A long,long time ago,on a faraway planet,the people became worried.Strange storms pointed to one thing-their planet,Namek,was about to be hit by a comet.Fearing for their lives,and the future of their race,the people put a single child into a spaceship,programmed the course for a planet across the other half of the galaxy,and sent it on it's way.Namek,of course,was hit by the comet as predicted,causing mass death and problems that were to continue for the rest of the planet's life.But the young Namekian,speeding away,knew nothing of this.He was only a baby,and he knew nothing of his planet,really.He had a few vague memories and knew the language.That was about it.
(Flash forward a few years..)The young Namekian,who was known as Piccolo,had by then reached the new planet,called Earth.He was training under the present God,and planned to become God himself.However,the old God refused to allow him to become God (or Kami),as long as he had evil in his heart.Although Piccolo tried to rid himself of the evil,it remained.Until finally,Piccolo split himself from his evil part.However,the evil thoughts refused to die and became a new being altogether.His name was Piccolo Daimon.The now pure-good Namekian was given the role of Kami.The main problem was that he was spiritually linked to Piccolo,so if Piccolo were to die,so would the new Kami.
Piccolo caused havoc,chaos and pain for several years before Kami figured out how to rid himself of this problem that was partly his fault.He shut Piccolo into a bottle,and left the bottle alone.
Kami went on to create Dragonballs,something done by only Namekians.He was now spiritually linked to two things-Piccolo and the Eternal Dragon.Although,he no longer considered the former a problem.How can a bottle hurt anyone?
And so,life on Earth continued for hundreds of years.Kami aged,and so too,did his twin inside the bottle.However,Piccolo was trapped eternally until someone opened the bottle.Then,Piccolo was once again unleashed upon the Earth.The first thing he did was to thwart his twin by taking on Kami's own powers,in the form of the Dragonballs,and causing Shenlon to grant him eternal youth and power.Then,the newly-young Piccolo stepped out into the world once again...
The birth of a new Arch DemonAfter being released from his bottle,Piccolo split himself into four.Three were new,individual Namekians-Drum,Cymbal and Piano.With three at his side,Piccolo focused on his ultimate goal - takeover of the Earth,overthrowing of Kami,and finally,imprisoning Kami into his own bottle.
The first thing that was done was Piccolo destroyed the ultimate symbol of Kami's power-Shenlon himself.Now,with no chance of anybody helping Kami,he went back into the world.However he hadn't counted on one thing..
Far off,Drum,Cymbal and Piano had managed to kill two of the most powerful people on the planet at that time.Their names were Roshi and Krillin.Unfortunately,the spawn of Piccolo hadn't known about Krillin's best friend,a boy named Goku.Goku,coming down from Korin's Tower and finding his teacher and best friend dead,launched into a rage which quickly disposed of the three.Still furious,Goku then began hunting down the main one,Piccolo,who had declared himself Arch Demon of Earth.
Finding himself confronted by more children (Tien and Yamcha),Piccolo easily took care of them.They,too,would have died,if Goku hadn't shown up.
A battle began between the pure evil Namekian and the world's strongest child.Goku,having drunken Holy Water from Korin,was stronger than he knew,and after a long,drawn-out fight,suddenly,the battle was over when Goku barreled through the Arch Demon's chest.
Summoning up the last of his energy,Piccolo Daimon spat out an egg.He whispered with his dying breaths that his son would take revenge upon Goku for what he had done.And so,Piccolo Daimaou came into being.
The new Piccolo had been born with his father's memories,so he knew why he had been born and what his purpose in life was.From the moment of his birth,he too had become linked to Kami,allowing the God of Earth to survive after his demon counterpart was dead.And so,Shenlon was resurrected using Kami's powers,and the new,baby Arch Demon began summoning all his strength to do what he thought was his purpose in life.
He had been born to kill the strongest person on Earth,and he was determined to complete his reason for being....
The child of the Arch Demon shows what he's made of
Knowing that he now had a nephew,and knowing that child's mind,Kami took Goku in to train in his training room,the Room of Spirit and Time.Piccolo retreated into the wilderness to train and learn about himself.
