Chapter 1
Smoke rose from the scorched ground, the stink of charred meat rising up into the air with it and permeating his hair and clothes as he surveyed his handiwork. How many years had passed? Twenty? He ran some quick calculations as his eyes remained on the creatures he had slaughtered, but it all amounted to the same thing: too much time had passed, and still he wasn’t strong enough to defeat Freeza. He knew he was incredibly strong, he could feel the raw power coursing through his veins, but he still wasn’t close to Freeza’s level. He felt someone approaching but didn’t bother to turn around, merely smirked at the ground once again.
“My Prince,” the voice said behind him. “I see you had great success once
again.”
“Enough, Nappa,” Vegeta spat, keeping his arms crossed. “What do you want?”
Nappa glanced around at the mounds of bodies piled around his leader with
satisfaction. “Lord Freeza requests our presence at his ship for reassignment.”
Vegeta snorted and felt his scowl deepen. “You mean he wants us to show up so
he can swap one of us for Radditz,” he corrected angrily.
“Did he really think we wouldn’t figure it out? Does he really believe that as long as he keeps one of us as a hostage the other two won’t act up?”
“I don’t know, sir,” Nappa mumbled, shifting his bulk and steeling himself for
one of the Prince’s ranting sessions.
“As if we cared enough about one another to be bothered if one of us were
killed!” Vegeta grumbled. “It only matters to anyone if I die, and Freeza won’t
kill me. You know he’s just waiting for me to get strong enough to challenge
him so he can have an excuse to kill me. In the meantime we’re just free
labor.”
“Yes, sir,” Nappa agreed. “We should be getting back...”
“Shut up. Who said you could talk?” Vegeta snapped, turning around at last. His
eyes were ablaze with rage that bordered upon insanity, and Nappa had stopped
pretending years ago that Vegeta didn’t know the truth of what had happened to
their home planet. He couldn’t blame the prince for being so volatile, but he
wasn’t going to help matters in this state. Nappa glanced at Vegeta again
briefly before lowering his eyes to the ground. “That’s better,” Vegeta said.
“Now let’s get going before Freeza gets suspicious.”
Nappa nodded and followed the little man in the direction of their pods,
staring at Vegeta’s back and wondering when the prince would be strong enough
to defeat Freeza. Would Vegeta fulfill the legend of the Super Saiyan? If
anyone would, it would be Vegeta. His power levels increased with every battle,
and even now he could best most of Freeza’s minions, with the exception of the
Ginyu Squad. The Prince no longer even used a scouter, but had begun to
inherently sense where his enemies stood. Nappa allowed himself a small, icy
smile as they landed by the space pods, and he wondered if all the faith that
he and Radditz put in the small Saiyan prince was justified. He shot another
glance at Vegeta and saw the prince looking back at him, eyes still warm with
anger. “What are you thinking, Nappa?” Vegeta said, voice low and dangerous.
“Are you capable of thinking at all?”
Nappa suppressed a scowl. There was no reason for the Prince to lash out at
him. Just because he was a little slow didn’t mean that Vegeta had the
right...or maybe he did. Nappa knew his limitations, and Vegeta was his prince,
after all. “Nothing, Vegeta,” Nappa replied, lowering his eyes.
“That’s what I thought,” Vegeta said with a sneer, climbing into his pod.
Nappa watched Vegeta’s pod seal itself, then climbed into his own, punching in
the homing code to set the coordinates for Freeza’s ship. He felt his ship whir
to life, the excited fluttering that accompanied space travel rising in his
stomach. Nappa settled back into his seat, readying himself for a relaxing
flight away from the high-strung Saiyan prince, when the communicator on his
console began to flash. Nappa scowled, looking at the flashing blue light that
indicated a private conference. Who on earth would want to talk to him on a
private frequency? Freeza would have put it through to both him and Vegeta.
Nappa punched in his acceptance code and waited for a moment as the heard the
radio static clear. “Nappa,” he heard a familiar voice crackle as the frequency
stabilized.
“Radditz,” Nappa said, surprised. “What is it?”
