A bright light streaked across the clear blue sky, followed quickly by a thundering impact and a shower of dirt and splinters as the object crash landed in a heavily wooded area. Luckily, it seemed the alien ship had landed far from any civilization…save for an old man who lived in the mountains. He was out gathering food for his dinner when the ground shook with a resounding rumble, nearly knocking him off his feet. He blinked in surprise, immediately forgetting about the plants he had been picking and rushing to investigate the crash site. He reached the edge of the crater in a matter of minutes, coughing slightly as the dust settled from the impact. As it began to clear, he saw something rather unexpected. It was a perfectly spherical pod, or at least it would be except for the multiple dents, scratches and cracks on the surface. A faint beeping reached his ears and he jumped back slightly as the pod suddenly popped open, a large plume of smoke drifting from inside the vessel.

He watched, intrigued and cautious, as a figure began to slowly emerge. Again, he was surprised to see it was a tall, muscular man with numerous wounds, much like his ship. Immediately the old man was concerned, rushing forward and aiding the strange individual in walking to the edge of the crater. It was clear the spiky-haired man was barely conscious, judging by the amount of blood on his alien armor and clothes. No sooner had they reached the rim of the crater when the alien finally passed out, likely on the verge of death. The old man heaved a breath of exertion. This man was a fair bit taller than him and a fair bit heavier to boot! Still, he couldn't leave him in the wild in this condition… Luckily, the old man was stronger than he looked and managed to carry the man with the tail back to his humble home on the hill. He had so many questions… But it would be smart to let the strange man rest first before bombarding him with questions he may not be able to answer. So, the old man went about his business, cleaning and wrapping the wounds of the stranger. It would be three days before the stranger awoke.

He remembered a flash of light, searing pain and then… darkness. He let out a low groan as he sat up slowly, wincing at the soreness in his body. It took him a moment for his eyes to adjust to his surroundings as they slowly came into focus. He blinked when he realized he didn't recognize where he was. He was also surprised to find his wounds had been bandaged and he was lying in a surprisingly comfortable bed. He grunted and threw the blankets off the bed, standing tall in the small hut. His head nearly hit the ceiling but he could still stand up straight. What had happened to his armor? He was only wearing his undergarments… He snapped to attention as he heard the crunching of sticks from outside the hovel, immediately taking a fighting stance. He relaxed slightly when he saw an elderly man come into view. However, the old man nearly jumped out of his skin when he noticed the stranger was awake. He let out a yelp, dropping the basket of food he had gathered. Bardock crossed his arms, his tail flicking behind him rapidly.

"Who are you and where am I?" He questioned the old man.

The poor old man had suffered a few surprises already and his heart nearly stopped when the stranger finally spoke.

"I… I didn't realize you were awake." The old man started, picking up the scattered vegetables and fruits he had gathered.

"My name is Gohan and this is my home." He introduced himself with a grin.

Bardock stepped out into the sunlight, shielding his eyes for a moment. As soon as they had adjusted, he was staring at a vibrant blue sky with tall grass waving in the wind and trees as far as the eye could see.

"Where…am I?" He asks again, although he mostly muttered it to himself.

"Hm?" The old man hummed. "Did you say something?"

Bardock shakes his head and turns to the shorter man.

"Your name…you said it was Gohan?"

The older man nods.

"Thank you for patching my wounds…where is my armor and my ship?"

Gohan smiled and nodded before responding.

"Oh! I took it upon myself to try and repair your gear. I must say, it's quite unique. I've never seen anything like it! And you crash landed on that hill there."

He answers, pointing in the direction of the crash site. Bardock's eyes narrowed when the man admitted to tampering with his armor, but he doubted there was much he could do to damage it more than it already was. Bardock grunted in response.

"And my armor. Where have you taken it?"

Gohan didn't seem troubled by his aggressive tone. He simply walked to a drawer in the small hut, removing Bardock's now cleaned clothes and somewhat patched armor.

"I'm afraid there wasn't much I could do, since I've no idea what material this is made of. You might have better luck repairing it in the city."

Bardock's ears perked up. So there was civilized life on this planet. He grabbed his armor and slipped it on over his head. He grunted. The man was right, it wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.

