//------------------------------//
// Chapter 15: The Childhood of Broly / Life on the Run 
// Story: The Legend of Broly 
// by I-C-U-P 
//------------------------------//

As the group returned to the mind of the Saiyan Broly, the experience they had went through left them completely motionless. When Princess Luna shared her idea of venturing into Broly’s memories to her friends and family, she never anticipated such horrors as what they had witnessed. The sweeter innocent souls of Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy remained traumatized from the sight of the infant Broly’s execution. And from seeing how real it was. The likes of Twilight and Celestia were left spooked from the image of the destruction of Planet Vegeta. The homeworld of the Saiyans literally blown up by Lord Frieza himself. The Galactic Tyrant being the true cause for the Saiyan genocide.

As silence filled the twisted corrupted void that was Broly’s damaged mind, Starlight Glimmer spoke up what she was thinking.

“Woah. I never imagined our first trip would end up like that.”

All the others mentally agreed with the Unicorn. They thought that Broly would have at least a pleasant upbringing and humble beginnings like any ordinary child. But the Saiyan infant went through trauma, pain, and seeing his home planet blown up all in one day. Possibly the first day of his life.

Feeling sympathy for Broly, as well as the well being of Fluttershy’s feelings, Twilight Sparkle asked Luna a question.

“So… do we continue?”

After a brief thought, Luna gave her answer.

“Yes. We must. We still have many questions left unanswered. Exploring more of Broly’s past might be the only source of information we have.”

When Spike spoke up, his voice was clearly shaken from the events prier.

“B…But what if more bad things happen to Broly further on?”

Luna gave the young dragon a firm answer.

“Then we will have to brave for when the time comes.”

Looking at the rest of the group, the Moon Princess could see that some of the ponies had looks of uncertainty. Spike had a valid point. If life was so harsh and cruel to Broly on his first day, they couldn’t imagine what other horrors laid waiting for the then child. Luna believed that the events of Broly’s infancy may had shaken the minds of the other ponies too much.

Feeling that their next adventure may be too much for the innocent souls to bare, Luna made a suggestion.

“It’s clear that we have no idea what would lie in store for us. We may encounter more unpleasant sights. If some of you feel that you want to stop, then say so.”

Silence filled the void for quite a while. Some members taking the time to think about leaving. Unsure if they could handle anymore harshness of life. But to the surprise of the group, Fluttershy spoke up.

“No. I want to stay.”

All her fiends looked at her in surprise. They initially thought that she would back out due to how sad she was from Broly’s first memory. She then explained her reasons.

“I understand that things can be very horrible. But… but I want to see more of Broly’s past.”

“Yeah. And surely things can’t be any worse than we’ve already seen. Right?” Pinkie Pie added.

The rest of the group all looked at each other before facing the blue Alicorn. Giving determined smiles and nodding in agreement.

Luna smiled from the support of her friends. Seeing that despite the potential horrors of Broly’s past, the ponies weren’t discouraged. Making them much braver than they appeared.

“Thank you.”

Princess Celestia smiled at the group. Proud at how much they had grown.

Using her magic, she began to move through the dimed-out memory orbs. Then coming across a few that while not very bright but showed that they were active. She then explained what was happening.

“Sadly, quite a lot of Broly’s memories are too damaged for us to look into. But I have found some that we can. But the memories are very limited.”

Twilight looked at the orbs in wonderment.

“I hope we find out what happened to Broly and his father after they were rescued.”

With the rest of the group readied for their next venture into Broly’s past, Luna was ready to cast a spell for her and the others to view the events that came after the genocide of the Saiyan race.

After being surrounded in a white expanse, the world around the group began to appear. The ponies and dragon found themselves in a vast green field. Orbiting a red star, the group were clearly on a different world. 

“Wow. Now this world looks nice,” Prince Shining Armor mentioned, seeing that it was a very healthy planet.

Rarity then caught the group’s attention.

“Look everypony! A city!”

Following the white Unicorn’s gaze, the group could see that not very far away, there stood a giant city. The buildings were vastly different to any that the group had seen. Almost futuristic with all the metal buildings.

“Cool,” Spike uttered in awe. The sight was almost like something out of a comic book.

However, their attention was taken away by the sounds of conflict. Their ears turned in the direction of the struggle. Curious as to find out what was going on, the group began to make their way towards the sounds. After a short trek across the grassland, they found themselves on top of a small hill. They were then caught off guard by a small explosion. The blast creating a plume of smoke.

Then to the surprise of the group, leaping out of the smoke cloud was the Saiyan Paragus. The adult landed several feet away from the cloud.

The ponies were puzzled at what was going on. But they could see that the former colonel had a grin on his face. Possibly something to do with his opponent. As the group looked over to the fading dust cloud, to their amazement, was Broly. The child standing up with his arms crossed in front of him. A clear sign that he blocked an attack from his father.

It was the sight of Broly that took the group off-guard. To their confusion, he was wearing clothes that resembled old rags and he appeared to have aged up. Almost appearing to be at the age of four.

“H-He got older?” Rainbow Dash asked. Thinking that the current events took not long after the destruction of Planet Vegeta.

“With his appearance, we must had travelled a couple of years,” Luna guessed. To which was a fact since a lot of Broly’s memories were unviewable.

“He still looks adorable,” Fluttershy added. The Pegasus was also glad that the child had made a full recovery from his stab wound on his chest. There wasn’t even a scar left over.

As the group watched on, they could see that the young Broly glared back at his father. Then moving is hands to his sides as he got ready to fight.

It was at that moment when Princess Cadence realised something.

“Wait. Are they in a middle of a fight? Isn’t Broly too young at this point?”

Cadence’s concerns were shared with the rest of the group. Since Broly was still quite young, they believed that he shouldn’t be fighting straight away. Unless it was how Saiyans had always done it. Training their young as soon as they could stand.

“That’s it, my boy! Just like that!” Paragus said. Impressed with Broly’s form.

Deciding to let his son attack first, Paragus stood firm. With Broly launching off the ground and charged straight towards his father. Then both father and son clashed. Not wanting to hurt Broly, Paragus was mostly on the defensive. Only attacking to test Broly’s reflexes. Despite the obvious difference in size and age, Broly was pushing Paragus back. Forcing the older Saiyan to move quicker than before. Much to the amazement of the onlooking group.

After dodging a punch from his father, Broly spun around and slammed his foot into Paragus’s gut. The blow sending him hurtling across the air before crashing to the ground.

Just as Broly landed back on the ground, he heard a voice calling out to him and Paragus.

“Alright boys! That’s enough.”

Looking in the direction of the voice, the group and Broly saw the female Saiyan Pruna approaching the downed Paragus. 

“You ok, there?” She asked as Paragus sat back up. Breathing heavily from exhaustion.

“Y-Yes.” He answered as he looked over to his son.

“Good work, Broly. Very nicely done.”

As he stood back up, Paragus began to convey new instructions.

“Now we’ll start with the next training exercise. We’ll test your reflexes by firing our attacks at you.”

“Now he’s going to shot at him?” Rainbow Dash asked. Admittingly startled from the idea.

Paragus then turned towards Pruna with a request.

“Would you like to assist me, Pruna?”

Pruna had a brief thought before answering.

“Alright. But aren’t you pushing him a bit too much? He is only a kid.”

Most of the group were a little surprised to see the female Saiyan showing concern for the wellbeing of Broly. A sign that she had grown to care for the young boy.

Paragus answered back.

“His potential isn’t going to be drawn out itself. If he is to become the strongest Saiyan, he needs to start training seriously as soon as possible.” He continued as he turned towards his son. Saying something that peaked the ponies’ interest.

“That being said, these are only sparing matches. Yet, I can tell that his power is growing fast.”

Both Paragus and Pruna then raised their palms towards the young Broly.

“You’re ready, Broly?” Paragus asked his son.

When the boy answered, it was the first time the group heard him spoke as a child.

“Ready dad.”

Paragus then fired the first shot. The small blue ki blast aiming straight for Broly. The boy shifted to his right to avoid it. But then spotted Pruna doing the same thing. The young Saiyan had just enough time to tilt his head back to dodge it.

The group continued to watch the young Broly evading the energy attacks, they were surprised that the world around them began to shift and ripple. Then beyond their control, the ponies and dragon were thrown out of the memory and back into Broly’s mind.

“Wha…What just happened!?” Applejack asked.

She and the others were just as confused. Luckily, Luna was there to explain what had happened.

“As I said before, that memory is one of many that are very limited. As of now, we can only view them as they are. Small fragments of Broly’s memories.”

The others began to see that the blue princess had a point. With Broly’s fragmented memory, they could only see small parts of his life.

“Not fair. I want to see kid Broly kicking butt,” Rainbow Dash said in annoyance. Wanting to see the fruits of the Saiyan’s training sessions.

“Let’s look at the next one,” Celestia suggested. To which Luna nodded in agreement.

After traversing into the next memory fragment, the group found themselves in the same location. Meaning that the point in time wasn’t that long from the last memory. However, the memory took place at night. To Luna’s surprise, high above in the dark sky was the brightest moon they had ever seen. Illuminating the land as if it were a second sun.

“So beautiful,” She said. Amazed at the planet’s moon. Which then was being covered in clouds. Causing the land to dim.

Looking around at their surroundings, the group were puzzled as to why they couldn’t find either of the three Saiyans. But after a quick search, Pinkie Pie spoke up.

