Yeah, yeah, I know Dragon Ball Minus kinda contradicts some of the things in this, but to hell with that story. It's ridden with enough plot holes and retcons that I can disregard its existence if I want to! :p Oh, and Dragon Ball isn't mine, and all of that good stuff.
Vegeta sat in his pod, gazing at the black emptiness of space with indifference. This was despite having heard news a few hours ago that would change his entire life as he knew it. It was definitely a surprise when Nappa informed him on his scouter, the message still fresh on his mind:
"We've just received a transmission from Lord Frieza – i-it seems as though Planet Vegeta has been destroyed! It was apparently struck by a giant meteor. Including you and me, there are barely any Saiyans left."
The five-year old Saiyan Prince snorted in disgust at the clear dismay in Nappa's voice when he informed him. There was a mix of emotions swirling in his head in the few hours since hearing the news, but the strongest of them all was revulsion. The Saiyans were a warrior race, the strongest in the cosmos. For centuries, they produced death and destruction all across the universe, inspiring terror across planets light years away at the mere mention of their name. And this was how they went out? Not fighting, not killed in a failed hostile takeover (which would at least be admirable), but instead, nature simply taking its course. How appalling, it was.
Nappa hadn't told him who the other surviving Saiyans were, though considering Frieza had sent him a transmission prior to him going in his pod to report to the Home Base, that was probably information he'd be learning soon. Too hell with the fate of the race, Vegeta thought, What I really want to know is when that freak will start giving me better assignments.
A voice deep in the corridors of Vegeta's mind, however, couldn't help but lament the loss of his home.
A few hours later Vegeta's pod crashed into the surface of the latest planet Frieza had chosen as his home base. The door to his space pod opened, and there was already a short, purple alien awaiting his arrival. "Greetings, Vegeta," he said.
Vegeta glared at the man for failing to address him as "Prince." The red cape he was wearing and the royal crest on the left chest plate of his armor were his symbols of royalty, and everyone in Frieza's army addressed him with the respect that it earned. The alien simply gave Vegeta a look of confusion. Vegeta narrowed his eyes at him, and despite his age and diminutive size, the sharpness of his glare was enough to make the alien direct his eyes to the ground. Vegeta shook his head and walked away, making silent note of his error.
The pint-sized Prince walked into the white building. The first person he saw was the tall, muscular man in armor who had served as his bodyguard for as long as he remembered – Nappa. "Gr-Greetings, Prince," he said with a nod of respect.
Vegeta replied with a grunt. He was about to open his mouth to admonish Nappa sadness he was carrying in his eyes until he saw the boy standing next to him. He was wearing armor as well, and his long, spiky hair and tanned skin were enough clues for Vegeta to realize who it was.
"Raditz," Vegeta tersely said. The other Saiyan stirred and then nodded his head respectfully, mimicking Nappa. Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Figures that of all the people who managed to miss the explosion, it'd be a third-class warrior."
Raditz dropped his head in shame, but he knew better than to respond to Vegeta's harsh words. Though he was a few years older than him, Raditz knew that Vegeta had utmost authority over him, and had already accumulated quite the body count in his five years.
"What are we here for, Nappa?" Vegeta asked, folding his arms across his chest.
"We're all being reassigned," Nappa informed. "As far as we know, the three of us are the only Saiyans still alive, and there are a lot of planet assignments left on the table. We're…the only ones left-"
"Nappa!" Vegeta harshly shouted, startling the eldest warrior. "You are a Saiyan! Cease your anxious stammering at once! Our planet is gone, and fretting on it will not bring it back."
Nappa was genuinely surprised at the cold indifference in Vegeta's eyes. The young prince was known for his tunnel vision, as he had been single-mindedly focused on gaining power since Frieza took him in a year ago. His people, his planet, and the civilization he was destined to rule over was gone, and he thought of it as nothing more than an inconvenience.
A tall, elegant man with pale, blue skin and green hair approached the three Saiyans. He was doing a poor job of hiding the smirk on his face, which made Vegeta jaw involuntarily twitch. "Frieza's ready to speak with you all. Follow me."
