Frieza was dead.
The sky over Planet Namek was collapsing. Lava spewed from cracks in the planet's crust, dyeing the twilight across the entire world a doomsday red. Two golden figures hovered side by side above a roiling sea of magma, their blond hair whipping wildly in the scorching air as Super Saiyans.
"Talos," Goku turned his head. The emerald eyes of his Super Saiyan form still held the heat of their recent battle. "We really did it."
"We did." Talos looked down at his clenched right fist, golden flames still burning between his fingers.
A line of text never seen before flickered across the system panel before him—
"Ding—Legendary Achievement Unlocked: 'Double Super Saiyans: Godslayers.'"
He closed the panel and held his fist out to Goku. Their fists gently touched in midair, and golden flames burst from the point of contact, scattering tiny arcs of electricity.
Talos suddenly grinned. "Kakarot, want to hear a story?"
"What story?"
"A story about two Saiyan babies who were launched to the same planet on the same day."
Goku froze for a moment, then grinned. It was the same smile he'd worn twelve years ago, when he first met Talos on Mount Paozu.
"Tell me."
Talos gazed at the distant planet as it crumbled apart, and his memories came rushing back.
Age 737, Planet Vegeta.
The launch area of the spaceport blazed with lights. Hundreds of round spaceships stood in orderly rows, like bullets waiting to be fired. Technicians operated the consoles with blank expressions, placing babies inside the ships, setting their courses, and pressing the launch buttons.
No one knew that three years later, Frieza would reduce this planet to cosmic dust with a single finger.
No one knew, either, that three of the babies launched in this batch were special. One was Kakarot, in the leftmost numbered pod, the future strongest warrior in the universe. Another was Broly, in the central pod—the Legendary Super Saiyan.
And the third—
In a corner of the rightmost numbered pod, inside an unremarkable oval-shaped spaceship, a baby who was only three days old suddenly opened his eyes.
"Ding—Strongest Saiyan Cultivation System activated."
"Host identity confirmed: Talos, low-class Saiyan warrior, number 0372."
"Binding successful."
Talos froze for three seconds. He'd transmigrated, and he'd brought a system with him. His infant brain made it hard to think clearly, but he could still understand what was happening: the spaceship engines humming, babies crying in other compartments, and the translucent blue screen floating before him.
"Ding—Host's base battle power is only 1 point. Emergency protection initiated. Newbie gift pack of 100 points issued."
"System, what can I buy right now?"
The shop panel unfolded, displaying five basic skills: Ki Perception for 50 points, Basic Ki Blast for 30 points, Flight Technique Prerequisite for 20 points, Beginner Healing Factor for 80 points, and Enhanced Battle Instinct for 60 points.
"Buy Ki Perception and Basic Ki Blast. Save the remaining 20 points."
"Ding—Purchase successful."
Two warm currents flowed into his body at once. The first gathered between his brows, like a third eye opening. He could see every flow of energy inside the spaceship with perfect clarity. The second sank into his abdomen, tracing a clear path for the circulation of ki.
Then the system spoke again: "Host has actively planned his growth path during an extremely early stage of life. Hidden reward triggered—passive skill 'Ki Control.' Control efficiency increased by 300%; perception range increased by 200%."
Talos closed his eyes and extended his perception beyond the spaceship. Several kilometers away, inside another ship, a baby with a battle power of 2 was fast asleep.
Kakarot. My brother.
"System, simulate the future."
He'd discovered this hidden function while buying skills: the system could use the current data to simulate future battles. It was only a simulation, but every frame felt real enough.
"Ding—Simulation initiated. Target: Frieza's final form."
The screen before him changed abruptly.
He saw a dark red planet, a disc-shaped spaceship, and a figure sitting on a floating throne—purple-and-white skin, scarlet eyes, and a pair of black horns curving from his head. Frieza.
"A weakling with a battle power of only ten thousand dares stand before me?" Even in the simulation, Frieza's voice sent a chill down his spine.
Then his simulated self moved.
