Things were relatively peaceful back on planet Earth.

Korin didn't even have to turn away his gaze from the ledge to know exactly who it was standing behind him "I figured it was gonna come to this sooner or later Upa."

Sure enough, Upa was right behind him looking deadly serious "So then am I correct to assume that you know what it is that I need?"

"I do. You know that Goku and Tien are gonna be training harder than ever before, you know that while they're gone it's up to you to protect the Earth and everyone that you hold dear so you know that you have to get a lot stronger than you are now."

"You really do know everything."

"Just a lot of stuff that happens on Earth, anyway if you're as determined as you claim to be and you're really not afraid then I guess it would be alright to head down there and take a sip of the stuff."

"What do you mean? Wait is this the magic water that Goku drank when he had to become stronger to defeat King Piccolo?"

"Yep, I'm talking about the Ultra Divine Water. Goku drank it when he was a kid, it's water that's packed with mystical properties and magical zing that will greatly enhance the abilities of the person who drinks it but first you're going to have to track it down in order to drink it and enjoy the benefits. The journey to get it is pretty perilous, far to the North there's a maze made entirely of ice. First things first you're gonna have to navigate through this icy labyrinth in order to obtain this special water, it's hidden somewhere in a cave at the end of the maze. Many brave explorers have attempted to to navigate through this maze in an attempt to reach the Ultra Divine Water only for them to never be heard from again."

"And Goku was one of the few out of hundreds who actually reach this Ultra Divine Water and survive?"

"Yep you got that right, so now that you know the peril involved what are you going to do? Do you still wish to seek it out?"

"Yes I do, I'm not going to just stand by while Goku and the others are fighting to bring back the others and I'm not going to be afraid of some maze."

"I see, well you've got guts I'll give you that much. Come with me, I'll show you how to get to the start of the maze." he led him into another room.

"So how long is it going to take me to get to this icy labyrinth you mentioned?"

"As long as it takes you to hop into that pot." Korin pointed to a loan pot sitting in the corner of the room "It's a sort of portal that will take you there almost instantly, now before you go I have one word of advice."

"What would that be?"

"If you're dead set on going then there's one thing that you absolutely must avoid no matter what."

"What?"

"Darkness, a Darkness blacker than the night itself. It shields the Ultra Divine Water with an illusion so cunning and mind breaking that you may never be able to escape its empty void once you become ensnared in it."

"I'll keep that in mind." and with that, Upa leapt into the pot.

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One intense sparring match later…

Piccolo rematerialized his weighted clothing and shot a glance at Scarlet looming over him with her white aura flaring "Not gonna lie I didn't think a mere human could become as powerful as you are."

"Keep in mind that I've been training here a lot longer than you have." Scarlet's white aura subsided "But regardless you've only been here for about three days or so and you're already almost as strong as Yamcha and Goku were when they left."

"That's not gonna be enough, I'm gonna need to surpass Goku if I want to have any chance against the likes of Frieza."

"I thought about that so I talked to King Kai not long before you and the others arrived and he told me that one of the problems with that is that you can't access your ultimate potential, the main reason for that being that you've been missing a small part of your essence ever since you were born."

"I'm listening."

"From what I've been told you'd have to go down to Hell, find that missing piece of your essence and then reabsorb it. Do you know where I'm going with this?"

"...I have an idea of it, if it makes me stronger then let's do it."

"That's all I needed to hear, it's times like this I'm glad that I got King Kai to teach me how to use that Kai Kai ability of his." and then Scarlet promptly grabbed Piccolo and they both disappeared in a flash.

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Goku slowly opened his eyes and found himself in what looked like a very high class sort of bed, his body covered in bandages "Oh man I slept like a log, I wonder how many hours I've been out. Hey wait a minute, what the f*ck is going on?! Where am I, what planet is this, why am I in a bed that doesn't have Chichi's scratch marks all over it?!" and then he started hyperventilating like a madman, until he suddenly slapped himself "No Goku get a grip, you've gotta think for a minute. Okay the last thing that I remember is our ship hitting that asteroid field and spiralling out of control, and then… then everything went black for. Dammit what happened after all of that?" he paused in an attempt to locate Tien's Ki signature, only to find nothing "Dammit why can't I sense him?"

"There's no need to freak out so much Goku." that was when Tien got his attention from where he had been meditating on the bed next to him "From what I can tell most of the people here aren't hostile, at least not to us."

"Tien! Wait what happened, how did we get here, where's our ship?"

"First of all we crash landed on this planet about half a day ago from what I've been told, you've been out for a good portion of that time since then."

"Half a day?!"

"Yeah, some of the inhabitants of this planet, such as they are, found us pretty banged up after our ship crashed so they treated our injuries and stuck us in this guest rooms in the palace."

"So what do we do now? Tien we have to get to Namek and who knows how long that's gonna take now that we're stuck on this planet!"

"Calm down Goku, I spoke to some of the guys who saved us and he said that we're gonna have to talk to the ruler of this planet but considering what we're like in his eyes, whatever that means, he should be more than willing to help us. It's kind of weird but the disposition of this Lord of theirs is pretty surprising to me, my original thoughts led me to think that he would be more of a…"

"King Piccolo style sort of leader?"

"I don't know if I would go that far but something along those lines yeah, anyway now we've both been formally accepted as guests of some kind."

"So where is this Lord of theirs anyway, what's he like? You think he's strong?"

"Don't try to fight him Goku, not on a potentially hostile alien planet that we know literally nothing about. Anyway from what I've been able to understand, he hasn't been to this planet, one of many under his control, for about 2 years or so due to having to take care of some family business. His family is known for being pretty ruthless but he's not like the rest of them, sure he can be pretty strict and merciless when things get dire but he's actually a pretty fair ruler all things considered. He's able to quell the aggression within his forces with ease, he can see a way forward without any unnecessary bloodshed, they see him as nothing if not gracious."

"Wow. He sounds awesome." this was followed by sounds of loud salutes coming from outside in the distance.

"Sounds like he's coming back now, all we have to do is talk to him and then we can get off of this planet." Goku glanced out the window and saw the figure in question making his way towards the palace, and then he suddenly froze in pure shock, with Tien turning out to be pretty much the same "Tien…"

"Yeah I know, his power is unlike anything I've ever felt before."

"Do you think this is that Frieza guy that King Kai told us about, and maybe those stories that you heard were a lie?"