“Hay, I found something. It looks like a cave.”

Looking to where the pink mare was staring at, they could see that it was true. There was a large cave in the side of a large hill. Rarity then spoke up in disgust.

“Wait. So the three have been living in some dirty old cave?”

Starlight began to make a guess.

“Maybe it’s their idea of hiding from that Frieza guy. In case if he missed any other Saiyans.”

While the idea was plausible, Rarity was not so sure. Especially since the alien city was only nearby.

“I don’t know.”

Then to their curiosity, something emerged from the cave. Something small. Upon closer inspection, the surprised ponies saw that it was some kind of rodent. Similar to a large grey mouse, but it had a third eye in the middle of its head. They then saw kid Broly running out of the cave, to which then rushed towards the alien mouse. Spotting the child Saiyan, the mouse ran away with Broly giving chase.

From seeing the playful smile on the child’s face, it became clear to the group that Broly was playing. Woken up by the mouse in the cave and began to play chase with it. Most of the ponies couldn’t help but let out smiles from the cute sight of the laughing Broly. Even Saiyan children had a child sense of wonder.

Then after diving forward, the young Broly caught the mouse in his hands. Sitting up as he opened his palms to see the three-eyed mouse. Smiling in self victory.

Among the ponies who smiled at the sight was Fluttershy. Who was amazed at how gentle Broly was to the small animal.

But to the young boy’s surprise, the world around him began to light up again. Looking up to see where it was coming from, Broly could see the clouds parting away. Revealing the bright full moon in the sky. As he stood up, the mouse jumped out of his hand and ran away.

“Woah, pretty,” Broly said as he gazed at the celestial object in awe.

But just as the group too were amazed at the sight of the bright moon, Twilight looked back at the child. To her surprise, she could see the young Broly’s tail swaying. Which then began to twitch.

The purple Alicorn’s eyes widened when a thought crossed her mind. Remembering what happened to Turles when he did the same thing. With his own tail doing the exact same thing.

Dread dawned over the princess from knowing what was about to happen.

“Oh no.”

“What is it?” Spike asked. Him and the others noticing Twilight’s shocked expression. To which the mare answered.

“He’s looking at the moon! He’s going to transform!”

The rest of the shocked group too looked at Broly in suspense. Seeing the child gazing at the moon with a blank expression on his face. Then the inevitable happened. The child’s eyes lost their pupils as the sounds of his heartbeat pulsed through his body. The boy could feel it. The Blutz Waves from the moon coursing through his veins. Triggering the transformation that all Saiyans possessed.

The young Broly grunted as he could feel his energy surging higher and higher. Reaching even greater levels of power. But as it did, it caused his mind to go blank. The transformation removing all of Broly’s rationality and reason. Causing him to lose all sense of who he was and what he would do. With his mind reducing to its primitive stare, Broly began to roar out like a savage beast. His eyes turning completely red as his body began to rapidly grow. His face forming a snout and his teeth becoming razor sharp. Brown fur covering his entire body. But as his body grew, his dull brown clothes tore apart. Then as the group stared up at the growing Saiyan, the boy finished his transformation.

They couldn’t believe it. Broly was only a little boy, but they had witnessed him turning into a Great Ape.

Great Ape Broly shook the world with a mighty roar. Echoing across the landscape. The group were frightened at first from seeing the giant monkey form up close. But due to the events being only a memory, they had nothing to fear.

As Broly roared out some more, he slammed his fists into the ground. Throwing up a mountain of dirt and causing the ground around him to crack open. Then marching forward while beating his fists against his chest, roaring in primal power.

“Why is he thrashin’ around like that!?” Applejack asked. Not knowing why Broly had gone berserk.

Celestia was there to answer the question.

“Because he can’t control it.”

Before the others asked the white Alicorn on how she knew about the answer, Broly’s loud roar caught their attention. With his posture standing tall and his mouth wide open, energy began to build in his toothy maw. After building enough green ki, the giant ape fired his Gigantic Breath attack at the distant mountains. The attack vaporized the entire area in a giant green explosion. 

The group were shocked at the display of power. What was once mountains was nothing more than a crater several miles wide. But as they turned their attention back to the out-of-control Great Ape, they spotted two ki trails heading towards him. When the two flew by them, it turned out to be Paragus and Pruna. Presumably awoken from the sounds of Broly’s rampage.

“Broly!!” Paragus called out as he flew in closer with Pruna hanging back. Seeing if the father could get through to his son.

Paragus stopped beside Broly, causing the Great Ape to turn his head to the sight of his father.

“Broly! Stop this now! Get a hold of yourself!”

However, his pleas fell to deaf ears. Viewing his father as a pest, Broly roared as he fired a green energy beam at Paragus. Through the smaller Saiyan was just able to get out of its line of fire, the shear force of the attack sent him crashing into the ground.

As Broly strolled past his downed parent, Celestia noticed something that could lead to disaster.

“H-He’s heading towards the city!”

The Sun Princess was right. The group could see the distant city in Broly’s line of vision. The Great Ape himself moving towards it to cause destruction. Due to not in control of his actions, the ponies began to fear that the child would cause the many deaths of the city inhabitants.

The airborne Pruna saw this too. Calling out to Paragus a sentence that to the ponies’ surprise, sound almost like what Celestia had said.

“Paragus! He’s heading towards the city!”

Seeing that his companion was right and not wanting themselves to be found by any potential Frieza Force solders on any nearby planet, Paragus had decided on what to do.

“Then we have one choice,” He said as he began to concentrate his energy. A ball of blue ki forming in his left palm.

The group held onto their breath. At first, they thought that it was at that moment where Paragus removed Broly’s tail. Rendering the Great Ape form useless and turning his son back to normal.

But to their shock, there was another way to fix the Great Ape problem.

After glancing up at the moon in the sky, Paragus fired a powerful blue beam into the air and struck the celestial object. Then within moments, the attack caused the bright moon to explode into millions of pieces. Within a span of a couple of seconds, the moon was vaporized. Vanishing from the sky as if it was never there to begin with.

The sight caught the group completely by surprise. As for Luna however, it was among one of the most shocking things she had ever seen. Being the one who moves the moon, she felt as though she represents it. So to see such a moon being destroyed so effortlessly, even though its not her own, she couldn’t help but feel very uneasy by it. An uncomfortable chill running up her spine.

“H-He…He just… blew up the moon,” She uttered in a shaky voice. She simply couldn’t believe what had happened.

But the roars of distress caught the group’s attention. The Great Ape Broly thrashing around in response of loosing the moon. No longer able to absorb the Blutz Waves, his body began to shrink. Returning the young boy back to normal. But as soon as he was back in his regular state, Broly collapsed onto the ground. Fatigued from the experience.

As the group moved closer to the unconscious Broly, Paragus and Pruna were already there by his side. The two Saiyans breathing sighs of relief that they were not too late.

“That was close. Any longer, than he would’ve destroyed that city,” Pruna said, with Paragus joining in.

“Or worse, alerting our presence to the Frieza Force.”

Paragus then looked down at his son. Eyeing his brown tail before asking Pruna a question.

“Pruna? Have you ever turned into a Great Ape?”

The female Saiyan looked at him as she answered.

“Not really. I never actually turned into one.”

The eavesdropping group were surprised at what they heard. Seeing that there were some Saiyans who had yet to transform. As Paragus knelt down to his fallen son, he explained the downside to the transformation.

“Well when you transform into one, you would lose all sense of yourself and go wild. You only use it when you’re backed into a corner with no way out.”

The ponies saw sense to the explanation. Turles was on the ropes in his fight with Broly and resorted to transform to turn the tide of battle. But then Paragus added something else to their new-found information.

“But there are some Saiyans who have been trained to maintain their sanity while in the form. I for one am such Saiyan.”

As he looked at his unconscious son, Paragus had a decision to make. But it was something he didn’t really want to do. But he had to. Surprising the ponies and dragon by pulling out a small knife.

“I’m sorry, son. But you are a very curious boy. There won’t be any doubt that you would look at a moon again. The last thing we want is for you to bring danger to us or yourself.”

Using his free hand, he grabbed a firm hold onto Broly’s tail. Then with a quick slash of the knife in his other hand, he sliced the appendage off. The child squirmed form the pain before falling to sleep. The group couldn’t believe it. They had witnessed the moment when Broly lost his tail.

Feeling that the boy had just lost the very thing that made him a Saiyan, Pruna was skeptical of Paragus’s decision. Mentioning something that while Celestia already knew, the others were surprised by.

“Are you sure about that, Paragus? I know is for him not to turn into a Great Ape. But without his tail, Broly’s power has now reduced. He’s not as strong as he was before.”

But Paragus reassured her.

“If Broly’s latent power is as great as it is, then it won’t be a problem. He would still be the strongest of all the Saiyans. He would just have to live without a tail.”

From hearing the exchange, it left the group with a single thought.

“So… if Broly had his tail… he would be even stronger than he already is?” Shining Armor asked. 

The idea of the possibility had left the group uneasy. Broly was already incredibly strong as he was. So the idea of him potentially being even stronger with a tail was scary.

But those thoughts were gone when they saw Pruna looking out at the distant city. The look of disappointment on her face.

“Those people are going to notice the moon gone. They would surely blame us or even report it.”

Paragus could see that Pruna had a very good point. As he stood back up with the sleeping Broly in his arms, he had only once choice.

