The Zenith Beyond Chapter 5

Edited by: Priapus, Marethyu

– Dev –

True to the technique’s name, as soon as the Grandmaster of Yardrat holds my claw, the scenery changes in an instant. From the bustling streets of the capital city, we teleport to a barren, rocky land, the predominant biome of this planet. Despite this only being my second time seeing it, I’m still impressed. Regardless of its restrictions, a teleportation technique that consumes little energy is beneficial. Even then, I’m confident there is a way to bypass its limitations. 

But pondering such things will have to wait. Zenith leaving my sight without me noticing could lead to a disaster. Strong as she may be, she’s not close to being the most powerful being in this galaxy, much less the cluster. All she needs is a single second to perish before I’m able to save her.

This will not do. I must take precautions, and she needs to be taught never to do that again. We’re fortunate that she didn’t put herself in danger. 

“See?” The Grandmaster says with a smile, watching Zenith enjoying a meal with a much older Saiyan around a campfire. “I told you she’s safe. Goku wouldn’t lay a finger on her.”

My gaze switches from Zenith to the older Saiyan, handing her another meat skewer. Son Goku… Indeed, the odds of Zenith being born during a time period when he was alive are astronomically low. Or rather, that’s what I thought at first. 

It was he who made me reconsider my options, switching from mechanical weapons to bioengineering the Champion. He was the one who made me use Saiyans as the base for Zenith’s design. After all, it was his DNA that I primarily used to create her.

But why wouldn’t I use his essence? He is the most accomplished Saiyan in existence. One of, if not the, greatest warrior in the multiverse. The Catalyst of this cluster. I’d be foolish to choose anything else.

Once I approach the two Saiyans, Zenith notices me first. Her eyes widen as she quickly finishes her skewer before running my way. Although I expected a hint of worry from her, her red eyes were instead full of excitement and joy upon seeing me.

“Dev! Dev!” She hugs my leg and looks up at me, her fluffy tail wagging from side to side. “Look! It’s him! It’s the Orange Man!”

That much I was able to deduce. It hadn’t taken me long to understand why Zenith was able to sense him lightyears away. Although being related to him wouldn’t be enough, her Metanovian essence must’ve resonated with his DNA. After all, he may as well be her biological father.

Combined with his high energy, Zenith must’ve instinctively picked up on it after his power was tested, perhaps during his battle with Freeza. This does not completely explain her odd nightmares, but it’s clear now that it is related to Son Goku. Or her connection to him, at the very least.

“Do not leave my sight without permission again.” I scold her tonelessly, making her flinch in surprise. “What you did was highly dangerous. You could’ve gotten yourself hurt or worse.”

“B-but—”

“I will take no excuses.” I shut her down. “Understand?”

Her excitement fizzles out, and a look of guilt and sadness replaces it as she nods slowly, backing off from me. Zenith’s lips tremble, and her eyes glisten with unshed tears, on the verge of sobbing before—

“Aw, c’mon, it’s not that serious.” The older Saiyan says cheerfully as he walks closer to me with a smile on his face. “I’m sure Zenith didn’t mean what she did. Besides, she’s safe, so it’s not really a problem, right?”

Zenith blinks as he gently pats her head, which significantly calms her down as she sniffles and rubs her eyes. She seems understandably comfortable in his presence. Which is to be expected, of course. As I said, he is her biological father, and while she does not know that, her instincts do.

“Hey there! You must be the Dev person Zenith told me about.” Goku says, extending his hand. “My name is Goku. Or I guess the Orange Man. I’m a Saiyan raised on Earth.”

I stare at his hand in confusion for a few moments before responding.

“I am Dev.” I introduce myself. “Zenith’s guardian.”

“Yup. So you’re like her dad, right?” He asks before chuckling. “I don’t mean anything by it, but you look nothing alike. I mean, you’re a robot.”

…He does not act in a way I expected the most accomplished Saiyan in existence to act. I am unsure what to think of this. I’ll need more time to study his mannerisms and see if he’d do well in teaching Zenith what he knows.

Though, then again, he’s not yet reached his peak strength. I mustn’t make my judgment too soon.

“I’m aware,” I respond curtly before looking at the Champion. “Zenith.”

Zenith blinks and looks at me.

