Here it is - The beginning of Driven by Need. I've been meticulously getting my thoughts together to start this portion of Vegeta and Bulma's journey.
Updates will be slow coming. The days of posting regularly every week are in the far, far distance. I've been writing the chapters in advance and with the help of the AMAZING *Nova K* editing for me, I finally have something worthy of your time to share.
As always, reviews are never expected, but a delight to receive. I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Darkness blanketed the ground below. Vibrant magentas and teals from the neighboring planet danced against the water, flowing gently underneath the night sky as it wound its way through the sleepy village below. Fireflies twinkled in orange brilliance as they drifted along in a silent dance, threading through the trees and across the meadow. The creatures best suited for nighttime foraging could be heard rustling under scattered leaves while insects serenaded them with their nocturnal chorus. The sun had laid down to rest hours before, the village following suit shortly after.
Despite the tranquility of the simple town, a curious rustling came from behind a villager's dwelling. A hooded shadow hunched over a large box discreetly gathering its contents. Taking a quick glance around, it threw a satchel over its shoulder and straightened itself up. Winding through the curling smoke from dying embers smoldering after late-evening fires, it glided around the homes dotting the clearing without being noticed. With another scan of the surrounding area, the figure left the safety of the village and stepped into the meadow.
The tall grass tickled the hips of the bandit as it hastily made its way towards the nearest cluster of trees. Fireflies zigzagged away from the unwelcome intruder interrupting their lazy waltz. The scuffling of small creatures echoed as their guest spooked them away from their evening chores. Their irritation in the disruption apparent in their chatter as they scurried away from the feared predator. All of these were ignored as the dark outline blended into the shadows of the forest.
A few paces in and the figure stopped. Dropping to a knee, the bag was overturned. Its riches spilled gently on the ground. Pulling the tattered hood back to see better, a girl's face was revealed under the shield of fabric. She was squinting in hurried concentration. Grabbing at the pieces dumped unceremoniously, they were quickly snapped together by hands that had done this numerous times before. Meticulously fitting and twisting the bits together, the minutes passed by indifferently as the meadow settled back into its previously undisturbed rhythm. Blowing a wayward curl of pale tangerine hair out of her face, a triumphant smile graced her lips as the final pieces obediently clicked into place. Carefully stuffing her prize back into the worn canvas sack, she scooted towards a nearby tree. She leaned her back against the massive trunk as the velvety moss of the forest floor gave its soft, yet springy, support.
She turned her face to the sky above and waited. The stars twinkled in mischievous glee as the leaves overhead offered brief glimpses of the heavens. With a hand laid protectively over her satchel, she allowed herself a moment to relax into the sounds around her. She watched the fireflies float over the meadow while the insects trilled in their joyful songs. A light breeze rustled the leafy canopy above. The delicate smell of dew-kissed grass wafted from the meadow. Everything was calm, balanced…perfect…only as it can be while the rest of the world slept.
A twig snapped nearby. Turning her head in the direction of the sound, she stared expectantly between the trees.
"Hoi!" A whispered greeting broke through the tranquility of the evening.
"Talie, I'm over here." She quietly answered as her guest came into view. Slightly older than her fifteen years of age, and taller, he followed the invisible trail her voice had laid.
"Brighid," a sigh of relief briefly replaced the strained look of worry on his face. "Why did you pick the middle of the night for this? Couldn't we have done it around sundown?"
Answering excitedly, she got to her feet and slung her bag over her shoulder. "Because it wasn't happening then. Come on or we're going to miss it!"
"I'm sure we'll be fine." Talie rolled his eyes with an exaggerated frown. "We'll get there in plenty of time."