“We can’t let that happen. We will have to leave this planet and find another. Shame… I quite like it here.”

As soon as Paragus’s decision had been made, the anthro ponies and dragon found themselves back in Broly’s mind. The memory had ended.

“Wow. It’s not easy to live on the run. Isn’t it?” Spike mentioned.

With the three Saiyans trying their hardest to survive in the universe with someone like Frieza around, it would be very difficult for them to stay on a planet for a long period of time. It was something that Starlight could understand, back at the time when she had done bad things. With the thought of Broly spending his childhood planet hopping, traveling to world after world just to live in peace, most of the group began to feel sorry for Broly. Some of them began to see the Saiyan as a person who never truly had a home to call his own.

“The poor guy,” Twilight uttered.

Moving onto the next memory, the group suddenly found themselves in a grassland of a completely different location. Everything around them was red. The sky. The land. The water. Even the plants looked as though they were coated in crimson. The ponies didn’t like the sight of what could be a red planet.

“Uhh. What a dreadful sight,” Rarity mentioned. Finding the sight unpleasant.

“And kind of… spooky,” Spike added. Moving closer to Rarity.

However, the sounds of a stampede caught their attention. And emerging from the red trees were the three Saiyans. To their confusion, the tree seemed to be running for their lives. The look of distress on Pruna’s face as she held onto the young Broly. Who didn’t appear that much older from the last memory. But it was the state of Paragus that shocked them. Covered in dirt and cuts, he looked as though he had been attacked by something. Possibly something that they were running from.

“What happened to him!?” Starlight asked in uncertainty. Seeing that the Saiyans had landed on a planet that was not very suited for them.

When the three stopped beside the group, they took a moment to breathe. Panting heavily from exhaustion. Pruna turned around to look back at the trees. As well as the sounds of a stampede, the trees further in were seen shifting and wobbling. Meaning that something was after them.

“Looks like we’ve lost them for now. But how are they so strong!?”

Paragus too looked back at the trees. The look of uncertainty on his face.

“I don’t know!”

He then revealed the reason why he and the others were on the planet in the first place.

“They said that this planet was untouched by the Frieza Force. Now I see why.”

The ponies could tell what had happened. Paragus had thought that such a planet would be safe due to the fact that Frieza’s army couldn’t reach there. Only to find out that it was one of the most dangerous worlds to exist.

“How are we going to get through? Our ship is on the other side of those woods,” Pruna pointed out. Unsure if they could reach safety and leave the planet.

Paragus had to think of something. A direct confrontation with the planet’s inhabitants was not an option. He wasn’t strong enough. And Broly was too young to fight such beasts. Especially a whole pack of them. Looking to the sky, he had only one option.

“Then I have no choice, but to use this,” He said as he raised his right palm to his side, forming a white ball of energy. He then turned towards Pruna.

“Shield your eyes!”

Doing as he said, Pruna leapt back and turned away. She knew what was about to happen.

“What’s he going to do?” Rainbow Dash asked. To which no one could answer.

To the surprise of the group, the stampeding sound grew closer to where the Saiyans were. Whatever the creatures were, they had found them.

With no time to waste, Paragus threw his Power Ball into the air. Much to the confusion of the ponies. They thought that the attack was for the creatures chasing them. But that was until Paragus pointed his right open palm at his energy sphere. The yelling out a command.

“Burst open and mix!”

As he clenched his fist, the Power Ball stopped ascending and instantly expanded to a greater size. The white orb illuminating the land in light.

“What’s he doing?” Shining Armor asked as he and the others turned to look at Paragus.

But when they did, they saw the older Saiyan gazing deeply at his orb. Then after taking in the Blutz Waves, the sounds of his heartbeat pulsed through his body as the pupils in his eyes vanished. The ponies and dragon were startled at what was happening.

“Why is he doing that? He’s acting as if he’s turning into a Great Ape,” Pinkie Pie mentioned.

But from seeing the eyes of Paragus turning red and his body beginning to grow, it was clear that he truly was going to.

“That’s because he is,” Applejack said. Much to the surprise of the group.

“But how? There’s no moon in the sky,” Fluttershy added.

From looking at the orb in the sky, Twilight began to piece together a very likely scenario.

“It’s that ball he's fired. Doesn’t it look a bit like a moon to you all?”

When the rest of the group looked at the Power Ball, they too saw the similarities in appearance to the moon.

“It’s like… an artificial moon,” Luna chimed in. Curious as to how Paragus was able to create one out of pure energy.

With the large intake of Blutz Wave energy, Paragus had transformed into a Great Ape. Roaring in primal might. Just like with Turles, the clothes he wore grew with the transformation. Behind him, Pruna and Broly watched Paragus in amazement as the creatures emerged from the woods. Monsters resembling large flesh-eating lizards.

But just as the battle was about to begin, the memory ended. The group found themselves back in Broly’s mind once more.

“Well… I think we’re learning quite a bit. Aren’t we?” Twilight asked, feeling that the group as a whole had learned from the experience.

Most of the group were in an agreement. But what amazed them was that the Saiyans had found a way of transforming into Great Apes without needing the moon. Then Rarity mentioned something.

“There’s actually something I’ve noticed. When Turles and Paragus transformed, their clothes grew with them. But when Broly transformed, why is it that his clothes were torn off?”

It was something that the group couldn’t believe that they overlooked. It was something to take note. But then Twilight had a guess as to why that was.

“Well… Paragus and Turles wore those uniforms, right? Maybe it’s something to do with that.”

The group only had a moment to think of the matter. Not wanting to waste time, Luna quickly got started at looking into the next memory fragment. Upon viewing the memory, she noticed that it was slightly longer than the previous ones.

As they entered the memory, the ponies found themselves yet in another different location. The planet resembling much closer to their own world of Equestria. Vast beautiful valleys and healthy growing wildlife.

“Now this is much better than the last planet,” Princes Cadence said. Comparing the current land to the previous red planet.

“It’s beautiful,” Fluttershy added. Admiring the similar yet different plant life.

As the group gazed at their new surroundings, Spike saw something.

“Hay. Over there.”

Following where the young dragon was pointing, the group saw Pruna and the young Broly sitting down in the middle of a field. Sitting opposite while facing each other. Curious as to what was going on, the group approached the two Saiyans. When they arrived, they heard Pruna talking to Broly. Whom the young boy was once again wearing rags.

“Ok, Broly. We’ll try again.”

The ponies were confused at first as to why the two were sitting on the ground. It was until Pruna spoke again to Broly.

“Concentrate on the centre of your body. Feel the energy within you. Can you feel it?”

After spending little time with his eyes closed, the young Broly concentrated on his inner energy. He began to feel something dwelling within him.

“I-I think I can.”

Twilight was the first one to figure out what was going on.

“I think… she’s teaching him how to use his energy.”

“Wait. You mean the energy that’s inside of him?” Rainbow Dash asked. Remembering the conversation about the subject back when they had dinner in Canterlot.

But the answer was so obvious that it didn’t needed to be spoken in words.

The princess was amazed at the sight. She was witnessing how one would master the ability to harness the life energy inside of themselves. And manifest it into the open world.

Though without a scouter, Pruna could tell that Broly was making good progress.

“Yes, that’s it, Broly. Hold onto that feeling and channel it out.”

As Broly’s eyes squinted slightly, a faint white aura began to form around the child’s body. The sight impressing Pruna immensely. Then as Broly brought his hands close together, a small ball of green ki formed in-between them. Shining bright as it slowly grew bigger.

“Broly! You did it!” Pruna cheered. Causing Broly to open his eyes to see his efforts for himself.

The young boy stared at his own energy in awe. Then by condensing the energy back into his body, the ki vanished from sight. The boy smiled as Pruna praised for his efforts.

“Well done, Broly. I didn’t think you could do it so quickly.” She said as she stood back up.

Broly was smiling with her for his accomplishments. But to the confusion of the ponies, the boy started to frown. Almost as if he were disappointed with something. Seeing the doubt oh the child’s face, Pruna grew concerned as she spoke up.

“What’s the matter?”

While not answering, the child turned his head to look at the back of his waist. Pruna got the idea of what was bothering him.

“Is it about your tail?”

While looking at where his tail used to be, Broly spoke up. Revealing what caused him to be miserable.

“Dad told me what happened. He took away my tail to stop me from going wild.”

Broly continued talking as he looked down. Almost showing fear in his eyes.

“But what if I go wild again? It could happen if I get angry like before. I… don’t want to hurt you.”

The onlooking ponies and dragon were stunned at what they heard. The idea of Broly not wanting to hurt others was something they never thought possible. It seemed that Broly in his younger years was a very calm and respectful boy. But he had revealed that despite this, he had a short temper that could get out of hand. Something that they’d seen with the grown-up Broly. But what fascinated the group was that they thought the trauma he suffered from his infancy would cause the boy to act out or become twisted. It seemed that something was there to keep the young Broly from going through any freak-outs.

The expression on Pruna’s face showed that even she was surprised to hear Broly’s words. But then smiled when she knew what to say to him. Surprising the young Saiyan, Pruna knelt down and placed her hands on his shoulders. Looking at the boy in the eyes with a caring gaze.

“You are a special boy, Broly. You have talents that put all others to shame. You’re very strong, even for your age. It’s easy for that kind of power to lose control. Or even loosing yourself in that power and letting it control you. But that’s why your father and I are here to help. So that you can be in control of your powers. So that you will get stronger. To better yourself. Both in body… and in mind.”

