Chapter Hundred-twenty-four
The Metamoran Victory Dance! Goku's True Power!
"Soooo what the heck is this thing, anyway?" Gohan asked as the trio flew up to the top of the great stone spire. "And don't say 'a sword'," he told Kibito wearily, "I can see that." The attendant simply rolled his eyes. To be honest, Gohan wasn't entirely sure how a cutting weapon was going to be useful against someone who could regenerate like Boo. Maybe it was really, really sharp?
"It is the Zeta Sword," Xī explained. "A weapon of great power that can only be wielded by the greatest of warriors. I… I can't remember exactly what it does," she admitted reluctantly, "But I know that Bei once told us that when freed, it will extract the wielder's hidden power. The two will become one and you will be able to cut down even the fiercest opponent." Or, at least, that's what Bei had told them. No one had ever actually been able to pull the damn thing out. Not herself, not Kibito, not Dong, not Bei, not Nan, not even mighty Shengda. Still, Gohan had to be able to do it. It was their only chance.
Gohan looked down at the Zeta Sword, which was buried nearly to the handle in rock. "Huh…" he muttered as he crouched down in a squat and gripped the handle. "Here goes nothing," he said before gritting his teeth. He grunted and groaned as he started pulling up, tugging on the sword's handle as hard as he could. He snarled between his teeth and his face turned red from the exertion as he pulled back with all his might… only for his hands to slip off the sword's handle, burning from the friction, and for him to smash the back of his head on the rock. "Ah, sunnuvabitch!" he cried out painfully before sitting up and looking at his glowing red palms with a wince. "Man," he muttered, "That thing's really in there…" Kibito chuckled. "What's so funny?!" Gohan demanded hotly.
"It just all seems like a tremendous waste of time," Kibito explained bluntly. Gohan's face burned angrily and Xī gawked at him in shock. What was Kibito doing?! "If the high and divine Kaioushins could not free the Zeta Sword, what makes you believe that a mortal such as yourself, even as powerful as you are, is worthy enough to wield this blade? If you are the only hope for the universe then we might as well go back to Earth and let Majin Boo consume us, just to save everybody the time." Gohan glared at Kibito and got to his feet, balling up his fists.
"Oh, yeah?" he asked, Kibito's words filling him with determination. "Oh yeah?!" he said again as he powered up to Super Saiyan. He got down again and grabbed the Zeta Sword's hilt, snarling and straining again as he pulled with everything he had. Still, the sword held firm in the ground. Gohan didn't give up, though. He couldn't. He had to keep pulling! Everyone was counting on him! He needed to pull out the Zeta Sword. If it really had the power to make him strong enough to defeat Majin Boo then he would succeed. "Come on," he growled as he kept pulling the sword up. "Come on!" Finally, as his feet dug and cracked into the stone, he felt something begin to give. The sword began moving upward as Kibito and Xī gawked in amazement.
"That's it, Gohan!" Xī cheered as the ground shook under her feet. "Keep going! You can do it!" Gohan gave a mighty roar and pulled one last time with all his strength. But there was more to that moment than Gohan's raw, physical power. There was something different, something powerful, perhaps even an air of… destiny. Whatever it might have been, with that roar, Gohan ripped the Zeta Sword out of the ground and shot up into the sky, holding it high overhead. Xī and Kibito stared in open-mouthed astonishment as the pillar of stone crumbled to the ground and they hovered in the air.
"I did it!" Gohan cheered as he held the sword aloft. It was an enormous weapon. The blade alone was nearly as long as Gohan's entire body! It was also nearly as wide as his head! Even as a Super Saiyan, he could definitely feel the weight of it in his hands. 'Kinda wish Trunks was here to help me figure out how to use this thing,' he thought. Then again, Trunks was self-taught, too. So he'd probably have about as much luck just flailing it around until he knew what he was doing.
"For the record," Kibito said as they all descended to the ground, "I was only ever saying all of that to motivate you. 'No hard feelings' is the mortal expression, I believe?" Gohan just smirked at Kibito as he hefted the Zeta Sword carefully over one shoulder.
