章 447: Saiyan Emperor

"King Vegeta, I hereby challenge you for the right to rule the Saiyan race." The moment those words left Alex's mouth a heavy and oppressive atmosphere descended upon everyone present, though wether it came from Alex or King Vegeta, no one knew.

Nodding slowly and solemnly, King Vegeta stated,

"Vegeta, Bardock, Raditz, and Kakarot, form the square!" Though Goku had no idea what King Vegeta was talking about, the other three quickly moved into position around the duo before Vegeta Jr. stated irritably,

"Kakarot! You're supposed to stand over across from your father and brother!" Goku quickly moved into the spot that Vegeta was pointing to, which formed a large square around both Alex and King Vegeta as the latter explained in a low voice,

"The rules are no flying and no energy attacks, if you leave the square it is considered automatic forfeiture of both the duel and your life. This match is to test your skills, strength and overall ability, any questions?" Alex however smirked as he said,

"We gonna keep chatting or get to the actual fighting?" Though his remark earned him a glower from King Vegeta, Alex was sure that he also noticed a hint of a smile at the edge of his lips. But then it was gone in an instant as both men prepared for combat, and Bardock announced,

"Fighters ready? BEGIN!" Even as the match started though Alex didn't so much as move a single muscle, a fact that seemed to irritate King Vegeta as he said,

"I know you're looking down on me, since you're a Super Saiyan and I'm not.....even I can't help but to admit how weak I must be in comparison. But-" As the Saiyan King cut himself off Alex felt the aura within him begin to surge in strength.

It had already been several days since he resurrected the four Saiyans, so Alex wasn't surprised that they had already started training and learned how to suppress their energy like Goku and the others did. What did somewhat surprise him though was when King Vegeta's aura began to flicker with a golden light, before his hair similarly began to transition to gold.

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

As King Vegeta's power surged even further Alex felt the ground tremble under them, until his aura and hair turned completely gold as his energy levels peaked at higher levels than they'd ever been in his entire life. With the Saiyan King having successfully achieved Super Saiyan, Alex couldn't help but to smile widely at the development even as King Vegeta continued his earlier statement,

"But, remember that if you grow complacent there will ALWAYS be someone trying to knock you off your pedestal!" In response to the Saiyan King's ascension, Alex simply held out his open hand before making a 'come on' gesture while saying,

"Come and try it then!" The words were barely put his mouth before King Vegeta disappeared and reappeared right next to him, where his fist then connected with Alex's face.

Despite the explosion of power and energy that was generated by the punch, Alex didn't even look fazed as he looked at the King and asked tauntingly,

"Is that all you're capable of?" Naturally King Vegeta became even more incised at this, and vanished once more before reappearing on Alex's other side, and delivering a powerful kick to the side of his head.

*KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!*

The impact created a powerful shockwave that even made Raditz, was who standing behind Alex to the right, have to brace himself for fear of being blown away.

*BOOM!*

In rapid succession a series of blasts rocked the backyard of Capsule Corp, as King Vegeta delivered punches and kicks one after another onto Alex's body, while he himself just stood there and took it all despite the former's growing irritation.

The problem wasn't that King Vegeta was 'weak' per say, but that Alex was too strong as he consistently tanked even the most ferocious attacks. And Alex himself was aware of this as, even though he knew they used the space-time orbs available for public use, obtaining the Super Saiyan transformation a mere few days after being brought back to life and learning about it spoke volumes about King Vegeta's potential and drive. Even his son, Vegeta IV, took several years to achieve it after witnessing Goku use the transformation for the first time.

Regardless of how talented or driven he was though, with each second that passed by the difference between Alex and King Vegeta was becoming increasingly clear. Alex was even sure that he heard something in King Vegeta's hands and feet snap when he punched or kicked him a few times.

"I must admit, I'm impressed by your drive and commitment." Alex said as he moved for the first time, making King Vegeta become alert while he struggled to catch his breath due to the drain in energy he was experiencing from using the transformation for the very first time.

"However-" Alex continued as he suddenly appeared behind the Saiyan King. "Sadly drive is not always enough." Alex then chopped down with enough force that the Saiyan King was sent crashing into the ground, and rendered instantly unconscious.

"This duel is over." Alex said simply as he turned to walk away, but before he could something grabbed onto his ankle. Looking down, Alex saw King Vegeta using what little strength he still had to hold him, even as his transformation faded, as he growled,

"Not...over...until...one.....is....dead....!"

