Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Strange New World (That Has Such Creatures In It) ❯ Coming Together ( Chapter 8 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Part 8

For the first time since their resurrection, the whole Saiyan populace enjoyed the labors of a hunt, tearing into the dead ginx and passing pieces of the kill around. Raw and dripping, the carcass made a mess of the banquet hall, but none of them seemed to mind. Some Saiyans chose to roast their portion with carefully aimed ki blasts while others left it as is, enjoying the blood with the body.

At the end of the table sat the king, his grandson and Goten beside him. Startled at first by the amount of noise and carnage around him, Trunks adapted quickly and settled into his environment almost as if he'd been raised there. Goten shuddered a little, not at the blood but at all the eyes on him. He often enjoyed being the center of attention but this was downright creepy. A moment later Trunks noticed all the looks his mate was receiving, some of them more lascivious than admiring, and he turned and grabbed Goten, forcing a long kiss from him. After that, Goten forgot all about the looks and paid attention only to his mate.

On the other side of the king, a nervous Namek sat between Gohan and Raditz. The long-maned Saiyan kept his tail flicking in the peculiar manner that kept Gohan's anger at bay, but Piccolo still tensed as Gohan moved to take a slab of meat. If he had to, he would jump out of the way of any ki blasts sent between the two. For his own part, he ignored the dead body circulating on the table and took care that no blood or gore dripped into his water. While he drank, though, he noticed that Vegetasei's water was different from earth's, heady, with a distinct flavor. It wasn't unpleasant, but the difference unsettled him, and he resolved to stop if he started feeling any of the effects alcohol brought out in humans.

Only the king noticed as Bardock slipped away, catching his tail flicking through a small side door that had once been a servant's entrance. The king sighed and looked around again. Once large enough to hold most of the elite populace, the high stone ceiling and broad hall now echoed with their voices, the entire Saiyan race contained in only half its space. Opening the large double doors had seemed almost ridiculous. He wished he had his mate beside him, to lean a little on...

He closed his eyes. Bardock was anxious to meet his long lost son. He hoped the reunion would not disappoint him.

*

Bardock quietly closed the door behind himself, careful to whisk his tail out of the way. The noise of joyful Saiyans faded. He didn't like to miss this first feast, but he had something far more pressing to attend to. For the first time all of the Saiyans were in one area and out of his hair, and he was damn well going to take the opportunity presented to at last see his youngest son.

His footfalls echoed through the halls as he walked, passing sunny windows in shadowed colonnades. He could have flown and arrived in a moment but instead he walked, lost in thought as he remembered his vision of Kakarrot, lost and found, Saiyan but something alien. Something distinctly wrong with his eyes. The hall he traveled seemed longer than it was, and the door he sought was around one last corner at the very end. He kept his pace even. Sun. Shadow. Sun. Shadow. He closed his eyes, annoyed by the glare. Sun. Shadow. Sun.

As he rounded the corner, he heard a shuffling, as of someone rising to their feet. Another step showed him Nappa, the tall guard standing from his seat and blinking sleep from his eyes. Bardock waved him down and went to the door, placing his hand on the knob. He hesitated.

"It's all right," Nappa whispered. "I heard Vegeta say he was going to sleep. Kakarrot's with him."

"My son..." Bardock stared straight at the door as if he could see through it. "What is he like? Was his life anything like Vegeta's?"

"No..." Nappa said. "I can't be sure but...from what I remember, he grew up on earth in relative peace. He grew to believe it was his original planet. Enough to where he'd fight to save that mudhole."

Does he even remember me? Bardock thought.

He took a deep breath. He'd put this off long enough. Raising his head and squaring his shoulders, he tightened his grip on the knob. The door didn't creak as he pushed it open, and he stepped inside, glancing around. Supply shelves and a cauldron of boiling tezra lay on one side of the room, not far from a long couch. He closed the door and spotted the two Saiyans next to the windows. Vegeta was fast asleep with Jalen cuddled against his chest, the two of them undoubtedly warm and comfortable in the sunlight. The other Saiyan knelt beside Vegeta, his back to Bardock as he stroked the prince's hair and tucked the blanket around the sleeping pair. He was dressed in bright orange and his stance was far too open, far too trusting to be a real Saiyan's, but the wild hair was enough. Just like Goten's, just like his own. Bardock put his hand on the wall to steady himself.

