07 – Better Than New

"Darn." Goku's face fell. The Announcer glanced between Beranise and Vegeta. He ran up to him, slowing down, as he got near him, from fear.

"Vegeta...do you...declare yourself as the victor of this match?" he carefully asked, inching closer to him with the microphone, as Vegeta got on one knee, then stood. "Vegeta, you have to declare yourself the victor, now or there will be none!" Vegeta's brow twitched, as he glanced towards Beranise, who he could sense, but not see, from the ring. The Announcer jumped back and nervously tried to talk to him. "It's probably...not really how you might've wanted to win, but...it can still be a win, if...you would..." he trailed off as Vegeta suddenly smiled to himself. "Do you declare yourself the victor, then?" he asked him, once more.

"Hmpf." Vegeta grunted, still smiling and closed his eyes. "No." he stated and began limping away, holding his right shoulder. "I'm no victory, here, today." he added, loud enough for the microphone to quietly pick it up.

"B-but...then...the match will...be a tie..." the Announcer meekly called after him.

"So be it!" Vegeta told him, glancing at Beranise, as he was returning to the others.

"What...?" Bulma kept blinking. "Why...?" She was trying to process whether or not her husband lost the match or his mind.

"Vegeta?" Goku was giving him a quizzical look, hands on his hips.

"Don't just stand there, idiot! Go and get some Senzu-beans!" Vegeta told him with a small smile, glancing back at Beranise, with his smile fading, as he regarded her with silent respect. He turned back to Goku, who started to grin as he understood Vegeta's decision.

"You got it! I'll be right back!" he put his index and middle fingers to his temple and barely even spent any time searching for Korin or Yajirobe's energy, in his excitement, before he dematerialized, as Vegeta powered down, returning to normal. There were shocked whispers from the audience. Vegeta and the others looked up to see Goku was standing in the middle of the rows, as confused as they were. He looked down at the members of the audience around him to see Korin and Yajirobe sitting near him.

"Hey." Yajirobe greeted him, arms folded.

"Yajirobe?" Goku blinked in surprise, then did the same as he looked at the white cat with a cane next to him. "Korin?"

"Hey, Goku." Korin greeted him.

"They were here all along?" Krillin was having the same reaction as Goku.

"You guys were here this whole time?" Goku asked in surprise.

"Korin said I should drop by with some beans and I told him I ain't going anywhere near where you guys are fighting, again! Not all by myself." Yajirobe replied.

"I guess it did get a little scary." Goku admitted. "I hope you two had a good time. This was easily the best tournament, ever." Goku said.

"I'd say." Korin nodded.

"You guys really won't quit until you blow the whole planet up...again." Yajirobe muttered and Goku gave a sheepish smile.

"Just give him the beans, you big baby." Korin muttered.

"Fine! Here." Yajirobe tossed the small bag of Senzu-beans to Goku.

"Oh, right! Thanks!" Goku caught it. "I almost forgot I got an emergency, here."

"Same old you." Korin noted, nostalgically.

"Hey, stick around! We're definitely gonna have to celebrate all of this. Maybe, we could have another party at Bulma's place, again. That's it! I'll ask her!" Goku exclaimed and disappeared.

"And there he goes." Korin muttered, not surprised Goku immediately forgot about the task at hand, again. He crossed over to where Bulma and Chi-Chi sat, appearing out of nowhere.

"Hey, Bulma!" She leaned back, as Goku's child-like face floated closer to hers. "Do you think we can have another party? The whole gang is here! And we even made a new friend. I think." He glanced back at the female Saiyan, hoping she would become one. "I just have to get Dende and Mr. Popo." he continued, turning back to her. "Then, we can start. Whaddayou think?" Bulma finally regained her composure, after Vegeta's exit and Goku's bombshell of an idea. She pushed his face back.

"No way! I'm still organizing the party for my birthday, Goku! You and your new friend can just go eat all the food this place's got. That's all you Saiyans care about in a party, anyway. Food, right?" Bulma got him pegged.

"Hey, good idea!" Goku slammed the hand he was holding the bag in, into his palm. "They had enough for me, Vegeta and the kids, the last time." He settled for the idea quicker than the realization that Bulma was right about him and his concerns hit him. Which did not occur to him, at all. He turned, seeing the aides were putting Beranise on a stretcher and he flied down to them, scaring them some, as Bulma and Chi-Chi sighed.

"Wow, she's really out." Goku commented, as he looked at her. "After a fight like that, it's not surprising. Just put her down. This'll take care of the rest!" He told the aides, taking out a bean and paused, thinking about how he would even go about making the unconscious woman eat it. "Guys...uh..." He gave the others a helpless look. "Maybe...I could chew it for her?" he wondered out loud.

"Goku, just give her the bean!" Piccolo told him, arms folded.

"We've all taken a bean when we were out and we could eat it, no problem." Krillin reminded everyone.

"That's true." Videl could attest to that and it was not long ago for her, either.

"Well, none of us were completely unconscious, though." Gohan pointed out, watching as his father tentatively placed the bean on Beranise lips and pushed it through, then quickly pulled his finger away, as if he was expecting to be bitten. After a longer pause, as everyone quietly waited, she started to chew it.

