. I'll try to be careful with what I say." Paragus makes it a note to remember. He walks away, confused for another reason. "She seems so docile. Not a Saiyan's type at all. How did she get mixed up with them? Why would Kakarot chose someone so tame?"

"Careful. If they hear you, you won't like it."

Paragus turns to the voice, and he is quick to bow. "Prince Vegeta!"

Vegeta leans against the wall, looking down the hall. "She may be an Earthling, but her attitude makes up for it. Kakarot may be an idiot, but his Saiyan instincts still led him to her. As much as I hate to say it, they match up very well. You clearly have no idea what she can do. Try to observe and learn before you try to underestimate someone."

"That's some funny advice to hear from you." Tarble frowns. He stands near the controls. "Did you forget what happened that nearly cost your life?"

Vegeta snarls and steps forward. "Don't make me go over there and give you something to cost your life!"

"Did I strike a nerve?" Tarble isn't intimidated by the slightest.

Lemo grows concerned. He looks at Kakarot. "Is this… normal?"

"At this point… Yes." Kakarot answers.

"We shouldn't be doing this right now." Nappa grumbles, walking from the kitchen. "We have two new warriors who would like us to stay in one piece."

"That's not going to last." Tarble says. "Are we forgetting we are living in a dissonance? This ship is a recipe for chaos. Someone is bound to die here."

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The sound of close gunshots grabs everyone's attention. It came from the information room.

"As I was saying..." Tarble sighs as he walks off to investigate.

(2) Inside, smoking papers flutter from the air. Anyone arriving to the scene was met with the sight of Launch standing in the table with a single gun aimed at Kauli. And Kauli is holding a book with several smoking holes in the middle. She sits in a chair with a surprised expression. The bullets that shot her head only fall off as flakes.

"The hell? Is this thing busted or what?" Launch glares at the gun.

Kauli snarls and slams the book on the table. She jumps on as her eyes narrow. "Alright. Let me get one thing straight, Goldilocks. I ain't got a problem with people, unless they get in my personal space. I was minding my own business trying to finish this book. Thanks to you, I don't know what happens at the end!"

"I'm sorry. Did I ruin a fairy tale?!" Launch pulls out another weapon. "As far as I am concerned, we damn sure aren't living in one!"

"We sure ain't, but that doesn't mean going around shooting people like a jackass!"

"Who are you calling a jackass, jackass?!"

"Don't even start there!" Kauli warns her. "Look here. I just want one day without any drama. Is that too much to ask for? Just sit down and calm down! I don't like messing with people who like to pick fights!"

"Didn't you hear me? This world is sick enough! There's drama everyday, and it's thanks to Saiyan creeps like you! Even Goku's like you freaks!" Launch swaps guns and inches it closer to Kauli. "How about you get outta this room while I still have some patience left!"

"How about I don't, and knock a brain in that head of yours!" Kauli snarls. "I brought you here, and I'll take you out!"

"You think I'm afraid of you?!"

"I think you're stupid trying to shoot at someone who's bullet-proof!"

"Well this weapon ain't filled with bullets! And I'll show ya!"

"Go ahead and try me!"

"Should we stop them?" Kakarot asks, growing concerned. "I've known Launch long enough. She's not the type to step back so easily."

"And neither is Kauli." Tarble sighs. "Maybe we should." He steps forward. "Ladies? It's not exactly the best time to-"

Launch growls and aims the weapon at him now. "Stay outta our business, you midget!"

Tarble freezes as the stutters. "M-midget?!"

"Hey! Don't you go around shooting at anyone who gets on your nerves!" Kauli tries to grab her arm.

"Don't touch me!" Launch fires immediately.

It's an energy blaster for sure. Kauli slides over, but is still struck on the air. She hits the ground with a pained grunt.

"Uh-oh." The witnesses are uneasy now.

Kauli sits up and lightly touches her scrapped arm. Blood smears her fingers. Her blue eyes widen as they fill with anger, and she rises to her feet. She unclips her own gun and aims at Launch. "That's it, you ungrateful shit! I'm done playing nice!"

"Oooh. I'm sooo scared." Launch waves her fingers with false fear.

"You don't know who you're dealing with! I can kill you without needing a gun!" Kauli steps forward, but her arm is snatched by a steady hand. She turns around. "Let go of me!"

"No. You're going to stop here." Gine says firmly. "You could have handled this a lot better. Instead, you only made it worse."

Kauli growls lightly. However, looking into Gine's eyes makes her a bit uneasy. The mother Saiyan has a good hold of her arm, like her next violent action would lead to chaos.

She has her reasons.

"She walked up to me and shot me! What was I supposed to do?!" Kauli snaps at her. "You want me to go; 'Oh! That's a pretty dandy gun you got there! It has a nice aim. Thanks for shooting at me!' Hell no!"

"She kept giving me a look." Launch explains angrily. "I don't like her attitude."

"I don't like either of your attitudes." Gine says. "Launch. I need you to understand that anyone with a tail is someone you don't want to upset. I get that you're bitter about what happened… but we decided to set it all aside to form an alliance against Cell. Let's just sit down."

Launch sneers. "Anyone with the monkey tail is a serial-killer as far as I am concerned!"

Gine appears somewhat annoyed. She shakes her head. "Let's not go there. As I said before, it is all in the past."

"Oh, sure. Let's just forget all about what those with a tail did. Let's forget that I witnessed my world fall apart from rampaging apes! But you? You think I'm afraid of you? You're the mother of that long-haired bastard who changed Goku, right? You're the main reason why this all happened! You didn't raise your kid right!"

"You don't know what we've been through."

"You don't know what we've been through! All you do is stand around and talk to anyone who has a problem. How about you learn to stay outta people's business?!"

Gine sighs. "What will it take for me to convince you?" Trying to talk to her seems to be a waste of time. She lightly guides Kauli away as she releases her arm. She gives her a slight push to encourage her to walk away. Once Kauli starts walking, Gine begins to leave the scene.

Launch grips her weapon tighter. "How can she just dismiss what they did like it's nothing…? I thought mothers are supposed to guide their kids to do good, not to slaughter innocents! Urgh! She has a lot of nerves… to walk away like it means nothing to us! I gotcha this time!"

Krillin arrives inside the room in a hurry, somewhat panicked. "Hold on, Launch! Don't be reckless!"

"Out of the way, shorty!" Launch shouts as she aims for the Saiyan. She fires before anyone else could realize her intention. The energy bullet flies across the room in a split second.

In the nick of time, Gine spins around and tilts her body back, avoiding the shot. It pierces through the wall instead, leaving an ugly hole. It would have surely wounded her if it struck.

Kauli jumps back. She quickly joins the crowd to avoid any future fire.

Raditz is alarmed by what he saw. He glares at Launch "Hey! You little-"

Another shot is fired.

Gine's eyes widen, and she ducks her head to avoid the bullet this time. It whizzed over her head, and another shot is unleashed. She leans over to the right, then her left to save herself from the next one. A faster shot forces her to swat it away, redirecting it through a wall.

Gine ducks again and swats away another bullet that follows. "Enough! You're only wasting time!"

Another bullet. She leans away to dodge.

"Calm down, and let's talk this through!"

Another bullet. She deflects it quickly.

"Don't be so stubborn! This isn't helping any-" Gine's words are cut shot as a bullet flies past the left side of her head, which was too close.

Launch's accuracy is too good.

The angry woman fires two more rounds. The first one is narrowly dodged again. Gine grits her teeth as she nearly misses deflecting the other one from hitting her face. The bullet pierced through the wall right next to Turles, who jumps aside, startled.

Realizing she nearly hit him by accident, Gine glances over to him, concerned. She was distracted, and the sound of another flying bullet tore her eyes back to it. She moves her head away quickly, and the bullet grazed her left cheek, drawing blood.

Another shot is unleashed, and she jumps aside, but the bullet strikes through her tail instead, causing fur to fly. She growls out, nearly failing to hold back a scream. It turns into a snarl as her hair rises quickly while it is charged with static.

In an instant, a Launch's weapon is jammed and swallowed by small pink bolts. It intensifies, and Launch is forced to drop the weapon. The energy inside is unstabilized, forcing the gun to burst to pieces.

Everyone slowly turn towards Gine with wide eyes.

"What…?" Launch stares at the pieces of her dismantled gun.

It takes a few seconds for Gine's to ease herself. Her hair settles back as she shakes her head. "I didn't mean to startle you, but you wouldn't listen to reason."

Krillin looks at Gine like she is the most terrifying thing in the room. How quickly she pulled that off left no window for anyone to react. She could had killed Launch if she wanted.

Thankfully, Gine isn't that kind of person. But knowing she can do that makes her rather scary at times.

"Are we done fighting now?" Gine asks as she places her hands against her hips. "If we have a problem with one another, distance yourselves as much as possible. Nobody seems to use their head when angry, from what I witnessed. It doesn't matter how much you hate their guts, you will just have to tolerate their presence for some time. We have no reason to foolishly fight each other."

Kakarot sees how Launch now has no intention to attack anymore. Looking at Gine, he doesn't know what to think. She can… manipulate her energy in ways he never saw before.

And the look on her face before she did it was genuinely terrifying.

Launch did land a shot at the tail, so maybe instincts made Gine get angry in an instant. Saiyans do value their tails very much…

Still… she was so quick...

Yamcha sticks his head inside the room. Walking past him is Tien, who heads straight for Launch.

"Attacking any Saiyan is a bit reckless. I understand how you feel, but let's not act so quickly." Tien warns her.

Launch sighs. "Alright, alright. I don't want to lose another weapon to them anyway." She walks out the room, leaving it in silence for a while.

Gine sighs. "I can't keep doing this forever. We are all adults here. We should be able to handle ourselves. But, this conflict just can't end. Everyone seems to hold on to some kind of grudge." She turns her focus to Kauli. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Just scratched up." Kauli answers. "The only reason why I didn't hit her yet was because I knew she had a problem with Saiyans in general. Just like everyone else who was born on this planet. I can't blame them. It took every ounce of effort for me not to slap some sense into her."

"Well… sometimes you have to fake out to snap them out of it." Gine sighs.

"Speaking of, how the hell did you do that? Where did you learn that from?" Kauli asks. "You know, that energy thing!"

Everyone else seems to have the same question in mind.

"Oh. That…?" The mother Saiyan looks at her hand with a slight frown. She isn't happy such a question was asked. "I don't really…"

"You've got to teach me how to do that!"

Gine looks at Kauli now, a bit surprised by her request. After a few seconds of seeing her eager expression, she turns it down. "No. I won't teach you."

Kauli frowns at this. "But why? You did it so quickly, no one saw it coming!"

Gine's response is nearly rude due to just how annoyed she is already. "Exactly. And I hate using it. And I plan on not doing that again."

Kauli stops walking, staring at Gine who moves on without her. The woman doesn't try to go after her, knowing she probably pushed it too much. "I should have kept my damn mouth shut…"

- 0000 -

(3) Once the evening comes, and the sun is setting, the table is large and filled with people. Food covers nearly every corner, cooked to perfection. Paragus and Broly walk around the table, handing out plates and passing food that is requested.

Seems everyone's moods are lifted. The little conflict before was forgotten due to the presence of food. It's interesting how quickly some people can bounce back to being happy.

"Wow! This looks really good!" Gine smiles as she claps her hands together. "I'm sure this is just the thing we needed!"

"Thank you. We have a fine chef here. She does a wonderful job with the cooking." Paragus says as he finally takes a seat at one end of the table. Broly remains standing, and he doesn't seem to mind. All he cares for is the food.

Cheelai bows her head, proud of her work.

"This is some strange food. I've never seen anything like it." Krillin looks through his own plate. Since the Saiyans seem to be eating it, it can't be so bad. He still hesitates to touch it.

Yamcha sighs as he leans back against his chair. "I don't think they would poison us. But I can't bring myself to eat this."

Tien frowns at his plate. He recognizes a fish, but the head was left on. It's a wonder if Saiyans eat every part of the animal or not.

Future Trunks just pokes a jelly-like substance with a fork. His face scrunched up in disgust. "What is this?"

Raditz takes a bite out of a turkey leg. "Stop playing with it, and eat. It's good for you, boy. It tastes a lot better than it looks."

"Uh… okay…" Future Trunks scoops up a bit.

"This better be good." Kauli grumbles as she scoops up her portion, along with Karot and many others.

They all take a small bite, then a bigger one. It actually does taste good.

"What is it?" Chichi asks him.

"A popular intergalactic treat. Boarspike Jelly. Goes good with bread." Raditz explains.

Kauli nods. "It has a funny name."

"Makes sense if you ask me. Comes from an animal called a Boarspike. The jelly comes from their nose, and it's high in nutrition-"

The sound of spitting cuts him off. Before Raditz could figure out what it is, he is knocked from his chair and pinned to the ground by an angry Kauli who has her gun aimed right at his nose.

"You fed me pig-snot?!" Kauli snaps angrily.

"Hey! I didn't make the food, genius! Get off of me!" Raditz snarls.

Future Trunks just stares at his plate as if it would jump at him. His baby counterpart happily eats his own plate with no complaints.

ChiChi is a bit disturbed. She turns to Kakarot who surprisingly hasn't touched his own plate. "Not hungry? That's impossible. What's wrong?"

Kakarot rolls around a meatball with his fork. "How do you know of this food is safe?"

"Goku, don't be silly. They are eating, too." ChiChi points out. "You need to eat up. You don't want to collapse due to an empty stomach."

"I guess you're right." Kakarot says. He finally begins to eat, which seems to be a relief for ChiChi.

Kauli releases Raditz and returns to her seat. She crosses her arms with a huff. "Ain't no way I am eating that shit."

Raditz grumbles as he gets back to his feet. He walks back to his seat, annoyed with her outburst. He gives small thanks as Broly sets down another plate for him.

Kauli declines as she is offered another plate. She watches Broly set his own plate down to eat. To kill the silence, she decides to try to get to know Broly. "So… where did you come from?"

Small talk. It may not work. She learned how the Saiyans tend to keep it to themselves. But Broly is a bit different. He does respond.

