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Kalena and three other Saiyan warriors were sent to attack and destroy all intelligent life on the Earth, so that the planet could then be sold to a suitable buyer. When they arrived they met a middle aged knight named Vasha who ruled and protected the area they landed in. He was known as Lord Vasha, Dragon Warrior. Vasha discovered their identify and purpose, then set out to stop them. He defeated the Saiyans in combat and sent them packing. Three ships left, the fourth ship belonging to Kalena was too badly damaged to fly, so she fled into the deep forest to hide and recover. Six months later, Vasha and some of his friends were out hunting. They were having a merry chase after a magnificent buck which they cornered and killed not far from an area of cave filled cliffs. It was late so they decided to camp for the night and head home the next day. A nasty storm approached, so the hunters took shelter in a nearby cavern. They sheltered the horses under the overhang at the entrance, gathered wood and made a fire. After eating, they did a bit of exploring but were too tired to more than ensure that no bears or other predators shared the cave. As the hunters prepared to settle down for the night, one of the hunting dogs was missed. A short search discovered the dog at the back of the cave contentedly chewing on something. Vasha recognized it as a piece of the armor the strange invaders had worn. The hunters encouraged the dog to lead them to the source of its treasure, which it did. The dog led them through several cracks and caves to where Kalena had collapsed after attempting to escape the intruders in her cave. The hunters prepared for battle but their only active opponent was the dog which crouched protectively before the still form. Vasha settled down to the job of calming the dog and getting a closer look at its treasure. The Saiyans armor was torn and cracked with pieces missing. The body suit underneath was ripped. Her gloves and boots were scuffed and worn and her mahogany brown hair had escaped from its complex braids, and turned into a tangled mass of twigs, leaves and dirt. Once the dog would let him approach, Vasha concentrated on her wounds. It was obvious that the warrior had done her best with the limited means available but it hadn't been enough. She was alive but not by much. Starvation had also been a serious problem. Vasha stood up and stuck the torch into a crack in the wall. Turning to his friends he gave his commands, took off his cloak, rolled up his sleeves and as they left, began to strip the clothing and armor away from the wounds to clean them. By the time his friends returned with hot water and medical supplies, Vasha was sure of the extent of the injuries and where to start. The next day they prepared a litter to carry the Saiyan, broke camp and headed back to Dragon's Lair, Vasha's hereditary castle. Once they arrived Vasha took his patient to his healer mother who was his official hostess until he married. All life was sacred in her eyes so she did not hesitate to begin work on her strange new patient. After his mother had finished, Vasha came in to see the results of her work. The sight of the clean Saiyan face caused his mind to flashback. When the Saiyans had first arrived their clothing and manner had distracted him from their looks. During the battle, survival had dominated his thoughts. During his doctoring of her injuries, his only thought had been keeping her alive. Now he saw that she was quite beautiful if one ignored her tail. His mother had seated herself in a chair nearby, waiting silently for her son to speak. "It's okay Mother, I don't think she really wanted to come here or attack us in the first place, but was a warrior under orders." His mother raised her eyebrows in unspoken question. Vasha answered. "Why did I bring her here - it's simple. She was hurt and needed help. The codes of a warrior demands that such help be given." "With her ship destroyed she is trapped here," his mother murmured, "After the thrashing you gave them, there isn't much use hoping that they might come back for her.... Well, we will just have to help her get adjusted to her new life as quickly and painlessly as possible. It is a good thing she looks human. It will be easy to hide her tail under the long skirts we wear. Her hair and facial features aren't that strange either so that won't give her any unwelcome attention except with the young bachelors. The women might react a little jealously toward her because of her rare and unique beauty but that will pass in time." Vasha stared at his mother. She raised her eyebrow again questioning his thoughts. "You are right in thinking that they might not come back for her, in fact if they do return it will be to finish the job." Confusion showed on her face. "Her ship was only damaged but it could still fly. It wasn't destroyed until after the battle. It is surprising that she survived as she was laying half in and half out of it when it happened." The older woman gasped and looked from her son to the injured stranger and finally to the clear blue sky outside the window. "You mean to say that her own people stranded her here and that they might come back to finish her off." Vasha nodded. "I saw the whole thing. I watched her struggle toward her ship and when she was almost within its safety, the other three showed up. They hovered in the air and a big argument followed. They came to a decision and together they threw some kind of strange energy at the ship. The lady got thrown clear by the blast; the ship disintegrated. She was laying there in the dust, and they weren't going any where so I took the time to patch myself up and catch my breath. When I looked again, she was standing, swaying half