(Thanks to all of you who have faved and followed the fic so far!)
Chapter 5: Pop In Porunga
Bardock stood slightly hunched over, clutching his forehead and spitting dirt out of his mouth. The Namekians had tried to stall Cooler to help him recover, but now that plan's time had run out.
'He's just like the rest…' Bardock fumed, 'Like Frieza, like Chilled…'
He blinked. '…Chilled! How did I beat him?! My hair… and my aura… it was different. Powerful. The legend, for sure… If I'm to come out on top, I have to get it to happen again!' He grit his teeth. 'But how?'
He clenched his fists.
'Right - I remember getting so mad… and Berry…'
Bardock made his ki go as high as it could. It elevated even higher than before after the beating his Saiyan body had just endured, which helped him concentrate.
'He's gonna pay… his whole family is gonna pay… They will… I need to…'
Bardock's hair flickered as he gripped his hands tighter. The ground shook, and the sky shot out lightning around him.
'For what they did… to me… to Gine… to my team, to my sons…!'
"Rrrraaaaaagh!"
His hair flashed gold to black, then back to gold once again.
'Yes… This power…!'
By this point only a lone Namekian and Cooler were awake to watch the spectacle. "…L- Like Goku's son described…!" the Namekian warrior whispered before falling unconscious.
Cooler stared in intrigue at the sight, his brows lowered.
Bardock gave out a war cry and charged at Cooler once more. Cooler was knocked back from an elbow strike to his stomach as he hadn't expected such speed and power all at once from this Saiyan, who had somehow turned his hair gold and his eyes a glowing teal, and had also multiplied his power by quite a bit.
"Impressive! This might actually prove to be a worthy challenge!" Cooler slowly lowered his head in approval as he spoke. He dusted himself off. "Is this power the same as your supposed Super Saiyan legend?"
Bardock shouted in anger, "You don't have the right to learn anything about me! You scum! Your kind have all been around for TOO LONG! DIE!"
Bardock launched a ki blast towards Cooler's torso, but then Cooler amassed a large ball of ki out of nowhere, nullifying Bardock's ki blast, and cancelling out both attacks.
Cooler was amused by his earlier cries. ""Scum", did you say? Has the monkey forgotten his own nature? Without my family, you were savage brutes doing almost exactly the same thing as us, though you simply raided just for the promise of a fight. No ambition. No meaningful rewards!"
Cooler's expression grew more amused. "Hahaha, you fool! My family merely organised the troupe! We did you a great favour while you were all still running around!"
The tyrant closed the distance between them both and clocked Bardock in the stomach; Bardock temporarily lost the transformation and almost keeled over. He then regained his senses as he coughed, and pulled Cooler's forearm to himself, then headbutted his nose.
Cooler backed off and eyed the Saiyan with absolute disgust for a moment. "Filth," he spat, "I think it's time you learnt your place!"
He then proceeded to yell, and began to grow in height and develop armour, his muscles bulging impressively. He was transforming into his fifth form, much to the confusion of Bardock. He wasn't aware of any transformations from the other tyrants he'd met. He knew Cooler looked a fair bit different from Frieza and Chilled, but he still hadn't made the connection that he had been surviving blows from him in one of his most powerful forms with the help of the Namekians.
Upon realising that Cooler was wide open, he went to snatch the Dragon Ball mid-transformation, and did so successfully as it was an unprecedented move on his part.
Cooler looked comically wide-eyed at his now empty arm and roared in anger.
Bardock noticed that Cooler's transformation was almost finished, so he distracted Cooler with a small ki blast to his face, and chucked the Dragon Ball far away in hopes that the healers secretly stationed around found it quickly.
He also hoped that he hadn't just broken it.
Cooler charged at Bardock in a rage from his asset being stolen directly from his very clutches. 'The audacity of this wretched Saiyan!'
"You'll suffer my wrath for that!" Cooler bellowed and kneed Bardock from the front this time, making Bardock cough up some blood.
'Damn it… He hits as hard as an Attack Ball…!' Bardock swiftly backed up from Cooler, and readied himself. 'That one knee strike hurt like hell. Is Super Saiyan even enough…?'