"Yes, Zarbon," the three Saiyans said in unison. Zarbon walked down the hallway, with the three last remaining Saiyans following him. They stopped at a large, metal door, and Zarbon placed his hand on a scanner stuck to the wall next to it. The door slid open, revealing a dark, blue room with a marble floor that felt like ice against Vegeta's feet. The Prince bit his bottom lip, his body shivering more than he would like to admit. Truth be told, he had no idea what was about to happen. Frieza didn't make his disdain for the Saiyans a secret; for all Vegeta knew, he was marching to his death right now.
In front of the Saiyans was Dodoria, the ugly pink monster that served as one of Frieza's top assistants. He was standing to the right of a floating chair shaped like a pod. Zarbon walked over to occupy its left. Sitting in the chair was the lizard-like leader himself, scanning the Saiyans with his frightening eyes while nonchalantly sipping a cup of wine.
The three Saiyans immediately crouched onto one knee and bowed their head in respect, which made Frieza chuckle. He handed his wine over to Zarbon. "Why the long faces, men? You look like somebody just died!"
Vegeta winced, trying to control the intense hatred he felt for his master. That throaty, refined voice was like a screw twisting itself against Vegeta's ear drum, making it sting violently in the process. It alone was enough for him to resolve to become strong enough to kill him since the day they'd first met.
"Sorry about that; sometimes I just can't control my sense of humor!" Frieza snickered. He reigned his laughter in, though his smile never left his face. "But in all seriousness, my sincerest apologies for the destruction of your home planet. A true tragedy, thought it also speaks to the unpredictability of life. One incident of nature and everything's gone!"
Vegeta somehow managed to stop himself from rolling his eyes. He kept all of his senses on alert, feeling like he was on thinner ice than he'd ever been before. One disrespectful slip and Frieza might have disposed of him once and for all.
"We're still conducting a search across the galaxies, but as far as we know, you three are the only Saiyans still alive. I suppose you should all thank fate for smiling upon you," Frieza informed with a grin that made all three Saiyans' skin crawl. "Now then, I'm sure you three are thinking that the loss of the rest of the monkey pack has left droves of planets on the table, but fortunately, I hadn't given any other Saiyans assignments recently."
Vegeta nodded at the news, though he couldn't hide his disappointment. He was hoping he would be assigned with leftover missions to fill in the gaps.
Frieza's grin grew downright sinister as he added, "I guess fate worked its way out for me as well, in order to prevent any inconveniences."
Vegeta grunted, chalking that last bit up to the tyrant's typical morbid sense of humor, unsuspecting of what he'd learn decades later. "M'lord, what will we do now, then?" he anxiously asked.
"Ah, don't speak out of turn, young lad," Frieza admonished. "I was getting to that. The loss of your world has left our empire without one of its strongest alliances. A while ago, I made overtures to a planet out in the west sector about joining with our army. A warrior race, not as strong as yours was, but certainly good in its own right. They weren't, shall we say, amicable about the prospect of my offer.
"I pushed it to the side, but our current predicament leaves me no choice. I'll have to make them see things my way by force, and what better way to do that than with three tenacious warriors?"
An eager smirk made its way to Vegeta's lips. This was exactly the type of assignment he needed.
"The planet's name is Actinidia, and I want you three Saiyans to invade it. This may be asking too much of you, but use your brains. Do not try to fight any warriors with strong power levels, as they're the reason I'm interested in them to begin with." Frieza didn't miss the disappointment in Vegeta's face upon hearing that. "You are to slaughter the innocent civilians, which should be enough to sway their opinions. It shouldn't come to this, but should they continue to be uncooperative, let me know."
"Yes, Lord Frieza," the three Saiyans said in unison.
"Now that the mission is out of the way, onto more pressing concerns," Frieza began. "You three are now without a home planet or a race. Even when they were still around, whatever authority your planet's nobility had was nonexistent under me. Now that they're gone, there's nothing for you to pretend to be obedient to ahead of me. Zarbon, what do you think that means?"
"It means they shouldn't even have to think about whom their allegiance is to," Zarbon answered with a smirk directed at the Saiyans. "And if they forget, or act out of place, there will be swift action taken."
"Indeed," Friza snickered. "Now, Vegeta and Nappa have already been living in close quarters under me, but you…uh, er, what was your name again?"
"Raditz," the long-haired Saiyan mumbled.
