"How horrid!.." Bulma began. "So the vast majority of your species is gone?" The Earth woman asked.
The aged Namekian sitting beside her at the small round table nodded sadly. "Yes.. and because of certain restrictions we could not wish our people back.. That was a long time ago and since then all children of Namek have come from Grand Elder Guru. We are just over thousand strong." He said puffing out his chest.
Bulma's face became stricken and white. "Whaaat!" She shrieked in disbelief. "I'm not sure what's harder to wrap my head around? The fact that there's only 1000 of your entire species or that this Guru guy is the progenitor of all of you.." She mumbled.
"Yes.." Moori laughed. "We owe Guru everything. Aside from the fact that he is our father, he is the most educated, gifted and powerful elder the dragon clan has ever seen. No other being could have birthed this many of our people before their life force was spent. He is the reason for our survival and we are proud." He said simply with a curt nod.
"Dende!" Elder Moori hummed, turning his head slightly. "Stop pestering that poor child." He chided in a stern but caring manner. The little boy jumped, eyes widening in surprise and fright at having been unexpectedly scolded. "Yes Elder! Sorry.."
Bulma giggled in response. "He's fine, honestly. Gohan could use a friend right now after losing Pi.. Katas as you knew him." Bulma waved the man's concerns away.
Elder Moori's expression turned grim as the Earth woman continued. "My son was pretty close with Piccolo. Other than my husband and I, Gohan definitely spent the most time with him. And he changed Piccolo's heart for the better believe it or not. I guess it helped that they were around the same age in a way so they were both a little lost.." She reminisced with a happy sigh.
"Mom!" Gohan protested, causing the woman to erupt into laughter. "Oh I'm so sorry son it was just so cute the way you two connected!" She teased. The boy frowned at his mother and stuck out his tongue, to which she made a pinching gesture as if threatening to grab the wiggling, wet muscle.
Elder Moori for his part looked between the two with utter confusion written on his face. "How could this 'Piccolo' if he is half of the chosen one, have been the same age as your child son? I do not understand? Katas would be over 1000 years old by now."
Bulma, Gohan and Krillin shared a look. Krillin chuckled and scratched his bald head. "Well that's.. a little complicated. Just so we're all completely transparent and so you know a little bit more about who we are, let me start from the very beginning. For most of us it all started many years ago… The day we met Goku."
With Kakarot and Ginyu
The odd duo of saiyan and purple alien flew through the air at supersonic speeds. Kakarot looked at Ginyu as they flew. "It will take the other saiyans about half a day to set up the ambush where Frieza is supposed to touch down. Coincidentally it will take my friends probably just as long to get the Dragon Balls.." He called over his shoulder.
Ginyu looked at the man curiously, swerving gracefully in an arc to avoid a flock of birds that simply couldn't react to the speed of the two warriors. He continued to stare for a few awkward seconds before Kakarot frowned. "What? Did I say something weird?" He asked, scratching his head.
Ginyu shook his head and sighed. 'Everything you say is weird.' He thought internally. "I'm just surprised you're talking to me. Getting a bit lonely being away from your family so much?" He quizzed. Kakarot gave the man a look and Ginyu twisted his hips to hold up his hands in defense. "It's a valid question."
The saiyan raised on Earth rolled his eyes and shook his head. "You're something else… It should only take us an hour or so from the time we left the ship to reach the Grand Elder. We'll have some spare time before we meet up with the others.. I was wondering about that healing you used.. I can't seem to replicate it. The properties in your Ki were unlike anything I've ever seen on Earth."
At this Ginyu snorted. "Hah! That? An idiot like you could never master that kind of power. It's not healing magic first off." He said with a smirk causing Kakarot's face to widen in surprise. "It's time magic. Magic alone is complicated, time magic is a whole other ball game. You lack the patience to learn such a thing, saiyan." He said, narrowing his eyes.
Kaakrot scoffed and turned mid-air to flip the man off before turning back over and resuming his superman-esque form of flight. "You have no idea how patient I can be when my precious people are at stake." He lectured.
Ginyu merely chuckled in response and shrugged. "Perhaps. Anyways to be completely honest.. It reverts things to the way they were before something happened… It only works on organic tissue but as long as I have the energy I could cure any wound that isn't fatal. The fatal ones… Well death is a selfish bitch that's all I'm saying."
Kakarot ruffled his hair with both hands and frowned. He tried picturing the science behind the man's words but it was currently far beyond him. He would have to figure it out later. "Whatever… We're almost there. I can sense the power level we've been heading towards drawing near and a much weaker one that must be the elder. Strange.. It's much weaker but it's somehow more.." Kakarot narrowed his eyes.