"Depends," he said jovially. "You gonna help me with target practice?" Kibito's pink face paled slightly.
OoOoOoO
Before Goku could say anything further, Suno reached down and grabbed Goku by the ear, pulling her up to her feet and twisting her ear as hard as she could while pulling her wife away from the children.
"Goku," Suno said icily, "I know you didn't just tell our daughter, who is seven years old, that you're going to let her go fight the horrible monster that just killed our son. I know I just had something in my ear, didn't I?!"
"That had to be it," Bulma snarled as she grabbed Goku's other ear with both hands and twisted it furiously. "I must've had the same thing, Suno! We both know Goku wouldn't be that! Fucking! Stupid!"
"No, look," Goku insisted against the onslaught on her ears, "I can explain– ow!"
"Oh, you can?" Suno asked as she twisted Goku's ear again. "I hope so! 'Cause I'm just dying to hear how you justify sending our children to fight Majin Boo! I mean, just because they can turn into Super Saiyans doesn't mean they're invincible! I thought we covered that with Cell!"
"Yeah," Bulma added, "We're all ears!"
"They're strong, you guys!" Goku swore. "They could be even stronger than me!"
"It's really sweet that you think that, Goku," Suno replied wearily, "And you might even be right! But that takes time, which is something that we don't have!" That was when Suno and Bulma felt Goten and Trunks tugging at their pant leg and the hem of her dress, respectively. They looked down at the children, who looked back up at them with determined expressions on their young faces.
"Mama," Goten said resolutely, "If mommy thinks we can help beat up the guy who killed big bro, I wanna help!"
"Yeah, mom!" Trunks added firmly as he pounded a fist into his palm. "That jerk killed dad! I'm the Prince of All Saiyans, I can't let him get away with that!"
Suno stared down at the children in disbelief. They were serious, weren't they? "But…" she began to protest.
"You two…" Bulma added weakly. How could this happen? She was the smartest person on Earth! How could her son be so dumb?! He must have gotten it from his father. The pair sighed weakly before finally releasing Goku's ears and throwing up their hands in defeat.
"Oh, fine," Suno groaned. "Just… whatever it is, be careful, okay?"
Goku smiled gratefully at Suno as she rubbed the red skin of her ear. "Thank you," she said sincerely. Suno huffed and crossed her arms, still clearly not in favor of this, while Bulma gave Goku the stink-eye before stomping off. "Now," Goku began as she looked back down at Goten and Trunks. "The way you guys are right now, there's no way you can defeat Majin Boo on your own." She watched their faces deflate, disappointment mixing with confused anger.
"Then why did you–" Trunks began to say before Goku held up a finger.
"But!" she added, "Together, you just might be strong enough. That's what I'm going to show you. It's a technique I learned from some members of a race called the Metamorans in the Otherworld. It's called the Fusion Dance!" Goten gasped excitedly and Trunks groaned. He was gonna have to dance? With a girl?!
"A dance?" Suno asked curiously, one eyebrow raised incredulously. "What sort of technique is that? How is it supposed to help Goten and Trunks be strong enough to challenge Majin Boo?"
"When they do the dance right," Goku explained, "They'll go from being two people into one warrior that's more powerful than either of them individually or the pair of them put together!" Goten and Trunks looked at each other with wide eyes. They weren't sure which they were more of: confused, anxious, or excited.
"You mean me…" Goten started to say.
"And Goten…" Trunks added.
"Would be the same person?!" They asked in unison. Goku nodded and Suno was still confused.
"But Trunks is a boy," she pointed out, "And Goten is a girl. Wouldn't that be a problem?" Goku blinked, looking at her wife in confusion.
"Why would it be?" Goku asked. "Ki is ki. When the dance is complete, they'll turn into ki and transfer into one another, creating a whole new person from that transfer."