"Kakarrot?" he whispered.

Startled, Goku stood and turned, one hand already moving up for a ki blast. He'd been so entranced with his mate and his child that he hadn't noticed anyone coming in. He stared at this new Saiyan for a minute. There was something awfully familiar about him, but -- his breath caught. It was like looking into a mirror, if he ignored the scar. No, not the scar. The eyes. His eyes were the real difference.

"Father?"

"Yes," Bardock nodded once. "My son...you've finally come home."

Frozen in place, his mouth hanging open slightly, Goku found himself wondering what to do. He shook his head once to clear it and glanced at Vegeta once, to make certain the two were fine. With a deep breath, he closed the distance between himself and his father, keeping his voice low as he spoke.

"I look exactly like you," he said.

"It's a common trait," Bardock said, just as quiet. "Especially among elites. Sometimes it skips a generation or so."

He raised his hand to Goku's face and, when he didn't shy away, set his fingertips to his cheek. With that touch, he sighed so that his shoulders drooped and a great deal of weight seemed to come off his back, and before Goku could react, he'd thrown his arms around his son much as he'd done to Raditz at their resurrection.

"You're home," he whispered. "You're real..."

Stunned for a few seconds, Goku at last smiled and returned the embrace.

Bardock broke first, holding Goku at arm's length and looking him up and down again. "There are so many questions, so many things I want to tell you."

Goku didn't hide his smile, but he glanced at his sleepy mate and child. "Let's sit down. I don't want to wake Vegeta or Jalen."

His father nodded once. "Ah, yes. You never wake a Vegeta before he wants, or you'll get a sharp bite."

They sat down in the chairs at the center of the room, Goku situating himself so he could see his mate. He watched them a little while, then glanced at his father as a thought struck him. "How'd you know what he's like waking up? Did you know him when he was younger?"

Old memories clouded Bardock's eyes, but that faded in a moment. "He was gone before many of us could know him, but no. I know his father, the king."

"Oh." Goku scratched his head, wondering if his father was so elite that he could know the king's sleeping habits. His hand dropped. Bardock's grin had turned into a suggestive leer and he realized exactly what he meant. "Oh! You and the king--?"

"Yup. I guess we both have royal tastes." He smiled and leaned back. "I was competing in one of our tournaments and caught his eye. Later that night, he caught me. And how did you catch your prince?"

"Mm..." Goku smiled as he thought back to his first encounter with Vegeta, then so battered and abused that he survived on pride and anger alone, to the present, his deep wounds now turned to scars that would never fade. "I was the last Saiyan alive. Well, the last one he would've accepted, anyway. He arrived on earth and I had to stop him from killing everyone there."

"You defeated him?" Bardock whispered with wide eyes.

"No, the first time he nearly killed me. The only reason we won is...well, we kinda cheated. One of earth's fighters cut off his tail, and then Gohan turned oozaru. After that...he trained to defeat and kill me, but as time went on he calmed down and actually helped us defeat other enemies. And one day he snuck up on me, seduced me, and claimed me."

While Goku spoke, Bardock unconsciously held his own tail. "That must have taken years."

"Yeah, Gohan was four years old when he arrived. We've been mated a couple years now."

"I see." Bardock wondered how Vegeta could have performed such a complete turnaround. During all those years, he must have tried to kill Goku several times, and made no secret of the fact that he intended to destroy him. And after the loss of his tail... He shook his head. Those questions could wait, if indeed he had any right to ask them at all. Right now, he wanted to know more about his own son. He leaned forward in his seat. "You look well. I take it living on earth treated you well?"

"Well, yeah. Kinda. I died a couple times, and there were some really hard fights...you should've seen Buu."

"Died? But that's..." He shook his head. He'd been dead too, and Kigeta had resurrected him. Perhaps the dragons the boys kept mentioning were responsible for bringing Kakarrot back so often. "I'll never get used to thinking about death like this."

"Like what?"

"Impermanent. We always believed that death was our final rest, awaiting the end time when we could return to Kigeta. To discover that it's merely some kind of bureaucracy...that the gods sit behind desks or watch fights for mere entertainment..."

