//------------------------------//
// Chapter 10: The Kamehameha Wave 
// Story: Dragon Wish 
// by DanishDash 
//------------------------------//

Another morning sun signaled the beginning of the day!

For most ponies, dawn was just about too early to get started. For our young Saiyan, dawn signaled more training!

Except, that is not where our story begins. While one got up to train, and others up for work, Apple Bloom slept in. She had her chores around Sweet Apple Acres, but none that required her to get up at the same time as her brother Big Mac, or her sister, Applejack. 

This however, wasn't a normal day. Today was Saturday, which meant she could sleep in, and enjoy a well earned break from school. Apple Bloom wasn't sure about the time, but she felt herself slowly awaken. There was nothing better than that last bastion of sleep before you awoke, feeling your smooth sheets, the perfect mix between warm, and cold.

With a satisfied smile on her face, Apple Bloom slowly opened her eyes. It was still morning, but had it been a normal school day, class would have already started. Satisfied with her sleep, Apple Bloom hopped out of bed, and stretched her body, ready to begin the day.

She began her morning routine like she always did, making her bed, getting her pink bow, and making her way to the bathroom. She hummed a small tune as she cleaned up, and brushed her teeth, looking forward to good breakfast, and a day with her friends.

At the breakfast table, Granny Smith was preparing her breakfast, while at the same time cleaning up from the first breakfast she had to serve. Gee, after Daiko had joined them for breakfast, Granny had gotten a bit more work on her hooves. Funny enough, Granny didn't seem to mind, in fact, she seemed to enjoy cooking for him.

"Mornin', Apple Bloom!" The older mare greeted her.

"Morning', Granny!" Replied Apple Bloom in a chipper tone. 

When she sat down, Granny put a big plate of pancakes in front of her. "Your Saiyan friend dropped by this morning, he's a mighty hard worker that one." Grinned Granny. "He has the Apple family appetite. Even more than Applejack!" She laughed, and got back to working on those dishes. 

For the past month, Daiko had pretty much eaten breakfast with them each morning. He always looked tired, but he sure could eat a lot. At times it was like watching a magic trick as things vanished within an instant. Funnily enough, despite him being around a lot, Apple Bloom hadn't really talked to him since they finished rebuilding their treehouse.  

Their time had been okay, even fun when he came around to help. The whole rebuilding had gone by in a flash, thanks to the help of Daiko, her friends, and older siblings. So, they really didn't have a lot of time to talk, like, real talk like she would with her friends. She wasn't really angry with him anymore, and he always greeted her with a friendly smile. She saw him around a lot, running, working, flying, and punching into the air.

The monkey boy sure was strange..

Perhaps it was time for her to find out more about him? She didn't have a reason not to, but then again, he had done what he said, and there wasn't really a reason to seek his company. Ergh! Why was she even thinking about him right now?! It was the weekend, and she had the whole day ahead of her, no reason to think about some monkey alien thing!





"Whew.." 

Daiko wiped some sweat off his forehead, smiling as he did so. A month worth of training, and he could already feel it paying off. Around this time he would be at Golden Oaks library, and study with Twilight. However, during the weekends he had no jobs, other than milk delivery, or study sessions with Twilight. So this time was pretty much spent on working on his Ki control.

So far he had been able to do some simple Ki blasts, and destroy some rocks, and even a tree. He was careful not to overdo it, and made sure to take care not to lose control. However, for now he had two main goals. Learning how to sense Ki, that way he did not need to rely on his scouter, and of course Goku's signature attack, the Kamehameha wave!

To that end, he made sure to spend much of his free time to develop those abilities. So far there had been little success in achieving either of his goals, but he didn't give up. The more he practiced and explored his powers, the more he felt he was closer to figuring it out.

Standing in the river close to Sweet Apple Acres, Daiko had left his Gi folded up near one of the trees, standing only in his underpants. He'd not gone out far, but far enough that the water reached his hips. His tail was loose, floating behind him in the gentle current.

He had found that water relaxed him, and after a hard day of work, it felt good to swim and wash off the dirt and grime. He liked feeling the water move past his body, despite how weak the current was here. He faced against the current, taking in deep breaths, closing his eyes, and attempted to sense things around him.

It wasn't easy, as even in the manga, Goku had to go through a lot before he finally sensed energy for the first time. The best Daiko could do was to make an attempt, and hope he would understand this skill with time. Taking another deep breath, he moved his arms in front of him, his wrists almost touching, and his fingers stretched out as if holding a ball. Manipulating his Ki, he drew both his hands back to his right side, focusing more intensely. 

"Ka.. Me.." He could feel it, the way his Ki was guided through his body, out in his arms and hands, gathering into one singular place outside his body. "Hame..." His body shook a little, sweat dripping from his forehead as he brought his hands in front of him again. "Ha!" 