Ignoring his teasing, she grabbed his hand and pulled at him to follow. With a playful groan of annoyance, he obediently followed behind her. They darted through the trees and headed westward. Trying to stay quiet to avoid detection from nighttime hunters, they made as little noise as possible. Brighid continued to glance up at the sky in anticipation as they wove through the ancient trunks. The soft moss was littered with pale green ferns taller than the two running past their sweeping branches. Somewhere above, a feathered creature screeched in triumph as its meal was caught. The snarling of beasts in an unfriendly dispute carried loudly from the distance. The deeper they went into the forest, the farther they were from the safety of the village. Neither one seemed to mind, however. Both showed no signs of anxiousness in the darkness. Instead, they seemed confident in their direction despite the late hour.
As the trees began to thin, their pace slowed. Walking to the edge of the forest, they looked across the clearing and to the mountain range beyond. They exchanged eager looks. With a nod from Talie, they carefully stepped into the open expanse and towards the jagged rocks rising ominously above the plain. They were no longer carefree with their movements. Instead, they constantly checked their surroundings for any sign of danger. The low grass barely came up to their waists. Wiry brush rush littered the landscape with their twisted shadows reaching out in frozen torment at the two meticulously picking their way towards their goal. A stunted tree surrounded by grass shuddered nearby causing both of them to freeze. Talie took an unsteady step away from the sound. Brighid, uncertainty causing her to hide behind her partner, peeked around his back to look at the tree.
The grass swayed as something moved through it and in their direction. Both of them took a step back as it got closer. With a loud roar, the thing sprang at the two waiting in paralyzed fear. A shrill scream escaped from Brighid as she fell backwards onto the ground, accidentally pulling Talie on top of her.
Both of their eyes were squeezed shut, arms over their faces protectively, as they cowered in fear from the beast that had stalked them through the brush. It took a few seconds for the pounding of their hearts racing in their ears to subside before the sound of laughter took its place. They uncovered their faces and blinked in disbelief as a boy, roughly nine years of age, rolled on the ground in a fit of laughter.
"Torc!" growled Brighid as she tried to wiggle her way out from underneath Talie. This only made the small boy laugh harder.
"You should've seen your faces!" The boy gasped between his giggles. "You were all, 'Oh no! Something's going to happen to us! We're all gonna die!' and it was hilarious!"
Talie had finally gotten up and was helping Brighid to her feet when she turned and lunged at the prankster.
"Torc, I'm going to kill you!" She screeched as the boy slipped through her grip.
Ducking behind Talie, Torc stuck his tongue out at his aggressor. With another yell of irritation, Brighid rushed at him. Talie grabbed her waist to stop her as she took a swipe at the boy using him as a shield.
"It's going to be even better when dad finds out that you snuck out." Torc laughed. "I'm going to tell him you were all kissy-kissy with your boyfriend."
"You wouldn't dare." Brighid fought harder to get past Talie so she could strangle her little brother. "That's not what we're doing, anyways! If you had half a brain you'd know-"
"Hoi! Calm down." Talie interrupted. "We're far from the safety of both the mountains and forest. I'm pretty sure we've made ourselves known to every flesh-eating animal out here. You two need to stop."
It wasn't Talie's words that stopped Brighid's flailing in her attempts to get at the youngster sticking his tongue out at her again. It was the nearby brush that rustled as if waiting for an uncanny signal. The three of them stilled at the sound. Looking in the direction of the noise, they held their breath as they strained to see what caused the disruption. The white tip of a tail could be seen gliding above the grass as it floated almost ghost-like in their direction. Knowing the beasts of the plains always hunted in pairs, Brighid quickly searched for its companion. Even Torc had enough sense to understand the severity of the predicament they were in. His carefree attitude was now replaced with tangible fear.
"Talie…" Brighid whispered in horror.
"We need to move," Talie's voice was low and calm.
Torc pointed in wide-eyed panic towards the tree line. The companion had cut off one of their exits and was stalking them from behind.
"Go!" Talie yelled as the first beast sprang at them from its camouflage. "Go NOW!"