“How did you get here so quickly?” I ask. “Without either me or the Grandmaster noticing?”

“That, I’m quite interested in as well.” Pybara agrees.

Zenith pauses for a moment before pointing at the Grandmaster.

“I did what Bara did.”

“Pardon?” Pybara blinks.

“This.”

Zenith puts two of her fingers on her forehead, mimicking the pose of their technique. The Grandmaster’s eyes widen in surprise, and if I had eyes, I imagine I would’ve shown the same reaction. Did she use their teleportation technique? But she’s only seen it once— she couldn’t have.

“Well, I’ll be. That’s quite impressive.” Pybara says. “You’ve not even mastered Spirit Control yet. To be able to use Instant Transmission so easily…”

“Huh? You used Instant Transmission?!” Son Goku parrots in shock. “That’s amazing! Even I can’t do that yet!”

“Demonstrate it,” I tell her.

Zenith nods and suddenly starts running a long distance away, making me wonder what she’s trying to do until I’m quickly reminded that Zenith can’t sense energy yet. She can  only feel Goku’s essence— perhaps that helped her efficiently utilize the technique. Yes, that would explain it.

Still, this means that once she’s able to sense ki, Instant Transmission won’t be so challenging to master. Not at all. After all, Zenith’s ki control is absurd for someone as inexperienced and young as her.

“What’s she—” Goku starts before Zenith reappears.

While we expected her to appear next to us, she teleports directly atop the campfire. Zenith lets out a startled cry before she leaps away from the campfire, putting out the flames that her white shirt had caught. Zenith walks toward us without missing a beat, as if that never happened.

“See?” She says tonelessly despite her enthusiasm. “Did I do good? Did I do good?”

Her lack of mastery of the technique is noted. However, her ability to adapt and learn is truly out of this world. Perhaps unmatched, even. Although, I don’t expect her to show the same adaptability for the other techniques. This could be an outlier, considering her innate ability to feel Son Goku’s presence.

But this is still extraordinary.

Before I can answer, the older Saiyan beats me to it.

“That’s incredible! You did great!” Goku praises her with equal enthusiasm, patting her on the head. “You’re so talented even though you’re so little.”

Zenith smiles, and her tail wags excitedly.

“Fascinating.” Pybara hums. “Although not strictly required, I’ve never seen anyone use any of our techniques without at least training in Spirit Control first.”

“This Spirit Control you speak of.” I glance at the Grandmaster. “Could you tell me more?”

“Naturally.” He nods.

“You have my gratitude,” I respond. “Come, Zenith.”

Zenith blinks.

“But I wanna stay with Goku.” She says, holding the older Saiyan’s hand.

She’s growing very attached very quickly.

“You may spend time with Son Goku at a later date,” I reply curtly. “It is time you started your training.”

Zenith looks hesitant, looking between me and the Catalyst.

“But—”

“It’s okay, Zenith. You can come hang out afterward.” Son Goku says, giving her a smile. “I won’t be going anywhere, I promise.”

“Rather, you are coming with us, Goku,” Pybara interjects. “Seeing that you’ve fully recovered your strength, it is time we started your training as well.”

“Aw, sweet!” The older Saiyan chuckles. “I was just wondering when I’d get to learn some of your techniques.”

This is fortunate. Having Zenith train alongside Son Goku will help me distinguish her from a similarly talented baseline Saiyan. I will see if she truly is as talented as I thought or if I have simply overestimated her. It will also help me discover her weaknesses and determine what needs to be prioritized.

So far, Zenith excels at adaptability during combat. She is a fast learner, and her mind is sharper than most. I do not know what… Spirit Control is or what it requires from its user, but I have confidence. Seeing how fast her power has developed in mere weeks, this should be no issue for her.

“Patience,” The Grand Elder responds. “Take my hand. I’ll lead you to our training grounds.”

As we all do what we’re told, we’re teleported away together.

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– Goku –

Appearing wherever the Yardratians trained, he blinked, still very impressed by such a convenient technique. Teleporting like that would’ve made his battle against Freeza so much easier. However, he didn’t know if it would have changed the outcome in any way that mattered.

