Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Being of Sound Mind and Body ❯ Tournament ( Chapter 8 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z.

Author's Notes: Well, to make up for the last chapter, here's a lighter chapter. It's much longer, and I'm told the most entertaining chapter. See for yourself.

Additional note: The tournament may sound familiar. Check out the first tournament in original Dragonball to see what I mean. Compare characters.

Chapter 8: Tournament

Xientlap once told me this story from his planet. It was supposed to be some kind of moralistic parable, but his code of ethics must have been vastly different from mine, because I don't get it. Seemed to be important to him though. You wanna hear it? Well, if you don't, then you should stop reading. What kind of person are you, anyway? Not even wanting to humor a dead man.

I must be getting severely stir-crazy. I'm not usually like this. All right, the story. A man walks into a bar-no, that's not it. Ok, a man was given one wish in all the universe by a dream fairy. The man waited a day to decide and chose to have his greatest enemy killed. The man was instantly struck dead, for such a wish made himself his greatest enemy.

Now, don't misunderstand me. I have the greatest respect for Xientlap. He was a great warrior, a good comrade, a man of character, which was hard to come by, but what type of story is that? First of all, wouldn't a dream fairy give you good dreams or make your dreams real? Why does it have the appellation "dream" anyway? Also, the story didn't tell what the man did to earn the wish. Usually such opportunities don't fall into one's lap by happenstance. The story would have been more interesting, less didactic, and would have told more about the man's character. We know nothing about this man, not even his name. All we know is that he's indecisive. That was his true mistake. He took too long in making the decision. Usually, if you mull over a decision, your judgment is less certain and more open to bad influence. You should always make a decision quickly, and then take as much time as you can on planning. It's more how you do something and how effective you are than what you actually do. Not that this man was worrying about planning. With planning, he could have realized long ago that his enemy must die, and then killed him himself. That would have eliminated the uncertainty of wishing. I mean, he placed his faith in a stupid fairy, which killed him. What kind of fairy is this? Did it really have the right to judge the wishes made? The fairy turned it into this whole moral pacifist lesson by killing the man. Hypocrisy and stupidity. Should a pacifist fairy be killing people? And how are the dead supposed to learn these lessons? Wouldn't killing the man make the fairy the man's greatest enemy? No wonder Frieza destroyed their planet.

I actually expressed some of these thought to Xientlap, but he just nodded and smiled in that infuriatingly condescending manner of the morally superior. Well, he was the last person to be preaching pacifism and he knew it. So I humored him occasionally when he felt the urge to tell such stories. He was just trying to grasp for a happier past, and I understood that. But that didn't mean I agreed with him on all counts.

Ok, now that I've ranted enough I'll talk about what's really important, at least for this document. Me. My life. Specifically, the ten years I spent in one of Zarbon's elite squadrons. I've already spoken of five years-every other year when we went on a purging tour. They were all the same. We got older, more experienced, but they were all the same. Same ship, same company, same card tournaments, same missions-are you getting the picture? Those years weren't very interesting. It was the off-years that were interesting. Mostly because Frieza had to keep us occupied. On that one planet there were hundreds of warriors with nothing to do but fight each other and complain, albeit carefully, about their own crummy existences. If you don't do something with all those warriors, you're just asking for a revolution. While I doubt any number of us could have deposed him, any executed traitor is just a loss of saiyan capital. Frieza could only carry the "rule by fear" thing so far. So, there was the tournament.

The tournament was different from other gladiatorial games commonly practiced because death is uncommon. Everyone has a chance to compete, so if every match ended in death, Frieza would have to replenish his supply of warriors every year. Killing an opponent isn't forbidden, but it is severely frowned upon and leaves the killer open to be killed. However, this is the only civilized aspect of the tournament. Anything goes-cheating, psychic attacks, crowd participation-whatever you can get away with. You just have to remember that if the rules don't apply to you, then that's how you'll be treated-without any protection given by the rules. The end result is orderly, controlled chaos. It's fascinating, really. We're given the illusion of freedom, when actually our violent tendencies are being channeled and controlled. I probably couldn't come up with a better system myself.

There were two tournaments held at the end of each year-one for the elite and one for the non-elite. Most of the year was taken up in training. Training was usually done within your own squadron. Sometimes the commander would oversee and train a particular squadron personally. Well, guess which squadron Zarbon picked. Yup, it was us. The reports on our efficiency and strength had gained popularity, and Zarbon had a reputation to keep up. He had not had a champion in quite some time, and I guess he wanted one of us to win. I didn't know how he had come up with the idea that one of us would win. The strongest among us was myself, Prince Vegeta, and Xientlap, and we certainly couldn't contend with, for example, the Ginyu Force (at least, that's what I thought at the time). Our strength laid in our unusual ability to work as a team. I could have told him this, but then I would have crossed the line into real stupidity. You just don't question Zarbon. So, we trained hard, often having to spend an hour in the rejuvenation tank at the end of the day. Zarbon obsessively took power readings of us. Since Vegeta, Xientlap, and I showed the most progress, he concentrated on us, keeping us behind for a private training even after dismissing the others.