"Louder…"
"Raditz!" he borderline shouted. Vegeta and Nappa shook their heads in shame at his apprehension.
"Yes, Raditz. I know you were off on some frontier planet preparing it for sale, but that's no longer a pertinent matter," Frieza explained, beginning to become bored. As the only monkeys left, you will now be partners. Since Vegeta is currently the strongest of you three, he has more authority. I expect you all to conduct the same assignments together from here on out."
"But, Lord Frieza, I feel that I will progress better if I'm by myself," Vegeta said, concern growing in his eyes. He looked down and immediately regretted speaking Frieza fixed him with a glare that could break even the most recent Scouter models.
"What did I tell you about speaking out of turn, boy?" Frieza snapped, his facade of politeness shattering in an instant. "I do not recall stating that these provisions were negotiable. You may be strong enough to handle certain missions on your own, but contrary to your belief, this army doesn't exist to ensure that you'll gain strength. And why, pray tell, are you so eager to get stronger, hmm?"
Frieza leaned forward in his chair and looked at Vegeta with a condescending smirk. Vegeta fought a growl; he knew damn well Frieza knew the answer to that. Over the last year, Frieza had to repeatedly correct the boy in violent ways for the hatred he outwardly displayed towards him. With a deep breath, Vegeta replied, "Nothing."
"Didn't think so. As I was saying, we will get things done considerably faster if the three of you work in groups. You and Nappa will show Raditz the room he will be sharing with you from here on out."
"Yes, Lord," Vegeta respectfully replied.
"That's all I need to tell you," Frieza said with a dismissive wave. "Nappa and…Radish, was it? You two leave. I'd like to have a word with your quote-unquote Prince."
The tone in Frieza's voice was enough to send a chill down Nappa's spine. He warily glanced at Vegeta but was returned with a glare. Nappa stood up and motioned for Raditz to follow him. Vegeta fiercely shut his eyes, cursing his moment of insubordination. He was bracing himself for an attack.
Frieza let out a throaty laugh at the anxiety Vegeta was displaying. "Don't fret, Vegeta! I simply want to talk. You know that if you ever have anything you need to get off your chest, an open ear an embracing arm is waiting right here!"
Vegeta groaned as the laughter that erupted from Frieza, Zarbon, and Dodoria almost drove him over the edge. Frieza covered his mouth, letting his laughter subside as he continued. "I'm sure there's a torrent of thoughts and emotions going through you, 'prince.' And just know that I am deeply saddened on your behalf over the truly unfortunate fate of your planet."
Vegeta was pressing his fist against the marble floor hard enough to tear the fabric of his glove. There were a lot of things about Frieza that made his blood boil, but nothing did more than his phony politeness. It was such an infuriatingly condescending gesture, Frieza's way of playing mind games with him and underscoring the true implications of his every word.
"But, I hope that its destruction has reminded you of your own mortality. I understand that you're a growing boy, but your insubordination has made you a bit of a thorn in my side for quite some time. Now that you have nothing to pretend to have authority over, I surely hope that your arrogance tempers significantly. You are but a rook on my chess board, boy," Frieza said. The threat was lingering in every word he spoke.
"Yes, Lord Frieza."
Frieza's expression brightened. "But a favored rook! I hope you don't forget why I've taken you in as I have, and why I've been oh-so forgiving of your sharp tongue. Now, more than ever, you require my cultivation. There's just so much potential brimming inside you."
Vegeta didn't even smirk at his words, even though they were things that he was very quick to tell his peers when Frieza wasn't around. All they did was affirm the fact that he was Frieza's puppet.
"You've only been in this universe for a short amount of time, but I'm sure you've heard of a certain teaching method in military, no? 'Break them down to build them back up?'" Frieza inquired. Vegeta's throat ran dry. He was bracing himself for an attack yet again.
"Since your…" Frieza stopped to chuckle, "…empire is no more, there isn't any reason for you to still carry this royal getup. Wouldn't you agree, Zarbon and Dodoria?"
Vegeta's eyes jolted wide open. Though he had done a good job of hiding it, the full weight of the loss of his home planet and people was starting to bear down on him. His attire was at least some reminder of who he was, and a symbol of the nobility he was held up to.