He heard Radditz clear his throat. “This little game of Freeza’s is almost
over. He’s very fond of Vegeta, but I think you and I have reached the end of
our usefulness.”
“What do you mean?” Nappa said with alarm.
“I think Freeza realizes that as long as Vegeta feels that he has backup he
will do his damnedest to destroy Freeza and everything he has.”
“What does that have to do with us?” Nappa snapped.
Radditz sighed. “We’re the backup, Nappa. If Freeza destroys us Vegeta will be
all alone.”
“Why does Freeza want Vegeta all alone?” Nappa wondered, and heard Radditz
gurgle in frustration.
“Because Freeza fears Vegeta, but he’s too valuable to waste. We’re not.”
“Watch your tone,” Nappa cautioned, not liking a subordinate to speak that way
to him.
There was a brief pause. “My apologies, Commander,” Radditz said quietly.
“How did you find all this out?”
“I overheard that Freeza’s sending all of us out to clear Rihon 8. With
Zarbon.”
“What?” Nappa said, eyebrows shooting up as he stared at the stars zooming past
his pod’s window. “But he never sends all of us out at once! Who would he keep
for insurance?”
“He doesn’t need insurance any more. He figures that if Vegeta doesn’t have us
at all he won’t have to worry. We’re no longer insurance. He realizes that
Vegeta doesn’t really care about us.”
Nappa scowled at empty space. Radditz was just like his father, far too cheeky
and intelligent for his own good. “So why Zarbon? Why not send you and me out
to a planet where we have no chance, keeping the Prince out of it altogether?”
There was silence. “Zarbon is going to exterminate us right in front of Vegeta
and remind him how strong Freeza and his minions are. I think they’re trying to
scare him.”
Nappa barked a laugh. “Heh! You know as well as I do that Vegeta doesn’t care
about us. The only thing killing us is going to do is piss him off!”
Nappa could hear the smile in Radditz’s voice. “I know that. Freeza doesn’t.
But Vegeta’s going to need us. He’s not the legendary Super Saiyan yet.”
“So Zarbon goes with us. Say he doesn’t kill us, that the three of us get him
instead. That’ll just piss off Freeza. How on earth do we expect to fight all
of Freeza’s empire?”
Nappa was met with a long silence. He wondered for a moment if someone had
caught Radditz making the transmission and terminated him, but then he heard
the other soldier’s voice. “I don’t think we can. We’ll have to plan. We’ll
discuss it when we meet again?” Radditz whispered.
“That is correct, soldier,” Nappa said and terminated the signal.
“Sir, I’m afraid I don’t follow you,” Zarbon said, holding his hands rigidly at
his sides as he looked at the back of Freeza’s hoverchair.
“I told you. You’re going to Rihon 8 and there you will destroy Vegeta’s
underlings. Do what you have to to get Vegeta out of the way, but bring him
back alive, and be sure it looks like an accident,” Freeza replied coldly, the
tip of his tail flicking back and forth at the fringes of Zarbon’s vision.
“Why not destroy Vegeta as well, sir?” Zarbon asked.
Freeza sighed. “He could be extremely powerful,” he replied.
“But then shouldn’t he be destroyed?”
“He could also be useful. Besides, he’s so temperamental that he’s
entertaining, don’t you think?”
“I don’t approve of the look in his eyes, sir,” Zarbon confided, not mentioning
that he often didn’t like the look in Freeza’s eyes either.
“What harm could one little monkey be to us?” Freeza replied with a laugh.
Zarbon didn’t comment on the fact that Freeza thought that three little monkeys
would be extremely dangerous.
“As you wish, sir,” Zarbon mumbled, and left the room.
Dodoria stopped Zarbon as he left Freeza’s chamber. Zarbon glanced at the warty
pink thing, thinking how disgusted he was to hear Dodoria’s heavy, wet
breathing. His lip curled a little before he could smooth out his features, and
he waited for Dodoria to make the inevitable comment. “Lord Freeza’s going to
destroy the Saiyans?” Dodoria burbled.
Zarbon nodded coldly. “Except for the little princeling. Vegeta is to be kept
alive.”