Saiyans had always followed the strongest members of their race, this had been their ironclad rule for all time. And whenever a challenger to the throne appeared, the duel between them was not over so long as they both drew breath. If Alex stepped outside the ring right then while King Vegeta was still breathing, it was the same as him forfeiting the duel.

Kneeling down to look the former king in the eye, Alex said to him with all seriousness,

"This match IS over. I didn't bring you back just to kill you immediately after so I can take your place. Killing you now is jut an idiotic waste of potential and assets, and nothing else. Do you understand?" As he spoke Alex channeled a bit of Regeneration magic to help the former king recover just enough that he could talk normally, to which he replied,

"So long as I continue to draw breath, I will NEVER cease to continue working to surpass you, to reclaim my throne!" When he heard that Alex didn't appear the least concerned or anxious, instead a large smile formed on his face as he offered the former king a hand and said,

"I'm a Saiyan, I relish the competition!" Vegeta Sr. was momentarily stunned when he heard that, before he too show a wide smile as he accepted Alex's outstretched hand and replied,

"Then it would be my honor to serve you, your imperial majesty." No sooner than when he was on his feet again did the former king sink to his knees, as he knelt before his new emperor.

Immediately following him were Bardock, Raditz and Gine, while the rest of the gathered Saiyans appeared to be unsure of what they were supposed to do. Though they earned themselves a glance from Bardock and Vegeta Sr., since Alex didn't say anything about it they left the matter alone for the moment.

Instead, Alex's attention was on the new notification he'd received the moment the former King Vegeta knelt to him.

[NOTICE! The title 'Saiyan Emperor' has been obtained!]

Alex involuntarily cracked a smile when he saw that, since it would hopefully make dealing with any other Saiyans he'd encounter in the future easier. Turning his attention back to the four Saiyans already kneeling before him, Alex simply commanded,

"Rise." As one, all four rose until they were standing once again, which was when Alex said to the former King,

"You know, if you wanted to pass your crown on to me then you could've just said so instead of giving that bad performance." When he heard that Vegeta Sr coughed lightly before looking away pointedly, contrasting his usual self.

Though the former King had always given off an atmosphere that oozed arrogance, pride, and ruthlessness, Alex knew there was more to the former king than his rather 'extreme' exterior.

One example was how, instead of simply killing off or otherwise discriminating against the weaker Saiyan children that were born with low 'power levels', he would instead send them off to planets with weaker inhabitants. There they'd not only be safer, but could also grow stronger while gaining experience in combat that could help them become even greater warriors, a theory that was greatly supported by the fact that someone as 'weak' as Goku eventually went on to defeat Frieza.

Then there was the scenes Alex had seen the last several days, when the four newly revived Saiyans weren't training in a space-time orb, and Vegeta Sr would interact with his children.

As could be expected, once Vegeta Sr learned of an entire generation of Saiyan children in Asora sired by Alex, he became VERY eager to meet them. What he and the other three Saiyans never expected to see though, was a group of children with the oldest being around six(Edith), with several already capable of going Super Saiyan even as young as three.

Though he hadn't been too thrilled to how much the children were like their non-Saiyan mothers, Vegeta Sr couldn't say anything when he briefly sparred against, and barely managed to hold out against the really young Saiyan/Phoenix, Regal. Of course, the only reason Vegeta Sr managed to hold out against the young boy was due to his own incredibly high potential, and the decades of combat experience he had accumulated throughout his life.

On their side though, the children had been equally excited to meet the four newly revived Saiyans, as the only other Saiyan they knew was their father(though Edith briefly interacted with Alice back on Earthland). Their disappointment when they leaned that none of them could also go Super was quite devastating to Vegeta Sr and the others though.

As Vegeta Sr tried to regain his previous composure, Alex's expression turned serious as he stated,

"Firstly I want everyone to prioritize becoming stronger. We all know the secrets of the Super Saiyan now, so there's no reason that all of you can't at least obtain that form." Though Gine looked down at the news, none of the Saiyans protested Alex's decision since whatever they did from then on was up to him.

However Alex then surprised them by directing his attention to future Trunks, and continued,

"As for you Trunks, you need to make a decision on what you're going to do from now on." Trunks appeared confused at that as he asked,

"What do you mean? Now that Cell's been defeated I planned to return to the future soon." Though he glanced at Vegeta Sr for a second, who was also his grandfather, Trunks' firm gaze remained unwavering since his intention to return home remained unchanged.

