The Golden Great Ape's roar shook the heavens.
Vegeta, unable and unwilling to look up, reached out with his senses as accurately as he could and proceeded to stick his right arm up high. A concentrated blast of energy shot out from his outstretched hand directly towards the glowing white artificial moon flaring above. The energy collided and the explosion was immense, clouding the sky in a fluorescent fog as the ki dissipated and the moon faded from view.
The distraction this caused left Vegeta unable to block the kick from the giant white boot he was unexpectedly struck with, which rocketed him into the air in a spiralling and disorienting fashion.
"Nice try! But I've already absorbed enough blutz waves for the effects to linger." The voice was booming, any sense of regality discarded. "With the power I have now in the time that I have left, I will kill you!" King Vegeta's voice was now deep and guttural, fitting of the beastly form he now donned. "I will crush you like the pale imitation you are!"
Vegeta 2 swiftly recovered and halted in mid air, took a peek at the sky, and once confirming it was all clear, he righted himself and opened his eyes fully.
His own golden tail twitched beneath his clothes, his mind content that he would not be involuntarily transforming into a similar beast any time soon.
He felt a wetness on his lip and swiped at it; and it seemed that the self proclaimed King Vegeta had actually managed to draw blood from him with that last attack. A testament to his undeniable boost in power and the first bit of damage Vegeta had taken thus far in this Tournament.
He snorted.
"Well now, you might finally be able to put up a fight." He clicked his neck and braced himself. His Super Saiyan aura bursting to life once again with lightning sparks in accompaniment. "Though if you're only able to hit me when I'm standing still then you're just as screwed now as you were before."
He received no coherent response, only a wrathful roar as the Great Ape charged towards him. The ring bursting apart under the weight of each gargantuan step.
- DB DBZ DBS DBGT -
"Th- Thats a Great Ape! A Great Ape like in the old legends!"
Cabba, shocked and awed, had leapt to his feet the moment the transformation had been finalized. The Saiyans of his Universe had long since evolved past the need for tails, but all of them at one point or another had heard the tall tales and bedtime stories of their ancestors fabled ability to transform in the heat of battle into this kind of colossal creature. Of course like all myths and legends, few scarcely believed in them, Cabba included.
"But- that's just a myth right? Saiyans can't actually become monsters like that can they?" Kale proclaimed timidly, more than a little unsettled at what was occurring before her. The creature was like a manifestation of one of her childhood nightmares come true. Even a Super Saiyan didn't appear as terrifying as a gigantic rampaging monster.
"Oh that is so cool!"
Caulifla meanwhile was absolutely ecstatic.
She had leapt up also and unnecessarily braced herself upon Cabba's shoulder to push herself up even higher for a better view, causing him to almost buckle under the sudden weight. "Is that a new kind of Super Saiyan form? Can we do that too? Turn into giant gold monkey Super Saiyans?!" She shook Cabba violently. "You feel the power coming off that thing, Cabba?!" Her grin was uncharacteristic, too joyous for a battle seeking Saiyan.
Cabba was unable to respond, as his voice was drowned out by yet another deafening roar which shook the stands and silenced the crowd.
The force was felt even greater down at the precipice of the ring.
"I didn't think such a form was even possible!" Piccolo exclaimed, suppressing a shudder as his own prior experiences with the monstrous transformation flashed in his sight. "To transform into that beast and into a Super Saiyan on top of that!"
"It only makes sense I suppose," Gohan 1 responded at Piccolo's side, his face blank with shock. "But all of us had lost our tails by the time we eventually became Super Saiyans, so it never really mattered at that point what that Great Ape form was truly capable of." He narrowed his eyes, trying to recall his own prior transformations into that same creature when he was still a boy; but the memories were distant, like trying to recall a long forgotten dream.
"Our powers are far beyond being calculated in mere digits anymore…" Vegeta 1, ever collected and attentive, said out loud to no one in particular. "But I'd estimate he's boasting an impressive number right now."
"Maybe so," Goku stated over his shoulder, his hands on his hips and his expression neutral. "But that other you is just as impressive. He's a Super Saiyan 2 at the moment isn't he?" He turned back at the ring with a focused gaze. "And I'll bet there's more to him than he's letting on."