Goku looked at the floor for a few seconds. He sighed. "Vegeta doesn't think they're gods. He hasn't told me all of his suspicions, since he's still figuring them out, but he must be close. I told him everything I remember about the spirit world, and he said it all fits."

"His father has said much the same," Bardock said. "I have no doubt they both discussed it before Jalen was born. The king hasn't told me much either."

"It worries me," Goku said. "Whenever Vegeta keeps a secret, bad things usually happen."

Bardock couldn't hold in his laugh. "Just like his father. Ah well. In any case, they won't tell us anything until they're good and ready. Besides, I'd rather hear about your life. I know you killed Frieza."

"Kinda. I defeated him and blew him to pieces, but he came back half-cyborg and he was really killed by Trunks from an alternate future that came back to save me from a heart virus that I didn't even know about and warn us about the androids that would come a year in the future, although eventually the androids also turned out to be allies, in a way, against the bigger threat, Cell."

Bardock blinked. "What?"

Goku wondered if this was how Vegeta always felt with him when "his third class baka" couldn't follow something. He smiled and started again, slowly explaining his life from the first few moments he could remember.

*

Lightyears away from Vegetasei, the Supreme Kai sat at the edge of his scrying pool, a fountain of clear water in which he might see the course of his asteroid. He trailed his hand across the surface and watched the picture form behind the ripples. The asteroid had finally entered Vegetasei's solar system. He smiled. Finally. Just a few more days and the Saiyans, their faith, and their deity would be nothing more than a memory.

He stood and frowned. When he first sent his giant missile out across the vast course of space, he hadn't been entirely sure it would arrive. It was, after all, Kigeta that they were facing, plus the Saiyans had proven they didn't always need direct divine intervention to save themselves. After all, just two of them had nullified the threat from Buu, and the Kai couldn't think up any other enemies that might be able to destroy their planet now. And Kigeta...it had taken the lives of several kais to seal him away. If he was to secure their victory and all it had brought their rule, he had to keep the great dragon sealed fast and forgotten.

But why hadn't the dragon sensed the asteroid and stopped it? He walked across the grasslands of his chosen planet for the moment, wondering. Perhaps Kigeta was so fully sealed that he couldn't sense the danger. Or perhaps the dragon had grown arrogant and thought his little monkeys could stop it themselves.

He shook his head. Whatever the reason, the asteroid was on course and nothing would stop it. Nothing could stop it. And with the death of the Saiyan race, with no more outside threats, he wouldn't have to worry about losing any of his power and things would continue on the way they had ever since the dragon god had gone to sleep. With their rule of the universe.

Just a few more days now.

*

Though he could feel that all his injuries were at last healed, Vegeta took one more day of rest and seclusion before finally coming off his back. In the morning, while Goku was still asleep beside him, Vegeta sat up slowly, holding Jalen as he stood. Muscles he hadn't used in days responded at once, even if they trembled a little, and he made his way to the spring. Stripping his clothes off, he glanced at Goku to make sure he was still asleep. There were new scars on his body and he wanted to see them clearly first before showing them off.

He sat down at the edge and tore off the bandages and examined the skin there. Hardly a line remained, although what was there was jagged and uneven. Seated on his father's lap, Jalen patted the scars and traced the length of it, then looked up at his father's eyes.

"Yes, that's your mark," Vegeta whispered. He eased himself into the water and drew Jalen in with him, dunking him once. When he broke the surface again, Jalen laughed and splashed the water hard enough to swamp his father. "You little brat," he growled, but there was no anger in it and he tipped the boy backwards, cleaning his hair. The water lightened his mood, rinsing off several days worth of blood and sweat. He felt like it was washing off more than his skin.

As he brought Jalen back up, he tilted his head and took a long look at hi son. Jalen's hair was flattened with the weight of the water, making him look like a dark haired chibi-Trunks. "Is that how I look wet?" Vegeta whispered.

"Yup." Goku looked over his shoulder, startling both of them. Both Vegetas snarled at him. He grinned as Jalen's tail suddenly puffed even though it was wet, but he couldn't help a laugh when he noticed that Vegeta's tail had also puffed.

"Kakarrot..."