"Well, when you put it like that…" Suno muttered, stroking her chin thoughtfully. She guessed that it did make sense. "How long does it last, though?" Suno asked. "I mean, it's not permanent, is it? They will change back, right?"
"Oh, yeah," Goku assured Suno. "The fusion only lasts for thirty minutes. After that, they'll split up again and won't be able to fuse for another hour." Suno let out a sigh of relief and nodded. With that, Goku put her attention back on the children.
"Now I won't have enough time to make sure you get it down pat, so here's what we're going to do." Then she looked back up at the others. "Hey! Krillin, Piccolo! Get over here! I need you guys to watch so you can show them after I leave!" Krillin and Piccolo exchanged wary glances before walking over to Goku, Goten, and Trunks. "Now, you two won't be able to fuse," she told them, "Since the partners in the fusion dance need to be of a similar size, build, and power."
"I have never been thankful to be short before this moment," Krillin muttered under his breath.
"So," Goku continued, "Here's how it works." She focused for a moment before there was suddenly a second Goku standing beside her, making the quartet give a cry of shock. "Hey, Goku!" she said to the other.
"Hi, Goku!" the clone said back. They high-fived and Tenshinhan rolled his eyes. Well, at least his technique was good for a teaching tool even if it was useless as an actual fighting technique.
"So," Goku narrated her actions as she and her clone moved in perfect synchronicity, "You move your arms across your chest, pointed away from each other. You have to keep them straight when you do this, okay? Then," she continued, "Take three steps toward each other." She bent her knees and pivoted her feet to the sides, taking three quick shuffle-steps and swinging her arms over her head in a smooth arch so that she and the clone were now pointing at each other while Goten and Trunks watched intently.
"While doing this," the clone added, "You both say 'Fu!' Then," the clone went on, "You say 'Sion,'" they brought their arms back across their chests and stood up straight, making quarter-turns with their hips and lifting up one leg to point their knees at each other in opposition to their arms.
"Finally," Goku said, "You bring it all together and say 'Ha!'" She and her clone swung their arms forward and pivoted their bodies to the side, their fingertips touching. In a brilliant flash of light, there was only one Goku left standing. "Make sure to touch just the tips of your index fingers," Goku explained as Trunks and Goten nodded along furiously. "And the angle of your legs and the placement of your feet. Every movement has to be precise or it'll be a real mess, like the first time Pikkon and I did the dance."
"Pikk-who?" Piccolo asked.
"What do you mean a 'mess'?" Bulma added worriedly. She was picturing a mishmashed monster child with four arms or eyes coming out of their stomach. She tried not to picture it, because that was horrifying.
"Long story, don't have time," Goku said succinctly. "Think of it like water," Goku explained as she kept her focus on the children. "Think of yourselves as two mighty rivers that get narrower and narrower as they get closer to one another. At the point where your fingers touch, those are the rivers converging at two small points. But the points give way under the pressure of the rivers' powers and the two unite into a single, greater river." Goten nodded intently, listening with focus, drinking in every detail as naturally as Goku herself had done when learning at the feet of Roshi, Kami, or the Kaiou. Trunks was also paying attention, but most of his energy was on trying not to think too much about how stupid he'd look. "We're going to go over this as many times as we can," Goku told them, "Then when you're ready, you're both going to go into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber for as long as you can."
"The Hyper-huh?" Goten asked. Trunks' face brightened at the term, recognizing it.
"Oh, I know what that is!" he said eagerly. "It's the room up here where one day is a whole year! Dad told me about it! He…" Trunks' face fell as he remembered that his father was gone. "He told me he was gonna take me up here to train someday. When he thought I was ready." Goten put a comforting hand on Trunks' shoulder.
"Are you ready to do this?" Goku asked them both with her hands on her hips, taking a position of authority to pull the pair back on track.
"Yeah!" Goten said eagerly, nodding her head and throwing up a fist.
"Let's do it!" Trunks agreed, copying Goten's gesture.