"Hmph, naturally," Vegeta chided, before turning his nose up. "Of course neither are all that impressive compared to myself. That will be beyond doubt once I get my turn in the ring. Just you wait."
"If you say so," Goku said dismissively, before breaking out into a morbid grin. "Either way, I get to fight a Vegeta in the next round! And so far they're both really strong!"
His eye twitched minisculely and he locked his gaze on the Super Saiyan 2 Vegeta of the second Timeline. Goku had meant what he had said before.
That Vegeta is hiding something big, I'm sure of it. I can sense something, just beneath the surface…
- DB DBZ DBS DBGT -
Vegeta was disgusted. Both at the lengths his counterpart had gone to in an attempt to gain an edge, and at himself for not having considered the scenario earlier.
The 'King' still possessed his tail, and was able to transform into a Super Saiyan. Thus, the combination of transformations was a possibility, and in the decades passed since his initial ascension it was only logical that the connection would have been made to combine the two at some point or another. Even if the Saiyan in question wasn't particularly seasoned in battle in Vegeta's personal view.
The power of the Great Ape, and the majesty of the Super Saiyan, culminating in a Golden Great Ape; a being of legend and the absolute apex of Saiyan power.
In theory at least Vegeta mused to himself as his own tail twitched again.
At the moment, as a Super Saiyan 2, his speed was evidently still superior. The ape's attacks were a frenzy. Punches and smacks and an overall heavy use of his upper body. Vegeta darted around the Ape like a gnat, his expression stoic despite the assaults he continued to dodge with finesse. He began to circle around, hoping to speed into the giant's blindspot behind his back.
There was a lucky hit; a swipe from a giant golden tail.
Vegeta was knocked off balance in the air and his concentration was shattered, with the opportunity seized upon immediately by the Great Ape. The tail had battered Vegeta back to the front of the giant, who proceeded to slam down on him with a closed right fist. Vegeta crashed into the ruined ring and bounced like a ball.
The left hand then smashed down upon him, and then the other, and then both repeatedly without end.
"Dad, no!" Trunks 2, in sudden fear, yelled in alarm and dashed to the ringside. He couldn't believe it, his father's unwavering domination had seemingly been completely overturned in mere seconds after a single colossal strike.
The giant Vegeta halted and his head twitched towards the yell of distraction to his right. His fist still held ready for another crushing blow. Trunks observed as the blood red void of an eye locked on his position for a fleeting moment, almost too quick for him to even register it. Almost as quickly after the instant he paused, the inward facing side of the Ape's face suddenly erupted into purple fire from a ki blast shot out at him from below. He veered back with a scream of agony and clutched his burns with the hand that had previously been clenched into a fist.
The ring sparked, and a golden aura encompassed Vegeta once more as he shot off the Tournament tiles and slammed his energy charged body against the giant's chest, which pushed him off balance completely and knocked the King onto his back in a crushing heap. The ring erupted even further, the entire surface now rocky and uneven.
Vegeta then made a controlled descent and lightly tapped onto the floor. His breath was steady even though his appearance was dismal. The right side of his top had been ripped away and his shirt hung loosely. He was bleeding from multiple, undiscenable places, with most of it dripping off of him as he stood there patiently and seemingly in thought.
"I suppose I know now how Kakarot felt when he went up against that accursed parasite." He spat out a glob of phlegm and blood. His frown deepened. "But if I were to compare you both, your power is about on par with an ordinary ape."
Vegeta heard the giant's fist clench and the knuckles pop. But when the fist slammed into the floor in a furious gesture, Vegeta wasn't even knocked off balance.
King Vegeta pushed himself up hastily and grasped the side of his face again. That last attack had seared the surface of his rough skin like a piece of cooked meat, and the pain was almost as blinding as it was unbearable.
What was even more blinding was the Ape's exploding rage.
He roared again, but his mouth remained open, a torrent of white hot fire erupting from it like a cannon and bursting forth violently.
Vegeta scoffed, and leapt into the air again as the flames melted the surface of the ring and he sped into the sky. His aura trailing in his wake.