"It's amazing how Saiyans can eat, even when they're unconscious." Piccolo sarcastically commented.

"Maybe it's a reflex." Gohan jokingly said.

"Yeah. Eating reflex!" Krillin folded his arms. "If one of you starts sleep-walking you could eat half the city, before you even know it."

"Well, it's amazing she even survived that." Goku stated. "And you weren't holding back, one bit, in the end, Vegeta." he told him, then remembered to give him a bean, which Vegeta caught and took without a word.

"We couldn't really see, but she hammered right through your..." Gohan stopped as Beranise's eyes snapped open and she sat up.

She kept blinking and staring ahead, before she started turning her head around to look at the others.

"What...the heck?" she asked, confused and raised her hands to look at them. "Did I just die!?" She looked herself over. "What's going on?" She narrowed her eyes at Goku's smiling face.

"You fell out of the ring. You and Vegeta, both." Goku told her. "He got up, though. But you were out. You got pretty banged up. So I gave you one of these." He held up a bean. "It's called a Senzu-bean. It can heal you right back up from almost any injury and bring you back to full strength if you lost any energy." Beranise made a face, looking up at the bean, as Goku explained. "You should be back to full strength, now." he added and Beranise stared at him with a raised brow.

"Are you serious?" she asked, still sitting on the concrete, astounded, but skeptical.

"Yep. Try it and see for yourself!" Goku told her, putting his hands on hips and everyone got alarmed, after which he realized his mistake. "W-wait-...!" He was about to correct himself, waving his hands, as Beranise powered up with a growl. Goku leaned back from the force of it, nervously gritting his teeth, as the Announcer and all the aides were gripping one another and everything they could to keep themselves from being blown away. Gohan shielded Videl. The wind and light quickly died down and Beranise was sitting with all of her golden hair standing up. Everyone took a step back to avoid getting zapped by all the electricity around her and she jumped to her feet. The Announcer, the aides and the audience were all completely dumbfounded by what they were witnessing, even after what they have already seen that day.

"See! What I tell ya? You're good as new. Even better!" Goku meaningfully added. "A little more training and you'll be stronger than Vegeta." He smirked at him and the latter harrumphed. Beranise turned to look at the prince.

"Hah. Now that I know I can be..." Beranise started with a brief smirk that turned into a more serious and determined expression. "I will be!" she declared, folding her arms. "Coming here was a lot more worth it than I thought it'd be." she added.

"Even getting Vegeta angry seemed to have paid off." Gohan stated.

"I guess the best training for a Saiyan is another Saiyan." Beranise smilingly said, then added "No offense." to all non-Saiyans. "This was good!" she exclaimed, as she unfolded her arms and raised her fists.

"Glad you had fun! So did we!" Goku smiled. "Meeting another one of our race made this whole day even better, this time. Well...maybe not for all of us." Goku looked awkwardly at Videl, who folded her arms with a frown. Beranise chuckled, looking at her from the corner of her eyes, with a smirk and Videl glowered at her. It faded, as the whole arena heard someone's stomach loudly growl. Everyone instantly looked at Goku, who glanced at his own belly, then back up, innocently. He cocked his head at Beranise. Only then did they discover it came from her. She looked down, putting a hand over her stomach and reverted to normal.

"Tank's empty!" she exclaimed as if she was referring to her spaceship's fuel-gauge.

"So is ours!" Goku laughed. "Don't worry! They got just the place, here. Last time they had enough food for all of us. One more person won't be a problem. Even if they're a Saiyan." he assured.

"Wait! Um, Goku..." the Announcer stepped closer. "Without a winner, we still have to determine who'll fight Mr. Satan. We can't just tell people there won't be anyone, because no one declared themselves the winner in the last fight." he voiced his concerns.

"So...you got any rules for this sorta thing?" Goku asked, shrugging.

"Well..." the Announcer gave his head a scratch. "Since Vegeta and Beranise are out, we have no choice but to give the match to whoever ends up in third place...which will be first place, then."

"But, who's gonna have to fight who, then?" Goku asked.

"According to the bracket it'll have to be between you and...#18." The Announcer looked up, in her direction, which 18 noticed.

"What's going on down there?" Trunks impatiently asked, while Bulma seemed to have calmed down, even after Beranise brief power-up and perked up when the Announcer cleared his throat to speak.

"Ladies and gentlemen, since neither fighters from the final round were declared the winner, they are eliminated, which means the one who can take third place will fight the current champion, Mr. Satan! That should have already happened before the final round and we do apologize for jumping to the next, but I don't think there's anyone who's really disappointed, after the kind of fighting we saw, today! Right, folks!?" he asked the crowd and received a thundering round of applause.

"Wait..." Yamcha leaned forward, looking at the bracket. "If they gotta fight for third place that means it's gonna be...-" he was cut off, as the Announcer spoke.

"And according to our bracket, the battle for third place will be between...Goku...and...#18!" 18 blinked in surprise, as she thought the Tournament was over for her. She looked over to Goku, who was standing behind the Announcer, smiling her way and then to Krillin. The latter was happy she was back in the fight, with a shot at the prize-money, which Mr. Satan would pay for them from his own pocket, like the last time. In the VIP room, Hercule was slightly panicking

"Goku, do you and #18 wanna take some time to prepare?" Hercule swallowed at the Announcer's question, hoping the two of them would take a break and post-pone their match for as long as possible, giving him the time to mentally prepare to face either of them. "If not, then we can get right down to fighting, right away!" the announcer raised the mic for Goku to speak.

