Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ The Phoenix Chronicles ❯ Reunions, Meetings, and Liberations ( Chapter 3 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: archangel666 
Anime/Manga: Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Comedy / Romance | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 11.10.2004 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.8K | Visits: 121 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Comedy / Romance | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 11.10.2004 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.8K | Visits: 121 | Status: Completed
--- The Phoenix Chronicles ---
Chapter 03 - Reunions, Meetings and Liberations
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He looked at his older brother, saying goodbye to his family and friends. He always said goodbye to him last, but he knew that showed that he meant the most to his brother. He may have only been just over one year old, but he'd said goodbye no less than seven times. This time however, this time felt... different.
His brother turned to him and got down on one knee, sweeping him up into a big, brotherly hug. He pulled him away, keeping his hands on his shoulders, and smiled, a smile that he alone saw. [Now Kaen, I want you to be good for mum and dad, all right?] asked his brother.
Kaen beamed back at him, chirping [Of course I will Korin, I'm always good!]
Korin chuckled a little, managing to get out [Of course you are squirt] between laughs.
His face turned serious for a moment, as he made one more request. [Kaen, I want you to promise me you'll take care of them when I'm gone.]
He looked back at his brother with a serious expression of his own, pondering over his brother's words, but wasting no time before replying. [I promise big brother. I'll make you proud.]
Korin's smile returned, and he pulled him into a hug once more, whispering in a voice for his ears alone. [I'll always be proud of you, so long as you're happy, and I'll always be there for you, watching over you, keeping you safe.]
Korin bid one last farewell before setting off, his mission could wait no longer. Kaen watched his brother fly away, his words filling his thoughts. 'He said 'when I'm gone,' not 'while I'm gone.' He makes it sound like... he's not coming back...' As Korin disappeared from view, his smiling face filled Kaen's vision, his last statement ringing loudly in his ears. He closed his eyes, the full significance of his brothers words leaving him feel empty inside, his eyes brimming with tears he refused to shed.
He gave once last look at the sky, a single tear falling down his cheek, and said his final goodbye. 'Farewell brother. I hope you can find happiness in the next life.'
*****
He gazed out the window, the emptiness of space all around. The same emptiness that claimed his brother, and tore him from his family. He closed his eyes and sighed, turning away from the window, and directing his eyes to his companion. For five days the Namek hadn't moved from his meditation, only pausing every now and then to change the heading slightly, or to take a drink of water from the flask he carried. For five days he was left alone with his thoughts and regrets, and the silence was really starting to get to him.
The silence wasn't meant to last, however, and his stomach soon began protesting to having gone five days without food. Flute, meditation broken by the echo of a growling stomach, glanced over at him with a raised eyebrow. Kaen just looks back in mild indignation, and shrugs his shoulders. "Well, it _has_ been five days. Even _I_ have my limits."
"I sense we are nearly there, and I don't like being wrong, so a few more hours of silence and I think we can pin-point it," Flute says, mildly annoyed at having to ask for silence.
Kaen just shrugs again, saying, "Well, I'll do my best, but I can't vouch for my stomach."
Flute just returns to his meditation without another word. In an effort to take his mind off his hunger, he begins his kata for the fifth time in as many days. His efforts seem to pay off, as before too long Flute changes the ship's heading again, this time directly for a near-by planet, and removes himself from his meditation shortly after.
Kaen cracks his knuckles before starting to stretch, beginning a real workout rather than merely something to pass the time. Flute looks at him with a raised eyebrow, as he is often want to do, and says, "Getting excited are we?"
Kaen lets out a feral grin as he punched the air a couple of times, before remarking "It's been a while since I've truly let loose."
Flute smirks a little bit himself before saying "Then you will be pleased to learn, as by these satellites, that this is a Cold empire dedicated planet."
If it were possible, Kaen's grin would've widened at that, replying with "Thanks, you've just made my day."
*****
The ship lands on the planet in a mountain range outside of civilisation, setting down in the middle of a canyon to hide it from unwanted guests. Flute gathers his cloak before looking over at Kaen and saying "They won't appreciate us being here without an explanation, so be ready."
Kaen just throws his trench coat on, cracks his knuckles again and replies smugly "I was born ready! Let's go say 'hi' to the welcoming party."
The two exit the ship, Flute leading the way towards the mouth of the canyon, where three rather weak-looking guards await, blaster rifles at the ready. Kaen merely yawns in their general direction, when one of them, obviously either the leader, or just the most brave/stupid steps forward and says, in what is clearly an attempt at a commanding voice, "Who are you, and why did you land without clearance?"
Kaen glances over at Flute, a bored expression on his face, and says lazily "Do you wanna show them our clearance, or should I?"
Flute look back with a barely detectable smirk on his face, replying, "I think you will be more suited to the task."
Kaen nods once, saying "Ok then," before looking back at the guards, a smirk firmly entrenched on his features.
The two outside guards step back a bit and start fidgeting, clearly intimidated by him, but the leader either refuses to feel fear, or just isn't smart enough. In any case he doesn't live long enough to learn his error as Kaen throws his hands back in trademark fashion, screaming, "Here's my clearance! Inferno Blast!" and sending a gout of flame that incinerates the man where he stands, and the ensuing explosion almost wipes out the other two as well. They dive to the side, each making a show of bravado at what is clearly their last stand, and each firing their blasters at him. Only one of them gets even remotely close, and he slaps the blast away like an annoying insect.
He raised both his hands palms up, pointing one at each guard, a red ball of ki forming in front of each palm and shouts "Twin Blaze!" A thin red beam fires from each hand, each heading towards different targets, and before they realise they've been fired upon, the two remaining guards are reduced to carbon ash. Kaen cracks his neck to the side, readjusts his coat, and looks back to Flute as if nothing had happened. "Where to now?"
Flute nods a little, and leads the way out of the canyon and into a large citadel, filled with various creatures, and large amounts of roaming guards, none of which seemed to be carrying scouters. Kaen follows, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible for a man travelling with a green man, but they blend in reasonable well considering the large diversity of life forms on a Cold controlled world.
Flute stops, looking at a large tower extending above the citadel, saying "In there, we will find it in there."
Kaen just nods, and says, "Lead the way."
Flute pauses for a minute before saying, "Perhaps we should stop at an inn. They may have a restaurant."
Kaen's eyes light up at that, and he exclaims, "Now you're talking!"