Dodoria sharply took in a breath. “You have got to be kidding!” Dodoria hissed.
“He’s the most dangerous!”
A cool smile stretched across Zarbon’s perfect lips. “I agree, but you know
Lord Freeza once he gets his heart set on something.”
Dodoria’s eyes narrowed under his fleshy brow ridges. “I’ve heard those Saiyans
do something called bonding. Do you think Vegeta and Freeza...” he trailed off,
glancing away purposefully and putting his hands behind his expansive back.
Zarbon scowled, mouth puckering with revulsion. “Good god, I certainly hope
not. I can’t imagine Lord Freeza would be...attracted...to such a little beast.
Still, it would explain a lot,” he muttered, raising a finger and pressing it
to his upper lip in thought.
Dodoria darted several glances around them, then stepped a little closer to
Zarbon. “I overheard your mission objective, Zarbon,” Dodoria said, voice low,
and Zarbon’s nose wrinkled as he watched Dodoria sweat. “Do you think you could
‘accidentally’ take care of all the Saiyans?”
Zarbon shut his eyes in exasperation. “I would love to,” he agreed.
“Unfortunately, something about that Vegeta fascinates Freeza no end. I imagine
there would be heavy penalties to pay for anyone who interferes. Do you fancy
taking the brunt of Freeza’s wrath?” he said quietly.
Dodoria shuddered. “No,” he answered decidedly, eyes darting to and fro from
within the scaly purple folds underneath his eyes. Sweat poured between the
horny protrusions on his head. “It’s just that the attachment seems
so...unhealthy,” Dodoria murmured.
Zarbon smiled again and nodded. “Lord Freeza loves to tempt fate,” he replied,
and walked off down the hall.
Radditz was waiting for them at the edge of the landing area when they arrived.
He saluted Vegeta as the smaller man climbed out of his pod. Vegeta snorted in
reply and stretched lazily, raising his muscular arms to the sky. Nappa climbed
out of his pod as well, receiving another respectful salute from Radditz along
with another, more meaningful look. “The mission went well, sire?” Radditz
said, knee-length hair blowing in a draft.
“The mission was pitifully simple,” Vegeta said bitterly. “I must ask Freeza to
give us something more challenging.”
“I’m sure he will, sir,” Radditz said slowly, glancing at Nappa once again.
Vegeta noticed the look and raised an eyebrow.
“Vegeta, will you make the report or shall I?” Nappa interjected, not wanting
to get stuck in the middle of a staring battle between Radditz and the Prince.
Vegeta snorted in disdain and tucked his hands under the opposite biceps. “I’ll
do it,” Vegeta said, tone bored. “After all, it might as well be done right.”
Radditz saw Nappa’s jaw clench and understood the other man’s feelings on the
difficulty of treating the Prince with the proper respect. “As you say,
Vegeta,” Nappa said as he tried to hold all of the growls out of his voice.
“Shall I fetch the reassignments?” Radditz said quickly, not wanting things to
get too horrible before they were sent out once again. They would need all
their energy just to save their own lives.
“No, I’ll just get them from Freeza,” Vegeta said with a wave of a gloved hand
and sauntered down the hallway.
Nappa and Radditz watched him go, their faces mirror images of apprehension.
“He’s too confident,” Radditz whispered.
“Wouldn’t you be?” Nappa answered quietly. “He has the capacity to be the
strongest fighter in the universe.”
Radditz shook his head. “But he isn’t, not yet. Freeza’s two goons, the Ginyu
Squad, and Freeza are still all stronger. And they’re all his enemies.”
Nappa scowled. “Well, hopefully he’s strong enough, or we’re all done for.” He
looked around for a sign that anyone had been listening. Privacy was hard to
come by in the heart of Freeza’s empire. “I’ve gotta take a shower,” Nappa
growled, and began to stalk off towards his quarters. He heard Radditz fall
into step behind him.
“When we get there I’ve got something else to tell you,” Radditz said.
“Why don’t you tell me now?” Nappa snapped, impatient to get to his quarters
and not wanting the third-class soldier to stall him further.
“It’s very important,” Radditz cautioned. Nappa stopped in his tracks and
turned on the other man, scowling furiously and obviously out of patience.