"Well...we really wanna go have lunch." Goku thumbed behind them. "And I don't wanna fight on an empty stomach...or on a full one, for that matter." he laughing added and Hercule let out a sigh of relief. "So..." Goku started, looking towards 18. "If it's okay with 18 I...think I'll forfeit." Hercule's eyes went wide, along with most of the audience's. There was a few seconds of silence, as everyone absorbed what was said, before Chi-Chi exploded, her voice ringing throughout the arena, again.

"Whaaat!?" Goku immediately winced. "You did not just say that! Goku, you get back in there, right now!" Chi-Chi was nearly standing on people's heads. The ones who could not immediately back away from her. "The last time we had a chance to get the prize-money you flew off who knows where! You're going to stay and win! Our children's education depends on it! And if you don't care about that, then you're going to care when there'll be no food on the table!" she threatened him. Goku looked defeated and there was an uncomfortable silence, as Chi-Chi stared him down, until 18 spoke to her.

"Hey, if I fight Hercule and he pays me the prize-money, I'll split it with you. It's twice as much as it was the last time, anyway." she offered her.

"You...you really would?" Chi-Chi was lost for words.

"Sure." 18 said in her usual, nonchalant tone.

"Oh, thank you, 18!" Chi-Chi was grateful and turned towards her husband and the Announcer, then sighed before speaking. "She accepts! You can go and eat!" she said and Goku cheered up.

"Alright! It's settled, then!" he agreed with the Announcer. "Have fun!" he told him and departed with the rest, waving, while in the VIP room, Hercule had a full on panic-attack. Facing Goku would have been far easier and likely less painful, given his personality. He knew 18 was going to make him work for it to properly sell the fight and since she could break any of his bones with a flick of her finger, he knew it was going to hurt, even if she held back almost completely. He immediately thought of the poor guy who broke his limbs on Vegeta, earlier and it did the opposite of calming him down.

"Hey, we should go with 'em!" Trunks suggested.

"Mhm." Bulma nodded in agreement. Goten looked at his mother, expectantly, who gave in and sighed, once more.

"Alright." she agreed and was immediately lifted up by Goten, who grabbed her by her hands, as Trunks did the same with Bulma and they flew to catch up with their fathers and the rest.

"I'll tag along, just to see where all the food is, but I need to get cleaned up, first. And get my stuff from the locker they gave me." Beranise said, as they were walking away.

"Right. Hope you have some spare clothes!" Goku told her.

"Nah. Didn't bring any spares with me. But, I had to leave my armor behind. Have to get that." Beranise explained. "I got dozens of spares on my ship, though. Good thing bounties pay well. Quality body-suits and armor don't come cheap." she added. As they walked along, Beranise kept giving Videl a mischievous look, who noticed it.

"What?" she finally asked.

"Don't you wanna take a shower, after all that?" Beranise smirked.

"No." Videl blew her off, blushing as they took a few turns.

"See, it's that place, right there!" Goku pointed ahead of them, at a building at the end of the path they were on.

"Okay. I hope they do have enough food in there. See you inside, then!" Beranise waved and flew off in the direction of the locker rooms.

"Hey, where's she going?" Bulma asked, staring after her, as they landed behind the others.

"Huh?" Goku turned. "Oh, she's just grabbing her things." He told her and looked at Chi-Chi, who was giving him a small scowl, arms folded. He gave her an awkward, apologetic smile that barely succeeded in making her less upset with him.

The dining hall was loud from the sounds of the Saiyans' eating and from the rattling of new dishes that were being carried and carted in by the staff that struggled to keep up, as entire plates of steaks, vegetables, pasta and eggrolls were disappearing. The much less voracious members of the group could only look on, with as much unease as amazement.

Chi-Chi sat with her arms folded and eyes closed, patiently sitting through it all. Bulma kept a close eye on Trunks and Goten, as they were engaged in competitive eating. Piccolo reservedly sipped water, while Supreme Kai and Kibito tentatively tried some Earth cuisine. Vegeta and Goku kept stacking empty plates, barely taking time to actually breathe between finishing them. Tien and Krillin both ate at what was considered a normal pace, while Videl kept nibbling, as she felt full just from watching Gohan eat.

"Do you think she can hold back?" Tien was asking Krillin about 18.

"Sure she can! She did it the last time they fought." Krillin answered.

"Right. Of course." Tien recalled. "Now I remember. Chiaotzu and I only heard about it on the radio. Before they started talking about Majin Buu, everywhere. Didn't need a radio to feel that, though." Tien commented.

"I just hope she won't hurt him too much." Videl lowered her head. Then raised it as she thought of something more worrying. "He's lucky this Saiyan woman didn't win the final match or he would've had to fight her. And we didn't exactly tell her the truth about my dad."