Freeza was incredibly powerful. Even though Goku had pushed himself to his limits, using the Kaioken technique at times 20, it still hadn’t been enough to make him take the fight seriously. Heck, even a Spirit Bomb that had been formed by the energy of several planets and stars failed to put him down.

It had cost him the life of his best friend to turn the tide of battle. The incredible power of the Super Saiyan… So Vegeta had been right all along. He may have misunderstood what it was, but the legends were true after all. Goku had only been able to compete with and defeat Freeza after unlocking that transformation. Even then, it was still a close call. He’d barely escaped the dying planet.

He was fortunate that the pod had sent him to Yardrat. Had Goku landed in a different world, it would not have been guaranteed that its people would be as benevolent. After all, he doubted that the Saiyans were ‘liked’ across the galaxy. Although Goku wasn’t guilty of what his people had done, seeing that he had been raised on Earth, something told him that not a lot of people would’ve cared.

The Yardratians were very kind for nursing him back to health and helping him when he was too injured to even walk. Their leader had even offered to teach Goku a thing or two after sensing the raging inner turmoil caused by the Super Saiyan transformation.

And Goku couldn’t refuse it. That power was incredible, but it was very dangerous, too. However, Son Goku knew that being afraid of his own power was never wise, so he needed to learn how to control it. Each time he had transformed, he’d felt blinded by anger. And to utilize that transformation, he needed to be able to control his fury while maintaining it.

Despite needing to return to Earth to his family, it wasn’t like Goku had a lot of options. The ship he’d come here with was busted beyond repair, and so were the Freeza Force soldiers' ships after their battle. Granted, he could use one of the Yardratians’ spare ships, but according to their engineers, it would take them more than three months to reach Earth.

And why do that when he could just learn Instant Transmission and go back whenever he wanted to? Admittedly, Goku didn’t want to waste this opportunity. It would probably do him well to get a hold of his Super Saiyan form before returning home.

He sure hoped everyone was okay.

“So this is the place, huh?” Goku was the first to speak.

“What a peculiar area.” The large purple and gold robot said tonelessly. “I see no traces of prior training. This area is untouched, yet you call it your training grounds.”

Although Goku didn’t know what to expect, he had a feeling that the Yardratians didn’t seem to like to train indoors, and he was right. They were deep in the mountains next to a giant and seemingly endless pit where several sharp stone pillars protruded from the abyss. The tips of these pillars were barely the width of a needle, which Goku didn’t particularly like.

“You misunderstand our way of training, Mr. Dev,” Pybara said.

Except it wasn’t the one that was next to them. It was another Pybara that stood right behind the group, ten times the size of the one that teleported them here. For a moment, Goku thought it was an illusionary technique, but no, he could sense his energy. This was real.

“Woah!” Goku’s eyes widened. “You can clone yourself?”

“Good eye, Goku.” The other Pybara chuckled, suddenly shrinking down to the size of the original. “These are two of our techniques. Cloning and gigantification.”

Goku was quickly reminded of his former adversaries: Tenshinhan and Piccolo. They had once employed nearly identical techniques during their fights.

“These techniques can be achieved by splitting, shifting, and growing one’s very spirit. Or Ki, as you call it.” The original Pybara said as his clone dissipated. “Ultimately, all of our techniques, from the basic Instant Transmission to our most advanced Forced Spirit Fission, aren’t exclusive to us. They come from controlling and mastering your Ki on a much more refined level that very few can do.”

“Instant Transmission is basic?” Dev questioned.

“Quite.” The Yardratian Elder nodded. “It’s the first technique we learn and requires the least Spirit Control. Perhaps that is why little Zenith achieved it so quickly. After all, her ki control is rather extraordinary for a child her age.”

The white-haired Saiyan blinked.

“Though, despite that, her spirit is still destablized. Even more than Goku’s.” He added. “Naturally, Spirit Control is more than just simply knowing how to control and refine your ki. One must achieve balance in mind and body.”

“And how do we do that?” Goku asked.

Pybara smiled and floated.

“Follow me.” He said, leading them toward the stone spikes standing above the abyss.

Goku followed suit, gently lifting himself off the ground with his ki. Once they were next to one of the spikes, he spotted his fellow Saiyan holding onto the giant robot’s shoulder with a mildly frightened look as she stared at the pit below them.