"I was born on… Planet Vegeta. Like most Saiyans." Broly answers, looking at her for a second before keeping his eyes on his plate. "I left, when I was a baby…"

"Well, you aren't the only one." Kauli says. "It was a rough time for all of us, and funny enough, we are now in the same room. It's pretty nice to know that you and your father aren't the only Saiyans left, right?"

"It is nice." Broly replies, looking at each present person. "I didn't have many friends at home."

"No?" Kauli frowns.

"That sounds pretty sad." Gine gives him a saddened look. "I'm sure you'll make new friends here. Not everyone is open to that but… I know a few who would if you just give them time."

"Well, one way to make friends is to get to know someone." Kauli seems to have an idea. "What's your favorite color?"

Broly looks at the fur around his waist. "Green."

"Not bad. I like blue." She smiles. "Hm… what's your birthday?"

Broly looks at her funny.

"Oh. Well, if it's personal, then you don't have to tell me." Kauli waves her hands a bit. Perhaps she did pick a personal subject.

Broly shakes his head, and he answers carefully. "July 14th. Age 737."

"What?" Kauli is a bit surprised. A few others overheard this and looks at Broly, somewhat confused or curious.

Gine looks at Broly with interest. "I remember now…"

"Whoa! Really?!" Kakarot is surprised. He jumped to his feet with a laugh. "Hey! Broly! That's my birthday, too! That's pretty awesome!"

"Huh?" Broly just looks at the Saiyan. He doesn't see what the big deal is.

Tarble smiles. "Well, isn't that interesting?"

Paragus, on the other hand, is somewhat shocked. "They were born on the same day…? So that… explains it."

"Wow. What do you know?" Turles says. "It seems to have made your mood a little better, too."

Kakarot's smile fades a bit, and he sighs. He can't exactly stay upset so long. It's not in his nature, but he can dislike an individual for a long time. Looking at Broly… he isn't all bad. If anything, Kakarot thinks he's just a curious Saiyan who has so much to see on Earth. Too bad the timing is bad with Cell planning to bring chaos.

"Well, I guess so." It's the best response he can give.

These strangers… there's so much to learn about them. He can't be careless yet.

After a few minutes, Turles rises from his seat as the first one finished. He carries his plate with plans to head for the kitchen, but he pauses right before he could pass Future Trunks. "You know that's good for you."

"I'll pass." Future Trunks simply refuses to eat it.

Turles shrugs. He takes his nephew's plate and eats the jelly off of it, since it's the only thing left. He resumes his journey until his eyes meets with Kauli's.

Kauli pushes her plate towards him. "Here."

Turles takes it. "Everyone raised on this planet is so picky. Now I will have to deal with one of them once I get in the time chamber. How fun."

Kauli rests her chin on the table. "Well, when the time comes. Don't kill Trunks, because Raditz will surely get you. I won't save you, either."

"I would expect it." Turles says. "You can catch a break without me for a whole day."

"Yes, but you'll be gone for a whole year in your perspective."

Turles was about to counter it, but he finds nothing. "A whole year, huh? Hm."

"What's wrong?" Kauli notices the dry tone of his voice. She lifts her head to properly look at him, all while crossing her arms. "I thought you would love that."

"Maybe you would." He chuckles as he turns away. "On my end, it might become too quiet. But it can't be helped, can it? Then again, I'm glad I was partnered with Trunks and not you. Otherwise, I might lose my mind."

"Why. I'll drive you crazy?" She challenges him. "Because you might drive me insane."

"You have a good idea."

Kauli watches him move. The feeling of soft fur brushing her arm makes her jerk back. Her eyes fall on his tail that moves casually behind him.

Cell was right. Their tails are actually very soft.

She rolls her eyes, somewhat annoyed by it. "You could watch where you are going."

Raditz crosses his arms. Gine simply looks at youngest son.

"What?" Kakarot blinks. "Why are you both looking at me?"

"You are very dense." Raditz sighs. "Then again, so is Kauli. Saiyans usually don't care much for others, but if we find someone attractive, we'll hint on that much. A tail brush equals to what you Earthlings would call 'flirting'."

Kakarot blinks. "What?! He was flirting with-"

BONK!

"OW!" Kakarot covers his head and glares at Raditz. "What the hell was that for?! I'm not allowed to ask questions?!"

"Not out loud!" Raditz lowers his fist. "Do you know anything?! Ah, fine. I'll explain. It's not really an intentional thing. The tail is a dead giveaway to our emotions. You can never hold a poker-face if your tail is exposed. It's another reason why we keep it around our wastes."

"Oh… so…"

"Basically, his tail moved on its own. It's not easy to explain. Part of body language." Raditz says. "I don't even know why I bothered trying to explain this to you."

Kakarot rubs the back of his head with an embarrassed chuckle. "Sorry…" He rises to set his plates away. What amuses him is the sight of his son feeding his pet dragon some of his food. Upon making eye contact, Karot is quick to look away again. It's concerning at this point. He heads towards him, trying not to go to fast since Icarus appears nervous with those he hardly knows. "Hey. Gohan. You don't have to keep doing this. It's just me. I'm not… you know… being controlled anymore."

Karot says nothing. He keeps his back turned.

This is awkward.

"Come on, son. Don't give me the cold shoulder."

Still no response.

Kakarot isn't liking this very much. Trying not to upset him any further, he places a hand on his shoulder to turn him around. "Son-"

(4) "Don't touch me!" Karot slaps his hand away, glaring at his father. The child unintentionally took the spotlight as all heads turn to him now. "Don't even talk to me! I thought I already told you that you aren't my dad, because my real dad would never hurt his own family! My real dad would never let a stupid demon control him like a puppet! You're just a monster… a true demon! You ruined my life!"

Kakarot takes a step back. What is he supposed to say to him now? Everyone else appears either confused or concerned about the child's outburst. It's a bit embarrassing.

"Gohan!" Chichi gasps. She leaves the table quickly. "Mister, I understand you are angry, but you shouldn't say such terrible things to your father!"

"Why do you stand up to him?!" Karot growls at her. "How can you stand up to someone who's too stupid to tell the difference to an assisan and his own wife?! He killed you, remember?! How could you still love him?!"

Launch growls lightly. "That escalated quickly."

ChiChi just stares at her angry son.

"Yeah. You don't know what to say, do you? Because you know it's true." Karot growls, seeing that he made her speechless. "He tried to kill you again recently too! Remember?! That wasn't too long ago! I don't care if the demon is gone! If he still has that crown, then it means he still has no self control! He's still a monster! And all of you are so stupid for keeping him alive!"

"Gohan!" ChiChi gasps.

"He slaughtered people for his own entertainment, mom! How could you still stand up to him?! Why do you baby everybody?! It's why I was such a crybaby, because you just don't know how to let go! That is what killed you!"

"That's enough!"

"No! It's not! You're just as stupid as he is!"

"Young man, you are grounded!"

Karot scoffs. "How will you pull that off? You're just mad because I am right! You're just in denial! I'm not going anywhere just because you can't control your feelings!"

"Wow. This kid is so disrespectful." Kauli notes, angered by what she is witnessing. "How old is he again?"

Karot apparently overheard this. "If you can't remember, then you're just as stupid as every other Saiyan here."

"You know what?!" Kauli steps forward, but she is restrained by Raditz and Future Trunks.

Gine walks towards the child. "You're angry. I know. But lashing out at others isn't going to fix anything."

"And neither is your presence. You are weak compared to anyone else, so why bother being here? You clearly can't babysit that monster very well if that was your idea."

Gine sighs as she placed her hands near her hips.

"You have nothing to say either, huh? Figures, coming from a Saiyan who can't even fight! You're only wasting your time being here!"

"Now, now, child. You must-"

"You can't control him, so you don't say anything!" Karot cuts her off. "What good are you to us anyway? You stood no chance against Cell even when he was in his original form, so you're just a waste of space! You should had stayed in Hell where you belong!"

Gine says nothing else. Her expression isn't easy to read, but the way her tail moves gives it all away. What the child just said touched a nerve, apparently.

ChiChi seems to relax a little, apparently seeing something. "Oh no. He's in that phase."

"It's not a phase, mom!" Karot snaps at her. "None of this was! I saw so much blood in one month compared to the last five years! And it was all from dad! Why doesn't anyone see the problem in that?! He's the worst father anyone could ever have! Why does he have to be mine?! I hate him, mom! I HATE him!"

ChiChi covers her mouth with a gasp. Gine just stands there, speechless.

Kakarot thought he had let go of that since the first time he said it… but apparently not. It… only got worse. He doesn't try to counter anything the child said. His head lowers towards the ground along with his tail. "I guess I do deserve it, huh? That's okay. I get it."

Everyone watches him turn and slowly to head off towards the bedrooms. He doesn't move in any hurry. Those words clearly stung, or gave him a harsh hit of reality.

"Kakarot…" Raditz takes a few steps after him, but he stops, unsure of what to do. Seeing his brother sulk away just makes him feel… terrible.

Paragus clears his throat. "Clearly this is not the time for me to stick around. Broly and I will be in the kitchen... if anyone needs us." He heads out, with Broly by his side.

There is silence for several seconds, with the exception of Vegeta huffing at the situation.

ChiChi covers her face as she takes in a deep breath of air before letting out a shaking exhale. She had started to cry, clueless on what to do. Gine rubs her back for comfort, seeing it as the best thing.

Karot simply turn away and resumes feeding his dragon, who is oblivious to what just happened.

As for everyone else, it just got… very awkward. What can they do? Nothing, really. Not much can be done to heal a dysfunctional family.

Gine looks up from ChiChi, and towards her eldest. "Raditz, dear?"

"Yeah. I know. I'll talk to him." Raditz nods. He heads off to Kakarot.

The Z-Fighters feel bad about the situation, from the looks on their faces. Originally, they saw the Saiyans are barbaric and… evil. But seeing this reminded them that… they have emotions besides being angry or cruel. They were just hardened warriors, after all.

Surprisingly, the one who steps forward is Nappa. He heads straight for the kid, stopping right in front of him. Icarus jumps and hides behind the child. "Hey. Listen here."

Karot ignores him.

"Kid." Nappa finally grabs his arm. He is met with a pair of cold eyes, which surprises him a bit. Looking well into them, his own eyes narrow. "What the hell was that? You're not acting like yourself at all."

"Why do you care?"

Nappa frowns. He grabs his arm and forces him to walk a small distance away from the crowd. "Fine. A different question. What the hell did you do?"

"Nothing." Karot growls.

"You're lying. Tell me what you did. You spew lies, but your eyes hide the truth. You went missing from time to time, so what are you plotting?"

Karot yanks his arm free. "All I did was talk to people to understand why they made him a monster."

"You did more than that, kid. I can smell blood. That is nothing you should get involved in."

"Well, dad slaughtered and found it fun. Why didn't you stop him?" Karot challenges. "He's a freak, because you follow Vegeta like a sheep."

Nappa nearly snaps at the insult, but he takes a second to remember what just happened. "Look. Everyone has their flaws. I messed up. Vegeta messed up. Kakarot messed up, and now you are messing up. Most of us don't realize what we have until it's gone. If you keep that attitude of yours, you'll lose your father and you'll regret it."

"No I won't. You know nothing."

"I know you're about ten years old now. That's when most Saiyan children try to figure out what they want to be." Nappa sighs. "But what you are not going to do is pull everyone down all because of your attitude. Your father is trying to fix this up. The demon did all of this, not him. He's still wounded from this, but you have to give it time to heal. He will get better if you give him a chance."

"I'm not your kid."

"And I'm not your father. But I know how to handle brats like you. I've dealt with Vegeta. You're just a sample of what he did when he was a kid. Don't think you're all tough. You still have a lot to learn in the universe. You are the one who knows nothing, so you keep yourself in your place. Understand?"

Karot growls and turns away.

"Understand?" Nappa repeats himself.

"Leave me alone." Karot grumbles.

Nappa firmly grabs the child by his shoulders and forces him to turn around to face him. He shakes him once to grab his attention, holding a serious expression. "Do. You. Understand?"

Karot isn't liking it. He gives in with a sigh. "Understood…"

"Good." Nappa releases him. "Go get yourself cleaned up before your mother gets an idea on what you did." He pushes him, forcing him to walk.

"You'll only waste your time trying to reason with him. His human half makes him even more stubborn." Vegeta warns him.

Nappa isn't sure how to handle this. "Vegeta. We need everyone to not fight like this. But the fact that you hardly care is-"

"Don't bother. I don't want to hear it."

"The last time you didn't want to hear from us, you got severely hurt."

Vegeta glares at him. "What are you trying to say?!"

- 0000 -

Inside the information room, Nappa has his arms crossed as he looks down at the angry Vegeta. He knows that anyone else would had been blasted to nothing for saying the wrong thing. Nappa still has to be careful knowing the prince is already in a bad mood, but he can't let anything else spiral out of control.

He had explained to Vegeta, in the most careful way possible, that his past decisions did more harm than good. And just as someone else said before, taking ideas from others may not be a bad idea.

Unfortunately, Vegeta doesn't like it.

"You expect me to listen to those idiots for even a second?! All they ever did was run their mouths and prove themselves as nothing more than a burden!" Vegeta growls. "If we never lost our planet, I'm sure they would be nothing of my concern!"

"But you are our prince. You're supposed to make sure things don't spiral out of control." Nappa reminds him. "We always operated the same way, even after King Cold took us in. Even the Saiyans who didn't fight weren't so horribly mistreated before he came in. Saiyans like Tarble and Kakarot, and even Gine-"

"Oh, please. Enlighten me." Vegeta crosses his arms. "You lived long enough to know."

"From what I was taught, and experience alone." Nappa crosses his arms. "Truthfully, before it was Frieza, it was Cold. Before it was Cold, we operated on our own. We ran our own business of attacking and selling planets. Word came around and Cold dropped by. He promised to give us a larger pay for doing such a job, on top of the pay we get for selling the planet. Being paid twice as much sounded pretty good. But… turns out to be too good to be true. He took most of the pay, and we went from being businessmen to mere slaves to his work. Then, he handed it to Frieza, and he was much worse. He cared nothing for how we feel. He made the programming to assure Saiyan children don't have second thoughts about their job. And more infants were sent off. The royals became more demanding as well to save their heads from Frieza. I guess you can say it's a chain reaction."