"Well, she would've sensed his energy, anyway." Gohan eased her mind. "So she would've known he's not really strong. And besides, she knew when to hold back. She wasn't ready to do whatever it takes to win against Vegeta, either." Gohan looked at him, as he said it and Vegeta raised his head. "We were all pretty on edge when she was holding that Artificial Moon. I guess, in the end, she didn't want to cause a panic and risk losing control."

"Uh, what are you...?" Videl almost asked him about the part of their Saiyan heritage only few people on the planet were familiar with, when another woman's voice interrupted them, answering Gohan.

"I wouldn't've." They turned to the doorway, where Beranise was standing, in full armor, reminiscent of the ones used by the old Frieza Force and more specifically its elite soldiers. However, by its dark-purple coloring, it was obviously custom made. Her gloves and boots had detachable hard-points pulled over them and her chest armor had both shoulder-straps, instead the version with only one, that was typically worn by female warriors. She walked over to Gohan, from Videl's side.

"Cool armor!" Trunks said as Beranise casually plopped down between Videl and Gohan, pushing the latter away. Videl glared at her, while Gohan merely frowned, knowing Beranise was just horsing around. She slammed her palms on the table and looked at all the different dishes.

"Mmh. I don't even know what any of these are. I think I'll try..." she started and raised her hand, moved it along, from one side to the other, then placed it around a surprised Videl's chin. "This." she finished and pulled her hand back, a second before Videl tried to bat it away.

"That aubergine looks nice!" Bulma commented on Beranise's armor.

"Uh...abah...what?" Goku blinked, looking from Bulma to Beranise, confused by what the former was even referring to.

"It's a color. Like eggplant." Vegeta stated, with his eyes closed, as he took a spoonful of his food.

"Oh." Goku pondered it, then something odd occurred to him. "Wait, how do you know that, Vegeta?" he asked and Vegeta briefly looked at him. He remained silent and continued to eat. Bulma giggled.

"He's learning." she stated, with a smile and Vegeta groaned. Beranise eagerly began pulling portions from all the unknown dishes onto her plate, as Gohan and Videl looked on. The former continued where he left off.

"You were saying you wouldn't've lost control, after..." He paused to glance at Videl. "Transforming." He did not say into what. "Does that mean you remain conscious?" he asked Beranise and Vegeta expectantly looked up at her, as well.

"Yep." Beranise said, without stopping in her shoveling and Vegeta quietly harrumphed, which was more like a brief laugh, as he gave a small smile, having expected nothing less.

"Just like you Vegeta." Gohan mention, looking at him and Vegeta resumed his eating. "I always wondered how you or any Saiyan could mentally train themselves for that." Gohan said. "I figured the person either had to be far away from other people. Heck, maybe they had to find a whole empty planet to safely do it. Or...they had people around, who were all strong enough to handle them once they transformed."

"Wait!" Videl had enough of being kept in the dark. "You're not talking about turning into a Super Saiyan, are you? Then what? What's this transformation that needs an empty planet or strong people around? Transform into what?" She looked between Gohan, Vegeta and Beranise. The latter paused to glance at her, contemplating on explaining it to her, only for a brief second, before she dug into the pile of food, in front of her, with the serving spoon.

"This one's on you." she casually told Gohan and took a small taste of the food. "Mhmh." She made a joyful sounds of approval and began stuffing her face. Videl looked at her with a flat expression, then past her, at Gohan, who visibly shrunk under her glare, much to the amusement of the other women.

Back in the arena, Hercule stood facing 18, sweating under her mildly sadistic smirk that would have easily spelled doom for him, if it were not for their arrangement. Still, Hercule struggled to maintain his overly and obnoxiously over-confident facade, relying on his showmanship to eventually sell their fight to the crowd, in the next few minutes. To make it memorable, yet brief and as painless as possible, for himself. 18's expression returned to her usual passive one, not even a glare or anything that could have warranted the nervous jump Hercule made, when she spoke.

"Well?" she prompted him, as the match already started and Hercule needed a moment to regain his composure, silently thanking his lucky stars 18 had not actually attacked him, even for the sake of appearances. He gave a nervous chuckle as he launched into his, admittedly fake, condescending trash-talk.

"Looks like someone's in a hurry to meet the floor o' the ring! You forgot what happened last time!?" he folded his arms, being in his element, the best, when it came to long-winded speeches that quickly spiraled into self-hyping.

"I remember." 18 gave him a small glare that, on the inside, already took Hercule down enough pegs to make him regret opening his mouth.

"Ha-ah! Well, then you won't be surprised by what's gonna happen, next! Nhaha!" Hercule exclaimed, seemingly forgetting himself and believing his own hype, for a moment.

"That depends." 18 tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Huh?" Hercule gave her a weird look.

"If I'm in a good mood." 18 calmly stated.

"Uh...a-are you?" Hercule was stupid enough to ask.

"Take a guess." 18 slightly raised her voice, which was enough to make Hercule jerk back. He could hear people from the audience telling him to make a move. They were growing impatient with the lack of action. In the dining hall, the others were not even paying attention to the broadcast on the television set, but were quietly listening to Gohan, as he explained part of their Saiyan heritage to Videl, who was the only one among them, besides Trunks and Goten, without any knowledge it. Videl only ever heard stories of giant apes from the elderly and those seemingly unhinged, but as it was expected, most people treated them like folk-tales. Even after all the incredible feats she saw Gohan and the rest do, she had trouble accepting such a thing was possible.