"Okay," Goku told them, "Let's get started. Lemme see you power up!" Goten and Trunks nodded emphatically and let out a cry of effort as they powered up to Super Saiyan. The other adults gawked in amazement at the power of these godlike children.
"I know I already said it," Yamcha muttered, "But man oh man, am I glad I'm retired." Ten, Launch, and Chaozu muttered in agreement. Goku, meanwhile, frowned.
"Stop," she told them, and the pair did so with no small measure of confusion on their faces. "Trunks," she told the boy sternly, "You're showing off. I know you're stronger than Goten, so power down."
"He is not!" Goten protested fiercely. How could her own mom say that?!
"Yes, he is," Goku told her. "Not by much, but he is." Trunks puffed out his chest until Goku turned a steely gaze on him and he was suddenly very afraid. "I told you to power down," she told him. "You and Goten's ki needs to match. This isn't the time for you to be goofing off." As Suno watched, she couldn't help but think that Goku could make an excellent martial arts instructor. Reluctantly, Trunks powered down and Goku nodded approvingly. "That's better," she said encouragingly. "Now put yourselves a few extra inches apart so that you don't touch fingers accidentally and mess up." Goten and Trunks nodded, shuffling away from each other awkwardly. "Now, begin!"
OoOoOoO
Babidi grimaced irritably as Majin Boo flew them around far too fast for his liking. Boo had destroyed a few towns and villages haphazardly and was, thankfully, amusing himself at least. But it wasn't enough for Babidi's liking. He was still burning at Vegeta's defiance against him. The first of his minions to ever defy him! Well… Dabura, but that hardly counted. He blamed Vegeta. The smug bastard breaking his control must have weakened his magic and his hold on Dabura. That was the only explanation for it. So since Vegeta was dead, Babidi could still make him pay. He recalled the images he had seen inside of Vegeta's head when he had first tempted the proud Saiyan to submit. There were names and faces that Vegeta held dear. Names that he no doubt had died for. Wouldn't it just be awful if they were to die anyway and his sacrifice was for nothing?
'Bulma and Trunks,' Babidi thought plaintively. It was a shame that Vegeta didn't really seem to know or care what city he lived in, as that information was still out of Babidi's reach. Still, he had other ways of sussing it out. "Majin Boo!" he said sharply as he gave his creature's antenna a hard tug, making him wail painfully. "Stop," he ordered, "I command you!" Boo did stop, but he stopped so suddenly that Babidi was nearly flung from his back and would have been sent hurtling to the ground below. "Imbecile!" Babidi snapped before regaining his composure. He closed his eyes and reached out with his hands and his mind, broadcasting a spell of his powerful magic to all of the feeble minds on this wretched little planet.
All across the world, every man, woman, and child suddenly had their heads filled with the image of a weird pink man in a purple cape and a funny outfit floating over a city. The residents of Ginger Town soon recognized it as their city and were extremely confused and more than a little bit worried.
OoOoOoO
"Oh no," Chi-Chi muttered nervously. She did not like where this was going. She only hoped that wherever Majin Boo's path took it that it would least stay away from North City.
"Forget about it," Goku told Goten and Trunks firmly. "Keep practicing. Anyone that Majin Boo kills, just use that as fuel to train that much harder. We can always bring them back with the Dragon Balls, just like we will for Gohan and Vegeta." Goten and Trunks did their best to follow Goku's instructions, biting their lips to focus and trying to keep their movements precise and in sync. Despite the uncertainty and the terror, they all couldn't help but think the same thing: That was Majin Boo?
OoOoOoO
"People of Earth!" Babidi's voice broadcasted inside more than five billion heads. "I am Babidi, Great and Powerful! I am the Master of Majin Boo!" There was a muttering of confusion and Babidi's brow furrowed in irritation. "Really? Nothing? Oh, never mind." He let out a sigh before continuing. "You will know the terror of Majin Boo soon enough unless you do as I command! I am looking for these two individuals, Bulma and Trunks!" Their likenesses flashed across the minds of the world.