*****
As they enter the inn, Flute paused a moment and looked around, as if sensing something off, but quickly shrugs it off and the two take a table. Unbeknownst to the pair, a dark figure, seated in the corner, watches their every move, seemingly keeping it's gaze on Flute for a moment longer, but makes no sign of acting on anything.
A young and pretty looking woman stops by their table, glancing at Kaen and smiling for a minute, before saying cheerily "Hello, can I take an order?"
Kaen looks through the menu thoroughly, before shrugging and saying disinterestedly "One of everything sounds good to me," while Flute just says "Water." She pauses a moment at the odd nature of their order, but quickly hurries off.
Kaen glances around the room, silently hoping that there's no-one one world who might recognise him, or at least any who would cause a scene, and notices all the waitresses in the place, and the bar maid, looking directly at him and smiling. He smiles back half-heartedly, then looks away, groaning quietly "Great, just what I need, more of them..."
Flute noticed their looks, and after the waitress had brought them his water, and the first part of Kaen's order, he smirked and said, "Maybe your eating habits will scare them off."
Kaen just shrugs, saying "Oh well," and starts inhaling his food in true Saiyan fashion. However, this doesn't seems to put the women off any, judging by what Kaen and Flute can hear over the sounds of Kaen's meal disappearing faster than it can reach the table.
Flute just drinks his water as he watches Kaen blush slightly from what his ears pick up, but his eating doesn't slow one iota. Flute smirks, saying, "A Saiyan blushing, will wonders never cease... other than the fact you haven't choked yet."
The Saiyan swallows, and pauses in his long over-due feast, and states, "One: Saiyans can't choke on food, we have a passage between our nose and lungs that ignores the throat, allowing us to breathe with our mouths full, and two: you mention this to anyone, and a slow painful death will be welcome relief from the hell I'll put you through." After finishing his little speech, he promptly resumes eating as if he never stopped.
Flute laughs quietly to himself, saying, "This amuses me greatly, especially if we run into Pi again..."
Kaen glares at the Namek, pausing again in his meal as he growls, "Do you have a death wish green bean?" but he passes off the threat, stating, "Your food is getting cold," before sipping his water. The Saiyan manages to hold his glare for just long enough to process the Nameks remark, and finishes up his first course.
When the waitress returns with more of Kaen's meal, Flute manages to stop her before she leaves again, and asks "Tell me miss, what's in that tower?"
She pauses and says "That's where the planetary governor lives, but he's just a pawn for King Cold, everyone knows that."
He nods, and says, "I don't suppose you know much more about it?"
She shook her head, "Only that it's heavily guarded, the place is filled with guards, I hear that there's a ton of relics and treasures in there too."
At this, Flute nods, and the waitress runs off to continue bringing out the feast. Kaen, meanwhile, is tearing into the food as though it were his last meal. It _had_ been five days after all. Flute finished his water and stood up, declaring "I'll be back soon, pay for the meal when you're done... or at least flirt with the landlady, so we can get out of it, I'll leave it to you." before leaving.
Kaen waves half-heartedly at him, too absorbed in his meal to be bothered doing anything else. The mysterious figure in the corner stands and leave, appearing to follow after Flute, but the waitresses are too busy to notice, still looking at Kaen and giggling softly.
*****
Flute heads past the market, buying a cloak as he goes so as to conceal his appearance from onlookers, and heads in the direction of the tower. And if one were to watch, they'd notice the cloaked figure from the inn following shortly after him, making sure to stay out of sight, but following none-the-less.
*****
Back at the inn, the waitress brings back the last of Kaen's meal, almost one hour after he first arrived, and he smiles briefly at her before tearing into it. She smiles back shyly, blushing a little, before returning to the huddle of waitresses, still speaking in hushed whispers and giggles, all gazing in his direction. His ears can pick up fragments of their conversation, when he chooses to listen.
Waitress 1: "He so cute, he smiled at me too!"
Waitress 2: "He eats so fast though..."
Waitress 3: "That's okay, I still think he'd make a great boyfriend"
Waitress 4: "He looks so strong!"
Waitress 1: "And handsome."
Waitress 3: "I bet he'd really know how to treat a girl"
All waitresses: *sigh*
Kaen tries his hardest to ignore them, thinking 'Wonderful. Why is it that everywhere I go women seem to keep throwing themselves at me? At least these ones are keeping their distance for now. At least Pi's not around to see it...' Almost immediately upon thinking this, a cold shiver runs up his spine, and he's filled with a sense of foreboding. Finishing up his meal, he calls for the cheque, and the embittered old mistress who runs the place brings the hefty bill over, it's total cost surprising even him. 'Well, I 'spose I _did_ go five days without food... note to self, never do that again...' he muses to himself, before flashing a grin at the waitresses, and using a combination of his speed and after image technique to flee the place without paying.
And none too soon, for no sooner has he left the place and in walks Pi, who does not look pleased in any way whatsoever. One of the waitresses notices her entering, whispering to the others "Gee, she looks pissed..." before crying out in surprise, along with the others, as the girl slams the 'hottie' with her energy hammer, the image dispersing instantly, with a cry of "Baka!" Kaen catches wind of her cry, and proceeds to run faster, while Pi, noticing that he is not there, and that she has been fooled once again, suddenly looks more upset than angry, and storms out of the place, leaving the waitresses in a stupor as to what happened to him, and the mistress in an uproar over the bill going unpaid.
*****
Flute stares up at the tower, trying to sense where the Dragon Ball in the tower lay, when he felt a presence trying to invade his mind, or probe it at least. He hurriedly blocked it, and turned around trying to find its source when he spotted Kaen running towards him at near super-sonic speeds. Kaen screeches to a halt upon spotting Flute, sliding for a good few feet before regaining his balance and loosing his momentum.
Flute just raises his eyebrow, saying, "I can not wait to hear you explain this."
Kaen takes a second to catch his breath before panting out, "Remember that complication you mentioned when we started this?"
Flute paused a moment, as if expecting Kaen to continue, before prompting him with "Yes... And?"
Kaen stands upright, recovered from his little jog, and mutters "Well... some how she seems to have found me... it's a good thing I fled the restaurant when I did, 'coz she found my little illusion... again."
Flute couldn't help but smirk at this, stating, "She's more resourceful than I thought, perhaps she could be of more use to us."
"Yeah well, you tell her. I don't think she'll be very happy to see me," Kaen says indignantly, and with a hint of fear in his voice, one he'd deny existed if questioned about it.