She then playfully poked Broly’s head, making the boy giggle from the touch. Pruna then finished what she had to say.

“As long as you stay in control, and with your heart in the right place, you’ll be surprised at how much good you can do.”

The young Broly then surprised Pruna by rushing forward to give her a big affectionate hug. Wrapping the older Saiyan with a big smile on his face. The startled Pruna looked down at the child before smiling in response from the sudden affection. Cradling the boy by patting him on his back.

The group could feel their hearts melting from the surprisingly sweet moment. They couldn’t help but smile. The two genuinely cared for one another. It seemed that the answer to their recent question was right there. It was Pruna. She was the reason why Broly had been at his most stable. It seemed her presence was giving Broly a positive feeling. Pushing aside all the negativity the child had in his subconscious. She could possibly be the most caring Saiyan the group had ever known.

From remembering the female Saiyan’s words, it caused Luna to have a stray thought. Glancing over to Celestia in response.

As the embrace continued, Pruna spoke up.

“Alright there, big boy. If there’s anything else troubling you, let me know. Ok?”

Then Broly gave the most shocking of responses.

“Ok, mummy.”

His words caused everything to pause in an instant. The group all stood there with eyes as wide as plates with some of their mouths gaping open in surprise. Did Broly just call her that? They knew that the fate of the mother of Broly had been sealed with the rest of Planet Vegeta. So did that mean that the child had no idea? Did he saw Pruna as a mother figure? Their minds were too busy being in shock than to think of questions of their own. Except for Celestia.

“What did he just call her?”

It wasn’t just the onlooking group, Pruna herself was in more shock than they were. Moving her hands away as she stared down at Broly in disbelief. A small blush of embarrassment on her face.

“B-Broly?”

Hearing the uncertainty in Pruna’s voice, Broly looked up at the female Saiyan in a questionable look.

“You… are mummy? Are you?”

Both the group and Pruna were in a state of shock. They couldn’t process on what was happening. The ponies and dragon began to feel tense. If the boy heard what he didn’t want to hear, it could end very badly. The older Saiyan stuttered as she tried to think of an answer. She clearly wasn’t his parent and was somewhat surprised that Paragus hadn’t told him. But as she stared into the eyes of the uncertain Broly, his eyes almost fearful, she couldn’t bear to tell him the truth. She and Broly were on very good terms with each other. She mentally didn’t want that connection severed by the harshness of reality. The boy was already unsure of himself with his random outbursts. She feared that the truth might trigger another one. But that wasn’t the only reason why she was hesitating to tell him. There was another reason.

A… personal reason.

Realising that she would have to be responsible for her actions, Pruna closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. Then to the surprise of the group, who all thought that she was going to tell the truth, her lips curled into a warm loving smile. Then as she opened her eyes to look at the young Broly, she answered his question.

“Yes. I am your mother.”

She lied. But it was worth it.

Believing her words, Broly’s smile couldn’t get any bigger. For a while, the boy was unsure if she was his parent. Since she had been hanging around with him and Paragus for all his young life. So to hear her words clear as day, it had put his mind at ease. The child went in to give Pruna another hug. The biggest one his small body could do. The older Saiyan was again startled from how affectionate Broly was being. But was quickly replaced with a smile as she caressed the child’s head.

The group couldn’t believe it. Despite telling a lie, Pruna had done it to bring happiness to the young Broly. Surprising, since nearly all the other Saiyans were rough and obsessed with their strength. Paragus even showed the obvious signs of wanting strength for his son. But Pruna was different. She was much kinder. Wanting the best for what little she had.

“Wow. I never thought we would see a Saiyan so kind-hearted,” Twilight said. Almost mesmerized by the sight.

“Yeah. And Broly sees her as a mother figure,” Cadence joined. Seeing as why the child was so attached to her.

After remaining silent for most of the memory, Luna finally confessed the thought she had on her mind. The idea of it caused her to slowly grin.

“Not just that. The way she talks is very similar to a pony I know.”

The whole group looked at the Moon Princess in confusion. Wondering what and who she was talking about. She then revealed it as she turned towards Celestia.

“Strange as this sounds. She reminds me of you, sister.”

The white Alicorn stuttered in surprise.

“M-Me?”

When Twilight looked at her former teacher, she too could see the similarities. Much to Celestia’s confusion.

“Yeah, that’s right. I see it too. I remember you saying something like that when I was your student. But that was years ago.”

“She does have that caring side you have,” Cadence joined. Agreeing with the two.

Celestia was baffled at what she was hearing. But not in a bad way. Confused, she took another look at Pruna. When she first saw her, she had mentioned that there was something about her. But she never imagined that the Saiyan’s characteristics would be so much like her own. But then she remembered something. Back when she and the present Broly were having their conversation before leaving him to sleep, he said something that at first left her puzzled. She could recall the conversation as it played in her head.

“There’s something else about you. I don’t know why, but you… remind me of someone.”

“I…I do? Who?”

“I… don’t remember.”

Celestia’s eyes widened further when she realised what Broly was talking about. And with her friends and family making comparisons, it started to make sense. She could not believe it.

“So that’s what he was talking about,” She uttered. Sounding amazed.

The others caught the tone the Sun Princess used and began to question her.

“What was?” Twilight asked.

As she stared at the female Saiyan more, Celestia revealed what had happened.

“Before we entered his mind, Broly and I talked. He said that I… reminded him of someone. Someone that he had forgotten about. But… it seems now I know who he was talking about.”

The stunned group all looked at Pruna before looking back at Celestia again. Pinkie Pie made a loud gasp when she figured it out.

“You mean that you remind him of her!?” She said as she pointed at Pruna.

Celestia didn’t need to answer. Because with what was said open in the air, the rest of the group too saw the connection. They too found it unbelievable. Incredible even. As if the princess had unknowingly made a connection with Broly in a deeper way.

“That’s so sweet!” Fluttershy uttered. Finding the idea adorable.

Then Spike made a humorous remark.

“I guess that means he sees you as a mother figure,” He said as he pointed at the white princess. 

While some of the ponies made a quite giggle at the idea, Celestia however felt different. To her it wasn’t humorous. Nor was it insulting. The fact was that she was feeling something different. In her mind, despite everything that had happened to the two when they first met, she found the revelation rather… sweet. She was a very different species to the Saiyan race, yet that didn’t stop Broly from seeing the similarities between her and the Saiyan woman who he thought was his mother.

With the idea that someone as powerful as Broly, saw her as a mother figure, it caused her to gently smile.

When the group turned back to the pair, they noticed that Pruna was inspecting the young Broly.

“Broly?”

But to her surprise, the child was fast asleep in her arms. She smiled in response.

“Guess we’ve been working too hard.”

Then she and the group heard a sound. Then they turned around, they saw that it was Paragus. Emerging from the bushes and walking up to Pruna’s side.

“Hey Paragus. The little guy fell asleep,” She said. With Paragus replying.

“I noticed.”

As the father of Broly looked down at his sleeping son, he glanced over to Pruna in confusion.

“I also overheard what you said to him. Why?”

Pruna looked at Paragus in surprise. It seemed that he had heard the conversation between her and Broly. Looking back at the sleeping boy with a neutral expression, she revealed why she made her decision.

“Before Planet Vegeta blew up, things have been tough on me. I’m not a warrior type, so being a piolet isn’t anything special. I never had a chance to have a kid of my own. And with what Broly went through, and him losing his mother, I think he’s suffered enough.”

Paragus was unsure of the idea at first. But after seeing what the child was like when he was angry, it would be for the best to keep him in a good mood. Feeling that in his early stages of his life, it would probably be for the best.

“Guess this is a win win for you then?” He said, secretly smiling from the idea of his long-time friend being a potential step-parent.

Then without warning, the memory came to a sudden end. Back in Broly’s mind, the group were still from what they had witnessed.

“Wow. So that’s why she decided to raise Broly. Because she never had any children of her own,” Rarity said.

“I can’t bare to imagine what that’ll be like,” Cadence joined. Remembering how happy she was after giving birth to her daughter Flurry Heart.

Applejack then was lost in thought. Speaking out a question she had in mind.

“But ah don’t get it. If she meant a lot to Broly, how come he never mentioned her?”

While the group found it odd too, Celestia chimed in.

“It’s whatever caused his memory to be in such a horrible state. But hopefully we’ll find out why soon.”

Luna secretly agreed. Despite her resentment, it was very clear that Pruna was dear to the young Broly. So something catastrophic must had occurred to cause him to lose his memories.

After traveling into the next memory, the group were very confused at their surroundings.

“Wait. We’re back in the ship?” Shining Armor asked. Seeing that it was the case. But it was that fact what caused the confusion.

“But why? That last planet looked perfect.” Fluttershy asked. Seeing that there was no reason for the Saiyans to leave.

Twilight began to have a worrying feeling.

“Maybe something bad happened on that planet.”

Moving to the front of the ship, the group saw that Pruna was once again in the piolet’s seat. With Paragus and Broly standing beside her while looking out at the window. The boy seemingly aged up slightly. Looking like a five year old.

“Paragus? Are you sure about this?” Pruna asked. Unsure of the plan that Paragus came up with.

“What little choice do we have. We’re running out of food and water. I just need to borrow your ship to raid one of those outposts we’ve passed. But I can’t risk bringing you and Broly in case something bad happens.”