"I'm sorry," Goku said, waving his hands. "But all the splashing around woke me up, and you two look so cute when you're wet..."

Wrong thing to say. Vegeta's eyes narrowed and he growled. The prince of all Saiyans was never cute.

Fortunately, Goku was long practiced in smoothing over his mate. He reached his hand out and cupped Vegeta's face, running his thumb over his cheek. He stepped closer to the pair, moving through what was waist deep water for him and wrapping his free arm around them.

"Are you feeling better?" he whispered.

The hot spring's warmth, combined with Goku's bodyheat, made Vegeta wish he could simply fall asleep again. He closed his eyes and let his mate's hand wander from his throat and chest down to the scar across his stomach. The long, sensitive fingers followed it over the newly healed muscles, gently, as if afraid he might tear it open again.

"Well enough," he said. "I won't be able to train for a little while longer, but the worst is over."

"And how's our baby?" Goku asked, giving Jalen a tiny poke in the side. His son's small tail wrapped around his wrist, trapping it there, while he raised his arms high in the air.

Goku gasped and squirmed as he realized what was coming, but Vegeta smiled and grabbed his arm, holding him still and turning his face towards Goku's chest. A second later, Jalen smacked the water with all his might, sending a cascade over his tezata and right into his diira's face. The shocked, wide-eyed look on Goku's face sent their son into a fit of giggles that would've tumbled him into the water if Vegeta didn't have him well in hand.

"I think our baby has excellent aim," Vegeta said, taking in his mate's sodden hair. He reached up and tugged at it. "Why doesn't yours flatten out when it's wet? I've always wondered about that."

"Um...I have no clue..." Goku pretended that it was the water that had shocked him, making a show of wiping his eyes. Seeing his sulky mate smile, a real smile, not that guarded smirk he usually wore, was enough to take his breath away. "Are you sure you should be up now? You were hurt pretty bad."

"I'm fine now," Vegeta said, waving one hand. "And I'm hungry. I'm sick of that damn tezra...and I've missed out on the first feast..."

"So did I," Goku said, and his voice was so sad that Vegeta had to laugh.

"I'm sure there's still food in the forest," he said. He looked up into his mate's eyes, no longer so annoyed at how high he had to look. "You stayed with us this whole time? Even when we were asleep?"

Goku nodded once. "I couldn't stand the thought of leaving you, even for a minute."

Vegeta didn't say anything. He stared at his mate for awhile, then leaned against his body again, sighing when Goku wrapped his arms around him. In a few minutes they would have to leave the spring and dress again, and return to the rest of the castle, but for now he could rest against his mate and nestle their squirming child between them.

And between them, Jalen squirmed and wondered why his parents were just standing around doing nothing.

*

At breakfast, as was fast becoming a habit, the extended royal gathered at the table in the small dining chambers reserved solely for them. Two places were left empty, awaiting Vegeta's and Goku's return, but no one expected that for a few more days. Trunks and Goten sat beside each other as usual, though Goten squirmed a little in his chair as if he couldn't get comfortable. Every once in awhile they would grab something off the other's plate, sharing their food without comment.

Bardock sat beside the king, but he wouldn't have dared try for something on the monarch's plate. For one thing, it wasn't seemly. Plus, he'd tried once and ended up facing the indignant wrath of his king. By the time he'd woken up, it had been breakfast of the next day.

Turles and Raditz were there as well but for all their appetite, they were distracted from eating by Gohan. The younger fighter was only picking at his food, strange enough behavior for anyone with Saiyan blood, and without that distraction, there was a real chance Gohan might remember he was still angry with them and attack. For all Gohan's apparent love for the Namekian plant, Raditz still was certain Piccolo would be thrown clear if Gohan suddenly pounced. As it was, the two kept their tails swaying back and forth in a soothing pattern, hoping the age-old tail talk for truce and apology would be enough.

The stone doors to the chamber swung open. Everyone paused and looked up, and their eyes grew wide at their first look at the child in Vegeta's arms. For a moment they openly stared, taking in every detail of the miniature version of the prince. Jalen looked back at them, so many strange faces staring right at him. His tail curled tight around his teza's wrist and he looked away, clinging to the shirt in his fists as he hid his face.