- DB DBZ DBS DBGT -
After the beast's fur had turned golden, Pan had felt her stomach sink.
As the battle had continued, she clenched both hands together and squeezed them as her fears mounted.
Now however, her posture drooped as confusion overcame her.
Why hasn't he… transformed again?
Pan recounted her memories of the year long past, and her brow furrowed further with each recalled image. She had seen the process done twice now before, and as far as she could tell all the elements were all the same. It was even the same person, albeit one from a different timeline. So what exactly was going on? Why was this so-called King Vegeta still a Golden Great Ape at this point? She rubbed her hair beneath her bandanna, uncaring if it became unkempt.
As she understood it. A Saiyan who is already a Super Saiyan, who turns into a Great Ape, and then turns into a Super Saiyan as a Great Ape, and then gains control over said Golden Great Ape transformation, should then undergo what was probably the most incredible transformation Pan had ever had the pleasure to witness, and she had had the privilege of seeing it twice. A transformation that as far as she was concerned was the absolute pinnacle of Super Saiyan power.
And yet, here they were. Watching a giant Super Saiyan Great Ape still for some reason.
Pan tutted, turned, and practically marched up to her suited father standing by the sideline of the arena wall. Goku watched her with bemusement, confused as to why she had suddenly sauntered off away from him with such conviction in the midst of battle.
"Papa!" Pan announced her presence, tugging on Gohan's suit jacket. He looked down at her with a somewhat stern expression as his concentration was still on the match, though he relaxed it once he saw it was her.
"What's up? You okay?" Gohan said instinctively; his tone dutiful and appropriate for a parent. Pan motioned with a wave of her hand for him to lean down for them to whisper. He complied after a moment of confused hesitation.
"I need to ask you something," she said, her voice low and her hand cupped around her mouth.
"Why are we whispering?" Gohan whispered.
"In case it's a secret."
"In case what's a secret?"
"Super Saiyan 4!"
She seethed the words out between her teeth, harsher and louder than she had intended. Her head darted around in alarm and embarrassment, but fortunately for her everyone's attention still seemed to be on the match and not on them for the moment. She turned back, her cheeks red. "We don't know if Grandpa or that other Vegeta can go Super Saiyan 4 so I don't want to blurt it out yet in case they can't."
Gohan looked around briefly and then stared at her blankly. "Maybe they can. Do you want me to go ask them?"
"No, I don't want you to go ask them!" Pan grumbled out. "If we ask them and they can't then we're just telling them that Super Saiyan 4 exists and we'll lose an advantage!"
"Oh… gotcha." Gohan winked and Pan groaned. Sometimes he acted just as dumb as her Grandpa.
The thought made her smile.
"We're getting off topic…" Pan shook her head and gathered her thoughts. Gohan blinked at her several times as she looked back up at him and leaned in closer. "Listen, when Grandpa and Vegeta became Golden Great Apes before and were able to get control again and remember who they were, they transformed into Super Saiyan 4 didn't they?" Gohan nodded. "So… why hasn't that other Vegeta transformed into a Super Saiyan 4 yet?" She looked away from her father and back at the ensuing fight. "I mean he should have shouldn't he? He's talking and fighting and basically acting like himself but bigger!"
Gohan gave an inquisitive hum and considered Pan's question carefully. He stood up to full height and brought a hand to his chin in thought. In truth he had been too focused on the blows being exchanged in the ring to consider the complexities of the King Vegeta's transformation, or lack thereof for that matter. But upon pondering the query further, Gohan felt his brow furrow as he could only find further questions arising.
"Well, assuming the transformations work the same way across timelines," he said out loud with her voice directed down to Pan whilst his eyes were fixed back on the match. "Then the only explanation I can think of is that… he's not in control of the Great Ape form."
Yet another thunderous roar sounded out as the Great Ape jumped into the sky to swat at the other Saiyan who still darted around him in a golden blur.
"Seems pretty in control to me!" Pan scoffed back at him. "Look at him, he's even flying right now! How could he not be in control?"
"I don't know what you're blabbing about over there but if you're talking about control you should take another look."