Golden flames erupted around the Super Saiyan as he punched Frieza's crossed arms. The shock wave tore a crack through the spaceship's hull, and Frieza's body shot backward like a cannonball.
"This is the power you'll have in the future," the system said as the image faded. "Whether you truly reach it depends on your own choices."
Talos slowly opened his eyes. The baby's heart beat steadily and strongly in his chest. Through the porthole, he looked toward the blue planet growing closer and closer.
Wait for me, Kakarot.
The spaceship traveled through the starry sea for a whole year. Talos spent every hour training his mind. His infant body couldn't move, but the system let him control the flow of ki with his thoughts.
On the night of the full moon, he nearly died. Moonlight poured through the porthole, and his Saiyan blood ran wild. His heart pounded, and his body began to swell beyond his control. The system intervened in an emergency, using up his last 20 points to suppress his Great Ape Transformation. Soaked in sweat, he lay in the spaceship, gasping for breath. This was the Saiyans' curse—and their gift. Once I'm strong enough to master it, this ability will become my sharpest blade.
The day the spaceship entered the solar system, the system displayed a notification: "Entering the target planet's atmosphere soon. Newbie mission 'Survive and Reach the Target Planet' is about to be completed."
Boom!
The spaceship crashed into a primeval forest, its impact collapsing the ground into a deep crater. The hatch popped open, and the sunlight made him squint.
"Ding—Newbie mission completed. Reward: Base battle power +100; passive skill 'Battle Gene Awakening.' Current battle power: 101."
"Main mission updated: Survive until age 12. Rewards: Base battle power +5000; skills 'Afterimage Technique,' 'Flight Technique,' and 'Solar Flare'; special item 'Senzu Bean ×3.'"
A battle power of 101. Master Roshi had only been a little over a hundred when he fought King Piccolo. But compared to the enemies of the future—Raditz, Vegeta, and Frieza—even that battle power wasn't a starting point.
Talos crawled out of the spaceship and set his bare feet on the soil. The scent of the primeval forest filled his senses, and the roar of a beast echoed in the distance. He sensed a ki signature several kilometers away, steady and gentle, with the focused intensity unique to a martial artist.
A martial artist from Earth. One of the masters living in seclusion on this planet.
He was about to head in that direction when a low growl came from the woods behind him. A saber-toothed tiger more than four meters tall emerged from the bushes. Its eyes glinted with a hungry green light, and its drool hissed as it hit the ground.
Talos turned to face the giant beast.
"Ding—Optional battle triggered: Defeat or drive off the mutated saber-toothed tiger. Reward: Battle power +30; passive skill 'Intimidation.'"
The saber-toothed tiger lunged. Its four-meter body soared through the air, its claws striking toward Talos's head with enough force to rip through stone.
Talos didn't dodge. He raised his right hand and spread his fingers. The ki inside him gathered in his palm, forming a blue orb the size of a fist—a Ki Blast. The orb shot from his hand, trailing blue flames, and slammed into the saber-toothed tiger's chest.
The beast's roar cut off. Its massive body was blasted away, crashing through three trees before coming to a stop. It struggled to get back up, but its charred chest made even breathing a shuddering effort. With a whimper, the saber-toothed tiger tucked its tail and fled into the depths of the forest, never daring to look back.
"Ding—Battle complete. Battle power +30. Passive skill 'Intimidation' acquired: Enemies with lower battle power than the host will suffer psychological suppression."
Talos lowered his hand. He walked to a nearby tree that had been snapped in half and laid his palm against its rough bark. The tree had lived for at least two hundred years, yet in the face of absolute strength, two hundred years meant nothing. It was as fragile as paper. That was the law of the Dragon Ball world—strength was everything.
But it wasn't his law.
He turned and walked toward the martial artist's ki signature, his tiny footsteps quiet but resolute.
Above the woods of Mount Paozu, a full moon was rising. At the same time, on the other side of the planet, an identical spaceship crashed into a forest. An old man lifted a baby named Kakarot from the wreckage. Looking down at the baby's furry tail, he smiled kindly.