As usual, the king recovered first. He smacked the heads of those nearest him, which just happened to be Bardock and Trunks, and snapped at the rest. "Stop staring. The poor thing's nervous enough as it is." While the others either lowered their eyes or nursed their sore heads, he rounded on Goku. "And you, letting your tired mate walk around just days after giving birth. Sit down, boy."

Goku expected his mate to snarl at the king, or at least contradict him somehow. Instead Vegeta sighed and obeyed, keeping Jalen in his lap. Even closer now to all the strange new people, Jalen whimpered once and snuggled closer to his teza.

"It's all right," Vegeta whispered, wrapping his child in his arms. "They won't hurt you. They're your family."

Jalen peeked out over his father's grasp and looked around. They were all still looking at him, but they didn't seem mean, and if teza wasn't worried... Jalen suddenly grinned. Sure, they were all staring, but they were staring at him. It was the most attention he'd ever received. He looked at them one more time, just to see they were smiling, and then he wriggled around to face them.

Closest to them, Raditz glanced at Vegeta to make sure it was all right, then gave Jalen's side a tiny poke. Jalen squeaked and grabbed his uncle's hand, holding the strange thing so he could examine the calluses and hard bones. He turned it palm up and found the scar running along its breadth. It took his whole hand to follow that scar. While doing that, he realized that this was Raditz's hand, he just hadn't recognized it since it was so much bigger than his own. He lay his hand flat on Raditz's and grumbled to himself.

"You've got a ways to go yet, little one," Raditz said. He smirked and glanced at his prince. "Then again, little brother...is your hand as big as mine?"

Everyone at the table suddenly found their plates fascinating, their shoulders shaking as they tried to hold back laughter. Goten buried his face in Trunks' neck to muffle his giggles, and Goku and Bardock both clamped their hands over their faces.

Except the royalty. The king and his son both glared at Raditz.

Vegeta smirked, but it was cold and promised violence. "If this brat wasn't in my arms right now..."

Neither of them noticed Jalen as he continued to play. His tail wrapped around Raditz's wrist and he pulled his hand closer. He wondered just how far Raditz could flex his fingers, so he grabbed one and yanked it backwards.

Raditz howled and jerked out of his seat, straightening his arm to ease the pressure on his hand. His hair flashed gold from the sudden pain. Before anyone could act, Raditz lost his balance and fell backwards, knocking his head on the floor. He lay there a moment, stunned.

"Ow..." With stars swirling around him, he raised his hands, about to hold his throbbing head. Halfway there he noticed that one arm was heavier and he frowned. When he opened his eyes, he found Jalen hanging by his tail from his wrist, his arms and legs dangling.

The small prince smiled and uncurled his tail, landing on all fours on Raditz's stomach. Cackling like his father, he crawled forward and patted his uncle's mouth as if to say gotcha.

Laughter poured out of Goku, which cued everyone else to start laughing. "I think Jalen just defeated his first super Saiyan."

As Vegeta scooped his brat up, Raditz groaned and let his hair turn black again. After he caught his breath and the throbbing went away, he sat up and crawled back into his seat.

"Bested by a cub," Bardock said. "This proves it, the ascended level is not invincible."

"Well, the bigger they are," the king said, "the more satisfying the crack when they hit the floor."

Still holding his head in his hands, Raditz spared a glance at Jalen, who sat smugly in his father's safe arms. "I'll want a rematch in a few years, little cub."

While the laughter slowly dwindled, the volume dropped until they heard a faint rasping from the end of the table. They all looked, even Jalen. Leaning against Piccolo, Gohan had his eyes closed as he breathed deep. The Namek put his arm around Gohan's shoulder and gently tilted his face up. A cold sweat lined the demi-Saiyan's forehead.

"Gohan, what's wrong?"

He shook his head and tried to wriggle out of Piccolo's arms. "Nothing. I just haven't been sleeping right. It'll pass."

"Did this happen before?" Goku asked. His eyes grew wide and he started to stand up. "Maybe it's a virus like I got--"

Vegeta put his hand on Goku's hand, holding him still. "No. It's not..." He frowned and stared at Gohan. "I'm not sure, something's wrong. Father, do you know?"

"I'm not sure, either," the king said. "I thought I sensed something before, but I can't tell like I should be able to. It feels like something should be there, but it's not a child. It doesn't feel like that."