"I don't know but whatever the case I think it's safe to say that neither of us stand a chance against this guy. We've gotta be careful."

"Yeah wise choice." that was when a bulke green figure wearing a suit of armor and a yellow Scouter showed up at the door "Come with me chumps, the boss is gonna want to see the two of you."

Goku and Tien shared a look and a subtle nod."

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The right hand man of this lord, being a blue skinned figure with blonde hair, a green colored Scouter and a suit of armor, got down on one knee in front of the Lord "A pleasure as always to see you Monsieur Cooler."

Sure enough, the figure, this being Cooler (Frieza's brother) made his way into the palace and made a hand signal for him to rise "Good to see you as well Salza, I realize that this is quite sudden but I will require you to summon the rest of your Armored Squadron."

"Knowing what the two of them are like that will take some time, if only I would be able to predict the haphazard arrival of the first breeze of spring on this planet I could've already had them assembled here."

"So I am as capricious as the wind now am I?" Cooler let out a chuckle "I do appreciate your candor."

"So am I correct to take it that your business has ended? You seem to be in very good spirits at the moment."

"At the moment yes, however we still face the crisis on planet Gelbo that we have yet to be able to solve."

"I see. Also I find that you may be aware already but two individuals crashed on this planet in their ship mere hours before your arrival."

"I am aware yes."

"Then it's a good thing that I got them." that was when Dore (the green guy with the yellow Scouter) showed up with Goku and Tien right behind him.

"Thank you Dore."

Slowly Tien got down on one knee, forcing Goku to do the same "Allow me to say that it is an honor to meet you sir. My name is Tien Shinhan and this is Son Goku, we both come from the planet Earth."

"...I see." Cooler studied both of them for a good long moment 'These two have substantial levels of power, they're below that of my Armored Squadron but far above the rest of my forces on this planet and in general. Salza, Dore, I wish to be able to speak with our two guests in private."

"Of course sir." and then both Salza and Dore left, leaving Cooler alone with Tien and Goku in the main room.

"Very well then you two, come with me. We'll discuss this more in my private gardens and perhaps come to an agreement."

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Upa opened his eyes and found himself in the icy labyrinth "So this is it."

"Hey kid, up here!" Korin called from above "Listen to me Upa, if you manage to find the Ultra Divine Water then be sure to return here to this exact spot and I'll be sure to pull you back out again."

"I understand Korin, thank you." and he walked off into the maze "It's cold in here, I'll have to be careful so I don't freeze to death or anything. I doubt I would be able to explain that one to father." he then continued onwards only to stop when he saw something.

A frozen corpse laid on the side of the path.

"Poor man, he must have gotten lost in the maze. I'd better hurry before I end up like him." he then started to walk forward, only to stop when he heard a crash and looked back to see the path behind him disappear "Okay that's not good, I think it's safe to say now that there's something coming."

That was when a large snow cyclone emerged from the cracks in the ground and took on the form of a massive ice monster, which promptly unleashed a monstrous blizzard.

"I don't have time for this. Ka… Me… Ha… Me… HA!" Upa fired a quick Kamehameha at the ice monster, only for it to regenerate "Oh you've gotta be kidding me, it's like I didn't even hit him at all!"

The ice monster lunged at him again, but suddenly stopped as the head evaporated into nothing.

"Okay scratch that, I guess it just had a delayed effect. Now then, down the hatch!" Upa slid down an ice slide on the side of the path until he reached the end and found himself at the bottom of a deep ravine "Well that was fun, now I'd better get moving." he continued walking "I'm gonna have to hurry or I'll end up freezing to death."

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Piccolo found himself alone in Hell 'Alright Piccolo, just like Goku said. I've gotta find this missing piece of myself, it's the only way I'm going to have a chance of surviving in this upcoming battle.'

"Hello Piccolo."

As he heard this, Piccolo froze 'That voice… I'd recognize that voice anywhere. Ever since I was created almost 10 years ago, I had heard that voice every single day. Then came the battle with the Saiyans and I sacrificed myself to save Gohan, and then it just stopped.'

"It's so nice to finally meet you my boy, after all this time. To be honest, I never thought we would actually get the chance to meet."

"So this is what Goku was talking about. To be honest, this is a day I've been dreaming of but I never thought it was really going to come." Piccolo slowly turned and faced his opponent "I've heard a lot about you… father."

Sure enough, the Demon King Piccolo stood in front of him.

"So you're the great King Piccolo aren't you?"

"I can see that my reputation precedes me, but please just call me Daimao. After all, it's the name that I would've had those feeble humans call me after I had taken over… and it's also the name I expect them to call you my son." the way he spoke was cold and proud, and it was also slightly intimidating.

'If this were me the first time I died then I might have been intimidated, but since then I've faced foes that he couldn't even begin to comprehend. Daimao it is. I have to admit I actually like the name, it's short and to the point and it separates you from the pompous and ignorant fools who create names for themselves. I can't begin to tell you how many times I've seen that."

Now Daimao let out a snicker, which left Piccolo rather unnerved "Of course not my son, though I must say that I'm extremely happy to see that you still choose to wear the colors of the Demon Clan. At least there's a part of you that's still loyal to your tribe, despite your… actions over the past decade or so."

'Loyal to our tribe? Actions?'

"Why have you not killed Son Goku yet?" his eyes suddenly narrowed.

'Okay, now I see why people were so afraid of me back during the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. I can even feel the sweat running down my spine.'

"I was going to, but I had more pressing issues to deal with. That, and my desire to kill Goku has long since been forgotten by me. The Earth was attacked by warriors known as Saiyans, and yes I did kill Goku in a sacrificial move to kill one of these Saiyans- Goku's brother in fact- but two more showed up a year later and one of them got the jump on me and sent me here. Tell me something father, what good would there be in letting those fools destroy the Earth if I wasn't able to rule it?"

"...Piccolo my son, explain something to me. I died 9 years ago, and you were born in my dying moments 9 years ago. That's almost one full decade, am I correct?"

"Yes that's right."

"You mean to tell me that during all of that time, you weren't able to defeat that wretched fool even once?! Dammit Piccolo!"

"What the hell was I supposed to do? You want me to sneak up on him, kill his friends and family, and then butcher him like some kind of sadist? You want me to hand the heads of his friends and family on trees for him to see? That's the coward's way out. If I was going to take him out then it would be in a fair fight, one on one between us both."