"As soon as I'm back from my pod, I want you to point me in the direction of the city." He demands.

Without waiting for a response, he took off flying towards his pod. Gohan stared, mouth agape, as Bardock flew off. Gohan knew Bardock hadn't trained with the Crane Style School… that fact alone confirmed he was an alien. Meanwhile, Bardock noticed that it was much easier to fly on this planet. In fact, it took much less effort to do most anything. As soon as he discovered his pod, he understood why. According to the data he managed to recover, this was a planet called "Earth". Its gravitational pull was ten times less than that of Planet Vegeta. If he didn't want to get soft, he would have to find more weighted clothing or armor. Unfortunately, his scouter was destroyed in the crash, along with the navigational and flight system. He was stuck here for the time being… Not that he was complaining, considering it was far better than ending up on a frozen world or worse… an exploding one. He gritted his teeth and roared in anger, scaring off a few nearby birds as his energy spiked. Frieza would pay for what he had done! Even if it took Bardock the rest of his life, he would have his revenge. After salvaging all he could from the crash site, he returned to the old man's hut. His aura flared as he flew back in a matter of moments, calming back to its normal state as he landed at the door. He didn't bother to knock, simply barging in.

He immediately saw the old man kneeling in front of some strange, orange ball with sparkling red stars inside. He raised an eyebrow. It looked valuable, so why didn't the man sell it to live in better conditions? Perhaps he preferred the rustic lifestyle. After a moment the old man stood and turned to face Bardock.

"I see you've returned." He speaks.

"That's right. Now which way to the nearest city?" He demands.

Gohan hesitates slightly.

"Perhaps it would be wise to get some clothes local to our planet so you can better blend in? I fear the way you look now would make you a target."

Bardock scoffed. As if he needed protection. Still, it would be annoying to have aliens staring at him all the time. He crossed his arms.

"Fine… Got anything that will fit me?"

Gohan thought for a minute before nodding.

"If you don't mind waiting an hour, I can feed you and sew some clothes to fit."

Bardock was about to argue before his stomach growled loudly. He scowled… This planet probably had a monetary system. He would have to make money if he wanted to eat, but for now, he would let the old man cook.

"Have it your way." Bardock waves his hand nonchalantly, sitting on the bed.

Gohan smiled and went about his business making the meal. Within fifteen minutes Bardock had eaten his fill, nearly ten bowls of fish and rice. Of course, Gohan had expected as much from a healthy young man… er, alien. And after nearly another hour, Gohan returned with some folded, dark green material. Bardock eyed it curiously. At least the man hadn't given him yellow or, gods forbid, orange. He removed his armor and old clothes, having no use for them anymore, trying on the new material. It was definitely different, but all he cared about was if it fit or not. The gi was almost perfect for him, with the billowing green pants stopping at his ankles and the sleeveless shirt with a slight v-neck. The boots were black with red string, accompanied by a black belt around his waist. He sighed slightly as he gazed down at the bloody headband. It was the only memento he had from his friend… But he didn't need it anymore. So he wrapped the new, dark green cloth around his forehead, pulling it taught. He turned and glanced at the old man, who had a wide grin on his face. Bardock simply nodded and left the hut. Gohan had given him directions while he was eating.

"Good luck on your trip!" Gohan called from behind him.

Bardock didn't look back. He simply began walking down the dirt road. He figured it would be better to walk the distance as opposed to flying. He didn't want to become an outcast on this planet, too. After a few minutes of walking, he felt something strange brushing against his leg. He frowned and reached into his pocket, pulling out a small brown bag. Upon opening it, he saw a familiar orange glow accompanied by a small note. He briefly considered throwing it into the woods, but curiosity got the better of him as he opened the note.

'It will be safer with you. Please protect it. It's more valuable than you know.' The note read.

