Hero.
By definition a hero is a person who, in the face of danger, stands his ground, defends those who cannot defend themselves, and sacrifices his own selfish desires for the greater good. The very word carries a deep meaning, and is prominent in the stories passed down by generations of Saiyans. The word inspired young Saiyans to become the warriors they are known to be, filling them with hope, determination and a lust for strength. They believed a hero would rise. But on that day, there was no hero. There was nobody to answer their cries for help. Their "hero", their King, had abandoned them.
In the age of 737, Lord Frieza and his empire was not a force to be reckoned with. His name was known throughout the universe, and was more than enough to leave the mightiest of warriors shaking in their boots. If anybody did not happen to know his name, then they were, undoubtedly, a fool. Lord Frieza prided himself on his control of a vast number of planets, many of which supported the twisted tyrant whether it was genuine support or out of pure fear. The Saiyan race began as loyal supporters of the dictator, seeking power and wealth themselves. However, it wasn't long before Frieza began to recognize their strength as warriors, and secretly feared that he may be overthrown. He grew to despise the "monkeys", as he lovingly described the warriors, and began to suppress the Saiyans, progressively treating them more and more like lowly dogs. It wasn't long before it was discovered that another race shared his ideas on the Saiyans. The Orrackians were also a proud race, and were well known for their intellect and battle strategies. They were also known for their home planet's gladiator games and the Grand Arena, and this had piqued Frieza's interested when an Orrackian ambassador approached him with a proposition. It was quite simple really. It was obvious that the Saiyans were skilled in battle, but it was also painfully obvious that many of the monkeys were beginning to harbor intentions of rebelling against his lordship. Yes, exterminating them immediately would solve all problems, but then a major opportunity in Lord Frieza's favor would be missed. Perhaps the Saiyans could be put to better use. Their inclusion in the gladiator games would not only serve as a major monetary gain to support Frieza and the Planet Trade Organization, but it would also control a major threat to his seat in power. The ambassador's case was quite convincing, and Frieza quickly gave his approval.
"My, what an interesting idea. Very well then, have your forces do as they please. I must say, I'm quite excited to see what will become of this."
Not long after, a sector of planet Vegeta was attacked. Despite their best efforts, and despite their fastest warriors racing off to seek help from King Vegeta and the Saiyan elite, the tribe of Saiyans was captured. With their will to resist destroyed along with their hope for aid, they were taken from their home planet and delivered to the planet Orrack as prisoners. Many Saiyans became tools of entertainment as gladiators and were forced to fight and kill day after day inside the arena just to survive, even if it meant killing each other. Years had passed since then, and the faded memories of their lives on Planet Vegeta seemed like mere dreams.
Now, it was almost time for the next battle. The cheering from the surface echoed down below the arena, a sure sign that the carnage from the previous battle had been cleaned away. Did the last warrior see victory? Or did he meet his end? Their numbers had been on a steady decline the past few weeks, just where were they finding these new beasts? Where ever they were from, they were much stronger than the local monsters.
"Caulil?"
The female Saiyan's brows furrowed together, and slowly her eyes opened. She stared up at the other female from where she laid on the ground, and took a moment to collect her thoughts before rubbing her face. "Is it that time already?" she mumbled.
"It is," the other Saiyan replied, and took a step back as Caulil sat up. The woman's tail twitched behind her as she place a hand on her hip, and her head turned to the entrance of the small room. "The stands are full today, I'm sure they're expecting a good show from you," the woman stated, then smiled half-heartedly. "It has been a little over a week since your last appearance."
"Parsley."
"Hm?"
"Did he make it? Did he win?"
Parsley, as the woman was named, looked down at her, and then sighed. "He did, but at what cost?" she muttered and brought her hands up in a shrug. "He has multiple broken bones, and possibly some internal bleeding. If he makes it through on his own, but can no longer fight, then they'll just kill him anyways, won't they?" Caulil frowned, but had to agree. Parsley was right. If they couldn't fight, then what purpose did a Saiyan serve? "But, well, that's never gonna happen to you!" Parsley exclaimed and offered a hand to help the warrior to her feet. "You're one of the strongest ones here! They can't touch you, no way!"
Caulil raised an eyebrow at the woman, and then scoffed as she took the helping hand. "You really know how to hype someone up, don't ya?" she mused as she pulled herself up.
"Hehe," Parsley chuckled softly, and then motioned for Caulil to follow her. She led the way out of the small room and into the underground hall where they weaved around groups of other Saiyans, all weary and worn from work and battle. She managed to catch some mumbled words exchanged by a few of them, whispering about how she might fare against the next opponent. Were they doubting her? Possibly. But it was unlikely for her to lose. She's been fighting and surviving for almost twenty years now. There's no way she would lose now.
They had just reached the staircase that would take them up to the arena when Caulil heard her name being called in a low, gravelly voice. She stopped and turned, seeing a man approaching her as he clutched something wrapped in a cloth in his hand. Her eyes went to the cloth first, then to his scarred face. "You aren't thinking of going in without these, are you little lady?"
"Never," Caulil mused and took the package he held. She unwrapped it, revealing her two curved trench knives. These always came in handy, considering the braces they were forced to wear repressed their energy. Blasting and flying were a no-go in the arena. They had to fight using only their brute strength. "You did a good job this time, Cress. I don't see a speck of blood anywhere!"
"What? What do you mean, 'this time'? I always make sure those knives of yours are in top shape!" Cress grumbled and crossed his arms over his broad chest.
"I'm kidding, don't get your tail in a knot," Caulil snickered and clenched a knife in each hand. Her tail wrapped tightly around her waist as she looked up the stairs, and then placed a foot on the first step. "Be sure to watch me, okay?" she said and looked over her shoulder at the others.