A bluish glow appeared, but it hardly took shape into something physical, but he could feel it. Sadly however, it didn't behave as he wanted, and the Ki blast barely existed for two seconds, vanishing before it had a chance to be. Daiko let out an annoyed groan, and lowered his hands once again.

"What are you doing?" A voice suddenly asked.

Daiko looked up, and turned his head towards the voice. It was Apple Bloom, standing near the river, with a puzzled expression. "Oh, morning, Apple Bloom."

It wasn't really morning anymore, Apple Bloom had been eating a late breakfast just an hour ago. "Hi." She replied, somewhat awkwardly. 

She wasn't really sure why she had come down here. A part of her wanted to know what he was doing in the river, after all, she had seen him do this several times before. Another part of her, well, the other part she wasn't really sure about. While they were friends, kinda, she had barely seen him after they finished her new tree house. Part of her was disappointed about that, but she didn't like to admit it, not even to herself.

"So what are you doing in the river?"

"Oh, training." He simply answered.

Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. She'd already figured out that part, it was all he was doing, all the time! She couldn't quite put her hoof on it, but for some reason, that annoyed her. It shouldn't really. Both of them had their separate lives, and she did start off by hating him, so why was she annoyed that he trained and spent so much time doing it??

Pushing her confusion aside, she sighed, and sat down. "How is standing in a river and moving your front legs around training?"

"Arms." Daiko corrected with a small smile, earning him a tiny smile back, and another eye roll from the filly. Daiko chuckled, moving towards her, and got out of the water. "I'm trying to learn this special and powerful Ki attack, but it is very hard to pull off."

"Ki?" Apple Bloom echoed. "That's what you call your magic, right?"

Daiko felt his right eye twitch. "No.. Ki isn't magic. It's energy you use on a daily basis, spiritual energy."

"Sounds like magic." Apple Bloom stated.

"It isn't magic! Ki cannot perform the kind of spells unicorns use." Daiko tried, but got a shrug from Apple Bloom.

"Then it is bad magic."

Daiko groaned, as he sat down, his tail wrapping around his hips as he did so. He could understand why Apple Bloom thought of Ki as magic, because Ki could be considered magical in nature. "I don't know a lot about how your magic works." Daiko admitted. "But, as far as I understand it, you cannot use spells, right?"

Apple Bloom gave a nod. "Right."

"Neither can I. I think the best way to explain it, is that everybody has Ki, and with training, one can learn how to manipulate it, Ki is also based on different things. Magic is more the energy outside your body, while Ki is tied to the physical and spiritual strength of a person." Daiko wished he could explain it better, but his head hurt just thinking about it.

"Hmm.." Mumbled Apple Bloom. "I think I get it. So, I could use Ki?"

"Well.." Daiko wasn't sure if he could answer that. In theory every living being could with enough training learn how to manipulate their Ki. Although he had no idea if Dragon Ball logic only applied to him, which meant only he could use Ki, or if it applied to everybody in this world. "Maybe, I mean, in theory yes, but I have no idea how it really works in the grand scheme of things."

Daiko didn't want to promise something he didn't know for sure, and so decided to play it safe for now, and not take a firm stance on any answer. Apple Bloom had a hint of disappointment, but didn't look displeased. Instead she watched him for a bit, finding his strange pale skin weird. He was unlike anything she had ever seen, he didn't have scales like Spike, no fur like them, or feathers like the griffons. 

"So.." Apple Bloom said, almost absently as she moved one of her forehooves around in the dirt, making lines without real meaning to them. "What were you trying to do?"

"Trying to do a special Ki attack, a very powerful attack." Daiko said, feeling the wind hit his skin that made him shudder a little, so he stood up and started to put his orange Gi back on. "You have to manipulate your Ki in just the right way, or it doesn't work."

"But you can already do those blast attacks, right?" Apple Bloom asked.

Daiko nodded. "Yeah, but even they are not very powerful, and I think I'm wasting a lot of Ki."

"Why do you think that?" 

Daiko shrugged. "I'm not sure, it just feels like I'm using more energy than needed."

Apple Bloom sat there for a moment, thinking about a solution. Then she smiled. "You know, maybe you should go see Twilight. She knows everything there is to know about magic, and she is really smart too. If anyone can help you figure this out, it's her!"

She did have a point, and Daiko had considered it before. Twilight was smart, very smart, so why not approach her about this? At worst she had no idea, but at best, she could help him improve his Ki control! There was nothing to lose! Daiko smiled and stood up. "You're right, Apple Bloom! I'll go see her right away!"

There was a brief flicker of something in Apple Bloom, Daiko didn't even notice it. She just nodded at him. "Good idea, you go, I'll have to meet my friends anyway."