“To achieve better understanding and control over one’s spirit, one must be able to balance oneself over the tip of these stone towers,” Pybara explained as Goku tried to balance over the stone tower with his feet, struggling a little. “Meanwhile, you must be in deep Yardratian meditation.”

“Yardratian meditation?” Goku questioned. “What’s the difference between that and normal meditation?”

“Unlike standard meditation, where you focus and calm your energy, the method we’ve invented requires you to apply the foundation of our techniques without using them.” The grandmaster clarifies. “Shifting and splitting your ki while keeping it within your body, for example. This, of course, demands a much higher level of concentration.”

“Then why can’t this meditation technique be done on a much more stable surface?” Dev questioned. “Doesn’t it sound redundant otherwise?

“On the contrary, it defeats the point of Spirit Control,” Pybara said. “Remember what I said earlier? One must have a balanced mind and body.”

The robot paused for a moment before responding.

“I see.” He said.

“If you believe this is too hard, then start slow with the common meditation techniques.” The elder Yardratian told Goku before glancing at the young Saiyan. “Does little Zenith have any experience in that?”

“I’m afraid not,” Dev answered.

“Speaking of Zenith—” Goku said, looking at the girl holding onto her guardian. “Can’t Zenith fly?”

“No. Not yet.” Dev replied. “Why do you ask?”

“Oh,” Goku hummed before looking at Pybara. “I don’t mean to sound rude, but you think we can teach her how to do that first?”

“I don’t mind.” The elder Yardratian nodded. “It would do her well in case she falls.”

“Heh, yeah, that’s what I thought too.” He then glanced at Zenith. “How about it? Wanna learn how to fly?”

The young Saiyan blinked a few times, then slowly nodded.

“Alright.” Goku floated toward her. “It’s simple. First, focus on your energy. Be calm and release as little as you can. Like a ki blast, but not as forceful.”

Zenith paused, looked down, and hesitated, tightening her hold on Dev.

“It’s okay. Don’t worry about falling.” Goku told her. “I’ll catch you.”

The little girl gazed back at Goku, her expression still hesitant, but she trusted the older Saiyan. She closed her eyes and focused her energy, releasing it from the soles of her feet. Seeing this, he blinked.

“Um, Zenith—”

Before he could tell her what she was doing wrong, Zenith let go of Dev, immediately losing balance and falling—or, more accurately, flailing as she darted around uncontrollably. In obvious distress, Goku acted quickly and caught her, making her tightly grab onto the collar of his Yardratian outfit.

“It’s okay. You’re okay. I got you.” He chuckled as she whined. “You’re releasing too much ki from your feet. Relax.”

Zenith whimpered and buried herself deeper into his chest, clearly startled by what just happened.

“You’ll be fine, Zen. Just calm down. Take a deep breath.” He told her, patting her on the head. “Let’s try again, okay?”

“But it’s scary…” She mumbled.

“Zenith,” Dev called. “There is nothing to fear. Even a fall from this height wouldn’t hurt you.”

Zenith blinked and looked at him. His tone was as empty as ever. She then slowly nodded and used his logic to gather the courage to try again.

“O-okay…” She stammered, still a little hesitant.

“Alright. That’s good. You’re already doing great.” Goku smiled at her patiently. “What you did wrong is releasing too much ki from only one point of your body. Focus and release as little as you can, and don’t only do that through your feet. That just makes flying harder to control. Use your entire body. You’re not pushing yourself off the ground. You’re using ki to lift yourself to the air.”

Once again, Zenith closed her eyes, still tightly holding onto Goku out of anxiety. She focused her energy better, lowering it even more as she did what she was told. And with his more detailed explanation, she did it almost perfectly.

It was clear that her fear of falling was causing her to release too much energy, but now, much calmer and trusting of Goku, she was able to float as he let go of her. The young Saiyan slowly opened her eyes, widening them once she saw it for herself.

Her earlier anxiety disappeared, replaced by excitement as she flew toward her guardian.

“Look! Dev, look! I can fly!” She said eagerly. “Did I do good? Did I do good?”

“You’ve done well.” He told her. “Excellent work, Zenith.”

