"But such judgements come more

from a man's

forced manner of living than from

his reason."

-The Burning of the Dream

Gravity – Chapter 2

I'm sorry. Now, suddenly the remorse swamps through me. The regret and shame of utterly obliterating an innocent world that asked for no such destruction. I'm sorry...

I took in my surroundings. Spindly trees blue-ish grass and endless expanses of emerald sky and water. Same old, same old on New Namek. Two of the three suns were in the sky at the time; virtually baking the soil under the radiation. I supposed Namekians were used to the heat, but I certainly wasn't. I was aware that my presence would soon draw a crowd, and I really didn't need questions that I had no answers to. Too many such questions.

A simple goal arranged itself in my mind. Get the dragonballs. Fix this. But Namekians kept their huge versions of the dragonballs in their villages, under guard. I wasn't perturbed by this; it never stopped Frieza... it never stopped Vegeta...

A shiver of rage snaked down my spine. Just thinking the prince's name brought back the fury from before.

"Bastard," I muttered grimly, and set off on foot without looking back.

Usually it would unnerve me; the prospect of stealing something sacred, bit at the moment I just wanted to right my one great wrong... even if it meant Vegeta would be brought back too if I got my wish.

X

Stealth was never my strength, but speed definitely was. Determination and lingering anger lent my feet wings as I sprinted in the shadows. Normally I'd fly, but in a world with little cover and inhabitants much more observant than humans, it would be risky. Of course, they couldn't raise a hand against me, not that they'd want to, but I didn't want to have to explain why I needed the dragonballs; didn't want to try to justify what I did.

So, I didn't want to be caught.

I reached a village on the edge of the roiling mass of green water that was probably a sea; I didn't know much about Namek's geography, so I wasn't sure.

I darted around a shallow cliff face. The villagers were out, watering their rows of plants. I remembered Gohan telling me about how the natives had tended to huge fields of hydrangea plants back on the original Namek.

Something swooped in my stomach when I realized with the destruction of Earth, I had essentially killed my own son. He was barely ten years old.

I haveto fix this.

Stealing the dragonball was easy. When the Namekians' backs were turned, I bolted for the hut in the center of the village – though I suppose "hut" is a primitive word in this instance - where the melon-sized orb was revealed in plain sight, on a pedestal right inside the doorway.

I bet they didn't even suspect a thing; even now, when Frieza had caused such universal chaos not four years ago.

I took my prize and left the village as quickly as I could manage.

I found refuge in a cave when it started pouring. There had barely been a cloud in the sky two hours ago, and now it was a full-blown storm.

While the elements raged outside, I lit a fire with some dead branches, and took a moment to think and watch the ghostly reflection of the flames dance on the glass-smooth surface of the dragonball I'd stolen.

One down, six to go.

...Exactly what was I going to wish for when I did gather all seven? I'd have to get a Namekian to summon the dragon anyway, it didn't respond to anything but its native language.

It seemed a simple enough wish, or wishes, I suppose, since I'd need all three. One to bring back Earth, another to bring back its inhabitants... what to do with the third?

I could wish for no one to remember what I did, but where would that leave me? Everyone would still treat me like trash, and then of course it wouldn't change that Vegeta had slept with my wife. I could wish that he hadn't done that... but then I would have destroyed Earth for no reason. I could wish the bastard prince from existence, but I had a feeling that would cause more harm than good.

There was only one thing to do then. I'd have to fix it myself.

TBC