Daiko chuckled, putting on the rest of his Gi, and tightened his blue belt. "Another crusader adventure?"

"Right." 

"Well, have fun." Daiko smiled. "See you later, Apple Bloom!" And with that, Daiko leaped into the air, and flew off towards Ponyville.

Left was Apple Bloom, looking up at the sky, watching as Daiko vanished from sight. Once he did, she let out a sigh. "Boys.." She mumbled, feeling a ping of annoyance, even though he had done nothing wrong. Apple Bloom could not quite put her hoof on it, but Daiko just leaving like that didn't sit well with her. A part of him wanted him to come along, and hang out with her and her friends.

Well, there was nothing she could do about it, and it was no use feeling annoyed over something Daiko didn't do wrong. Instead, she decided to put it out of her mind, and go meet up with her friends.





There were days, Spike thought, when things could get real boring around the library. Twilight always had a habit of overdoing certain things, and he was used to it. However, at times Spike would very much like to do anything other than spend his days surrounded by books. 

Today Twilight had him organize the library, AGAIN. One would think it was hard work, but really, most of the books were already placed exactly where they belonged, so mostly it was just a matter of checking everything was as Twilight wanted it. Granted, at times Twilight came up with a new system, or got new books she needed to fit into her old system, and so had to change everything. Today was not it, thankfully, but the task was still slow, and Spike wished he could do anything else than checking every book in the library.

A series of knocks caught Spike's attention. Seeing a chance to take a long needed break from the task at hand, Spike leapt to his feet, and hurried to the door. When it was opened, Spike came face to face with Daiko, and he smiled, happy to see his friend. "Hey, Daiko!"

"Hi, Spike!" Smiled at the Saiyan boy. "Is Twilight here?"

Spike nodded. "Yes, she is organizing the books down in the basement. Come in!" 

"Thanks," Daiko replied, moving past the door. "This place has a basement?"

Spike nodded. "Oh yeah, but Twilight uses it as an archive. So, what do you need Twilight for?"

Daiko began his explanation, telling Spike about his Ki, and how he thought he was wasting a lot of it when using it. Spike did not really understand Ki, or magic, but he had a basic understanding thanks to living with Twilight for his whole life. After listening to Daiko's problem, Spike smiled and patted him on the side. "Don't you worry, if anypony can help you, it's Twilight. I'll go get her for you."

"Thanks Spike." 

Spike vanished down a staircase, and only a few seconds later, he returned with a chipper looking Twilight. "Daiko! What a pleasant surprise, what can I do for you?"

It took some time to really explain everything, but Twilight didn't mind, she was taking notes upon notes of what Daiko described. She was utterly fascinated by his explanations, as she often was, and asked a lot of follow-up questions. At times she would ask him to repeat himself, or stop for a moment while she took a side note, or drew herself something to help her vision it. Once the explanation was over, Twilight put down quill and paper, and let out a thoughtful sigh. 

"Well, it is an interesting case.. Magic and Ki.. They are so similar, and yet they are so different." Twilight stated, thanking Spike as he came over with a tray with some tea and cookies. 

"Well, how does magic work?" Daiko then asked, and Twilight smiled, seeming all too willing to launch into a long and complicated explanation. 

However, a look from Spike, and she decided to shorten her presentation. "Well, Daiko. Magic draws power from the mana around us. We unicorns are born with the unique ability to tab into the mana around us, and thus perform spells. Every pony of course has.." She paused, taking a moment to come up with the right word. "Let's say basic baseline, or potential, to tab into the mana around us. It's how we pick up things with our hooves for example." She smiled. "However, unicorns have a stronger potential to tab into the mana, thus why we can control it in ways Earth ponies and Pegasi cannot." She gestured to her horn.

Daiko nodded, thinking of her horn as a sort of radio tower, being able to pick up radio waves far better than a simple radio at home. "But, some unicorns are better at magic than others, right?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes, indeed! You see, while we are all born with the same potential, it takes a lot of practice to perform certain spells. You can see it as a sort of muscle, the more you use it, the easier it will become to tab into the mana, and thus perform more powerful spells. It does take a lot of brain power of course, it is not as simple as some might believe. It takes a lot of focus."

Daiko had to admit, this was very interesting. He could see how Ki and magic could be confused so easily. Seeming to have been reading his thoughts, Twilight continued with a smile. "Ki has similarities it seems. Although, I'm not an expert on it like I am with magic, or princess Celestia." She chuckled. "Your Ki seems to be a spiritual potential within yourself, that you draw directly from within, like a well."

Daiko nodded, thinking the exact same thing. "That's exactly what it is. But, magic seems so similar." 