"But, Lord Frieza, it's my-"
"But nothing, Vegeta," Frieza darkly interrupted. "You may be one of my favored soldiers but that doesn't make you unique. I expect all of my soldiers to fall in line and follow our uniformity, and this cape and crest would allow you to carry on as if you deserve preferential treatment. It is nothing but a nuisance."
Vegeta simply nodded. Frieza took a sip of his wine before ordering, "Hand me your cape at once. A new outfit is waiting for you in your room."
Vegeta hesitated for a moment, and that was one moment too many. Just a second later, a pink flash of energy struck Vegeta's arm, burning his exposed skin raw and eliciting a pained grunt.
Frieza glared at Vegeta, his arm raised and his finger pointed directly at Vegeta. "When I give you an order I expect you to answer it as quickly as possible. Now hand me that cape!"
Vegeta hastily unbuckled the cape from the collar of his armor. For a brief moment, he contemplated tossing it at Frieza, but cooler heads prevailed. Instead, he stood up, neatly folded it up, and walked over to Frieza, handing it over to him without protest.
"See, now was that so hard?" Frieza quipped, snatching the cape from Vegeta's hand. "That's all I require from you. You're dismissed."
Vegeta mustered up as respectful a bow as he could before leaving the room. As soon as he heard the door close behind him, he ferociously growled and yanked his scouter off before crushing it in his hand in a rage. His conviction to kill his ruler had grown even stronger now. Marching over to his sleeping quarters, Vegeta gave glares that spelled death to anyone who even dared to snicker at him.
The door to the room was already open, and he stepped in and immediately slammed it shut. Nappa and Raditz were sitting on stone cots sticking out from the floor, discussing Frieza's assignment.
"-I heard they were a bunch of purple, bug-eyed freaks," Nappa said before giving Vegeta his undivided attention. "What happened to your cape?"
"It's gone," Vegeta replied in a guarded tone. He walked over to one of the lockers in the corner of the room, inputting a combination of numbers. The locker's door opened, revealing a blue, long sleeved body suit. Accompanying it were the usual white gloves and boots, as well as armor. The design and color scheme was the same as the one he was wearing now – white torso, golden shoulder guards. However, it was missing the red symbol on the chest plate, which made Vegeta simmer with anger. No use skirting around it anymore, Vegeta resolved in his head before taking off his current attire to slip into the new set.
Nappa watched Vegeta change out of the corner of his eye. Raditz rested his head in his hand, looking absolutely shaken up. His father and mother were assuredly gone, and that just left his newborn baby brother, Kakarot. Last he checked, he'd been sent off to some frontier planet in the north galaxy. It was at least calming to know that at some point in the future, they might have another ally joining them.
But for now, he was devastated. "Man, I just can't believe it. It's all gone," the boy whined. "What are we gonna do out here, Nappa? We have no home, and Frieza clearly doesn't li-"
He was cut off by a violent punch to the face that knocked the scouter right off his face and sent him sprawling to the floor. Vegeta was standing over him, fixing him with a glare than could have pierced through his armor.
"That's enough crying out of you, you low class dog," he sneered, eyeing the older fighter with nothing but contempt. "And you were sitting on my cot."
Raditz, winced and rubbed his nose before getting up. He opened his mouth to say something, but a quick tap and a negative nod from Nappa was all the warning he needed. He retreated to the cot right next to Vegeta's.
Vegeta sat down on his cot and waved one of his bangs from out of his face. Despite wearing a new uniform, he felt absolutely barren in it. He had nothing to his name anymore, his only subjects being a brutish oaf and a lower class weakling. Just a day ago, he was the privileged heir to the throne of the strongest warrior race the universe had known, hailed as the Saiyan destined to achieve the legendary Super Saiyan form. Now, he was just another soldier, or a rook on the chessboard, as Frieza said. And nothing made his status more clear than his uniform. Vegeta raised his knees and rested his arms on them, silently resolving to relentlessly fight in order to gain the power he needed to one day topple Frieza. It didn't matter how long it took – several months, several years, hell even the rest of his life. Nothing would deter his thirst for revenge.
It was the only thing he had now.
What did you all think? I'm thinking this is just a one-shot, but I've left enough in the open to allow for more ideas or a solid direction to come to my head. Who knows, maybe I could make this a full-fledged story!