Vegeta snorts, clearly knowing this already. "There were even some Saiyans who lacked their violent instincts. Why bother with them so much?"

"They had their ways to make up for their lack of fighting. Where do you think we get our food and medical care from?"

Vegeta doesn't answer. He isn't interested.

"Those who didn't fight were doctors, chiefs, or ship maintenance. They were often victims of Frieza's trusty soldiers when they want to make an example. It's hard to believe some of those Saiyans who were fully grown never even became an Oozaru once in their life. But, only because they never left Planet Vegeta often. The day the moon comes out, you know how we always stay indoors. Truthfully, the rule of always transforming at the presence of a full moon only applies to battle. That's why they are called 'Saiyan Rules of The Battlefield'. The Oozaru is more of a last-resort thing. After all… those who aren't so familiar with their inner beast loses all sense of self."

"And you expect me to take pity on them for those reasons? Those Saiyans who don't fight were useless. My father was too laid-back on how to deal with them. If it were up to me, those who didn't fight would have to, or they'll be killed off. We have no use for Saiyans who aren't warriors. We are a warrior race, are we not?"

"That's not how it works." Nappa frowns at his answer. "You can't just kill a Saiyan for something that-"

"I asked you a question, and I demand an answer."

Nappa is quiet for a few seconds. He answers almost dryly. "It's what we are known for."

"Exactly. If anyone were to find out we had a handful of Saiyans who didn't live up to that reputation, we would had been a laughing stock! It's better off to either make them fight or get rid of them! It's in their blood!'

"Yes. It is in our blood. But have you ever considered the consequences of forcing a Saiyan to change faster than they can adapt? Taking a Saiyan who lacks violent instincts, if you push them too hard, they'll snap and lose their heads!"

For a few seconds, it seems to make sense. Vegeta pictures Kakarot at the peak of his rage, unable to control himself at all.

And Tarble, who just recently lost his mind when he was fighting against him.

Still, witnessing this, Vegeta isn't taking what the general says. "That only means every Saiyan has it. You just have to force it out. Maybe we would had overthrown Frieza if every Saiyan fought. Kakarot was easy because he already enjoys combat. He just lacked the violent side. Tarble on the other hand lacked both the urge to fight and that. But you see how he can fight now."

"You pushed him to do that."

"And now he has to push himself harder. Big deal." Vegeta hardly cares. "Now he has no choice since Cell is on the battlefield."

"He's worse now!"

"Are you questioning me like the others now? It seems everyone is against me!" Vegeta grows annoyed quickly.

"That's because they are!"

"Even you?!" Vegeta steps forward angrily. "You know what happens to those who have the nerve to disobey and disrespect!"

"Vegeta! You need to think just for a second! Everyone is trying not to die!" Nappa tries to calm the prince down. "Cell gave us a week to prepare! We should be using that to our advantage! Just try to hear out the others a bit! For you to allow Cell to reach his peak caused all this!"

"You think you know it all?! I'll prove it once it's all done!"

"Do you honestly think that would make you a better warrior?! Your father would never dare to even consider this, Vegeta!"

Silence hangs in the air. After a long pause, Vegeta responds. "... You mention him like you know him better than I do."

"You can believe what you want about that. But I've been in far more battles than anyone else. After all, I battled alongside him enough times. I sent many out in different worlds. Regardless of what you think, I was, and still consider myself a general." Nappa crosses his arms. "You have potential. You always did. Hell. I've seen the scary things you could pull off back during your childhood. No one would be able to keep an eye on you with that. That's why I was chosen to help you out a bit."

"I never needed anybody's help. I told him that a long time ago." Vegeta doesn't even seem as angry. "How long have you known him?"

"About as long as I can remember."

"Is that so?" Vegeta looks forward again.

"You can deny it if you want, but you still respect him, right?"

"As if. He was a fool for attacking Frieza the way he did-"

"You never took his title as king. You're still a prince."

Vegeta pauses, and he frowns. "Don't bother trying to connect that with anything. There was never a coordination, so I never got the crown. Got it?"

"All that I am saying is, your past sessions nearly killed you countless times. Don't throw away your life again at the impossible. Not like your father did. You felt the huge jump in power Cell had. You nearly lost your tail because of the choices you made. Not me. Not anyone else."

"So you're saying I should had stood aside?"

"Not exactly. But how many times have you seen your father charge into a fight he can't win?"

Vegeta thinks back, and he recalls the few times in his childhood. His father bowing before King Cold and Lord Frieza…

… his father being pinned down by some powerful deity from a distant world…

"He only did that once." He finally answers, realizing any other time, King Vegeta would stand down.

"And what happened that very same day?" Nappa asks.

He never wanted to remember how reckless his father was. It was hours before Frieza sent him away… hours before Planet Vegeta was destroyed.

He was still inside the ship, just getting ready to be deployed. It wasn't until he out doing a mission that he learned of what happened to his homeworld.

Noticing how still Vegeta is, Nappa carries on. "We were trying to warn you, looking after you, because that is our job. You should never get involved in a fight you can't win, or one anyone else should easily handle. Too boring or too difficult is not your business. You handle what you need to. We need you alive."

Vegeta crosses his arms. "My father was just a fool. For him to die is what he gets." He walks away, further inside the room. "This conversation is over. Don't bring the subject up again."

Nappa lowers his arms to his side. "Understood."

- 0000 -

Onyx eyes blink at a mirror. Kakarot stares at his reflection, seeing no trace of his former self from five years ago. Back then, his life was… simpler. He was oblivious to what was outside of Earth, but otherwise… his only problem was a vengeful Namekian.

Then everything changed when Raditz arrived at the beach.

Everything.

A distant reflection is growing on the mirror. Kakarot turns around, seeing Raditz walking towards him. With a sigh, Kakarot takes a seat on the bed. "The one downside about living in a multiverse… is that you can't change the past."

Raditz takes a seat nearby, places his hands in his lap. "He had you thinking?"

Kakarot frowns. "A lot more than I normally do. I'm not a genius. I know I'm not. I'm not the best father… or the best husband or… the best person for that matter. Even back then, I hardly understood the whole concept of marriage and having children. But what I do know is how to hurt someone, whether or not it is intentional. Now I'm at the point when… my own kid sees me as this monster. Hell, I was a major hypocrite on Namek."

"You… know what that word means?" Raditz is a bit surprised.

"Well, I have an idea." Kakarot says. "When I was fighting Frieza after you died… I remember telling him how he was wrong to torture people and make their lives miserable. But when you think about it, we did the exact same thing to this planet. And I only made it worse."

"I suppose part of it is my fault?" Raditz wonders. "No. It must be. I could have simply took you from here… or left you alone."

"We can't change the past." Kakarot shakes his head. "I wish I never trusted that monkey. That alone just… amplified all the wrongs…"

"He's gone now."

"Just because he's gone, does not mean I'm free altogether." Kakarot says. "The contract can't be destroyed unless he is."

Raditz frowns. "Right. He still wants you soul."

"Exactly. Even though he isn't inside of me anymore… he can still find me. If I were to die… my soul might not make it to Otherworld. It's kinda scary to think about. What happens if he does get what he wants?"

"He won't." Raditz frowns. "He tormented you so much in hopes you'll hand it over. The only way he can get it now is through death. But I won't allow you to die. You hear me?"

Kakarot looks at him. He should have expected this. This is the same Raditz who took a lethal shot from Frieza for him, after all.

With a small smile, he chuckles. "It's not like I'll just fall over and die so easily anyway."

"That's what I like to hear from my little brother." Raditz lightly pats his shoulder. "Let's not linger. We have adjustments to make."

"Right. We do." Kakarot rises from sitting. "Just keep one eye open."

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, a large wooden spoon rotates inside a large bowl. ChiChi has her eyes focused on the batter she is mixing inside, trying to take her mind off things. She notices Broly peeking inside out of curiosity. "Have you… ever seen batter before?"

Broly just blinks. "Batter?"

ChiChi opens a drawer and pulls out a spoon. She scoops up a small portion of batter from the bowl, and she offers it to him. "It's sweet, but it tastes even better when baked."

Broly takes the spoon and sniffs it before placing it inside his mouth. His eyes widen at the flavor.

"See? I told you it's good." ChiChi nearly laughs at his expression. "I'm making chocolate chip. Now… where is the ah. Here we go!" She picks up the bar of chocolate she sat next to the bowl. Removing it from the wrapper, she takes out most of it. "I guess I'll save some for Raditz. He might appreciate it."

Paragus observes all this, noticing his son's interest in basically everything. "Broly. If you want something, it's okay to ask."

"Of course. I have no problem." ChiChi agrees. "Though some things may be reserved for others."

"May I... have some?" Broly asks carefully.

ChiChi breaks off a piece of chocolate and hands into him. She is amused by how quickly he wolves it down realizing how sweet it is. She turns to Paragus after this. "Do you mind handing this to Raditz? Just do it quickly before it melts."

"Hm? Oh. The chocolate." Paragus takes what's left of it into his hand.

"Do you want any? I can offer you a piece."

"No thanks. I'll just be on my way and back. But, thank you." Paragus nods as he leaves the kitchen.

ChiChi smiles as she opens the drawer again. She pulls out a small knife to cut the chocolate into smaller pieces. She nearly dropped it due to a sudden crash. She turns around, seeing Broly's back against the refrigerator. He looks as if he had seen a ghost, and it concerns her. "Broly? What's wrong?"

Meanwhile, Paragus carefully steps inside the bedrooms, passing several beds and walls. They clearly don't sleep in here often despite having the room for it. The beds are so neat, separated by curtains. He assumes that Vegeta's and Tarble's beds are the furthest since they have their own space. They have a curtain all around them.

Yep. It has to be theirs. So where is…

Raditz sits on a bed at the very end of the lineup. Kakarot is there sitting with them. They seem to be having some sort of conversation. Whatever it was is now interrupted as soon as Raditz spots him.

"What brings you here?" Raditz asks, somewhat curious.

"Nothing much. Her name was ChiChi, wasn't it? She wanted me to deliver this to you." Paragus shows Raditz the wrapper treat. "I believe she is making something."

A sudden screech makes him jump back. He spots the covered cage that begins to shake again.

"It's just the Giantula. He clearly hates you." Raditz says.

"I wonder why." Kakarot frowns, being a bit rude towards Paragus.

Raditz would say something else, but he turns his head towards the door in an instant. "The hell?"

Kakarot knows why. He can feel it. A strong surge of energy just came out of nowhere. It makes his skin crawl. It just… doesn't feel right. Something in the air isn't right.

Paragus' scouter detects this as well. He immediately rushes out the room immediately. "Broly!"

Broly?! The two brothers exchange looks before racing out as well.

ChiChi steps back, unsure of what made things turn wrong so quickly. She has her back pressed against the stove. Broly was fine before, and suddenly he got so angry! "What's wrong?! Broly! Say something! You're scaring me!"

Everyone else is quick to the kitchen, sensing this surge of energy. Paragus pushes his way through the crowd. "Broly! What are you doing?! Stop, son!"

But, he doesn't listen.

ChiChi shrieks as the enraged Saiyan comes closer. She shuts her eyes as she turns herself into a ball. "G-G… GOKUUUUUUUU!"

Paragus reaches out for his son again, but he pauses as his scouter suddenly turns on. It beeps as the characters shift on the screen. "What the-?!" He turns around as the device pin-points the location, and all he sees is a figure zipping past him.

Broly is punched across the face. His eyes are wide in surprise as the first flies past him. He falls to the ground as his attacker lands feet away, in front of ChiChi.

Kakarot stands in a protective stance. He watches Broly carefully as he stands.

"What?" Paragus blinks. Pressing the button of his scouter, he checks Kakarot's power again. "A power-level of ten-thousand? He's as strong as King Vegeta was! But how?!"

He pauses.

"I could have sworn the reading was different earlier… what is this?" Paragus checks again as Kakarot slips into a defensive stance. "What? Now it's at five-thousand! I don't understand. Why is it jumping around like that?"

"What is going on here?" Vegeta pushes his way through, and his eyes meet with Broly's. Seeing his anger turn to him, the prince frowns. "Are we having a problem here?"

"Pain…" Broly seems to grow more angry as he slowly stands. His hands clenched into fists as he snarls heavily before releasing a powerful scream that shakes the very ship.

"Oh, crap!" Kakarot staggers and steadies himself. From the energy he is sensing, it was the same thing he felt from before! This new Saiyan here… is strong!

The two soldiers from before rush to Broly's side. They grab his arms to restrain him. However, they are easily flung off. Broly is slowly making his way towards Vegeta. Next, he jumps for him!

"That's enough, Broly!" Paragus slips a hand inside his cape and pulls out a small remote. He points it towards Broly and presses a single button.

The silver collar around Broly's neck blinks blue at the center before it glows entirely. Blue electricity is unleash and engulfs Broly, electrocuting him in seconds. The electricity illuminates the entire room blue. Broly steps back and screams in pure agony, gripping the collar in efforts to take it off.

Kakarot takes several steps back, not believing what he is seeing. To witness Broly in so much pain by a mere collar, he can feel his pain. Those cries are from someone who is begging for it to stop. Just like him when...

"Paragus! That's enough! You're hurting him!" Cheelai tries to grab the remote from him, but Paragus moves it away while glaring at her.

Broly's screams become weak. After what feels like forever, it finally stops, and he drops to his hands and knees. He is breathing hard, appearing scared of what just happened.

"What the…?" Turles looks at everyone else, who appears as lost as he is.

Kakarot glares at Paragus. "What was that all about?! You didn't have to stretch it out so long!"

"I had to make sure." Paragus says as he places the remote back in place. "He had to be stopped."

"He gave up whatever it was seconds after you turned it on!" Kakarot frowns. "After that was torture! He's your son!"