However, Bardock was prepared for Cooler's next knee strike; he shifted out of the way while shoving Cooler's back with one hand towards the ground below.
Cooler flew with full force back towards Bardock and attempted to grab his head with his foot, but Bardock shielded himself with his arms raised, making Cooler grab his arms instead which meant Cooler was now able to hit Bardock's head with a small Death Beam from his finger.
The attack landed, but the results were not what Cooler expected.
Unbeknownst to Cooler until now, Bardock's power was at a very high level - the highest he'd ever managed, in fact. Cooler noted that even the familiar bandana his foe sported remained intact. It was at this moment Cooler realised that he needed to put in a little more effort into his attacks against this… 'hardy' opponent.
Bardock moved in to punch Cooler's jaw, but thanks to Cooler's new form, his mouth guard perfectly annulled any damage that would have been dealt.
Bardock roared in anger and attempted to blind Cooler in a ruthless move, which was cut short when Cooler found an opening, and smashed his left fist down hard on the back of Bardock's head, and whacked him with his tail.
Bardock, in that moment, felt as though time had stopped.
His golden aura flashed to blue for a split second, as his mind was taken briefly out of the battle.
—
He saw himself.
'What…?! That's me…!'
He was in a sleek white building he didn't recognise, leaning against a wall in stress, with a woman's voice that spoke worriedly.
"Bardock! Are you sure?"
Bardock responded, "They should've gone by now."
—
Bardock snapped out of it, and the two jumped away and landed several metres apart in a standoff.
A few Namekians had woken up, and lined themselves up a ways behind Bardock, ready to provide any assistance.
Bardock shook his head at them and waved his hand for them to back away. They looked concerned.
"Bardock! Are you sure?"
A sudden sense of déjà vu hit him.
"He's much more dangerous now! You'd just be cannon fodder! Back off, all of you!" he barked and eyed them all seriously.
Cooler chuckled, "The Monkey speaks the truth, Slugs. Will you heed his 'wise words', or will you become nothing but a pile of mucous under my foot?"
The Namekians grimaced. They reluctantly decided to fly away.
"We believe in you, Bardock!"
As they flew, they conversed.
"Bardock can't do this alone!"
"I know… It was his choice, though."
"At the very least, we have to make sure we have every Dragon Ball."
"I didn't see that monster holding it anymore."
"That must mean it's around here somewhere! Let's start looking!"
They all nodded and scoured the land.
Meanwhile, Cooler and Bardock continued to exchange blows for two hours in a heated battle of wills.
It wasn't just a test of fighting skill and power, but also of stamina now. A Super Saiyan may be powerful, but they could grow tired. A Frieza race tyrant, on the other hand? They were just built different.
That's not to say Cooler wouldn't tire eventually.
The problem was, Bardock may not even live to see Cooler grow weary.
Bardock tried performing a Tyrant Lancer aimed at Cooler's stomach, only for him to be backhanded with the force of a thousand slaps that stung like hell. He then aimed a kick to Cooler's knee, but was caught unawares by the tail behind him that yanked him downwards to the floor.
"Do you honestly think vermin like you could best ME? They say ignorance is bliss, but in your case, it's deadly!"
Cooler considered engaging him again but decided not to for the moment, and opted to instead enjoy watching the Saiyan squirm in the dirt where he thought he belonged.
Bardock clenched his fingers through the coarse ground as he heaved in and out in deep breaths. His forehead was drenched in a mixture of sweat and blood. As he knelt on the ground, he considered how cruel fate could be.
'There's nothing I can do but keep trying,' he supposed. He wasn't a Super Saiyan for nothing, right?
In this brief reprieve from the battle, a Namekian hidden behind a hillside informed Bardock via telepathy that they had collected all of the Dragon Balls.
Moments earlier…
"There it is! The six-star Ball that Cooler dropped!" a warrior exclaimed.
"How many are left?"
"We just need one more. Taniish's group found the seven-star Ball a moment ago."
"So we're just missing…?"
"We have the one, three, four, five, six and seventh…"
"The two-star. That's with Moolin in his village…"
"Let's go!"