(Fast forward a few years..)The Tenchi-Budokai Tournament was about to begin.Among the entrants were Goku,Piccolo,Kami,and Krillin.Piccolo had determined that it was here that he was to kill Goku,while Goku had made a similar decision about the young Namekian.
The rounds continued,until only Piccolo and Goku were left to fight each other.Goku was surprised at how much Piccolo surpassed his father in terms of fighting skill,as Piccolo demonstrated many powerful attacks,including the ability to change his size (with no negative effects on his speed),and his "trump card",an attack which,although taking Piccolo a long time to charge,was devastating.
After charging the attack,Piccolo let it loose.Basically,this consisted of a large dome of total power,which grew outwards.As you went into it,the power grew stronger,until finally the source of power at the middle,Piccolo himself.
It was with this attack Piccolo planned on killing Goku with.However,although it destroyed most of the island they were on,a short time later,Goku was revealed as the winner.
Goku could not kill Piccolo,for he would also kill Kami.Leaving the young Namekian face down in the dirt,unconcious,Goku flew off and began making his own life.
When Piccolo came to,it was to find himself alone.Swearing revenge for his humiliation,he once again withdrew into the wilderness,and was not seen again for several years...
Weaknesses in Piccolo revealed
Again,fast forwarding through several years.Piccolo had settled himself in a forest,where he was training to face Goku again,and defeat and kill him.Goku,meanwhile,had other things on his mind.He had married,and had a son,Gohan.
As strong as Piccolo and Goku had become,they were no match for a new alien who had landed and gone after Piccolo,forcing him to suffer another humiliating defeat.It was no comfort at all to Piccolo that Goku had also suffered a even more humiliating defeat,and the Namekian prepared to take on both his enemies at once.
Arriving at Master Roshi's island,Piccolo swallowed his pride and offered a temporary truce to Goku,which was accepted,and both flew off to find the alien,Raditz,who had taken Goku's son.
However,even together the world's strongest pair were no match,until finally Goku grabbed Raditz and held him still,allowing Piccolo to charge his newest attack,the Special Beam Cannon (Mankakosappo).This attack tore through both,killing them almost instantly.
Unfortunately,Piccolo allowed himself a few minutes of gloating before Raditz died.Telling the Saiyan that the Dragonballs could revive Goku,Raditz transmitted the information to his counterparts in space,and told Piccolo that they would arrive there in a year.
Piccolo took Goku's son to train.Planning to whip the kid into shape through a hard training in the wilderness,not unlike the one he had given himself as a child.
It was here that Piccolo's first major difference from his father was revealed.While the Arch Demon had been totally devoid of feelings,of love,and while his son had also tried to avoid those,the problem was,Piccolo had been born with the ability to have the chance to love,and cry,and feel pity.And those feelings,particulary those of love,began to take shape.Soon,Piccolo had a father-son relationship developing with Gohan,as much as he didn't like it and tried to hide it.
And so the world turned,and turned again,and a year went past.The Saiyans arrived,and Piccolo and his little trainee went to face them,along with those who had been trained by Piccolo's other half,Kami (Krillin,Yamcha,Tien and Chiatzu).Unfortunately,for all Piccolo's training and all his hidden power,Gohan got scared,and so they were forced to face the Saiyans,Nappa and Vegeta,without the youngest,and second powerful.
After the demise of Yamcha,Tien and Chiatzu,Piccolo attempted to formualate a plan that would allow the three to stay alive until Goku (who had been wished back) would arrive.However,Gohan decided it would be a good time to show off his power,and boasted that he would take care of the two Saiyans.Nappa,hearing this,got annoyed at the arrogance of the young half-Saiyan,and so decided he would take him out next.And so,he fired an enormous blast at the cowering child.
Piccolo,seeing the blast,ran and threw himself in between it and absorbed it.As everyone stared in shock and horror,the formerly evil Namekian sobbed in his pain.Cradled in Gohan's arms,Piccolo's body began to vaporize,and he whispered to Gohan how proud he was of him,ending his life with the words "Wish me back,okay?"