"You don't know a thing about us, or what we've been through." Paragus says firmly. "If I didn't do anything, he might have hurt someone, such as your wife. Why do you think I had my workers do the cooking? He was clearly traumatized by the sight of the knife she had!"

"Knife?" Kakarot notices it sitting on the counter. From the looks of things… ChiChi was about to make chocolate chips.

He acted out of fear?

Lemo and Cheelai approach Broly. They carefully grab his arms and guide him away. Paragus sighs as he walks over to a chair to take a seat.

Kakarot turns to ChChi immediately. "What happened? Did he lash out on purpose?"

"No. I don't think so." ChiChi says. "He was fine until I pulled out the knife. It scared him, so my guess is that he thought I was going to hurt him with it. Paragus tried to avoid this from happening…"

Kakarot looks at Paragus. What he did was… rather harsh. But it did stop Broly.

Is that what it looks like when the crown is used?

"I'm going to talk with my brothers." Kakarot decides it is the best thing to do. He surely wasn't the only one who witnessed it. Everyone has the same question in mind. He doesn't exactly want to leave ChiChi after what just happened, but she gives him a look to assure she will be fine. Still, he won't go far.

He doesn't. He does as much as leave the kitchen along with everyone who isn't cooking. His eyes land on his passing mother who is entering. For a second, it seems they share the same thought.

Something isn't right at all.

Gine enters the kitchen and lightly grabs ChiChi's arm to get her attention. They exchange quiet words. The Saiyan mother appears deeply worried about her as she checks her arm and head, but there is nothing out of the ordinary. After a while, Gine grabs a baking pan to help her finish making the cookies.

Vegeta crosses his arms, looking at where the soldiers guided Broly to. "Clearly… he's not right."

"Please, Prince Vegeta. Forgive Broly. He had a rather rough time in the past." Paragus explains.

"Explain the collar. You clearly have no control over his short temper." Vegeta frowns. "He's stronger than he appears to be, right? Every Saiyan is born knowing how to fight, but has he been taught any fighting style to use it better?"

"Of course. I've done several training sessions with my son. He's trained as any other warrior would be." Paragus answers. "There is no reason to have any doubts, my son and I have every intention to serve you."

"If you have intentions, then you can start by making sure your son never tries to attack me ever again." Vegeta says as he walks off.

"I will do everything I can." Paragus bows as he watches him go. He raises his head after a few seconds, and he catches sight of Tarble, who appears very irritated by the exchange. The younger prince heads off to the information room. "Seems like they don't work well together."

"They don't. But it's just how brothers work sometimes." Nappa responds as he walks over to him. "You'll learn how every Saiyan here operates. Though I can't say much about everyone I hardly know. I never knew much about Kauli, for example. And now we have Gine here…"

"I actually know Gine quite well. We bumped into each other many times in the past. And her children… caused trouble for me." Paragus explains. "She is a rare case."

"That sounds about right." Nappa nods. "She is a very kind-hearted Saiyan. I knew of her name from the other elites, since she was a member of Bardock's crew. Those lower-class warriors made a name for themselves by crawling out of missions most elites don't tangle with. Most of those missions were things that Frieza had his eyes set on. It was a high-paying job."

"Right. The four and five-star ranked." Paragus seems to remember. "I'm still surprised she settled down."

"Hm?" Kakarot finally decided to pay it more attention. It seems his brothers have the same idea. That's right. Paragus seems to know Gine personally, though it may seem they met once or twice.

Raditz and Turles has their attention grabbed as well. They listen carefully.

"What's strange is to hear how kind she is. It's true that she is a very compassionate individual. It seems to be in her nature after all. I still don't understand what made her quit the World Trade Organization. She was a very valuable member of her team. All I heard was that she just lost motivation for fighting and called it quits…"

"You know something?" Raditz finally speaks up, somewhat bothered. "Sorry to barge in, but it annoys me when someone talks about family behind my back. Blame Kakarot."

"Hey!" Kakarot doesn't like how he was dragged into it.

Paragus clears his throat. "Oh, forgive me. It is rather rude. I'm sure you could fill in this story better. I can imagine having her as your mother filled your childhood with fascinating tales of her adventures. Especially with her most successful mission that took place on Planet Mineral."

A loud clatter startled everyone. ChiChi had stepped back, staring at a baking pan that had fallen near her feet. The woman appears a bit concerned before looking at Gine, who stands in front of her. The female Saiyan is looking at Paragus with frightened eyes.

"Planet Mineral? She never… told us about that." Raditz slightly frowns. "All we heard from her and our father was how she just wasn't good at her job. He had to keep saving her from trouble."

"Sounds like he only told you the end of the story." Paragus is confused. "A Saiyan who was part of the business is one who is a warrior. They aren't bad at their job right from the start."

Kakarot is growing annoyed with Paragus' talking, but after seeing the way his mother reacted when she overheard the conversation, he can't help but get worried. "Mom? Are… you okay over there?"

Gine has all the attention now, and it's clearly something she doesn't want.

"You never told your children about your missions, have you?" Paragus asks her. "When I heard that you sheltered your children too much… it seems they were right. Why would you hide that from them? Those are tales many Saiyan children would enjoy!"

Gine looks at another direction, hating all the eye contact. "What I do with the children is none of your business. I never asked you to tell anyone my life story, Paragus. I know you, but not enough for you to walk around doing that."

"The last time I saw you, you were not this timid or defensive. What changed? You're still compassionate… but it seems that compassion extended beyond the Saiyan race now?"

"That's enough. We don't talk about that." Gine glares at him at last. "It's not your business."

"But I'm sure there is no way Raditz would had figured out how to stall the engines of many vehicles on his own." Paragus says as he turns to Raditz. "She did teach you how to do that, didn't she?"

Raditz pauses as the words sink in. He does recall using his energy as some sort of EMP to disable the military vehicles of Chille's soldiers. His mother did teach him. He never really asked her how she knew how to do that…

Gine steps forward quickly, close to showing a snarl. "We are not going to just carry on with this conversation for another second! LEAVE it!"

Lights flicker before they shatter, and the main monitor is overcharged in less than a second. A loud popping sound makes some of the warriors jump. Smoke rises from the controls as pink static bolts run across the screen.

Just like that, they are without power.

Icarus sprints across the room and flees elsewhere, spooked by what just happened.

"DAMN IT! THIS ENTIRE SHIP IS MADE OF RUBBISH! I JUST FIXED THE BLOODY LIGHTS!" Tarble can be heard screaming from another room.

"Uh… Raditz?" Turles turns to his brother who is quick to give him an angry glare.

"I didn't do it this time!" Raditz snaps at him.

That answer alone is enough to make everyone turn their attention to Gine, who releases a sigh.

"Damn it, Gine. You caused a blackout again…" Gine tells herself. This must have happened before. She closes her eyes and takes in a deep breath. "Calm down…"

Paragus decides to step away to give her space. He clearly touched a sensitive topic, so the best thing to do is to leave it be. He takes notice of Gine's three sons giving him strange looks, so he just steps back.

His scouter beeps.

He answers it quickly. "What is it?"

"Paragus… you should come here." The voice of Cheelai says. "He's not recovering so well."

For a second, Paragus appears slightly annoyed with the problem. He walks away from the crowd, ignoring the few stares he is getting. Entering the bedrooms, he doesn't walk as far to find where the two set his son.

Broly sits at the edge of his bed, gripping the blankets tightly with his eyes shut. His breathing is heavy as he lightly trembles.

Cheelai stands with Lemo near the doorway. They exchange concerned looks before turning their attention back to Broly.

"How long do you think he can endure it?" Lemo asks as he crosses his arms. "Hate to see him in such pain. He looks genuinely terrified."

"I don't know if he can." Cheelai responds. "Prince Vegeta and Kakarot are here. If I remember what you said…"

"I don't know how long I can keep him down." Paragus walks in, passing between them both. He frowns at Broly's pained-filled expression. "It doesn't help that every now and then he has this nightmares of the past. Ever since we got here I was careful… but to wait too long will do no good. My son, your pain will end very soon… our pain will."

"Huh?" Cheelai frowns. "So does that mean…"

"I've stood by long enough. He's ready, and I have no intentions to keep him waiting much longer."

- 0000 -

After some time, the power is restored. Only the lights and monitor needs repairs. The oven beeps loudly, and Gine slips on a mitten and carefully opens the oven. She pulls out a tray of chocolate chip cookies, and she sets it on top of the stove. After closing the door, she grabs a jar and sets it next to the tray.

ChiChi is taking a rest, sitting in a chair just outside the kitchen. She was feeling lightheaded earlier, and Gine insisted for her to rest. Carrying a baby does a lot to the body, after all.

Kakarot approaches her carefully, resting the back of his hand against her head. She's thankfully not running a fever. He doesn't grasp how illness works for humans, but he does know if can do harm to a growing baby. He learned that when she was carrying Karot. Maybe it's stress that is making her feel so dizzy? After Broly's freak out, he can see it happening.

The sound of cookies filling a jar tears him from his thoughts. The cookies smell pleasant as he watches his mother drop them carefully in the jar. He assumes she must be as much as a good cook as ChiChi and Raditz are. In fact, maybe Gine did teach Raditz how to cook.

"Is she fine?" Turles' question is a bit unexpected. He isn't the type to be so concerned for others but… maybe he's just looking out for other reasons. "You seem a bit worried."

"She's fine so far." Kakarot answers as he steps away. He looks at her with a small smile. "It's a good thing I came just in time, huh?"

"He panicked pretty bad." ChiChi says. "But what worries me even more is the way he looked at me. I recognize those eyes…"

"What do you mean?" Kakarot frowns.

"He was traumatized in the past by something. I know that because you would have the same look…" ChiChi replies.

Raditz crosses his arms. "As much as I hate to admit it… we Saiyans lived through countless battles. But we always have that one experience we can never forget. Whether or not it was in battle, those mental scars cannot be erased. Back when I was a kid… I tried to enter the Death-trap Canyon on Planet Vegeta. It was the home of the Giantulas. I went there to prove to some kids I was no coward back then. But it backfired and one of those creatures nearly killed me. Since that day… I don't do well with arachnids. And ironically… Zhanshitao is an exception."

"So, you're saying that Broly's response to a knife has a link to his past. I get it." Kakarot nods. "But mom seems fine so far. She doesn't have anything to be afraid of aside losing us, I guess?"

Gine closes the jar using a lid, and her hand rests on it as she lowers her head with a sigh.

Kakarot remains quiet. He realizes she can hear him very well. Did he say something he wasn't supposed to? Looking at his brothers, they don't seem to have an idea on what could be on her mind.

"What am I afraid of?" Gine begins as her hand leaves the jar. She is quiet for several seconds, probably lost in her own thoughts. "Getting drawn back to what I abandoned in the first place."

What does that mean? Then again… she was ticked off at Paragus for mentioning a Planet named Mineral. Just as Raditz said… every warrior has one thing they hate to look back to. So maybe that was it for her. He won't ask about it.

Kakarot decides to change the subject. He walks into the kitchen with a smile. "Well, those cookies smell great. You should try one out, mom!"

"Maybe. Not exactly in the mood for anything sweet yet." Gine opens the jar and takes a cookie out. She gives it a good toss, and Raditz catches it between two fingers. "Of course, he always is."

Kakarot opens the oven and peers inside. "Are you going to make anything else?"

"Kakarot. Didn't you just eat not too long ago?" Gine crosses her arms with a small chuckle. She waits until he turns to look at her to go on. "Then again, this shouldn't even surprise me. You can have some cookies, but don't eat them all up. Save them for the others."

"Oh, no. Don't trust him to go inside that jar!" Raditz quickly marches inside the kitchen with his half-eaten cookie. "He'll eat the whole thing and won't even realize it!"

Turles joins his mother's side to take a cookie. He is a bit entertained by how protective Raditz is over the cookies.

"Aw, come on! I won't eat them all! Promise!" Kakarot swears. His words don't convince Raditz at all.

SLAM!

"GAAAAAAH!" Kakarot's eyes widen as terrible pain rips from his tail and through his spine. He spins around and grabs his tail, seeing that the oven door had slammed against it. He pulls it free before it could even begin to cook, and his eyes meet with the giggling culprit.

Yes. Baby Trunks sits at the floor in front of the oven, laughing and clapping his hands. Sometimes it's hard to tell if he does these things on purpose or not.

But where did he come from?

The pain doesn't stop. His tail had touched the burning metal inside, leaving the Saiyan jumping and shouting in pain. It keeps the baby laughing, too. Gine is quick to go in the freezer to grab a pack of ice. ChiChi is lost on how the baby even got inside the kitchen without being noticed.

"Hey! Who told you to come in here?!" Raditz frowns as he picks up the laughing baby. His serious expression doesn't change as the baby grabs his face and keeps laughing. "You need to stop! Our tails are very sensitive, you know!"

"Gaaah-hah! Damn! That hurts…!" Kakarot winches as he steps away from the oven. He looks at the tip of his tail, which is slightly burned. He lightly touches it, and he cries out again. That was a bad idea.

Turles chuckles small. "That's what you get for being greedy."

"I wasn't- ooooow!" Kakarot can't even respond at the moment.

"Here you go." Gine carefully grabs his tail and sets the bag of ice against it. She winches as he cries out in pain again. "Stay still! It will sting for a while, but the ice will help it go away faster! Just let me take care of it! I've dealt with all kinds of burns before!"

"But it hurrrts! You're making it worse!" Kakarot complains.

"Just stay still!" Gine growls as he keeps moving.

"No! Leave it alone!"

"Stay still!"

BONK!

"Ow! What was that for?!"

As the commotion goes on, it annoys Vegeta who growls and tries to focus on fixing the monitor. However, his attention is drawn towards the bedrooms as he feels something amiss.

Inside the rooms, the pained cries of Kakarot can still be heard. Cheelai and Lemo are quick to step away as Broly shuts his eyes even tighter. Their scouters fill the air with their endless beeping. They grow nervous as they look back at Paragus.

"Now I remember…" Paragus frowns. "Broly? Listen to me. Focus. Focus on me."