Daimao said nothing, he just started gritting his teeth.

"Yes I teamed up with Son Goku and yes I fought alongside him and his friends against the Saiyans, if you were smart then you would've done the same thing but clearly you're not. There was no way I was going to let those Saiyans destroy the Earth, whether I was going to rule that world or not. Yes I trained Goku's son and Yamcha's nephew and yes I sacrificed myself to save that kid, but he showed me that I had a choice, a choice to follow my own path and not become a slave to the destiny you tried to force on me. I'm not you father, I never was and I never will be."

"Don't tell me about the coward's way out and then try to defend it to me Piccolo, you took the coward's way out. You're throwing away your heritage and your legacy, and for what? Some meaningless morals? Are you concerned about possibly dying? I made you with the sole intention of killing that incompetent ape, and you tell me that you won't do it just because I made you to do it? You're an idiot, a weak fool that lacks any sort of brain."

"There's more to it than that. The Saiyans, if you anger them then their power increases to levels one can only imagine. You made a grave mistake in your approach. You and your demons killed several of Goku's friends which only enraged him and turned him bloodthirsty, if you ever truly wanted me to kill Son Goku then I hope you realize that having me repeat the exact same process that you used isn't the answer."

Instead of lashing out again, Daimao let out a chuckle "Fair points Piccolo, very fair points. I must admit, I'm impressed that you've acquired my intelligence and ability to use logic. Your brothers, they never really had either."

"You mean those pathetic excuses for demons that you created? Piano, Cymbal, Drum, Tambourine, all of them were pathetic weaklings and I have to break this to you but they're not my brothers."

"Watch your tongue Piccolo, even if you are the ultimate demon the fact is that they're still your brothers. Looking back I admit that I made a mistake by not making them strong enough, that's on my. But I will not have you talk about them like they're worthless, don't you understand the importance of loyalty Piccolo?"

"Yes I do, but that doesn't mean that I have to be loyal to you. I learned a long time ago that I don't have to live in your shadow anymore. Father or no father you don't control me, you never have and you never will. You want to talk about making a mistake? Your mistake was giving me an actual brain, because I'm smart enough to see just how foolish your ideals and plans really are."

"Is that so? Well if you're not with me then you're against me. You arrogant weak minded fool, you're going to regret your insolence!"

"So what are you going to do then? Are you going to hit me, make me cry and then pledge my allegiance to you? Come on Daimao, you and I both know that talking isn't how our kind settle things."

"How right you are my son, how right you are." Daimao let out a howl and charged in an attempt to land a right hook across the face.

Piccolo suddenly flickered, revealing himself as an afterimage, and the real one quickly blitzed behind Daimao and thrusted his elbow into Daimao's back.

Daimao fell to the ground and coughed up blood 'Now that's what I expected to see all of my sons to in battle.'

"Unlike the rest of your sons, I actually know how to fight. I know every trick in your book, not to mention some more that I learned myself. I guess that's the benefit of having my own brain right?"

"Your own brain huh? Well you see Piccolo…" that was when Daimao fired a Ki blast "If it's a fight that you want then it's a fight you're going to get! Good riddance!"

Piccolo dodged the Ki blast with surprising gracefulness "Sorry old man, you missed."

"Did I?" Daimao fired several more Ki blasts as he rose from the ground.

Piccolo dodged the majority of the blasts, causing them to miss by miles "What are you doing? Did you lose your vision when you fell to the ground? Out of 30 shots you barely managed to scrape me with just one, am I supposed to be intimidated by this?"

"Intimidated? Who said anything about intimidated? You keep going on about my attacks missing, but it's you who's missing the point!"

"What-?" Piccolo looked around, only to see the balls surround him 'This is the Hellzone Grenade! No wonder 17 hates this attack.'

"I've been planning this for a long time Piccolo, and now it's time for this to end. Farewell, my son. Demon Grenade!" Daimao activated the final step to his version of the Hellzone Grenade, causing the blasts to all swarm in on Piccolo, covering in a massive explosion that filled the sky.

Piccolo let out a loud ear piercing scream, only to draw from Daimao a cackle of joy.

"See this new generation, they just don't know how things work do they? Defeating the veterans, those who had been there before? It's impossible, completely and truly impossible." he began to walk forward 'If all went well then that means that he's gone and the next Demon King is about to be crowned, and that's enough for us to celebrate the only way demons know how: chaos, fire and anarchy. That's how the Earth should've been under my his rule. For all these years, I had been expecting to one day learn that the Earth was nothing more than ruins where the human race served under the Demon King Piccolo and fought with each other for the scraps. I had imagined a world where they both feared and adored him, mostly the former. But instead the Earth still blossoms, probably in much better shape than it was when I had died. But how could that be? How is it that the son of a malevolent creature like me could not want to rule over the Earthlings? If he was truly my son then he would've taken extreme pleasure in watching the world slowly burn with the flags of the nations being replaced with our colors. What I done wrong then? Had I made a mistake when doing the sacred Demon Transfer technique? Well if this all went to plan then Piccolo will soon be… facing me looking like he's foaming at the mouth.'

Sure enough, Piccolo stood there once the smoke cleared, looking extremely pissed as if the attack hadn't hit him at all "What was that supposed to do?"

Daimao staggered backwards and fell to his knees 'How… How could he have survived that? How… what? I spent years working on the Demon Grenade, how could it have failed so miserably?'

"You want to know something? For a long time I thought that I had to live in your shadows and become the next Demon King." Piccolo flared his white aura "But that was a very long time ago, and now I'm going to make sure the title of Demon King never returns by eradicating it from existence."

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Goku and Tien had both followed Cooler into the palace gardens, the former of the two finally finding "I've gotta admit that I'm pretty confused about who you are exactly, from what I've been told there's supposed to be this guy out in the universe known as a complete and total monster throughout the galaxy, he's conquered hundreds of planets and slaughtered billions of innocent people."

"Goku…" Tien's tone sounded like something along the lines of "Shut the hell up before you get us killed", but he was ignored.

"So I need to know for sure, are you really this Cooler guy that everyone respects so much or are you really Frieza?"

Cooler simply pinched the bridge of his nose "I must admit that you're far from being the first person to be confused in regards to my identity in relation to Frieza, and yet at the same time you may very well be the first one who's tried to be so civil with me. But I can assure you, while we may in truth look alike I am nothing my like younger brother."