OoOoOoO
"Ohhh crap," Bulma whimpered. Nothing good could come from this. Trunks' foot slipped and he nearly touched Goten's fingertips with his closed fists before Goku put a hand on his chest and pushed him away.
"Focus!" she told him. Trunks nodded and did his best to keep his mind on the dance.
OoOoOoO
"If any of you knows the location of these two," Babidi told the world, "You will tell me. If not, well…" Babidi chuckled wickedly. "Are you hungry, Majin Boo?" Boo clapped his hands excitedly as his barely-qualifying brain fired off as he seemed to connected the dots.
"Boooooo-hoo-hooo!" Boo cheered as his antenna whipped forward. A bolt of pink lightning zipped forward from the tip, zooming down toward the city. The people of Ginger Town cried out in horror as every last one of them was transformed, painfully by the looks and sounds of things, into a jawbreaker candy. Then Boo's mouth transformed into an enormous funnel and he took in a great breath, the sound of it like a tornado as he sucked them all into his mouth, disappearing down his gullet and into his stomach, which distended for a moment before returning to its original shape.
"Very good, Boo," Babidi said encouragingly. "Now, finish the job." Majin Boo held out his hand and a single pink ki ball popped forth from his palm to fall gently down onto Ginger Town like a snowflake. Then the entire city was consumed in an enormous fireball that left a pink mushroom cloud in its wake. "Until Trunks and Bulma's location is revealed to me," he warned, "This shall be the fate of every city on this planet!" Babidi cackled as the world was forced to watch Majin Boo fly off toward another city.
OoOoOoO
Back on Papaya Island, Idasa and Ikose were burying their faces in a pair of enormous "It wasn't your fault those brats cheated and used devil magic to beat you, you tried your very best and you'd win if life was fair" sundaes while their mother showered them with empty platitudes about what good little fighters they were and how it wasn't their fault, that they'd do so much better when they tried next time. It seemed that not even the deaths of millions of innocent people could spoil their appetites.
"Ey, mama," Idasa said as he came up for air, "Weren't that blue-haired boy the one that done did punch Ikose in his face and knock out his front tooth?"
"Hey, at least I didn't get beat by no gotdang girl!" Ikose needled his twin brother, sticking out his tongue and flicking a cherry at him.
"She didn't beat me!" Idasa denied despite the existence of facts.
"Yeah she did!" Ikose taunted. "She plum knocked your lights out with one hit like a punk!"
"Yeah, well I didn't get no beatin' from a city boy with girly hair!" Idasa shot back.
"Shut your mouths, the botha ya!" their mother warned as she shook an enormous finger sternly in their faces. "Or I'll tan yer hides so fast and so bad I can take strips of ya off fer belts!" They shrank worriedly away from her as she rubbed one of her many chins thoughtfully. "Yeah," she said in response to Isada's initial question, "That is that boy! That other lady must be his mama! The one who made a pact with the devil so's he could beat my precious little angel," she cooed as she tugged on Isada's cheek.
"Ain't that Bulma lady the one who runs Capsule Corp?" Isada asked.
"Don't they live in West City?" Ikose added. Their mother's eyes lit up fiendishly at the thought. Yes, yes they most certainly sure did live in West City.
OoOoOoO
Lazuli balled up her fists and was forced to watch as Majin Boo devoured Purple City. She grit her teeth and bit down a curse with Marron so close to her as that monster turned everyone in her hometown into miles upon miles of black licorice before watching the entire city be destroyed.
Krillin saw his wife's powerless rage and squeezed her hand, trying to give her some comfort. "It's okay," he whispered to her softly. "It'll be okay. It'll all work out." It always did in the end and it would work out again. Wouldn't it?
OoOoOoO
Lapis bit down on his own rage as he held Amy to him, thankful that their home was far enough out of the way that Goku and the others would be able to figure out a solution before that bastard ever found him. God, though, he wished he could do something.
Adrian didn't know what was going on, as he was not affected by Babidi's magic. He only knew that his family was in distress and wished he could help them.