Without thinking, Brighid sprinted for the mountain range. The rocky outline seemed so close just minutes ago. Now she wasn't sure if they would reach it in time. Looking behind her, she saw Talie and Torc keeping pace behind her. Close on their heels were two panther-like monsters barreling down on them. Their snouts scrunched in snarling grimaces as their emerald eyes focused on their fleeing prey. The terrifying sight had Brighid concentrating ahead again as she pushed herself to run faster. She reached the base of the mountain first just as her side was beginning to cramp from the effort.
"Climb!" she yelled in encouragement at the two stragglers as she struggled through the pain. Grabbing onto the jagged rock, she pulled herself up. The leather of her shoes scuffed and scraped for grip. Loose stone tumbled downward as she made her way to a high stone platform. Within minutes, she was grunting with forced effort as she pulled herself onto the flat rock. Landing heavily on her stomach, she swung her legs over the ledge to make room for the other two. Setting her precious cargo next to her, she leaned over the edge ready to lend a hand to the two still climbing up.
Anxiously watching Talie and Torc's progress, the two felines were growling with tails thrashing in anger as their meal climbed further out of reach. Brighid offered a hand to each of the boys and helped pull them onto the ledge with her. Talie lay on his back gasping for air while Torc half-hung off the ledge facing the snarling beasts. He was laughing and yelling obscenities at the frustrated felines below.
"Stop it." Brighid scolded as she tugged her brother away from the ledge. Although free from immediate danger, they still had further to go. "Leave them alone before they decide tonight's the night to learn how to climb."
"Awe, I'm just having a little fun!" Torc complained, crossing his arms with an exaggerated pout. "They're just babies anyways."
"Well let's just be grateful their mother hasn't taken them to the trees to learn climbing skills yet." Talie said as he sat up. "Even as juveniles, they'd still tear us to shreds. We were just lucky they're young and haven't gotten the hunting-thing down."
As Talie picked up the pack from the ground, Torc looked at Brighid with a mischievous grin. Now that they were out of danger, the mood between the three of them lightened.
"So what's in the bag?" Torc asked.
"None of your business." Brighid snapped. She snatched the bag from Talie and threw it roughly over her head, coming to rest diagonally across her shoulder. "But now you're stuck with us until we go back so you'll find out soon enough."
"Nope. I'm going to go back home and tell dad what you're up to." Torc said matter-of-factly.
"Suit yourself," she called over her shoulder as she started to climb up the mountain once again. "If you can make it past the two Fiachats down there in one piece, I'm sure dad would love an explanation as to why you were out following us in the middle of the night instead of waking him up to tell him I left."
Brighid didn't have to turn around to see that her words had held the weight she had intended. She could almost visualize the way Torc's evil smile fell into a worried frown as her words sunk in. She snuck a quick glance under her arm to see her brother look over the ledge to weigh his options. Talie's face came into view as he climbed alongside her. He gave her a quick wink then took the lead up the mountain that was no stranger to them. He easily found their usual route to the top while Brighid picked her way more slowly as she waited for Torc to make up his mind. Knowing her brother too well, she heard hands and feet gripping at the rock as he joined their ascent. Once she saw he was near, she picked up the pace as Talie disappeared behind a rock jutting outward.
She breathed a sigh of relief as she came to the protruding stone. The rest of the way was easy from here as a curving path lay before her. Talie was waiting as she and her brother finally caught up. Smiling at the troublemaker in tow, Brighid grabbed Torc's hand and helped him onto the path. With a grateful smile, he fell into line behind his sister and Talie. The path was simple to follow as the three walked along the trail.
It wasn't long before they neared the top of the smaller mountain. Talie led them to a shallow cave whose opening faced the forest near their village. The glistening shimmer of water lapping against a white-sand beach could clearly be seen just beyond as the sky above allowed the nearby planet Llyr to share its magenta and turquoise beauty over the land. Brighid couldn't help but smile at the little hideaway she and Talie had stumbled across months ago. The view of the plains, forest and sea, made her gaze out in awe every time she was able to sneak away to visit their spot. Talie stood next to her with the same happy expression she knew she was wearing. Even her brother couldn't help but look over the land in quiet wonder as his eyes swept across the landscape.