He had originally traveled back in time to try and prepare Goku and the others to face Android 17 and 18, since they were both destroying the Earth and slaughtering its people unchecked in his time after killing Vegeta and the others. Then, because Piccolo and his counterpart Kami died, who created the Dragon Balls, the magical wish granting orbs were unusable.

His actions however had the unintended effect of creating a completely separate timeline from his own, one where the Androids were even stronger and Cell emerged. That meant that the duo were still rampaging in his original time unchecked, where his mother Bulma and close companion Mai were still.

Alex however surprised him by saying seriously,

"I know, but time travel is a serious offense to certain beings, and you could end up causing the destruction of yourself and any others involved in it if you continue." Trunks' expression changed into shock along with everyone else's as he asked,

"Then does that mean I can't go home!?!" Alex shook his head though and continued,

"I'm saying your choices are to either return home and completely destroy the time machine along with all the data related to it, or to stay here for the rest of your life."

For a moment Trunks didn't say anything as he seriously considered what Alex said, before he then asked,

"You said you knew of things from the future to an extent, right?" Alex nodded before elaborated,

"Yes but I'm not a time traveler myself, just a knower of certain things." Trunks nodded slowly as he contemplated what he was going to say next, before asking,

"Will there be any major threats after I defeat the Androids?" Alex was silent for a moment as he considered his answer, before finally saying,

"In the future a being will come possessing Goku's body, prompting you to come back here for help even as they kill your mother. However the threat is so great that not even this Goku and Vegeta together with significantly more powerful SSJ transformations can win."

Trunks nodded slowly as he digested this information, before finally saying,

"I'll return then, and possibly see about coming back here one last time to stay with my mother and Mai." When he said this though Vegeta Sr cocked his head and asked,

"Mai?" Immediately he and everyone else from Asora imagined a certain cat-eared Saiyaness with white hair, Alex's second oldest daughter with Koneko. Trunks however quickly produced a picture he had on himself to show them, a picture of a beautiful woman with long straight black hair.

"I haven't seen her in a while since she was helping the other survivors while mom and I worked on the time machine, but she is my oldest and closest friend." As he trailed off, Trunks showed a warm smile as he admired the picture of Mai, with it already having been close to several years since he'd seen her due to them using the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to prepare for Cell, a chamber that could extend a single day into an entire year.

"Oho! You never said anything about a girlfriend~!" Krillin immediately said as he lightly nudged Trunks with his elbow, making his face go red as he quickly denied,

"She's not my girlfriend!" His denial fell on deaf ears though, as Krillin, Yamcha, and even Bulma began to tease him.

As the scene began to become noticeably more light hearted over there though, Alex glanced over at Goku's own son, Gohan. While he watched Gohan interact with the little girl that was Tien and Launch's daughter, Brunch, Alex contemplated how to handle the situation with him.

Goha's situation was unique to say the least, and not at all enviable to most people. Instead of ever deciding what he himself wanted out of life, Gohan was forced to become a warrior from the tender age of four, when Piccolo kidnapped him and tossed him out into the wilds to train and prepare him.

That was the trigger that led to Gohan's complicated life, as he was forced to alternate between spending the majority of his time studying, and preparing for one threat or another. Typically Goku or Piccolo would push for Gohan to train for battle, due to his innate strength and potential being absolutely necessary, while his mother, Chichi, would angrily insist on Gohan studying regardless of whatever threat there was towards the world.

If he could, Alex wanted to give Gohan a chance to decide what he wanted for his own future instead of being forced to go along with his parents plans(mostly Chichi's). So, he beckoned Grayfia over and whispered something into her ear, to which she replied,

"It will be done." The taciturn maid then became enshrouded in a cloud of mist, indicating that she had returned to Asora.

While he waited for Grayfia to return, Alex figured he'd take the time to follow through on something he'd promised to as he saw more and more vehicles circling the Capsule Corp property.

"Hey Bulma, is there a quieter place where I give the interview I promised?" As he reminded her about about it, Bulma directed an annoyed look in Alex's direction as she said,

"Yeah, any place but here..." Bulma's glower deepened as Alex just smiled wryly, before she eventually sighed and said,

"You're lucky you're hot... You can use the gazebo over there by the pond." Pointing as she said so, Bulma directed Alex to a structure built at the center of a decorative pond that had a single walkway leading towards it.

