"You really went ahead with it, huh?!" Vegeta shouted, landing in front of them and grabbing Gohan by the collar, his eyes blazing with rage.
"Wait, Vegeta!" Krillin stammered, desperately trying to calm him down. "Porunga—the Namekian dragon—can grant three wishes! We only used one; there are still two left!"
Vegeta's anger melted away, replaced by a greedy grin. "For the sake of my own immortality, I'll let you two off today!" he said, smirking as he released Son Gohan. Then, looking up at Porunga, now looming majestically above, Vegeta shouted:
"Grant me eternal life!"
Krillin and Gohan's faces drained of color. Their alliance with Vegeta was always uneasy, but if he truly became immortal, the Earth—and the universe—could be doomed.
As they held their breath, Porunga didn't react.
"Huh? What's going on?" Krillin muttered in confusion.
Vegeta, oblivious, stood with his arms raised and a huge smile plastered across his face, expecting to feel a surge of new power.
After a few seconds, he dropped his arms, checked his body, and asked, "Did I become immortal?!"
If the situation weren't so dire, Krillin and Gohan might have burst out laughing.
Nearby, Dende blinked at Vegeta's cluelessly happy face.
"Why does he look so happy? The wish hasn't been granted at all."
Krillin composed himself. "No, nothing, Dende. Hurry, make the second wish!" he said quickly.
Suddenly, Porunga's deep voice boomed from the heavens:
"State your second wish."
"The second wish…?" Vegeta's face fell.
"Wait... My first wish didn't go through!" Furious, he lunged for Dende, grabbing him by the arm.
"Namekian! Why didn't my wish work?!"
Sweat beading, Dende glanced at Gohan and Krillin for help. Krillin jumped in:
"The Namekian Dragon Balls only understand the Namekian language! You can't wish in any other language!"
"Then tell Porunga to give me immortality now, or I'll finish you!" Vegeta snarled at Dende.
Before Dende could respond, Porunga quaked in the sky.
"The time limit has been reached."
With those words, Porunga vanished instantly. The seven Dragon Balls fell to the ground like boulders and, just as suddenly, turned to inert stone.
The heavy clouds parted, sunlight pouring down once more.
"What happened? Where's the dragon?" Vegeta shouted in confusion, releasing Dende who fell to the ground in shock.
Krillin, Gohan, and Dende stared upward, speechless. Tears welled in Dende's eyes as he collapsed to his knees. "The Grand Elder... The Grand Elder is dead…"
The Namekian Dragon Balls had been created by the Grand Elder. Just as with Earth's Dragon Balls, when the creator dies, the balls become powerless stone.
"The Grand Elder is gone? But... what about my wish—my immortality?" Vegeta yelled, shaking Dende for answers, but Dende could only sob.
"Forget it, Vegeta!" Krillin said sharply.
"The dragon is gone!"
Vegeta let Dende go, rounding on Krillin and Gohan. "It's YOU two! If not for you, I would have gotten my wish—"
Gohan stepped back nervously. "It's not our fault you showed up late…"
"What did you say?!" Vegeta thundered, nearly losing his temper, but Krillin quickly cut in, "Doesn't matter now! We need to help Goku fight Frieza. If we don't, we're all doomed!"
At the mention of Frieza, Vegeta's rage faded and he regained composure.
"You used your first wish to resurrect that other Namekian, right?" he asked sharply.
When he saw the guilty looks on both their faces, he nodded.
"Fine. With the Namek revived, Earth's Dragon Balls will be restored soon. Next time, I'll go to Earth for my wish. But first, Frieza must die!"
He launched himself into the sky, flying toward the ki signatures of Zeltron, Frieza, and Goku.
Krillin and Gohan exchanged worried glances.
"Has he really given up?"
Gohan wondered.
Krillin grimaced. "Well, at least he's focused on fighting Frieza now…"
Meanwhile, hovering above, Zeltron sensed the trio's approach with his Ki Sense and smiled. "Good. All the pieces are falling into place," he thought.
"Goku is about to reach his breaking point—the last spark he needs to become Super Saiyan."
As the air sizzled with energy, the titanic battle between Son Goku and Frieza raged on. At first, Goku was able to hold his own, but little by little, fatigue set in and he began to falter.
Even with Kaio-ken, he couldn't match Frieza's full power in his final form—an unfathomable 120 million. Goku's attacks slowed; his breathing grew heavier.
But Frieza was feeling the fight too—his body covered in bruises and cuts. In the past, he'd effortlessly crushed anyone who dared defy him.
King Vegeta fell with a finger flick; others perished even faster.
Even Bardock couldn't handle a single attack from Frieza.
Yet here was a Saiyan, a "lowly monkey," who had forced him to fight at his fullest—leaving him bleeding and his pride wounded.
"You're the first to push me this far!" Frieza thundered, eyes blazing. He pointed a single finger, firing a vicious purple beam at Goku's leg.
The blast struck home, and Goku collapsed to his knees.
"It looks like Goku's at his limit…" Zeltron observed quietly.
Forced to the ground by pain and the strain of Kaio-ken, Goku struggled to move as Frieza unleashed another energy beam—this time filled with deadly intent.
"I'm tired of toying with you... DIE!"
A searing purple beam shot toward Goku, who found his muscles frozen in exhaustion and pain. "So this is it…" Goku thought bitterly.
Just as the energy attack was about to hit, a white energy beam streaked in from a distance, intercepting Frieza's blast and saving Goku at the last moment.
Frieza looked up, stunned.
There was Zeltron, floating closer, his battle armour shining in the light, scouter flashing red.
"Looks like it's my turn, Goku." Zeltron said evenly, glancing over at Frieza and then Goku with a calm assurance.
"Rest now. You did enough."
Goku grimaced and managed a grateful—if pained—smile.
"Thanks… Sorry I couldn't finish him off."
Zeltron smiled softly.
'It's already enough. I've gained more than enough from your battle.'
He checked his system screen: 51.34 million power level—and still climbing from the combat attributes Goku and Frieza had dropped.
Frieza, listening to them, sneered.
"Monkeys are getting more arrogant by the day. But it makes no difference—I'll kill the both of you!"
With a flash, Frieza vanished and reappeared above Zeltron, swinging his leg in a crushing arc. But Zeltron blocked the kick effortlessly with his forearm.
Frieza's eyes widened as Zeltron withstood the blow.
"That other Saiyan was right… You really are stronger than him."
He'd never believed Goku's claim until now. Frieza, who could obliterate even powerful fighters with ease, felt Zeltron's resistance firsthand.
Zeltron tightened his stance and hissed under his breath, feeling the intense recoil through his arm.
"Frieza… you're every bit as strong as I expected. Looks like I'll have to use Kaio-ken to keep up."
--------