Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ The Phoenix Chronicles ❯ Awkward Conversations ( Chapter 4 )

--- The Phoenix Chronicles ---

Chapter 04 - Awkward Conversations

He looked at his parents, putting on a brave face as they said goodbye to him. They could never fool him. He knew how hard it must be to see your second son following in the footsteps of the one you lost a mere two years back. His mother gave him one last hug before he turned his gaze down to focus on the two kids latched on his legs, one boy, one girl.

He detached them gently, kneeling down to their level and pulling the both of them into a hug of his own, saying [Oran, Lime, I want you to be good while I'm gone, and don't give mum and dad too much grief, understand?] Despite his serious, and somewhat stoic, tone, the two of them could feel the emotion behind it.

[Don't worry Kaen.] Oran piped up, [We'll look after everything while you're away.]

[Yeah big brother, we'll make you proud.] Lime continued.

He smiled at them, a genuine smile, as he said, [I already am, I always will be, and don't you forget that. I just hope I'm back in time to see you two turn one.]

A smile burst onto both of their faces as they said as one, [That'd be so cool. It won't be the same without you.]

He spared them one last look before standing again, and walking over to the last person he needed to bid farewell, however much he may have hated the thought of leaving her. Pi, his long-time crush, looked back at him, tears clearly in her eyes, just waiting to be shed. The two embraced, and gave each other a quick kiss, resulting in much hooting and hollering from his team, standing not 5 metres from his family, and all of them friends of his late brother.

It seemed he and Pi were destined to be together almost from birth, and it seemed like they'd been teased about it from not long after. Both his and her family, as well as all their friends, both shared and individual, had all given them flack over it at some point. However, they'd both only just gotten up the courage to do anything about it a month or two ago, despite Pi still having two years left before she came of age. This didn't lessen the teasing any, if anything it only got worse now that they seemed to have accepted their fate.

Kaen groaned, looking over his shoulder at the guys and barking out, [Hey, knock it off would ya!] His arms, however, stayed in place around her waist.

[Never gonna happen] one of the guys jeered back.

[Get used to it] said another. [It happened to us, and now we're doing it to you.]

[Besides] said a third, [I don't hear you denying anything.]

Fighting down the blush that threatened to overtake his face, he reluctantly released her, and immediately upon doing so hurled a weak blast at them. They all dived out of the way, and a forth man said [Hey, save that energy for the battlefield kid.]

Kaen's right eye started twitching, and he growled out, [Kid?! Remember, you may be older than me, but I'm a higher rank that all of you, so I expect a little respect.]

[Yes sir.] They all chirped out in a sing-song voice, but he chose to ignore them in favour of looking back at his girl.

The tears finally started to fall as she whispered out the first words she'd said to him all day, [I'll miss you. Come back safe.]

He embraced her again, wiping away her tears with one hand, as he whispered his reply, [I'm coming back. I promise, I'm never gonna leave you. No matter what may happen, not even death itself is going to stop me from being with you.]

She nodded, more unshed tears already waiting in her eyes, and he stepped back, gazing at his loved ones one more time before setting off. He had a mission to do, his first, and, while he didn't yet know it, his last.

*****

About two hours had passed in the Namekian space ship, two hours devoid of all noise bar the hum of the ship, and the subtle sounds of breathing, both from the sleeping Saiyans and the meditating Nameks. Said Saiyans seem to have made themselves more comfortable, with Kaen now having one arm wrapped around the sleeping girl resting on his chest.