A warrior whispered to a healer, "Tell Bardock what our situation is. Tell him we have them all."
"Right!"
The weary Bardock thought he was going delusional after hearing a voice speak into his mind about the Dragon Balls. Though he then remembered he'd experienced this kind of invasive communication strategy before somewhere. Was it with Monaito?
He had no idea how to communicate back, so he at least hoped that they would go and make the right wishes.
The Namekian picked this thought up through his mind, and then flew off towards the collected Balls.
Cooler eyed Bardock and harrumphed impatiently with a hard glare. "Are you finally going to give up? My patience wears thin. I've bore witness to your monkey dance long enough!"
Bardock grimaced at Cooler with half-open eyes. "Oh, shut up."
Cooler was irritated and also amused by this reaction, a reaction he hadn't had from an opponent in a long time. He trudged towards Bardock, shaking the ground with every step.
"I must admit, you've got more guts than you know how to handle, Saiyan. I'm sure your dead relatives are proud of you for surviving the detonation of your home planet, and for slipping away from your rightful obliteration along with the rest of them! Alas, it's time I ended your meaningless life."
Cooler aimed a more powerful Death Beam at Bardock's head, but was then distracted by the sky suddenly darkening.
"Grand Elder! We have recovered every Dragon Ball!"
Moori's eyes lit up. "Fantastic. Lay them out here, quickly!"
He held out his arms to the sky.
"Takkaraputo popurunga pupirittoparo!"
Porunga, the Dragon of Dreams, appeared from within the combined Dragon Balls.
"State your first wish," Porunga's voice boomed in the Namekian tongue.
Moori stated the following wish in Namekian with no hesitation, "I wish to revive all of the Namekians killed by Cooler and his men."
Porunga's eyes flashed. "Your wish has been granted." Porunga added, "As per your strengthening of the Dragon Balls, the remaining number of wishes is still three. State your next wish."
Moori nodded and spoke in a worried tone, "Our planet is still in serious danger. Would you be able to bring suitable powerful warriors from Earth to aid our ally Bardock, who is fighting Cooler?"
Porunga replied, "It can be done. Is this your wish?"
"Yes."
"I will now contact those I deem most suitable for this wish, so that they may be brought here."
…
After a period of silence, his eyes glowed momentarily, and two beings appeared in a flash of light, both sporting awed expressions.
"The wish has been granted!"
Shocked gasps were heard from the other Namekians, but before Moori could turn around to discover the reason for the sounds, the dragon boomed…
"State your next wish."
'The sky…' Bardock stared at it briefly. 'They told me it never turns dark here, so that means this is just like what happened on Cereal… The wishes are being made!' He coughed and shook his head.
Cooler meanwhile sharply looked at the sky in multiple directions. He suspected it was merely an eclipse of some kind, so he simply dismissed it in favour of antagonising his prey.
"Where were we…" he stated more than questioned.
Bardock was sweating profusely. He would have almost been a goner if it hadn't been for that interruption…
"Ah, yes. Your precious simian skull was about to be crushed by my hand…" Cooler cracked his knuckles. "Thanks to a slight interim, I've decided that I'm going to have some more fun with you, little ape."
Bardock didn't know whether to feel relieved or nauseous. This was taking a huge toll on his body and mind. He didn't know when his muscles would decide to give up on him, or if this Super Saiyan shtick would last either. A great help this legend would turn out to be if he died here.
Cooler stalked towards him. "I'll make you dread every remaining second you have left on this mud ball!"
He shot forward, slamming his foot against Bardock's now half-ruined chest plate. Bardock went flying, skidding against the blue grass and grazing his elbows that, when he checked them, were not harmed thanks to his Super Saiyan aura.
Bardock hacked and spluttered, squinting his eyes. He stood up again, a sign that he wasn't going down just yet.
"Rgh… why is this happening?!" he grumbled. 'He's just knocking me around like some sports ball! I gotta do something! Anything! It has to be me… Me! There's no one else strong enough…' He racked his brain to try and figure out any way to beat him…
At the very least, Cooler was being rather generous here. At least he wasn't attacking him at every opportunity.