At his approval, her white tail wagged happily. Goku couldn’t help but chuckle and smile as he witnessed this adorable scene. What a cute girl. To think he’d randomly stumble on a Saiyan that was as sweet as her. Most of his encounters with other Saiyans hadn’t been the best. 

Honestly, he’d never expected he’d see another Saiyan around here, much less one so young. Not to mention one this powerful. She couldn’t be any older than five, and yet she’d gotten to a level Goku could only have dreamed of at her age. She kind of reminded him of Gohan a little.

Goku wasn’t sure why she had white hair and red eyes and why the large robot was her guardian, but something about her felt strangely familiar. He didn’t know what that was about, though. Something in her energy. He couldn’t put his finger on it.

He couldn’t imagine what Vegeta would say if he saw her. Another Saiyan survivor. It wasn’t like it mattered, though. Her innocence was true, and her heart was pure. And it was very unlikely that she’d had a hand in what the Saiyans did during their time. She was too young to have had a part in their genocides.

With potential that high, Goku wondered if she could become a Super Saiyan as well.

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– Pybara –

As Pybara watched his new pupils meditate while keeping balance on the thin, stony spikes, he observed a noticeable difference between the two Saiyans. The obvious thing is the vast difference in experience.

First, Goku didn’t find any difficulties in general meditation. Certainly not. Pybara knew that the man was a warrior who’d known how to use his powers since childhood. It was very clear to the Yardratian that the adult Saiyan had been training under wise and respectable masters for most of his life.

In his base state, Goku’s energy was serene and pure. Relaxed and well-trained. While the discrepancy between mind and body was there, causing his spirit to be less stable than most Yardratians, there was a semblance of balance, unlike the younger Saiyan.

For the most part, Zenith’s energy was that of a typical Saiyan. Despite a toddler's purity and innocence, the warrior race's wild and untrained nature lurked deep within her spirit. And it was to be expected, of course. Saiyans usually found it hard to concentrate during mental training due to their proactive nature.

Not to ignore Zenith’s peculiar energy. It was evident to Pybara that she did not possess an entirely Saiyan heritage. There existed an aspect within her that appeared to be more... cosmic and distinctly foreign to his understanding. He did not know what it was, but it felt inactive. Dormant.

He knew the girl meant no harm, nor did her mechanical guardian. The grandmaster did not know where they had come from or what this Dev ultimately wanted, but with how attached the little girl seemed and how there was this strange similarity between them, Pybara just knew that they were no villains like Freeza and his soldiers.

But Pybara digressed. Zenith had been having far more trouble in balancing her mind than her body. She could not concentrate, was easily distracted, and was quickly bored by what she deemed inactivity. She could only focus for about five to seven minutes before her energy was disturbed.

After about two hours of training, Zenith lost her focus for the umpteenth time, her energy leaking and creating a thin aura around her body. Pybara sighed, but this was to be expected. He couldn’t expect a toddler to meditate.

She excelled in physically balancing her body on the tower, however. In fact, she was unnaturally dexterous compared to most adults. But the mental side of this training? She was struggling a lot more.

“Your energy mustn’t leave your body during meditation. You heard the Grandmaster.” Dev scolded the Saiyan toddler. “You have to keep it within yourself. Clear your mind of distraction and focus on your inner spirit. Let it spread through your body, but never out of it.”

Zenith, who had been constantly failing, relaxed her ki as she opened her eyes, frowning in displeasure.

“I dun wanna do this anymore.” She declared, crossing her arms. “I dun like it. It’s not fun.”

“Zenith.” Dev responded. “This training is important for your development.”

“No.” She pouted.

“What do you mean ‘no’?” Her guardian questioned. “This is not up for debate. You will continue this training.”

“No. I dun wanna.” She crossed her arms and floated away. “It’s dumb.”

“Zenith—”

“That’s quite alright, Mr. Dev,” Pybara interjected before addressing the little girl. “Tell you what, little one? How about we play a game?”

This got her attention as she turned to look at the Yardratian.

“Game?”

“Yes. It’s a popular one played by many children across the universe called ‘Hide and Seek’.” He told her. “I will count to a hundred while you find a place to hide. The goal is to hide from me until I give up. Would you like to try it?”

Zenith blinked a few times, then nodded.