Pruna then revealed the reason for her concern.

“Then why in the universe are we heading to the Planetoid Vampa? Hardly anything can survive there.”

“It’s far beyond the reaches of the Frieza Force. It’s the last place they would ever go. I won’t even be that long. Just give me a couple of days at least. Trust me.”

After looking at Paragus in uncertainty, Pruna let out a loud exhale before facing back to the controls.

“Ok. We’ll do it. To Vampa we go,” She said, her tone sounded as though she wasn’t going to enjoy the trip.

As the ship drew closer to its destination, the group got a clear view of where they were heading. But frowned in disgust from the sight.

The distant planetoid looked absolutely desolate, even from space. Filled with massive craters and holes, not a single bit of it was green with plant life. The planet itself looked revolting to look at. The shade of yellow and green from its crusty surface looked like vomit.

“Good gracious! What an unpleasant world!” Rarity uttered. Joined by Rainbow Dash.

“They have to stay on that rock for a couple of days!?”

Before more could be said, the memory ended. But eagerly wanting to see if the events on Vampa were next, Luna went straight into the next memory. When they emerged, the blue Alicorn’s guess was correct. If Vampa didn’t looked bad enough from orbit, it somehow looked even worse on the surface. A twisted landscape of wastelands and mountains dominated the entire area. Even the sky looked as though it was sickened with the horrid shade of yellow.

“I quite agree with you, Rarity. His planet looks horrible,” Starlight said. Wondering why the Saiyans had to leave the other planet in the first place.

“I’d be surprised if anything lives here,” Applejack added. Seeing that the world was unsuitable to hold any life at all.

But from hearing loud skittering sounds gathering towards them, it seemed that life existed on Vampa after all. The anthro ponies knew that it was all a memory. So whatever came their way, they had nothing to fear. But it didn’t stop them from gasping in surprise from the appearance of the creatures when they charged into view. The frightening-looking creatures resembled giant six-legged bugs. Easily larger than anypony in the group. Their bodies were grey and orange with orange heads and yellow eyes. The unsettling thing about the creatures was that they had blue lips that curl up into a twisted smile.

The creatures were Vampa Beetles.

Rarity yelp in fright from seeing the up-close grin of one that ran past her. Falling over from shock.

“W-Wha… what are those creepy things!?”

As the Vampa Beetle group left the group behind, Twilight made a guess.

“Well… they must be some sort of bugs.”

“So, it’s not just this planet. Even the creatures here look unsettling,” Shining Armor said.

But curious at what had caught the monsters’ attention, the group followed them towards a gathering of several dozen more. To their confusion, the beetles were surrounding a crater that looked as though it had a soft green ground. Then to their surprise, the creatures all began to launch their tongues into the ground. Using their syringe-like appearance to impale the ground. The creatures then began to suck up the nutrients like a straw.

“Looks like they’re feeding,” Pinkie Pie said.

Then to their surprise, the ground began to tremble. The confused ponies then saw that the green ground in the crater started to shift. Then the centre of the ground began to bulge up, revealing a set of gigantic razer-sharp teeth. Then as the new arrival fully extended from the ground, it revealed to be a giant carnivorous beast with green fur, red eyes and head that somewhat resembled a weasel or a mongoose.

The Vampa Beast roared in anger before glaring down on the Vampa Beetles. It then thrashed forward with its toothy maw wide open. Consuming the beetles as they became its meal.

The group stood motionless as the beast began to eat more of the bugs. Never had they seen such way of life before. The beetles feeding off the giants, only to serve as food themselves.

“Yeah… this planet is kind of disgusting,” Rainbow Dash said. Firmly agreeing with Rarity.

When Fluttershy spoke up, what she said earned a surprise look from the others.

“Not all of it. That giant creature looks kind of cute,” She said as she looked at the Vampa Beast. The way it showed its teeth looked as though it was giving a funny grin.

The creature then suddenly looked up. Something in the sky had gained its attention. Following its gaze, the group too saw something strange. It looked like roughly ten fire balls descending towards the planet’s surface. But using her magic to get a better look at the objects, Luna let out a surprised gasp.

“Sister. Those are not meteors. They look like pods.”

The group looked at the blue Alicorn in surprise. Some became concerned at a likely outcome.

“Don’t suppose Frieza’s army had found them. Have they?” Starlight asked.

Looking to her left, Twilight spotted movement in the distant cave. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be Pruna. Emerging from hiding to spot the falling space pods.

“Hay. Pruna’s over there.”

Following Twilight, the rest of the group all gathered to where the female Saiyan was standing. When they reached to her side, the space pods landed on the planet. The ground rumbled as explosions lit up the distant horizon before fading away.

“I don’t like this,” Pruna said. Without a scouter, she was unsure how to deduce friend of foe. Were they strangers? Or did Paragus return with reinforcements?

After spending some time waiting, white streaks of ki appeared in the distance. Rapidly approaching her position. Unsure of what would happen, Pruna retreated back into the cave. But keeping an eye out to watch. The group too shared the tense atmosphere that Pruna was feeling. Having no idea what would happen.

Then the moment of truth happened. Two individuals entered the area and landed. The ponies and dragon were concerned at first. The two males were wearing the same battle uniforms of the Frieza Force. But shock took over when the aliens were seen in the open.

“Wait? Is that a tail?” Cadence asked. Pointing at one of the arrivals.

To the group’s surprise, the alien did have a tail. A monkey tail. When the second shorter alien was revealed, he too had the same tail. Rarity then stated the obvious.

“T-They’re Saiyans!”

“So there were others who survived,” Celestia stated.

While hiding, Pruna too could see that she, Broly and Paragus were not alone.

“There are others?”

Despite initially feeling awe from the revelation, she remained uncertain of what their intensions were. She then felt Broly’s touch as she held onto her leg.

“What is it? Is dad back yet?” He asked.

Looking down at the child, Pruna revealed what was happening.

“It’s not him. But we’ve got other problems.”

Seeing how important Broly was, she gave him instructions.

“Stay here, Broly. I’ll be right back.” She said in a worried tone.

Doing as he was told, the boy stayed hidden as he watched his substitute mother exiting the cave. As they watched her slowly stepping out in the open, the group began to feel nervous. They still had little knowledge on how Saiyans interact. With a vast majority of them being selfish heartless brutes. They had no idea how the events would play out. All they could do was watch.

Back with the two new Saiyans, the ponies could overhear them talking.

“Being so far from the Frieza Force, this planet is ideal as a hiding place for the time being.”

“I’ll send a signal to the boss,” The second shorter Saiyan said as he fired a red ki blast in the air. Exploding like a firework, it acted just like a flare. Signalling others to join.

The two then heard a voice calling out to them.

“Hey!”

Turning their gazes to the source of the voice, the two saw a female addressing them. Taking cautious steps towards them.

“Are you two really Saiyans?”

The two Saiyans eyed Pruna in amazement.

“Well look at that. We found another Saiyan survivor!” The short Saiyan said excitedly.

“Yeah. Quite a looker too,” The first one uttered. Allured by her appearance.

What the latter Saiyan said sent an uncomfortable chill through the spines of the mares. Already not liking what he was implying.

Then to Pruna’s surprise, more Saiyan survivors were approaching. All landing with the two males. Both the group and Pruna felt unnerved. Not only from the fact that all the Saiyans were males, but the way they arrived was unsettling. All staring at Pruna in curiosity.

They all then heard a voice.

“What’s going on here!?”

Looking up, everyone could see that the one addressing the others was yet another Saiyan. Hovering in the air. As he descended lower towards his followers, the group were startled by his appearance. His hair was the most visually striking. Bearing a great resemblance to the likes of Bardock and Turles. But he was neither of the two. He was much skinnier and wearing a dirty grey battle uniform that looked as though it was in complete disrepair. But what was shocking was that his face was covered with many scars. Showing that despite his meek appearance, he was a vicious warrior.

As he landed in the middle of his group, one of the first two Saiyans spoke up.

“Boss. We found another Saiyan.”

“What? All the way out here?” The Saiyan questioned before turning his attention to Pruna.

The Saiyan leader began to grin the second he laid eyes upon Pruna. As if he hadn’t seen a female member of his race in years. Not wanting to waste such an opportunity, he immediately issued an invitation.

“Well aren’t you a pretty one. Fancy joining my little crusade?”

Ignoring his obvious attempts to flirt, Pruna was puzzled at what he mentioned.

“Crusade?”

Believing that the female Saiyan had little to no idea on what was happening, he decided to fill her in on his mission.

“Well I’m sure you know about what happened to our race. Our homeworld was destroyed by a meteor. Luckily some of us were off world when it happened. So I decided for the best of our race is to rebuild. I’ve spent years recruiting other Saiyan survivors. As you can see, this is all I found for the time being.”

He motioned his hands towards his followers. Showing that they too were lost before he found them and took them in. Pruna started to get the picture.

“So you’re planning to rebuild the Saiyans by looking for survivors? That’s… good to hear.”

Her tone was noticed by the onlooking ponies. While it seemed like a good thing, Pruna looked as though she still didn’t trust the leader Saiyan.

Then the Saiyan leader asked her a question.

“Are you alone?”

Pruna had to think carefully. She didn’t know what would happen if the Saiyans found out about Broly. From what Paragus had told her, it seemed that every Saiyan hated Broly for being born with great power. Not wanting to risk Broly’s safety since he was still a kid, she decided to tell the Saiyan the truth about Paragus.