"Frieza's brother huh, and yet you're nothing alike?" Goku's mind instantly flashed his own brother, this being Raditz "I guess I get that sort of, but how is it that you're different from him exactly?"

"The answer to that my dear guests, is a relatively simple one. My ancestors built this empire on the blood of their enemies, with the principles that those with natural talent and high power levels at birth are meant to reign supreme over everything else as if they are entitled to such a thing, which is the main reason as to why I was left to take the scraps that my brother and my father didn't want or couldn't get anything out of. However I take those that have latent potential that must be unlocked, and I mold it into something just as capable as what they have, if not even moreso."

"So you believe that hard work and dedication can overcome natural talent, sounds like what my grandfather and my own master taught me."

"They sound like wise men. As for how else I am different to the likes of my brother and father, I believe that the way to become an effective leader is not to inspire fear from my subjects, but rather inspire loyalty. Attempting to fight to keep my subjects down would be a simple waste of energy but rather multiply it, by allowing those worthy to rise through the ranks and prove themselves. The universe cannot doubt the strength that I have amassed, each ally gained only makes me that much more formidable to my enemies. The way to rule is not through fear and force, but through efficiency. Frieza and my father fail to understand that. To put it simply, if I see an opportunity then I will take it as soon as I am able to."

"Uh huh. Last question, are you the same kind of mass murderer that the rest of your family is known to be, or are you the kind of ruler that helps those in need?"

"A difficult question to answer." Cooler did contemplate this question for

"I don't see myself as good or evil, if you must refer to me as something then say that I am neutral."

"Uh huh." Goku and Tien shared a subtle look, and then the former glanced back to Cooler as he overlooked the planet "Sorry about being so cautious, aside from my brother Raditz we haven't exactly made any friends from this organization over the past year."

"So that would make you the famous Kakarot that he mentioned."

"He talked about me?"

"About three years ago, we spoke for about 45 minutes and 38 of those minutes were talking about how he knew that you would be the one to slay my brother."

"I don't have any personal grudge against Frieza, at least not yet. Besides I know that you could kill both me and Tien without even batting an eye, you think that as brothers it's your job to protect Frieza."

"Quite the opposite, he's an arrogant psychotic little bastard and he needs to be taken down once and for all."

"...Oh. Huh."

"Yes."

"Well as much as we appreciate the fact that you're not going to kill us it's not going to do us any good." Tien pointed out "Our ship is damaged and we're way off course, now there's no way that we'll be able to get to Planet Namek in time to help the others and that's if we get through that damned asteroid field."

"Actually Tien Shinhan, perhaps there is a way to solve this problem. You see I can get the two of you a personal escort through a private route through the asteroid field, at least if the two of you do something for me."

"Which is?"

"You both need to get far stronger than you are now." he studied both Goku and Tien for a moment and seemed to ponder "At the moment Tien Shinhan you possess a power level of what I believe to be around 25,000, which is more than most of the Frieza Force as well as surpassing the majority of the elites, with the exception of Zarbon and the Ginyu Force. My anticipation is that you'll run into them later on. Zarbon at full power holds a power level is 28,000 where as the most of the Ginyu Force is in the neighborhood of somewhere between 40,000 and 45,000, with the exception of Guldo, whom I believe to me somewhere around 5,000 or so."

"What about me?" asked Goku.

"Your power level I would expect to be in the neighborhood of 90,000 or so. You would surpass nearly all of Frieza's men with the exception of Captain Ginyu, him holding a power level of exactly 120,000."

"Oh. Wow. Well what's Frieza?"

"In his first form alone he's at 530,000, but in his true final form he can go as high as 120 million."

"...Oh crap." Goku started sweating, with Tien not being much better off "So how do we get strong enough to face someone as strong as that? I mean even with my Kaioken technique to multiply my power I could probably only be like 600,000 or so."

"I believe there is a fix for that. Tell me, do you know of the Saiyan Zenkai theorem? Well a Zenkai is when a Saiyan is beaten to near death and he awakens a greater level of power as a result."

"Huh, you know I think I have felt something like that before, like whenever I lost a fight I got stronger once I healed up."

"Then you most likely know what my intentions are, but rest assured that this is for your benefit." and to prove his point Cooler then proceeded to blitz behind Goku and shoot him in the back, using his Darkness Eye Beam, burning a hole in his uniform as well as knocking him out cold, and then he turned to Tien "Take him and come with me."

"To where exactly?" asked Tien.

"Into this planet's medical facility, Son Goku won't be of any use to you or the rest of your comrades as he is right now so I'm going to treat his wounds in order for him to receive that Zenkai boost, and perhaps show you what state of the art medicine looks like."

"...Fine, I'll follow your lead at least for now." so Tien slung Goku's arm over his shoulder and followed Goku out of the gardens

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Upa took off running as fast as his legs would carry him, his mind drifting to the people that he was going to fight for 'Father, Goku, everyone… I have to keep moving.' he continued running, only to skid to a stop, his eyes wide with shock "F-Father? Goku?"

Sure enough, Bora and Goku both stood in front of him "Yes, in the flesh Upa."

"But you're supposed to be- Oh I get it, this is one of the traps by this Darkness guy in order to protect the Ultra Divine Water."

"What are you talking about Upa?"

"Father you're supposed to be back home in the village below Korin Tower, and Goku you're supposed to be with Tien halfway across the galaxy by now. The only reason I'm here is because I know that I have to become stronger in your absence, nice try but you're not going to fool me so easily."

"So you noticed." their expressions both darkened considerably "The Ultra Divine Water is sacred, it is not meant for the likes of humans. Your presence defiles it, you must leave this place or your life will be forfeit."

"I'm sorry but that's something that I just can't do, especially not when my friends are fighting to bring back the fallen halfway across the galaxy. I know that even if I went I wouldn't be able to figure against people like Vegeta but I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't at least give it everything I have."

"...I see." then both Bora and Goku disappeared in a white light, followed by the entire cavern shaking, and the figure of a large black creature emerged in front of him.

"So you've shown your true self at last. Please tell me, who are you?"

"I am Darkness, the guardian of the Ultra Divine Water, and you have proven yourself to be worthy. Look ahead."

Upa looked ahead and saw a pot and a cup on a small table "Is this it? Is this the Ultra Divine Water?"

"Yes. The sacred liquid is very dangerous, one must be both mentally and physically strong in order to survive its effects. For those who are unsuited, it means certain death."