He could only imagine it had been left there by the old man. He chuckled slightly before sliding it back in the bag and returning it to his pocket. He could probably get a pretty penny for the thing… But for some reason he didn't feel like selling it. Strangely, it felt like there was an importance to the orb. Perhaps he should keep it… just in case. He looked up suddenly, snapping out of his thoughts as he heard a strange, yet somehow familiar noise. It almost sounded like a pod taking off… But that clearly wasn't the case as he saw a trail of dust rapidly approaching him on the road. He stopped and stared at it, eyes narrowing as it got closer by the second. Soon enough he realized it was a vehicle and someone was driving it. He simply crossed his arms and waited as it came to a stop about fifteen feet down the road. He watched curiously as a girl stepped out of the vehicle, looking at him with what he could only guess was surprise.

"Um…excuse me?" She called out to him.

"What do you want?" He asked gruffly. "I'm busy."

He began walking once more on the side of the road, intending to walk past her and her vehicle. She seemed hesitant to say anything after his gruff response, but she took a deep breath and spoke again.

"You wouldn't happen to have a Dragon Ball would you?" She asks quickly.

"Nope." He responds bluntly, not even sparing her a glance as he walked past.

He had never even heard of a Dragon Ball…then it hit him. It had to be that orange orb the old man had given him! There was no way this was a coincidence. He stopped suddenly and turned to look at her, only a few feet away. She was obviously nervous and seemed to be afraid of him. That gave him a small amount of pleasure, but he also didn't want to go around scaring everyone on this planet. He wasn't working for Frieza anymore, after all.

"Hey…how far is the city?" He asks.

She seemed surprised he had spoken at all, fumbling over her words for a moment.

"Oh! The city is three days away on foot." She admits, hoping it would be enough of a bargaining chip.

Little did she know he could fly if he wanted to… but once again, he would rather not freak out the population. He sighed heavily.

"Why do you want the ball?" He asks.

Her eyes narrow and she crosses her arms, trying to look intimidating.

"Why should I tell you?" She retorts.

A quick glare was enough to break her façade.

"Alright! If you gather all seven, you can make any wish you want!"

He blinks in surprise. Wishes being granted? That was just a myth.

"You're not lying to me, are you?" It seemed less like a question and more like a threat.

She shook her head adamantly. Then another question popped into his head.

"How are you finding them?"

She quickly rustles through her bag and pulls out a strange device.

"This is what I like to call a Dragon Ball Radar!" She exclaims proudly. "Basically, it tracks their location by locking on to the small number of electromagnetic waves they produce."

Huh. So she wasn't an idiot after all. She actually sounded pretty smart. He nodded suddenly.

"Alright, I'll make a deal with you. You pay me however much you think these things are worth and I'll gather them for you."

She seemed skeptical of his offer but did consider it.

"All you want is money? Wait…how do I know you won't steal my wish?"

He shrugs. "I guess you don't. But I also don't know how it works, either."

She bit her lip in contemplation.

"Fine! But I'm coming with you, just to make sure you don't do anything fishy."

"It would be a lot quicker if you just let me do it." He grunts.

She shakes her head, quickly popping her bike back into its capsule, which raised an eyebrow from Bardock.

"Sorry buddy, that's the deal."

He sighed once more. He could just take it by force… Sometimes he really missed being the bad guy.

"Alright, lady, where's the next closest Dragon Ball?" He asks.

She puffed out her cheeks, obviously insulted.

"My name is Bulma you jackass!"

"I didn't ask for your name." He says bluntly.

It was amusing to see her get angry. Then again, that would only prolong the process.

"Alright, I'm sorry." He apologizes half-heartedly. "Can you please tell me where the next ball is?"

She sticks out her tongue at him but nevertheless checks the radar.

"It looks like it's a few hundred miles from here in the ocean. It's probably on an island."

He nods.

"Right, then let's go. Can you fly?"

She scoffs and picks another capsule from her belt, popping out a jet made for two.

"Does that answer your question?"

He stares at the big metal contraption for a second. Not exactly what he had in mind… But there was no use in complaining.

"Is this thing fast?" He asks, climbing into the passenger seat as the cockpit opened.

She scoffs again, hopping into the driver's seat and buckling in.

"Just wait and see." She answers with a smirk.

Bardock simply crossed his arms and waited, unimpressed as it took off into the air. It wasn't half bad, but he could easily cover the distance in half the time. Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by an ear-piercing screech.

"What the hell was that?" He asks.

"That…" Bulma replied, her face pale, "is big trouble."