Twilight nodded. "It's very fascinating, isn't it?" She said, almost jumping in her seat of pure excitement. "However, while close, they do have key differences. I would say, you can almost call them siblings, as they are close, but still branch out differently."

"Twilight," Spike then said. "Daiko says he feels his energy is wasted."

"Oh?" Twilight turned to Daiko. "Oh yes, that's right! Sorry, Daiko."

Daiko nodded, remembering why he had come in the first place. He'd just been so captivated by the discussion he had forgotten to return to the subject at hand. Thankfully Spike was there to remind them both to remember the overall point of this discussion. Daiko had a feeling Spike was used to doing that.

"No worries." Daiko assured her. "But yes.. I feel like I'm wasting a lot of energy when performing a certain Ki attack."

Twilight thought about it for a few seconds. "Well.. Maybe.." Using her magic, Twilight made a blackboard slide over from a corner, and the crayons moved around, drawing a unicorn. "I can't say if this is what happens to you, but." The crayons drew lines from the unicorn's horn, spreading out wide. Between the two lines, she wrote, magic. Below the first unicorn, she drew a second, and this time drew a line that was closer together, almost parallel. 

"Sometimes when unicorns use magic, they have a wide range like this, needlessly spending a lot of mental energy to maybe do one thing." Twilight explained, then pointed to the second unicorn, who looked suspiciously similar to Twilight herself. "While the best way is to focus your magic, almost like a tight beam, thus making your magic much stronger, as it is focused better, and you don't waste energy."

She turned and looked at Daiko, who looked focused, yet slightly confused. "Think of it as being a garden hose, with the water being your Ki. When you use it normally the water comes out in a thick and unfocused way, right?" Daiko nodded, thinking he knew where she was going with this. "But if you close the tip a little, the water starts to come out harder, and faster."

"So," Daiko started, thinking about what she had told him. "You are saying I should close off my Ki more?"

"Well, I can't tell you that. Your Ki works differently than magic, but what I am saying is that it sounds like you are putting a lot of needless energy into your Ki attacks." Twilight kinda had mixed feelings about talking about energy attacks that were intended to harm living beings, not exactly what a kid should be learning. However, Daiko seemed responsible, and he was no normal foal, or a foal at all. "So maybe try to focus your Ki more, and then you might not waste so much when you do it."

Daniel nodded. "Yeah, that sounds right to me.."

"If you like we can discuss it some more. Although, maybe that should wait until tomorrow?" Twilight glanced up at the clock on the wall, and Daiko did so too. It was late afternoon, Daiko hadn't even noticed how long he'd been here.

"Oh, yeah right. Thanks again, Twilight." Daiko said and stood up. "See you later, Spike."

Spike smiled, held up a fist, and Daiko gave it a bump with his own. "Later, Daiko!" 

They said their goodbyes, and Daiko was once again off. He flew high up, and made his way towards Fluttershy's cottage. As he flew, he thought about ways he could try and improve his Ki focus. Maybe that was why he couldn't control the Kamehameha wave, his lack of Ki focus. He'd have to try tomorrow, and perhaps get some input from Twilight again.

Before Daiko could think more about it, a red light suddenly shot past him, and he stopped. Looking up, he saw the red light vanish into nothing, as if it was nothing by air. Frowning, Daiko looked down to see if anyone had taken a shot at him. To his surprise though, not only did he spot the pony who had shot at him, but the pony was waving at him, frantically by the looks of it. There were two of them, and Daiko thought he recognized them. When he descended, he was sure of it.

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were waving at him, jumping around and did everything they could to get his attention. It was odd not to see Apple Bloom among them, and at first, he thought they were doing this as a joke. However the closer he got, the more he got the sense that this wasn't some prank, or a request to hang out.

"Daiko! Daiko hurry!" Sweetie Belle yelled.

Seeing the distress in their eyes, Daiko stopped himself from floating, and let himself drop the last few meters to the ground. "Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, what is going on?" 

"It's Apple Bloom!" Scootaloo replied, looking close to panicking. "We were looking for gems, then Diamond dogs came out of nowhere and chased us!" Scootaloo began, talking very fast, almost yelling. 

Daiko's eyes widened. "What?! Where is Apple Bloom!"

"They took her!" Sweetie Belle wailed, looking like she was on the verge of breaking down.

"We wanted to go back and get her!" Added Scootaloo in a hurry. "But there are too many of them, and we were being chased too!"

"Right, okay.." Daiko thought for a bit, but quickly made up his mind. "Go to Twilight, she'll know what to do." He said, starting to rise in the air once more.

"What are you gonna do?!" Asked Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle in unison. 

"I'm going ahead, see if I can do something now. Just point me in the right direction." The two fillies pointed in the direction of the small mountains, and cliff range. Daiko frowned, knowing it would take time to search it all for these thugs, and Apple Bloom. "Alright, I'm heading off, you two, get a hold of Twilight." And without another word, Daiko blasted off! 