While allowing herself time to enjoy the view, a dim flash streaked across the night sky. Its subtle appearance reminded her why they had risked the evening trip to get here in the first place. She dug into her bag to pull out the contraption she had taken so much care to retrieve and bring with them.
"Is that…" Torc's voice trailed off in questioning apprehension.
Brighid ignored him as she set the blackened metal tube with three poled feet onto a nearby boulder. Bending over to look into the eyepiece, she extended the end and rotated the barrel, making the layers of glass inside the cylinder move. The area of the sky in the eyepiece came into focus as the end smoothly slid around.
"Brighid," Torc sounded more panicked.
She glanced up to see his brow furrowed in worry. Talie sat against the stone wall with legs and arms crossed in quiet amusement as he watched the expected confrontation unfold.
"Yes Torc," Brighid sighed. "It's a spyglass."
"But…but it's forbidden!" He protested. "Do you know what will happen if you're caught with it? Do you have any idea what will happen to me if someone finds out I knew about it?"
"You think I don't know that?" She suppressed the chill that threatened her calm demeanor. "Why else do you think I snuck out with it in the middle of the night?"
"I thought you and Talie…you know…I mean…" He stammered with flushed cheeks. His eyes darted from her to Talie as his embarrassment deepened.
"Obviously that's not what we were coming here for." She felt her cheeks heat at the suggestion too, and directed her attention back to the eyepiece. "Plus no one's going to find out about the spyglass unless you open up your big mouth."
The silence that answered her comment was uncomfortably heavy. All three of them knew the ramifications of using any kind of tools outside of the natural order of their world. Especially the ones used to look beyond their planet and into the dark void above them. Two of those present chose to freely accept the consequences if they were caught. It was unfair that Torc's instigating put him in the same danger as she and Talie, but that was the choice he naively made when he decided to follow them. The look of fear on Torc's face was expected when she finally lifted her head in her brother's direction.
"Come here," she gestured with an open arm. The youngster slowly walked towards his sister. When he was within arm's reach, she dragged him into a tight hug. He stood with arms stiff at his sides. She felt the tears slip from his eyes as she pressed her cheek against his. Softly she said, "Let me show you something."
His sniffle was his only reply.
"Look through there," with a reassuring smile she pointed at the gold eyepiece. His untrusting gaze wasn't lost on her. "Go on. It's not going to hurt you."
Reluctantly he complied. Squeezing one eye shut, he peered through the opening. She heard him hold his breath when the wonder of the worlds beyond theirs, came into view. He looked up at her in amazement as he tried to make sense out of what he had seen. Needing another peek, he took a second look through the glass. Brighid didn't hold back her smile. She looked upwards as another streak of light, this one much brighter, crossed over the forest and disappeared beyond the ocean. She had hoped one day she would be able to share the mysteries of the beyond with her mischievous brother. The excitement she felt experiencing his reaction was an unexpected bonus.
"Here," she offered as she swung the barrel towards the streaks of light that were beginning to appear more consistently now. "This is why Talie and I came up here. I wanted to show him the falling stars up close. Since it's a clear night, I knew we'd have a good show."
"But they don't look like stars!" Torc exclaimed as another one whizzed by. "They look weird."
"Do they look like balls of fire?" she asked.
"Actually, yeah. They kinda do." He gestured to Talie to come over and take a look.
Unfolding himself from the ground, Talie joined Torc and looked through the spyglass. Grinning, he made some adjustments to the apparatus.
"You're right again, Brighid." Talie said proudly.
"Right about what?" Torc asked.
"She had this wild theory about the stars." Torc explained. "You know how we believe the stars fall to the ground when they die? Well, Brighid thinks that the stars are not living things in the sense of creatures that float in the sky. She guessed that the stars are stationary and didn't move since they're almost always in the same formations, only their location changes when the seasons change. She had this odd theory that there are objects floating in the sky. They catch fire somehow and shoot across the air above us. We've argued back and forth about her theory. I guess she decided to drag me out here to prove that she was right."
