//------------------------------// // Form Training // Story: What makes a Hero? // by Quillion9000 //------------------------------// Canterlot Castle: Dining Room, Morning… Blueblood had timed his return to the exact right moment when both his aunts would be in the same room. While it may not be particularly smart to breech the current topic, it would be best to get it out of the way. Then, he could fill in Celestia on the other facts of his team’s visit to Unity. Blueblood walked into the room to the shock of Celestia. “Oh Blueblood, I was not aware that you would be returning today.” “Sorry auntie, but there were extraordinary circumstances that prevented contact.” Blueblood informed. “I will gladly fill you in on everything; however, I believe there is one matter above all others at this time.” Luna walked not the room. “It concerns your sister.” The princess of the night entered the room looking quite groggy, but that was to be expected considering she would soon be heading to bed. Still, it was a huge improvement from that day following the Tantalus escaping. “Something you found in Unity concerns Luna?” Celestia asked. This caught the younger sister’s attention as she yawned. “Something concerns me?” “Indeed.” Blueblood nodded. “Pray tell, what do you two know of the Children of the Night?” Just from those few words, Luna had a feeling she knew where this was going. She may not know the specifics, but like anything she did before this age, it was likely something had gone wrong. Honestly, she didn’t know they’d still be kicking after all this time. “Children of the Night?” Celestia questioned not as quick to the uptake on this. “That was Luna’s attempt at a new colony after we sealed Discord. I denied such a request because the ponies needed to be united rather than divided in a colony better off than others.” If there’s one thing Luna learned from her mistakes since coming back, it was talking about them. “Yes, thy did forbade us from creating our own colony, but we did not head your words dear sister.” “Luna.” Celestia stated firmly. “What did you do?” “I…” Luna hung her head. “I went behind your back and lured out the orphans of Canterlot before taking them to a secret colony I had created.” “Luna…” Celestia sighed in disappointment. “At least you did not attempt to hide this from me now, but I remember being worried when every orphan of the time seemingly vanished without a trace. Now, it appears the descendants of ‘your children’ have done something.” “Allow me to fill you both in on what my team and Goten found in Unity…” Blueblood began. He told them all about the Namekians, the alicorns they once lived with, the unicorn claiming to be part of the Children of the Night stealing away their friends, and the dragon balls. The princesses absorbed everything before focusing on the prior matter. “Looks like your ponies took what you did and saw nothing wrong with repeating it.” Celestia commented. “We recognize it was wrong now.” Luna commented sincerely. “I did not think they would adopt that ideal and apply it as they did.” “Pray tell, do you know where your ponies are?” Celestia asked. “I may have gone to the prior colony only to find it abandoned.” Luna stated. “If these are the descendants of the ponies I took, then they have moved in the last one thousand years.” “I will have to send out the royal guard to see about locating them, but I do not have my hopes up considering all we have is a dead trail, minimal information, and a group of ponies which have remained hidden all this time.” Celestia commented. “We also must do our best to strengthen this tenuous relationship with these Namekians, start the guard training more seriously, and be on the lookout for this Bulla.” “Quite right Blueblood.” Celestia stood. “There is much to do now with the information you have given.” They walked off together leaving Luna feeling rather down. Everything she ended up trying to do seemed to fail while past mistakes kept cropping up. On top of all of that, she was still restricted to this weak form. Things just didn’t seem to be looking up for her. Champion’s Training Room #1 Bardock and Goten had discussed it before and decided the best place to do the Half-Saiyan’s two years of training would be in the Champion’s Training Room. Not only was it large enough to hold the capsuled gravity/time chamber, but the added stamina would help. Goten threw out the capsule producing a huge, one-story building with the interior matching the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. The only difference was that this