Master Roshi awoke with a start in the middle of the night. He leaped out of bed and ran barefoot to the shore, without even stopping to put on his sunglasses. The sea was as calm as ever, moonlight glimmered on the waves, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. But he could feel it—something had arrived from beyond the distant horizon.
Hundreds of kilometers to the west, deep in the Dark Forest, a pair of scarlet eyes slowly opened behind a crack in the seal. It was King Piccolo. The demon king, sealed away for three hundred years, sensed that something had changed—not that the seal was weakening, but that the flow of ki across the planet was shifting in a way he couldn't understand. Something powerful was descending.
Twelve years later.
Age 749, east of Mount Paozu.
Talos stood beneath a waterfall, bare-chested. The morning light glinted off the bronze sheen of his twelve-year-old body. Twelve years had passed, and the baby who had crawled out of the spaceship had grown into a handsome young boy with sharp eyes.
"Ding—Status Panel: text Host: Talos Age: 12 Bloodline: Low-class Saiyan (Bloodline Fragments: 2/3) Base Battle Power: 5600 Passive Skills: Ki Control (Max Level), Battle Gene Awakening (Max Level), Great Ape Resistance (Max Level), Intimidation Active Skills: Flight Technique, Ki Blast, Afterimage Technique, Solar Flare, Multi-Form Technique System Points: 4200 Emotion Value: 12400
A battle power of 5,600. Twelve years ago, he'd had only 1 point. In twelve years, his power had increased by a factor of 5,600. But it wasn't enough. Raditz had 1,500, Vegeta had 18,000, and Frieza's first form had 530,000. His current battle power couldn't even compare to one of Frieza's fingers.
"System, where's Kakarot?"
"Ding—Son Goku is currently south of Mount Paozu. Base battle power: 140. Son Gohan died two years ago; the target lives alone."
It was time to meet Goku. He'd waited twelve years for this day.
Talos leaped into the air, and the Flight Technique carried him over the sprawling forests of Mount Paozu. Sunlight filtered through layers of leaves onto his body, and his brown tail swayed in the breeze. The five hundred kilometers passed in no time at all. Soon, he spotted the simple wooden house on the mountainside.
A little boy in blue clothes, his tail wrapped around his waist, was punching a tree stump again and again. Each punch sent splinters of bark flying.
Talos descended from the air, suppressed his ki, and landed on the soft forest floor.
"Your ki is so strong!" Goku turned around. There wasn't a trace of caution in his innocent eyes, only pure curiosity. "You have a tail, too!"
"My name's Talos."
"I'm Son Goku! Did you come here to fight me?"
Talos looked down at the small boy, who barely came up to his chest. Kakarot, his brother, and the strongest warrior of the future. He held out his hand, the corners of his mouth lifting in a smile he didn't even realize he'd made.
"I didn't come to fight. I came to teach you."
"Teach me what?"
"To become stronger. Strong enough to protect this planet and everyone you care about."
Goku's eyes lit up, and his tail wagged happily behind him.
"Okay!"
Talos placed a hand on Goku's head. The gesture reminded him of the simulation he'd seen aboard the spaceship twelve years ago—two golden figures hovering side by side above a collapsing planet. That scene hadn't been a dream. It was the future he'd worked toward every single day for the past twelve years. And now, the story was truly beginning.
On a distant island, Master Roshi stood at the entrance to Turtle Hermit House, looking toward Mount Paozu. He sensed two faint but strangely similar ki signatures. Something was awakening—not something evil, but a power more ancient and more formidable. He took off his sunglasses and wiped the lenses on his shirt.
"Interesting," the old man murmured. "Saiyan tails. Haven't seen those in a long time."
He put his sunglasses back on and turned to go inside.
"I should make something good to eat today."
Master Roshi had a feeling these two long-tailed children would soon show up in front of him.
At the place where King Piccolo was sealed, the crack was widening at a speed visible to the naked eye.
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