Deciding that she'd meditated enough for now, Viola decided to break the silence, asking with still-closed eyes, {So, what exactly was it you were after?}

Flute stands from his own meditation, walking over towards Viola and removing the orange orb from his robes. He held it out to her, asking, {Do you know what this is?}

She, in turn, opened her eyes and studied it a bit. The ball gleamed slightly, it's four orange stars clearly visible in the centre. Finally, she answered in a quiet tone, {I've never seen anything quite like it... it seems almost... alive... but... I don't know what it could be...}

He nodded slightly, saying, {This, is a dragon ball.}

Her eyes widened, as she gazed at the ball with what could only be described as awe in her eyes, whispering, {But I thought that skill was lost when the races split...}

He nodded again, {Lost to yours maybe, I suppose there were only males of the dragon clan left after the split...}

Viola seemed to struggle a little to find the words she wanted, but finally said {I've... I've read some of our ancient texts, and they spoke of the Eternal Dragon, but we haven't been able to summon it for as long as the records go back. So, that skill still exists in the male breed?}

{There are many things it seems the Namek-jin has forgotten, perhaps the same thing has happened to your side of things as well.} Flute replied sagely, {Any member of the dragon clan can make the balls necessary to summon the eternal dragon.}

The look of awe returned, and she murmured, {...Amazing... maybe elder Cellia was right... both sexes do need each other...}

Flute looked away, a distant and, some would say, upset look on his face, replying, {Perhaps they do...}

Viola, not noticing his mood, suddenly gained a curious expression as she inquired, {So what other skills do the Namek males have?}

He made himself comfortable, settling into a meditative position, as he responded, {What do you mean?}

{Well,} she began, {You mentioned that members of the dragon clan could make dragon balls. Are there any other special abilities any of the other clans have? I'm interested to see what skills the males gained, and what it may be possible to gain back.}

{Well, that's a hard question to answer, as I am not sure what makes out two sexes so different.} was his response. He noted that it felt rather odd referring to his species as having two sexes after believing otherwise his entire life.

This time, Viola noticed his discomfort, and said, {It feels weird knowing that we exist, doesn't it? I know, because I felt the same when I read the ancient texts, against our elder's wishes. We, the Namekin's, have strong ties to the spirits around us. We can call on them for aid, to confuse or deceive our foes, or to make us stronger, but without them, much of our power weakens.}

With a nod, Flute responded with, {Whereas the Nameks have relied on the powers of their own mind and body to excel.}

She donned a contemplative look, mulling that over a bit before saying, {So... most, if not all, of your power is a direct relation to your strength?}

{That's correct.}

{I can see the uses in that... we have become too dependant on the spirits, and many of them know this. Vengeful spirits often choose to abandon us when we need them most, and without them many of our powers take so much more of our personal strength to use. But when they aid us... there's is nothing we cannot achieve.} She replied somewhat proudly.

Flute's answer was a simple nod of the head and a {So I saw earlier.}

She smiled a little, declaring, {And that's just the beginning. The elder's have far stronger control than I. They make me look harmless in comparison, and I am the strongest of the current mature generation.}

{I am the same.} He replied, {I am most likely on of the strongest as well.}

Her smile widens a fraction, and she said happily, {So we may have a bit in common then. I look forward to learning more about you, and those like you.}

For reasons he couldn't understand, seeing her smile like that made him feel awkward, but he kept his stony expression and, in an effort to lessen the feeling, closed his eyes in a partial meditation

Viola joined him in meditating, flexing her mental might a little, and after a little while she queried telepathically ~So, can you use telepathy as well?~

Flute responded in kind, ~Yes, I do believe so~

Viola's nervousness was evident even through her mental mind, ~Um... this may sound naive, but... what species are our companions? We don't see many outsiders, and I have a lot to learn about the universe.~

Flute replied sombrely, ~They are the Saiya-jin, Saiyans, from the planet Vegita-Sei, a powerful race of people, unrivalled in many forms of combat and hard to kill, and should you ever face one in combat at night, pray to your spirits that there will be no full-moon.~

Her curiousness returned as she asked, ~What happens on a full moon?~

~The full moon gives them a horrible power, they become Giant beasts, their power raises exponentially, and they can destroy a city in a matter of minutes.~ Even his mental voice shows just how grim he feels about the subject.