Towards Fluttershy's cottage.





Today had been so nice, the sun was shining, all the animals seemed to be in a good mood, and Fluttershy felt so relaxed. As of now, she was sitting in front of her cottage, enjoying the summer air, listening to the birds and the gentle breeze moving through the trees. Letting out a content sigh, she took another sip of her tea, savoring the flavor, and returned to her book.

Swoooosh-Thump~!

Suddenly, Daiko landed right next to her, and she jerked in her chair, letting out a yelp. "D-Daiko?"

"No time to explain!" He called as he ran inside the cottage, making Fluttershy frown. She was just about to get up and follow him, but Daiko had already returned, putting his scouter on. "Apple Bloom is in trouble, got to save her from Diamond Dogs, see ya later!" He said this very fast, and before Fluttershy could even register it all, Daiko had taken off once more.

After a few seconds, the words finally seemed to hit home. Slowly Fluttershy's eyes widened as she understood what Daiko had just said. "Oh dear!" She had to get help from the others! 





As Daiko flew through the sky, high above the trees, and heading towards the mountains, he clicked his scouter. "Come on, come on.." Mumbled Daiko as the scouter started scanning the area. Numbers passed, and it seemed to take its sweet time! Then again, he couldn't be sure of the power level of these Diamond Dogs, but he assumed they were fairly strong. Hence why he had said the power level range was a little higher than the average pony.

The scouter picked up something alright, certain animal types in the forest, but it wasn't what Daiko was looking for. Thankfully, the scouter could eliminate certain power levels if Daiko wished it, thus making the scanning more precise, at least until he came across the same animal again.

Though the closer he got, the more the scouter lost power levels to scan, which should make a group of thugs stand out more. Then he stopped, thinking that Apple Bloom's power level might be lost in the scan. If he could find hers, along with a bunch of strong ones, then maybe... He clicked his scouter, setting the new parameters. 

"Come on then.." He mumbled, slightly frustrated, and the scouter started once again. Slowly he moved his head, looking across the many rocky hills, and small mountains, and cliffs. Suddenly, the scouter started beeping as it got something. Daiko looked in the direction it had pointed out, allowing the scouter to narrow it down further, and come with a location, and the power levels.

"Yes!" 

Without further thought, Daiko blasted off in the direction his scouter had pointed out. As he moved through the air, he could feel his heart beating in his chest. Despite his worry for Apple Bloom, if not down right anger that she was in danger, Daiko felt a certain rush of excitement. The prospect of a fight pumped adrenaline through his body, and he had to actively stop himself from smiling.





"Put her in the cage!" A large beastly Diamond Dog told the others in his pack.

Another one, a bit smaller than the first, held the struggling Apple Bloom, and led her to an oversized bird cage. "Sure thing, boss!" The dog replied, and almost tossed the young filly inside and closed the bared hatch behind her.

Quickly scrambling to her hooves, Apple Bloom tried to push the hatch open again, but to no avail. "Let me out!" She demanded, trying to sound less scared than she actually was. Her mane was a mess, and she had lost her bow during the chase. Scared and alone, Apple Bloom was more vulnerable than she ever had in her life. Her only comfort was that her friends had managed to escape, and hopefully soon would return with her sister, and her friends.

"Take her to the mine!" Ordered the large brutish looking one. "I'm sure we can find a use for her."

The cage was lifted up, but before they had made a single step towards the opening in the cave, somepony yelled out. "Hold it right there!" Everybody froze in place, and looked around in confusion. Then, from the sky, Daiko dropped to the ground with a serious expression, looking at them all. "Let her go, right now."

"Daiko!" Apple Bloom called in disbelief, and relief.

The Saiyan boy looked small compared to the tall muscular canines. "Who are you?" Asked the leader, clearly taken aback. He had never seen someone like Daiko before, his look, and the fact he had dropped from the sky had clearly surprised him.

"I'm Daiko, Apple Bloom's friend. You will let her go, now!" Daiko demanded, closing his hands into fists.

"Or what?!" Snarled the leader.

Daiko narrowed his eyes. "Or I'll beat you up."

Silence...

After a few seconds, the Diamond Dogs all burst into laughter. "Are you mad?!" They asked, and laughed at the young Saiyan, not taking his threat seriously. "You don't stand a chance, monkey boy!"

Daiko smirked, moving one foot back, as if getting ready to leap at them. "Does that mean you won't surrender?" At that the Diamond Dogs laughed even harder, some even hard to put their paws on a companion for support. "Okay, but don't say I didn't give you a chance." Daiko couldn't deny he was looking forward to this fight, more than he would have had he still been a normal human boy.