If anything Flute's smirk widens, and he waits a while before replying, "She doesn't look it."
Kaen's eyes widen in fright, and he glances around frantically, reaching out with all of his sources to find her, but he's far too late. Just as he finds her and spins around, he is slammed over the head by a large hammer shaped object, getting crushed by the awesome devastation and anger of it's wielder, who makes a slight "Hmph... Baka."
Kaen rubs his head a little, the hammer actually managing to hurt even his hard head, and smiles weakly up at her, stuttering "Uh... hey... um... what brings you here?"
Flute bursts out laughing, making no effort to hide his amusement, and Kaen just thinks to himself 'mental note: hurt green man later...'
Her hammer seeming to have vanished, she looks down at him, a stern look on her face, and says, "I followed you."
Still a little nervous, he manages to get out "Uh... how?"
She smiles, and leans down to face him directly; superiority etched all over her features, and proclaims "I put a tracer on your ship."
He slaps his forehead, muttering "Kuso, why didn't I check the ship..." to himself, before looking up at her again and smiling, this time a genuine smile, and saying "You've improved since I left."
She stood upright and giggled a little, saying "Thanks," before their moment is lost as Flute interrupts with "If you two are quite done..."
Kaen stands up and brushes himself off, sending a glare Flute's way, before looking back at Pi and asking "So, I 'spose you wanna tag along now?"
Pi nods, replying "That's what I intend to do." After making a show of sighing dramatically, he resigns himself to his fate and says, "Well, if you insist. But I must warn you, my life isn't exactly safe, even by our standards."
She just grabs hold of his arm, holding it. "Don't worry, I'll protect you!" she chirps perkily, causing Flute to burst out laughing again.
Kaen glares at Flute again, adding another entry to the 'Reasons to hurt the Namek' list in his head, before snapping "I can take care of myself just fine, and have been up until now. I'm more worried about you."
She just smirks, "I can take care of myself, trust me."
Flute's expression turns serious, the time for fun obviously passed, and states, "The item we're looking for is in this building, and I'd like to get it as soon as possible."
Kaen glances at him, putting on his 'game face' and replies, "Fine green man, what's the plan."
Flute begins his run-down. "Well its day time, many of the guards will be active, and broad day-light makes for a difficult escape, but as it is day, they wont be so angry for getting them out of bed, so we storm in, get what we are after and leave. Any questions?"
Kaen just shrugs, responding "Sounds good to me. Any idea on numbers?"
"Possible a few dozen, not much," is his answer.
Flute spares them one more look, saying, "It's on the top floor, are you ready?"
Pi just nods silently, while Kaen cracks his knuckles, bares his fangs, and says, "Whenever you are."
However, before they can take so much as one step, the shadowed figure, covered almost entirely by a cloak, who had been watching them all this time, steps out of hiding and says to Flute "Excuse me, but are you Namekian?" in an obviously female voice.
He stops, sizing her up, but the cloak prevents him from getting much, besides the fact that she's quite strong, as her ki attests to. "Yes I am. You've been watching me for some time now, and I'd like to know why." he replies after a moment.
She reaches up to her hood a little hesitantly, saying "There's a good reason for that..." before drawing it back, revealing red hair, tied back into a ponytail that continues into her cloak, covering pointed ears and green, Namek-esque features. "My name is Viola, and I've been searching for anyone from the Namek race."
Flute, who's face rarely if ever shows any emotion bar amusement, freezes into a look of shock, jaw hanging wide enough to fit a fist in, at this revelation.
Kaen glances at her, a curious expression on his face, and asks "So what does that make you then?"
"I am a Namekin, the sister race of the Nameks" she replies, never once taking her eyes off Flute, who has managed to compose himself somewhat, but still seems unable to respond.
At this point, Pi decided to make herself noticed, piping up "I heard that Nameks were only male..."
Viola nods, saying, "Well, our legends say that many generations ago, there were both sexes, but the two separated in an effort to harness our true power, becoming asexual to facilitate this."
Flute scratches his head a little, and manages to get out "I do not believe I've heard that particular legend..."
She nods again, saying, "There is much both races can learn from each other, I believe. However, a full explanation would take much time, and I believe you had some business to attend to. I would like to help."
Flute nodded slightly, seemingly back in full control of his motor functions. "Well them, let's hurry. I do not wish to be here any longer than needed."
Kaen just shrugs a little, saying, "Whatever gets me off this rock faster is good by me" indifferently, while Pi just nods her assent, obviously in agreement with the two guys.
"Then lets go, Kaen, lead the way, I am sure knocking out these minions of the Cold empire is your forte," Flute says, looking back at the tower. The Saiyan in question grins, and starts walking towards the door, preparing to make a dramatic entrance in true Saiyan fashion, but before he can, the steel door is torn from it's hinges by an unseen force. He spins around in time to see their newest member lowering her right hand, a slight smirk on her face.
Pi looked over at her, bright-eyed, and exclaimed "Wow, didn't even see the ki trail!"
Viola smiles a little before replying, "That's because there was no ki, that was telekinesis. Focusing using one's arms just makes it easier."
Flute, however, did not seem amused, and his head seemed to expand to nearly thrice-normal size as he shouted, "We have just lost our element of surprise, and now they're all here," indicating the two-dozen men now in the doorway.
However, before he or anyone else can react he is struck down by what appears a hammer similar to the one Pi wielded, although created purely out of lightning, as she yells back "DON'T SHOUT AT ME!"
Kaen glances nervously at the hammer, knowing full well just how much they can hurt, as his little run-in early can attest to, before stammering "We have bigger problems than your petty squabbling."
The two-dozen guards immediately surround them, one the one who appears to be in charge declares, "No one move!"
Kaen just shakes his head, muttering "they just keep lining up to die..." and the tension in the air builds until you could cut it with a knife. Then, with an almost audible snap, all hell breaks loose.
Pi crosses her hands in front of her chest, shouting "Disruption of Gaia!" before throwing her hands down. The earth begins to shake, throwing several of them off balance, and bolts of ki shoot out from under the ground, incinerating four of them instantly.
Kaen whistles in an impressed manor before taking to the sky and facing the guards, hands crossed in front of his stomach, palms facing, a small, white ki disk between them. His cry of "Balefire Storm!" rings out as he throws his right hand forward, and the disk launches, nearly tripling in size, and shatters into twelve.