The voice was quick, firm, and Vegeta's.
Pan looked over her shoulder ridgely to find Vegeta 1 stood with his arms crossed and his head pointing up at the sky above, where his eyes remained fixed at the two warring combatants despite his words being directed down towards Pan and Gohan. She laughed meekly, it seemed in her obliviousness she had forgotten to continue whispering the conversation.
Regardless, she complied with Vegeta's order and looked towards the sky to where the battle continued. Keeping up with the Vegeta of her timeline in his Super Saiyan 2 form was a difficult, but not insurmountable task, with his movements being akin to golden lightning flashes rather than observable martial arts techniques. So quick and so precise that every action was calculated despite their stupendous speed. Every movement conducted with thought. Every strike was made with purpose.
The same, now that Pan considered it, could not be said of the Great Ape.
By comparison, it had all the grace of a genuine, lumbering animal.
As a man, King Vegeta's strikes had been, while slower and not as forceful as his counterparts, still dignified. Still performed with the evident and ingrained discipline of training and technique. Now however? He flailed at the air like a madman. He roared with no semblance of intelligence. He moved with no ingenuity or forethought. His strikes were clumsy. His defense nonexistent.
He was fighting like an Ape.
"He's… not in control?" Pan stated with genuine befuddlement. Her own understanding of the matter was now clear, but her confusion as to the King's performance remained as clouded as before.
"Not in the least," Vegeta practically spat in disdain. "Oh sure, he can say a few words, focus on a target and probably even fire off another Galick Gun if he really wanted to. But is he in control? Hell no." He walked up to Pan's other side which prompted her to stare up at him. "If the bottom rung of being in control of yourself as a Great Ape is simply not smashing everything on sight, then I'd say he's just a few steps above that, but a hell of a long way from the top." He looked down at her. "Putting it bluntly, he's succumbed to his most primal instincts."
Pan squinted in thought. "His most primal instincts?"
"You're a Saiyan aren't you, girl?" He smirked at her. "When you get right down to it; what's a Saiyan's most basic instinct?"
Her confident answer was still spoken with uncertainty. "To fight?"
"Bingo," he looked back up again and his usual frown returned. "And right now, all that imposter has on his mind is crushing his opponent in any way he can. There's nothing else going on in there. No wants. No needs. No considerations for a different course of action. No grace, or poise, or purpose. Just an overwhelming desire to kill.
"An animal in mind, body and soul."
- DB DBZ DBS DBGT -
"I WILL KILL YOU!" Another missed swipe and a further dodged blow. "I WILL CRUSH YOU LIKE THE INSECT YOU ARE!"
"Even your insults are becoming stale," Vegeta bemoaned as he casually swayed out of the way of yet another swing. "Not as stale as your performance however. You've traded finesse for power, and you didn't have much of either to begin with!"
There was another monotonous roar, and Vegeta's patience finally reached its limit.
He ground to a halt in the air and allowed the next punch to impact upon him.
King Vegeta actually began to laugh, in a low deep rumble, upon finally making another connected strike after so much evasion. His bluster left him instantly once he realized his strike had caused no movement whatsoever; Vegeta was still floating before him, immovable as a rock. His own arm was outstretched and braced firmly against the giant's as he held it back with an overt display of effort.
"I refuse to even give you credit for getting this strong," Vegeta growled out with a frustrated grunt. "An inherent transformation is no substitute for decades of training!"
His outstretched palm, pressed against the giant fist, glowed.
Another explosion sounded out and King Vegeta's arm was blown back to his side, prompting him to stagger back several paces and clench his teeth tight enough that they might crack. Such a close range ki blast was an unexpected move.
Vegeta's aura, sparkling and shining, erupted from him again as his power began to swell once more. "Everyone seems to forget how Saiyan transformations work; they make us stronger, they make us faster. But they do that by amplifying the powers that we already have!" His muscles swelled and tensed, expanding almost like balloons as his aura flared like fire. "If there wasn't much there to begin with then it's irrelevant how many times we change. Stack as many transformations on top of each other as you want! Go Super Saiyan one, two, three or higher! You're still the same stagnant warrior that you were before!"