Even though the training was hard, it was extremely fun. I had so long been the strongest of the Saiyans that I had almost forgotten the feel of competition-the thrill of a challenge. For once I felt I was working for myself-that I had regained a bit of control over my own fate. I could control how hard I trained and how strong I got. I could control how good a showing I made at the tournament. I was a warrior, instead of just a mindless killing machine. Prince Vegeta felt better too. During the purge mission he had sunk into a kind of melancholy. There's nothing worse than a depressed five-year-old. But now that we were planet-side, instead of being cooped up in a ship or forced to go on missions we didn't even care about, he began to come alive again. He could get plenty of food - a relief to us both - and he could finally train. In fact, eating and training was all he did. Gone were the practical jokes and carefree times. Vegeta realized he had the weight of a dead people on his shoulders. I hated for that to happen, but it had to be done.

Training didn't take up all my time, though. I had not forgotten any curiosity of the people in Frieza's army. I was finally able to research to my heart's content. It wasn't easy though. It took me years of just listening and reasoning to put two and two together. I couldn't be obvious about it and show my intelligence. And it seems there are certain secrets that Frieza wanted to keep quiet.

My one first breakthrough was when my squadron was taking a meal together during a training break. Zarbon had left for one reason or another, so we had a bit of a chance to talk freely. We began relating the past and speaking of our home planets. Each planet had been destroyed. Let me repeat that. Each. Planet. Had. Been. Destroyed. When I mention this, everyone looked up in surprise. They'd never truly though about it. Of course, I had to cover myself. I wasn't supposed to notice such things. But I could listen. Come to find out, everyone was the last of their race. I don't mean in my squadron. I mean in the entire army. Can you comprehend that? We're talking about hundreds of races here. And every commander had been royalty.

Actually, that makes sense when you take into account that Frieza was royalty. I mean, who else could he entrust with his empire but other princes? In this realization, I finally realized exactly why Frieza wanted Prince Vegeta. As soon as Vegeta got old enough, Frieza would have him trained to be a commander. My hatred of Frieza shot up to unimaginable heights. Frieza was going to make the boy loyal to him-turn him into his pet. That I could not allow. I was Vegeta's trainer, not that genderless lizard freak. Vegeta was to be a great warrior and avenge our people. He was to kill Frieza. He couldn't just become loyal to him. So I swore to always be with Vegeta, and remind him of his sacred duty-to kill Frieza.

I spent most of my time with Prince Vegeta anyway. When we weren't training with our squadron, or with Zarbon, we trained alone. Raditz would join us at those times. He couldn't measure up to us or anything, but he was really good nonetheless. Reminded me of his father. I could tell he would be a close contender for the non-elite championship. He had enough drive and ambition to stare down an elite by sheer willpower. It was amazing, really. I saw Raditz fight this one non-elite. The battle was over so fast it barely registered on the scouters. And the person Raditz beat was supposed to be stronger than him.

That's the problem with the universe these days. No one respects us Saiyans. Everyone underestimates us. They think the power level we'll have at one point in our life is the one we'll keep. I suppose it's an advantage, but it's a little disheartening and just plain annoying when we're called weak monkeys. I mean, sure, other people can best us once, but can they best us again when we've recovered? That is rarely the case. But do our victories get publicized? No. Only our failures. That's why no one takes us seriously and the whole bloody cycle starts all over again.

This was how it was for the tournament. Though Zarbon had confidence in us, everyone else thought our involvement was a joke. We WERE the newbies after all. And one of us was a cute little six-year-old. What could we do against older, stronger, and more experienced warriors? Beat `em up, that's what we could do. But they didn't believe how powerful we could get. All I can say is, we showed them.

One day, out of the blue, while we were walking in to training, the preliminaries started. Frieza's voice came over the intercom, saying that the hallways were now battle zones and that we had better get to the stadium in time. Not only did we have to fight off other warriors, but we had to fight off huge robots and monsters that came out of the walls. Then we had to avoid tripping over fallen warriors and getting trampled. It was… the most fun I've ever had. It was like being a kid again, with no need for facades or diplomacy. I could really cut loose and have some fun. And Prince Vegeta… you should have seen him. He was practically bouncing off the walls, knocking warriors left and right. He even knocked Tolin down. First time I've ever seen that man curse. I merely flew over the robots and monsters, too fast for them to catch, Prince Vegeta and Xientlap right at my heels. Before we knew it, we were at the stadium.