As the canines laughed, they hardly noticed Daiko had suddenly leapt into the air. Those who did let out startled gasps, and tried to warn the others. The laughter hardly had time to die down, before Daiko suddenly came down from the air, and before landing, kicked a Diamond dog across the muzzle, sending him to the ground in one strike.

Now no one was laughing, but instead gawking in shock, then anger. Several of them showed their teeth, growling at Daiko. "Get him!" Ordered the large one, and in one go, they all tried to grab a hold of the young boy.

When the first large paw came to grab him, Daiko took a quick step to the side, and struck his elbow down and into the wrist on the canine. It let out a curse, and stumbled back, giving Daiko an opening to escape from the group. He ran towards the two holding Apple Bloom's cage, thinking this would be easy.

Just as he was about to leap into the air, someone grabbed his ankle! Daiko yelped, falling forward and hitting the ground with a thump. Before he could even try to get up, he was pulled back along the ground, then swung into the air and flew several meters before landing on the ground again, sliding across dirt and rocks. While he could feel it sting, he was lucky his skin was much tougher than any normal person's. 

"Get the pony inside!" Ordered the large Diamond Dog, never removing his eyes from Daiko. 

Apple Bloom was carried into the mine, and she hit the bars with her hooves. "Daiko!" She called desperately. 

"Ouf.." Daiko stood, shaking off the dirt and dust he had gathered on his way. He glared at the remaining Diamond Dogs that were now arming themselves with spears. Mentally Daiko cursed himself for being so arrogant, thinking he could really just kick and punch, then simply fly off with Apple Bloom.

He knew he had to be smarter, as he was outnumbered, and hadn't even bothered to check what he had been up against. Although he knew all this, even though it clearly, he felt himself relishing the challenge, even the danger. "Let's see what you guys can do." Daiko tapped the side of his scouter. At once numbers appeared, and the sound of it running the numbers could be heard.


Pack Leader: 101.

Dog 2: 82.

Dog 3: 94.

Dog 4: 81.

Dog 5: 97.


Daiko bit his lip, as the dogs facing him all seemed to have a higher power level. Well, at least three of them had, as Daiko wasn't sure about himself. Daiko knew he only had five out there, then there were the two who had taken Apple Bloom away, and who knows how many others inside. 

He had to hurry, and he knew he couldn't waste time. Switching off his scouter, Daiko took a stance, readying himself for the coming battle. He didn't have to wait long. As if on cue, the five large Diamond Dogs tried to rush Daiko, all of them carrying either a spear or some sort of club. 

Daiko leaped forward, dodging spears, and blocking the clubs. He felt the impacts, and they hurt less than he feared, but he could still feel them. Quickly he disarmed the spear dogs, even going so far to snap the spears in half, before knocking them out. Daiko felt his heart race, and he could not deny the rush of excitement he felt as he defended and attacked.

Knocking out one more, Daiko jumped back, and fired a Ki blast at the last two. It would not be enough to kill them, but enough to hopefully knock them out for a bit. Landing near the entrance to the mine, Daiko barely managed to turn around before he heard the growls of the pack leader getting up.

Daiko felt an urge to engage him again, but reminded himself that Apple Bloom needed him. Biting his lip, Daiko turned, and hurried inside the mine. "After him, you idiots!" The pack leader yelled, managing to get some of his goons up and follow Daiko inside.

Running down one of the tunnels, Daiko touched his scouter, and quickly found his way to Apple Bloom. He was sweaty, and his heart was racing, but even so, he continued on, despite his body starting to tire. Maybe it had been a bit too ambitious to take on five Diamond dogs by himself, but now that he had gotten so far, he intended to finish it.

Turning down another tunnel, Daiko finally arrived into a large chamber. "Apple Bloom!" He called out, seeing her still being carried by the two canines.

As soon as Apple Bloom heard him, she turned and banged against the bard. "Daiko!"

The two dogs looked at one another, then as one, sat the cage down, and glared at him. Daiko simply glared back, and got into a fighting position. Growling, the two Diamond Dogs leaped at him, trying to get a hold of him, or knock him out. Daiko however was faster, and while they knew the mine better, Daiko had more room to maneuver. In one swift go, Daiko leaped up to the ceiling, turned, and kicked off the ceiling again. As he zoomed down, he grabbed the shoulder of one of the dogs, turned him in the air, then slammed him to the ground!

The other Diamond Dog was so shocked, that it left Daiko with an opportunity to jump up, and kick him across the muzzle, knocking him out as well. Daiko panted, wiping some sweat off his forehead before turning, and running to the cage. "Are you alright?" He asked, grabbing a hold of the hatch, and pulled the entire thing off.