The flurry of super-hot disks speed towards the guards, scattering them, and five of them are lucky enough to only be grazed by the disks and are able to stay in the fight. Another four are not so fortunate, loosing either an arm or a leg in the attack, and putting them out of the fight, while one unfortunate soul gets his head taken clean off, the wound severing cleanly as though the two parts were never together. The last two disks, however, miss entirely, slicing through the surrounding structures before embedding themselves in the ground.
Flute lifts his arm towards another cluster of guards, his fist clenched, and forms a white-hot ball in his hand, shouting "Lightzone Grenade" as he throws it at them. One guard is killed in the initial hit, and another two fall in the blast.
Viola holds her right hand in front of her heart, a transparent blue ball of ki forming, throwing it forward with a cry of "Soul Prison!" If one were to look closely, they'd see a ghostly image of Viola trailing the clear blue beam as it streaks towards the guards, exploding upon impact, a black, two-dimensional vortex appearing above them, and the transparent images of three of the guards, their very souls, are drawn into the vortex before it closes, their lifeless bodies falling back to the ground.
Two of the guards, the only two still able to act, attempt to attack the enraged Saiyan male above them, whose back is turned to them, with basic blasts, but before they hit he spins around, dodging one blast and back-handing the other away in a single, fluid motion, and sends them a death glare.
Pi, meanwhile, extended her arms towards the ground in front of the still-disoriented guards shouting "Ground Force!" and launching four them into the air. Three of them land awkwardly, shattering a limb or two, while the last lands harshly on his neck, severing his spine and killing him instantly.
Viola folds her arms in front of her, static dancing between her fingers as she slides them away until her hands rest above one another as if she were holding a ball. Moments later she is, as the static coalesces into a bluish-white ki ball, flickering with electricity. With a cry of "Thunder Dragon!" a blue thunder serpent blasts out of the sphere, shooting towards a guard with lightning fast speed, coiling around him and sinking it's fangs into the guys shoulder, seemingly draining him of his life force, and dropping the corpse upon finishing it's 'meal.'
Flute glares at the last active guard, and without another word begins to rapidly fire beams of ki from his eyes. As the guard attempts to dodge the blasts, an effort that proves futile moments later when he gets struck down, one of the recovering guards is caught in the crossfire and joins his fallen comrades.
Kaen faces the last two guards, throwing his hands back, gathering ki and throwing them forward again before yelling, "Let's end this! Inferno Blast!" Unfortunately, his blast streaks past them and tears into the building, causing the earth to tremble as it explodes, and engulfing the remaining guards in the flames.
Flute relaxed a little as the last of the guards were finished off, saying "All of you wait here, I'll get what we are after then we can leave, there will be people here shortly to come after us, so be ready to leave and quickly" before darting into the building, using his speed to race past the still-raging flames.
Kaen glances over at the others as the after effects of his attack start to die down, saying sheepishly "Um... guess my aim was a little off..."
Pi smiled a little at him, remarking, "That was so cool Kaen, you almost knocked the building down!"
Kaen laughed a bit, pausing in his pillaging from the fallen guards, as he said "Wait 'til you see what I can do when I _try_ to blow shit up!"
She looks over at Viola, still smiling, and says, "Your attack looked great too!"
She receives a smile in return, along with, "Thanks. That's the first time I've tried it in combat. No-one wanted me to practise against them..."
Pi just nods, saying, "At least now you know it works."
Flute came out of the building, stashing a small orange orb inside his robes, saying, "Let's get going."
Kaen stands, finished his looting spree, and pauses long enough to mouth "You did great" to Pi before saying "Yes, let's."
Suddenly, one of the scouters Kaen liberated from the fallen guards starts buzzing to life with signal relays, and he places it over his ear in time to hear "...repeat, Guard tower alpha was attacked, the Ginyu force will be joining team beta to prevent the attacked escape..."
He pales a little, muttering "Kuso..." repeatedly, before looking at the others and blurting out "Guys, we gotta move. Now."
Flute already starts hovering, getting ready to leave, but Pi hesitates a bit, asking "Why?"
Kaen just looks at her and says "Trust me, you don't wanna know" before grabbing her arm and taking to the sky, dragging her a little before she pulls away and starts flying on her own, Flute flying ahead and Viola staying close to him.
*****
They arrive back at the ship in no time, having gone faster this time than they did leaving it, and Flute stops Kaen before they get on, saying "I know we are rushing for good reason, care to elaborate?"
Kaen's face turns grim, and he says but two words that cause Pi's face to pale in turn, "Ginyu Force."
Flute nods, saying "We need to slow them down. Any ideas?"
Kaen just smirks back, replying, "Get this thing started, and I'll see about leaving them a little going-away present."
Flute heads to the controls, and prepares the ship for take off, as Kaen flies a little distance away, raising both hands above his head and focusing all of his energy into a ball of raging red ki above him, which begins to grow exponentially. The others watch as the ball soon dwarfs him in size, and he rears back, screaming, "Let's see you bastards dodge this! FLAMES OF CHAOS!!!" and throwing the ball with all his might, sending it over the horizon.
With all the speed he can muster in his weakened state, he rushes back onto the ship, closing the hatch and screaming, "GO! NOW!!"
The ship rockets out of the planet's atmosphere with all the fury it can, and once it's safely out in space Flute calls out "What the hell was that?"
Kaen staggers towards them, leaning heavily against the wall and panting out, "That's... my ultimate attack... cleanses... the planet... in an... extremely... violent way..."
From space it could clearly be seen. A large gaping hole appeared in the planets crust, cracks appearing over the planets surface, glowing red as lava spewed from each one, the crevasse he created with his attack, growing larger by the minute. Before long, the planet was reduced to a molten ball, useless to everyone, at least until the cycle of planetary life started anew again. However, due to the way the attack was designed, this normally lengthy process would be completed in just 10 years.
Kaen looked on with a weird sense of pride showing through his exhaustion, watching his attack begin the cycle anew, before Pi pulled him to a chair, smiling as best she could, and trotting off to find him something to drink. Kaen smiles at her weakly, too tired to do much else, and wheezes out "Only... problem... is it totally drains me..."
Pi comes back swiftly, glass of water in hand, and after he takes a drink, puts the glass aside and says "Maybe you should rest a bit.
He smiles up at her again, and manages to get out "I think... I will..." falling asleep almost before the words leave his mouth. Pi smiled as best she could again before wandering off and finding a blanket to cover him, making herself comfortable next to him and dozing against him, her head resting on his chest, while the Nameks just looked at each other, sat down, and began meditating. And thus, the crew of the Namekian ship, doubled in size in under a day, rested up, preparing themselves for the long journey ahead.