“Then let’s begin. Let’s keep it around this area, alright?” Pybara said with a smile. “One, two, three…”

The Saiyan toddler’s eyes widened, panicking for a few more seconds before flying as far away as she could while still remaining within the training ground as requested. Dev watched this unfold in silence, prompting Pybara to say his piece.

“To be honest with you, Mr. Dev, little Zenith was never going to make any progress.” He said. “These past two hours had just confirmed it.”

Dev paused for a moment.

“Do not underestimate her.” He responded. “Mere meditation is nothing to her. Her mind is sharper than most. Zenith is a prodigy.”

“Of that, I’m well aware. But you seem to misunderstand,” Pybara replied. “It’s not that she is incapable. She is simply too young to be training in our ways.”

“Don’t you think you’re rashly making such judgments? She’s barely been a student for two hours.” The robot argued. “You’ve not seen the full extent of what she’s capable, Grandmaster. She is far more intelligent than you give her credit for.”

“It is not a matter of intelligence, Mr. Dev. She has more than proven herself by being able to use Instant Transmission after seeing it once.” The Elder Yardratian nodded. “It is a matter of maturity, you see. Children her age are naturally distracted and curious. They prefer to be proactive, enjoying and benefiting more from physical activity rather than what they deem ‘boring’. And for a Saiyan, that’s doubly true.”

Dev remained quiet, letting Pybara continue.

“Zenith’s ki control is already far above the average warrior’s. It would be nearly impossible to hurt herself with it.” He added. “How old is she, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“…She is four years old,” Dev answered.

“Then, no wonder she’s struggling with meditation.” Pybara chuckled. “She cannot benefit much from mental training. As I said, her mind needs to mature first. There is no rush, Mr. Dev.”

“Then what do you suggest?”

“Naturally, for someone her age, I’d say that the most basic training would do wonders.” He replied. “But as a Saiyan, she would need and enjoy something more intensive. Thus, I recommend that she train with Goku every once in a while. After all, we Yardratians are not very powerful, and he is a very skilled warrior. He could probably teach her a thing or two.”

Dev turned his head to look at the meditating Goku, who was also struggling with it but faring much better than Zenith.

“Then would you be willing to train her once she’s older?”

“Of course. I’d be happy to.”

“…I see.” The large robot said. “I’ve already intended for her to train under Son Goku. I suppose that will have to do.”

“Wonderful. I’m sure Goku would appreciate it as well.” Pybara smiled. “Now then…”

The Grandmaster immediately pinpointed Zenith’s location, easily sensing her spirit north of their direction. And even though he could’ve just teleported to where he was, he decided to make this more fun for her.

Floating toward her general direction, Pybara heard the little girl shuffling and hiding between the thicker pillars. She observed him from a distance as Dev kept up with the Grandmaster in silence. Once the Yardratian was sure she could hear him, he spoke.

“My oh my, I wonder where little Zenith hid?” He said out loud. “Could she be here? Or there?”

This did the trick, as Zenith started to giggle quietly, evidently enjoying the game very much. After prolonging the game for a few more minutes, Pybara managed to slip away from her sight and approached her from behind, wanting to surprise her a little.

“Or perhaps…” Pybara dashed toward Zenith, catching her off guard. “She’s here!”

Zenith flinched, slightly startled, but in a good way, as she squealed happily. Her childlike laughter showed him that she was still a normal child despite her usually expressionless appearance.

“Againagainagainagain!” She demanded with an adorable giggle.

“Of course.” Pybara chuckled. “Go on. Find a new place to hide.”

Still giggling, Zenith flew away to continue playing the game, not knowing that it was her turn to look for him. But she looked too excited, and he didn’t exactly mind. Once she was out of sight, Pybara turned to look at Dev once again.

“See? Even simple games like this can be very entertaining for her.” He said. “Most importantly, it is good for her development.”

The robot took a moment before he responded.

“…I’ll take that into consideration.”

Pybara hoped he would. Admittedly, he didn’t know what Dev was training her for or why he was seemingly rushing her to grow more powerful, but a toddler like her should be able to relish her childhood. After all, you only got to do that once, and it’d be a shame if a sweet girl couldn’t enjoy her youth.

Especially considering that half the galaxy would have her head if they could.