"And...that's why you and your dad don't have a tail anymore. And Vegeta. And your brother and

Trunks." She understood they were missing a part of themselves.

"We removed them, after they were born." Bulma exchanged a glance with Chi-Chi and looked at Trunks, who blinked up at her in surprise. "Sure, the Moon's gone, but we wanted to make sure there was no way they could turn into one of those things and level the house and who knows what else."

"Wait...you said that old Roshi guy blew up the Moon, at a tournament, when your dad was just a kid, to make him turn back. But...I...kind of remember seeing the Moon, when I was little. So how's that possible?" Videl asked and Beranise briefly stopped chewing, then resumed, waiting for an explanation.

"Oh, we destroyed the Moon twice, actually." Bulma nonchalantly waved a hand.

"Huh?" Videl looked confused, as did Beranise.

"Hey, that's right!" Goku cheerily spoke up with half his mouth full. "Piccolo told me he had to do it, when he was training Gohan. He transformed and it was the only way he could stop it from happening, again."

"Oh, right." Videl understood they used the Dragon Balls. Beranise, however, had no idea what they were talking about.

"Whaddoyou mean you wished the Moon back?" she scrutinized Goku, across from her. The latter remembered she did not know about the mystical items and their power.

"Uhh...well, that's, uh..." Goku nervously scratched himself and Beranise's expression deepened.

"A different story." Bulma beamed at her. "Where should I start?" she put a finger to her chin, contemplating whether she should go back to where their story began or just talk about wish-granting orbs and colossal dragons.

Members of the audience kept shouting at Mr. Satan, whose relatively snail-paced punches kept missing a thoroughly bored 18, who would not have felt it, even if the champ's fist had hit her squarely in the face. Hercule was giving it all he could, unintentionally turning the fight into quite an exhausting workout for himself that was only occasionally interrupted by a sharp pain, when 18 decided to pretend to fight back and hit him, as lightly as she could, keeping his fervor and ego in check. She already dragged their sham-of-a-fight out longer than she wanted to. The only thing keeping her going was her daughter's cheering. She wanted her little one to have a great day, but quickly hid the smile that she had thinking of it. Hercule even fumbled an attack, as he saw a bit of her rare, genuinely content smile, which briefly threw him off his game, for it made him believe she was about to do something painful to him.

"We could only make one wish with them, at first." Bulma was saying. "But, then Piccolo fused with the person who made them in the first place, which made them all inert and useless. So, Dende, our new guardian, made a new Shenron and we could make two wishes, since." she finished explaining the lore, along with a recounting of half their exploits over the years, as examples of when and how they used the Dragon Balls. Beranise's blank stare sunk lower with every one of them.

"Uh..." she slowly blinked, forgetting to eat and even to chew what she already had in her mouth. "I need a drink." she said, after swallowing. "And I don't even drink." She glanced at a jug of milk and lifted it to her nose, smelling it, before she downed it all. She stifled a belch with the back of her palm to her mouth. "Mmh. What kind of drink was this?" she asked, shaking the empty jug.

"Milk." Bulma replied. "It's not a drink, though. It's dairy."

"Huh? What's that?" Beranise tilted her head, forgetting all about what she just listened to.

"It comes from farm animals." Videl turned to her.

"Uh...okay. And where from, exactly?" Beranise cautiously asked. Videl made an awkward noise and sighed before going into an explanation, one which would only further confound the female Saiyan, who had more than enough strangeness for one day.

"Are you ready?" 18 was holding Hercule in a lock long enough to ask him if he was prepared to end their fight.

"Uh-h...uh-huh." Hercule nervously nodded. 18 changed her grip.

"Better make it more convincing than last time." she told him. Hercule grabbed ahold of her, lifted 18 off the ground and ran towards the edge of the ring with her, even though he would not have been able to move her by a hair, under normal circumstances. He tripped and started rolling with an equally surprised 18, who helplessly looked on, wide-eyed, the whole time it took for them to get to the edge of the ring, where Hercule let her go. The momentum carried her off and outside of the ring, onto the ground, where she sat, with her arms propped behind her, staring at a huddled up Hercule, whose look of embarrassment quickly turned to satisfaction, as the audience went from gasps and whispers to cheers. He jumped to his feet and stood, fists in the air, laughingly reveling in his victory and technical brilliance.

"That was more like a wrestling move than martial arts." Videl frowned, as they were looking up at the television set. She leaned back in surprise, as Beranise whipped her head around and in front of her.

"So, can I get one of these cows?" she asked Videl.

"Ehh...sure." Videl slowly replied, not knowing how she would have even gone about getting her one.

"I don't think you could keep one in a spaceship." Bulma had to disappoint Beranise.

"Too bad...this stuff is delicious!" Beranise raised another jug, toasted with it and drank. "This is the weirdest place." she added, after drinking everything.

"Hey, if you think that's weird..." Trunks started. "We got a place where you can get, like, a whole year of training in one day."

"Uh?" Beranise blinked at him. "And how does that work?" Beranise asked.

"You go in for a year, but outside it'll only be a day." Trunks replied and Beranise could not even begin to imagine how such a thing was possible, even considering wish-granting dragons.

