Jasmine was the first to wake, staring at the blue sky and the green grass. She looked at the woman lying in the space pod, barely hanging to life. She knew that Lema wasn't her mother, having figured out the computer system a long time ago. Cryogenic sleep was the only thing keeping the Saiya-jin female alive. Lema needed help, but how and where?

Lema opened her eyes; "I can feel him. Find Kakarot, please."

Jasmine was torn. Did she have enough time to find Lema's son. He would be seventeen now. Where did she even begin to look? She traveled to a nearby road and flagged down a traveler. The machine they used was strange, but it looked stable enough to carry Lema to a healing facility.

The people that stopped was an old man and a young woman with blue hair. She didn't understand their language, but managed to get across that she needed help and led them to where Lema was.

"Dad, look at her tail!"

"She's badly hurt."

"Quick, let's get her in the car!"

Between the two of them, they managed to pick up Lema and fit Jasmine in the front seat. They tried to talk to the young woman, but she didn't respond to any of their questions. The only thing Jasmine understood was the woman's name; Bulma.

Jasmine was impressed by the large house, the machinery, the people and the animals that ran back and forth across the lawn. Lema was placed in a room and was looked at by a doctor. He bandaged the many wounds and said a few things in the strange tongue. She needed to learn their language if she were to find Kakarot.

There was something called a television and she spent the next three days learning the music, the culture and the news. It didn't take her long to figure out what they were saying and she associated objects with the humanoids conversations.

"Who are you?" Bulma asked again, pointing at the strange girl.

"Jasmine."

Bulma nearly danced in excitment, happy that the girl had finally spoken back to her. She continued to teach her language and was surprised at how easily and quickly Jasmine learned. She reminded her of Goku. Goku may have appeared to be slow, but you only needed to show him something once and he never forgot.

Then there were the tails; both Jasmine and the unconscious female had them. They couldn't be from earth, judging from the space pod they found them in. Bulma's lab had been working to repair the object, and it was proving difficult considering many of the parts had never been seen on Earth before.

After a month, Jasmine was fully participating in sports and shopping. "Bulma, I need to find someone. It's important."

"Sure."

"He should have a tail like myself. His name is Kakarot."

"I don't know anyone by Kakarot, but I do know someone who use to have a tail like yours."

Jasmine paled. "What happened to it?"

"It was removed."

"Why?" she gasped. "That's a Saiya-jin's strength!"

"Saiya-jin? Is that what you are? All we know is that he kept turning into some giant monkey. He almost killed us."

Jasmine tried to calm down, but she knew Lema would be furious once she found out about her son's tail. Lema slowly improved and finally she appeared in the kitchen. "He's close."

"Kakarot!"

"Hai."

"Lema? I think they removed his tail."

Lema growled, clenching her fists tightly together. "We'll deal with that later. First we need to find him."

Bulma squealed in triumph, hanging up a contraption called a phone. "Goku's going to be at the tournament!"

"Goku?" Jasmine asked.

"I think he's the one you're looking for. He used to have a tail when he was younger, but was later removed."

Jasmine translated for Lema and she quickly left the house before she destroyed something. "Did I say something wrong," Bulma asked.

"Kakarot is her son. She never got to see him before he was kidnapped along with her other son Prince Vegeta."

"I hope Goku's the person you're looking for. He hit his head when he was five. Goku doesn't remember anything before that day."

"Jasmine," Lema asked, coming back a few minutes later. There was a strange glint in her eyes. "How long before the tournament?"

She translated and Bulma said three months. Lema nodded, making a decision. "I want you to enter."

"Why me? I've never been taught how to fight!"

"I can teach you. Besides, Kakarot needs to see a Saiya-jin his own age."

"What if he doesn't like me?"

"Why wouldn't he?"

Jasmine was terrified, but excited at the same time. Was Kakarot anything like his mother? How could she possibly stand a chance against him? Still, she had to try.

Goku was bored. Chi-chi had entered the tournament and kept babbling something about marriage. He had a strange feeling it was more than food, but she wouldn't elaborate. Goku wished that Bulma was around, but she said something about a surprise. All Bulma told him about the marriage thing was to say no until they got there.

He had learned to trust Bulma and he didn't like the way Chi-chi was keeping secrets from him. Goku didn't know everything, but he knew when someone was trying to trick him into something. For the past month, he'd been feeling strange, as if the close connection he had all his life had suddenly woken up and was searching frantically for him.