And so,the life of Piccolo ended.When Goku arrived,he defeated the Saiyans,and then they realized that Piccolo and the others couldn't be wished back,as Piccolo had not only sacrificed himself for Gohan,but also Kami and Shenlon.So,Gohan,Bulma and Krillin took off for Namek,to search for the Dragonballs that would restore Piccolo's life...
The boring AfterlifeWhile Gohan had left for Namek in the hope of bringing back his mentor,Piccolo was undertaking quite a different journey.
Finding himself on Snake Path,and stuck with Tien,Yamcha and Chiatzu,Piccolo began to follow in the footsteps of Goku-he began travelling to the planet of King Kai in the hopes of becoming even stronger.Unfortunately,the serious Piccolo hadn't thought of King Kai's wacky sense of humour,and finding his "training" methods quite unlike his own,Piccolo withdrew into himself and spent his days meditating.
The first great stir Piccolo caused involved the catching of the monkey Bubbles.The super fast monkey had made Goku chase him for three weeks before he was caught.After Tien,Yamcha and Chiatzu took off in their attempt,the kooky King Kai turned to find Piccolo holding the monkey..after taking five seconds to catch him.
After getting told off by King Kai,Piccolo became bored with the whole death thing,so he chose a tree and spent the rest of the time under it.The only time he really moved was to fight the other three..and he was surprised at how for once,he'd underestimated a foe and was almost overthrown.Sadly for Piccolo,as soon as he began to get over his surprise,King Kai called off the fight.
Time passed,fairly slowly for the bored Piccolo,until finally King Kai announced Gohan had the Namekian Dragonballs.Calling telepathically to Gohan,Piccolo ordered him to revive Piccolo first,and then wish him to Namek,so he could help to fight the new enemy,Frieza,who'd shown up.
Hearing the initial protests from Yamcha and Tien,who wanted to go back,Piccolo explained his plan-they'd overlooked one key detail.With Piccolo revived,Shenlon and Kami would also be resurrected.
Since nothing sould be done to stop King Kai from hyperventilating over the thought of Piccolo fighting Frieza (King Kai had started to care about the Namekian's wellbeing),all Piccolo could do was wait,until finally Porunga (the Namekian Dragon) brought him back to life.
Finding himself back on his home planet,Piccolo swallowed his urge to go and find his people and his place,and began searching for the one thing he truly cared about - Gohan.
Gohan was near death,so Piccolo took off to try and help him.Before he got very far,he encountered one of his people - a young Namek,only slightly older than Piccolo himself.His name was Nail.
The creation of a new Namekian warrior
Nail,who was almost identical to Piccolo in appearance,had fought Frieza in an attempt to protect his people,and to give young Dende a chance to get to Gohan and Krillin,delivering the password.Although this ultimately led to Piccolo's resurrection,it also led to Nail's demise.Nail had been sorely beaten by Frieza,and left to die slowly,painfully,in payment for his trickery.
Piccolo,at first mistaking Nail's dying power for Gohan's,landed beside the young warrior and straight away noticed the physical resemblance.However,Piccolo was in a great hurry to go and help Gohan.So,although he did worry about Nail (being one of his people) he couldn't stay to help ease his death.All he figured he could do was to go and seek revenge on behalf of both of them.
Nail was equal to Piccolo in not only looks,but brains.He saw the chance to escape his dying body and to get Frieza.He wanted the same thing as Piccolo-revenge for all their people who had died and were still dying.So,he began to convince a skeptical Piccolo that they should do something called Namekian fusion.This would join their bodies together,the resulting Namekian being exactly the same as the base,with the base being the dominant personality,but they would have to aid them the full power of the other Namekian as well as the memories and knowledge of the other Namekian.
As Nail was fully trained and easily the most powerful Namek apart from Piccolo himself,he quickly managed to convince Piccolo that the only way for him to stand up against Frieza was to absorb Nail into himself using Fusion.
Eventually,Piccolo,seeing the need,agreed.However,he didnt know that the fusion would be permanent.
Using Piccolo as the base,the fusion was performed,and Nail was saved.Piccolo,after experiencing a brief rush of power and joy at finally being joined with one of his people,set out to find Frieza.