"But it will make the one who drinks it stronger just like Korin told me right?"

"There is no guarantee. The Ultra Divine Water takes advantage of special powers held deep within you, if you have no special power within you then nothing will change and only those who carry a special power will become stronger. The others, if too weak, will die."

"Just like Korin said. So tell me, how many people have drank the Ultra Divine Water before me?"

"14 people in total."

"I'm guessing that includes Goku. So how many have survived the effects of drinking it?"

"Only 1 has survived."

"And I'm guessing that one would be Goku. Alright, I'll do it. Goku and my Father would be more than willing to risk it, and seeing how they're fighting on the front lines right now it's only right that I do too." he forced down the entire cup, then grabbed his throat and began squirming around on the ground in pain and agony, images flashing through his mind of his time with his father, training with everyone during the year before the Saiyans arrived, and everything in his life up to drinking the Ultra Divine Water, and yet he refused to cry out in pain despite how much of it he was feeling from the effects 'Come on Upa, you have to be strong for the sake of Goku, for the sake of Father, for the sake of everyone out there fighting!'

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"But that was a very long time ago, and now I'm going to make sure the title of Demon King never returns by eradicating it from existence."

"You…" hearing that simple sentence filled Daimao with blind rage 'Does he truly think he can wipe out the demon clan? No, that can't be it. If anything he must be playing a simple trick on me, trying to get me to lose my cool. I'd watch what you say if I were you Piccolo, I'm still your father after all. I don't see why you're so angry, so hell bent on destroy me. Tell me, what did I ever do to you? All I wanted was for you to follow in my footsteps, that's all there is to it."

"If I was going to follow in your footsteps then Goku would've killed me, if I was going to follow in your footsteps like I told before then I wouldn't be ruling Earth because I would be dead."

"I don't see how that would be the case, from what you've already shown me you're quite strong, far stronger than I had expected after hearing about everything you've been through."

"Do you have any idea what's happened on Earth since you let yourself get killed by Goku? I know that I told you about the Saiyans, but do you really know about that and everything I've been through since then?"

"All I know is that you betrayed me by not killing Son Goku, but how about you enlighten me on just what's gone on so that I know why you've put off eliminating the man responsible for killing your father." Daimao waved his hand and summoned two chairs "Here go on and sit, just because I've been in Hell doesn't mean that I've forgotten to be a gracious host."

"I think I'll stand thank you. He has something up his sleeve, I can tell. Tell me, how much do you already know?"

"Well I don't know much about what's been going on to be honest, but I know enough. I know the main things that Son Goku is still alive, the Earth is free, and you died once at the hands of Saiyan warriors but weren't sent to Hell."

"Well then here's the rest of it. After you created me I spent the first three years of my life training until the next World Martial Arts Tournament. There I fought Krillin, one of the ones that your demonic spawns killed, and then Kami. He took possession of some human's body and tried to use the Evil Containment Wave on me, but I deflected it and ended up capturing him instead. Then I fought Goku and I did what you had failed to do, I crippled him and made sure he didn't have a free arm that he could use to defeat me. Somehow though, he beat me by knocking me out of the ring and at that moment I thought I was done for. I thought that now, here we have a man who's facing the reincarnation of the demon who killed his best friend and his teacher, and tried to enslave all of Earth, ,and now he has the demon at his feet. I knew that Goku would find a way to just end it, but instead he healed me."

Daimao said nothing, but his fist clenched.

"For so long I hated Goku and wanted nothing more than to defeat him in battle, but I had to train harder than I could ever foresee myself doing. Then I began thinking, why not just devote my time to practicing a move that would kill Goku with ease? Looking back it was foolish of me to think that and I ended up paying the price for it when Goku's Saiyan brother Raditz and another Saiyan named Beets showed up and trounced all of us, even with Yamcha helping, like it was nothing. Goku planned to sacrifice himself so that I would be able to kill Beets, and I can't say that I objected to the idea. After all, it was what I had been waiting for my whole life. But still, as he lay there lifeless it just wasn't what I had imagined it to be like. I found myself unable to hate him for making such a sacrifice. As he lay there dying, Beets let us know that there were two more Saiyans on their way to Earth and that they would be there in one year. I saw the great potential held within Goku's son and I took to boy to train him in my ways, maybe even use him against Goku later."

"An excellent plan I must admit. Now what, pray tell, became of that plan?"

"Well flash forward about 11 months, the Saiyans come and before I knew it I ended up being killed by one of them to shield the kid. Then I landed in this dimension and met that giant red asshole Yemma, speaking of which when I first showed up there he told me that you were locked up but I don't see any kind of prison."

"He seems to do that often. Is that it Piccolo, is that the story I've been waiting all these years to hear?"

Piccolo's posture tightened up "That's everything you need to know."

'So it seems that Piccolo doesn't trust me just yet. It's a shame, I actually found his story to be quite interesting. Speaking of stories Piccolo, you know the story of how Kami and I splitting from each other don't you? The story about the Namekian with no name splitting into two beings, the good side being Kami and the evil side being yours truly?"

"I have all of your memories old man so of course I do, what about them? Is he going where I think he is with this?'

"Well Piccolo, I don't know quite how to explain this to you."

'Oh why not, I'll just humor him and go along with it. Oh am I gonna have a goddamn field day with this.'

"I've been doing a bit of research over the years about what's known as fusion, namely the combination of two lifeforms genetically similar like me and Kami. Over that time, after a little bit of experimentation with the demons I realized that if a Namekian or demon can split itself into two entities then two entities can combine to form a single being that's even more powerful than the two of them combined."

"Let me stop you right there, if you think that I'm going to fuse with you and let you try and dominate me then you've got another thing coming."

"Well I don't necessarily think it, I know it and I know what's going to happen Piccolo. The two of us, we're going to form a new Demon King and continue the bloodline. Piccolo, I'm well aware that I can't beat you in a simple fist fight even after all the, not with the training that you've done and the brilliant mind you possess. But if you combine that with my brilliant mind and experience and we'd have the ideal Demon King, we could crush Son Goku like the insect that he is!"

"I already told you, whatever desire I held to kill Son Goku faded over time. At this point killing Goku would be counterproductive, and there's no chance in hell that I'd ever fuse with you of all people."