“Let’s have it, then,” Nappa snapped. Radditz shifted his gaze nervously.
“Kakarott is probably still alive,” Radditz whispered close to Nappa’s ear and
was rewarded with Nappa’s look of abject shock.
“What?”
“I snuck a look at the scouting reports, trying to see what was on Rihon 8 so
we can prepare ourselves. In that section of the reports was one that the
planet called Earth was never destroyed. That’s the planet that Kakarott was
supposed to destroy. There couldn’t possibly be a power high enough on that
planet to kill a Saiyan, so he’s probably still alive, although I can’t imagine
what happened that wouldn’t allow him to fulfill his mission.”
Nappa looked at the other Saiyan from under lowered brows. This one was just
like his father, as he had thought before, too smart for his own good. “If
Earth still exists and Kakarott still lives then he is a traitor and of no use
to us.”
“Four Saiyans would increase our chances,” Radditz hissed.
“You’re just saying that because you’re weak like your father,” Nappa spat.
“You’re merely defending your brother and protecting your family interests.”
Rage flashed across Radditz’s face. “Don’t you dare insult my father!” he
growled, hands balling into fists. “He was the only one of us who suspected
Freeza!”
“So what? He wasn’t strong enough to do anything about it!” Nappa chuckled.
“He was stronger than you think! He also had a brain in his head, which is more
than I can say about your thick-skulled line!” Radditz snarled.
Nappa raised a hand, about to strike the other soldier, when soft laughter
invaded the hallway. The two Saiyans froze and Nappa turned around slowly.
Zarbon stood in the hallway, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed
against his chest. “You Saiyans are so touchy, arguing over family honor when
your families no longer exist!” he chuckled. “It will be a pleasure to
fight...alongside...you on Rihon 8.”
Nappa stared Zarbon’s narrowed eyes. “Hey, pretty boy, we’re a hell of a lot
stronger than you think,” he cautioned. Radditz snarled in agreement.
“Beasts usually are strong, but they have no brains to match their brawn.
That’s why beasts like you haven’t taken over the known universe. I’m fairly
interested to know what you plan to do once we’re on Rihon 8.”
“We plan to clear the planet, as instructed by Lord Freeza,” a voice said from
behind Zarbon, and the green-skinned man turned slowly. “What else would you
have us do, Zarbon?”
“I can’t imagine that anyone would ever do anything other than what Lord Freeza
orders,” Zarbon replied, avoiding the black stare of the speaker. There was
something about the little Prince that struck him as dangerous, although he had
no reason to fear the Saiyans.
“Of course not,” Vegeta said with a sneer. “Leave us now, Zarbon. I desire to
speak with my men.”
Zarbon’s lip curled. “I will do as you wish Vegeta, but only because it serves
my own purposes. Remember your place,” he snapped, and stormed off down the
hall.
Vegeta feigned a sigh. “He’s so touchy,” Vegeta said, raising an eyebrow in
rare humor. “Maybe his braid is too tight.”
Radditz smiled and Nappa shot him a warning look, causing Radditz to hastily
school his features. “What was it you wished to say, sir?” Nappa said.
Vegeta’s features settled back into their customary expression of anger. “We’re
to be heading off to Rihon 8 to clear it. All of us. With Zarbon, to boot.
That’s a lot of manpower to clear a planet with no inhabitants of significant
power levels,” Vegeta said, darting a glance down the hall in the direction
that Zarbon had gone. “Freeza’s playing a little game.”
“And your orders, sir?” Nappa asked, looking at Vegeta expectantly.
Vegeta’s mouth pressed into a thin line. “As soon as we land we shall take
Zarbon by surprise and destroy him. However, this will let Freeza know that we
were aware of his plans before we set out. Therefore one of you must die as
well, to make it appear that Zarbon had his chance to attack first. It will be
a painless death, administered by myself personally, as opposed to whatever
Zarbon planned to inflict upon us. I advise you decide amongst yourselves which
of you I destroy.”
Nappa and Radditz looked at him at shock. “But, sir, there are only three of us
left!” Nappa protested.