"Full of life." Ginyu supplied. "It's like pure nature energy…" The men stared in awe for a few moments before they shared a look and nodded to each other.
Roughly ten minutes later Kakarot and the Captain of the former Ginyu force touched down on the edge of a tall, robust pillar of land that was honestly out of place here in the middle of the water. The rectangular rock was covered in an extremely thin layer of grass. In the middle of the massive area was a building that was relatively large by Namekian standards which the two correctly surmised was Guru's house.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
As they approached the structure, the door opened silently and out stepped a tall Namekian warrior. "Piccolo!?" Kakarot gasped in shock, taking an involuntary step forward. The Namekian cocked his head and frowned at the man. "There is no such Namekian by that name on this planet. I am the warrior clan's most powerful fighter, and personal bodyguard to the honorable Grand Elder Guru. My name is… Nail."
Kakarot frowned but seemed to accept what the stranger told him with a reluctant nod. Certainly his power level was much higher than Piccolo's bad been. Nearly twice over in fact. Ginyu respectfully remained silent and after a brief moment the Namekian warrior continued. "Grand Elder Guru has been expecting you, man from the stars. The ape with no tail, he called you. I can feel the power you hold deep within you, great warrior. You are everything we expected from our savior." He said, addressing Kakarot.
The saiyan in question blushed and scratched his head laughing sheepishly. "Ahahaha-ehh. I don't know about all that. I'm here for my friends and family mostly. I haven't been able to save anyone so far. But I will do what I can to protect your people."
With a curt nod the Namekian turned and looked directly at Ginyu with a look of clear distrust. "Your presence here is somewhat.. less anticipated. I don't know why this man would travel with one such as you. You reek of evil and filth." He said sourly.
Ginyu grinned before shrugging. "I'm something of a.. Handyman, you might say. He keeps me around as long as I'm still useful." The purple man chuckled.
Nail shook his head in disdain. "Can't say I would be so generous, one bad apple ruins the bunch." He decided. It looked as if he were about to say more when suddenly a deep rumbling voice called from within the large house, "Naaaaaile!"
The Namekian warrior's eyes widened before he quickly backpedaled into the building. "Yes Grand Elder Guru?" They heard from inside. "Quit harassing our guests. Any friend of the Earthlings is a friend of ours. They are our allies and our only hope against the tyrannous Frieza."
At this point Kakarot and Ginyu invited themselves in, stepping through the threshold of the building. "Boy! That's one large Piccolo ahahaaaa!" Goku laughed. "How do you know about Earth and us and about Frieza?" He asked curiously.
Grand Elder Guru was at least 20 feet tall, possibly more by Kakarot's estimation. He was a massive, towering Namekian that mostly sat immobile on his large ivory throne. He had constantly closed, tired eyes and aged, wrinkled skin with many dark spots. Though the saiyan had no way of really knowing it, the grand elder had been alive for over 1000 years and was responsible for the birth of nearly every Namekian still alive on Namek today.
The ancient Namekian raised his tired head and looked directly at the saiyan. Honestly, Kakarot found it rather creepy since the overly large being's eyes remained closed the entire time…
When he spoke his breathing was slow and labored, his voice heavy with wisdom and worry. "Hmmm.. I have learned of your planet and it's people, as well as the tyrant Frieza from the one you know as King Kai. His incredible divine powers far exceed even my own." He explained sincerely. "Now come.. Open your mind to me and let me study your soul.. You wish to claim the Dragon balls and stop the evil Frieza yes? Our goals are mutual. I believe I may be able to help you, help us, along your journey." He chuckled.
Kakarot strode over next to the large throne and the giant residing atop it. The saiyan blinked several times. "What do I do?" He asked confusedly while scratching his head. "Clear your mind child.." Guru hummed. Kakarot did his best to follow instructions and think of nothing in particular while taking deep, relaxing breaths.
Guru raised one large, meaty arm and pointed his open palm towards the stationary saiyan. There were several tense moments of silence before Guru raised an eyebrow. "How peculiar.." The large old being groaned. Kakarot shifted his weight nervously. "Is something wrong?" He questioned.
Guru's features rose slightly in surprise but still his eyes remained closed. "There is.. uncertainty in your heart. But I can feel your intentions and they are good. And as I suspected.. You still have vast amounts of untapped potential." He sighed calmly.