Viola pales at this as she replies, ~Well... maybe it's for the best that they never came to our planet... We have a moon in the sky ay all times, and a full moon occurs every 3 cycles.~

He nodded, saying ~On Namek-Sei, there is only continuous day, we are surrounded by three suns.~

She laughed a little, ~How ironic. We have eternal night, and you have eternal day.~

She could almost hear the smile in his mental voice as he said, ~Indeed.~

He paused for a bit before asking, ~So, why have you come out from your world, seeking the male half of our race?~

If it were any other race, you'd swear Viola blushed a little as she pondered how to phrase her answer. ~Well, for reasons unknown, many of our kind have been unable to... reproduce as we have been for generations, and I was given the task of... finding ways to remedy this. I was interested to see if it was happening to both sexes, or just us.~

Like a male of any race the large portion of the sexual undertones of the phrase was lost on Flute at this point, ~No, we are more than capable of the same method of reproduction as we have for many generations, but I don't see how we could...~ Suddenly, the hidden meaning of Viola's statement hits him, and he trails off in a voice that doesn't believe what it's saying, ~...help.~

With this clarity he allows himself to get a good look at his companion for the first time. The heavy cloak she wore before now lay beside her, discarded to allow her to meditate easier, and allowing him to see her figure quite clearly. She wore a traditional Namek-style tribal gi, albeit in a female cut, but she had a definite feminine figure concealed under the black cloth, and for reasons unknown to him, he felt the blood rush to his head, making him feel like he was about to have a nose bleed.

Viola, attempting to ignore the reaction he had to her statement, tries to return to her meditation, but upon feeling his eyes upon her she opens them again, gazing at him with a curious look, clearly not understanding just what his look means.

Flute shut his eyes quickly and tightly, a vein beginning to throb in his forehead, and he tried to remain calm about it. Viola just shrugs, returning to her meditation as the Saiyans start to stir from their slumber. After smiling down at Pi, Kaen, sensing the slight unease in the air, looks over at, and between, the two Nameks, both still putting up a facade of meditation.

Flute is the first to drop the facade, looking over at Viola once more.

Feeling eyes upon her again, and 'overhearing' some of his unguarded thoughts, her eyes snap open again, and she says, "What? Is something wrong?"

Flute immediately angers, slapping his forehead and barking out, "I can't meditate like this!" before standing, and storming off to his chair by the controls.

Pi, noticing Kaen's arm around her, just smiled and drew it closer before dozing off again, seemingly ignoring the Nameks' behaviour. Kaen, however, just snickered slightly at Flute, working out what happened, and already beginning to formulate plans to help karma run it's course as he drifted back to sleep.

*****

Two days have passed in relative peace for the occupants of the Namek space ship. Well, about as much peace as could ever be had among four warriors confined to a rather small means of transportation. Their captain Flute is currently meditating at the controls, searching for their next target, while Kaen, in keeping with his warrior nature, is stretching, and beginning his daily exercises.

The two females are currently trying to prepare a meal with what little things they have. Well, Pi is anyway, while Viola just looks on with amusement clearly evident on her face. Pi just looks over at her, saying, "You could try helping, or don't you know how to cook?"

Viola's amusement changes momentarily to disbelief as she replies, "You do realise that I drink only water, right?"

"That can't be very filling," replied Pi, looking somewhat bewildered.

Viola tries, and almost succeeds, to keep a smirk from her face as she says "It beats having to spend half of every day preparing, and then consuming, something that only comes back out again hours later."

Pi gives a look of out-right indignation, saying, "At least I can earn the gratitude of a man rather than having him run away with embarrassment from me!"

Loud and hearty laughter can be heard throughout the ship, emanating from the Saiyan male in the self-dubbed 'work-out area' as he makes his amusement known, while Viola just stutters for a response, trying to fight down a blush all the while, and Flute just sweat-drops. Giving up on trying to retain some dignity, Viola just stalks off, throwing her cloak across the room as she drops heavily into her meditation.