But Broly is struggling. He shakes his head as his breathing becomes unstable. His mouth opens and slowly, he rises. "The… screaming… the pain…"

"Broly… no, Broly." Paragus warns him.

"It was all… all because… Ka… Kaka… Kakarot…" Broly trembles as his eyes slowly open. "Because of… Kakarot…! Kakarot…!"

Paragus reaches for his cape, and he freezes as he finds nothing. "What the… I just had it! The remote! Where is the- damn it! I must had replaced it! I won't be able to stop him from going berserk against-"

Broly snarls heavily and roars angrily; "KAKAROOOOOOT!"

Gine freezes in an instant as she looks towards the direction the angry voice came from. She carefully releases Kakarot's tail, and she stepped in front of him. Her eyes narrow slightly as she speaks to herself. "This is where your vision started, right Bardock…?"

Kakarot narrows his eyes, somewhat forgetting about the pain. "What vision? Are you-" His words are cut off as he feels a powerful spike of energy. He hears the two soldiers accompanying Broly shouting. They arrive at the doorway and try to block it out, only to be blown away by an unseen force.

Stepping out slowly is Broly, who is walking towards the group of Saiyans. He wears a snarl, looking directly at Kakarot.

"What did you do?" Raditz asks Kakarot, a bit confused.

"Nothing! I don't know why he's mad at me!" Kakarot shouts. "But I told you, didn't I?! That something just didn't feel right!"

"Well, you always had a good intuition." Raditz frowns.

From the information room and outside, other warriors race to the main room. They all picked up the energy, and now they see the source. The Z-Fighters appear nervous by what they feel. The Saiyans on the other hand are in disbelief. Their attention is drawn to Paragus who sprints out the room.

"Easy, Broly! Easy!" Paragus manages to keep Broly from taking another step. Having all attention drawn to him now, he clenches his teeth. He is expected to have an explanation.

"You there! What is going on?!" Vegeta demands for answers. His eyes meet with Paragus, narrowing heavily.

Broly's eyes turn to Vegeta. He growls low before looking at Kakarot again. He clenches his fists tight, struggling to stay in one place as his body shakes in anger.

Nappa isn't liking the silence. "Vegeta just asked you a question, so it's best if you answer! The hell is happening here?! You never told us your son there has such power!"

Seeing that he is cornered, Paragus sighs. "Well, there's no point in keeping it silent for a moment longer. Especially since he's finally eager for his destined fight."

"What?" Tarble frowns. "Destined? What are you going on about? Get straight to the point."

Paragus huffs. "I was hoping he would keep his temper under control for a while longer, but considering the fact he is in the same place where Kakarot and Vegeta are… I can't blame him for getting angry. It's true that we searched far and wide for you, Vegeta, but not because we want to be kissing your boots. We waited for so long to get our vengeance for what you royals had done to us!"

His attitude changed quickly.

"What?" Tarble is somewhat confused. What could he have possibly done? Or maybe it doesn't involve him?

Vegeta's eyes narrow as he crosses his arms. "I don't remember ever seeing you. Why does this involve me?"

"Your father - King Vegeta the Third - he sent us out for death, all because he was so scared of my son's potential. Because he was so jealous that my son was born far stronger than you." Paragus explains, earning a few odd looks. "Because it wounded his pride knowing such a warrior existed that was immediately stronger than him! Broly here… was born with a power level of 10,000!"

Nappa clearly knows what he is talking about, from the look on his face.

"10,000?!" Vegeta's eyes widen in disbelief. "Wait a minute- you mean that Saiyan there was who I heard my father ranting about?!"

Raditz seems just as shocked. "I heard about it… but I didn't think we would actually run into him! I thought he died when our planet was destroyed!"

"Well, you thought wrong, Raditz." Paragus frowns. "The king tried to kill us. He personally went over to my son to kill him, and with a dagger out of all things! Broly could have easily went unnoticed since I asked the doctors to stay quiet until I could convince the king myself. But no, that Saiyan there wouldn't shut up with his endless crying! His weak power already brought attention, and he lured so much of it to my son!"

"Huh?" Kakarot sees that a finger is pointed at him. "You're saying all of this is my fault? I was just a baby! It's not like I could help it!"

Karot looks at his father with a slight glare. The child must be thinking all bad things are his fault at this point.

"Not only that." Paragus growls. "When the word went out because of that, the king was intimidated. He was afraid that my son would grow up and take away his throne. So after he tried to execute my son, he gave me the same treatment when I tried to protest! That king… was nothing more than a coward. He threw us away in a garbage dumb to die and rot away. Ironically, it was the same day our planet met its end. Somehow… miraculously, my son managed to pull us out of orbit in time before we got caught in the destruction. When we woke up on a barren world… we were stranded ever since, until we meet these two kind strangers who pulled us out."

Cheelai and Lemo sit up and rub their heads. Seeing eyes on them, they quickly rise and run off to the bedrooms.

Nappa frowns. "Now that you mention it… I do remember seeing your face when you argued with the king."

Vegeta sneers at this. "Why should I care what my father did to you? It doesn't involve me. I didn't make the decision to execute anyone at the time. I was merely five years old old."

"I had wanted my revenge for so long. Since the king is dead, what better way to get revenge than to target his entitled son?" Paragus frowns. "It seems gaining your trust is impossible, and it proves to be a waste of time. Kakarot here just spoiled my plans, but oh well. It seems Broly has his own."

The mentioned Saiyan takes a step forward, growling heavily.

Kakarot turns to Raditz. "I knew these guys couldn't be trusted. But they've been holding a grudge."

"Tch. Now I see why Zhanshitao attacked him." Raditz may have to consider apologizing to the creature later.

Gine frowns. "King Vegeta made a lot of enemies due to his selfish decisions. I always knew one of them would come back and bite us. But not like this."

"Well, it seems trusting you was rather foolish. We figured since we are all Saiyans here… you would want to stick around with what is left of your kind." Tarble says. "I can't blame you for wanting revenge, but this is no wise decision."

Broly takes a step forward, breathing hard. Paragus looks at him, seeing his struggle.

Kakarot is quick to slip into a fighting stance the second his eyes meet with Broly's again. The other warriors do the same to prepare themselves.

"Seems like he can't wait a moment longer. All of you are fools if you think you can stop this. Today is the result of your selfish king!" Paragus throws his hand forward, sending his order. "Broly! Attack the Saiyan!"

Broly releases a scream full of fury. In an instant, Broly rockets forward towards his target.

Kakarot's eyes widen, and he quickly grabs Broly's arm in time to save himself from being punched. He is pushed back against the wall, and he kicks Broly back and flips over his body. He ducks in time to avoid another punch.

"What?!" Paragus wasn't expecting this. "Not Kakarot! Vegeta!"

"You really aren't smart, are you?" Kauli asks him. Once he faces her, she goes on. "You tell us your true motives and you expect us to just let you stand there after that? You're in trouble."

Paragus chuckles small as the warriors walk closer to him. He takes a step back. "Of course I know that one of you is going to try to kill me. But all of you are laughable."

"Let me guess. You used your scouter against us." Vegeta crosses his arms. "Didn't it ever cross your mind that maybe we were holding back?"

Kakarot jumps back quickly, and he crosses his arms across his face to block a punch. It has a lot of impact behind it. The best thing to do now is to study his opponent first before he makes his first move.

Paragus blinks. "Holding back?"

"I'll show you just how much of an imbecile you really are!" Vegeta clenched his fists, and in seconds, his energy engulfs him and swirls around him.

"The hell…?!" Paragus' eyes widen as his scouter begins to measure the growing power. "Vegeta's power-level… ten-thousand… fifteen-thousand… th-thirty-thousand?! One-hundred- what? What?!"

He takes several steps back as only a blank line flashes on his screen. A long beep drags on.

"The scouter couldn't read it any higher…! Nine-hundred ninety-nine thousand…! That's the highest it can read! They've held back this much?!" Paragus realizes… any one of them could have killed him in an instant if they wanted to.

"You said you came here to get revenge because of my father. I'm afraid there will be no such thing happening here." Vegeta glares at Kakarot, who is constantly trying not to get hit. "Move aside, Kakarot! This Saiyan is mine!"

"Huh?" Kakarot ducks his head in time to avoid an incoming kick from the Saiyan prince. It strikes Broly square on the face, but he doesn't even budge.

"What?!" Vegeta and Kakarot are both surprised by this result.

Broly snarls as he grabs Vegeta's ankle. He throws the prince to the ground and roars as he throws a fist down at him. Vegeta rolls out the way in time to avoid becoming part of the hole left on the floor. Broly turns and nearly lands a punch against Kakarot.

Kakarot jumps back at the same time Vegeta distanced himself from the angry Saiyan. Spreading his legs and bending his knees, Kakarot lowers one fist as he narrows his eyes, judging his next move.

Gine glares at Paragus. "You've chose the wrong time to fight! We already have enough going on! We need everyone alive!"

"That's exactly what I told the king. But he didn't listen. He just blasted me away." Paragus growls. "Nothing can change my mind now. Unlike you, I didn't run away from my past."

"Are we still having that conversation?" Gine asks bitterly. "Listen to me, everyone. This fight is dangerous. We need everyone's combined efforts to stop Broly before it's too late!"

"Huh? What do you know?" Nappa asks.

Future Trunks has an idea. "He was born with a power level of 10,000 right? If he was a newborn that strong… imagine how strong he could be now. She has a point. The last time we didn't try hard enough, Cell reached his perfect form. We still have to fight him, so we can't afford to let Broly become an overwhelming threat when we have one already!"

"The teen makes a good point." Tien agrees. "Our combined efforts should be enough to stop it before it goes bad. This Paragus guy isn't the threat here."

"We can't get too careless…" Yamcha reminds everyone.

Tarble huffs. "Well then, let's not repeat history and deal with it now!" He flies forward, and the others have the same idea.

Kauli looks at ChiChi. "You might want to take the baby and run somewhere you won't get hurt. I don't have a clue how this will end up."

ChiChi steps back a few times before she picks up Baby Trunks and retreats to the back of the ship. "Why does a threat have to be an everyday thing?! Just when I thought I had a break!"

Krillin turns to Launch. "You might want to do the same."

Launch frowns. "I had enough crazy Saiyan today. Don't think I'm going because I'm a coward!" She walls off to join ChiChi.

Paragus laughs at the warriors. "You may be stronger than me, but my son is capable of wiping anyone out who stands in the way! Anyone who interferes with our vengeance will meet the same fate your prince will have!"

Vegeta rockets forward, and he throws another punch that strikes Broly on the side of his head. He delivers more punches in a frenzy, inching Broly back with each blow. His next punch is caught, and he finds himself being swung towards Kakarot who jumps over him to avoid being struck down.

Once his feet touches the ground, Kakarot springs forward and strikes Broly square on the chest, pushing him back. Seeing he is the main target, he sprints around him and outside quickly. "Hey, Broly! Come get me out here!"

As the Saiyan flies out the ship, Broly chases after him quickly. Vegeta jumps to his feet, not pleased by this at all. "I already told you that this is clearly my fight!"

"That's right, Vegeta! This is for you!" Paragus laughs as he watches Kakarot and Broly fly around each other in the sky.

As Vegeta flies out, the others follow suit, excluding Raditz and Turles who were about to move. They realize their mother hasn't moved an inch.

"Mom? You're staying here?" Raditz is a bit concerned. He grows puzzled as he noticed her glancing where ChiChi ran off. "Right. I get it… maybe it's best if you stay here."

Turles agrees. "If Broly is as strong as Raditz's kid says… this fight isn't meant for you. You don't like to fight, so we won't pull you into this mess." He turns to Raditz. "Let's go and stop this quickly. He's giving me a bad feeling."

The pair flies out the ship as well. Paragus watches them go and turns to Gine. "I'm not surprised. But it may just be wise to stay here. After all, I would hate for someone who isn't fighting to get caught in the crossfire. You intend to protect them."

Gine opens her mouth, but a loud voice invades her head.

"Hello! Hello?!"

Gine gasps as she looks towards the ceiling. 'King Kai?'

Gine simply turns and walks away towards the bedrooms where ChiChi fled to. But, she doesn't answer, keeping her eye on Paragus. "I hear you, but I have to talk low. I don't need anyone eavesdropping."

"Good! I reached you!" King Kai responds pleasantly. It doesn't last long, because he suddenly screams out; "WHY DO YOU HAVE THAT MONSTER AMONG YOU RIGHT NOW?!"

Gine winches and covers her ears. "Don't shout! I told you that my ears are sensitive! What monster are you referring to? You mean Broly?"

"Yes! YES! HIM! I thought I felt something amiss on Earth! What were you thinking, taking him in like that?! Don't you know how dangerous he is? You're endangering the entire galaxy!" King Kai scolds her. "You went to Earth to keep it from falling apart! I thought you knew better!"

Gine hits the side of her head with a single hand. His angry voice has her ears ringing. "Listen. I know and heard much about Broly. But from what I've seen, he's not some twisted or evil being as you assume he is. He has an unfathomable power, but it's the type he cannot control."

"Yes! The very same power that destroyed another galaxy!" King Kai pauses, and he seems to catch on something. "Don't tell me you are planning to keep him! That's throwing your life away! I mean, you're already dead, but that's the worst! Don't you know what happens when the dead dies while in the living world?!"

"I know what happens." Gine says. "But I promise you that I know what I am doing."

"Hard to believe. You Saiyans think so recklessly!" King Kai responds. "All you've done since you arrived on Earth was stand around! You realize you could have killed Cell a long time ago, but you never took that chance! It doesn't sound like you are trying to save Earth!"

"If Earth gets destroyed, then so be it." Gine responds. "But it will only happen if everyone fails to cooperate. I already told you that I know what I am doing. If I jumped in when there was an open window, then me being here would be a waste of time."

"You expect the Saiyans to get along with everyone else. That idea alone is near impossible to achieve." King Kai doubts her words. "They can't even get along with each other!"

"I know what I am-"

"Alright, alright! You said it twice already!" King Kai shouts, annoyed with her already. "But why aren't you doing anything?!"