His speech finished, he shot forward like a bullet and speared into the Great Ape with a firm, precise kick. The damage was crippling.
King Vegeta gasped breathlessly in agony and barely comprehended being struck again just as hard, and then again, and then again. The blows were now one rapidly after the other, and his chest armour was chipped away like broken porcelain. Vegeta's grunts and yells were loud and forceful. "You don't even deserve the privilege of seeing my true power!" He spoke between blows, each word more cutting than the last. "Not when you can't even match up to me like this!" He charged his next punch.
"NOT WHEN YOU CAN'T EVEN ASCEND!"
Rage. A burning, fierce rage fuelled him. Vegeta thought it was pathetic, profoundly, unfathomably pathetic that his counterpart; a Super Saiyan, a Super Saiyan Great Ape, had failed to achieve the final evolution of the Golden Great Ape transformation. He had been unable to achieve the pinnacle state. Had become so lost and primal and out of control that he was little more than a simple animal seeking blood at this point.
This Saiyan King was not him, not in any meaningful way, and he was ashamed they shared a name and face.
Not just for his poultry power level, not simply due to his errant posturing, not even because he was still the same self-serving exiled monarch he had once been.
But because he wasn't more.
A Vegeta who had no care for Earth. No family to protect. No son to bolster. No daughter to pamper. No wife to cherish.
This 'King' was everything he could have been, and was glad he wasn't.
He bellowed in fury and struck the Ape with a final, explosive punch, and it crashed to the floor in a hail of debris and ash. The ring was practically destroyed at this point, a mess of stone chunks and charred tiles.
"You utter disgrace," Vegeta spat, undignified and wrathful. "You're just a pompous old fool with a pointless, empty existence. Go ahead, become the strongest in your universe for all I care. Parade around with those other bastards singing you empty praises. Maybe one day you'll look back on this match and realize I'm everything you could never be, or maybe you'll just keel over as a pathetic, deluded old man when your age inevitably catches up with you." He growled, but a smirk soon formed. "For your sake I hope you weren't planning on wishing for eternal youth, because that ship has long since sailed my friend."
King Vegeta, wounded in more ways than one, unsteadily rose again. He held a suspicious glint in his devious red eyes, which put Vegeta on guard.
"Everything I could have been you say," the Ape seethed out, his tone resentful and boorish. "A Super Saiyan who has ascended past a Super Saiyan."
Vegeta growled again. "Power is the last thing you should be envious of me for." The sparks around him flared out again, accompanying his heightened anger. "Things would have been far different for us both if Frieza had never destroyed our people. But while you scurry around the universe doing who knows what for god knows why, I've found a new people; a new place to call home." His smirk returned. "And what do you have 'King?' Three or four subjects and no living legacy? My, doesn't that sound inviting. Who the hell wouldn't want that?!" His tone became heavy with sarcasm and he thrust a finger forward to point.
"Your babbling is pointless," King Vegeta petulantly replied. He looked over and above Vegeta towards the audience stands in a cold, calculating manner. To where Vegeta, at the start of the match, had pointed towards his so-called 'wife.' And there she sat; elated and invigorated at her husband's performance, and sitting next to her was a similar looking young girl, both with wide, hopeful eyes. A relative perhaps, possibly even an heir.
He scoffed.
"A Saiyan has no need for such trivialities," King Vegeta grunted out, and Vegeta's face darkened. "I used to wonder what might have been if Planet Vegeta still survived. Father would probably be sitting on his throne listening to some inane rabble. Mother standing at his side as if it was the only purpose she could serve. Perhaps a few heirs would be running about, with me, the crown prince, waiting for my time to finally come to take my rightful place on the throne."
His voice shook as he roared his next words.
"Such a thought sickens me!" His enormous form slouched as he glared down with hate. "I should have thanked Frieza when I had the chance for wiping those pathetic weaklings out! If they had been strong they wouldn't have fallen so easily! Like helpless sheep!" His voice cracked. "When our world fell I realised for the first time the true nature of our existence! The weak will perish, and only the mightiest will survive!"