Smirking with every part of her Saiyan pride showing in her eyes, Pi calls out, "The meal is almost done" to Kaen. She needn't have bothering finishing the sentence, however, as the second the word 'meal' hits his ears he appears not one foot from her, moving with such speed he seems to almost teleport.

The meal spread out is only a light meal by Saiyan standards, but enough to get them through the day with the little activity that needs doing on the ship. Kaen practically drools over himself at the smells wafting in the air, gratitude showing under the obvious hunger for those, like Pi, who know where to look, but, using some of the few manners he was taught as a child, he waits for her to begin before starting himself.

Pi smiles at him before sitting down to begin, clearly happy both at his approval and his conduct, and Kaen wastes no time in joining her, making sure to pace himself and eat only his share. Flute glances back at them briefly, before turning back to the controls and muttering, "Pigs..." before punching in a new destination.

Viola laughs quietly, overhearing the comment that the two Saiyans' eating habits caused them to miss, and decides to have a little fun at the girls expense, flexing her will and starting to telekinetically move things around on the table.

Pi reached over for a glass of water on the table, but before her hand can grasp it the glass runs away to come to a rest a few inches from where it began. Muttering a "Huh?" and rubbing her eyes a little, she tries again, but the glass moves further away again.

Viola struggles to retain her composure and not burst out laughing, managing to keep it to a low chuckle unheard by the others.

Pi glares over at her, snapping, "Stop that! I know it's you!"

Viola just opens her eyes, looking back with a face of pure innocence, as she says, "I don't know what you're talking about. I've done nothing wrong." and indicating the glass of water, now resting back where it started from.

Pi looks back, pouting mildly, grumbling, "I'm not an idiot, I know what I saw." To make her point more than complete she used her Ki to knock Viola from her meditative position.

Viola stands up and glares over at Pi, clearly annoyed at being disturbed, and yells, "Hey, it's not my fault you're too clumsy to grab a glass from a stationary table!"

"At least I don't have to be so childish as to start moving objects around using my Ki just to be a pain!" Pi yells back.

"Hey, you have no proof I've done anything. I've just been meditating and trying to ignore the disgusting manner in which your species consumes food." Viola says indignantly.

"Kaen saw it too, didn't you? She was messing with my glass!" Pi looks over at Kaen upon finishing, as does Viola.

The man in question looks up from his food, glancing between the obviously very annoyed females, before saying, "Hey, leave me out of this. I'm not stupid enough to get in the middle of two clearly irate females, and besides, I was too busy eating to notice anything until you two started bickering."

Pi simply huffs, and mutters under her breath, "Kuso, Baka."

Kaen just looks over at Pi and says "I'm not saying I don't believe it happened, and if it comes down to it, I'll agree with you, but I'm not going to risk personal injury to do it."

Still showing signs of her irritation, Pi storms off, and Kaen sighs and says to himself, "Sometimes I think I was better off on my own..." before returning to the food, making sure as to leave some for her when and if she decides to come back for more.

So as to not aggravate the Saiyans any further, Flute uses his telepathy to contact Viola, saying, ~Was that really necessary?~

The laughter she refused to express verbally was clearly evident in her mental voice as she replied, ~Yes, yes it was.~

He paused for a second before replying, ~Hmm, and why is that?~

One could almost see her shrug as she replied, ~Because it was fun, do I need more of a reason than that?~

His response was swift, ~She's only a child.~

The indignation could be heard in her mental voice, ~She shouldn't start things she can't finish. She'll have to learn that eventually, and I might as well start teaching her that now. Besides, she takes things way too seriously.~

In an annoyed 'voice' Flute said, ~Saiyans are known for their pride, its one of those things that can't be helped, going out of your way to upset her is by no means a smart thing to do. We will be travelling together for quite some time I believe.~

She sighs mentally, ~Ok, I'll go apologise.~ before cutting the connection and heading in the direction of Pi's Ki signature, and on the way she passes Kaen, only just finishing up his snack before getting up and heading to the cargo bay.