"It's called the Hyperbolic Time Chamber." Gohan replied. "It's in a different dimension. Time passes a lot slower while you're inside. And gravity is heavier. So is the air." he briefly explained and Beranise needed a moment to absorb it all.

"Some heavy-gravity workout sounds good. I can only do that when I find a dense enough planet. Or a gas-giant. But, then I have to put a space-suit on, if it doesn't have any air to breathe. Would be nice to get some training in, without all that hassle." Beranise pondered it. "But, I still got some bounties left. Gotta take care of those, first."

"Your call. But, you should know, it has its limits. As far as we know a person can only use it twice in a life-time. And you can stay for more than a year, if you want to. Vegeta stayed for a year and four months." Gohan mentioned, looking at him. "But, then the next time will have to be shorter." he added.

"Woah!" Trunks whispered in awe of his father. "Goten and I were only in for a couple of weeks and it was tough." he recalled. "Not so much after we turned Super Saiyan." he smirked and Beranise gaped.

"Wha-ah? You can already transform!?" she asked, astounded.

"Sure can!" Trunks smugly folded his arms. Beranise looked at Gohan, Goku and Vegeta to see the kids were not kidding. Beranise slammed her palms on the table, making the others jump and stood.

"I need to wrap those bounties up and get to this chamber of yours. I can't let some tykes get stronger than me!" Beranise exclaimed, sounding seriously threatened by the level of strength the children already possessed. Goku laughed and even Vegeta had a small smile, knowing that kind of motivation. "Already got everything and more out of this visit." she added.

"Well, if you're leaving already, then be sure to come back in six months." Bulma beamed at her. "It'll be my birthday. We'll have a big party!" she added and Goku got up from the table.

"Yeah. It was great meeting you, Beranise!" he extended a hand, which she firmly shook, making Goku tighten his own grip with a deeper smile. "To be honest, I didn't hear good things about our race, but even after knowing what happened to them, it's still good to know they're not all gone. And that they're not all bad." he told her.

"Well, I wasn't exactly raised like a Saiyan, either." Beranise reminded him.

"I guess we both lucked out. Well, I needed a lucky hit to the head to change me." Goku laughingly said.

"I'm not even gonna ask." Beranise smiled as she took out a pad, similar to the one Vegeta used to remotely operate the pod he once had. She pressed a few buttons and looked back up. "There. My ride'll be here soon." she announced and glanced down at Videl, put a hand on the table and leaned in front of her. "How about a goodbuh-...?"

"No." Videl immediately cut her off, glaring.

"You don't even know what I was going to ask!" Beranise told her.

"I'm not giving you a goodbye kiss!" Videl could guess it and Beranise pouted, pretending she was hurt. She listened as she heard her pod outside and grinned at Videl, who even raised her hands in defense, figuring Beranise would make one last effort, which she did. She grabbed her wrist to keep them down and gave Videl a hickey on the side of her neck, then bolted. With her face flushing red, Videl ran after her, growling. She was slowly followed by Goku, Gohan, Bulma, Trunks and the rest of the Z-Fighters. Beranise was already in the air, hopping into her floating pod, as Videl kept glaring up at her. She waved down to all of them and gave Videl a wink with a grin, as her pod closed on her. It took off, space-bound, disappearing from view. Videl rubbed the spot on her neck with a groan and caught Gohan smiling at her, for which she punched him in the arm.

"It's only been half-a-day…" Bulma mused. "But, it feels like so much has happened."

"Yeah…even with all the fights we dragged out, it feels like it was over too soon." Goku commented.

"I…think I'm going to take that shower, now." Videl started walking away.

"I'm still hungry!" Goku ran past her.

"Me, too!" Goten followed him, as their voices receded.

In the silence of space, the pod Beranise piloted docked with her ship and the vessel started its engines.

After proving herself an ally and a friend, the lonesome Saiyan woman would return to a life of bounty-hunting, one last time, before making her way back to planet Earth, to take the Z-Fighters offer to train in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber.

[6 months later]

"Sweetie, the party is still two days away! You don't have to worry so much!" Mrs. Briefs was telling her anxious daughter, who was busy phoning decorators and delivery services

"Of course I have to worry! Organizing a party, here, at Capsule Corp would be hard enough, but having one on a cruise-ship!?" Bulma yelled, putting a hand over the receiver of the phone, then removed it to continue. "You heard me! We'll need your entire supply of pudding and all the equipment to make more on the spot." she waited for a response. "Oh, trust me, they'll eat it." she added, as the person at the other end was skeptical that it would all be consumed. She looked over to Trunks, who was sparring with Goten, in the garden, thinking they would be only two of the people, who could or would eat that much pudding. Bulma noticed the children suddenly stopped fighting and were looking up, towards the sky. She cocked her head to the side, then she realized what they were doing. Sensing someone with a high power-level.

A police hover-bike stopped on the side of a busy road and the officer removed his helmet to reveal Krillin, with his black hair cut short, as he also looked towards the familiar energy.

