Chapter 53: Commander Appule vs The Prince of All Saiyans!

"Don't get too cocky over a cheap shot! I'll show you the power of a true elite Saiyan!" Vegeta began powering up as he stopped himself from flying.

Appule couldn't help but silently admire Vegeta's new form, the golden hair atop his head. He acknowledged that this battle might be more challenging than he had initially thought.

His power has increased massively now that his hair has changed color. If he encountered this Vegeta before his training on Yardrat, he would have to fall back for reinforcement. But now, it was a different story. The bizarre techniques of the Yardratians were very useful. Even though Prince Vegeta in this new form of his was stronger than Appule, he wasn't worried he could lose his life here.

Controlling his ki, Appule split himself into four. Vegeta didn't hesitate to launch one of his clones into the sky with a punch across the cheek. Just as the clone was being punched, it managed to land a blow of its own on Vegeta. The three others rushed Vegeta, surrounding him completely. They attacked simultaneously from all angles.

Vegeta blocked, deflected, and attacked in response to their combination assault. Six arms, six legs, a violent whirlwind of attacks, and Prince Vegeta was still capable of keeping up with them. All three versions of Appule hid a grin even when Vegeta was pummeling them to a pulp. There was a punch that sent one clone deep underground. A kick that struck a clone in the chest with enough force to show an imprint from the back. And for Appule himself, an up-close and personal energy beam to the stomach that sent him flying away. Each clone vanished from sight as Appule stared at Hell's red sky.

"What a pretty sight…" Appule shielded himself from the bright blue shine above.

"I told you! You are nothing compared to the Prince of all Saiyans!" Vegeta clenched his fist as he stood over Appule with a victorious grin. His chest heaved up and down as the exhaustion of the battle caught up to him.

"I suppose so, Prince Vegeta. Are you going to kill me now?" Appule looked into the Saiyan Prince's eyes.

"Welcome to Hell, you long-headed freak." Vegeta maliciously grinned as he brought his hands back, a purple orb glowing in between his hands.

"Wai-" Vegeta unleashed his Galick Gun with no hesitation.

The beam engulfed Appule, reducing him to dust. Prince Vegeta stood above the ashes of his opponent with a smirk on his face. "If this is how strong a single member of the Crusher Force is, it won't be long until I can crush Turles himself!" Vegeta laughed to himself.

"You're far from Captain Turles's level." Appule suddenly appeared behind Vegeta, putting him in a Full-Nelson.

"What?!" Vegeta struggled to free himself.

"Captain Turles has reached a level that someone like you could never reach, Prince." A second Appule crawled out from the ground.

"A level far beyond that regular mortals like us could imagine." A third Appule came flying across the horizon.

"What the hell is happening?!" Vegeta fiercely wrestled to overpower Appule, but for some reason, he couldn't gather all of his strength. "I'm a Super Saiyan! You can't possibly hold a match to me!"

The legendary strength of a Super Saiyan! It was what gave Kakarot the ability to kill Frieza. And Vegeta planned to use it to kill Turles. He wasn't foolish enough to think that the Super Saiyan form alone would be enough to kill Turles. But, there must be a difference between a royal-born achieving Super Saiyan compared to a low-class Saiyan like Kakarot achieving it. Otherwise, why would there be a class difference in the first place?! Kakarot was just lucky enough to stumble upon it first, but Vegeta would be the one who reclaims it for the elite!

"You aren't too bright, are you, Prince Vegeta?" Appule kept a tight hold on Vegeta as he chuckled.

The two Appule laughed as they walked up to the pinned Super Saiyan Vegeta. "A little payback is in order, I'd say." They said simultaneously. At the same time, they unleashed blows on the trapped Saiyan Prince. Two roundhouse kicks slammed into Vegeta's waist on both sides. He cried out in pain as he could actually feel their attacks now.

Multiple attacks to the chest, stomach, and face caused the prince to feel even weaker. His resistance turned to nothing, even if his pride wasn't willing to admit defeat to Turles's lackey. 

"Weren't you wondering why I didn't just run away when we both knew you were stronger than me?" Appule questioned. "It was because I knew I had the chance to turn things around with your arrogance, Prince Vegeta…" He started to laugh. "Those Yardratians are a lot more handy than we thought. They aren't freaks with bizarre techniques unique to themselves. They can be taught to anyone with the fortitude to withstand their training." Appule watched as Vegeta's hair went back to its original color.