place had a defined end to the huge space and a console nearby used to affect the time/gravity settings. With instruction from Bardock, Goten active the time dilation officially and set the gravity to 200 times Earths’/Equis’ gravity. This certainly affected the Half-Saiyan to the degree that it was a great starting point. With everything set, they got to work. “I hope your ready kid because these next two years are going to be nothing but hard work.” Bardock declared. “When you become to accustomed to the gravity, we will increase it. No matter what, you will master every form you have access to as well.” “I understand Master Bardock.” Goten nodded with a firm expression. “I am ready to give this everything I have.” “That’s the spirit.” Bardock smiled proudly. “Now, let’s get to work on Wrathful Saiyan. The sooner you master that, the sooner we can move back into Super Saiyan.” Goten nodded as he took a deep breath. His hair spiked up, his eyes turned yellow, and his muscles expanded; meanwhile, the Half-Saiyan was trying to control his anger. While he stood there seemingly in control for a moment, Goten then lept at Bardock wildly. The Saiyan Warrior vanished from his grandson’s eyesight before appearing behind him. He grabbed Goten by the neck and slammed him into the ground hard. Goten began to struggle against the older Saiyan’s grasp. “We still have a lot of work to do.” Bardock declared firmly. “Goten, hear me and focus on everyone you care about. Imagine people like Bulla, Mira, and Towa destroying everyone you care about. Then, imagine that you being out of control, is the reason they died.” The Half-Saiyan continued to struggle against the Saiyan’s grip, but somewhere deep within his mind, Bardock’s words had an impact. He imagined Mira, Towa, and Bulla ending the lives of his dad, mom, brother, best friend, and all the friends he’s made here. “Bar…dock.” Goten stated. “Goten?” Bardock questioned. “I… won’t… let… them…” Goten tried. The moment of clarity was lost as he was back to struggling, growling, and roaring. “Well, it is a start.” Bardock smirked. “Yeah, we can work with this.” He threw Goten away before standing. “From here, I should have a better chance at beating you back to your senses.” Goten stood up and roared before charging Bardock. One Month In… Goten was sleeping while images of the first time he entered Wrathful Saiyan played through his mind. Every day, he garnered more and more control over the form which resulted in him seeing memories from the times he wasn’t in control. He saw himself attacking Luna and Shining only to bolt awake the moment he hears Celestia use her Celestial Wave. The Half-Saiyan is panting and puts a hand on his head. He doesn’t like it, but the thoughts of what he could have done that night always play though his head after waking. “Having that dream again, are you?” Bardock asked as he appeared. Goten nods with a sigh. “I just don’t like the thought of what I could have done.” “Then, use that as fuel to master the form faster.” Bardock crossed his arms as his grandson looked to him for answers. “You are a Half-Siyan, right?” Goten nodded. “Then, show me that potential and master the form already. Master it so you have no chance of hurting anyone else.” “Right.” Goten jumped out of bed and looked to his grandfather with a renewed resolve. “I will master this form.” 6 Weeks In… Goten was in his Wrathful Form as he faced off with Bardock. The Half-Saiyan was standing firm and in his stance while studying Bardock. All day, every time he was in this form, Goten maintained his composure rather than acting like a wild beast. “This time, I got you!” Goten stated aggressively. Aggression hadn’t been worked out of the form, but from what Bardock knew, that was par for the course. If Goten could keep himself together, and not let the aggression overtake him, he’d be one step closer to mastering the form Goten charged at Bardock going for a punch only for the older Saiyan to kick him in the face sending the Half-Saiyan flying. Goten crashed into the ground out for the count as his form returned to normal. Bardock smiled proudly before moving to pick Goten up. He put his grandson on his back before moving back to the residential area and laying the exhausted boy on the bed. They still had much to do before moving back into Super Saiyan, but this was a great sign of things to come. 3 Months In… Bardock stood before Goten with his arms crossed. “Power up into Wrathful and let me feel your power. Do not hold back an ounce of it because I need to know you’ve reached the true limits of this power within you.” Goten nodded firmly. “Right.” The Half-Saiyan began to power up as his hair spiked up, eyes turned yellow, and muscle mass expanded. Even then, he kept going letting his power climb to its absolute maximum while in this form. Eventually, he reached the end before looking to his master for approval. “Now, that is power befitting a wrath filled Saiyan.” Bardock smirked. “Starting tomorrow, it’ll be time to introduce you to grades two and three of a Super Saiyan Saiyan. Master them and mastering the final grade will be a walk in the park.” “Finally.” Goten clenched his fist in triumph before collapsing onto his back unconscious. 