OoOoOoO
"People of Earth!" Babidi announced. "I have good news! Your suffering is nearly at an end!" No one was quite sure what to think about that. "One brave soul among you has stepped forth and told me the location of my enemies! Within moments, West City and all those who live in it shall be no more!"
OoOoOoO
"Grandma," Trunks gasped as he came to a sudden, screeching halt. "Grandpa!" They were going to die! He couldn't let that happen. He had to do something! He couldn't lose any more of his family.
"Goku," Bulma said in a tremulous voice as she looked at her oldest friend. "Goku, you've got to go do something! He's going to kill my parents, not to mention millions of innocent people! He'll destroy the whole city!"
Goku winced regretfully for a moment before speaking. "I mean… Dragon Balls?" she pointed out. Bulma sprinted across the Lookout, hopping on one foot for a few strides to take off one of her high-heeled shoes, and started smashing Goku violently over the head with it, over and over, even after the heel snapped off. "Hey! Bulma! H-hey, knock it off!"
"Dragon Balls aren't the answer for everything, Goku!" Bulma screamed furiously. "I'm not just going to sit up here and let my family die!"
"It's not like you're the only one!" Lazuli pointed out tersely. "Boo just ate the city where I grew up and then he blew it up!"
"We can't just assume everyone will be brought back," Piccolo pointed out, "There might be those in West City who attended the Budoukai and were killed by Vegeta. If Majin Boo destroys West City, they'll be dead forever."
"Maybe we can wish for Shenron to just restore the Earth to the way it was before Majin Boo was free," Goku suggested. "That would take care of everything, right?" Bulma started hitting Goku with her other shoe. "Hey! What'd I say?!"
"You won't be able to wish for anything if Boo destroys West City!" Bulma snapped at her. "The Dragon Radar is still in my lab!" Goku's eyes widened with shock at the sudden gravity of the situation.
"Ohhh… shoot," she muttered, rubbing the back of her head. "Okay, okay. Here's the plan," she turned back to Trunks. "Trunks, go to West City. Fly as fast as you possibly can. I'll stall Majin Boo and buy you as much time as I can."
"I wanna go, too–" Goten warned before Goku shot her daughter a glare.
"No," Goku told her, "You'll stay right here and wait. I know you wanna help but you and Trunks will just get in each other's way." She turned to the boy, who was standing there and looking at her. "Why are you still here?!" she barked.
"R-right!" Trunks yelped. "S-sorry!" Then he flew off as fast as he possibly could, rocketing off in a golden streak. Then Goku put her fingers to her forehead and sighed. She knew what she'd have to do. She just hated that it would take up nearly all of her time on Earth.
OoOoOoO
"Slow down, you big ignoramus!" Babidi scolded Majin Boo harshly as they flew to West City. "You're going to make me fall off!"
"You fly!" Boo pointed out in annoyance. "Stop yelling at Boo or Boo'll–" before Majin Boo could complete his threat, Goku was floating in the air in front of them and the pair cried out in shock.
"Oh," Babidi breathed out once he recognized Goku. "It's you. Son Goku, right?" he scratched his big, wrinkly head in confusion. "Funny, I figured you were dead." Goku flicked her halo and Babidi rolled his eyes.
"Hey there, Boo," Goku said with a bit of a smile while ignoring Babidi entirely. "You're pretty strong. I guess Vegeta and I should've taken you seriously, huh?"
"Nevermind that," Babidi said quickly, not enjoying being completely blown off for his dimwitted underling. "Get out of the way, we have business to attend to."
"Bulma and Trunks aren't in West City," Goku said while still looking at Boo. "So you can just leave it alone."
"Are you going to tell us where they are?" Babidi asked wearily.
"Nope!" Goku replied. "Look, I won't be around long and then you can have Trunks all to yourself. I just want you to wait a couple of days for him and my daughter Goten to get strong enough to beat you." Babidi and Boo exchanged incredulous looks before they descended into peals of hysterical laughter. Babidi fell off of Boo's shoulders and kicked his feet in the air as Goku rolled her eyes.
