I

"Where is She, Gen. Celin?"

"I don't know...She was just behind me. Then there was that blast on my left side. I turned around, and She was gone."

"Well, find Her!" The younger soldier blanched as his superior glared down at him. He had not meant it to sound like an order, but he was worried. The Queen was heavy with child (her Pride, as they would soon call him) and even though she had given birth to six other children, this was the first time she would do so in heavy battle. The fight between the Saiyans and Estrics was too important for her not be a part of. What's more, the King Himself was on the same battlefield, and General Celin could not locate him either. He was starting to wonder about the competence of this one.

"We just have to calm down and use our scouters, Lieutenant. This is no time to panic. First, we'll contact the His Glory. If we cannot find him, we will try to contact the Queen." He raised an eyebrow. "IF she still has her scouter." Both of them stared at the ground, trying not to appear too insubordinate, even though everyone else around them were too occupied with the fighting to notice. It had become a common inside joke among the army about the Queen and the scouters. Her Royal Splendor loathed all forms of technology. Her ascendants had battled the Truffles years before her, but she still held on to her pride. She was known throughout the planet for being the most prideful queen the Saiyans had ever seen.

Just when General Celin was about to contact the King, he spotted something. From the corner of his eye, he noticed a long, black braid whipping by. The owner of the braid spun around into a high kick, sending the enemy flying. The short range of her legs didn't matter compared to the strength of them. He perked up, thinking it was the Queen, but then he noticed she didn't have a large belly. A closer look showed her to be the eldest princess, Kaleis. She turned around in midair, detecting someone behind her. Gathering her braid like a lasso, she looped it around the attacker's neck and pulled brutally. With a grunt, his thick neck snapped. She laughed when she noticed she had an audience.

"Enjoying the entertainment, General?"

"Actually, yes. I don't think I've ever seen that done before, Princess."

"Well," she chucked. "Mother taught me that one." She landed on the ground, taking advantage of the lull in battle.

"Impressive. Uh...Speaking of the Queen, where is she?"

"I don't know. Why don't you just use your scouters?" Her raspy voice was annoyed. She didn't like being responsible for anyone in the heat of battle. She turned her back, about to walk away, when she heard him speak up again.

"Princess Kaleis. Could you help us?" His tone was almost pleading, and it disgusted her. But when she thought about her pregnant mother, she relented.

"All right. Hold on. Just give me a second to concentrate." Like her mother, Kaleis rarely used a scouter. However, it wasn't because she hated technology. It was because she had a natural ability to sense power levels. Neither her mother nor her father had it, so no one really knew where it came from. Other soldiers envied this ability, and some even asked her to teach it to them. Every time, she shrugged them off, claiming that her gift was inborn, and could not be taught. It was a lie. The future queen liked the attention, and the fact that she alone could do something no one else could do. She took an intense pleasure in being special, almost to the point of obsession.

Kaleis focused her inner Ki, letting it spread out over the battlefield. She felt her mother rather quickly, and gasped. Her power level rose up very high, but a minute later, it drained alarmingly.

"I found her." She hesitated. "But...I think she's in trouble."

Queen Hakusai lifted another body onto the pile. She was panting now, and she could feel the sweat trickling down her spine. She hadn't been sure if she would go into labor, since there was a full week before the prince was due. Considering the intense pain she was already in after such a short time, he really wanted to be born now. She smiled to herself grimly. Maybe it was all the bloodlust. Her heart had been pumping fast, her royal blood singing through her veins. Only two hours ago, she had felt the water dripping down her leg after she had kicked an Estric soldier into the air. It had felt good, the recoil of the kick sending a dull ache through her leg. Then the contractions had come. The first handful of them were far apart, and not very strong, but as she continued to fight, they had become distracting. None of her other children had burned up her insides like this. She could feel his power, and she knew without a doubt that he was a boy. Finally, a child that they could call their Pride. He would be named after his father; he would be the Crown Prince.

With a gasp, Hakusai crouched behind the stack of bodies. The pain was becoming hard to bear now, worse than ever before. She could feel him working his way down, and the urge to bear down came. Using her secret ability, she tried to focus on the battle around her. Most of the sounds were further away now. She could feel her King too, but he wasn't close by. He had been wounded badly, but it wasn't mortal.

If she was going to give birth, now was the best time to do it. She had made a barricade of bodies around her, and now she was about to bring life among the dead. Her mouth twitched again. She could think of no better way for her Pride to be born.

As the next pain ripped through her, she felt her body bearing down naturally. She squatted down and wriggled out of her some of her battle gear. She felt uncomfortable with her naked bottom uncovered, but it couldn't be helped. She would just have to get him out as fast as possible. She was safe at the moment, but an aerial attack would be the end of both of them. She gritted her teeth and pushed through the pain. She could see red, just like when she was in a Battle Rage. The idea amused and comforted her. This would be a powerful prince, indeed. She used some of the bodies around her for support, making sure to put her hands on only the fallen Saiyans. She would not hold the hand of an enemy while her son struggled into the world. A part of her wished that one of the arms she gripped was her King's. But he had never been a part of the birth of his children, and she never asked him to. This was a bond between mother and child, something only she could do. She bore down hard, and a moan of pain escaped through her teeth. After the contraction, she widened her stance. Saiyan babies had rather large heads, and many women had died attempting to give birth. Fortunately, she had been blessed with wide hips. With the next pain, she noticed blood spattering her boots. She remembered bleeding with some of her daughters, but it was never a good sign if there was too much.