Not saying anything, Piccolo squirmed and looked away.

"Hmm..." Vegeta plopped Jalen onto his diira's lap and knelt in front of Gohan, putting his hands on the demi-Saiyan's stomach. He held still for several seconds, closing his eyes. "You're right...there's something off. It feels like a pregnancy, but--" He cut himself off with a gasp.

"What is it?" Gohan asked.

Vegeta looked into the boy's eyes. "Gohan...it's an egg."

Out of all their possible reactions, shock, rage, disbelief, Piccolo hadn't expected silence. But that's what he faced as the entire room looked from Gohan to him, expecting some kind of answer. He wondered if this was what Gohan had felt on earth, with everyone looking at him for answers and being unable to say anything. He frowned. If so, he'd been too hard on the kid to find a backbone.

Since his mate wasn't answering, Gohan took it upon himself, his voice slow as he regained his breath. "How's that possible? I should be diiratta like dad and Goten."

"I...I don't know. Maybe one of nature's little tricks. Genetics isn't always an exact science. Maybe..." Vegeta walked around Gohan, looking him over, feeling the level of his ki. "I think it may have to do with your power level. You're so strong your body figured you must be a tezata, and then if you were raised by a human female, perhaps your environment started to win out over your biology."

"That can't be the only reason," Goku said. "Otherwise Goten an' me might be that way, too."

"No," Vegeta said. "Your youngest brat was with Trunks more often than not, training with both of us, and his diiratta genetics were strengthened by being a tezata mate. Plus he isn't as powerful as Gohan. As for you...you only grew that strong after you had bred with a female. Your body was designed as a diiratta, and you gained in strength only to protect your home. It had nothing to do with sex."

"But wait..." Gohan said. "Nameks spit out eggs."

"Only fully formed ones, when they breed asexually." The familiar arrogant smirk crept onto Vegeta's face. "Maybe during your matings, he spurt out a half-formed egg without realizing it."

"Impossible," Piccolo said, starting to blush purple. "We spit them from our mouths, we can't...I mean, we don't...they don't work like that, we've never used them like that. I was surprised when I found out I looked similar to humans...like that, I mean."

"Huh?" Goten tilted his head and looked at Trunks. "What did he mean by all that?"

"He means he's got a root between his legs, but it's only for show."

"Ohhh."

Piccolo turned a deeper shade of lavender.

"Maybe the egg didn't come out that way," Vegeta said, laughing. "Maybe you had a particularly good kiss, an underformed egg came out, and Gohan's Saiyan genetics adapted to incubate it."

"No way," Goten said. "No one adapts that fast."

"No..." Trunks leaned forward, folding his hands as he considered. "But it could develop over time, if it was prompted. Some species will begin ovulating early if intercourse is rushed, and Saiyans seem particularly adaptive. If it was prompted by kissing...if you and Gohan kissed often, you might have been sending him eggs each time until finally his body reacted."

"Have you been doing that enough?" the king asked.

"If he's anything like these two terrors," Bardock said, nodding at Trunks and Goten.

"Are you kidding?" Goten said. "You can't peel them off each other."

Gohan blushed a bright pink to match his mate. "I'm not telling you the details of my love life! Besides, so what if it's...an...egg..." His voice dwindled and he stared at the ceiling, letting the reality of it sink in. "Oh my God...I'm pregnant...it's an egg...that's what my dream meant..."

"Dream?" Trunks asked.

"Where I give birth to a cucumber."

Jalen put his hands over his ears to muffle the sudden roar of laughter.

*

Later in the morning, Gohan was still a bright shade of pink. They were all gathered in the castle's sunroom, the chamber in one of the highest spirals that was open to the warming air. He sat in Piccolo's lap, nearly engulfed by his larger lover, while the king and Vegeta both sat in front of him, puzzling out the details of how the birth might go. Trunks and Goten helped by telling them everything they could about Piccolo and Gohan's sex life, ranging from how much they groped each other to how long their "lips stayed locked" to how many times a week they'd disappear together. When Goten started to tell everyone how loud his big brother could scream, though, Gohan groaned and held up one hand.

"Enough! I don't see what good any of this is doing."