"No chance huh?" Daimao suddenly punched Piccolo across the face, then smashed his head into that of Piccolo "Oh I know that there's a chance, and I know that you're going to be brought back to Earth by Son Goku and those feeble earthlings. They're going to need your strength for the fight coming up, but once you return to Earth you won't be you anymore. At least not the same you that is."

Piccolo clutched his bleeding head and shot Daimao a feeble smirk "Oh really, and who am I gonna be old man? I'd love to hear this."

"Well Piccolo, you- no, more like we- will be the Demon King."

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Tien watched as Goku was placed inside of one of the healing tanks in the medical facility of the palace "So what is this thing exactly, how does it work?"

"I won't bother to go into the specifics but to put it simply this is what we refer to as a rejuvenation tank." explained Cooler "The liquid that's flooding the tank is a chemical compound that we use to increase the speed of the healing process."

"Wow, that's pretty impressive. So how long until Goku is gonna be back on his feet and receive this Zenkai thing?"

"Who knows? I don't knows the specifics about these machines other than how to work them but if I had to guess then I would probably say about an hour give or take. Now in the meantime he will become a great deal stronger but you will still need a way to compensate for that."

"How so? It's not like you can make me as strong as Goku in such a short amount of time like that."

"...Actually I believe there is a way." Cooler pulled out a Scouter and pressed on the communications button "Forte this is Lord Cooler, I need you to report to the medical bay at once."

Sure enough, in a matter of seconds, a green skinned figure in a black cloak appeared in the room and bowed in respect "You summoned me Lord Cooler?"

"Yes I did, do you recall that ability that you had once bestowed upon my Armored Squadron before?"

"You mean the ability where-"

"That is the one yes." Cooler made a gesture to Tien "You can do this for him as well can you not?"

"Of course, but…"

"Yes I am aware of your process, I shall leave the two of you alone." and so Cooler then proceeded to take his leave.

"I take it you have questions for me Triclops."

For the first time since Forte entered the room, Tien found his voice "Tell me, would you happen to be… a Namekian?"

"Yes as a matter of fact I am, although I haven't been back to my planet in… well I do believe it to be about 400 years now, around the time of the great storms that threatened to destroy all of the like on Planet Namek. I was only an egg at the time when I was sent off world to survive and carry on the legacy of my people, imprinted with the knowledge of the ancient Mystic arts of the Namekian race. I was found by Lord Cooler about 20 or so years ago and he offered me a place at his side, I was quite in a bind with a certain foe and he saved me so I joined him to repay the debt that I owe him."

"I see. I guess I'm kind of the same way to Goku and Master Roshi." Tien shot a quick glance over to where Goku was still sitting in the healing tank "I've done things in my life that I'm not proud of but now I can forge a new path for myself."

"Your friends sound wise."

"Yes, they are."

"You're lucky to have them then. Now then, just hold still while I do this." Forte too the chance to place hand on Tien's head "You do have remarkable reserves of strength, your power is enviable and yet you've been able to tap into so little of it. Now perhaps I will be able to open the flood gates." his body pulsated slightly as Tien was suddenly engulfed in a shimmering white aura "And there we are."

"This… This power is incredible, and you mean to tell me that I've had this inside of me all along?"

"Indeed you have, I am merely a catalyst for awakening it."

"Well thank you, now maybe I can stand a chance against Goku."

"Perhaps you can." this was when Cooler came back into the room "Now then come with me, until Son Goku recovers we'll be waiting elsewhere."

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Upa slowly stopped squirming as the pain and agony and he got back to his feet "What… Did I…? Yes I did. I did it, I survived!" then he looked down "It's weird though, I don't feel any stronger. I mean sure I feel a little bit different, but I can't really explain it."

"It is done."

"So it is, thank you Darkness."

"You have been granted this new power, use it wisely." and with that, Darkness then took his leave.

"I'd better hurry back too." he looked up "It's so clear now, I can see it plain as day." and he flew off into the sky.

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Daimao watched as Piccolo stood in silence after the proposition "Nothing to say Piccolo? Then I'm going to make the assumption that you're considering fusing with me. Don't you understand what could come out of us combining our powers? We would be the most feared being that this universe has ever seen!"

'I highly doubt that.' Piccolo resisted the urge to point out the crisis with Frieza and his men on Planet Namek.

"I understand how this must feel, I do, but you must understand that it is necessary. The Demon King line will die with you unless we combine our talents Piccolo, imagine all that we can do my son!"

"I couldn't care less about what we can do. What I care about is the here and now, and that's me walking away as my own self and not some puppet like the other demons that you've created."

"You're making a grave mistake boy, and don't be so quick to insult your brothers. After we fuse, you'll have the pleasure of meeting them and calling them your- or should I say our- allies in battle. I will admit that they're not the most intelligent, but they make up for that in loyalty."

Piccolo promptly slided elbow into Daimao's chest "Listen old man, I want you to get this through your skull: I'm not going to let you even come close to fusing with me. I had to fight for a long time to rid your voice from my mind and I'm gonna be damned if I let you back in, you understand me?"

Daimao coughed up blood 'If I remember correctly then all I have to do is beat him to near death and then remind him that death in this realm means him dying for good. After that he'll have no choice but to fuse with me. Fine Piccolo, this is how we're going to do things then." he lunged and slammed his fist into Piccolo's gut.

Piccolo met the fist with his own counter.

Daimao swept Piccolo's legs and knocked him to the ground, then grabbed Piccolo's leg in an attempt to throw him into a rock plateau.

Piccolo fired an Eye Beam and nearly blew off Daimao's ear.

"You little-" Daimao clutched his ear in pain.

Piccolo jumped at him and buried his fist his gut, then twisted it in order to cause greater pain to him.

Daimao doubled over and desperately gasped for breath.

Piccolo rose both hands above his head "I don't care if you're a Demon King or not, you're making a grave mistake fighting the most powerful Namekian this universe has ever seen and now I want you to understand just how much of a mistake you made. Masenko!" he fired off a quick Masenko.

"No chance Piccolo!" Daimao crossed his arms in an attempt to block it but a second too late, leaving him to be knocked through a massive wall of rock.

'That wasn't enough to defeat him, he's too durable for something like that. Come on Demon King, show me what you've got. I want to be able to walk away from this fight knowing that I fought a worthy opponent, not one that was nothing but talk. So come on already, let me see why Goku and his friends were oh so afraid of the great Demon King Piccolo."

Daimao promptly fired a Mouth Energy Wave.