It was a unhappy scene the new Namek found himself upon.Frieza,in Form 2,was terrorizing Gohan,Krillin,Vegeta and Dende (the Namekian child).
As soon as Piccolo arrived he ordered the others out of the fight and Dende to safety.
Young Dende,rushing to take cover under a rock,had straight away noticed something about Piccolo the others had not.Being a smart kiddie,he quickly deducted that Nail had almost died,but had fused with Piccolo.Taking an interest in keeping Piccolo alive,to keep his big brother alive with him,made Dende keep a closer eye on the battle than before.
Meanwhile,Piccolo quickly showed Frieza he was superior in strength,speed and intellect.Soon after Frieza also got the shock of his life as Nail revealed his presence in Piccolo.
Beginning to be scared,Frieza quickly began to change to Form 3,in order to finally defeat the Namekian duo.
Frieza changed,and began to kick ass on Piccolo,but saw the Namek,despite being badly beaten,was still alive and prepared to fight and save his friends.Bemused,Frieza began his final change-to Form 4.
Seeing Gohan pick a fainting Piccolo from the sky and landing on the ground,calling his friend Dende over,attracted the transforming Frieza's attentions.Watching Dende,he saw the child's healing powers (which he was using to heal Piccolo) and made a decision-a decision which was to cost the fighters dearly.When the transformation was finished,Frieza fired a beam.
This beam sailed past Gohan,past Krillin,past a newly healed Piccolo and a newly healed Vegeta.This beam went straight through Dende's heart and then exploded,causing him a painful death.
Frieza picked off a young,defenseless child.He could have picked any of the others,who were able to defend themselves slightly,but he chose a three-year old child.
Shocked and horrified by the killing,Piccolo quickly decided that one who would attack a child should die.Unfortunately,Form 4 Frieza was faster and stronger than Piccolo.
All Piccolo could really do was wait,wait for his doom,which would probably come in the same form as Dende's,but slower...
Piccolo stakes his life to attack and aidAfter the death of Dende,what was left of the shattered Z Team realized that they now had no one to help them,and Frieza could pick them off as he liked.Frieza had a reason to kill each of them.Gohan-the strong young half-Saiyan who had almost killed Frieza when he attacked Piccolo...Krillin-the cheeky Earthling who had cut off Frieza's tail and sheltered Dende for much of the fight...Piccolo-the young Namek who had joined with one of Frieza's most irrepresible Namekian foes and used the new power to protect his friends..and Vegeta,the full-blooded Saiyan who had lived under Frieza's protection for so long.
As much as Frieza would have liked to get all of them,(being the gay idiot he is) he decided to "savour" the moment and pick off the most arrogant,Vegeta.After a brief battle in which Vegeta had intended to show Frieza the full power of "Prince Vegeta the Legendary Super Saiyan",Frieza showed himself to be the victor,and used a series of fast manueveres to attempt to trick Vegeta into killing Gohan.Luckily,Piccolo saw Frieza appear in front of Gohan while Vegeta was aiming his next shot,so using his full speed,he grabbed Gohan and Krillin,and took them away to where he thought they would be safe.
As always,things didn't go the way they had been planned.Vegeta's almost lifeless body was dumped in front of Piccolo,Gohan and Krillin,and terrified,they stood unable to help as Frieza continued to kick the crap out of dying Vegeta.Frieza,still enjoying the fear his foes were showing as he meticulously "took care" of one of the galaxy's greatest fighters,made several sick comments in Piccolo's general direction ("Dont worry,Namek,everybody gets a turn"),failed to notice that everyone else had recongized a great power heading in their direction.
At this point in time,Goku,renewed from his previous battle,showed up and said he would take care of Frieza now.Although Piccolo and Krillin strongly advised him not to go ahead,Goku entered the arena with the thought of saving Vegeta lodged in his head.
However,Vegeta was already dying,and although Goku did his best to distract Frieza,Vegeta angered Frieza with a comment that "Kakarot is the Super Saiyan",and Frieza shot Vegeta through the heart in a style similar to which he had used on Dende.
