He was safe. He was curled up…somewhere, he didn't know. He couldn't tell. Not at the half-conscious state he was in. But he was safe.
The boy soon nodded off. He was having a pleasant dream, of some far off place in the galaxy. Then he was flying by several planets. He found himself curious about them. What kind of life lived on those far-off orbs? He'd hear his father talking about other-worlders, even have a meeting with some occasionally. They were very strange-looking. Lots of different skin colors, different shapes and sizes. It almost frightened him a little. But yet, at the same time, he wanted to know much more about them.
His brother didn't seem to mind so much about them. Then again, he never knew what his brother was thinking. His brother was quiet, and generally didn't like to talk to him too much.
The dream quickly slipped away as the ship ran into some turbulence and jostled him from his slumber.
Frieza had almost no time to react, but immediately scanned his surroundings. He…was in a ship, it seemed. But…wait…what had happened? He had been at his own house in his own bed, he was fairly certain.
He slowly sat up. Why was he on the floor of this ship? Someone MUST have moved him…he would never sleep on the floor.
As Frieza began to ponder what had happened, he absentmindedly began to play with his finger-like toes.
His mother had said her goodnight and wished him pleasant dreams as usual. But…but there was something odd about this time. She…had seemed…worried. For a boy only the age of six, Frieza was incredibly sharp. He could tell something was wrong. But…if it was something extremely bad, she would have told him. To keep him safe. So…he had quickly brushed it aside.
Now he was having second thoughts.
The boy looked up, startled by a sudden noise that came from up the small flight of stairs a few feet in front of him.
Curious, Frieza slowly stood. Just for a moment, he took interest in the many, surrounding corridors around him before he remembered the matter at hand. He briskly walked to the stairs, tail flicking the air in anticipation. Who else was on this ship? And for that matter, why was he on it?
He quickly climbed the flight, and took a brief look-around. It took him no time at all to notice the midnight blue orb and lithe, plum body beside a tall pillar in the corner.
Frieza blinked in total shock. Was…was his brother…sobbing? That…seemed to be the case. But his brother never cried. He had never seen him smile too much either, on the other hand…
"Cooler…?" The boy called, cautiously heading over to the corner. Cooler remained motionless, facing the wall. The room became eerily silent.
Frieza paused, weighing his options.
Tentatively, he placed a small hand on the other one's shoulder. The bony structure covering it was almost frigid.
"Cooler…?" The younger boy repeated, frowning. "What…what's wr—"
Frieza had no warning. But before he knew it, he had been kicked across the room, and tumbled down the stairs to the floor below.
"Don't. Touch. Me."
Frieza, shocked and in pain, clutched at his abdomen, cringing. He didn't know his brother was strong. Was that what he did when he went up to his room, abandoning the rest of the world? Did he train?
His brother was a total stranger to him, the Arcosian realized in alarm.
But then…a sudden rage blossomed from the boy. How dare he treat him like that! His own brother! The nerve!
He composed himself quickly, shaking off the pain, and stood, facing his assailant with an angry scowl.
"Cooler! What was that for?" The younger brother demanded, tail whipping back and forth with aggravation.
"Leave me the hell alone," Cooler hissed, voice strained and hoarse. His eyes were still watery and a strange pink tinge. So he had been crying. "Y-you…"
Frieza immediately began backpedaling as his brother stormed down the stairs, a strange aura beginning to surround him.
That must have been ki…the young Arcosian had heard the term before, but had never seen it. It was startling, and made Cooler seem even more so intimidating.
"Idiot!" He shrieked, a well-toned leg lashing out at his younger brother's jaw.
Frieza barely dodged, breath quickening with a sudden adrenaline rush.
"You don't even know what's going on, do you?" The elder Arcosian snarled, sending a flurry of punches flying at his younger brother. Surprisingly, Frieza found it easier and easier to dodge them. It was almost…exciting. Fighting like this. The boy couldn't help but producing a wan smile.
This, of course, only provoked Cooler. His ki flared up frighteningly, and he stood motionless, putting his hands together. A small, bright orange sphere was produced between his two palms, and began to increase in size.
Frieza's smile instantly vanished into a look of panic. He knew what those things were. He had seen his father produce a few of them before to 'eliminate a threat'.