"E-even if," Babidi gasped as he wiped his eyes while Boo floated away to go look at clouds, "Even if I actually believed that anyone could be powerful enough to defeat my Majin Boo, why would I possibly do that? What conceivable reason would I have to let you win?!" Goku shrugged, smirking a little.
"I kinda had a feeling you'd say that," Goku admitted as she got into a fighting stance. "Looks like it's my job to stall you, then." That made Babidi laugh again. Hoping against hope, she stretched out her mind to contact Trunks telepathically. 'Trunks!' she thought. 'Have you found the Dragon Radar yet?'
'I'm looking as fast as I can!' Trunks promised, his voice fretful in Goku's head. 'My mom's lab is a mess!'
Goku gave a mental sigh. She should've known her luck wouldn't work out that well. 'Don't worry,' she told him, 'Just keep looking. I'll buy you as much time as I can.'
'Can you really fight Majin Boo?' Trunks asked. 'Even my dad couldn't beat him and he's the best!' Goku allowed herself a smirk.
'Oh he is, huh?' she asked. 'We'll see about that.' With that, Goku turned her attention back to Babidi, who had finally stopped laughing.
"Very amusing," he sighed, "Very amusing. Now then," he called out with a clap of his hands. "Majin Boo! Kill this fool so that we can be on our way!" He blinked when no reply came. "M-Majin Boo?" he looked around for a moment, spinning in the air before looking up and seeing that Boo was playing in the clouds, shaping them in his hands and stacking them to make snowmen. "Majin Boo!" he snapped. "Get down here this instant and do as I command, you big, stupid, brainless wad of chewing gum!"
"Jeez," Goku muttered as Majin Boo floated down reluctantly, "Why do you let this little creep push you around like that?" she asked.
"Don't turn this around!" Babidi warned Goku sharply. "Majin Boo, you do what I say and you annihilate this gnat, or I will put you back in your egg!"
"You won't do that!" Boo said sharply, catching Babidi off-guard. "Without Boo, lady kill you!" Babidi stared at Boo in shock. The silly brute was actually… getting smarter. "Boo still fight you, though," Boo said to Goku as he turned his focus back to her. "Boo make you dead!" Goku grinned as she raised an eyebrow.
"Oh you will, huh?" she asked. With the entire world still under Babidi's spell, everyone saw what the green wizard saw. "Well, before you make me dead, how about I give you a lesson about Saiyans? This," she gestured to herself, "Is my base state. This," she continued as she powered up to the first level, "Is a Super Saiyan. You with me so far?" Boo nodded as Babidi rolled his eyes. "Beyond that," Goku continued as she transformed again, lightning arcing around her body as her hair stood even higher and all but one of her bangs swept up, "Is what happens when Super Saiyan has transcended the level of a Super Saiyan. Or, for shorthand, Super Saiyan 2." Yeah, it was wordy, but she was explicitly stalling for time.
"Yes, yes," Babidi muttered with a roll of his wrist, gesturing for Goku to get a move on. "We've seen this already, it didn't work, let's get on with it!" Then her next words gave him a start.
"You're right," Goku growled as she hunched forward suddenly, "You have seen the first two before. But you haven't seen this!" She'd only done this once before and it had sucked.
OoOoOoO
"Oh no," Kaiou muttered as he watched from Otherworld. "Goku, what are you doing?! You know how powerful that form is! You'll use up all your time on Earth and you need every goshdarn second!"
OoOoOoO
"Goku's bluffing, right?" Yamcha asked the others. "She has to be." There was no way she'd found a level beyond the power Gohan had shown against Perfect Cell.
"Has Goku ever been the type to bluff?" Roshi retorted. Besides, if anyone could discover that kind of power, it would be Goku.