“No. There is another. But he’s off-world to get supplies.”

The Saiyan leader seemed pleased at what he’d heard.

“And here I thought we wouldn’t find anything of value on this rock. We’ve made an unexpected bounty!” He said to his comrades. Some of which cheered from the news.

The onlooking ponies kept getting the feeling that something wasn’t right. Both from seeing Pruna’s expression and the fact that she hid Broly from them proved that something was amiss.

The Saiyan leader turned his attention back to Pruna with a declaration.

“Once your friend arrives, you two will become my newest recruits.”

However, Pruna surprised the Saiyans by standing up for what she felt right. Further showing distrust to the others.

“I appreciate the offer. But I think we can hold out on our own,” She said, giving a firm but friendly answer.

But to her surprise and the discomfort of the ponies, the Saiyan leader chuckled humorously as he stepped out of the group and towards Pruna. Giving a chilling reply.

“Sorry. But that was not a suggestion. That was an order.”

Pruna felt intimidated as the skinny yet imposingly stern Saiyan approached her. Causing her to take a step back.

“I don’t like this,” Cadence said. She too felt uncomfortable at what was unfolding.

Then to the disbelief of Pruna, the Saiyan revealed his true intensions.

“You’re the first female Saiyan I’ve encountered for years since Planet Vegeta was gone. And I will not let that slip by. You are the key of saving our race. I’m going to be the new king of the Saiyans one day. And you will be my queen.”

He continued his threatening tone as he got close to Pruna. Quickly grabbing a firm hold on her left wrist with his right hand.

“Wherever you like it or not.”

The group couldn’t believe what they were seeing. The Saiyan was going to force himself on Pruna against her will. Not wanting to be a pawn in the Saiyan’s plan, Pruna used her free hand to land a hard punch to his face. Forcing him to let go of her.

“Get away from me!”

Rather from being deterred from Pruna’s disobedience, he gave her a menacing glare as he felt enraged from being attacked by someone weaker than he was.

“You dare strike me, woman!”

Without hesitation, he backhanded Pruna across the face. Sending the pain filled Saiyan skidding across the ground before coming to a stop.

The ponies all let out a gasp of shock. Pruna was only trying to stand up for herself, yet he treated her so maliciously.

“How could he do that?” Shining Armor uttered, furious at what the Saiyan leader had done.

The prince wasn’t the only one who was enraged. Hidden from view, the young Broly was in shock. Seeing the Saiyan that he believed was his mother was being mistreated by the Saiyan who caused her pain. He then gritted his teeth in anger.

As Pruna weakly sat back up, placing her hand on her left cheek, she looked up fearfully as the Saiyan leader loomed over her with malicious intent.

“You said that your friend is off-world, right? Good. It means that he won’t be back for quite a while. So while we wait…”

He continued as he reached his hand down. Ready to grab the downed Saiyan woman.

“…how about a little fun?”

But before he could lay a finger on Pruna, the Saiyan leader suddenly received a massive kick to his side. The blow sent him crashing across the ground and smashing into a large rock.

All his Saiyan followers stared at their downed leader in disbelief. Then slowly turned towards the direction of his attacker. To the amazement of Pruna and the onlooking ponies and dragon, the one who knocked the Saiyan away was Broly. Standing between the Saiyans and his substitute mother.

“Aww yeah! That was awesome!” Rainbow Dash cheered. Seeing Broly’s timely rescue.

“That was close,” Cadence said while breathing out a sigh of relief.

“B-Broly!?” Pruna called out in amazement.

All the other surprised Saiyans began to surround the child, curious as to where he came from and how he was able to knock aside their leader so easily. With the boy giving the group a defiant glare as he raised his fists to his side.

The Saiyan leader came bursting from the rubble as he landed back with his comrades. Only to look surprised when his sights fell onto Broly.

“What!? So you must be her son!” He said. Mistakenly believing that Broly was the son of Pruna. 

As he inspected Broly, he noticed something missing. Which caused him to start chuckling.

“Foolish boy! Do you really think you can take me on without your tail!?”

The group were taken back by his attitude. Further showing that possessing a tail was what makes a Saiyan a Saiyan. However, Broly was unmoved by what he sees was the enemy. There was something else about that particular Saiyan that he didn’t like.

“I don’t like you.”

After he stopped laughing, the Saiyan leader took a brief moment to acknowledge Broly’s feat.

“You’re quite strong for a little brat. If that wench behind you wasn’t so stubborn, I could take you under my wing. But it’s clear that you don’t want that.”

Then after some silence, the leader gave an order to his subordinates.

“Everyone! Crush him!”

The group held onto their breath. Broly was still a little boy, yet he was going to battle a large team of fully-grown Saiyan adults. Yet Broly wasn’t fazed in the slightest.

As Pruna got behind some cover, the Saiyan team began to attack. One charged in to deliver a knock-out blow to the child. Only for his fist to seemly go straight through the body. Then to his surprise, the image faded into nothing.

“Huh!?”

After using his Afterimage technique, Broly appeared beside the Saiyan and threw a kick to the face. Sending the Saiyan crashing into two others.

Then as another Saiyan charged in and threw a volley of punches, he was met with surprise when the boy six times smaller than he was dodging all his attacks with ease. Only to then have his wrists grabbed by the tiny Saiyan boy before being thrown over his shoulder. Broly smashing the adult Saiyan into the ground and knocking him out.

The remaining Saiyans all paused for a moment. Shocked to see someone so young was able to best some of their experienced fighters. And without a tail. Deciding to attack as a group, something they rarely considered, three Saiyan warriors charged in to attack the child at the same time. The three launching punches to no end. But to the amazement of the ponies and Pruna, Broly was blocking every attack at great speed. Almost effortlessly. Then as the child ducked to avoid the punches form the three Saiyans, he crossed his arms before throwing them outward. Releasing a powerful burst of ki that blew the three Saiyans away.

Then as he turned to see another Saiyan ready to fight, the grown up fired a blue ki ball directly towards Broly. But rather than dodging, the boy chose to block it with his bare hands. Despite the strength of the attack, Broly managed to shove it aside before retaliating. Green ki building up in his right hand before firing his attack. The attack struck the Saiyan before exploding on impact. The blast sent the unconscious Saiyan crashing into a rock.

Before they had even realised it, over half of the opposing Saiyans were left standing. Not including their leader, there were only three left. Wanting the child to pay for his actions, the three subordinates each began to fire their ki attacks towards Broly. The child however was too quick for them. Whenever an attack got close to the boy, he was able to leap out of the way. All the while closing the gap towards the aggressors. As he got in close, Broly leapt forward to elbow one of the Saiyans in the gut. Causing him to yell out in pain before collapsing to his knees. Then to their surprise, Broly leapt into the air and ascended higher. The two Saiyans chased after him, the three clashing high in the skies. But despite their best efforts, they couldn’t land a single blow on Broly.

“Come on!! He’s just a kid!!” The Saiyan leader called out to his men. But unaware how dangerous the boy was.

“Why can’t we hit him!?” One of the other Saiyans cried out in frustration.

But before he realised it, Broly landed a devastating kick to the Saiyan’s side. Sending him crashing into the distant ridge.

Which left Broly contending with only one Saiyan. As the two clashed, they were moving closer to the reach of one of the giant craters that surrounded the area. Then to the surprise of the group and Pruna, behind the duelling Saiyans, the head of a giant Vampa Beast rose up from the crater and stared at the two. Its tongue hanging out. A sign that it was hungry.

The group held onto their breath. Unsure how the events would play out.

With the Vampa Beast behind the older Saiyan, Broly was the only one who noticed it. Then as the monster was about to lash forward with it’s gaping mouth wide open, Broly slammed both his feet against the warriors’ stomach. Launching himself away while sending his foe hurtling back. Then to his horror, right into the jaws of the beast. The Vampa Beast slamming it’s toothy mouth shut as it consumed it’s meal.

The group were stunned at what they had just witnessed.

“Well… that’s one way of ending a fight,” Rainbow Dash uttered as she stared at the Vampa Beast descending back into its pit.

It turned out that other wildlife on Vampa had planes of their own. As the Saiyan recovered from the blow he took from Broly, standing back up on the ridge, he suddenly heard skittering sounds behind him. As he turned around, he was face to face with a Vampa Beetle. But as he screamed and prepared to run, the creature launched its tongue at the Saiyan. Impaling his leg with its sharp end. The crippled warrior wailed in agony as he felt his blood being drained. But the worse was yet to come. Within seconds, a group of Vampa Beetles swarmed over him. Joining in the feast as they silenced his screams.

The Saiyan leader was in shock at what he’d witnessed. Two of his followers were killed and the rest were knocked out. All caused by a Saiyan child that had no tail. As he watched Broly descending back to the ground, standing between him and Pruna, the enemy Saiyan was baffled at what happened.

“This is impossible! How can a single child possess such power!? Even without a tail!?”

But his shock gave way to anger. He felt pride from assembling his Saiyan troops. Yet one child stripped that pride and threw it into the dirt. He will make him pay.

“You! I’ll kill you myself!!”

With absolutely no hesitation, the Saiyan leader charged in with his fists clenched tightly. As he threw his punch, kid Broly responded in kind. The colliding fists sent a shockwave across the land. To which caused the Vampa Beasts to wake up. Some of them rising from their pits to watch the fight. The new activity also peaked the interest of the Vampa Beetles as well. Several dozens of them gathering to watch the conflict. And if one gets fatally injured, they could simply eat them.