At this Kakarot couldn't help the surprise that certainly must have shown on his face. "Untapped potential? Are you sure? I thought I'd just about reached my limits when I was training in space.." He said out loud while scratching his chin in deep thought.
The large Namekian shook his head. "That is the thing that is most impressive about mortals… When you put your mind to it, there are no limits to what you can accomplish." He explained with a curt nod. "Now.. Relax… And prepare yourself as I draw out your latent abilities. It should only take a minute."
"Right!" Kakarot nodded and bent his elbows, bringing his arms up to his sides and setting his feet shoulder length apart as if he were about to power up. There was an eerie silence… Suddenly a bizarre wind began to blow throughout the confines of the relatively large structure, the epicenter of which was clearly Goku.
His spiky, wild hair blew all around him and his Gi flapped violently against his skin. A light blue energy crackled to life before enveloping Kakarot and permeating his skin. His transparent Aura snapped around him like a massive candle flame. His eyes glowed with power and energy. Ginyu and Nail shuddered, shielding their faces and taking a step back due to the pressure and raw force of the saiyan's growing power.
For a moment it seemed as if the whole structure would come down on their heads as the rumbling reached a crescendo. As the wild winds and energy died down around them, Kakarot looked between his open palms with wide eyed disbelief. "Impossible.. This is all me?" He gasped. "I've never felt such power before… With this I can save everyone."
Guru smiled gently at the saiyan. "As I thought. You would remain pure if I gave you power. You would not let it corrupt your heart as many would. You will hold true to your oath to protect your people.. and mine I hope."
Kakarot looked up at the giant, ancient man. He looked visibly more tired than when this impromptu meeting began. 'Using that ability draws out the latent power of others.. It must be a godly ability that takes a heavy toll on the user..' Kakarot accurately deduced. Oftentimes using God Ki or Goldy abilities was extremely taxing on mortal made beings. Never mind the fact that Guru was long past his youth.
"Grand Elder.." Nail stepped forward worriedly. The large Namekian elder waved the warrior away. "I'm.. *cough* *cough* Fine. I just need rest now." He dismissed with a huff.
"I promise you.." Kakarot began." I will use everything in my power to protect your people and your planet for what you've done for me. Rest easy." He finished.
The grand elder smiled down at the saiyan and nodded. "Before you go.. I have one last gift for you and your friends. Already I can feel through the connections I maintain with my children that your friends have obtained four.." The grand elder spoke slowly, reaching up towards the top of his massive throne and grabbing a large orange sphere. "...Allow me to give you your fifth Dragon Ball Goku of Earth." He finished with a booming chuckle, leaning forward slightly to hand over the ball.
Kakarot's eyes grew like saucers and he gasped in embarrassment. "The Dragon Balls! Oh wow, I completely forgot." He admitted scratching his head sheepishly. Taking the large ball with both hands he blinked several times in surprise. "Wowy, these are a lot bigger than the Earth's balls. Guess yours are probably stronger huh?"
Guru nodded. "Most likely, yes. Dragon balls grow stronger over time and we have had ours for a millennium. But more importantly is the strength of their owner. And while my life force has grown weak my abilities in the divine arts remain stronger than ever. My orbs grant three wishes." He explained.
"Three!?" Kakarot yelled in disbelief. He quickly covered his mouth and apologized for the outburst and Guru chuckled in response.
"Indeed. But there is a trade off for such privileges, of course. Our dragon Porunga is.. admittedly shrewd about certain things.. For instance he believes every life is worth only one soul and thus one wish. You could not wish an entire species back to life, per se. On the other hand, he does not care if the being dies of natural causes or how many times they have died, he will bring them back either way. Each and every dragon from the Dragon realm has different powers and values. Just like we mortals, in a sense…" He lectured.
Kakarot soaked up all the information like a sponge. He wanted to ask questions and learn more but he could tell the elder was barely maintaining his consciousness at this point. "Thank you Guru. For everything." He turned to leave, gesturing towards Ginyu to follow. As they left the door slid closed behind them.
In the dark, unlit interior of the Namekian home Nail stepped up to his master's side. "Those saiyans.. That power. Inhuman." He shuddered. He looked over at his master, who's breathing was slow and shallow. "With all due respect sir, you've pushed yourself too far again today. If you keep this up.." He trailed off as Guru gave him a look out of his half-lidded eyes.
It was a look Nail knew all too well, because he'd seen it many, many times before.. Back when the Elder possessed Vitality enough to still argue with his words after a long exhausting day of making the world a better, safer place for his children.
The end was nigh.
End of chapter 42.