Piccolo dodged it, as expected.

Daimao dealt a powerful uppercut to Piccolo's jaw with maximum precision.

Putting the pain aside for the time being, Piccolo threw his shoulders into Daimao's body in a chest bump sort of fashion, which then escalated into the two of them exchanging punches back and forth, trading curses, blood splattering, and even a flip or two along the way.

"You sure that you wouldn't rather just give in Piccolo?" Daimao grabbed Piccolo's arm and slammed his elbow down on it, nearly breaking it and causing Piccolo to recoil "I mean you're clearly wounded, and they do say that fusion will help bring you to full strength, if I were you then I would be practically begging to just fuse right now to spare me even more pain and suffering. You must understand this, I know how you work."

"Well then that would make you nothing but a coward, all you would be doing is running away from a battle. Speaking of running, I have a feeling you'll have the urge to do exactly that in three…" he grabbed Daimao by the arm and held it firmly "Two…" he punched Daimao in the stomach "One." he threw Daimao into the air and fired a Mouth Energy Wave infused with the Dragonfire of Porunga, hitting Daimao dead center in the chest, resulting in an explosion.

Daimao was sent flying further from the blast, a bit further than intended.

Piccolo was standing on top of a plateau within seconds, getting a perfect look of the result of the blast.

Daimao was coughing furiously, but then began to slowly laugh as he rose from the ground, the top of his uniform almost completely destroyed "I must admit Piccolo, you've fought very well. But I believe that there's one more trick from me that you have yet to see, and chances are that you forget that I could even pull this off! Yes it's my ultimate trump card, the move that will put you out of commission. Now you will taste the true power of the Demon King!" a blinding pure white aura began surrounding him and his size began to double.

'This transformation…'

Daimao was transforming into a Great Namekian.

'Dammit, how could I have forgotten that he would be able to do this? I should've realized it the second he mentioned his ultimate trump card!'

Daimao barked out a deep menacing laugh "Now do you see my dear Piccolo? I am the Demon King, and I always get my way! Now you're going to feel my wrath as I pummel you into near death before I absorb you into my being!"

'Dammit, what can I do? If he finishes that transformation then the entire magnitude of this fight is gonna change and- Wait a second, that's it!' he slammed two fingers to his forehead and began packing as much Ki into them as he could 'It's times like this when I'm so glad I spent all those years honing and adjusting this technique so I don't need 5 minutes to charge it, or as long as it takes to turn into that Great Namekian form because if it did then I'd either be panicking or a bloody corpse at this point. I hope this works… No, I know this will work. It hit Raditz while he was squirming in Goku's grip and that was more than 10 years ago, this should be easy. Special Beam Cannon!" he fired a Special Beam Cannon, leaving a massive hole in the center of Daimao's chest.

Daimao abruptly stopped transforming and returned to his normal form, only now with a gaping hole in his chest spewing blood out like a volcano.

"You mentioned your ultimate trump card and it was a technique that I knew, meaning that I understood its strengths and weaknesses. If there's one thing I've learned with that technique or anything close to it then it's that hitting you as you transformed will normally interfere with it. I never even mentioned my ultimate trump card and I end up stopping your transformation, funny how that works right? The first rule of fighting, if you know that your opponent knows how your technique works then you shouldn't make it so obvious to your opponents. Speaking of techniques working, that's ⅔ times the Special Beam Cannon worked in a battle. I mean first there's the thing with Raditz, then I used it in that fight with Gohan, and now here. Still though, the only reason it worked this time was because he was in the middle of transforming and wasn't able to stop it. It's pretty obvious that this move is a liability in one on one fights.'

Daimao finished shrinking back to his normal form, the gigantic hole in his chest not even close to being healed yet, and began crawling while leaving a trail of blood behind from the wound in his chest "Dammit Piccolo… all I wanted was to recreate the Demon King, and you come in the way of this. Why?"

"Because I understand why Goku and King Kai wanted me to come here, they wanted to see if I had ever truly moved on from my past life and forged a new path for myself. King Kai never was fully convinced, though that's probably because I screwed him over once, and he decided to send me down here as a test. He and Goku wanted to see just what the difference was between the two of us. The difference between is actually pretty simple. You want the power to be the Demon King, I want the power because I know that I'm going to need it. So here's what I'm thinking, I say we do this fusion but only if you agree that I say the host entity."

'Finally, he sees things the way I see them! At long last, I've finally found my key to get back into the realm of the living! Yes Piccolo, I'm so glad that you've at last come to your senses after all of this."

Piccolo remained stoic and gave a simple nod "Yes, it's become quite clear that Goku and King Kai made the right choice in having us meet. Together we'll become a very powerful warrior, one that will be known throughout the entire universe."

"Excellent, I can't tell you how thrilled I am that you've finally realized how much this fusion will benefit both of us. I knew there was an actual brain in that head of yours, even if it took some time to comprehend how important and necessary this move is."

"Yes and before we do this there's one thing that I think you should know, for the rest of time you're going to have to witness your worst nightmare in the form of a Demon King fighting to protect the Earth and more importantly fighting alongside Son Goku." he received a look of utter contempt and hatred "Yeah it's shocking I know, it's okay to be speechless because I would be too. After years of you trying to manipulate me into killing Goku and taking over the Earth, I just brilliantly outsmarted you and it feels absolutely amazing. This was a necessary move Daimao and I'm sure it must make your blood boil to know that you'll be fighting to protect the Earth instead of rule it. You're probably asking why, after telling you for so long that I wasn't going to fuse, that I'm making the decision to go through with this. My answer is simple, Earth is full of both good and bad people, sure most of them are fools but the fact is that it's still a planet that's worth protecting. Besides, it's not like I want to end up back here if you catch my drift."

Daimao let out a snarl and desperately tried to heabutt him.

Piccolo clamped a hand over Daimao's mouth in order to shut him up "Take your defeat like a man Daimao, you were a worthy opponent and on another note it was good to meet you. You're as much of a self absorbed, insignificant moron that I thought you would be and now I get to punish you for trying to control me."

"You'll never… get away… with this! I'll find ways to make you suffer Piccolo, I promise you this! I won't go through with this!"