*****

Viola finds Pi sitting in her room, her head resting on her knees and her arms wrapped around her legs, looking vacantly out the window. She walked up to her, standing there for a moment searching for the right words, before saying "Pi, I'm... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

When she got no immediate reaction, she continued, "I know it was childish, but I was just trying to add a little fun to an otherwise boring trip. That... and to get a little payback for you embarrassing me before. I'm guess I'm not very used to being around other people, let alone Saiyans."

Finally reacting, Pi nodded a little, whispering, "Its okay, I over-reacted a little... it just that... never mind."

Viola walked closer, sitting down next to her as she urged, "Just what? You can tell me."

"Kaen... he still thinks I'm a little kid." Pi murmured softly

"Well," Viola searched her memory, trying to remember what she'd been told, before continuing, "The last time you were really together was when you were... 14 or so in standard years, if I remember you telling me, right?" Pi just nodded slightly, but remained silent, so Viola continued, "I admit I'm not the best at working people out, but I think he just hasn't had a chance to see the new you yet. Give him time."

Pi nodded again, muttering, "Yeah... but what happened before didn't help much..."

Viola fought back a blush before saying, "Does he know how you feel about this?"

She shrugged, saying, "I don't know, his reactions are mixed a lot of the time."

Viola smiles wryly as she says, "Running for your life for 4 years can do that to a person."

Pi shook her head a little, saying, "We are Saiyans, it's a life we chose, and a life we enjoy, despite the hardships."

"Still," Viola continued, "if my memory of his story is right, he believes that he may have been betrayed by his own kind, right? And worse still, he lost his entire unit. Maybe he's just so afraid of losing you he's trying to drive you away to keep you safe."

Pi smirked a little, saying, "He'll have a hard time."

Viola smirked in kind and replied, "I'll bet. From what I've seen you don't let anything go without a fight."

Pi laughed a little and smiled, saying, "Saiyans are stubborn and proud."

Relieved that Pi seemed to have cheered up, and forgiven her, she smiled herself as she said, "So I've seen."

Pi blinked, seeming to realise something, asked, "Hey, what made you want to apologise anyway?"

Viola stood up and looked away, answering in a soft voice, "Flute helped me realise how stupid I was for doing what I did."

Pi's smile turned a bit more evil as she said slyly, "You really like him don't you?"

Viola blushed a little as she stammered out, "W..What makes you say that?"

Pi just got up, stood right in front of her, and said "Experience" before winking and exiting the room

Viola blushed for a little while more before realising that she was now alone and heading back to the cockpit. Without turning from the controls, Flute asked, "So, how'd everything turn out?"

Without so much as looking in his direction she sat down, and started looking out into space, saying just "Good."

Still without eye contact, although with a raised eyebrow that went unnoticed, he asked, "Is anything wrong?"

Her reply was a simple, "Nothing you need know or worry about." The pair still without looking at each other.

He just shrugged and said, "Very well."

*****

Over in the cargo bay, Pi walked in to find Kaen sitting at a bench, a portable computer that appeared to have been taken out of his pod next to him, working at something. Looking over his shoulder, she could see him doing something with one of the scouters he picked up on the last planet. Curious, she asked, "What are your doing?"

Looking up, he replied, "Trying to make these things better. I may not need one anymore, but they are handy to have around."

She nodded slightly before raising an eyebrow, and saying, "What do you mean you don't need one? How else can you tell people's power levels?"

He paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts, before beginning his tale. "Well, when I was on the run, I shed everything bar the ship that might link me to the Cold empire, but that left me with the problem you mentioned, not being able to find people, so I, through many hours of meditation, was able to find a way of 'sensing' people. I can't think of any other word for it bar another sense, just like Sight and Smell, only one that needs to be learned."