Before he died,Vegeta told his life story,and begged Goku to finish Frieza on behalf of his race,a racse now dead because of Frieza.And after a honourable burial of Vegeta at the battlefield,Goku and Frieza began their fight.
At first,Piccolo,Gohan and Krillin didn't have much of a role in the clash of the super powers.Piccolo occasionally jumped in to distract Frieza,while still keeping score and reassuring Gohan that his father would be alright.
The culmination of the battle started when Goku started his Spirit Bomb attack.This left him wide open for attack,and although Piccolo didn't know what the attack would result in (he was dead the last time it had been used),saw Goku was wide open for attack.Feeling the time had now come for him to give his all,Piccolo asked Krillin and Gohan for some of their energy and then flew straight into Frieza's face head-first,sending the gay idiot headfirst into a rock.
With Piccolo protecting him,Goku managed to complete the Spirit Bomb by drawing energy from the last of the Z Fighters,the plants and life on Namek,and the planets around Namek.When it was finally big enough to defeat Frieza,he let it fly.Unfortunately,the Spirit Bomb was so big,it also came too close to Piccolo and Goku...
When the dust cleared,there was a great pit in the sea where the island Piccolo,Goku and Frieza had fought.Wiping out the island,the Spirit Bomb had also wiped out signs of the three fighters,leaving Gohan and Krillin staring sadly at the place where they were sure their friends had perished.
The sad mood was quickly lifted when Gohan spotted Piccolo struggling to lift himself out of the water.Bleeding and exhausted,the Namekian was having severe trouble getting up until finally he lifted his other arm and they saw what he was holding-a limp arm.
Finally hoisting himself and Goku out of the water,and throwing them both onto the ground,Piccolo got the chance to look around at Namek as it had previously been before Frieza's arrival-peaceful and serene.
When Gohan and Krillin arrived (they could only move slowly because they had given their energy to Piccolo),the four fighters finally had their chance for a reunion.All that was spoiled when Krillin by chance looked up at Piccolo,looked past him and saw...Frieza,aiming his fire at Goku (that guy just never dies when you want him to,does he?).
Krillin alerted the others,who saw Frieza,and they barely had time to think before Frieza let loose a small spark aimed at Goku's chest.
Piccolo,moving quickly,knocked Goku and Krillin out of the way of the spark.Sadly,he wasn't moving fast enough and took the hit directly through the chest.
The felling of Piccolo,Gohan's mentor and the protector of the others,grieved the other three intensely.Although Goku tried to convince the others to go,Frieza had other ideas,and released another spark,which embedded itself in Krillin and then exploded.
The gory death of Krillin and having Piccolo's bleeding body at his feet caused Goku to reach a new level of grief and anger.He went out of control,and emerged blond-haired and green-eyed.
The Super Saiyan,emerging at last,ordered Gohan to take Piccolo's body back to the ship,and got set to take on Frieza...
Piccolo's Home DiesGoku had done well with giving Gohan responsibility of taking care of Piccolo's body-there was only two things Gohan wanted to do right then.One,he wanted to help his father.Two,he wanted to help Piccolo.With Goku's insistance,Gohan picked up Piccolo's body and took off,trying his hardest not to turn around and look behind him.
Whimpering comforting words to both himself and Piccolo's lifeless body,Gohan eventually sought out Goku's ship,and left Piccolo there,trying to make him comfortable.Then,he took off to find Bulma.
At the battlefield,Frieza had realized the Super Saiyan was too much for him to handle,so he performed the ultimate act of cowardice..charging a small ball of pure energy,he drove it into the heart of Namek,making the core unstable and about to blow.This,he reasoned,would not only finish off Goku,but also his pest of a son and that stupid Namek who had thwarted all his plans.Announcing the time limit to Goku,he once again got back to fighting,delaying Goku from escaping Namek.
Back on Earth,Kami had realized Piccolo had once again put his life in great danger,and had sent Mr Popo to find the Dragonballs in case Piccolo really couldn't handle the strains on his body he was forced to cope with.Then,he contacted King Kai,and they agreed upon a wish which would hopefully save Gohan,Piccolo,Goku and defeat Frieza.