A ball of energy formed in the giant's hand, purple and glistening. It seared the surface of his bloodied white glove and Vegeta stood at the ready to respond.
"The only purpose a Saiyan has is to fight and die," he threw his arm back and took aim. "Anything else… is a distraction!"
He threw the blast forward, and it sailed right over Vegeta's head, directly towards the stands.
Directly towards his family.
Vegeta, even as quick as he was, knew in an instant he could not catch up to the blast. He had delayed too long already, a mere moment too slow to act as he stood in a silent, disbelieving panic as the ball sailed overhead.
He tried away. Leaping towards the blast seconds after it had passed him, an arm outstretched and a muted, dismayed yell leaving him. His fingers gripped the air as he reached forward, and King Vegeta laughed; a mocking, victorious laugh.
The blast exploded.
Vegeta became dizzy. Overcome by the smoke emanating from the suddenly exploded attack and by his unkempt, unequivocal terror. His arm hung limply, his stare transfixed.
It had detonated, even now the excess heat was warming his face and singeing his skin. But was it on impact? Had the attack made its mark. Had someone else intercepted it? An observant Kakarot with his Instant Transmission? One of these Gods even?
We're Bulma and Bulla alright?
He gasped again as his sudden shock left him and all grew silent. If there was any commotion from the crowd he ignored it. If his counterpart was prepping another attack behind him he was unaware. The smoke, as slow as a crawl, dissipated into a fine, translucent mist. He dared not look away.
Revealing… no change at all.
The stands were untouched, as were the people, who looked just as confused as Vegeta now did, and more importantly were utterly uninjured.
"No penetration, how fortunate." A voice from above sounded out, and Vegeta recognised it as the Grand Minister. He hadn't turned to look, but Vegeta could feel the angel's eyes upon him. "You noticed the barrier around the ring earlier no doubt after the previous match. Its purposes are multifunctional; healing the contenders is but one of them. It also ensures your expansive energies are contained within the confines of the ring, the audience would be put at substantial harm without it." There was another pause and unseen to Vegeta, a smirk. "A lesson learned from a previous Tournament."
High in the stands above, Jiren frowned with shame.
The explanation was only half listened to by Vegeta, who simply continued to stare ahead. He saw Bulma, unharmed and speechless. He saw Bulla, silent and dumbfounded. He saw their companions beside them in various states of shock, muttering amongst themselves. They had all been protected by this barrier around the ring. Invisible, made up of whatever that undetectable 'God ki' is that had been mentioned to him earlier.
Those in the stands and those by the ring looked to Vegeta with the same unreadable expressions. It was obvious to all what the intentions of the other Vegeta had been when he had fired that blast towards the crowd mere moments ago. Uncaring. Vengeful.
Vegeta looked to the floor sharply. He didn't want his wife or his daughter to see the murderous look that formed on his features.
"Bah! Weaklings who can't even save themselves without some convenient shield! And you say they are your people now?" King Vegeta's voice, loud and aggravated, spoke down from above in a mocking fury.
Vegeta didn't care to listen to him anymore.
He cursed him. He cursed himself for hesitating to act quick enough. He cursed Bulma for dulling his senses. He cursed Bulla for softening him. He cursed Trunks for holding him back.
He allowed his searing, silent rage to consume him. Buried within him for so long, for so many years. Right now, it was warranted. Right now he didn't care about anything else.
"Seeing as neither of us knew there was a barrier around the ring… you've just avoided making the biggest mistake of your life by sheer dumb luck." Vegeta stated, cold and monotone in a low whisper. "But just for the attempt you're going to die all the same."
His voice was smooth, but his tone was furious.
King Vegeta looked down and veered his blackened, chrisp cheek towards the Super Saiyan 2. "You dare say-"
He couldn't finish, as Vegeta's fist had slammed into his lower jar and forced his mouth shut. His teeth squished into his protruding tongue.
The Ape hadn't even seen him move.
King Vegeta's size was such that as soon as Vegeta had punched him in the chin, he immediately began attacking his throat. Every strike crumpled the surface of his thick skin as if it were made of paper. Had he still been a man, each strike would have crushed him utterly.