End Chapter 03
To be continued...
Chapter 03 - Reunions, Meetings and Liberations
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He looked at his older brother, saying goodbye to his family and friends. He always said goodbye to him last, but he knew that showed that he meant the most to his brother. He may have only been just over one year old, but he'd said goodbye no less than seven times. This time however, this time felt... different.
His brother turned to him and got down on one knee, sweeping him up into a big, brotherly hug. He pulled him away, keeping his hands on his shoulders, and smiled, a smile that he alone saw. [Now Kaen, I want you to be good for mum and dad, all right?] asked his brother.
Kaen beamed back at him, chirping [Of course I will Korin, I'm always good!]
Korin chuckled a little, managing to get out [Of course you are squirt] between laughs.
His face turned serious for a moment, as he made one more request. [Kaen, I want you to promise me you'll take care of them when I'm gone.]
He looked back at his brother with a serious expression of his own, pondering over his brother's words, but wasting no time before replying. [I promise big brother. I'll make you proud.]
Korin's smile returned, and he pulled him into a hug once more, whispering in a voice for his ears alone. [I'll always be proud of you, so long as you're happy, and I'll always be there for you, watching over you, keeping you safe.]
Korin bid one last farewell before setting off, his mission could wait no longer. Kaen watched his brother fly away, his words filling his thoughts. 'He said 'when I'm gone,' not 'while I'm gone.' He makes it sound like... he's not coming back...' As Korin disappeared from view, his smiling face filled Kaen's vision, his last statement ringing loudly in his ears. He closed his eyes, the full significance of his brothers words leaving him feel empty inside, his eyes brimming with tears he refused to shed.
He gave once last look at the sky, a single tear falling down his cheek, and said his final goodbye. 'Farewell brother. I hope you can find happiness in the next life.'
*****
He gazed out the window, the emptiness of space all around. The same emptiness that claimed his brother, and tore him from his family. He closed his eyes and sighed, turning away from the window, and directing his eyes to his companion. For five days the Namek hadn't moved from his meditation, only pausing every now and then to change the heading slightly, or to take a drink of water from the flask he carried. For five days he was left alone with his thoughts and regrets, and the silence was really starting to get to him.
The silence wasn't meant to last, however, and his stomach soon began protesting to having gone five days without food. Flute, meditation broken by the echo of a growling stomach, glanced over at him with a raised eyebrow. Kaen just looks back in mild indignation, and shrugs his shoulders. "Well, it _has_ been five days. Even _I_ have my limits."
"I sense we are nearly there, and I don't like being wrong, so a few more hours of silence and I think we can pin-point it," Flute says, mildly annoyed at having to ask for silence.
Kaen just shrugs again, saying, "Well, I'll do my best, but I can't vouch for my stomach."
Flute just returns to his meditation without another word. In an effort to take his mind off his hunger, he begins his kata for the fifth time in as many days. His efforts seem to pay off, as before too long Flute changes the ship's heading again, this time directly for a near-by planet, and removes himself from his meditation shortly after.
Kaen cracks his knuckles before starting to stretch, beginning a real workout rather than merely something to pass the time. Flute looks at him with a raised eyebrow, as he is often want to do, and says, "Getting excited are we?"
Kaen lets out a feral grin as he punched the air a couple of times, before remarking "It's been a while since I've truly let loose."
Flute smirks a little bit himself before saying "Then you will be pleased to learn, as by these satellites, that this is a Cold empire dedicated planet."
If it were possible, Kaen's grin would've widened at that, replying with "Thanks, you've just made my day."
*****
The ship lands on the planet in a mountain range outside of civilisation, setting down in the middle of a canyon to hide it from unwanted guests. Flute gathers his cloak before looking over at Kaen and saying "They won't appreciate us being here without an explanation, so be ready."
Kaen just throws his trench coat on, cracks his knuckles again and replies smugly "I was born ready! Let's go say 'hi' to the welcoming party."
The two exit the ship, Flute leading the way towards the mouth of the canyon, where three rather weak-looking guards await, blaster rifles at the ready. Kaen merely yawns in their general direction, when one of them, obviously either the leader, or just the most brave/stupid steps forward and says, in what is clearly an attempt at a commanding voice, "Who are you, and why did you land without clearance?"
Kaen glances over at Flute, a bored expression on his face, and says lazily "Do you wanna show them our clearance, or should I?"
Flute look back with a barely detectable smirk on his face, replying, "I think you will be more suited to the task."
Kaen nods once, saying "Ok then," before looking back at the guards, a smirk firmly entrenched on his features.
The two outside guards step back a bit and start fidgeting, clearly intimidated by him, but the leader either refuses to feel fear, or just isn't smart enough. In any case he doesn't live long enough to learn his error as Kaen throws his hands back in trademark fashion, screaming, "Here's my clearance! Inferno Blast!" and sending a gout of flame that incinerates the man where he stands, and the ensuing explosion almost wipes out the other two as well. They dive to the side, each making a show of bravado at what is clearly their last stand, and each firing their blasters at him. Only one of them gets even remotely close, and he slaps the blast away like an annoying insect.
He raised both his hands palms up, pointing one at each guard, a red ball of ki forming in front of each palm and shouts "Twin Blaze!" A thin red beam fires from each hand, each heading towards different targets, and before they realise they've been fired upon, the two remaining guards are reduced to carbon ash. Kaen cracks his neck to the side, readjusts his coat, and looks back to Flute as if nothing had happened. "Where to now?"
Flute nods a little, and leads the way out of the canyon and into a large citadel, filled with various creatures, and large amounts of roaming guards, none of which seemed to be carrying scouters. Kaen follows, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible for a man travelling with a green man, but they blend in reasonable well considering the large diversity of life forms on a Cold controlled world.
Flute stops, looking at a large tower extending above the citadel, saying "In there, we will find it in there."
Kaen just nods, and says, "Lead the way."
Flute pauses for a minute before saying, "Perhaps we should stop at an inn. They may have a restaurant."
Kaen's eyes light up at that, and he exclaims, "Now you're talking!"
*****
As they enter the inn, Flute paused a moment and looked around, as if sensing something off, but quickly shrugs it off and the two take a table. Unbeknownst to the pair, a dark figure, seated in the corner, watches their every move, seemingly keeping it's gaze on Flute for a moment longer, but makes no sign of acting on anything.