Looking back at her, Alex smiled disarmingly as he said,

"Thanks, I'll make up for all the trouble somehow." Alex then winked suggestively at her before making his way over to the gazebo, making Bulma blink in surprise as she watched his departure, until baby Trunks began to cry in her arms.

Arriving at the gazebo, Alex used a bit of magic to make the area more comfortable while also producing some snacks and tea. With the preparations finished, Alex then used his 'Domain' to scan the many reporters that were surrounding the large property, before finding the same one that had gone to cover the fight with Cell.

"You'll do." Alex muttered to himself, before instantly transferring the reporter and his cameraman directly to the gazebo within the property.

"Wha- OH!" He exclaimed from his surroundings suddenly changing, before noticing Alex sitting there calmly.

"How about an exclusive?" Alex asked as the reporter tried to calm himself. When he heard the word 'exclusive' though, the reported immediately became excited as he sat in the chair next to Alex and said,

"Of course! I would love an exclusive interview with the mysterious Dragon Emperor!" With Alex and the battle against Cell being the hottest topic of the day, and him already in the limelight for being the only reporter to actually I'll the battle, the man was very eager to increase his own renown even more.

So, after making sure all of their equipment was ready and working, the reporter gave his cameraman the cue and began once they were live,

"Greetings! I'm coming to all of you live from Capsule Corp with the Dragon Emperor himself here, along with the rest of those mysterious people from earlier today." As the reporter greeted the viewers Alex waved casually to say hi, while everyone with them tried to stay out of the camera's range as much as possible.

The interview began with the typical questions that Alex was expecting, such as who exactly he was, and where he came from. Of course he answered as truthfully as he could without revealing anything too confidential, but Alex also noticed many of Goku's friends paying close attention as they too tried to learn more about him. Finally however they got to the interesting stuff, as the reporter asked,

"So, what were those abilities you and Cell used during your battle? Was it a type of hidden weapon? Tricks? Something else?" Alex laughed lightly at the question before answering,

"No no, nothing like a trick or weapon." Alex then held out his hand and conjured a sphere of Ki the size of a baseball before continuing,

"This substance is usually referred to as 'Ki' energy, and it is found in every living thing in the universe. When a person reaches a certain level of strength and skill, they can generate enough energy to be able to tap into it, and use it for a variety of purposes." Alex then held his hand out and shot the sphere of Ki off into the distance, before detonating in a safe place for the camera to see. He then continued,

"The most common use for Ki is to attack using a variety of different techniques, and with the proper control almost any kind of attack you can imagine is possible." Alex then demonstrated by using his Ki in numerous different ways, while also restraining the amount of energy used to prevent any real damage from occurring. Once he was done he then added,

"Aside from attacking though, Ki has several other uses as well, such as flying." As he said that Alex began levitating off of his seat in front of the camera, before slowly lowering himself and continuing, "It can also be used to help jumpstart someone's heart in certain circumstances to preserve their life, teleporting to another location instantly, and much more."

As he finished his explanation the reporter excitedly asked,

"So you're saying that anyone can use this 'Ki'?" Alex nodded before standing up from his seat and moving behind the reporter.

"Sure, hold your hand out like I did earlier, and concentrate on forming a small ball in your palm." As he said that Alex placed his own hand on the reporters back, and began using his own energy to help manipulate his.

The reporter then concentrated so hard that his face quickly began to turn purple, and he began groaning as if he was constipated. After nearly a minute though, with Alex helping him out, a ball of light smaller than a pea formed in the palm of his hand.

"I-I did it!" The report exclaimed in excitement, before adding, "It's so small...." Alex nodded and said,

"Of course, you haven't undergone any training or anything. Normally just getting to that point would be impossible for someone like you, but since I helped to stimulate and control your energy you were able to succeed. Now try firing it like I did earlier." As Alex prompted, the reporter held out his hand towards the water surrounding them, and willed the tiny spot of energy to shoot forward.

Though it was nothing compared to Alex's previous demonstrations, the speck of energy sill shot forward before impacting the water, creating a few small ripples that were still caught on camera.

"Wow! That was amazing! That.....was......" Though he was noticeably excited at first, the reporter quickly became winded as he talked, allowing Alex to say as he offered him some snacks,

"That's what it means to use energy. Though not as noticeable when you have an abundance, like myself or other powerful martial artists, each bit of energy you use would slowly build up and fatigue the user over time. If you used enough, you could easily tire yourself out even with minimal bodily movement."