"We always will, there's no doubt about that," Cress told her with a quick nod of his head.
"Don't die on us, okay?" Parsley said with her hands on her hips and her tail swishing nervously behind her. Caulil grinned, then looked back up the stairs. She took in a breath and started climbing, the area around her gradually growing brighter. At the top of the staircase was a gated entry way, and she gripped the knives tighter. As the announcer began to speak, the gate began to rise from the ground.
"It's time to begin the next round!"
The noise of the crowd surrounded Caulil as she stepped into the arena, and for a brief moment she was overwhelmed by a feeling of lightheadedness. Even with her years of experience, this was a moment she would never actually get used to. She held her breath and looked to the stands. Every seat was filled, and there were more people standing in the isles. Did nobody have anything better to do today? Was this honestly the only thing worthy of their time, watching them battle their way into exhaustion? Her dark eyes skimmed over different faces until she reached the spectator's box where the royal family of Orrack sat. Perched high in his safe little nest, the King of Orrack never missed a second of the bloodshed. At one side of him was the Queen, and to the other side sat the young prince who was quite literally on the edge of his seat. The prince grinned broadly, and then motioned for a man standing behind them to come forward. Caulil watched as they spoke, and her eyes shifted up to the Orrackian man. Well, if it wasn't Commander Zennon himself! She wasn't at all surprised by his presence at the arena. Commander Zennon was His Majesty's personal bodyguard, a military genius, and had been a major component in the Saiyan's enslavement nearly twenty years ago. If it weren't for him, then it was possible that they could have fended off the raid and remained on their home planet in peace. Of course, if that had happened, then it was more than likely that they would have perished with the rest of Planet Vegeta when it was suddenly destroy. News travelled fast among Lord Frieza's expansive empire, and whispers of their home planet's destructions had reached the Saiyans' ears after they had settled into their life in servitude on their new home. Some had once said that they had been quite lucky to escape their demise, but in the end it was nothing but a lose-lose situation.
When Caulil's eyes met with the Commander's, she scowled in response to his smirk. Her desire to drag his smug face through the dirt had nearly distracted her from the rising gate on the opposite end of the arena, and the sound of a low growl gained her full attention. The noise of the surrounding audience dulled as all eyes were glued to the gate. Everything was so quiet you could hear the wind blow… and her heart raced.
All of a sudden, two enormous beasts came charging towards her from the darkness. She braced herself as one hit her head on and the second veered to the right, and Caulil felt her center of gravity shift as she was lifted and thrown into the air. The wind was knocked out of her, and it took a couple seconds to regain her senses. The Saiyaness twisted her body mid-flight as she fell to the ground, and grunted as she landed. "Ugh, damn it…" she grumbled and looked up at the two monsters as the audience in the stands roared in excitement. The one who had charged her slowed to a trot and turned around, pushing the second one aside as they slowly moved back towards her. They were massive in size, two bison-like creatures with long tails and a pair of huge horns protruding from the sides of their faces. Thick, dark fur covered the majority of their bodies except their latter half which was covered by a thin coat of fur and broad markings characteristic of their species. It appeared that their only instinct was to charge and kill, but that wasn't different from any other opponent she had faced. Still, she had to be cautious.
Caulil slowly stood up, her grip still tight around her knives. She had to take at least one of these things down, but how? Sure, they were strong, but they didn't seem to smart. Her right foot inched forward as she watched the beast, and it mimicked her by stamping a foot. "Going to charge again?" She murmured with a grin. "Come at me." Instead of propelling forward, Caulil turned on her foot and ran the opposite way. And, just as she suspected, the beast followed suit. The Saiyaness moved quickly, looking back to ensure that it was still following. "Good boy," she breathed out, and looked ahead at the wall of the arena. "Keep it comin'!" Caulil drew closer to the wall before she took one step up the wall, then another. As she pushed off the wall and bent backwards in a flip, the beast pursuing her rammed into the wall and shook the stands just above. Frightened screams soon turned to cheers of excitement as gravity took control and the Saiyan struck from above. She landed on the beast's back, straddled it, and stabbed the twin blades into the side of its neck for better grip. Who knew her plan could turn out so perfectly?
But she couldn't celebrate just yet. There was still life inside this thing, and it wasn't going down without a fight. "Nngh!" she growled and pushed the blades deeper as the animal reared back and head butted the wall once more. "I can't let go…" she told herself as the animal jerked to the side and ran to the other end of the arena. It hit another wall, and Caulil felt her body lift off of the back of the beast just briefly before she regained control. It tried to shake her off, and Caulil lowered onto its body and held tightly before it slowed down and began to charge again. How could it keep going for this long? Sure, the crowd was enjoying the ride, but she couldn't hold on forever! "Die already!" Caulil yelled, and drew one of the blades from its flesh. She brought her arm down again and again, stabbing the beast repeatedly. But it was still as if she was barely doing any damage! The Saiyaness was forced to brace herself again as the creature started to buck, desperate to throw her off. "Ah! Son of a-!" she snapped as a hand slipped. She held on with only one hand for a few seconds before she was able to grab on again. "That's it!" she snapped and pulled both of the blades from the beast's neck as it slowed down. After switching the knives from one hand to the other, Caulil leaned over and wrapped her arm around its neck, thrusted the blades into its throat and pulled. The beast roared and tried to run as its neck was sliced open, although it didn't get too far. The beast began to slow down to a stagger, Caulil still on its back. It suddenly collapsed, and she rolled off as the crowd went wild. She did it! She took it down! Caulil panted and got to her knees, then pushed herself up. "Ugh…" she huffed and wiped the sweat from her brow with a bloody arm. Her arm dropped to her side and she panted a few more times before glancing over to the second beast, which was pacing back and forth nearby. One down, one to go.