As they wrestled for strength, the Saiyan leader was shocked to see that he couldn’t push Broly back. It caused him to lash out at the boy, hoping that his wild attacks could put him off-guard. Yet to his surprise, the young child was anticipating his every move. But his recklessness was his weakness. With one of his wild punches missing its mark, Broly found an opening and punched the older Saiyan in his side. The enemy let out a gasp of pain as he felt air leaving his lungs. Broly followed his assault by several more punches to the chest and a swift kick across the face. The blows sent the leader hurtling back across the ground. Skidding to a halt as he held onto his stomach with his left arm. Weakly rising back up with his right.

“Woah. Even as a kid he’s strong,” Shining Armor uttered. Impressed with the child’s strength.

The Saiyan warrior staggered as he got back on his feet. Glaring at the boy in complete hysteria. It was as if the natural order of how things were supposed to play out had turned in on its head.

“You! Y-You’re freak! A freak! That’s what you are!”

Broly glared in response to the insult. Almost as if he had a grudge against the word.

Spurred on from his predicament, the Saiyan leader roared as he charged in to deliver another punch to the boy. But to the shock of the onlooking group and Pruna, the child didn’t move. He stood very still… and took the blow head-on.

The Saiyan grinned as he finally landed a blow. But only to gasp in horror from the sight of kid Broly barely flinching at all. Completely unaffected. As the older Saiyan stuttered in fear, Broly spoke up.

“You’re weak.”

He then landed a punch so strong, that it appeared his fist travelled straight through the older Saiyan’s body and bulging out of his back. The leader spat blood from such an attack. But Broly wasn’t finished. The said punch launched the enemy Saiyan hurtling through the air. Then using his superior speed, Broly appeared above him and slammed his fists into the Saiyan’s back. Sending him hurtling back down toward the ground. But before he could crash, Broly reached to the ground first with his left hand reared back. Green ki building up in his palm. He then shouted a name of his energy attack.

“ERASER CANNON!!!”

Throwing his arm forward, Broly slammed his attack into the Saiyan’s gut. The energy ball sending him flying across the land before crashing into the ground. Exploding on impact, the landscape was consumed in a bright green blast. To which it slowly died down.

Sensing no more immediate threats, the young Broly relaxed his body. Panting from using such excessive force. He didn’t know why, but defeating the Saiyan boss felt… satisfying.

“He did it. He saved her,” Twilight cheered. Along with the others, she was happy to see that somewhere in his past, Broly was fighting for the greater good. It was something that Celestia took into account. Despite what he had grown up into, Broly had performed acts of good in his life.

As Broly turned around to see if Pruna was alright, she saw her rising back up from her hiding spot. Her big smile showed how proud she was of the son of Paragus. The boy who saw her as a mother. She then spoke it in words.

“Well done, Broly. I’m so proud of you.”

Hearing those words made Broly smile in response. He was happy that she was safe.

However… as Pruna was about to approach Broly, she paused in shock at what she saw. Looking behind Broly, inside the smoke cloud of the explosion, she saw him. The Saiyan leader had survived Broly’s attack. As he glared at the boy in hate, white ki began to build in his left palm.

“BROLY LOOK OUT!!!” Pruna screamed as she rushed towards the boy.

Surprised by the sudden alarm of the female Saiyan, the group too spotted what she saw. But before they could say a word, he fired his attack at the boy. His energy attack resembling a long thin spear. Confused as to what got Pruna so scared, the young Broly turned around to see what was over his shoulder. Only to see the energy attack moments away from striking him unguarded.

But within a matter of seconds, Pruna ran in and bashed Broly aside. Leaving the boy in the clear… but her in the firing line.

The white beam not just collided into her, the attack pierced straight through her stomach and out through her back. The attack sent her falling back as she gave out her final breath, blood spewing out of her mouth. The string on her golden necklace snapped loose. 

By the time Pruna’s limp body lie lifeless on the ground, the onlooking ponies and dragon all froze on the spot. Daring not to say a word. The horrified group simply stayed silent as they took in one of the most shocking sights they had ever seen.

As Broly recovered and got onto his knees, he could see the fallen body of Pruna. He let out a horrified gasp as his eyes went wide in terror.

“M…mummy? Mummy!” He cried out as he took staggering steps towards Pruna’s body.

But when he got closer, his pace slowed to a halt. His eyes went wider from seeing the lifeless expression on his substitute mother’s face and a gaping hole through her body. A flood of her blood escaped from her body as it flowed towards the child. The young Broly couldn’t comprehend what he was feeling. For the first time in his life, he was experiencing the pain of loss. The young Broly could feel his body trembling in shock as tears began to form in his eyes.

For the kind-hearted ponies, the sight was truly heart-breaking. Broly had just lost the closest thing he ever had to a mother. And she never had the chance to say goodbye.

As the enemy Saiyan watched the sight, he began to laugh at Broly’s misfortune.

“HAHAHA!!! Don’t be too sad! You’ll be joining her soon enough!”

‘Background music’ ‘Broly’s Rage and Sorrow by DBS Broly soundtrack’

As Broly’s body continued to tremble, he could feel trauma kicking in. A rush of all the horrific things that had happened to him all flowed into his head all at once. His execution. The destruction of his homeworld. Constantly fleeing world after world, trying to find a place to truly call home. His father seemingly abandoning them on the barren world of Vampa. But it was the death of Pruna, the Saiyan he called his mother, killed before his very eyes… was what finally broke him.

The rush of trauma caused Broly to yell out as he grabbed onto his head from the rush of emotions. But the pain was too much for his mind to handle. With one loud cry to the heavens, his body exploded in white ki. Blasting the enemy Saiyan away with powerful bursts of wind. And causing the world around him to shake violently. The onlooking ponies could see it. As his body was surging with energy, the young Broly continued to tear up as he looked at the deceased Pruna. Wailing in disbelief. The sight of the distraught boy sent a wave of shiver up their spines. Going through the pain the likes none of them had ever experienced.

As he looked down in sorrow from the truth, something awakened within Broly. Letting out his feelings, he screamed into the heavens. Even louder then before. But as he screamed, something happened. His surging white ki instantly changed to a dark green. Which was followed by his energy causing the whole world around him to change colour. In the first pulse, it changed green. The second changed it to purple. The third changed it to light violet. The group franticly looked all around them as the scene kept changing colour. Up until the planet’s normal colours returned. They then stared back at the broken Broly. It was the first time they had seen him with a green aura. Wondering what was happening to the boy.

Broly continued to wail in sorrow. Screaming loudly as he began to slowly levitate off the ground. His bursts of energy not only formed a crater beneath his feet but caused the environment around him to change. Dark clouds began to form in the skies as lightning began to rain down all around the wailing child. Darkening the world of Vampa. But as he continued to cry to the world, tears flooding out of his eyes, sorrow wasn’t the only emotion Broly was feeling. He was also feeling rage. Rage for the person who took Pruna’s life. Rage for the Saiyan race for all their cruelty. But most of all, rage for the universe that had turned its back on him.

At that moment, Broly hated everything.

From feeling the sudden surge of hatred, it briefly caused his energy to spike. And his hair to momentarily change in shape and colour. Something that was spotted by the silent group. They had never seen it happen to him as a child before. As Broly looked back down at the ground, he stopped screaming. But he was still sobbing through clenched teeth as he was seething in anger the likes he had never felt before. The changes in his hair became more frequent. Switching between black and gold. The world trembled even more, as if the whole planet was shaking in terror at what was to come.

With his emotions boiling over again, he cried out one more time. Screaming to the heavens as if he was trying to call out to Pruna.

“MMUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMM!!!”

In his one last outburst, Broly’s eyes flashed red. His black pupils flashed blue before seemingly shattering completely.

With his energy triggering an explosion, Luna was forced to teleport herself and the others a safer distance away. When they looked back on the scene, the area was consumed in a bright green dome of energy. Beams of light shining from its source. But seconds later, a bright flash of golden light shined through the dome. Then erupting into a column of golden energy that pierced the sky and into the heavens. Creating bursts of air equivalent of a hurricane.

What the group saw next made their spines tingle all the way up to their necks. Within the column of light, emerging from the crater, Broly levitated into view. His eyes flashed in burning red. The look of complete malicious intent on his face. And his blondish-golden spikey hair.

The small boy rose higher from the crater and into the air. Looking down on the world that tore his own little world completely apart. Recovering from his tumble, the Saiyan leader looked up at the boy in fear. Horrified at what was unfolding before his very eyes.

“Wha-WHAT IS HAPPENING!!?”

As he rose higher into the sky, the young Broly roared in both anguish and sadness. Beams of golden energy shining out from his body and out of the column of light. Causing the world to tremble even more. Then in a single burst, the column was replaced with a ball of golden energy that surrounded kid Broly.

From the ground below, the ponies could just about see Broly through his energy. They knew very well what Broly had become. With Twilight quietly uttering its name in awe.

“S…Super Saiyan.”

After another quick yell, the Super Saiyan child gazed his white featureless eyes down upon the Saiyan leader. Who was staring up at him in complete fear. Seeing the face of the murderer, Broly let out another defiant roar to the heavens above.

“RRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUGGGGGGHHH!!!!!”