Gohan stood in front of a home-appliance store, holding a stack of boxed products, dressed like a clerk. Videl came up to him with another addition. The chin-length hair she sported was held back by a band. She wore a pink sweater-dress that reached her upper thighs, with a red stripe around the chest area, along with black tights and bright pink shoes with darker pink soles. Something caught Gohan's attention and she looked at him, puzzled, as he stared off into the distance.

On the Lookout, Dende and Mr. Popo walked up to a meditating Piccolo.

"Piccolo..." Dende addressed him.

"I know." Piccolo opened his eyes and looked up

"I knew schools had a lot of paperwork. But, I thought a martial arts school would be different." Tien was telling Chiaotzu, as the two were in the middle of founding their own school and were already swamped with filling out forms. They, too, raised their heads to the sky.

"It looks like your new Saiyan friend is back." King Kai's antennae moved as he peered through his quadrant of the universe from his new, small planet and Goku looked over to him. The latter was wearing his trainers instead of his Turtle Gi.

"She is?" he hurried over to King Kai's side, completely forgetting about the Kamehameha he fired around the small planet and they both turned when Bubbles and Gregory screamed as they ran from it. King Kai was silent. "Eh, eh-heh. Sorry about that." Goku rubbed the back of his head. "Well, on the bright side, it's not like any of you can die." he added, referring to King Kai's state, without much thought and King Kai pressed his lips together. His mouth twitched as he was about ready to scream and bite Goku's head off.

A pod fast approached Capsule Corporations Headquarters and lightly touched down in the garden, near the Briefs and their guest. The members of the staff froze in their tasks, some even hid from sight, as the sphere opened. Gloved hands grabbed the frame of the cockpit, on both sides and Beranise flung herself out of it, landing a few paces from Trunks, who walked up to greet her.

"Hey."

"Hey! Just the little man I was looking for!" Beranise leaned down, hands on her hips, smiling. "About that Time Chamber, you guys mentioned. Gonna show me where it is, then?"

"Yeah, okay. Goten, come on! We're going to the Lookout!" Trunks called him over and Goten was eager to fly some.

"Oh, hang on! Gonna holler at your mom!" Beranise sped over to Bulma, getting in close and the latter had to take a step back. "Hey, Birthday-girl!"

"Oh, hey." Bulma carefully waved, as if she was dealing with an animal that would have pounced on her if she made any sudden moves.

"Sorry, I didn't bring any presents. I could improvise one if you'd like." Beranise stepped closer, again.

"Uh, that's okay. Uhm...N-no need!" Bulma nervously turned down her offer.

"Where's the small prince?" Beranise folded her arms.

"Just finished his training for the day. He's in the shower." Bulma replied.

"Eww! Too much information!" Beranise pretended to shudder. "Where does he train, anyway?" She had to wonder.

"Over there!" Bulma pointed to the ship Vegeta's been using since they got together. "My dad and I built it. It can simulate up to four-hundred times Earth's gravity. At least, that's the highest Vegeta could go."

"Wow! Four-hundred times this?" Beranise hopped for effect. "Not bad." she said, then frowned. "Looks cramped enough for just one, though."

"Well, it's not like he would share. Or you." Bulma folded her arms with a coy smile.

"Nope." Beranise said and turned to the kids, remembering she had a particular place to be. "Alright! Lead the-...huh?" She noticed they were gone and looked up to see them checking out her pod. Goten was hanging from the top, with his head inside.

"Weird! It doesn't really smell like girls, in here!" Goten exclaimed.

"Like a guy, then?" Trunks asked, as he stood in front of it.

"No." Goten shook his head. Bulma raised a brow, looking at Beranise.

"Perfumes make me gag. And men's deodorants are just too strong." Beranise shrugged, looking back at Bulma. She started walking towards her ship.

Back on the Lookout, Piccolo, Dende and Mr. Popo slowly walked towards the edge, feeling three people rapidly approaching them. Trunks and Goten came rocketing up, in their blue and orange gi, respectively. Immediately after them, the strongest of the power-levels followed, as Beranise came up behind and moved above them.

"Hey, Piccolo!" Trunks greeted him as he landed.

"Hi, Piccolo!" Goten, too.

"Just because you're not fused, doesn't mean you can drop the Mr." Piccolo told them, folding his arms, as the boys usually only addressed him without the honorific when they were Gotenks.

"We can fuse if you'd like." Trunks smirked, taking it as a challenge.

"No, thanks." Piccolo declined meeting the uncontrollable and nigh unstoppable force of irritation that was their fusion. He looked at Beranise. "Welcome back." he greeted her, with the same tone.

"Some welcome." Beranise said and looked around. "Nice...floating island you got, here." she looked down at her feet, then behind her, along the edge. "All squares and it's still a circle. It's like you wanna mess with people's heads."

"If their minds aren't strong, then neither are they." Piccolo smiled. "But, there are always some who are far too strong for their own good. Without much of a mind to speak of." he added.

"Or they use someone else's." Dende spoke and Piccolo knew he was referring to Majin Buu and his absorbing technique.

"And who's the little green?" Beranise turned to Dende.

"Oh...I'm Dende." He gave a small, courteous nod, as he held his staff and Beranise returned it, without saying anything, figuring he already knew of her.

"So, how does a little guy like you make some giant dragon that goes around granting wishes?" Beranise had to ask, even though there was really no answer, other than that he simply had the gift for it.