A young and pretty looking woman stops by their table, glancing at Kaen and smiling for a minute, before saying cheerily "Hello, can I take an order?"
Kaen looks through the menu thoroughly, before shrugging and saying disinterestedly "One of everything sounds good to me," while Flute just says "Water." She pauses a moment at the odd nature of their order, but quickly hurries off.
Kaen glances around the room, silently hoping that there's no-one one world who might recognise him, or at least any who would cause a scene, and notices all the waitresses in the place, and the bar maid, looking directly at him and smiling. He smiles back half-heartedly, then looks away, groaning quietly "Great, just what I need, more of them..."
Flute noticed their looks, and after the waitress had brought them his water, and the first part of Kaen's order, he smirked and said, "Maybe your eating habits will scare them off."
Kaen just shrugs, saying "Oh well," and starts inhaling his food in true Saiyan fashion. However, this doesn't seems to put the women off any, judging by what Kaen and Flute can hear over the sounds of Kaen's meal disappearing faster than it can reach the table.
Flute just drinks his water as he watches Kaen blush slightly from what his ears pick up, but his eating doesn't slow one iota. Flute smirks, saying, "A Saiyan blushing, will wonders never cease... other than the fact you haven't choked yet."
The Saiyan swallows, and pauses in his long over-due feast, and states, "One: Saiyans can't choke on food, we have a passage between our nose and lungs that ignores the throat, allowing us to breathe with our mouths full, and two: you mention this to anyone, and a slow painful death will be welcome relief from the hell I'll put you through." After finishing his little speech, he promptly resumes eating as if he never stopped.
Flute laughs quietly to himself, saying, "This amuses me greatly, especially if we run into Pi again..."
Kaen glares at the Namek, pausing again in his meal as he growls, "Do you have a death wish green bean?" but he passes off the threat, stating, "Your food is getting cold," before sipping his water. The Saiyan manages to hold his glare for just long enough to process the Nameks remark, and finishes up his first course.
When the waitress returns with more of Kaen's meal, Flute manages to stop her before she leaves again, and asks "Tell me miss, what's in that tower?"
She pauses and says "That's where the planetary governor lives, but he's just a pawn for King Cold, everyone knows that."
He nods, and says, "I don't suppose you know much more about it?"
She shook her head, "Only that it's heavily guarded, the place is filled with guards, I hear that there's a ton of relics and treasures in there too."
At this, Flute nods, and the waitress runs off to continue bringing out the feast. Kaen, meanwhile, is tearing into the food as though it were his last meal. It _had_ been five days after all. Flute finished his water and stood up, declaring "I'll be back soon, pay for the meal when you're done... or at least flirt with the landlady, so we can get out of it, I'll leave it to you." before leaving.
Kaen waves half-heartedly at him, too absorbed in his meal to be bothered doing anything else. The mysterious figure in the corner stands and leave, appearing to follow after Flute, but the waitresses are too busy to notice, still looking at Kaen and giggling softly.
*****
Flute heads past the market, buying a cloak as he goes so as to conceal his appearance from onlookers, and heads in the direction of the tower. And if one were to watch, they'd notice the cloaked figure from the inn following shortly after him, making sure to stay out of sight, but following none-the-less.
*****
Back at the inn, the waitress brings back the last of Kaen's meal, almost one hour after he first arrived, and he smiles briefly at her before tearing into it. She smiles back shyly, blushing a little, before returning to the huddle of waitresses, still speaking in hushed whispers and giggles, all gazing in his direction. His ears can pick up fragments of their conversation, when he chooses to listen.
Waitress 1: "He so cute, he smiled at me too!"
Waitress 2: "He eats so fast though..."
Waitress 3: "That's okay, I still think he'd make a great boyfriend"
Waitress 4: "He looks so strong!"
Waitress 1: "And handsome."
Waitress 3: "I bet he'd really know how to treat a girl"
All waitresses: *sigh*
Kaen tries his hardest to ignore them, thinking 'Wonderful. Why is it that everywhere I go women seem to keep throwing themselves at me? At least these ones are keeping their distance for now. At least Pi's not around to see it...' Almost immediately upon thinking this, a cold shiver runs up his spine, and he's filled with a sense of foreboding. Finishing up his meal, he calls for the cheque, and the embittered old mistress who runs the place brings the hefty bill over, it's total cost surprising even him. 'Well, I 'spose I _did_ go five days without food... note to self, never do that again...' he muses to himself, before flashing a grin at the waitresses, and using a combination of his speed and after image technique to flee the place without paying.
And none too soon, for no sooner has he left the place and in walks Pi, who does not look pleased in any way whatsoever. One of the waitresses notices her entering, whispering to the others "Gee, she looks pissed..." before crying out in surprise, along with the others, as the girl slams the 'hottie' with her energy hammer, the image dispersing instantly, with a cry of "Baka!" Kaen catches wind of her cry, and proceeds to run faster, while Pi, noticing that he is not there, and that she has been fooled once again, suddenly looks more upset than angry, and storms out of the place, leaving the waitresses in a stupor as to what happened to him, and the mistress in an uproar over the bill going unpaid.
*****
Flute stares up at the tower, trying to sense where the Dragon Ball in the tower lay, when he felt a presence trying to invade his mind, or probe it at least. He hurriedly blocked it, and turned around trying to find its source when he spotted Kaen running towards him at near super-sonic speeds. Kaen screeches to a halt upon spotting Flute, sliding for a good few feet before regaining his balance and loosing his momentum.
Flute just raises his eyebrow, saying, "I can not wait to hear you explain this."
Kaen takes a second to catch his breath before panting out, "Remember that complication you mentioned when we started this?"
Flute paused a moment, as if expecting Kaen to continue, before prompting him with "Yes... And?"
Kaen stands upright, recovered from his little jog, and mutters "Well... some how she seems to have found me... it's a good thing I fled the restaurant when I did, 'coz she found my little illusion... again."
Flute couldn't help but smirk at this, stating, "She's more resourceful than I thought, perhaps she could be of more use to us."
"Yeah well, you tell her. I don't think she'll be very happy to see me," Kaen says indignantly, and with a hint of fear in his voice, one he'd deny existed if questioned about it.
If anything Flute's smirk widens, and he waits a while before replying, "She doesn't look it."