I hadn't even realized how close it was to the tournament, so intent was I on my training and listening. But it was time. For the next few days we wouldn't even leave the stadium grounds. We were either on the floor doing battle or up in the contestant wings waiting our turn. Not even the spectators would leave. Even after the fights ended for the day, they would spend the night eating, drinking, rehashing what they did wrong in the hallway or how they were cheated. Arguing over who would win the tournament as well. I'm telling you, Frieza is a genius. He controlled us by giving us exactly what we wanted-action. And freedom, if only a semblance of it. I mean, we ate it up with a spoon. By keeping us violent, he kept us pacified.

The first two days were spent on the non-elites. Raditz, of course, was one of them. I'm still surprised people have kept the same opinion of Saiyans after that showing. It was remarkable. Out of a contest of twenty contestants, he won. I'm serious. The final battle took most of the second day and Raditz's opponent was ten years older and had fifteen years' seniority over Raditz. I can't remember the guy's name, but I can remember the look on his face when he knew Raditz had beaten him. It was priceless. Raditz received a royal treatment after that. Even Zarbon seemed happy.

Oh, yeah. Zarbon. I at first though he was waiting in the elite competitor wings with us, but that really didn't make any sense. His rightful place was beside Frieza. Well, guess what. Zarbon entered the elite competition. That's right, Zarbon. It wasn't against the rules or anything for a commander to join in the elite tournament. It's just unheard of. It's not like a commander has to prove his strength. They knew they could win. And why did Zarbon spend so much time training us if he was just going to beat us anyway? Maybe that was the point. Just trying to teach us our place again-keep us from getting too cocky.

There were eight contestants in all for the elite tournament-five from our squadron. Of course I've already told of Prince Vegeta, Xientlap, Zarbon, and myself. Kriei also made it, and I guess Tolin was able to recover from his spill in the hallway quickly, because he was right there with us. Apparently Zarbon's faith in our squadron was well-founded. This type of representation from any squadron was unheard of. The other two contestants were Kewie-one of Dodoria's elite-and Guldo-a green-skinned four-eyed short member of the Ginyu force. The other members of the Ginyu force must not have even bothered to participate, or else they would have dominated the tournament. I guess they didn't have anything to prove.

On the third day of the tournament, when we were still all elated about Raditz's victory, the first elite match up was between myself and Kriei. I could tell I was rather the favorite of that match up. Let's just say no one liked Kriei. The rumors were enough to put Kriei on the list of "people even the toughest avoid." I could tell Tolin wanted a shot at him, to get back at him for all those sleepless nights, but there was no chance for that. So, everyone, including myself, got supreme satisfaction from my beating Kriei into the ground. As soon as I won that, the air was practically abuzz with the new Saiyan force. First Raditz, then me. And no one could tell what Prince Vegeta would have in store for us.

The second match was between Zarbon and Xientlap. I really felt sorry for Xientlap. He really was a strong warrior, but he just wasn't a match for Zarbon. Xientlap did put up an extremely good fight, and even got in a hit or two before being knocked unconscious. Though most just laughed at this defeat, I really had respect for him. Not many could stand up to Zarbon for that long. I was also rather fatalistic. I knew I had to face Zarbon next, and I knew I had absolutely no chance of winning.

The next match was a bit harder to call. It was between Tolin and Kewie. The two had almost matching power levels, though Tolin had a good ten years on Kewie. It was more competitive now. While the other matches were within our squadron, now it was Zarbon versus Dodoria. The two were constant rivals for Frieza's favor, so the soldiers under each had become rivals as well. The fight took the rest of the day and had each faction at each others' throats. There was more action at times in the stands than there was on the floor. But finally, Kewie surpassed Tolin. They both had to be carried to the medic, along with fifty of the spectators. The night's festivities could begin.

There was no shame on either side. I had done well enough, and Zarbon's elite force was well-represented. While Kewie put up an excellent fight, we all knew that he would lose his next round no matter what happened. For the next match was between Guldo and Prince Vegeta. Now that was a match to talk about. While Guldo was a Ginyu, he was decidedly the weakest of the five. His main reserve was psychic attacks, and it's known that Saiyans have a slight immunity to such assaults. The victories of myself and Raditz were also taken into account, it being reputed that Prince Vegeta was stronger than any of us. The rivalries reached a fever pitch. Dodoria's men automatically took the side of the Ginyu, while Zarbon's men stuck faithfully to the six-year-old Prince. I'm sure the medics were glad when morning came. They probably kept those rejuvenation tanks full all night.