hidden by the dust, staring at the blackened remains of her ship. She hadn't noticed the rest of them until they started to go back to their own crafts. Then she seemed to realize that they were the ones who had done it. She stiffened for a minute then went after them." Vasha's mother gasped. "I think they sensed her coming because they were ready, waiting for her and didn't give her a chance to strike." Vasha paused, rubbed a hand over his worn face, then looked at his mother again. She was shocked at how old and shaken he looked. "I'm not kidding mother, what I saw wasn't a fight. It was a slaughter. They attacked even when she was down and barely moving. One of them signaled a cease fire then landed and approached. He spoke to her. He was facing me so I was able to read his lips, I couldn't get it all but I think he said. "Sorry about this Kalena, .... orders not to let you leave the planet alive .... Laqui .... convinced us ... maroon you here .... use brute force if you prove to be difficult." The woman warrior pulled herself upright using a large rock. She said something but her back was to me so I couldn't see. The big one said (Vasha closed his eyes to remember better) "...... done nothing ....... too strong and powerful .......big bosses ..... comfortable ...... don't trust you ......... not that I wouldn't mind .........., ........ Laqui can ..... his son .......... Raffa ... old enough ....... on his own ..... good care from the rest of us. ..... doesn't need .... mother." "Laqui ...... loved you too much ....." Vasha opened his eyes and stared at his mother's shocked face. "There's more - she half turned and I could half read her lips then too." "..... okay Sornor, .... not your fault ....... dirty job. ....... was rather odd ....... assigned to go .... you ..... others. ... don't ...... leave ... planet ..... missions ....... ....... more protection .... armor ... guarantee the survival ............. addition ..... family." Vasha started to chuckle "That really shocked the big one - he started shouting and lip reading was redundant! His exact words were: "WHAT! YOU mean to tell me that you are pregnant and didn't tell! YOU didn't protest this mission. YOU allowed us to thrash you so bad that you almost died. YOU endangered your unborn child..............!!!!" He sputtered to a halt and stood there with clenched fists, glaring at her. She leaned more against the rock and smiled then threw back her head and laughed aloud. I could hear her clearly - she wanted them all to hear her. "You never did like surprises! It's really too bad that you won't ever see your new nephew and Laqui his son," she paused and gently laid a hand over the only part of her uniform and armor not damaged, "Now, even if I could leave this primitive backwater planet, I wouldn't. I like it here! If a place like this can produce warriors like the one that defeated us, it can't be all that bad." "How long Kalena??!!!" "How long have I known or how long have I been expecting?" She snarled with sheer enjoyment and crouched down into battle position, bracing herself firmly on the ground. All three male Saiyans shouted in surprise as their sensors registered her surge of power then overloaded! "Sur-prise, it's pay back time. Here's something to remember me by!" Vasha laughed and said "In the end she had them staggering and dancing all over the place as her blasts drove them back to their ships. Her final move was to cross her arms at the wrists above her head then slowly bring them down in front of her, saying "NOVA!" then down to her chest saying "TRIPLE!" causing three large balls of energy formed in a triangle where her arms crossed. They grew as she continued to lower her arms. Shouting the word "STRIKE!!!" sent them on their way." Vasha's grin was full of admiration. "The released balls targeted the ships, one ball per ship." "Is that what those blinding flashes of light and deafening explosions were?" His mother asked. "Apparently she didn't know her own strength because the force of the explosion picked her up and carried her into the forest. It even blew me ass over tea kettle down the hill and knocked me silly! I have looked in that part of the forest almost every day since. I wanted to find her before it was too late. I brought her home because she will be safer here and there is no one that I would trust to look after her like you would." His mother blushed and looked very pleased with the compliment. The elder woman stood up and went to check on her patient. The girl was sleeping soundly. They had even managed to clean the loose dirt out of her hair, brush it and braid it. She turned to her son "Her wounds are bad but not life threatening. As for her unborn child, well, only time will tell." Vasha had been gazing thoughtfully into the fire as his mother worked. Now he surprised his mother by saying "Mother, you know how much you've been at me to marry and give you grandchildren to love and to spoil!" She lifted her eyebrow at him. "What would you say and how would you feel if I told you that I had finally met and fallen in love with the perfect woman!" "Well, I no doubt would say that it is about time Vasha dear. Who is she?" "We've been talking about her for most of the day." His mother gasped and spun around to face her patient on the bed. "It's okay mother, I'm not in any hurry to get married yet. Kalena has to get better first and then there is her coming child to be born. I want to give you both time to get to know each other, I also want to give her time to get use to her new home." He stepped forward and hugged her to him, kissed the top of her silver streaked head. She sighed and resigned herself to the fact that her only child was in love, even though the woman he loved was a complete stranger to their world. |