Kaen's eyes widen in fright, and he glances around frantically, reaching out with all of his sources to find her, but he's far too late. Just as he finds her and spins around, he is slammed over the head by a large hammer shaped object, getting crushed by the awesome devastation and anger of it's wielder, who makes a slight "Hmph... Baka."
Kaen rubs his head a little, the hammer actually managing to hurt even his hard head, and smiles weakly up at her, stuttering "Uh... hey... um... what brings you here?"
Flute bursts out laughing, making no effort to hide his amusement, and Kaen just thinks to himself 'mental note: hurt green man later...'
Her hammer seeming to have vanished, she looks down at him, a stern look on her face, and says, "I followed you."
Still a little nervous, he manages to get out "Uh... how?"
She smiles, and leans down to face him directly; superiority etched all over her features, and proclaims "I put a tracer on your ship."
He slaps his forehead, muttering "Kuso, why didn't I check the ship..." to himself, before looking up at her again and smiling, this time a genuine smile, and saying "You've improved since I left."
She stood upright and giggled a little, saying "Thanks," before their moment is lost as Flute interrupts with "If you two are quite done..."
Kaen stands up and brushes himself off, sending a glare Flute's way, before looking back at Pi and asking "So, I 'spose you wanna tag along now?"
Pi nods, replying "That's what I intend to do." After making a show of sighing dramatically, he resigns himself to his fate and says, "Well, if you insist. But I must warn you, my life isn't exactly safe, even by our standards."
She just grabs hold of his arm, holding it. "Don't worry, I'll protect you!" she chirps perkily, causing Flute to burst out laughing again.
Kaen glares at Flute again, adding another entry to the 'Reasons to hurt the Namek' list in his head, before snapping "I can take care of myself just fine, and have been up until now. I'm more worried about you."
She just smirks, "I can take care of myself, trust me."
Flute's expression turns serious, the time for fun obviously passed, and states, "The item we're looking for is in this building, and I'd like to get it as soon as possible."
Kaen glances at him, putting on his 'game face' and replies, "Fine green man, what's the plan."
Flute begins his run-down. "Well its day time, many of the guards will be active, and broad day-light makes for a difficult escape, but as it is day, they wont be so angry for getting them out of bed, so we storm in, get what we are after and leave. Any questions?"
Kaen just shrugs, responding "Sounds good to me. Any idea on numbers?"
"Possible a few dozen, not much," is his answer.
Flute spares them one more look, saying, "It's on the top floor, are you ready?"
Pi just nods silently, while Kaen cracks his knuckles, bares his fangs, and says, "Whenever you are."
However, before they can take so much as one step, the shadowed figure, covered almost entirely by a cloak, who had been watching them all this time, steps out of hiding and says to Flute "Excuse me, but are you Namekian?" in an obviously female voice.
He stops, sizing her up, but the cloak prevents him from getting much, besides the fact that she's quite strong, as her ki attests to. "Yes I am. You've been watching me for some time now, and I'd like to know why." he replies after a moment.
She reaches up to her hood a little hesitantly, saying "There's a good reason for that..." before drawing it back, revealing red hair, tied back into a ponytail that continues into her cloak, covering pointed ears and green, Namek-esque features. "My name is Viola, and I've been searching for anyone from the Namek race."
Flute, who's face rarely if ever shows any emotion bar amusement, freezes into a look of shock, jaw hanging wide enough to fit a fist in, at this revelation.
Kaen glances at her, a curious expression on his face, and asks "So what does that make you then?"
"I am a Namekin, the sister race of the Nameks" she replies, never once taking her eyes off Flute, who has managed to compose himself somewhat, but still seems unable to respond.
At this point, Pi decided to make herself noticed, piping up "I heard that Nameks were only male..."
Viola nods, saying, "Well, our legends say that many generations ago, there were both sexes, but the two separated in an effort to harness our true power, becoming asexual to facilitate this."
Flute scratches his head a little, and manages to get out "I do not believe I've heard that particular legend..."
She nods again, saying, "There is much both races can learn from each other, I believe. However, a full explanation would take much time, and I believe you had some business to attend to. I would like to help."
Flute nodded slightly, seemingly back in full control of his motor functions. "Well them, let's hurry. I do not wish to be here any longer than needed."
Kaen just shrugs a little, saying, "Whatever gets me off this rock faster is good by me" indifferently, while Pi just nods her assent, obviously in agreement with the two guys.
"Then lets go, Kaen, lead the way, I am sure knocking out these minions of the Cold empire is your forte," Flute says, looking back at the tower. The Saiyan in question grins, and starts walking towards the door, preparing to make a dramatic entrance in true Saiyan fashion, but before he can, the steel door is torn from it's hinges by an unseen force. He spins around in time to see their newest member lowering her right hand, a slight smirk on her face.
Pi looked over at her, bright-eyed, and exclaimed "Wow, didn't even see the ki trail!"
Viola smiles a little before replying, "That's because there was no ki, that was telekinesis. Focusing using one's arms just makes it easier."
Flute, however, did not seem amused, and his head seemed to expand to nearly thrice-normal size as he shouted, "We have just lost our element of surprise, and now they're all here," indicating the two-dozen men now in the doorway.
However, before he or anyone else can react he is struck down by what appears a hammer similar to the one Pi wielded, although created purely out of lightning, as she yells back "DON'T SHOUT AT ME!"
Kaen glances nervously at the hammer, knowing full well just how much they can hurt, as his little run-in early can attest to, before stammering "We have bigger problems than your petty squabbling."
The two-dozen guards immediately surround them, one the one who appears to be in charge declares, "No one move!"
Kaen just shakes his head, muttering "they just keep lining up to die..." and the tension in the air builds until you could cut it with a knife. Then, with an almost audible snap, all hell breaks loose.
Pi crosses her hands in front of her chest, shouting "Disruption of Gaia!" before throwing her hands down. The earth begins to shake, throwing several of them off balance, and bolts of ki shoot out from under the ground, incinerating four of them instantly.
Kaen whistles in an impressed manor before taking to the sky and facing the guards, hands crossed in front of his stomach, palms facing, a small, white ki disk between them. His cry of "Balefire Storm!" rings out as he throws his right hand forward, and the disk launches, nearly tripling in size, and shatters into twelve.
The flurry of super-hot disks speed towards the guards, scattering them, and five of them are lucky enough to only be grazed by the disks and are able to stay in the fight. Another four are not so fortunate, loosing either an arm or a leg in the attack, and putting them out of the fight, while one unfortunate soul gets his head taken clean off, the wound severing cleanly as though the two parts were never together. The last two disks, however, miss entirely, slicing through the surrounding structures before embedding themselves in the ground.
