Kakarrot's eyes widened. Vegeta looked upward at this instant, and Kakarrot followed suit. The rock that Vegeta had thrown came down and hit Kakarrot on the head, causing his golden hair to return to black and his body to fall to the ground, unconscious.

Vegeta inhaled, reveling in his victory. He had done it. He had defeated Kakarrot. Blinking once, exhaustion consumed him and Vegeta fell to his knees, panting hard. He remained in that position for several minutes until he heard the other Z fighters approaching the battlefield.

Krillin was the first to arrive, and when he saw Vegeta kneeling on the ground, he carefully walked over. "Is it over?" he asked. "Did you, I mean . . . you know . . . "

"Are you a fighter or aren't you?" Vegeta growled, still exhausted.

Krillin closed his eyes, then opened them and smiled. "Oh, good. Man, I was really worried there."

Vegeta glanced over at Krillin and saw a brown satchel at his waist. In an instant he'd snatched the bag away and took out the only Senzu bean.

"Hey, that was for Goku!" Krillin said.

Vegeta gave Krillin a look that made him take a step backward. He consumed the Senzu bean and exhaled once, feeling his strength already returning.

"I guess you need it more," Krillin said, taking back the bag with a frown. "Good job, by the way. You did it."

Krillin had no idea how much Vegeta had just accomplished. His victory hadn't just been against Kakarrot or ascending for the first time. It was so much more than that. But none of them would understand. Since they didn't know of the previous life he'd lived, none of them would know that he'd just—

"Dad!" Trunks yelled, flying straight toward him and slamming into him like a bullet as he hugged him. "Dad, you did it! That was so cool! You with your long golden hair and the electricity and, and everything! And it was so cool!"

Vegeta embraced Trunks with one arm then pushed him away with the other. Almost immediately Goten and Trunks began fighting over who they thought looked better in his ascended form.

"My dad's long hair looked cooler," Trunks said.

"Well, my dad had electricity around his body," Goten said.

"So did mine!"

Vegeta looked up and noticed that Bulma was walking toward him. She stopped in front of him, and Vegeta was surprised to see that her usual irritated expression was gone.

"You did it," Bulma beamed.

It was surprising how she seemed to be the only one who understood the monumental feat he'd just accomplished. He blushed minutely and looked away.

"Hey, my dad's waking up!" Goten yelled.

Everyone froze for a moment, wanting to make sure that things were all right before approaching Goku. Goku opened his eyes and sat up.

"Ow! Man, did that fall do that much damage to my head? It feels like I just got slammed into the ground a hundred times!" Goku said, rubbing his head. Then Goku noticed everyone looking at him. "Hey, guys. What's up?"

"Dad! You're all right!" Goten was the first to run up to embrace him, followed by Krillin.

"Of course I'm all right!" Goku laughed. "Why wouldn't I be?" Then Goku glanced over at Vegeta, who still remained kneeling on the ground. "Man, Vegeta, you look terrible! What. . ." Goku paused for a second, then blinked. "Oh, no!" he yelled, obvious despair in his voice. "Was there a battle and I missed it?!"

Vegeta couldn't help a snort of disdain. Had Kakarrot known what'd just occurred, he probably would've gone back in time just so he could participate.

"It wasn't just a battle, Goku," Krillin said. "After you hit your head, you changed and wanted to destroy everyone on Earth."

"Really?" Goku blinked in surprise. "Me?"

"Yeah, and my dad stopped you," Trunks said, obvious pride in his voice.

"Whoa, Vegeta, way to go!" Goku said. "You finally—"

"Oh, shut up," Vegeta said.

"Did anyone get hurt?" Goku asked, struggling to his feet under the weight of both Krillin and Goten. "Do we need to use the Dragon Balls?"

"No one was injured," Vegeta said, getting to his feet also.

"And Dad, you went all long-haired on him!" Goten said, now tugging at Goku's pant leg.

"Did I now? How did Vegeta beat me then?" Goku asked, tousling Goten's hair.

"My dad did it, too. And his form was cooler than your dad's," Trunks said.

"Was not!" Goten said.

"Was, too!" Trunks said.

Goku gasped. "Vegeta, you ascended?"

Vegeta smirked and folded his arms. He nodded.

"Well, maybe when we battle, I'll be able to see it," Goku said, obvious anticipation in his voice.

"See what? My speed will easily outmatch yours," Vegeta countered. "You won't even be able to touch me."

"We'll see," Goku said.

The two last Saiyans of their race stared at each other for several seconds before Krillin broke the silence.

"Sorry, Goku, but I don't have a Senzu bean for you," Krillin said. "Vegeta took it."

"That's all right," Goku said. "Man, Vegeta really beat me? I've got to step up my game."

"Just don't fall out of any more trees," Krillin said.

"I don't plan on it," Goku said, rubbing his head again.

"Yes, Goku," Chi-Chi said, and Goku cringed a bit. "Krillin is right. I would appreciate it if, from now on, you don't make it a point of falling out of trees just for the sake of getting an apple."

"Right!" Goku said. "The apple! I've got to go get it!"

Just before Goku used Instant Transmission to disappear, Vegeta moved behind him and punched him with as much strength as he had remaining. Goku staggered and clutched the back of his head. "Ow! What was that for?!" But when Goku looked around and saw practically everyone sending him a glare of death, he paused. "All right, all right. But, man, am I hungry!"

"Dinner was ready an hour ago," Chi-Chi said. "We can go home and you can eat. It'll be cold, but I don't think you'll mind."

"Great!" Goku said. "Let's go now!"

Everyone took off, glad to be going back toward a civilization which, just an hour ago, was threatened with extinction.

"Hey, Piccolo, I remember that you seemed a bit worried after Goku got knocked out. How'd you know that Goku would wake up all villain-style?" Krillin asked.

"Kami," Piccolo said. "He remembered how Goku acted as an infant before his first blow to the head, and he had a suspicion that Goku's mind would revert to that mental state if he was ever knocked out again."

"Good thing we've got you around, or else none of us would've realized what had been going on until it was too late," Krillin said.

"And good thing we've got Vegeta here to fight when I'm unable to," Goku said.

Vegeta ignored the conversation as he flew, busying himself with his thoughts. Things had, in a way, turned out exactly the opposite of how he'd always envisioned them to be. The strength he'd needed, in the end, hadn't come about through striving toward a goal. As far back as Vegeta could remember, he'd always thought that his own will and determination would've given him the power necessary to face down and defeat any foe. He imagined that, through the burning desire to beat Kakarrot, through the desire to destroy Frieza, the strength he needed would've been born from that desire. That power came from pride and pride alone.

But he had been wrong.

Power, true power, came from none of those things. Yes, they sharpened his wit. Yes they made him a better fighter. Yes, they gave him purpose and drive. But it hadn't been pride that had taken Kakarrot down. Hadn't been pride that had saved the world and the entire human race. It'd been something much more than that.

In the end, he'd done it. He'd saved the world, become the strongest fighter in the universe, and beaten Kakarrot simultaneously. He was and forever would be Prince Vegeta. Now he'd taken the role.

And he finally knew what his father had meant.

Z The End Z