As Talie finished his explanation, Brighid elbowed her way between the two boys to take a look for herself. She watched as a bright ball crossed her sight followed by a brilliant tail straining to follow behind. Talie's words was lost on her as she watched, mesmerized by the rare show through the glass. One of the fireballs darting across her vision seemed unusually bright compared to the others. It seemed much larger, too. Picking her head up, she squinted in confusion at the oddity.
"Hoi," she nudged Talie and pointed to the sky. "Does that look normal to you?"
Talie looked up. As the object seemed to double in both size and speed, he shielded his eyes as he tried to look at the thing heading in their direction. Loose stone around them started to vibrate as an increasingly loud roar came from the direction of the blinding light. All three of them watched with squinted curiosity as the front of the white streak heated and pulsed with bluish orange flame. It tore across the sky as it raced to the ground. Crashing into the trees, the sound of their massive trunks being violently shattered compounded with the clouds of disturbed soil protesting the projectile burrowing through it. The ground beneath them shuddered in pained disapproval while the cry of surprised wildlife echoed as creatures fled from the violent crash. As the dirt from the impact settled, deafening silence engulfed them as darkness returned. The red glow of smoldering wood was the only indicator that something out of the ordinary had just occurred.
The air had turned eerily foreboding.
"What was that?" Torc broke the silence first.
"I'm not sure." Talie answered.
"Maybe Brighid was wrong?" offered Torc. "Maybe a star really did die?"
"There's only one way to find out." Brighid stated as she took apart the spyglass and carefully placed the pieces back into the canvas.
"Maybe we should go back home instead." Torc said. The idea of poking around something celestial clearly unnerved the boy.
"If that's what you'd rather do, then make sure you don't get caught." Talie warned. "But we're going to take a look. For the sake of research."
Without another word, Brighid and Talie began their hurried descent. Torc followed miserably behind. They rushed down the path they had followed so leisurely before. Carefully picking their way down the mountain, they occasionally slid and slipped as loose dirt and gravel tumbled ahead of them. Climbing down the rocky face, they silently dropped to the platform that was their mark of safety from the Fiachats that had chased them across the plain. There was no sign of them now. Relieved that they had grown bored and left, the troupe continued downward until they reached the flat soil.
A moment of hesitation passed as Torc watched Brighid and Talie take off towards the smoldering forest. Worried about being alone and an easy target, he ran after them as they disappeared into the forest.
Brighid ran alongside Talie. Both of them jumped over roots and ducked under low-hanging branches as they rushed to see what, exactly, had fallen from the sky. They slowed when they came across the dislodged roots, felled trees and upturned soil that left a line so perfectly straight that it couldn't have been made by nature. They jumped over the massive mounds of dirt that had been pushed aside and landed in the smooth track the object left in its wake. Wood snapped and popped as flames that couldn't stay ignited sputtered and died. A thin veil of smoke made seeing difficult through the darkness, even with the reddish glow from the blackened embers.
As they drew near, a white orb emerged through the haze. They both stopped as they looked at the dented and scratched sphere that had come to rest in the thicket. Torc finally caught up to them. Leaning with his hands on his knees, he was bent over and panting to catch his breath.
"What is it?" he asked between gasps of air.
"I don't know." Talie answered. He walked closer to the object. Resting a hand against its surface, he looked back at Brighid. "It's definitely something that has been foraged, though. It feels like metal."
It was not small, but it was also not something that could be defined as massive. Curiosity taking over, Brighid decided to explore. Grabbing a nearby branch still burning with a triumphant flame, she held it in front of her as she walked around the thing. She trailed her fingers across the unexpectedly cool surface as she circled the orb. Her fingers caught on a seam in the hard metal. Using the torch to see better, she traced what looked like the outline of a door along the dented structure. Deep gouges singed from heated contact were scattered across the chipped white paint.