His head hurt, the scar on his head throbbing. He never had it healed and Goku had a feeling it blocked memories of the past. 'Kakarot...' The name echoed in his mind; he wanted to answer the voice back. Who was she and why did she sound so sad?

"Goku, you ready?" Goku smiled, following his friend to the arena. He studied the crowd, easily picking out the competition. His eyes settled on two females, both standing close to Bulma. One had her arms crossed in front of her, long black hair reaching her waist. Something caught his attention and he hissed in surprise. They both had tails!

Bulma said something to Jasmine who relayed the message to the older woman. She nodded, looked in his direction and headed straight for him. Goku knew a powerful energy level when he felt one. This woman was extremely powerful and he knew she would be difficult to beat in the tournament should she enter.

Lema couldn't believe how tall he had become. He was as tall as her father, if not more so. Reaching his shoulder, she was reminded yet again how small she was and why she had the nick name, little one. It had taken her some time to realize that seventeen years had passed since she had begun her search and it hurt to know that she had never seen either of her children grow up. Did they manage to rescue Prince Vegeta and did he have at least someone to teach him how to fight and defend himself?

The connection to her mate was faint and she longed to have his arms around her. She stopped a foot away from Kakarot. The Earthlings called him Goku, but she knew it was her son. Their eyes met and for several moments neither moved. Her tail, of it's own accord, reached out to touch his arm. Curious, he touched it, surprised to see her jump.

Lema fought the instinct to pull it back, letting him study it. "Kakarot." He paled. She had been learning the language, but it was difficult not to revert back to Saiya-jin. "How much do you remember?"

"Images. I always heard you calling to me. Who are you?"

"You were taken from me the day you were born. Hopefully they found your twin brother, Prince Vegeta."

"Brother? I have a brother?" Lema nodded, surprised to find herself wrapped in a crushing hug. Bulma had been unable to repair the space pod, which meant she was stranded on Earth. She prayed that the other Saiya-jins would find them. Was the war with the Ice-jins over, or were Kakarot, herself and Jasmine the only remaining survivors.

"You look sad?"

Lema forced a smile. "I'll be watching you, today. I heard something about a Chi-chi. What does she want from you?"

"Something called marriage? I don't know what that means."

Lema snarled. "She didn't tell you."

"No."

"Do not accept Chi-chi's challenge, Kakarot."

"Why?"

"Do you trust me?"

"Are you evil?"

Lema laughed, "No, Kakarot."

"Bulma said to say no also."

"Goku, there you are. Who's that?"

Lema glared at the human female. She had seen the roster for the contestants. Hopefully Jasmine had trained enough in the past three months to beat this female. She was stronger than most humans and it bothered Lema that she was trying to trick her son into a permanent relationship. It would be one thing if Kakarot knew what marriage and mating was, but he didn't.

She couldn't take any chances. Moving to the judges booth, she signed up for the tournament. Chi-chi would have to beat Lema before she could compete with her son. Instinctively, Kakarot would never mate with anyone that didn't defeat his father or mother in this case.

"Wow, she's cute! Where'd you find those two, Bulma?"

"Get real, Yamcha. I think the older one is married already. She'd also break you in half if you looked at Jasmine wrong."

"What's with the tails? They're not going to turn into monkeys are they?"

"I wouldn't say anything about that! She's furious about Goku's tail. Lema threatened to kill the person responsible."

"She'd kill a god!"

Master Roshi was trembling, disbelieving the power he was reading off the older woman. The girl beside her was powerful as well, but nothing even came close to comparing to Lema's power level. "Bulma, where'd you find them?"

"They're from space. Lema's looking for her son, Kakarot. I think it's Goku."

"That's Goku's mother!" They all shouted in unison.

"They've been talking for several minutes and she doesn't look happy."

Yamcha watched the woman head for the booth and sign up for the tournament. "I think Chi-chi managed to make another enemy."

Chi-chi stormed over to them, "Goku told me no! He promised to marry me! Why would he say no?"

"Maybe he figured out what marriage was, Chi-chi. Lying to him wasn't a good idea."

"I didn't lie to him, Bulma. He said he'd marry me."

"He thinks marriage is a full entree! You never explained it to him!"

"What's wrong with that?"

"Goku instinctively knows that something's wrong with his idea of marriage. He's never even been attracted to you Chi-chi!"

"I can change that!"