Apple Bloom didn't answer, instead she jumped out, and wrapped her hooves around him. Daiko was taken aback, but after a few seconds, he hugged her back. They stood like this for a few seconds, then he remembered he had a whole gang of Diamond Dogs after him. He pulled away gently. "We should hurry, the rest of them can turn up any minute."

Apple Bloom nodded, and without another word, the two ran off into one of the side tunnels. Daiko used his scouter to search for them, but he had hardly done so, before the whole group seemed to come out from every side tunnel they passed. 

They all growled, and barked at them, looking more and more feral by the second! Finally they saw light ahead, and Daiko slowed down. "What are you doing?!" Asked Apple Bloom.

"Just go, I'll keep them back!" Replied Daiko, letting her pass him.

Daiko growled, kicking one back, before he charged up his Ki, making his hands glow. "Get back!" He yelled, and blasted one large Ki attack at them. It did the trick, as the Diamond Dogs all jumped back. But Daiko soon realized that the cave was also affected. The Diamond dogs looked scared of what was about to happen, and so ran back into the tunnels. All of this took place in a matter of seconds! 

Daiko turned back toward Apple Bloom, who was running with full speed towards the opening. However Daiko saw how the mine was starting to collapse, and he saw rocks falling ahead of Apple Bloom. Without even thinking, Daiko leapt into action, and with all possible speed, he flew to Apple Bloom, grabbed her, and managed to stop her before she reached the collapsing entrance. Apple Bloom screamed at the sound of boulders, dirt, and dust all coming down around them. 

Daiko kept Apple Bloom below him, shielding her to the best of his abilities. One small boulder came down, hit Daiko on the side of his face, and damaged his scouter, making it fall to the ground. "Argh!" He yelled out in pain, and soon felt some massive stone come down on top of him. Using all his strength, Daiko kept the massive rock above him and Apple Bloom, creating a sort of roof over them as the rest of the rocks and dirt sealed them away.

For the next 30 seconds the collapse kept going, and soon after it stopped slowly. Apple Bloom was curled up in a ball under the standing Daiko, who was busy holding up the boulder. Slowly, she opened her eyes, and realized it had stopped. However, what followed was panic, as she realized they were trapped in a small pocket between the outside, and the mine.

"We're trapped!" Apple Bloom whimpered. 

"Don't worry.. Erghhh..." Daiko said, pushing the boulder up a little to see if it could stay up by itself. "Your friends are getting help.." He breathed a sigh of relief as he found the boulder could stay up without his help for now.

Apple Bloom sat up, as the space was big enough for Daiko to stand upright. "But what if they don't find us?" 

"Twilight is with them, I'm sure she will track us down." Daiko assured her, panting a little, then heard some dirt move around. He gulped, getting himself prepared in case the ceiling came down on them, for not it did not seem that it would. "Though I do not like staying here, and take our chances." He admitted.

"So what do we do?"

"Uhm.." Daiko thought about it for a moment. "Well, we could try and dig ourselves out. We should not be that far from the exit."

"But I can't move those large rocks!" Apple Bloom said, looking over the mess they had to go through.

Daiko frowned. "Well, I could, but it would mean I can't support the roof if it comes down on us.." He sat down, and let out a sigh. "This wasn't exactly the rescue I had imagined."

Apple Bloom frowned. "It's my fault, I suggested to the girl we come here to get our gem hunting cutie marks."

"You didn't know there were Diamond Dogs here." 

"But we knew there could be." Apple Bloom insisted.  "I'm sorry for getting you into this."

Daiko smiled slightly. "And I'm sorry for making the roof collapse."

"How did you do that anyway?"

"Well I used my.." Daiko paused, looking at his hands. "Ki.. That's it! Ow!" He stood up so fast he hit his head on the boulder above them. "I can blast our way out!"

Apple Bloom frowned. "Isn't that dangerous."

Daiko nodded. "Yeah, but it is better than staying here. I'll make a hole, and be ready to catch the boulder, should it try and come down on us. You just jump out, and I'll follow you." 

The plan was very dangerous, but Apple Bloom couldn't come up with anything else. Even if her sister and her friends found the entrance, they would not know they were trapped in-between boulders. She gulped, then nodded. "Okay, let's try it.."

Daiko nodded too. "Right.. Stand back, and lay down. If the boulder falls, I'll catch it. Once the hole is there, you jump out right away, got it?" Apple Bloom just nodded. "Good.." Daiko took a deep breath, knowing full well the dangers, and how this plan was a longshot. His Ki attacks were not too powerful, and he doubted a simple blast could do it. No, he needed something stronger.

Taking a deep breath, he took position, and moved both his arms to the side. However, before he could begin, Apple Bloom spoke up. "Daiko?"

"Mm?"

"If anything happens.. Well, I just want to say thank you for coming for me.."