Flute lifts his arm towards another cluster of guards, his fist clenched, and forms a white-hot ball in his hand, shouting "Lightzone Grenade" as he throws it at them. One guard is killed in the initial hit, and another two fall in the blast.
Viola holds her right hand in front of her heart, a transparent blue ball of ki forming, throwing it forward with a cry of "Soul Prison!" If one were to look closely, they'd see a ghostly image of Viola trailing the clear blue beam as it streaks towards the guards, exploding upon impact, a black, two-dimensional vortex appearing above them, and the transparent images of three of the guards, their very souls, are drawn into the vortex before it closes, their lifeless bodies falling back to the ground.
Two of the guards, the only two still able to act, attempt to attack the enraged Saiyan male above them, whose back is turned to them, with basic blasts, but before they hit he spins around, dodging one blast and back-handing the other away in a single, fluid motion, and sends them a death glare.
Pi, meanwhile, extended her arms towards the ground in front of the still-disoriented guards shouting "Ground Force!" and launching four them into the air. Three of them land awkwardly, shattering a limb or two, while the last lands harshly on his neck, severing his spine and killing him instantly.
Viola folds her arms in front of her, static dancing between her fingers as she slides them away until her hands rest above one another as if she were holding a ball. Moments later she is, as the static coalesces into a bluish-white ki ball, flickering with electricity. With a cry of "Thunder Dragon!" a blue thunder serpent blasts out of the sphere, shooting towards a guard with lightning fast speed, coiling around him and sinking it's fangs into the guys shoulder, seemingly draining him of his life force, and dropping the corpse upon finishing it's 'meal.'
Flute glares at the last active guard, and without another word begins to rapidly fire beams of ki from his eyes. As the guard attempts to dodge the blasts, an effort that proves futile moments later when he gets struck down, one of the recovering guards is caught in the crossfire and joins his fallen comrades.
Kaen faces the last two guards, throwing his hands back, gathering ki and throwing them forward again before yelling, "Let's end this! Inferno Blast!" Unfortunately, his blast streaks past them and tears into the building, causing the earth to tremble as it explodes, and engulfing the remaining guards in the flames.
Flute relaxed a little as the last of the guards were finished off, saying "All of you wait here, I'll get what we are after then we can leave, there will be people here shortly to come after us, so be ready to leave and quickly" before darting into the building, using his speed to race past the still-raging flames.
Kaen glances over at the others as the after effects of his attack start to die down, saying sheepishly "Um... guess my aim was a little off..."
Pi smiled a little at him, remarking, "That was so cool Kaen, you almost knocked the building down!"
Kaen laughed a bit, pausing in his pillaging from the fallen guards, as he said "Wait 'til you see what I can do when I _try_ to blow shit up!"
She looks over at Viola, still smiling, and says, "Your attack looked great too!"
She receives a smile in return, along with, "Thanks. That's the first time I've tried it in combat. No-one wanted me to practise against them..."
Pi just nods, saying, "At least now you know it works."
Flute came out of the building, stashing a small orange orb inside his robes, saying, "Let's get going."
Kaen stands, finished his looting spree, and pauses long enough to mouth "You did great" to Pi before saying "Yes, let's."
Suddenly, one of the scouters Kaen liberated from the fallen guards starts buzzing to life with signal relays, and he places it over his ear in time to hear "...repeat, Guard tower alpha was attacked, the Ginyu force will be joining team beta to prevent the attacked escape..."
He pales a little, muttering "Kuso..." repeatedly, before looking at the others and blurting out "Guys, we gotta move. Now."
Flute already starts hovering, getting ready to leave, but Pi hesitates a bit, asking "Why?"
Kaen just looks at her and says "Trust me, you don't wanna know" before grabbing her arm and taking to the sky, dragging her a little before she pulls away and starts flying on her own, Flute flying ahead and Viola staying close to him.
*****
They arrive back at the ship in no time, having gone faster this time than they did leaving it, and Flute stops Kaen before they get on, saying "I know we are rushing for good reason, care to elaborate?"
Kaen's face turns grim, and he says but two words that cause Pi's face to pale in turn, "Ginyu Force."
Flute nods, saying "We need to slow them down. Any ideas?"
Kaen just smirks back, replying, "Get this thing started, and I'll see about leaving them a little going-away present."
Flute heads to the controls, and prepares the ship for take off, as Kaen flies a little distance away, raising both hands above his head and focusing all of his energy into a ball of raging red ki above him, which begins to grow exponentially. The others watch as the ball soon dwarfs him in size, and he rears back, screaming, "Let's see you bastards dodge this! FLAMES OF CHAOS!!!" and throwing the ball with all his might, sending it over the horizon.
With all the speed he can muster in his weakened state, he rushes back onto the ship, closing the hatch and screaming, "GO! NOW!!"
The ship rockets out of the planet's atmosphere with all the fury it can, and once it's safely out in space Flute calls out "What the hell was that?"
Kaen staggers towards them, leaning heavily against the wall and panting out, "That's... my ultimate attack... cleanses... the planet... in an... extremely... violent way..."
From space it could clearly be seen. A large gaping hole appeared in the planets crust, cracks appearing over the planets surface, glowing red as lava spewed from each one, the crevasse he created with his attack, growing larger by the minute. Before long, the planet was reduced to a molten ball, useless to everyone, at least until the cycle of planetary life started anew again. However, due to the way the attack was designed, this normally lengthy process would be completed in just 10 years.
Kaen looked on with a weird sense of pride showing through his exhaustion, watching his attack begin the cycle anew, before Pi pulled him to a chair, smiling as best she could, and trotting off to find him something to drink. Kaen smiles at her weakly, too tired to do much else, and wheezes out "Only... problem... is it totally drains me..."
Pi comes back swiftly, glass of water in hand, and after he takes a drink, puts the glass aside and says "Maybe you should rest a bit.
He smiles up at her again, and manages to get out "I think... I will..." falling asleep almost before the words leave his mouth. Pi smiled as best she could again before wandering off and finding a blanket to cover him, making herself comfortable next to him and dozing against him, her head resting on his chest, while the Nameks just looked at each other, sat down, and began meditating. And thus, the crew of the Namekian ship, doubled in size in under a day, rested up, preparing themselves for the long journey ahead.
End Chapter 03
To be continued...