"What have you done to me…?!" Vegeta demanded.

"I separated your energy into that." Appule kicked the back of Vegeta's legs, dropping him to his knees before pulling his hair back to stare into the sky. His remaining clones returned back to his original body.

A massive blue orb was shining high in the sky. "That's all your Super Saiyan ki, Prince Vegeta. Every full-contact hit you allowed me to make went into that. Slowly separating your energy every attack." Appule explained. "I'm grateful Captain Turles taught us how to take advantage of an opponent's arrogance." Appule mockingly laughed.

Vegeta gritted his teeth in anger and frustration. It was one thing to be killed by Turles, the mutant of a low-class Saiyan that somehow replaced Frieza. It was an entirely different matter of being defeated by his lackey! Vegeta shouted to the heavens as he brought forth all of what he had left of his pride. His hair shifted to bright yellow as Appule was blown away.

"Still got some fight left? I'm actually amazed, Prince Vegeta." Appule raised his hand.

The ball of energy came shooting toward his body. As Appule absorbed the energy of a Super Saiyan, his body bulked up considerably in his efforts to take proper control of the great ki. Vegeta, in his rage, didn't let this opportunity for revenge just pass by. He rushed toward Appule and gave him everything he had.

Punch after punch, kick after kick, just constant hard-hitting blows one after the other. Appule had no choice but to take it lest he wanted all of this free power to be wasted. Although Prince Vegeta may have gotten a second wind or something, Appule didn't believe his life was in danger, even if he was being beaten to the brink of death through Prince Vegeta's fists.

"How do you like my arrogance now, you fool?! The Prince of all Saiyans is no one's toy!" Vegeta's fist smashed against Appule's cheek, a spray of blood shot out from his mouth.

"You wanted my energy right?" Vegeta began charging up an attack toward the immobile Appule. "Take all of it! You greedy bastard." He unleashed a large purple energy wave that towered over both himself and Appule in size.

Just like before, the energy wave consumed Appule's body in its entirety. It was impossible to see if there was anything left of him as smoke filled the area. Vegeta let out a victorious laugh. "I will get my revenge, Turles! I will be the strongest Saiyan that has ever lived!" Vegeta vowed. The Prince of all Saiyans began to fly off into other parts of Hell now that he's proved his strength.

As he was flying off, he suddenly felt himself being restricted and strung up by something. Vegeta flexed in an attempt to free himself, but it did nothing as whatever was restraining him got even tighter! Then, he was suddenly pulled back to where he killed Appule. The smoke finally cleared as Vegeta was soaring through the air. He came to a sudden stop as he looked into the grinning face of the not-dead Appule!

"Captain Turles always reminded us to double-tap our foes to ensure they were defeated or killed. I can see why now…" A visible light-purple aura of energy surrounded Appule, along with his muscles bulking up, similar to that of the Super Saiyan transformation.

"ROOOAHHH!!!" Vegeta used all of his power to break free of the invisible force stringing him up in place.

"It was fun catching up, Prince Vegeta. But I have my mission to accomplish. I'll play with you another time." Appule flexed his fingers.

The energy threads began draining Vegeta of his energy. Appule hated that he had to rely on a technique mainly used by Mepple to deal with the Prince. Utilizing the principles behind Forced Spirit Fission and having the control to shape his ki into incredibly thin but resilient string, he could separate the energy of his foes and directly absorb them into his body! No matter how Vegeta yelled and screamed, he was helpless to resist, as every second he was trapped, the weaker he got and the stronger Appule became. He would have to pay Mepple back for this. Perhaps he could've died here if not for this technique. And he would need to invent his own unique technique. Captain Turles had one, Bonyu had one, Sai had one, and he was the only member of the Crusher Force who didn't have a special move of his own! Appule did not count Naba as she was not a combatant.

Eventually, Vegeta's hair shifted back to black, and Appule made his way back to the other Frieza Force members in Hell. "As I was saying earlier, those willing to follow Lord Turles and have a second chance at living, stand over there." Vegeta was an unconscious floating body behind Appule as he gave these orders.

"My son…" King Vegeta couldn't believe his eyes.

"Vegeta was the Super Saiyan of legends! How could this have happened?!" The Queen of all Saiyans was in a similar state of shock.

"Lord Turles's capabilities exceed anything you could imagine." Appule knew he would never have reached anywhere near this level of power if he didn't join the Crusher Force. It was only thanks to Lord Turles that he is the man he is today…