"Interfering won't allow anything to unfold." Gine says.

After a few seconds, he grows angry. "Listen here, you crazy Saiyan! Unlike your kind, the rest of the world wanted that freak gone a long time ago! And now you're allowing another threat to roam around that is capable of doing more than destroying Earth! You're throwing your training away! ChiChi gets a pass, because she's having a baby! But you have no excuses for allowing things to turn out this bad!"

"It can wait." Gine says.

"No! I've waited long enough! You are going to clean this up!"

"You realize that if-"

"I AM THE KING KAAAAI!"

Gine winches again, clawing at her ears that ring even worse now. After a few seconds, she lowers her arms and sighs. "My sons can handle Broly."

"But as long as Paragus has bad intent, you might as well forget trying to save that crazy Saiyan! You can't always stand aside! If you don't deal with this now, then you might as well forget about saving your sons and everyone around them! Do you understand the pressure you are putting here?!"

"... Yes. I do." Gine answers reluctantly. "You have a point. I figured you would talk to me, which is why I stayed behind. I needed a bit of convincing."

"What?"

"I had the same lecture from my husband." Gine says. "You don't have to worry. I'll be fine. They will be fine."

"Then stop playing bystander and do something!"

The connection breaks, and Gine places a hand on her head. She is never going to get used to his yelling, that's for sure.

She peers inside the rooms. She doesn't see ChiChi or Launch, so it's obvious the women hid in the deepest part of the room. Slowly, she shuts the door and turns back to Paragus, who was watching her carefully.

She hopes he didn't hear her. But he must be thinking she is crazy since it appears she was talking to herself.

Paragus tilts his head slightly as she approached him. "Seems you were having a debate with yourself. So you decided to join the others?"

"And leave you here alone? Sorry. I don't trust you being here. You might do harm to my daughter-in-law. I won't forgive myself if that happens." Gine answers.

"I don't know how your mind works…" Paragus is confused.

Gine frowns. "To be frank, I had no intentions to get involved with any fighting that isn't my business in the first place. The idea is to make oil and water work."

"So you'll just stand on the sidelines while everyone else gets reduced to paste. It may be smart, but at the same time… you seem okay with your children dying."

"A parent knows their children best. You are well aware of what your son can do. I know what my own can. I know they will find a way to handle your son. From my eyes, he's confused and hurt. I sensed no evil intent from him." Gine explains. "I'll tell you a secret: Bardock and I had a conversation earlier today."

"What? Bardock?" Paragus blinks. "But I heard he was killed by Frieza. He survived?"

"No. He didn't. But that's not what this conversation is about." Gine responds. "He was concerned for me. He said you would be a problem. Then, a loud voice in my head said the same thing. You're making me step out of my comfort zone, and I don't like it."

"Hm?" Paragus looks at her funny. What she said doesn't make sense to him. "I thought protecting those you care for is in your nature."

"That's not what I am talking about." Gine replies slowly as she spreads her feet. She bends her knees as she curls her fingers. Slightly lowering her head, she has one hand positioned lower than the other.

"That looks like Raditz's fighting stance." Paragus notes.

"Wrong. He uses my fighting stance. Did you think Bardock had time to mentor him when he was out doing military jobs all the time? Someone had to pull him from using his nails and teeth in battle."

"So stepping out of your comfort zone means… I see now. So while everyone else fights Broly, you're challenging me!" Paragus nearly laughs. "That's amusing!"

"You think I'm being funny?"

Gine's angry tone stops his laughter immediately. Paragus sees just how serious she is. "You're serious? What makes you think you can fight me? You slacked off all this time while I kept training everyday. You quit fighting a year before Raditz was born!"

Gine gives him an answer. "It's a mother's duty to protect her children. No matter what it takes. You are a threat to mine, so I'll fight today. It's a good thing no one is around, since I never planned to fight this soon."

Paragus growls. "You think you alone can stop me?"

Gine answers; "I don't think. I know. Mother's intuition."

Paragus sees just how stubborn she is. "You won't let me pass."

"That's right."

"Well, Gine I hope you aren't too rusty, because this I have somewhere to be." Paragus throws his first punch, and it is blocked by a forearm immediately. He throws another, and his fist is pushed aside. His attacks become faster, and he is surprised by just how quickly she is blocking them. 'What? How is she keeping up?'

"Judging from the look on your face, you must had assumed I would be a pushover." Gine frowns.

"Well, now I know not to toy with you. Get out of the way!" Paragus throws a heavier and faster punch, and it hits her square against the chest. While she was pushed back, he kicks her legs, forcing her to bend slightly. He lands a chop across her face, followed by another, and his final blow knocks her against the wall.

Gine growls lightly as she rises, rubbing her face. "Ow… that hurts…" She looks at him, appearing more annoyed than ever. "I'll keep you here as long as it takes. Don't think you overwhelmed me. I just started!"

The pair lunge at each other, exchanging several blows. Attacks are blocked and dodged as both sides try to land a single hit. After several seconds, Paragus is annoyed with Gine's attempts to stall. He swats her fist away and lands a heavy blow that makes her freeze due to pain. A kick against her chest forces her to stumble back.

"You clearly don't know what you got yourself into!" Paragus exclaims as he locks his hands together. He throws them down, and it strikes her directly against her head. As soon as she hits the ground, he snatches her up and throws her across the room.

Gine crashes through a table, snapping it in half as she hits the ground again. She groans and pushes herself to her hands and knees. "That also hurt…"

There is a distant glow that catches her attention.

Gine lifts her head, and she sees the flow is coming from an energy blaster. She lunges out the way in time to avoid being shot. She rolls over again to avoid another round. "You saw how I can handle guns, so why bother trying using that?!" She knocks a chair from the floor using her foot, and she kicks it forward, sending it flying towards Paragus.

Paragus catches the chair quickly, and he is surprised when a kitchen knife flies out of nowhere and stabs through the gun, knocking it off his hand. The knife stabs the wall, leaving the gun hanging as a silly decorative.

Now that he sees it still, that was actually a butter knife.

Gine lowers her hand, setting a fork down.

Paragus is surprised by how powerful her throwing strength is. It doesn't keep him still for very long. He glances outside, having other plans. He tosses the chair aside and steps towards the exit. However, Gine jumps from where she stood to get in the way.

"I already told you I won't let you reach him. You will have to deal with me. Sorry." Gine reminds him.

"Fair enough. I was just making sure that is what I have to do." Paragus charges forward and throws a punch she dodges, but he predicts her next move, landing a blow against her head just as she moves it to her right. He dodges two of her punches and laughs. "Seriously?!"

Gine finds herself being battered by his constant attacks. She is unable to keep up with his movements, and blocking is clumsy. She fails to stop most of his attacks from hitting her. Her head is forced to turn harshly as a heavy strike hits her left cheek. Her body flips one way, and she hits the ground again. She pushes herself to her knees, looking at Paragus who walks towards her.

She rubs her mouth with the back of her hand, and she sees the blood smeared there.

She's bleeding? Already? Great.

There is so much pain throbbing across her body. She isn't used to feeling so much at once. Her body shudders as she breathes in. Her body feels hotter than normal. The pain each blow left makes the feelings worse.

'Looks like I've been too lazy.' Gine notes to herself as she steadily stands.

"Gine… what the hell are you doing?" The voice of Bardock nearly scares her for coming out of the blue. "I know you lost your will to fight a long time ago, but I need you to find it right now! You're fighting for a good reason!"

"Don't worry. I was just caught by surprise. It's been a minute, you should know." Gine answers as she resumes her fighting stance. "I can't just jump right into it…"

"Then stop embarrassing yourself and pull yourself together! You're throwing your training away!"

"Urgh. You sound like King Kai." Gine grumbles as she keeps her focus on her opponent. "But the both of you are right. It's okay. I'm ready now. I already knew… I would have to fight eventually."

The conversation seems to end there. Mainly because her opponment is close again.

Paragus stops walking as he spreads his feet apart. "You have your tricks, but they do so little for you. It was nice to see you try. But I have things to do."

"What did I just say?" Gine asks him firmly, sounding like a mother scolding her child. It does stop Paragus, though he does look confused. "I said… you're not going anywhere."

Clenching her fists, she slowly rises them near her head. Squatting down, she pulls her fists near her hips as her energy begins to flow. "Haaaa…."

The ground begins to tremble due to her growing power. The trembling worsens within seconds.

Paragus looks around as the ship begins to shake. Immediately, his scouter begins to do its job. "Wait a minute…!"

Inside the bedrooms, ChiChi holds the giggling Baby Trunks close to her as she feels the unnatural earthquake. The lamps sitting on the desk shake and rattle.

Launch presses her hands against the floor. "Gah! What the hell is going on here?! I thought saying here will keep us from being crushed alive!"

ChiChi is the only one calm about this. "Looks like Gine finally made up her mind. Then again… she's fighting for the sake of her sons. That is what she told me."

Oolong and Paur cling on to each other in panic. Poor Zhanshitao is still inside his cage, screeching in panic as a pile of books fall from a table top. Icarus hides under a bed, trembling in fear.

"What?" Cheelai looks at ChiChi in disbelief. "You mean that female Saiyan is fighting him with every intention to stop him?! She can't do that!"

Lemo doesn't like this. "Paragus has went through a lot, and he did a lot of good for us. We heard much about King Vegeta. What he did to Paragus and his son is unforgivable."

"I agree with you that it was all wrong." ChiChi says. "But for him to hold on to such hatred for so long… it probably already ate him alive. Sometimes, vengeance can do more harm than good to someone."

"Huh?" Lemo looks at her.

"Paragus has his reasons… but he allowed his hatred to blind him. I've seen what happens when hate corrupts someone. This may just destroy us… which is why Gine is trying to keep him away from his son as much as possible."

Cheelai just stares at the door angrily. "I don't want Paragus to lose… but at the same time… I don't want him to lose himself. I mean, he wanted this for years and it's finally happening! But he's been so obsessed with it… I don't know what to do."

Lemo shakes his head. "Paragus isn't a pushover himself. I doubt that Gine could do much to stop him."

"You're talking about Goku's mother, aren't ya?" Launch frowns. "She owes me two new guns!"

A book hits the floor near her, kicking up dust that goes right up her nose. Launch cringed and shuts her eyes as her nose twitches from the itch. "Ah… ah…! ACHOO!"

Her body shutters, and she goes from blonde to blue hair in an instant. This alone surprises the present aliens.

"Oh, thank goodness! The nice Launch is back!" Oolong shouts. "Quick! Dust up the room before she goes blonde again!"

Launch blinks and looks around, a bit clueless. Feeling the room shake, she becomes nervous. "Oh, dear. What's happening now? Did the Saiyan mother get angry or something?"

After a few seconds, the pair of soldiers exchange glances. They quickly check their scouters. Within a few seconds, a reading is picked up, and the devices beep.

"What…?" Cheelai gasps. "Her power level… it's…"

"The outcome isn't easy to see now…" Lemo grumbles.

ChiChi narrows her eyes. "You clearly never saw an angry mother in action before."

"Huh?" Cheelai and Lemo exchange glances again.

After building up for several seconds, Gine snarls and releases a shout. "HA! AaaaaAAAAAAAAAAH!"

(5) She throws her head back as she releases a battle cry that can be heard through the ship. Her energy engulfs her and flows upward as a powerful gust. It blows away stray chairs and any small items littered across the floor.

Paragus just stares at her as his scouter keeps measuring. Hearing her scream like that threw him off. "She was holding back all this time as well?!"

Gine lowers her head once she stops her shouting performance. Her hair and tail move along with the breeze from her flowing energy as she looks at her opponent. Her eyes are filled with determination now.

"21,000…" Paragus narrows his eyes as his scouter is locked on to the female. "To think once it was at 1,000. Seems we are evenly matched."

Gine doesn't say anything, but she takes note how he didn't lie about his training. Seems he made it personal to train himself in case he had to face Vegeta himself. It could had worked five years ago.

To see how much he relies on the scouter… It's hilarious.

He hasn't learned from Vegeta's example, clearly.

"So, the real Gine finally decides to come out." Paragus is impressed. "It's been years since I saw that expression on your face. Well then, let's see what you can do!" He attacks with a quick chop. However, it doesn't land. Gine vanishes out of sight. "What the?!"

Just as he turns around, she reappears right there.

"She's fast!" Paragus blocks her oncoming punch, and he tilts his head to avoid another.

Gine huffs, and she jumps forward as she swings one arm, landing a chop across his face. Another hits his chest, and she jabs her fingers against the same area, making him stumble.

Paragus throws his arm out to block an expecting chop, but what he didn't expect was to be kneed against the stomach. The heavy blow makes him bend over just enough for her to successfully land an ax kick that throws his head back.

Gine keeps her distance close. Once her foot touches the ground, she throws another high kick using her other leg that strikes his chest. She steps forward and switches legs again, sending another one. It is followed by another, and another.

Paragus clearly is surprised by this. The blows are heavy, heavier than what she was delivering before. 'She's fighting like that now?! I forgot she tends to use her legs more! I see where her eldest gets in from!'

Gine's boot strikes his head, and she throws the same leg back down. Her heel strikes the top of his head, and forces him to the ground.

Paragus lifts his head, and his eyes meet with a foot swinging his way. He is kicked from the ground and sent flying out the ship, crashing on the grass outside.

Gine walks out, resuming her fighting stance. Her breathing picked up in speed, so clearly it's been a while. 'I can't stand him. He's bringing back these feelings I'm starting to dread. Maybe this was a bad idea…'

Paragus pushes himself to his hands and knees. He shakes his head before getting back to his feet.

'He's back up like nothing happened! Anyone else would be frustrated or feel cornered.' Gine smiles nervously as she adjusts her footing. She lowers herself a bit more, carefully watching for his next move. 'Gine… you haven't fought like this in so long… You expected to be fine? Well… you are scared because of this sensation right here!'

Paragus rubs his mouth, realizing she had already drawn blood. "So… looks like you haven't given up entirely. Raditz fights just like you. You taught him very well."