Doing so caused rings of energy to appear out of nowhere and converge to Broly. All condensing into the enraged Super Saiyan before letting all the excess energy explode from his body. With the boy unintentionally performing his Blaster Meteor attack. Green energy blasts rained down throughout the entre area. Creating explosions of cataclysmic proportions. The Saiyan leader barely able to evade the blasts. But as the rest of his troops recovered from their earlier fights, some of them ended up caught in the explosions. Wailing in agony before being incinerated into nothing. But as the blasts rained down even further, it began to decimate most of the planetoid’s surface. All the creatures on Vampa wailed in fear while some ran for their lives. No doubt some were killed in the energy attacks. The group panicked as it looked as though some of the blasts were heading towards their direction. Miraculously, they were in one of a few spots that Broly didn’t hit. But it didn’t stop them from feeling frightened from the countless explosions that detonated all around them. They could even see the explosions happening in the distant horizon.

But with one more rage-filled cry of sorrow, the energy orb surrounding Broly started to expand. Then the bottom edge of the orb touched the ground, it began to vaporize it on contact. All of the remaining Saiyan followers were engulfed in it. Wiped out from the face of Vampa.

The group had to shield their eyes from the intensity of the blast. But when the light died down, they could see what was happening. Their eyes fell upon Broly. No longer obstructing himself in his green ball of energy, they could see him very clearly as he descended towards the ground. Heaving in rage. His golden fiery aura. His golden spikey hair. He truly had become a Super Saiyan. But there was one thing that was different. Normally he would have blueish-green pupils. But he had none. They were just white featureless eyes. A sign that Broly had become berserk. It was a very unsettling sight.

But as Broly turned his head to the right, his eyes fell upon the fearful enemy Saiyan. The one who killed someone very important to him. Snarling in hate to which he was consumed by, the Super Saiyan child wanted revenge. As for the former Saiyan leader, he quivered with fear. He knew full well about the legend of the Super Saiyan. But he never thought he would actually see one. Or wanting to be on the receiving end of one who wanted him dead.

Screaming in terror, the Saiyan tried desperately to reach to his space pod some distance away. But before he knew it, the Super Saiyan child instantly appeared in front of him and delivered a punch while screaming in rage. The boy’s fist went straight through the body of the older Saiyan and out through his back. Gagging for breath one last time as he was savagely killed. 

Broly watched as the enemy Saiyan fell to the ground. But he felt conflicted and confused. He had avenged the death of Pruna, but… why was he not satisfied? The group too could see the mix of emotions on the boy’s face as he looked at his enemy. Levitating off the ground.

With the frustration of what his mind was going through, the young Broly began to cry out to the world. Trying to find answers as to what was happening to him. Why looking at the dead Saiyan was making him so angry. Then raising his hands above his head, the young Super Saiyan formed green energy above his head. Then with a mighty yell, he threw his hands down and fired a powerful green beam at the dead Saiyan. Both vaporizing his body and, beyond the child’s control, ploughed itself straight through the planetoid.

However, doing so caused the entire world to erupt. Vibrations rippled through out Vampa. The ground cracking open as earthquakes. Mountains crumbled into rubble. And from the cracks in the planet, green beams of light and red molten magma began to spew out from the ground. Broly’s attack had ruptured the planetoid’s core, causing the entire world to destabilize and break apart. Vampa Beasts wailed in fear and agony as both their home and themselves were consumed in fire and lava. The Vampa Beetles were more fortunate. Since they can run away. But from what was about to come, there was nowhere to run and hide.

“Wha-What’s going on!?” Spike asked in panic. Witnessing the devastation of the world around him.

“The planet… it’s falling apart!” Starlight replied. She and the others were fearful at what was about to happen next. They were again standing on a doomed world.

When the group looked back at the airborne Broly, the young Super Saiyan was crying out in anguish form the rush of emotions he was feeling. His mind began to race. But as it did, he could feel it unravelling his very conscious. He started to remember. The reason why he hated looking at the Saiyan leader. He began to remember something. An event that happened on the day of his birth. The constant cries of a Saiyan baby who had the same hair as his foe. He could remember the cries, followed by a sharp pain in the chest and the sight of his own homeworld blowing up. Something of which secretly began to unravel his sanity.

From remembering what had happened on the day of his birth, Broly’s fiery golden aura began to change. Transforming itself into an eerie green glow that covered his small body. The group didn’t know what the green glow was or what caused it. But they could plainly see that it caused the boys hatred to intensify immensely.

Broly then began to remember a name. The name of the child who cried. He didn’t know where he heard the name from, but it was there. Buried in his mind.

As the planetoid broke apart around him, with spewing lava and beams of green light surrounding him, Broly began to mumble the name. To which… he then screamed.

“K-Kaaaaaaaaa…kaaaaaaaaaaaaaa…ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTTTTT!!!!!"

Before more could unfold, Luna’s emergency teleportation spell had activated. Sending the group off Vampa and in the safety of space. The anthro ponies and dragon were so transfixed on the scene, that the sudden teleporting took them by surprise.

“Wha…We’re back up here?” Applejack asked. But the answer was clear.

“But if we’re up here… then…” Cadence didn’t need to finish her sentence. From looking down to where they came from. It was answered for her.

From the orbit of the planetoid, the group could see the world of Vampa breaking up. Bright flashes of green and burning red began to cover the globe. Then… just like what had happened to Planet Vegeta, the Planetoid Vampa blew up. Exploded into countless pieces of rock and debris. As planetary fragments hurtled passed the group, most of them began to feel worried. Despite knowing that Broly could survive by forming a barrier, they figured that he was too upset to think about it.

As the explosion began to die down, leaving chunks of landmasses floating through the void, Rarity broke the silence as she and the others watched the sight.

“I…I can’t believe that actually happened.”

“He saw her as a mother. And now she’s gone,” Cadence said. Feeling uncomfortable of the idea of her daughter losing her. Shining Armor cradled her for comfort.

Twilight was next to speak up.

“Everypony. I think we had just witnessed…Broly’s first time becoming a Super Saiyan.”

The group looked at the lavender Alicorn in response. With Celestia giving her own thoughts about Broly. Still shaken from the death of Pruna.

“It’s clear that his power is linked to his emotions. So… the grief he felt from seeing her killed… was what triggered the transformation.”

“I never thought he would achieve it as a little boy,” Luna added. She even herself had to admit the shock she felt from the events. And Broly was still very young when it happened.

Their attention was broken when they heard a roar of an engine. Turning around, the group saw a spaceship speeding towards the scene. They recognized it as Pruna’s ship. The same saucer shaped front towing a platform of two space pods. No doubt with Paragus at the wheel. The group began to follow him towards the destroyed world.

When the ship reached just close enough to the fiery remnants of Vampa’s core, the side hatch opened and Paragus flew out in distress. Wearing a space mask that supplied him with breathable air.

“No no no! BROLY!!! PRUNA!!! Where are you!?”

As he franticly looked at his surroundings, he quickly began to lose hope. Seeing that hardly anything could survive an exploding planet.

“Please, no.”

But to his surprise and the amazement of the onlooking group, they saw a faint green object moving towards Paragus. When the object came into view, the older Saiyan’s eyes grew wide in amazement. As well as the ponies. The green object was a transparent barrier surrounding the child Broly. The boy had reverted back to his Base form. The expression in his eyes showed utter sadness. The look of a person who had lost everything. And in his hands, was what was left of Pruna’s necklace. The front gold plate and the blue gem remaining intact.

After letting his father enter the green barrier, Paragus rushed in to check on his son.

“Broly! Are you alright!? What happened?”

The boy said nothing. Only giving his father the same sad look as tears continued to fall from his eyes. When Paragus noticed the gold necklace in Broly’s hands, concern quickly grew.

“W-Where’s Pruna!?”

Again, Broly wouldn’t answer. At least, in words. In response to his father’s question, Broly turned around to look at what was left of the Planetoid Vampa.

Knowing what his son was trying to say, Paragus quickly stood back up as he looked out to the carnage. As he gazed at the destruction, the father of Broly frowned with remorse. He had lost his long-time friend. The Saiyan who had once saved the life of him and Broly. Even though she liked to tease a lot about his one-time crush on her, but it was true. He really did fancy her. He was even content of her being the substitute mother of his son. Since she never had any children of her own.

“I’m sorry, Pruna. I shouldn’t had left you and Broly on your own.” He said quietly.

As he looked down to his side, he could see Broly holding onto the necklace tightly in his hands. Looking at the once planetoid in sadness. The father placed his hand on his son’s shoulder for comfort.

“It’s just you and me now, Broly. Let’s go.”

With his farewells, Paragus led Broly away from the sight of the destruction and back towards the ship. The group watched as the two saddened Saiyans entered their ship. Then without warning, the saddest memory Broly ever had ended.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

In the waking world back in Canterlot, Luna had done much more then what she anticipated. By using her magic to access Broly’s memories, even the ones that were lost to him, it caused the lost memories to open up to Broly himself. As he slept, to his mental confusion, parts of his lost memories had returned to him. He could finally remember parts of his childhood. But unfortunately, it also included the events on Vampa.

As he slept, he briefly remembered what had happened. Remembering the trauma and the pain he had felt. As well as the forgotten Saiyan. Even if it was only for a second. Remembering her caused the sleeping Broly to feel something he hardly ever felt. A single tear escaped his closed eyelids.