And finally morning did come, announcing the time of the fourth match: Guldo versus Prince Vegeta. All the spectators had recuperated, and even the beaten contestants were allowed back in the contestants' wing. I had an animated talk with Xientlap and Tolin about our own matches, while Kriei's coloring told me he didn't like me one bit. I knew I'd have to watch myself around him. Such distractions were cut short, however, by the beginning of the fourth match.

You know, it was a sort of funny-looking match up. Both were short, and one was a child. It was hard to believe that this would be the most exciting battle yet. Due to the telepathic powers on both sides, scouter readings were all messed up. Frankly, I don't remember exactly how the fight went. It lasted for an hour, and the winner was Vegeta. Yes, Vegeta. Apparently he was more immune to the psychic attacks than anyone had known. Not only that, Guldo was too cocky. He was a member of Ginyu, while Vegeta was just a child. Overconfidence is always what gets you-a lesson I've been trying to teach Vegeta and Raditz since the beginning.

I didn't have long to celebrate Vegeta's amazing victory, though. It was my turn, and I had to face Zarbon. I remember how psyched I was-how much I wanted to win and how much I knew I couldn't. Zarbon simply stared at me impassively with a look somewhere between boredom and contempt, an expression he must have picked up from Frieza. He drug out the fight a bit, letting me charge and show off my skills under adversity a bit. Or maybe he was just teaching me a lesson again. Needless to say, he beat me. He broke my back, the worst sensation I've ever felt, so I had to be carried off in a stretcher. My defeat was not as ridiculed, however. I had already shown myself to be a worthy opponent, if not a target. I would have to watch myself from then on.

I didn't see the next fight between Kewie and Prince Vegeta. I got back just in time to see the end. From what I heard, it was a fight to remember. I didn't know it, but Vegeta and Kewie had become particular rivals. I don't know how it started-maybe they didn't either-but they truly hated each other. Maybe it was Kewie's utter contempt for royalty. I don't know. But Kewie had to be carried away in a stretcher, and Vegeta was allowed a couple of hours to rest.

There were a few exhibition matches, but no one really paid all that much attention to them. Most were excitedly talking about this particular tournament, and Saiyans momentarily had the spotlight. No one would have guessed that the insubordinate six-year-old Saiyan Prince would have gotten out of the hallway, much less advance to the finals. No one had any delusions that Vegeta would win. Zarbon was infinitely too strong for him. Not even cheating could help him-which was another topic of discussion. This was the first tournament that the contestants had not cheated once, at least not in obvious ways. And there were no apparent signs of steroid use. It was the cleanest tournament, at least on the floor, in anyone's memories.

I really wish Vegeta had had more time to rest, or could have spent some time in the rejuvenation tank, but of course it wouldn't have made a difference. He couldn't win. You couldn't tell that form looking at him, though. I'd never seen such determination-in him as well as anyone else. He wanted so badly to win-for revenge, to prove his worth-I don't know the reasons. I think he even scared Zarbon a little. Zarbon was used to the cute little kid that got out of line a bit but could generally be controlled. That day we got a glimpse of the warrior Vegeta was destined to become, one who challenges authority and takes it for himself. One who won't give up no matter what the odds. We all got a glimpse of the true Saiyan Prince. I'll bet even Frieza got nervous.

The fight didn't end quickly. It took all day, both of them using strength and tactics as well as mind games. It was the first time I'd ever seen Vegeta use the Gallic Gun. Apparently he'd seen someone, maybe ever Zarbon judging form the style of it, use a major ki blast and adapted it for his own use. Vegeta had only been taught small ki blasts and scatter shots, very useful in planet purges and necessary with opponents weaker than him. Only a few people knew this to appreciate Vegeta's skill, including Zarbon and Frieza. I was proud, yet anxious for the boy. This would leave him open to more than competition from other warriors.

Much as I would like to say that Vegeta won, he didn't. After a supremely entertaining battle-mostly from Zarbon's surprise at Vegeta's talent and skill-Vegeta was knocked out. He won many things that day, though. Respect, for one thing. He wasn't considered a child anymore. He'd proven his worth by beating much older opponents. He also earned something he hadn't bargained for-Frieza's favor. He showed no reaction to any of this, although I could tell he was a bit shaken from the attention he received from Frieza. Frieza would watch him train, talk to him, that sort of thing. I was actually glad when we packed up for our next planet-purging tour. I was downright scared for the boy-the boy who I'd watched over like a father over his son. I was afraid he'd be taken away from me, claimed by that monster. I was afraid he would change Vegeta into another monster, one who feels nothing for anyone. One I couldn't even recognize. A monster.

I hate being right.

Reviewer thanks:

Bardockgurl: If you liked the last line of last chapter, try this one on for size. I hope you were able to catch the reflection of Dragonball. I had a lot of fun doing that. I don't think I tried to make you feel sorry for Nappa in this chapter. I'll have to make up for that in the next chapter.