"Thank you. Glad you noticed. I do recall you watching him fight from time to time." Gine says.

"But the student far surpassed the master. Which means to me, you're not so much of a threat! Even if you powered up!" Paragus jumps forward again, and after missing a few hits, he lands several that strike her across her body.

Gine grunts as she is struck across the face. She catches the next punch and chops him across the same area. She kicks him back and jumps, locking her legs around his neck and throwing him to the ground.

Even after that, he still rises. He seems to be experiencing pain, but not enough.

Gine shuts her eyes. "Why do you have to be so stubborn…? I hate that." She clenches her fists as her lips twitch. "I forgot how this makes me feel…"

The pair attack each other again. They block each other's attack and stand their ground, trying to overwhelm their other with strength.

'Looks like I've underestimated her.' Paragus notes to himself as he struggles against her push. He releases her and jumps back before throwing a kick.

Gine winches as she is struck on her right side. Despite the painful blows, and the throbbing bruises she is already feeling… it doesn't slow her down at all. 'I haven't felt this in so long… and it scares me.'

She chuckles small at just how ironic it is.

The gap is closed between them, and the pair are trading blows. Their attacks move fast in a blur, until Gine lands an uppercut that forces Paragus' head to swing back.

She hops to one foot and curls her fingers. Leaning back and twisting her body, her heel strikes the left side of his neck. She switches legs and swings her foot forward, landing the next kick directly against his face. Seeing how effectively her attacks land, and just how much she improved…

This sensation is making it impossible for her to remain still. Her body wants to move. Her instincts demand for her to keep going.

Paragus keeps his footing this time. He rubs his face using his arm, and he gets into a defensive stance. He releases a small chuckle, amused by the expression forming on her face. "It's been a long time since you felt it, hasn't it?"

She almost forgot how it feels. It's insane to her on just how quickly the buried instincts surfaced. Sometimes she hates it… how fighting is in a Saiyan's blood. Each movement in combat just felt so natural to her.

And the fact Paragus isn't going down to her so easily…

Curse him for being so stubborn.

'What scares me… ' Her lips stop twitching, and they part away, forming a grin. She charges forward again. '... is just how this excitement flows through me!'

- 0000 -

Wearing the same grin is Kakarot.

He never felt energy like this before. Every part of him demands for him to fight against this new foe. Someone who has extraordinary power. An incredible opponent. Sometimes, his Saiyan instincts to fight can get him in trouble.

And a part of him knows this fight is going to be one of them.

Vegeta flies around Broly, looking for an opening. As soon as he finds it, he goes for it, throwing a punch that lands directly against Broly's left side.

Broly growls and swings at Vegeta who floats away. Kakarot notices Broly looking at him now, and he quickly blocks the punch he sends. It's much stronger. Is he imagining things, or?

His thoughts are interrupted as his head is knocked back by a headbutt. Kakarot floats back quickly and dodges a few punches before taking a few.

That's it.

Kakarot grins wider. "You're a strong one, aren't you? Crazy to know we were in the same nursery! It's a small universe!" He sends his own punch that knocks Broly back. It becomes a frenzy that Broly seems to be struggling to counter now. Kakarot is pouring more power behind his attacks. However, Vegeta cuts in front of him and kicks Broly back. "Hey!"

Raditz and Turles arrive at the scene. They stay afloat, watching Kakarot and Vegeta flying in and attacking Broly in turns. But really, they are trying to fight him for themselves.

"Is this really the time?!" Future Trunks joins his father's side, annoyed with what he is seeing. He decides to join the fray, not wanting to take any chances.

Nappa and Tarble join the growing crowd. It's Tarble who speaks up. "This is unusual. I don't know how to feel about this."

"What is it?" Kauli floats over to them, curious.

"You see it?" Nappa says. "The way Broly is fighting… it's like he never fought against anyone before. He looks a bit panicked since he has three people attacking him at once."

"How is that possible?" Kauli frowns. "You can't possibly get crazy strong without enough experience."

"Something tells me this particular Saiyan is already finding his way around it." Nappa frowns.

Broly looks around in several directions as the three warriors attack. He swings his arms around as if they are annoying flies. Vegeta lands a punch. Kakarot lands one. Future Trunks lands a kick, he has enough. With a mighty scream, Broly expands his energy and blows the three away from him. His eyes shift until they lock on Kakarot again.

"KAKAROOOT!"

Kakarot flips back quickly as Broly attacks him again. The attacks are much faster, and Kakarot is forced to shield himself again, only to be kicked against his legs which knocks him off balance. "Huh?"

Broly chops his arms free, and he lands a punch against his face.

Kakarot grits his teeth and he growls in pain. It's becoming harder to dodge now. Eventually, he finds himself being hit more than two times in a row until he is being treated like a punching bag. It stops as Future Trunks flies in and snatches Broly's arm, but he is swung against Vegeta who was coming in. The pair are pushed aside.

"Just as I thought." Nappa notes as he seems ready to charge in. "He's learning as he fights!"

"What? He's adapting that quickly?!" Raditz is surprised. He never heard anyone doing that in battle so easily before.

Broly snags Kakarot's leg and pulled him towards him. He slams his fist against Kakarot's face. Releasing his leg, his heavy hits constantly strike Kakarot's abdomen. It ends abruptly when a sudden burst of energy blows him back.

Kakarot screams out as his aura turns golden, and he is in his Super Saiyan form. His turquoise eyes fall on Broly's, who are widening in surprise. "For you to push me this far… I can see why King Vegeta didn't like you very much."

Broly slowly floats back, not familiar with what he is seeing. He must feel the change in the atmosphere due to his hesitation to attack. Once he flies in, he is outmatched by Kakarot's increased speed. The Saiyan disappears before his eyes, making him stop to look for him.

"Over here!"

Broly turns around, and his face is met with a boot.

"Kakarot went Super Saiyan. That's not good." Kauli looks at Raditz. "Right?"

"I don't like this." Raditz says. "A part of me is impressed by his power. But another is growing uneasy by just how quickly it is growing now. Even now, it still grows."

"It seems his instincts are guiding him." Tarble notes.

Vegeta growls, knowing exactly what is going on. "That Saiyan there is strong enough to push Kakarot to go Super Saiyan?" Within seconds, Vegeta adapts the same golden form. He joins the battle again, throwing a punch in time with Kakarot's. To his surprise, they both land the same punch against Broly's chest, knocking him back. "Damn it, Kakarot! Get out the way!"

"He attacked me first! It's only natural that I get to fight him first!" Kakarot protests.

"You don't order me around, low-class!" Vegeta flies ahead of Kakarot to engage in the battle again. Kakarot doesn't let the gap between them stretch long.

Broly finds himself cornered as the pair of Super Saiyans attack him constantly. What he can't block hurts to take. Broly is knocked back several feet by a single punch alone. Taking so many back-to-back worsens the experience for him. His cries are full of pain and confusion.

Kakarot and Vegeta fly side by side now. They begin to try to push the other back, trying to reach Broly before the other. At the same time, they continue to attack Broly when they can.

Future Trunks flies between them in his Super Saiyan form as his hands move in a fast motion. The teen forms a diamond with his fingers. "Burning Attack!"

A massive and explosive orange blast strikes Broly and sends him flying back. His cries can be heard as he crashes through the ground.

Future Trunks turns and glares at the bickering pair. "Sorry for barging in, but remember the last time we fought amongst ourselves while facing a power up opponent?!"

Kakarot blinks before he looks at the hope on the ground Broly is inside. "Well, it's not like I was trying to hog up the fight. Vegeta was the one who barged in when Broly was after me."

"This fight is none of your business, you idiot! That's the only reason why I pushed you aside!" Vegeta protests.

"Come on! Can we not right now?!" Future Trunks shouts again.

Within the hole, Broly struggles to do as much as crawl out. Once his fingers grip the rim, he pulls himself out with a low growl. His body is trembling as his eyes locked on the trio that sent him there. He is on his feet in seconds, and he gasps as he placed his hands against his head. He grips his hair, and he roars out a loud cry that silences everyone.

That's when they all feel it.

Broly's screaming is interrupted by his heavy gasps as he steps forward clumsily, shaking his head around. His flowing aura turns into a light green. He slowly lowers his hands, which shake uncontrollably as the fingers curl. His eyes appear feral now, as the irises show a dangerous red color.

"He lost all sense of reason!" Nappa announces quickly. "He's fallen to his primal mindset!"

Raditz's eyes widen as he recalls Kakarot in the same state when he was swallowed by rage. It happened at least three times. Once against Recoome. Again against that Mercenary Tao. The most recent was against that horrible Chille. His eyes had that same exact look.

And they say when they turn red, a Saiyan is consumed by the same instincts they have when they are in their Oozaru form. As long as they don't glow, there is no need to worry about a transformation, but the mental state alone is dangerous…

"That means his attacks are even more unpredictable. Just great." Vegeta glares at Future Trunks. "You should have stayed out of the damn way!"

"Yeah, but explain to us why the hell his energy is the color of a highlighter instead of gold!" Kauli points a finger, desperately needing an explanation. She is right about how abnormal it is. The only time they saw aura change color among them is when someone goes Super Saiyan.

Vegeta looks back at Broly, appearing clueless now. Even he has no answer for that.

Kakarot feels his excitement turning into concern. Seeing Broly fall into that state alone… he's getting a bad feeling now.

Broly takes heavy steps forward as he looks up at the sky. He locates the flying warriors, and he releases a roar as his aura doubles in size, stretching many times his height as the ground trembles below his feet. He appears to be bulking up. The air is blowing powerfully, and his energy…

"Y'all." Kauli nearly forgets how to breathe. From the tone in her voice, she was hit with something mentally heavy. "I think I just figured out how to sense energy…"

"Shit. That's not good." Raditz responds as he stares at the enraged Saiyan. "That confirms it. What I am feeling isn't just me after all. He's…"

Turles narrows his eyes. "What kind of monster are we dealing with if he can keep up with a Super Saiyan?"

Karot stiffen, and in an instant, he transforms into a Super Saiyan as well. There is no time to stand around or be angry at anyone else. In order to survive, he will have to put in his efforts combined with everyone else's.

Nappa gets into a fighting stance quickly, seeing just how quickly the situation turned bleak. The other warriors catch on and do the same.

Tarble frowns. "Seems the Saiyan needs help. With so much power… he doesn't know how to control it. How troubling. Why does my father have to bring us such a burden?"

Raditz clenches his fists and throws them down. He transforms into a Super Saiyan as well. "We have to finish this before it gets uglier! Make haste!"

Krillin gulps as it dawns on him how every Saiyan is about to go all out just that quick.. "Okay. So once again… our presence is meaningless. Why do we even try? I never… felt Saiyan energy this strong before."

"I think it's too late to flee now." Yamcha says nervously. "What was I trying to prove coming here?"

"They weren't kidding when they say that Saiyans are a warrior race." Tien says. "Fighting is in their blood. This… is to be expected. But that Saiyan there… judging from the looks on Kakarot and Vegeta's faces… and the others…"

Kakarot floats back. Why is Broly's energy still climbing?

What kind of Saiyan are they up against? He doesn't even know what to do against this. Broly just caught up that quick… and he's not even a Super Saiyan!

Vegeta appears somewhat uneasy. He gets into a fighting stance, bracing himself for what is to come. Broly's intimidating cries carry on as that dreadful feeling sinks in.

They aren't dealing with an average Saiyan warrior at all.

---

A/N: Finally finished!

Question: Has any of you ever played Raditz in Xenoverse? Do you see the way this dude fights? He fights mostly with his legs. And his style is so interesting.

I call his kicks "ballerina kicks" because I'm stupid. XD

It amuses me. No other character fights in his style.

So here, Gine fights in the same style… only more uh… gracefully?

Did you know that a man has more muscle at the upper parts of their body, while females have more at the bottom? Maybe you already knew but…

In short, women scientifically have more leg strength.

Imagine getting beat up by Gine who uses them more than her hands in combat. Ouch.

"Oh, boo! We wanted to see more Broly fights!"

Save me some Skittles and Twizzlers, and I'll think about it.

Oh, wait.

Jokes aside, I would had loved too. But I feel it is fitting to end the chapter here. After all, it is Halloween time. So why not end this chapter with an intimidating scenario for our characters?

Anyway, for anyone who celebrates Halloween, be safe out there! Watch out for crazy drivers and kids. Be aware of what is a friendly prank and what could be real danger! Never approach any kind of scary clown!

And don't even think about stealing a kid's candy basket!

Unless your Raditz. Halloween is his favorite holiday. Save him some lollipops, guys!

And please do read the Possible Questions below!

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HAPPY 100TH NOTE!

THANK YOU! Seriously, all of my wonderful readers, a hundred times thank you! I never imagined I would even reach this far! 100 chapters! That is insane to me! I am so happy!

Regardless if you started with me at 2015, or you are new at 2019 and further… you made a wonderful impact to this series! Your reads and comments mean so much to me!

And as you know, I love comments! Reading them makes me smile! I love to read the reactions of my readers have when certain scenes happen!

Also, your comments help me know how to work with the story! Some chapters are easier to write because of them!

As I said before, I only started writing this series out of boredom, and because I had the idea of "What if Goku joined Raditz?" stuck in my head for so long. So my dumb self started typing Book 1's first chapter in my law and business class computer!

Best decision, clearly. Lol.

Some of you have grown with the book, and so have I! As I said before, I started this when I was 16 years old. In December, I'll be 21, which is a very important birthday to me!

I have inspired many readers to write their own books, and they are amazing! But you know what's funny? I was inspired to write by some writers as well! It's amazing how the community works! A wonderful cycle!

I wish I can type more, but I must go! I'll see you again soon!

Keep reading, keep writing!

-Espeon804

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Possible Questions:

PQ1: Pokémon Conquest music? Really?

A: I have that game and I love it. The soundtrack is simply amazing and nostalgic. The Japanese style suits Dragon Ball pretty well.

Even if you don't like PKMN, you gotta admit some of the music is good.

Oh my goodness. November 15th is so close! Aaaah!

PQ2: So you merged both DBZ Broly and DBS?