'And here I thought he said his patience was wearing thin… Have those damned Namekians made all those wishes yet?!'
"State your next wish."
"I wish for us to have… three spaceships, fully fuelled and stocked with lots of food and other necessary supplies, in case Bardock fails," Moori stated.
Porunga's eyes glowed red once again, and three ships appeared out of nowhere beside the village.
"It is done. And your final wish?" the dragon boomed.
Moori responded, "Undo any and all damage caused by Cooler and his followers on this planet."
Porunga's eyes flashed red once again. "It is done. All the wishes have been granted. Farewell!"
Porunga disappeared at once back into the Dragon Balls, which then shot upwards and dispersed all over the planet.
All of the Namekians turned to the two summoned Earthlings in shock and confusion, Moori included.
"…What are two children doing here? I wished for suitable fighters to combat Cooler… I had assumed no children would be considered for something like this-"
"Hey, you guys look like Piccolo!" one of the children exclaimed.
The Namekians looked at each other surprised by the mention of the name, and they then looked back at these kids.
"…We are Namekians like Piccolo, yes," Moori explained, "and, we just used our Dragon Balls to summon assistance in the form of fighters from Earth, to aid a warrior fighting Frieza's brother Cooler here."
The older boy said with worry, "Frieza… has a brother?!"
The younger boy added, "And he's here?" with a wide-eyed expression.
"Yes. But I must apologise… We do not send our children to fight, so we are not sending you two out there either." Moori had a stern expression. He wondered why the Dragon thought these two would be suitable candidates…
"You've clearly got no idea who you're talking to, old man!" the elder boy chuckled. He put a thumb to his chest proudly. "My name is Trunks, the most powerful kid you'll ever meet! And you should know that Goten and I, are Super Saiyans!"
"You're Super Saiyans? Like Gohan talked about?" Esca looked them over.
"Oh yeah! You guys know my brother!" Goten exclaimed.
"Gohan is your brother?" Tsuburi repeated.
"Yeah!"
"Hey - you guys," Trunks spoke up, "So who's this 'warrior' you got fighting Frieza's brother? And how come he isn't dead yet?"
"Firstly I would like to mention that our warriors are very capable in their own right." Tsuburi held his head higher. "Secondly, this man seemingly appeared out of nowhere, saying we wouldn't believe how he got here… and at this very moment he's putting his life on the line to save our planet from Cooler's rampage."
Esca continued for him, "This warrior's name is Bardock. He's still fighting him… I'm worried about him and our other warriors…"
"'Burdock', huh? Ready to rumble, Goten…?" Trunks turned to his best friend.
Goten turned to him as well. "You bet!"
"Well, thanks for the info, guys! Don't worry, we'll beat Cooler for you!" Trunks waved quickly and shot off into the sky like a pocket rocket followed closely by Goten.
"W- Wait!" the Namekians shouted in alarm.
By then, the kids had already blipped into the horizon.
"Darn… That's not good at all! Unless…" Necke thought aloud.
"Unless what, Necke?" Cargo asked.
"I think that they're so confident because they actually are that strong. Even for children."
Moori shook his head. "Whatever the case may be for their spirited attitudes, we have to ensure their safety!"
"Who knows how far they could have flown by now! And most of our warriors are out in the field already. We… may have to trust their judgment and that of Porunga, as much as I hate to admit it," Tsuburi explained, dejected.
A silence fell amongst the people.
"I hope you're right, Tsuburi… Necke." Moori sighed, "I don't want any more casualties to befall us."
Moori sat down, as did the others.
"…We forgot to mention that Bardock may be Son Goku's father," Esca spoke up, bluntly.
"Actually… I think it's best that we didn't. It might have distracted the two in some way… especially that young Goten. He said how he is Gohan's brother, correct? Therefore, he is another son of Son Goku."
Moori had a hand to his chin. Resounding 'oh' sounds were muttered by the people.
"Then it is doubly important that everyone survives this madman Cooler."
Everyone nodded at Tsuburi's response.
They just had to hope.
[Author's notes: I did my research on Porunga. He really can make extra wishes given the right kind of wish is made.]