Pi gazed in slight awe, saying "Wow, that's great..." before becoming a bit nervous, and finishing with, "um... can you teach me?"

Kaen smiled up at her, saying, "I've never tried teaching it to anyone before, but it never hurts to try." Pi smiled back at him, but their little moment was broken violently, as the scouter circuits, which were left alone for too long, suddenly explodes in a shower of sparks. Kaen growls out, "Kuso, stupid thing, man they made these temperamental..."

Pi nodded, saying, "I remember once, when someone tried using too much energy at once and they just popped... it singed my hair..."

He nodded too, replying, "Yeah, they'll do that. From what I've seen they have a limit to how much power they can safely detect. Different models have different limits, based on what the average 'highest' power level was at the time. I think that's something Frieza had put in to scare people should they ever try to fight him."

Pi nodded again and said, "Well, Frieza is supposed to be the strongest being in the galaxy..."

Kaen just snorts a little at this, "Says him. I know better. Frieza kills off everyone strong because he knows that there's a chance they could best him, and it scares him."

Pi laughed, "In that case he'd have to destroy all of Vegita-Sei!"

Kaen laughs a little himself, "Yeah, it'll be a Saiyan that does him in alright. There's no doubt in my mind. Why else would he ride us so hard? One day he'll push one of us too hard, and we'll show him the true potential of the Saiyan race."

She nodded and smiled, saying, "I bet one of these days even one of our third class could put him down."

Kaen smirks at that, "Personally, I'd love to see the look on his face when it happens. Knowing Frieza he'll claim superiority with his dying breath."

Pi let out a little giggle, saying, "Imagine King Vegeta's face if that happened."

Kaen pauses for a moment, obviously trying to picture it, before bursting out in raucous laughter, in which Pi soon joins him. Flute, overhearing most of this conversation, just shakes his head, a slight smile adorning his face, as he muttered, "Damn arrogant Saiyans."

Managing to reign in his amusement, Kaen gets out, "Now that would be a priceless scene." She nodded, picking up one of the scouters on the bench and fitting it over her eye. As he watched her adjust it a little, he sighed a bit and said, "I 'spose it's a good thing I 'liberated' so many of these."

Pi nodded her head in agreement, saying, "You'll probably break more than a few."

He glared mildly at her with a half amused, half upset, and very un-Saiyan look on his face, as he replied, "Thanks for the confidence boost."

She stuck her tongue out at him childishly, and teased, "Only being honest."

He laughed a little bit at her expression, before saying, "I know. So, when do you want me to teach you to sense Ki, or try to at least?"

She just shook her head lightly, saying, "I'll let you finish here, I want to go watch the Nameks, they act funny when they're together."

Kaen laughed a little at that, before his face turned contemplative. "Now there's a relationship waiting to happen. Do you think we were that obvious?" Pi's only response is to blush lightly, and Kaen can feel his own cheeks start to heat up as memories of his time of Vegeta-Sei come back to him. "It would explain a lot..." he trails off. At this, Pi just giggled a little before kissing him on the cheek and running off. Kaen himself blushes a little more as he watches her retreating form, thinking, 'But I don't regret it for a moment.' Shaking his head slightly, he returns to his work.

*****

Back in the cockpit, Flute turned from the controls to Viola, saying, "Well, we have our second destination."

Viola looked back, sighed and said, "That's good. I don't know about you, but I need to get off this ship soon and stretch my legs."

He nodded, pausing a minute before voicing details. "From the data received, it seems to be a quiet place, no seemingly large populated areas, so we should be able to get in and out without problem"

She looked out the window again, thinking for a moment before replying, "What's the terrain like?"

"Large canyons, and plains. Not hostile, but not overly hospitable." was the answer given.

She paused again, before going on. "Hmm... any forests, or anything like? I'm dying to spend some time in nature's heart."

He looked over the data a moment before nodding, and saying, "The equator seems to be vegetated."

"Tropical plants... well, better than nothing." she mused.