To the onlookers, the Great Ape appeared to simply be convulsing in the air, his throat on fire with a blazing golden light. His head spasming and his body flailing.
No coherent words left Vegeta at this point, only roars, akin to those being released by his counterpart. Animalistic.
Saiyan.
King Vegeta's mind went blank at this point. His senses dulled by pain and his thoughts overcome by the sheer agony he was now in. There was something about each strike that was making the pain linger, each blow building upon the last. It was like his whole being was burning.
He wasn't even able to regret his actions at this point; and if he was capable of thinking straight, he probably would have.
Suddenly he felt lighter, his enhanced hearing picking up the telltale noise of flesh being sliced. A sound he was well acquainted with. He felt off balance, as if gravity itself had shifted. He was in so much pain he couldn't even tell that he wasn't actively under assault anymore.
He slammed into the crumpled tiles yet again. He had lost count of how many times it had been now. His vision was blurry, he couldn't even tell which way he was facing, up or down.
Then his body began to shift, and his bones began to morph.
Now he realized what he was missing. He'd had his tail his whole life, it simply took him a moment to comprehend what it would feel like to not have one anymore.
- DB DBZ DBS DBGT -
Vegeta was going to gut him where he lay.
His palms gleamed with the shine of his white hot energy. Crackling with residual ki as he stomped down violently upon the tiles and scornfully made his approach. He eyed his counterpart on the floor, uncertain if he was even conscious anymore; his bloodied face gave no indication either way, and his features were squinted shut and rapidly swelling.
Vegeta hoped he was awake; he wanted him to feel this next part.
He had sliced through the giants tail almost on accident. In truth, he hadn't expected it to be so fragile. The last few moments had been a blur, he didn't even remember cutting it off.
The transformation wore off quickly after that, but the anger that gripped Vegeta remained.
He turned his body sideways and braced his arm out in front of him, in a pose he was all too familiar with. His palm pointed up and his fingers were rigid. He felt his eyelid twitch, a byproduct of him suppressing a snarl.
King Vegeta… What a goddamn joke.
And to think, he once held such ambitions too. Wanting for a title befitting of his royal status. Yearning for dominion over all the galaxy itself and beyond. He could not deny that there was a time when nothing less would have satisfied him. He never would have thought in all his years he would encounter a version of himself who had accomplished that old dream. A dream that was once his own so many years ago.
But then he happened upon a little planet called Earth…
His eye twitched again, and his braced arm slackened ever so slightly.
There was a time he would have blown away a downed opponent like this without a second thought; and he would have laughed whilst doing so. But he did have second thoughts; he had not been so single minded in a long time.
He glanced to his right. Bulma was watching. As was Bulla. As was Trunks.
But then again, even if they weren't watching he still wouldn't do it.
The man he once was long dead, and never again would Vegeta destroy when there was a clear alternative available to him.
His opponent was beaten. His victory was assured. And as far as Vegeta was concerned, only one of them was going to be leaving this ring with any regrets.
"… and thirty. King Vegeta of the Fourth Timeline has been eliminated by knockout. Vegeta of the Second is victorious and will proceed to the quarter final rounds!"
The Grand Minister's voice again, and Vegeta made sure to pay him the attentiveness he was due.
He turned away, uncharacteristically glad to not be fighting anymore. His chest hurt, sore from the strikes he had taken from the Ape earlier. He looked to the ringside, curious to experience the effects of this healing barrier himself and eager for it to dull his aches. More than that, he yearned to hear Bulma's voice right now.
"Fighting… for something… greater than yourself."
He heard a voice. His voice. Sputtering and coughing behind him. He turned his ear but not his eyes towards it.
"I think… I understand… what you meant now."
There was a pause, the silence accompanied by raspy wheezing and frothing chokes. Vegeta dared to look back.
"Find someone to care about other than yourself… and maybe then you'll find the power you're really after."
With that, Vegeta turned, walked and left. Content.
I made a Sparking Zero Custom Battle. ID 1-859-777-720
On PS5, not sure if they work cross-platform.
I'm tempted to make some more based on this story, but we'll see how that goes.