6 Months In… Training in Super Saiyan Grades 2 & 3 were a unique experience to say the least. Grade 2 seemed to expand Goten’s muscles and spike his hair much like Wrathful Saiyan. Thanks to his experience with that form, it was easier to acclimate and master this form. From there, they moved onto Grade 3. While Grade 2 was at least akin to Wrathful Saiyan in form, Grade 3’s increase to height, muscle mass, and hair height was harder to utilize. It was just to slow for Goten’s usual style. Eventually, he managed to get it down. In the end, Grade 3 just wasn’t going to be viable in a battle by itself, but no one ever said these two forms had to be separate. Goten eventually came up with a way to utilize both forms to their fullest and perhaps even master them beyond what Bardock initially intended. Goten and Bardock faced off once more with both in Super Saiyan, and the Half-Saiyan was smirking. “Get ready master because I’m ready to show off the fruits of my labor.” Goten had requested to undertake his idea alone which Bardock allowed interested to see what his grandson came up with. “Hopefully, this was worth the extra month.” Bardock declared. “Show me what you got.” Goten smiled. “Alright, you asked for it.” The Half-Saiyan charged his mentor only to be met with a punch to the face knocking Goten back. The two began speeding around the room as Goten entered Super Saiyan Grade 2 gaining the larger muscles and spiker hair. Bardock shot out his fist, but the Half-Saiyan managed to dodge. Goten then lunged forward with greater speed before instantly shifted into Grade 3 at just the right time putting even more power behind the oncoming hit. Bardock’s eyes went wide as he just barely managed to jump back avoiding the hit. “I’ll be.” The warrior smirked. “Ascended Saiyan grants Goten more speed than Grade 1, so he uses it in tandem with Ultra allowing him to mitigate the speed problems. Very clever.” “Well kid, I’m impressed.” Bardock declared as Goten and him began a more laid-back spar. “You’ve found a path to master those grades beyond what I wanted; however, it’s unrefined. You know what that means, right?” Goten nodded. “We got a lot of work ahead of us to truly master Grades 2 & 3.” “Still, make no mistake.” Bardock declared. “Once we get this switch style of yours down, you’ll be ready to fully master Super Saiyan by going with Grade 4.” 1 Year In… It took a whole two months for Goten to perfect switching from Grade 2 to 3. He had to speed up the switch to be instantaneous, figuring out the perfect fighting style, and put it all into practice while under fire. Even if this skill became obsolete, it wasn’t a worthless exercise. In fact, doing that extra training really beefed up his power. After that, it was four months spent of mastering Super Saiyan. That meant constantly maintaining Super Saiyan Grade 1 through Training, relaxing, and sleeping. Today, Bardock assessed that Goten was ready. It was time to try tapping into Super Saiyan 2, and Goten was ecstatic. After all this time, and coming close two times since coming here, the Half-Saiyan was deemed ready to get one step closer to his idols. Bardock stood before Goten. “Now, there are three ways to access Super Saiyan 2. The first is emotional upheaval like that of Super Saiyan but to a greater extent. Essentially, you really need to have had a great deal of pain in your past. One or two events just won’t cut it. The second is simply through harsh training while the third is through desperate need. When facing Nightmare Moon, your body responded to the pain and attempted to force you to a higher power in response. The problem was that your power wasn’t sufficient for it. Now, I know you are ready for this, but it’s your choice how fast you enter Super Saiyan 2. We can train to unlock it, or I can fire a stronger blast than you can currently block forcing you to draw out your power.” “I don’t want to