Daiko smiled. "No problem, and don't worry. I'll have you out in just a second. I promise this is not the end." He took another deep breath, slowing down his heart, focusing on his center, and his Ki. He had to focus, had to concentrate on his Ki. 

Another deep breath. "Ka.. Me.." His eyes closed, as he felt the Ki starting to build up between his hands. "Ha.. Me.." A blue light appeared between his hands, first like a small sun, and then grew until his hands stopped it from growing larger than basketball. Daiko could feel it, but he felt his control would slip if he hesitated for a second. Then suddenly, he opened his eyes, and moved his hands forward, guiding the energy ball forward. "HAA!!!!" He yelled, and in one glorious go, the energy shot from his hands, moving the glowing blue sun ahead, and through the dirt, boulders and rocks!!

The blast continued for maybe 24 seconds, and then it died down. Daiko fell to one knee, but still managed to yell at a still awestruck Apple Bloom, who had been watching it all. "GO!" He demanded. 

"But.."

"GO!" Daiko repeated, hearing the stone and dirt move. "NOW!!" He stood up, catching the boulder above them, holding it up. 

In shock, and panic, Apple Bloom leaped out of the hole created by Daiko. She was outside yet again, but the dust had yet to settle after the rocks had been blasted away. She didn't care, instead she turned around and looked inside. "Daiko, come on, hurry!"

"Just a.. Arghh! Minute!" He said through his clenched teeth. He felt like he was holding up the entire mountain, which he of course did not. "Move away, I'm gonna jump!" He called to Apple Bloom, did a mental countdown, and then suddenly ducked down, and leaped out of the hole, just in time to see their rocky pocket fill up behind him.

Daiko laid panting on the ground. "That was.." He said in-between breaths. "Very intense.." He sat up, only to be hugged again by Apple Bloom. This time he didn't hesitate, instead, he just hugged her back, knowing full well how close they had been to meet their end.

"Apple Bloom!" They heard a mare call out.

That was soon followed by another mare calling. "Daiko!"

From the trees emerged Applejack, and Fluttershy, soon followed by the rest of their friends. They spotted each other quickly. "Apple Bloom!" The orange mare ran towards her sister.

"Applejack!"

The two sisters ran to each other, and met in a tight and warm embrace. Both of them tearing up a bit, both relieved to see the other. Fluttershy, happy to see them reunited, was however rushing over to Daiko. "Oh dear! Daiko, are you okay?!" 

"I'm fi-Ofph!" Before he could reply, he too was embraced.

"Oh, you look a mess, are you hurt? Oh dear, oh dear! You're bleeding!" Fluttershy said, tears in her eyes as she fuzzed over him.

Daiko felt bad for having made her worry. Now that he thought about it, he may have gone a bit too fast when he arrived at her cottage to retrieve his now ruined scouter. "I'm fine, I promise.. I'm just very tired.." He said, smiling a little. "Sorry for having worried you."

Fluttershy hugged him again. "You're both safe, that's all that matters right now.."

Then Twilight approached them, Spike following behind her. "We saw some sort of energy blast, was that you Daiko?" she asked, and Daiko nodded.

"Yeah.. I remembered what you said, and it worked." He chuckled. "Thanks." He then coughed a little. "Though, I think it took a lot more out of me than I thought." He tried to stand, but his legs were shaking. 

"Don't stand!" Fluttershy said. 

Daiko sat down, letting out a small laugh. "I don't think I can.." His eyes then started to slowly close. "I think I'm gonna.. I'm gonna close my eyes.. Just a bit.." With that, his eyes were fully closed, and he seemed to become limb. 

"Daiko!" Fluttershy exclaimed, afraid he had passed out. 

"Don't worry, Fluttershy." Twilight said, looking at the boy. "He's just over exhausted."

"zzzzZZZzzzzzZZZZzzzzZZZZzzzzzzzz~."

Fluttershy let out a relieved breath. "Thank Celestia.."

Twilight giggled. "We better get them both back."

"Is Daiko gonna be okay?" Apple Bloom asked, having joined the conversation. She looked worried, even a little guilty. "He came to save me, please tell me he is going to be alright."

Fluttershy stood up. "He is going to be fine, Apple Bloom. I just think he needs to rest."

"That goes for you too, AB." Said Applejack. "Let's get you both home."

And so, Apple Bloom and Daiko were taken to Sweet Apple Acres to rest up. Daiko never noticed he was being carried, or how much his body was aching and hurting. He just slept through it all, but with a smile on his face. While the day had been long, challenging, and hard, he knew he had fought, and he had succeeded.

He still had much to learn, and there was a lot more training to be done. It all excited the young Saiyan, knowing there were stronger creatures out there. It meant there were more battles ahead of him, and he would face them all. He would fight anyone to protect his friends, no matter how strong they were.