“And three isn’t enough to do anything, so it might as well be two. Neither of
you would be any help to me at any rate. Only I have the potential to become
strong enough to defeat Freeza,” Vegeta said coldly, folding his arms across
his chest. “I will hear your decision shortly before planet fall,” he said, and
walked away.
Nappa and Radditz stared after him, dumbfounded. “He’s a monster,” Radditz
whispered to himself.
“Watch what you say about our Prince,” Nappa said with a gulp. “We have to do
what he says.”
“Admit it, Nappa,” Radditz said angrily. “Vegeta doesn’t care about us. He
doesn’t care about the Saiyan race. Now whichever one of us is left will have
to find a way to fetch Kakarott, if he still lives,” he said, going cold.
“Which I guess means me,” Nappa said, not looking at Radditz.
“What?”
“I outrank you, soldier. Consider it an honor to die in the direct service of
the Prince,” Nappa replied, and continued on to his quarters.
“I hate being at the bottom of the ladder,” Radditz snarled, and stalked off in
the other direction.
Zarbon walked back into the antechamber and waited for Freeza to acknowledge
him. The tip of Freeza’s tail flicked back and forth as Zarbon waited, the only
motion in the otherwise-still room. It was one of those rare moments during
which Freeza was unattended, and Zarbon would have liked to immediately seize
the opportunity to speak frankly to his lord, but was forced to wait as the
tail continued to move. Just when Zarbon felt that the silence was going to
swallow him whole Freeza sighed and the hoverchair slowly turned to him. “What
is it, Zarbon?” Freeza said, voice sounding burdened.
“I would just like to report that perhaps the Saiyans are on to our plans,
sir,” Zarbon said, posture rigid and hands held behind his back.
“What of it?” Freeza asked, bored as he swished around the liquid in the glass
he held.
Zarbon blinked, expecting some sort of reaction out of Freeza. “There will be
no change of plans, sir?” he said, trying to hide his surprise.
Freeza narrowed his eyes. “No, Zarbon, there will be no change of plans. You’re
not afraid of them, are you?” he asked, a mirthless smile spreading across his
dark lips.
“Certainly not,” Zarbon sniffed, tossing his braid over his shoulder with a
shake of his head.
“Then what are you worried about?” Freeza said, leaning back in his chair and
putting a finger to his chin as his other hand continued to swirl his drink.
“Do you think that their knowledge will make any difference in the outcome?”
“No, sir,” Zarbon admitted.
“I didn’t think so,” Freeza replied, letting his gaze slide away from Zarbon’s
perfect face.
“I am still much stronger than they. It would take more than three measly
Saiyans to take me down,” Zarbon said, his lip curling.
Freeza smiled coldly, showing his white teeth. “I should hope so, but still
don’t underestimate them,” he said softly. “And especially don’t kill Vegeta.
Remember, no matter how you panic, I want him brought back alive.”
“That is understood, sir,” Zarbon said, beginning to feel uncomfortable.
“If you fail me, Zarbon, and you let Vegeta get killed or fail to kill those
other two, your life will be forfeit,” Freeza said, his smile turning into a
snarl.
Zarbon swallowed. “If I may ask a question, sir?” he said gently.
One of Freeza’s eyes widened a little in curiosity. “I suppose,” he said
nonchalantly.
“Why keep Vegeta alive?”
“The same reason I keep you around, Zarbon. I like looking at pretty things.”
“Vegeta, pretty?” Zarbon blurted without thinking, then paling as Freeza’s
expression darkened.
“He is handsome in a different way than you, Zarbon. Besides, he will be very
strong someday, and it interests me to have the strongest from the races I have
defeated serve me. Do you have a problem with this, Zarbon?” Freeza asked,
voice low and dangerous.
Zarbon suppressed the panic rising in the pit of his abdomen. “Absolutely not,
sir,” he stammered, feeling cold sweat break out along his hairline.
“Then you are dismissed,” Freeza said coldly. “Report to the launch area in
three hours.”
Zarbon bowed to his lord and backed out of the room as quickly as possible.
*~*~*~*~*