"Leave him alone!" Everyone turned to Jasmine, her eyes sparking in anger. She couldn't help but overhear the converstion and she met Chi-chi's challenging glare. "Goku's a Saiya-jin! Where we come from, tricking someone to mate with you, is punishable by death!"

Chi-chi paled, but didn't have time to explain as Jasmine diappeared into the crowd. "I can win!"

Goku, Jasmine, Lema and Chi-chi easily made it through the preliminary rounds. It would be several rounds before he faced Jasmine and he had a feeling Lema only entered to toss Chi-chi out of the tournament if Jasmine should loose against her.

He could feel the smaller woman's rage, yet deeper still was a profound sadness that made him want to ease her sorrow. Goku growled in frustration. He felt a surge of violent anger and for the first time in his life, he wanted to hurt anyone that caused this woman harm. Goku had a feeling her entire life had been nothing but loneliness and death. People close to her had suffered and her soul was recovering from a tremendous shock.

Chi-chi was a talented fighter, but so was Jasmine. Jasmine was new at the sport, but she never underestimated her opponent and often outsmarted them. She seldom had to throw a punch and laughed when they fell out of the ring. She intrigued him, her smile, the way she accepted a punch and gave it back. Unlike most females, she didn't cry when she got hurt.

Lema only had to sneeze and she would win a fight. Her eyes danced in cold fury and one blow would render her opponent unconscious. It wasn't until half way through the tournament when another stranger appeared and grabbed Lema, saying a few words that quickly calmed her.

A few mumurs raced through the fans, he looked exactly like Goku, minus the tail. Who were these people and why did he feel like he'd been missing something his entire life? Lema paled, when the taller man continued to speak with her and she looked at Jasmine with tears in her eyes. She nodded.

Jasmine backed away from Lema, not wanting to hear what she saw in the woman's eyes. "No! They're alive! I know I didn't feel them when we woke up! They're just sleeping!"

"Jasmine..." Lema choked. "I'm sorry."

"No!"

Goku moved closer, wanting to do something. Jasmine screamed, taking half the arena with her. Lema looked tired and quietly withdrew from the tournament. "Who are you?" Goku growled, looking the stranger in the eyes. "Why'd you make them cry?"

"Lema lost several close friends in a war that's been waging for nearly two decades. Only a few of us remain. I know not where my brother, his son, my son or your brother is."

Jasmine threw herself into the fight, unable to stop crying. She had never known her parents and they had been stolen from her by the Ice-jins. Chi-chi was the last person to defeat. The fight was over before it began.

Goku could have easily beaten the girl, but she was being fueled by her greif and anger. "Jasmine?"

"They're dead! I'm going to kill them all!"

"Let me help you," Kakarot whispered.

"How?"

Goku kicked her feet out from underneath her, but before he could trap her, she rolled over and kicked him in the stomach. Jasmine growled, needing the fight to release her pain. Goku went on the defensive, blocking her punches and kicks. He could have easily ended the match, but not before she was breathing in short gasps, and Jasmine was ready to collapse. Phasing behind her, he quickly knocked her out, catching her before she could hit the ground.

"Let's go."

"Goku, aren't you staying for the celebration?"

"I can't." Shifting Jasmine's weight, he followed after the stranger, having a feeling his life took a change for the worse. "Can you take her?"

Turles looked at his grandson, but did as the boy asked. "The other woman, she's my mother?"

"Hai."

"She shouldn't be left alone."

Lema was tired of the people close to her dying or getting hurt. She wanted the war to be over and the only way to do that was to fight the Ice-jins alone. "Don't."

Startled, she turned to see her son standing a few feet away. "You don't understand."

"I understand that you're about to do something stupid! These Ice-jins are too powerful for you to fight alone."

"Kakarot, I've been fighting long before you were born. The odds were never in my favor, but I always won in the end."

"Let me go with you."

"No!"

"I know of a way to get to the Ice-jins."

"How?"

"Will you take me?"

She didn't want to, but Lema knew Kakarot was right. "On one condition, Kakarot. I need to train you on the level of a Saiya-jin fighter, not a human one."

"How long do you need?"

"Four years, but I don't have that kind of time."

"Done." Rasing his hands to his mouth, "Flying Nimbus!" A strange looking cloud came from the sky and he jumped on it. "Hop on!" Lema laughed, lifting off the ground. "You can fly!"

"All Saiya-jins can."

"Follow me!" Lema didn't know where Kakarot was taking her, but if he could get her to the Ice-jins she would gladly follow him. She would destroy them all!