"That's enough out of you, you've lost this battle and it's only right that you take defeat the way that a true king would. I remember all of those lessons you provided for me through transferring your memories, everything about the honor of royalty and being a man, and now it's time for you to take your defeat like one. Now don't worry, this isn't going to take very long." they were then covered by a blinding light 'It's definitely working, I can feel his Ki signature draining from his body and fast and now all of the injuries that I've sustained in this fight seem to be fading away like they were never there.'

Daimao's body quickly began fading away.

'That's it, go on and disappear forever. There's no way I'm letting even a single trace of you survive this.'

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Soon enough, Upa found himself back where he had started "Excuse me Master Korin it's me, are you still up there?"

Korin poked his head out in the sky "Hey Upa is that you?"

"Yes it's me alright, mission accomplished."

'So the kid didn't die after all, he really is impressive.'

"So you think you could let me back out now?"

"Alright, just hold on a second." Korin whisked him back up and out through the jug, where he landed safely on the ground "Welcome back, I take it your mission was a success?"

"As a matter of fact…" Upa flared his aura slightly "I do feel different though, somehow my whole body feels different. I feel this huge reservoir of power bubbling up inside of me, I feel really at peace too even more than I had ever thought possible."

'Goku said that he be able to would survive no problem but I never considered just what it would mean, could this boy truly be the one? I've gotta admit I'm actually pretty amazed, Yamcha mentioned the kid had potential but to get the Ultra Divine Water all by himself at his age was something only Goku could pull off. Is it possible that he'll surpass even Goku? Well I guess only time will tell.'

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Piccolo finished the fusion with Daimao, and stared down at his hands as he attempted to grasp his newfound power 'This is…'

"I take it this portion of your training was a success?"

Piccolo looked back and saw Scarlet standing behind him "So how long were you waiting there exactly?"

"Just long enough to make sure you didn't do anything so monumentally stupid that it would doom us all." Scarlet intently studied Piccolo for a moment "You seem a bit taller now, and your eyes don't hold any of the same hate that King Kai had expected."

"Oh please, as if I'm enough of a pushover that I'd let that old fool take over my body? You know, like Goku said I actually did find myself in there and I'm pretty sure you have a good idea of how it went."

"I'm surprised that you actually agreed to fuse with him, after all you pretty much despise everything he once stood for."

"I don't know if I would go that far."

"Regardless it's truly remarkable, so how do you feel?"

"Pretty good to be honest, this new power is amazing. I figured I'd grow stronger but not to this extent."

"Good to know." Scarlet held out her hand "Now come on, we're gonna go ahead and head back to King Kai's planet where I'm gonna teach you the Kaioken."

"Works for me."

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Time had passed, and the recovery process had at last some to an end.

Goku pulled himself out of the recovery chamber and slowly took a moment to get a grip on his newfound power "Wow, just… wow."

"I couldn't have said it better myself." that was when Cooler and Tien made their way back into the room "So how do you feel?"

"Like I'm a lot stronger now than I was before just like you said I'd be, it feels like I can barely keep my power under control. It feels pretty insane, I thought that I was already getting close to the maximum strength I could get but I guess this just proves that I don't know my own limitations. I have to admit that it feels pretty good, I just wish that I had the time to stop and enjoy it but I don't. Thank you for everything you've done for us Cooler but we can't waste anymore time, we have to get to Planet Namek now before Frieza kills my son and all of our friends."

"Rest assured I am aware, the coordinates for the flight path to Planet Namek without going through the asteroid field. Both of you come with me and I'll take you there so you can resume your journey." and so Cooler began leading Goku and Tien towards their ship so that their trip to Namek could continue."

'Gohan, Kai, Yamcha, Bulma, I'm sorry we're taking so long to get there but I promise that me and Tien are gonna be there as soon as we can!'

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With Upa and Piccolo's power levels both on the rise, it looks like the tides are turning in favor of our heroes, but Goku and Tien still have a long way to go before they can finally reach Planet Namek. Frieza and his men have proven to be far more capable than we had anticipated so if any hope against this tyrant does remain then now it is up to Goku to find it, next time on Dragon Ball Z: the Next Generation!

A/N:

This chapter that is meant to serve four purposes for the sake of the story. The first purpose is to give a little bit of insight as to what Piccolo and the others are going to be up to during their training with King Kai and Scarlet (most Piccolo), the second purpose is to show what Goku and Tien are up to during their trip to Namek aside from just training (continuing from their unexpected asteroid based detour), and the third purpose is to establish that the two of them will be arriving on Namek somewhat later than in canon, which will make room for another plot device that I had in mind for later on. The fourth and final purpose is to show what Upa is up to back on Earth.

Since Yamcha spent most of his time on King Kai's world training with Scarlet, I figured why not have Piccolo do the same. His test while training is something that I'm recycling from my other fic from about a year ago, the Rise of a Protector. For those of you that read that, you know what I'm talking about. If not then you'll see later on.

Cooler and his Armored Squadron (well two out of three of them anyway) appearing in this chapter was meant to establish some of Cooler's character through his actions, such as agreeing to help Goku and Tien. I know that a lot of people think that he's basically a rehash of Frieza (looking at you Team Four Star), but I honestly think he could be a really interesting villain if you just dive further into his character. When I imagine it, I see something somewhat similar to the character of Prince Lotor from Voltron: Legendary Defender. At least up until the end of season 6 that is, so basically Lotor's personality from seasons 3-5. Think of it this way, whereas Frieza and King Cold value destruction and suffering with huge smiles on their faces, what Cooler considers when running his portion of the empire is efficiency.

Also, in response to the people who keep asking me to pair Gohan with Erasa: I actually do plan to do that, I've seen a lot of fics where Gohan and Erasa get paired up together, the most famous of which being The Erased Chronicles. The problem is that they're either unfinished, one-shots that are sweet but don't have that much substance, or they're left unfinished. Or the (shudders) three way lemons between Gohan, Erasa and Videl. I'm gonna go for something where Gohan hooks up with a nice normal girl that's nice to him to counterbalance Videl being a complete and total bitch. As for Kai's pairing, I don't really see him and Videl working out very well so, since I plan to continue.

Power levels:

Goku: 90,000

Goku (Zenkai): 3 million

Tien: 25,000

Tien (Potential Unlocked): 220,000

Upa: 8,000

Upa (post Ultra Divine Water, initially): 64,000

Scarlet (suppressed): 10,000

Piccolo (weighted): 8,000

Piccolo (unweighted): 10,400

Daimao: 6,000

Cooler (heavily suppressed): 1.3 million