A: The best way I can describe it? It's easy but it's hard. When the next chapter comes out, you'll get a better idea of what I am going for. But now we have OTES Broly who is kinda a mix of both. What will I do with him? Well, I watched both movies so…

Uh…

You make a guess. I won't say a word.

PQ3: Cheelai and Lemo?

A: Originally, I never planned to add them in. I was debating over it. What role will they play here?

This is when you readers come in! Throw in some ideas to add to what I already have! Maybe the two can do more than we think!

PQ4: So Karot is in the edgy stage now?

A: I apologize for throwing in that "It's not a phase, mom!" I couldn't help myself.

Let's just say Karot is torn between being a Human and a Saiyan. It's near impossible for him to live between worlds. With everything that is going on, it's overwhelming for him.

What role will he play later? Now you now our boy Gohan has to have it.

PQ5: Will Bardock come to Earth, too?

A: I doubt King Yemma would risk that. Even if he could, I dunno what I would do. Thankfully, Bardock does have his role in this series still.

PQ6: OTES Gine?!

A: I literally typed a whole paragraph about her OTES lore in Chapter 18. So look out for that.

But in short, what we do know is Gine wasn't good at her job. She had to be saved several times.

But why was she on Bardock's crew in the first place? You know. The crew that did crazy hard missions that some elites don't mess with?

There has to be more to the story. Of course, Gine has her kind and gentle nature. Just like Kakarot, she lacks violent Saiyan instincts. But what no Saiyan ever lost was the fighting instinct. Gine has a reason for quitting. It was hinted here, and it will be looked deeper next chapter.

She will certainly stand up for those she cares about.

So what is OTES Gine like, you ask?

I want someone to make a guess. I swear if they get it spot on, I will go crazy.

No. She's not evil, silly. What do you think I am?

But what we learned here is that she is afraid of fighting because of one thing.

Saiyan instincts won't let her stop once she starts again.

PQ7: What's the connection between Gine and Paragus?

A: From what you read, you must have realized they seem to know each other more than you thought before. They aren't friends, but they know each other enough. I'll put it like that.

Gine had a reputation on Planet Vegeta. One, because she was one of the rare cases of a warrior quitting fighting. Two, because she was part of Bardock's team. But I decided to make it a bit interesting.

How do I put it? Ah. Like your co-worker at your job. You talk to them all the time but you don't know much about them outside of work. There you go. It's just like that. They spoke to each other a lot in the past but… they don't know each other's personal lives.

So Paragus clearly knew Gine when she was still working as a soldier. It explains his confusion seeing how she settled down so much.

So for them to clash in battle has a deeper meaning.

While in DBS, Paragus' Power Level was at 4,200… It was because he was old and frail and spent most of his life in a barren world.

The OTES Paragus is still young. And since this story is mixed with DBZ as well, he did some traveling. And in this timeline he did training and…

You get the idea.

We get to see Gine in some real action, too. What's her real power level? You make a guess.

Typing that fight between her and Paragus was fun with the music

You better had listened to that music.

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Question Time:

Q: Keep it up I love your story.

A: Thank you! I will try my best!

Q: Woo! All caught up again! I kinda sorta dropped reading this story for a while - mostly since I was waiting for a good amount of chapters to be written before jumping back in. After Chapter 10 I waited till now, so I've been waiting... what? At least a year a half judging from the author's notes. BTW, thanks for the Q&A shout out at the end of Chapter 11! Was a pleasant surprise.

Gotta say first off; I'm liking the turn this story has taken the past 6 chapters. Lots of character development. Especially the big one; Kakarot finally being rid Uzi. I had hoped they'd blow away Uzi or something so he doesn't become an issue later, but I guess we need someone to be a pain in the ass after the Cell Games. I am so glad that Kakarot is finally rid of Uzi and seems to be going down the character arc I predicted with him being a more balanced individual. I am hoping he sacrifices himself somehow in an act of final redemption, and finally put a pin on that one loose thread with his character. I get the impression Kakarot is afraid to die because he doesn't know what's going to happen to him considering all the good and bad things he's done in his past. I guess I want to see Kakarot finally facing the afterlife. Maybe meeting Bardock in Hell - because let's face it; Kakarot is most likely going to Hell for everything he's done since this story began.

Interesting with the surprise revival of Bulma. But so far - besides getting beaten up by Gohan/Karot, she hasn't done much as of yet. So until she actually DOES ANYTHING I guess I'm on the fence about the idea of her being revived. Maybe with that speech Gohan gave her, maybe she'll finally give up. Maybe we'll get her settling down with Raditz? *shrugs* Honestly I'm kinda hoping Launch becomes the new woman in Raditz's life - if only because I love MasakoX's pairing of them in his "What If Raditz Turned Good" video series. (in speaking of Raditz I was VERY TEMPTED to get a Pop Figure of Raditz I saw at Gamestop today. Between this series and MasakoX's What Ifs, I've become a big Raditz fan)

In speaking of love/pairings, I had said before how I was betting on Turles and Kauli, but I admit I'm more in the Tarble and Kauli camp now if only because I genuinely feel bad for Tarble because despite his progress, he's still getting the shaft by everyone. I still think Kauli and Turles have better chemistry, but honestly if they did hook-up and have a kid, then all the kids would be in the Bardock-Gine family tree, and we'd have no heir to the Royal Family. And plus, maybe Tarble having a son or daughter would lighten him up. Not sure how Kauli would handle having a kid, she doesn't seem to have an opinion despite getting along pretty well with Gohan and Trunks.

Not gonna lie; I was seriously hoping that Vegeta's royal beat down by Perfect Cell would finally make him realize his mistakes, at least he's being cooperative with letting others have turns in the Hyberbolic Time Chamber before having his second round in there. If Vegeta DOES go in again, I think he needs to go in with someone. I'd say Tarble so maybe they could bond, but I only see that resulting in disaster with how they behave. Also I wish to point out that while its true Vegeta doesn't have a wife or son to soften him up, I do think its possible that through Tarble and/or Nappa that he could eventually soften up a bit. No where near where he is in DBS, of course but at least to a point where he's not as much of an insufferable asshole to everyone and at least progress his character arc to the point he was at in the Android-Cell Arc in Canon by the time we're in the Buu saga. Right now he's still very much how he was in the Saiyan Arc. He hasn't progressed or regressed at all.

Oh for Turles, I think he needs to become a Super Saiyan SOON. Besides Kauli, Gine, Paragus and I presume Broly, he hasn't gotten the transformation yet. Kauli I don't see getting it till after the Cell Games at the rate she's going in terms of getting caught up with everyone else. Gine, I can tell isn't sticking around after the Cell Games for much longer - probably not till Uzi is gone for good. Paragus... well as much as I like Paragus, its like written in stone that he's going to die. Died in the original Broly movie, died in the new Broly movie. He's probably gonna die eventually. I mean, assuming he still has the same motivations where he hates Vegeta and I assume Tarble since they are King Vegeta's sons, and the Princes are more along the lines of main characters... well sorry Paragus. Broly... As others will notice; he's a combination of Classic and New Broly. I like how personality wise he seems more like New Broly. I am wondering if he hates Kakarot as much as Classic Broly did, probably not since Kakarot's name has been said a few times and Broly doesn't seem to have an issue... yet. And judging from the previews for the next few chapters, Broly is gonna be fighting the others. I Do confess tho... I hope he doesn't die. Maybe its just that I still love DBS Broly and excited that he'll likely be a reaccuring character in canon, but I seriously hope that this Broly will survive and he can somehow join the crew. I don't see that happening, but its what I'm hoping for.

Maybe I'm just hoping that with all the angst and trauma, we can eventually get into the healing process for these characters till they have to deal with Buu and those wacky shenanigans. Which BTW do me a BIG FAVOR. If we're gonna fusion be a thing in the Buu saga, can we just either avoid Goten and Kid Trunks fusing or please make Kid Trunks and therefor Gotenks's personality not so freaking annoying as he/they were in canon?! I HATE Gotenks. Fusion I don't mind, but god damn I hate Gotenks's character be he is just all talk and showing off and it pisses me off to no end.

Anyhoo, honestly I don't really have any complaints or nitpicks with anything that's been happening the past 6 chapters. Characters have grown and matured, while Tarble and Vegeta's brotherly "rivalry" hasn't made almost any progress besides Tarble being a Super Saiyan, I get the vibe we are finally gonna get something - hopefully on Vegeta's end.

A: Oh my goodness! You waited THAT long?! I don't know if I should feel bad or happy. I made you wait, but you also stuck around! I know how that feels. My most favorite fan fiction updates can vary from a month to a whole year. Haha! Thank you! No problems with the shoutout. I appreciate all my comments. I enjoy reading them, after all!

This book had a fair share of development. Besides Vegeta. He hardly changed since he carries the same attitude, but as always, there is a layout. He will have his soon enough. The brotherly rivalry is a clash of one having too much pride, and the other holding so much envy. It's pretty ugly. But these future chapters will show where that is heading.

As for who will be the next Super Saiyan? My only weakness I have with writing is that I don't write chapters ahead. This chapter was published, but chapter 18 isn't finished yet. While it is written somewhat… so I am yet to decide. It all depends on the flow of the story I guess. Whatever I feel fits. But I do agree with you.

There is a tie on who I want next, though.

The entire series is just dark all around. Unfortunately for me, I can't sit down and write a wholesome or slice-of-life story. 98% of my works are just dark. It was never intentional. So will they have a break? I will try. They do deserve it.

As for Bulma? Well… she is yet to show. Her intentions? Who knows? And Youzi, well, unfortunately he isn't dead. He will be an annoyance until something happens. I have my plans with the demonic creep.

And as for Broly and Paragus… well… I won't say anything. That's for the readers to discover on their own.

Anyway, thank you for the review! Hopefully I won't have to wait another year and a half! Haha!

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Next Time:

*Insert DBZKai "Episode Preview Theme" here*

Kakarot: (Cheerful) Hey! It's me! Kakarot!

Kakarot: (Surprised) Whoa! Broly here is crazy strong! And he doesn't even have to go Super Saiyan! This is nothing we ever fought before!

Vegeta: (Surprised) Don't tell me… was he supposed to be the true Legendary Super Saiyan?

Raditz: (Serious) Let's not get too reckless. One wrong move, and we'll be in Otherworld. And trust me. The process is not very fun.

Kauli: (Nervous) Okay. Now I really don't want to die.

Turles: (Growling) Near death isn't fun, either.

Future Trunks: (Surprised) Wait. Father died before?

Tarble: (Annoyed) Let's not talk about death when we are at the very edge of encountering it! Broly here… he's clearly lost. He never had malicious intent… so maybe…

Nappa: (Annoyed) His father dragged him into this. We'll get answers soon. For now, let's try to survive!

Paragus: (Laughs) You think you can stop my son?! His power is strong enough to destroy multiple planets! You are just throwing your lives away! Attack, Broly! Get your revenge!

Gine: (Serious) You know, to think you out of all people would anger me this far. If there is one thing I hate more than anything… It is seeing anyone who uses living beings as personal tools. Just as Frieza did to us!

Paragus: (Mocking) And what can you do against my son to stop him? As far as I can tell, your sons and your precious prince is doomed!

Gine: (Serious) You clearly don't know much about us. Who's the real monster here? I can already tell!

Kakarot: (Serious) Broly! You have to calm down!

Kakarot: Next time on: The Dissonance of The Earthling Saiyan; Chapter 18! "Truth behind the dreadful tale! Similarities change perspective!"

Gine: (Angry) I hate this so much… that you forced my hand this far! You're the first in a long time to see what I can really do!

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REVIEW! REVIEW!

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To be Continued to Chapter 18!

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Upcoming Chapters: (Read at your OWN risk!)

Chapter 18: "Truth behind the dreadful tale! Similarities change perspective!" The retaliation comes so a halt. Kakarot begins to see a connection that opens his eyes about those around him more. Perhaps people can change. Could there possibly be a glimpse of the Saiyan who was around years back? Was this meeting fate? The real devil in this situation here… he can see it clearly now.

Chapter 19: "An alternative mindset of a genius! The Saiyan's terrifying nature!" The unexpected battle has come to and end, but time is still ticking as Cell waits patiently for the deadline to arrive. It seems the humans had a way of dealing with the threat without needing to borrow the Saiyans' power after all! Because the Human's latest threat is fully developed and ready to bring great destruction, Prince Tarble finally had enough. Seeing anger and envy begins to make him act out. His lack of hope towards the future calls out an ugly side of him when everyone once again is against his ideals!

Chapter 20: "Kneel, or face the consequences! Countdown for the final battle!" The cards were set long before anyone noticed, and now the best hand was played! Prince Tarble stands in a position that not even Prince Vegeta would had predicted! Warriors of every type are set to prepare for the battle against Cell, but it won't be so easy now that they have no choice… but to trek carefully under a watchful eye. The word was kept firm… to not cross the line that was drawn. Future Trunks realizes he is about to relive his dreadful present again! And Karot finds himself caught up in the mess! And now… it appears Kakarot is no longer the main threat among the Saiyans, because that throne was taken!

Chapter 21: "What it means to stick together! Power comes in numbers!" The deadline is due to end! The warriors all brace themselves, taking in the training they endured to heart. But Kakarot isn't too shaken, and neither is Raditz. It's questionable, but the two brothers always seems to know what is going on. Knowing how powerful Cell is, they should be at least a little nervous? After what occurred for the last few days, Prince Vegeta finally came to a conclusion. And Prince Tarble seems to come to some agreement. There is no reason to play around anymore. Everyone has the dreadful feeling that not all of them will walk from the upcoming fight alive.

Chapter 22: "Show us your power, Trunks! The Tournament has begun!" The Cell games has finally started, and who is Cell's first pick? It's Trunks! No one ever said Cell would do the picking, but there can't be any complaints. No weapons means no swords, but the half-Saiyan warrior proves he doesn't need it to fight! It's clear on why Cell wanted to fight Trunks first. And it's also obvious on why he would want to fight Kakarot last. Maybe this was all due to personal grudges?