With a final glance at the controls, he says, "It will be another two or three days before we arrive."

Her eyes widen a fraction, and she exclaims, "Damn, how slow is this thing? My ship could probably have done that distance is under a day... well, before it... broke down anyway."

With a look bordering on amusement, at least by Namek standards, Flute replies, "If you like you could get out and push, it may help."

Viola huffed at him, "Hey, that's not funny!"

"Actually," he grinned, "it was."

A voice from the cargo bay called out "It seemed funny from here," the tone of voice showing the speaker to be Kaen as much as the voice and words themselves, while Pi, having entered the cockpit mere seconds ago, just laughed quietly.

After the moment of mild comedy has passed, the voice calls out again, "Hey, where's that dragon ball thing? I wanna try something."

Flute doesn't pause a second as he says, "On a planet about two solar systems away."

Kaen sighs, "I meant the one we liberated."

With a raised eyebrow, the Namek replies, "In my cloak."

Kaen sighs again, this one sounding rather annoyed. "Well, if it's not too much trouble, could I borrow it for a moment?" he asks in a voice bordering on sarcastic.

Eyebrow still raised, Flute replies again, "Fine, come get it."

A third sigh is heard, this one definitely sounding annoyed, as Kaen stands from his work and walks over to him, collecting the ball and walking back to his workstation and placing the ball on some mechanical device, it's purpose a mystery to all bar the Saiyan himself. For several minutes nothing can be heard from Kaen's workstation bar key clacks and a mild hum, and the Namek can't help but feel somewhat anxious about the whole thing. Finally, Kaen looks up from the screen, smiling triumphantly, before standing up again and taking the ball back to Flute, simply saying "All done" before going back to work.

Immediately checking over the ball to make sure it was fine, Flute murmured, "I wonder what that was about..."

Either overhearing, or merely expecting that reaction, Kaen calls out, "I didn't break it, I just scanned it," never once looking up from his work.

"Why?" the Namek calls back.

"Simple, I figured that if you can sense these things there must be some sort of energy signal they give out. I thought if I could find it I could program that signal into these things," Kaen pauses, gesturing at the many scouters strewn across the bench, before continuing, "and make our search a little easier."

Flute raised an eyebrow for a moment again and nodded, saying, "Good idea. And what pray tell will you call such a device?"

Kaen looks up for a moment, a grin on his face, and answers, "Haven't thought that far ahead yet. I wasn't even sure it'd work until now."

Flute nods again, the Namek smirk returning to his face as he says, "Very well. Don't start too many fires, like before," to which he received a glare from Kaen, but otherwise no reply. To no one in particular the Namek says, "When a Saiyan glares at you, it's the closest thing you can get to compliance."

To this, Pi glared at him in spite of herself, and Kaen's glare intensifies to one that could kill a lesser being, and has done in the past.

Viola makes a mental note of this, trying to hide her amusement, and thinking to herself, 'And he tells me off for riling one of them...'

Kaen formed a small ball of flame, and barked out, "If I didn't need you to fly this ship I'd love nothing more than to cook you."

"If I didn't need someone to help take out any Cold Empire lackeys, I doubt you'd be here to do it," Flute shot back.

At this, Kaen just shrugs and says, "Can't argue with that point, but I don't need anyone to help me find Cold Empire lackeys to blast. Plenty of those seem to materialise anywhere I stay too long."

"Yes, but having a reason to do so more frequently would appeal to you I would imagine," Flute replies stoically

Kaen grins ferally, "Do I need to answer that?"

"Hardly," is all the Namek says before falling silent as he starts meditating, the female joining him shortly after. The Saiyan male just returns to his tinkering, the only difference in ambient sound being the clack of a keyboard every now and then, as Pi laughs quietly and taking a seat to gaze out the window, peace falling over the ship and it's occupants once more as they continue their journey through the vast darkness.

End Chapter 04

To be continued...