"Well, perhaps not that last part," the king said, and everyone listening smirked. "But I've never seen a Saiyan carry an egg before. I don't know how this will progress."

"It can't be that bad, can it?" Gohan asked. "I mean, what's the worst that could happen?"

Vegeta frowned and his voice was quiet. "It could hatch inside you, and you'd have to tear yourself open and take out the baby and every bit of the cracked shell. You might have to take it out before it hatches and keep it warm for months. Or I suppose the worst is you never realize it has to come out early, it dies inside you and the corpse poisons you as it rots inside your body."

Slowly turning white as the prince spoke, Gohan felt his stomach twist at the thought and he turned his head towards Piccolo, burying his face in his mate's shirt. The Namek glared at Vegeta. "What was that for? You didn't need to scare him."

"But he's right," the king said, not wanting to hear his son explain how he knew the results of cross-breedings gone sour. "As awful as those scenarios are, they could all come true if we don't know how the egg will progress."

From his seat besides Raditz, Turles nodded once. "I've seen bad matings before. The result's never pretty, and as like to kill the teza as the child."

"Best to keep a close watch on the child's ki," Vegeta said. "If it starts to flag, we'll bring it out of you."

"You can tell something that fine?" Piccolo asked. "I can feel it there, but it's too weak for me to feel any fluctuations."

"It's relatively stable right now. But yes, I can. Chalk it up to practice." He shrugged and sat back down with his mate, watching him play with Jalen on his lap. "At least one thing hasn't changed."

"Huh?" His face a little more composed even if his voice wasn't, Gohan glanced at him. "What do you mean?"

"All the pregnant soldiers I ever met had dreams of birthing other animals. Best one I heard was of a batch of Jocastan snakes. About twelve feet long with fangs and spines along their backs." He laughed at their shuddering reactions.

The king glanced around the room. No one had noticed his son's slip, it seemed. In this relaxed atmosphere, the prince seemed happier, even if he hadn't lost his cruel streak, and the king didn't want to see any bad memories dredged up right then. He even leaned against his mate and ruffled Jalen's hair. While he was watching, he noticed Goku staring back at him. The taller Saiyan nodded once and smiled, then went back to entertaining his two Vegetas.

So he'd noticed, then, even if he hadn't let on that he had. The king raised his opinion of his son's mate. Goku wasn't as stupid as he acted, although he was probably as naive. At the very least, he knew his prince very well. If someone had asked Vegeta what he meant by pregnant soldiers, no doubt Goku would've interrupted them and changed the subject before the prince even noticed.

He looked out of the chamber's arches. From the high vantage point, he could see the city sparkling in the early morning light, the fruit orchards and fields of carefully planted roots and grains either being plucked or readied for gathering, the forests growing like red moss on the mountains hundreds of miles away. A flock of white birds scattered up from the orchards, wheeled its way across the sky, and landed somewhere on the castle niches and nooks originally meant for Kigeta's convenience.

The first sun was nearly in the center of the sky, the second one trailing halfway behind, but the light clouds broke the heat. Perhaps now that his son was well enough to move, the princes might explore their world more fully, enjoy the lakes of the Dragon's eyes or play in the snowtopped peaks farther along the Dragon's back. Tomorrow they would formally announce the new prince, resume training, continue to store food for the winter, but today...today was a fine day to rest, and drowse.

Footsteps raced down the hall towards their chamber. He knew something was wrong before the young elite charged through the door, his heavy breathing showing how fast he'd run. The youngster sagged against the doorframe, catching his breath as the royal family sat straight, alert and waiting for his message.

"It's here," he gasped out. "In the system. We--" he coughed once and drew a ragged breath, "--spotted it on our deepest scanners. Huge...as big as the city."

"The asteroid?" Bardock said. "How fast is it coming?"

"Fast...it passed Sokul's Fang nearly as soon as we knew it was there."

"Sokul?" Trunks asked.

"One of our system's smallest planets, in the constellation of the Devourer," Raditz explained. "It's about a third of the way into our system."

"We'll be able to see it soon," Turles said. "Shall we round up the populace?"

The king nodded. "Bardock, Turles, Raditz, bring everyone into the city. Spread the word. If we cannot destroy it, it will destroy us."

*

TBC...