"Cooler! Calm down or you'll destroy the entire ship!"
The young Arcosian's face crimsoned, mortified, as he realized how squeaky his voice had become in his terrified state.
The tiny supernova between his brother's hands fizzled out as he began to chuckle. Abruptly, he regained his composure, and attained the familiar sour look he usually gave to his kid brother.
"…I suppose you do deserve an explanation…" Cooler muttered, crossing his arms and refusing to look Frieza in the eye.
"Thank you. Some civility…" Frieza replied crossly, exasperated.
Cooler rolled his eyes. Frieza liked to try to play the role of the King sometimes by using the vocabulary he heard being thrown around the throne room. Well, he could imagine all he wanted. Cooler was to become the King. He was the eldest. Naturally, it was his responsibility.
"I don't know," Cooler replied with an overly exaggerated sigh. "I don't think Father wants me telling you the full story. You're still too young, he thinks…"
Frieza frowned, crossing his arms.
"Does he now…? Well, I am a Prince. I should know what's going on, however young I may be."
The older Arcosian nonchalantly placed a hand over his mouth to hide his confident smirk. His brother may have been well-educated by the royal scholars, but he was still young, meaning he was naïve and curious.
"Besides, he's in a bit of a…state right now," Cooler mumbled offhandedly, dismissing it with a flick of his hand. The way he said the word sparked the young Arcosian's curiosity even more so.
"What's wrong with Father?" Frieza asked carefully, glaring at his older brother. Something seemed very wrong here.
"Well…wouldn't you be in a state, too, if your entire planet, your race, had been obliterated?"
As Cooler's words set in, Frieza's eyes slowly widened, a shocked, deadened sensation spreading over his entire body. His throat was suddenly dry; he couldn't swallow. It felt like there was a huge lump blocking it. His eyes began to sting as he looked at his brother with the utmost hatred, and somewhere hidden behind that wall, hurting.
"That is nothing to joke about, Cooler. You lowly maggot," The child hissed, fists clenching so tightly his nails began to dig into his palms. His tail began to tap the ground, then slam, a steady rage building.
Unexpectedly, Frieza cried out in shock as his older brother backhanded him across the cheek. He literally growled, a wave of tingling pain welling up across the pink flesh where there would no doubt be a bruise the next day.
"Insolent child! Would I lie about something like this? Y-you…" Cooler's voice suddenly hitched, and he broke into a sob once again, which soon turned into a small wail at the embarrassment of crying in front of Frieza. "Th-they're gone! E-everyone's gone!" He screamed, ki flaring up once again with a muddled mixture of agony and rage. "We are the only three left!"
Frieza sunk to his knees, trembling, and burst into tears. It was true. It was all true. Cooler wouldn't bruise his pride by crying like that if it was just a joke.
His young age really showed up now, in his state of anguish. He looked like some sort of lost puppy, looking to his brother for comfort. But Cooler didn't know how to handle these emotions, especially at his adolescent age. He just wanted to take them out on someone, and the only person in the room was Frieza at the time.
The young Arcosian backed up as Cooler began glaring at him again. He would just be a punching bag if he stayed here. So he fled.
Nothing seemed right. He felt dizzy. This had to be some sort of sick, twisted nightmare. He'd wake up, and see his mother wondering why he had been making such a fuss in his sleep. She would hold him and tell him everything was all right.
Suddenly, Frieza entered a glass encircled, dome-shaped room. He could see out to space. No one was here, so he decided to curl up in the corner, and weep to himself.
I hate this dream. I want to wake up right now. No more sweets before bed for me.
The Arcosian blinked, momentarily distracted by something strange outside. It was about a planet-sized pile of space debris far off. Wow. What had happened there?
Frieza pressed his face to the glass, and squinted slightly, trying to get a better look.
Well, it did seem to be a planet. Just a destroyed one. There was a moon in its orbit, still completely intact.
The boy frowned. Wait…that moon…was a soft, rosy color.
And…
Arcos' moon was the exact same color.
No. No. It couldn't be. Just…
Frieza screeched wildly, throwing himself into an animalistic rampage. And suddenly, a ki flared from him that was unrivaled to his brother's.
The entire east section of the ship was destroyed in seconds.