OoOoOoO
"This!" Goku exclaimed, "Is to go… further beyond!" Then she let out a scream of fury and power, unlike anything mortal ears had ever heard. Her aura flared out in all directions like a star, blindingly bright and brilliant as she howled and raged. Within seconds, the clouds began to pull towards her, her power so great that it transformed her into a gravity well. Goku's ki climbed higher and higher with every passing second as she screamed and screamed. Veins bulged across her body and in her forehead as sweat ran down her frame in sheets, instantly evaporating into steam from the heat of her ki.
OoOoOOO
"U-unreal," Piccolo gasped in shock, the power nearly taking him off of his feet. "I-it's just… it's impossible! How is Goku generating this kind of power?!" How could something like this exist?!
"I-it's too much!" Krillin cried in pain, the overbearing weight of Goku's ki almost physically painful.
"Come on, mommy," Goten encouraged with nothing more than a wince, "You can do it!"
OoOoOoO
The sound of Goku's scream echoed across every corner of the Earth as its people watched on in amazement, barely able to comprehend the Godlike figure they were all beholden to in that moment. The ground under their feet shook as typhoons and cyclones swept the land, thirty-foot waves swelling at sea, all breathed into life by Goku's enormous power.
OoOoOoO
"H-hold onto me, guys," Upa stuttered as he put his massive arms around his family and held them close to his broad chest. "We just gotta wait it out. Goku's on our side!" Still, he couldn't figure out what Goku was doing. If she didn't stop soon, the whole planet was going to break in half!
OoOoOoO
"Hercule, darling, make it stop!" Miguel cried as she buried her face in Hercule's chest as they flew in their luxury Capsule Craft back to Satan City, the pilot doing his damnedest to fly against the turbulence.
'Make it stop?!' Hercule thought in horror. 'What the hell am I supposed to do?!' What could any of them do against powers like these?!
OoOoOoO
Goku felt the wall of pain that she'd hit the first time she'd transformed. That sheer, blinding wall of agony that tried to make her stop. Her screams turned from power and rage to pain as her whole body burned, as if it was forcing her to stop because what she was doing was physically impossible. Well, Goku had never been one to listen when she was told she couldn't do something, even when the thing saying it was her own body.
She reached down deep inside as she had before, to that place her mind hadn't been since she was a child. It was a primal place, the place of her Saiyan ancestors. She had lost most of it with the loss of her tail but it was still there, buried deep down inside. When she found it and held it, the wall shattered like glass. In that moment, she released it, letting feral rage consume her as she threw her head back, arched her body backward with it, and roared. She roared with all her strength, bellowing and pounding her chest as the light grew even brighter, drawing everything into her. Her hair began to grow longer as she roared, her canines showing as she screamed her throat raw, bending forward again.
OoOoOoO
Gohan stopped his sword in mid-swing as he, Xī, and Kibito all gaped in bewilderment. "Mom?" he muttered in shock. It had to be her. Was she really this powerful?
OoOoOoO
Far away on Cooler Planet One, Cooler had taken one step out of his training facility when the tremendous power hit him like a slap in the face. With a weary sigh, he turned right back around and returned to his training.
OoOoOoO
Goku's roaring ceased and the blinding starlight died down, her ki returning to a raging inferno that swam around her. Babidi stared at her and could only squeak in terror. Her long, wild golden hair roamed down her back like a raging sea, reaching the back of her knees. Her eyebrows had vanished completely and her eyes were now green with dark pupils set in them. They were burning with ferocity and focus as she locked onto Majin Boo like a hunter.
"This," Goku growled, her voice noticeably deeper, "This is Super Saiyan 3." Boo gave an excited coo before he pulled back a fist.
"You pretty!" Boo declared. "Boo smash!" He swung his fist forward and smashed it into the side of Goku's face, though he was surprised that she was still standing there and let out a confused little noise. Slowly, Goku turned her head to face him, pushing his fist back as she glowered, her gaze unbroken and her face unbruised.
"No," she snarled as she allowed herself a smirk. "No, I don't think you will." Then she punched Boo in the face and watched him go sailing off toward the horizon.