Recovering after having some snacks, the reporter then asked,

"So, how would this Ki compare to commonly used weapons, like firearms?" The question was barely out of the reporter's mouth when Alex snorted in contempt, and replied,

"They don't compare. Typical firearms are useful for newbies or other people who similarly can't fight, but are useless against people who have undergone enough training, or possess the right skills to counter them." Alex then produced an actual rifle like the ones used by the Earth military, and beckoned Yuna over to help him with the demonstration.

"Woah!" The reporter exclaimed in surprise by the sudden appearance of the firearm, even before Alex readily gave it to Yuna and said,

"Shoot me with it."

"WAIT A SECOND!" The reporter cried out as he immediately tried to escape from the line of fire, right as Yuna pulled the trigger.

Since it was only set to single fire mode there was one loud bark as the gun went off, and Alex's hand blurred before the bullet could hit anything.

"I-is it safe to come out?" The reporter asked as he cautiously peaked out from behind the chair he had been sitting on a moment previously, making Alex laugh out loud as he simply held out his hand for him and the camera to see.

There, in the middle of his palm, was a single bullet that he had snatched out of the air. As the two of the gaped at it Alex said,

"With enough training anyone could snatch a bullet out of the air without being harmed, but with even more training you wouldn't have to bother with catching it." Trailing off, Alex then nodded to Yuna who, after a second of hesitation, set the gun to automatic fire and unloaded the entire clip into Alex.

Again the reporter tried to take cover, but as he peaked out he couldn't help but to be stunned at what he saw, as each and every bullet bounced off of Alex's skin with a small shower of sparks. Meanwhile the man himself simply continued munching on a snack, as if he wasn't being inconvenienced in the slightest at the hailstorm of bullets raining down on him.

Soon the gun clicked, indicating the magazine was empty, and Yuna handed it back to Alex before turning to walk away. Before she took a single step though, Alex gently grabbed her and pulled her head down close to his to plant a quick and tame kiss on her lips.

"Thank you for your help." He said to her, knowing Yuna wouldn't feel too good about actively shooting him while he wasn't resisting, though she was the one in his peerage with the most experience with guns. Truthfully, the simple fact that Yuna had been the one shooting him meant that each bullet was significantly more deadly due to her skills and Gunner Dressphere.

Rather than respond though, Yuna's entire face turned bright red at the sudden, but tame, display of affection in front of so many people, let alone the camera. While Alex took the time to admire Yuna's ass in her booty-shorts as she walked away, the reporter slowly recovered from the shock of an actual rifle being unloaded right next to him.

Finally, he said in awe,

"So you're completely bulletproof?!" Alex nodded slowly as he turned his attention back to him, and replied,

"To an extent. And while I'm actually transformed for extra durability, anyone could become resistant to bullets with the right training. When taken to extremes a person could even train themselves to resist strikes from higher levels of artillery, including missiles." The reporters expression became serious then as he asked his next question,

"So does that mean that, if the person is strong enough, our military would be completely useless to stop them?" Not just him, but all around the world the people who were watching the broadcast held their breaths as they awaited Alex's answer, until he confirmed their suspicions by asking in turn with a slight smile,

"Wasn't that already proven by Cell and the Demon King Piccolo?" Silence filled the world as everyone took in what Alex had just said, and the truth of what he meant.

Their military was powerless to stop any REAL threat that they might face.

If another Cell or King Piccolo tried to kill or enslave them, then the people of Earth would be completely at their mercy unless someone like Alex stepped up to stop them. Such a thought was truly terrifying.

That was the moment that several people around the world reached the same conclusion, as even King Furry declared to his advisors,

"Get my head of military in here, we have some matters to discuss."

Back at Capsule Corp though, Alex continued

"If you TRULY want to see what people are capable of, then you'll be able to see all that and much more in six months." That comment stirred the reporter from his brief stupor as he asked,

"What do you mean? What's in six months?" Alex smiled widely at the question as he pointedly looked over at Goku and his friends, before turning back to the camera and said,

"In six months I will be hosting an event like nothing anyone on Earth, or perhaps the entire universe has ever seen. A competition featuring competitors from all over the universe and beyond, who'll duke it out for the title of the strongest out of thousands, or even millions of fighters. The Universal Grand Martial Arts Tournament."