"Looks like this thing's seen a battle or two." Talie guessed as he joined her, his hand coming to rest against one of the nastier looking scratches.
The glint of yellow lit by the flickering of the flame above her caught her attention. Raising the torch to get a better look, she saw what looked like a tinted window webbed with cracks of damage.
"Do you think something's inside?" Torc called tentatively. He had made sure to keep a safe distance from the sphere in case the need to run arose.
"There's only one way to find out." Talie said as he wedged his fingertips into the door's crevice.
Brighid carefully placed the torch on the ground and tried to help Talie force the door open. After several attempts of relentless pulling, they gave up. The thing wouldn't budge no matter how hard they tried to pry it open. With a frustrated yell, Brighid kicked the side of the structure.
A loud clunk reverberated from the orb. Startled by the noise, all three of them ran to the safety of the trees. The door groaned and hissed as it cracked open. They stood hiding behind the trunks as they waited for whatever monster was inside of the thing to spring out and attack. Seconds inched painfully by as they all held their breath expecting the worst. When nothing happened, they slinked out of their hiding places and back into the cleared path.
Brighid was the first to approach it again. Picking up the torch, she walked to the opening and pressed her face against it. Holding the torch up higher so the light could get through the crack, she strained to see inside. She thought she recognized what looked like a hand, but it was too dark to tell for sure.
"Hey guys!" She couldn't hide the excitement in her voice. "I think a person is in here! Help me open this thing up."
Both of the boys joined her. All three of them yanked as hard as they could as the door creaked in metallic protest. With great effort, the hinges finally gave up as the door screeched open. Using the torch, they peered inside the opening.
A body lay bloodied and battered against a white leather padded seat. It was obvious that the sphere landed on its back since the chair looked like it was laying down. All they could see was the lower half of the person inside. Handing the light to Talie, Brighid crawled inside to get a better look. Carefully squeezing into the space meant for only one occupant, she silently directed Talie to hold the flame closer to the door. The flickering light washed over the unmoving person.
"Is it dead?" Torc asked.
Brighid didn't answer. Instead she stared mesmerized by the woman in the pod. It wasn't the bruising, dried blood or discolored swelling that made her stare in disbelief. The similar coloring of her skin or the odd outfit she wore were also inconsequential. It was something more important than any of those attributes combined that held her attention.
"Talie," Brighid called as she unfolded herself from the pod. "Talie, you have to take a look at this."
Worry wrinkling his brow, Talie half crawled inside to see what had caught Brighid's attention. Within seconds he was pulling himself out of the opening.
"Did you see it?" Brighid's eyes gleamed with excitement. "Did you see her hair?"
Talie nodded solemnly.
"She? Is she dead?" Torc questioned again.
"Is it her? Is it actually her? The one my mother used to speak about before she died? The one the Great Stories are about?"
"I don't know." Talie shrugged. " It could be, but only the Elder would know for sure."
"Brighid." Torc whined, annoyed with being ignored. "Answer me! Is she alive?"
Looking into the pod, Brighid watched for any signs of life. The woman's chest subtly rose and fell. An almost inaudible moan escaped her as she lay on the brink of existence.
"Barely." Brighid confirmed.
"Brighid, take your brother back home and get help." Talie instructed. "I'll watch over her and wait until you come back."
With a nod, she grabbed her brother's hand and headed towards the village. He obediently followed.
"Brighid, do you really think it's her? The one from the temple drawings the Ancients made?"
"I'm not sure," Brighid said. Both excitement and worry had her heart racing at the thought of the stories from her childhood being true. "I guess we're going to have to risk telling dad about what we did, though, if we want to find out."
"I hope she is." Torc's voice held a kind of dreamy anticipation. "It would be so cool if the stories were real, wouldn't it?"
Brighid nodded in agreement. Yes it would be 'cool', as her brother put it, but she also remembered the tales of danger and warning with the turquoise-haired woman's arrival. She wasn't sure if her home was ready for the changes that she instinctively knew were on the horizon.