"Be strong, my Pride." She whispered between clenched teeth. "We need a Prince. You must live!" She gathered up a large amount of her Ki, and pushed harder than she had ever before. The child felt like fire burning through her, and half of her wondered if he would be glowing when he emerged. Could he be a legendary Super Saiyan?

Hakusai reached down and felt for him. A damp point of hair stuck out. She wished she could grab the hair and yank him out, but she knew that would do neither one of them any good. Just when she felt another contraction, a Ki blast knifed past her face. She looked up and saw an enemy soldier crouched on top of her wall of dead. She felt offended. Here she was, the Queen of Saiyans, giving birth to her Prince, and someone had the gall to attack her in the middle of it. Without much effort, she thrust her hand into the air, and let out a small explosion of pink Ki. The enemy slumped over, adding to her pile. The grim smile returned. When she attacked, her body had pushed at the same time, and now she could see the head. She looked down, trying to see over her large belly. At the moment, she was between pains. Some strange desire made her want to see his face. She searched the ground until she saw a piece of shiny armor. Its dead owner lay a yard away. She picked up the breastplate. It was from an enemy, since no Saiyan she knew wore metal armor. But it still served a purpose. She placed it under her bent legs, angling it just right. Reflected on the surface was a tiny face. She gave a small gasp. There he was. His eyes were shut tight, and his mouth pulled down into a frown. He looked just like his father. His hair was a shade darker, but not quite jet black like her own. He appeared to be asleep. She envied him. She studied him a while longer, filling with pride. When the next pain came, she got down to business. She knew this part was the hardest. Placing a hand on his large head, she bore down, grunting loudly. His shoulder was pressing into her pelvic bone, and it hurt tremendously. She slowly turned him, becoming her own midwife. She had given birth six times before, and knew the drill by now.

"Come on, my prince...Get OUT." At the last word, he kicked her, hard. She bit down on her tongue, tasting blood.

"Why you little...AGH!" With one last push, she felt him sliding into her hands. His body was so small, smaller than any of her other children. But she felt his power, pulsing through him. His tiny brown tail curled up and latched itself around her wrist. It squeezed hard. Then he opened his eyes. They were black as night. He let out a huge wail, his face turning red. Harusai smiled and laid him down on the enemy shield. She wouldn't consider it a bad omen. She had blown the armor off of that one herself, and to her, it was a sign of the power they had shared when he was a part of her. She had always wanted to give birth on the battlefield. It was considered a great feat of pride among the Saiyans. Now she searched for something to cover him with. She dug among the bodies, finally ripping a large piece of cloth from a Saiyan. Looking at his face, she considered it proper. This one had been a good warrior, fighting by her side for years. It was one of his hands she had held while giving birth as well. Nodding to herself, she picked the small prince up, wrapping the white cloth around him. The blood off the child mixed with the drying warrior's blood. She looked at him for a moment longer. He had stopped screaming, and was now looking back at her. His eyes were dry and impenetrable. This was a prince they could all be proud of. He was truly her Pride. She gathered him close to her, slipping him under her elastic armor. He huddled into her breasts, spreading energy and warmth through her. She took it, gladly. His Ki was already half as high as her own. She shook off her weariness, and pulled the rest of her armor back on, taking more scraps of cloth with it. It wouldn't do to bleed to death on the battlefield with her newborn son at her breast. When that was taken care of, she stood up slowly. Then she scanned the ground, in search of a scouter. She still had to use the damned things to contact people. She wished she could speak to Vegeta in her mind, but his was a wall, only slightly lowered for her, and hard as stone for anyone else. Even if she could get into it, he was not spiritual enough to communicate that way. Telepathy was rare among Saiyans, but it was an excellent tool in battle. She vowed silently to teach it to her son. He might have the inate ability. After feeling how strong his Ki was, she didn't put any limits on him.

Hakusai finally found a scouter. She pried it loose from the dead Saiyan's head, and put it on her ear. She hurriedly tapped in the code for the King's wavelength, then, pressing the call button, she spoke.

"Vegeta, can you read me? King Vegeta!"

She waited a moment, then heard his voice. He was out of breath, but still sounded strong.

"Harukai? What is it?"

"You have a son, my Lord. A strong boy. Our Pride has been born."

AN:

Saiyan Names

Gen. Celin- Celery

Princess Kaleis: Kale

Queen Harusai- Chinese Cabbage. She's distantly related to Nappa, a family of nobility, who have always served the King.

You may have noticed that Harusai has the gift for Ki sensing as well as her daughter. That will be explained more in the next chapter! ;)