waste a second of the time we have left.” Goten stared at his mentor firmly. “Hit me with power I have no chance of blocking as I am.” “Alright, I will honor that choice.” Bardock declared. Bardock flew away from Goten before powering up into a Super Saiyan 2 causing him to gain spiker hair, a bang, the flame like appearance of his aura, and the electricity flowing around him. The Saiyan Warrior then took a deep breath as he held his right fist up to his chin and it glowed. “Saiyan Spirit!” Bardock shouted. He forwent the usually punch which accompanied this and appeared above Goten before firing down with a large, blue wave of energy. Goten was already in Super Saiyan and had his power pushed to its max. “This is it!” Goten held out his hands and managed to hold the blast back; however, he would not be able to move. “I either ascend or I won’t! There is not a between! No matter what, I will live up to my potential! I won’t let this planet down by being too weak again. Twilight, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie, Applejack, Celestia, Luna, Blueblood, Daring, Braeburn, and Fleur. No matter what, I won’t let any of them down!” Goten yelled out to the heavens. “RAAAAAAAGH!” The Half-Saiyan could feel his power welling up from deep within once more, and this time he was strong enough to grasp onto it. Goten forced it out of his body gaining more muscle, spikier hair, the flame like aura, and electricity sparking around his body. Bardock smirked as he stopped pumping power into his attack allowing Goten to effortlessly dispatch it. The boy sent the energy hurtling off into the wall which easily withstood the attack. This capsuled build was made for training like this. Goten glared at Bardock as his aggressiveness started to take over; however, it wasn’t as bad due to his training with the Wrathful Form. Goten slowly approached his mentor who saw what he was trying to do from a mile away. “Alright, that’s enough Goten.” Bardock crossed is arms. “You can either attack me now or calm down. Show me you were ready for this next step.” Goten stopped in his tracks. “Remember, a warrior who can’t control their emotions is a warrior who makes mistakes.” Goten forcibly powered himself down resulting in the boy collapsing to his stomach panting yet conscious. “Heh, well you’ve come a long way kid.” Bardock smirked. “Not only are you the youngest Super Saiyan around, but you’re also the youngest to reach Super Saiyan 2. Now, we just need to work on entering it willingly, controlling it, and mastering it like Grade 4.” “Thanks Master Bardock.” Goten started to close his eyes. “First, I need a nap.” The Half-Saiyan was then out like a light. 18 Months In… Goten had been ordered to remain in Super Saiyan, just like before, but this time there was the added pressure of consciously trying to enter and exit Super Saiyan 2. That level of power turned out to be a whole different beast from anything before it. Still, Goten was committed to controlling and mastering this power. Bardock and Goten were currently sparing in Super Saiyan 2 which was also different. The fact that the young Half-Saiyan could reach this level meant their spars could be that much more. Goten rapidly punched at his mentor who dodged or blocked him every time. Eventually, Goten was ordered to pick up the pace resulting in him adding kicks and elbows to his combos in rapid succession. For the umpteenth time that day, The Half-Saiyan’s growing hair got in his eyes. “Alright, that’s enough for today.” Bardock sighed. “Considering Saiyan hair usually doesn’t grow, I was hoping to avoid this, but it’s impossible. You need a haircut, so power down. We’ll see just what I can do besides ending up shaving that mess on your head off completely.” When Bardock was done, Goten’s hair was certainly shorter. It also had a lot more spikes to it. Honestly, he hadn’t completely noticed just how long his hair had gotten, but he certainly did now that he felt lighter. He liked it and didn’t mind not looking like his father or Bardock. “This is actually really cool!” Goten exclaimed in amazement. “I think I want to keep my hair this way from now on.” “Well, it actually does suit you better than I thought it would.” Bardock crossed his arms and nodded. “Now, you’re starting to look like your own warrior.” “Yeah!” Goten exclaimed. “Now, take the rest of the day to rest.” Bardock ordered. “We’ll get back to training tomorrow.” 