"Well, Shenron doesn't really move around much. But, I guess the same way Piccolo can make clothes from thin air. Or the way Saiyans can turn into giant apes." Dende gave the simplest answer.

"Fair enough." Beranise said. "Now, you wanna show me to this fancy room? I got some work to put in on this thing." She gestured at her own body.

"Certainly. Follow me!" Dende turned and they started walking. "That reminds me." Dende began. "Mr. Popo finished cleaning the room and restocked the kitchen. Wishing everything back didn't include a clean bed and full pantry."

"But, your dragon put it all back together." Beranise guessed.

"It came with wishing the planet back, really." Dende replied.

"You make it sound so simple." Beranise commented on the ease with which the Dragon Balls and their power was used.

"Well, Porunga was a little angry when I asked him to bring all of the people back. That took some time." Dende recalled.

"Moody magic dragons. What's next?" Beranise wondered.

"Don't ask or something might just happen." Dende joked and soon they arrived at the door to the Time Chamber. "This is it. Remember you can stay for longer than a year if...well, if you can. I won't tell you not to push yourself. Otherwise, what's point, right?" Dende added as Mr. Popo held the door open.

"Right." Beranise nodded and started walking inside.

"And don't worry about the food. There's enough, even for a Saiyan." Dende assured her.

"Indeed." Mr. Popo smiled.

"I'll be the judge of that." Beranise smilingly said, glancing around, then turned her head. "I should be back in time for the party." she told them, then nodded to Mr. Popo, who waited for one from Dende, before he slowly closed the door.

"See you, then." Dende nodded.

"Have fun!" Goten wished to her as the door closed.

"Time to put some work in." Beranise slammed her fist into her palm. "Hope I won't miss anything!" she said, glancing back at the entrance.

Not wasting anymore time, Beranise walked into the infinite emptiness of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to push herself further than ever before. With no distractions and no word from the outside world, she began the intense training. Meanwhile, life on the outside did not stop. Not for the people of Earth and definitely not for the Z-Fighters, whose world was soon turned upside down, once again.

"Did that upstart Frieza managed to eradicate planet Vegeta for me?"

"A Super Saiyan God!"

"One of them, the same Saiyan who defeated Frieza, in fact, is at this very moment on North Kai's world, for some reason."

"I understand you're capable of transformation."

"...the legendary Super Saiyan 3!"

"Beerus the Destroyer!"

"Buu turn you into candy and eat you!"

"Let's roll!"

"You ruined my 38th birthday party!" *slap*

"...my Bulmaaa!"

"You will die with your honor intact."

"Wait!"

"…you finally figured out the Saiyan God prophecy?"

"Eternal Shenron, by your name I summon you forth!"

"Shenron specifically said that the inner light of five Saiyans with righteous hearths must be instilled into another. That makes the total number you need six."

"Hold on, Lord Beerus! There is one more Saiyan, here!"

"How does it feel, becoming a god?"

"Look at that, Lord Beerus! You destroyed Earth, like you said you would. Just not very much of it."

"Guess I'll just have to come back another time and finish destroying the rest!"

"Thanks, Lord Beerus!"

"You know, one day we could make you Goku the Destroyer, when Lord Beerus kicks the bucket."

"Hey!"

EPILOGUE

Light footsteps barely echoed off the stone floor, in the grand halls of the palace that was the abode of the God of Destruction. Whis stopped in his leisurely walk and activated his staff, summoning a green orb that served as a screen he could peer through vast distances with, see anyone, at any time and though that could even include the past, what he was looking at was the present. He observed as a Saiyan woman emerged from her training, judging by her worn out attire, on Earth's Lookout.

"Hmm. Interesting. I seemed to have missed one. Being in that other dimension must have hidden her existence, temporarily." Whis said to himself.

"Oops. Looks like someone was sleeping on the job." A floating fish, in a glass cup, appeared next to him, teasing Whis.

"Well, we can say the same for you, then, couldn't we? She certainly wasn't part of your Super Saiyan God prophecy." he replied.

"Hey, all I get are weird dreams. You got that fancy staff! What's your excuse?" The Oracle Fish retorted.

"Fair enough." Whis conceded.

"She looks pretty tough." the Oracle Fish looked at the live image. "Maybe she'll be the next Super Saiyan God."

"Perhaps. It will certainly be interesting to see how Goku and the Prince will progress. Now, that they know there are far greater heights to reach. And she might not be far behind." Whis concluded.

The small celebration, in the aftermath of the visit from the God of Destruction, at Capsule Corp, was nearly over. All the non-super humans, like Hercule or the Briefs were asleep. Bulma was slowly dozing off on an embarrassed Vegeta's shoulder, while Videl was resting her head on Gohan's, as the latter's hand tentatively felt her stomach and the already powerful life that was growing inside. Krillin and his family were quietly saying their goodbyes for the evening and Piccolo was also ready to head off with Dende and Mr. Popo. Most of the Z-fighters, except the ones already asleep, like Goku, Goten and Trunks, felt a power-level they have become familiar, only much stronger and Beranise soon landed, quietly, in front of them.

"Hey." she folded her arms. "What'd I miss?"

THE END