The Dragonballs were gathered.The wish revived all people killed by Frieza in the past year.This allowed the Nameks,including Dende and Guru,to arise from the dead and once again take hold of life.It also resurrected Vegeta,and Porunga the Namekian Dragon,who had died before the last wish had been cast.
With the sky growing dark once again,Dende,Vegeta and Frieza all realized that Porunga was once again alive,and they all raced to the spot to cast their wishes.Frieza arrived first,and shouted at Porunga to grant him immortality.However,Porunga refused to obey,since Frieza had not wished in Namek.When Dende arrived,equipped with the knowledge of what King Kai asked of him,he wished for all on Namek to be teleported to Earth,except Frieza,and Goku (Goku asked to be left behind).
Once on Earth,everyone had the chance to gather and rejoice.Piccolo was healed once again from the brink of death by Dende,and Guru too was there.Even Vegeta had made it with the help of Porunga.
Piccolo quickly realized it was no time to be happy.Hearing what had happened while he had been comatose,he grieved for Goku and remembered his origins,that Goku had been the reason for his birth.Everybody fell silent while Piccolo talked,which ultimately ended with Piccolo admitting his respect for Goku..
"Goku..You could've come with us and been safe,but instead you chose to stay and make sure Frieza was finished.What..honour!
I was born hating you.I lived for the chance to see you die.And I was sure at the Tournament,this would be my chance.With my new ability to increase my size,I was sure I would finish you.But you defeated me with a power unlike any I'd ever seen..
Why didn't you let me stay?I wanted to fight,and die,at your side!But you saved us at the cost of your own life..You're always like that."
Soon after this,Bulma recieved the news that Namek had blown.Although Goku had defeated Frieza in the end,he hadn't been able to find his ship in time to escape Namek.
Although at first Bulma was optimistic,sure that Porunga could revive Goku,her happiness was quickly squashed.Although Porunga could revive Goku and Krillin,he'd bring them back to life where they had died..on Namek.Except,with Namek blown,they'd emerge in cold space and die once more of suffocation.
Surprisingly,Vegeta came up with the answer of wishing them to Earth's checkin station,then back to Earth.And so,everyone left for Capsule Corps (Gohan went there to avoid homework,the Nameks because they didn't have a home,and Piccolo and Vegeta because they needed somewhere temporary to stay).
130 days later,Porunga was summoned to bring back Krillin and Goku.Although he willingly brought Krillin to the station in the afterlife,he shocked everyone when he revealed that he woul not take Goku there,because Goku was still alive.And furthermore,he would not bring Goku back to Earth,for the simple reason that Goku didnt want to come back,but he would when he felt he was ready.
Out of all the people standing there,only two believed Porunga's words-Vegeta and Piccolo.They also realized that Goku was probably training some place.Vegeta decided that Goku had already gotten too far ahead of him,and stole one of Capsule Corps' ships to go and search him out.Piccolo stayed to reassure Gohan that his father would come back,and that he wasn't staying away for any other reason than that he wanted to grow stronger.Then,he turned everyone's attention to the matter at hand.
The two remaining wishes brought Krillin and Yamcha back to life-and the Namekians stayed for another 130 days.Finally,Porunga was once again summoned from his slumber to bring back Tien and Chiatzu.Finally,Dende,who had grown very close to Gohan and Piccolo,made the wish he dreaded.Holding Gohan's hands,he turned to the dragon and wished for the Nameks to be transported to a new planet,similar to the old Namek.Staying back a while,he turned back to Gohan and said,"I have to go now.I'll never forget you,Gohan,ever!"
As he said goodbye,he cried.And when the dragon took him,all that was left was a single tear on the pavement,and Gohan crying "DENDE!" to the sky...
The dragon had left one Namek..Piccolo.But even he didn't intend upon staying.In the last scene from the Namek Saga,he looked at Gohan studying,said quietly to himself,"If you ever need me,I'll be there for you,kid." Then he,too,turned and disappeared into the forest,only prepared to come back if Gohan should ever be in trouble..
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