1 Day before 2 Full Years… Tomorrow, the time displacement would end, and Goten would have spent two full years, two days out there, training with Bardock. In that time, he’s mastered Wrathful, every grade of Super Saiyan, and just recently mastered Super Saiyan 2. With this final day, it was time for one, final spar with his mentor under these conditions. The gravity portion of the chamber was set to 500 as an indicator of just how far the young Half Saiyan has come in all this time. Goten and Bardock were in the thick of their battle. Goten charged in with a kick aimed at Bardock’s gut, but the warrior dodged to the right before the pair sped around the room clashing at several points. Goten bore the damage and not because Bardock was transparent. Despite how far he’s come, Bardock still outclassed him. That said, this was still a far more intense spar than anything they’ve had prior as Bardock had to exert far more power to stay on top… even if he didn’t transform further to do it. The two just continued to clash with fists, elbows, and legs as the Half-Saiyan was continuously worn down. Eventually, Bardock hammered in one final punch straight into Goten’s gut sending the boy tumbling along the ground before he slammed into the wall. When his hair reverted to black, Bardock powered down himself under the impression this was over. “You really have come a long way kid.” Bardock smiled proudly. “Let’s call it a day and get ready to return you to Ponyville tomorrow.” He turned to leave until Goten spoke up. “No.” The warrior turned in amazement as his student was not only standing, but his power was increasing greater than it had been. “There’s still one day left.” Goten’s black hair grew and retracted. “I want to use it!” “So, this is the potential of a Half-Saiyan.” Bardock smirked. “Even if he weren’t exhausted, he’d still be unable to enter Super Saiyan 3 at this time. Still, to see that his body wants it is amazing.” Finally, Goten’s aura settled on that of a Super Saiyan 2 as he stared firmly at Bardock unaware of what was attempting to happen with him. “Alright, let’s push this further then.” Bardock smirked as he went Super Saiyan this time, and the two of them began going at it once more.” Canterlot: Hallways, Next Day… Celestia was just walking back to her officer to deal with the paperwork associated with being a princess when she stopped. “Goten?” She was certain this was him. “Those two years have done our Champion well.” Luna’s Room Luna had been resting when she felt Goten’s power causing her to snap awake. “That’s Goten!” She was glad for her friend; however, some small part of the princess was jealous of how much his power increased. It only made her long for her original strength more than she already was. No matter how jealous she became, Luna knew who she was now. She would not falter. Hill Outside of Ponyville Goten reappeared on the hill only to find Twilight and the others waiting for him. “Aw, he doesn’t look all that different!” Pinkie complained. “Pinkie!” The others shouted. Goten laughed. “No, it’s fine.” After two years away from them, even though it’s only been two days for his friends, the Half-Saiyan had missed them. “I should have explained that you wouldn’t really see a difference. I mean, my dad didn’t really grow until his teens.” “I see.” Twilight nodded as she produced a note book to make note of it. “Fascinating.” “Anyways, was all that training worth it?” AJ asked. “You bet it was.” Goten smiled. “I feel more ready than ever to face whatever threats may come our way.” He looked to the other students of Bardock. “As soon as he deems you three ready, you’d be more than welcome to use it yourselves.” “At this time, you three certainly aren’t.” Bardock appeared. “To get the most out of this training, I want you to have access to your magic at a more potent level, and that only comes once you finish your current training.” “No big deal.” Gilda stated. “You said it yourself that we’ve been making great progress, so it shouldn’t be that long before we catch up to his training.” “Personally, I’m just glad you got a new hair cut darling.” Rarity praised. “It really suits you.” “I think it’s more important that you’re alright Goten.” Fluttershy stated gratefully. The pegasus had worried Goten would be a completely different person the next time she saw him. To find out that he was still himself put her mind at ease. “Yeah, I’m perfectly fine.” Goten shoved his fist into the air with a smile. “Now, let’s get home because I’ve heard a lot about this Nightmare Night, so I got to prepare a costume. There’s no way I’m missing out on free candy!” The others laughed amused at Goten’s kiddy side before they walked back to the village.