"...And soon he will of himself perceive that the beauty of one form is akin to the beauty of another; and then if beauty of one form in general is his pursuit, how foolish would he be not to recognize that the beauty in every form is one and the same!"
-Excerpt from Plato:Symposium (360 B.C.E) Diotima of Matinea
Gravity – Chapter 3
My third shameful act – my first being destroying the Earth, and my second being stealing the Namekian dragonballs – was kidnapping an elder from one of the villages I plundered. It was the third day since Earth had ceased to exist; and hunger had made me irritable – there was no food to speak of on Namek, as the inhabitants only consumed water. I had gathered the seven giant dragonballs on the previous two days, and now I simply needed a translator to summon the dragon. Much easier said than done; the elders were stubborn as steel.
Luckily, steel was very easy for me to break.
Unlike the elder, who only had his honor and his vow of silence at stake; I knew that without the Earth I would surely die of starvation. My resolve was stronger because I had the more to lose.
The old Namekian flinched under the steely gaze I fixed him with as I dropped him in the cave that had served as my home these past few days. The elder's yellowed eyes landed on the cluster of dragonballs in the center of the cave and he shuddered visibly.
"No," he uttered, before I could even speak, "I won't do it."
He must have thought me a villain seeking to rule the universe or some such nonsense. I'd thought my battle with Frieza had made me into an idol among the Namekians; apparently I was wrong. Of course, I couldn't correct him... not yet.
"I need to summon Parunga," I said swiftly, taking hold of the front of the old Namekian's robes, "You're going to help me do it."
"Why?" the elder challenged, "What do you hope to accomplish? What is your wish? Immortality? Universal dominion?"
I rolled my eyes impatiently and tightened my grip on his robes,
"I need to travel back in time, but I don't have a machine to do so," I remembered the boy Trunks who had visited from the future and killed Frieza in my stead, "Also, I need to revive a planet called Earth and its inhabitants."
"I know of Earth," the elder muttered bitterly, "My family sought refuge there when the original Namek was destroyed by Frieza. I assume you know him."
I sighed tiredly, "I do know him. Or rather, I knew him."
"You were one of his minions, I assume?" the elder growled.
"Hardly." I said bluntly, "I tried to kill him."
I had hoped I would be able to pull this off without giving too much information, but this old Namekian was making it difficult. I couldn't let him leave without achieving my goal, however, or the whole planet would know about this. I don't know why I leaned so far into secrecy, but I wasn't about to jump at the chance to divulge what had happened. What I had done.
"Who are you?" the Namekian elder growled.
"That's none of your concern," I retorted, "Now, will you do as I say or do I have to force you?"
The elder scoffed, "How could you possibly force me? Do your worst, I have no fear of death or punishment."
I exhaled slowly, trying to rein in my impatience. I was famished, and frustrated as all hell. If I didn't get this wrinkled sack of bones to cooperate, I might never fix my mistake, and I might die out here. My grip on the elder's robes moved so that my fingers were around his throat.
"Not afraid of death?" I said icily, "I could snap your neck as easily as a twig."
Though he remained stubbornly silent, I caught a flash of terror in his eyes, hidden by skepticism. He wasn't sure if I could do what I said, and there was also the question of whether I would.
"You wouldn't," he decided boldly.
Enough of this, I though with an irritated snarl.
My patience drained and I tightened my grip, almost cutting off the Namekian's air.
"Wouldn't I?" I hissed.
The elder's eyes widened in fear, his hands scrabbling at my own frantically. I didn't power up for risk of revealing my identity; but I kept the threatening choke-hold on the old one's throat.
He must have felt the fragile bones in his neck beginning to give under the pressure, because he finally expelled the breath he'd been holding and burst out, "Okay, alright! I'll do what you ask, just let me go, please!"
He was almost sobbing by the time I released him; and when I did, he sat back against the wall, gasping for breath and shivering in fear.
I'm sorry, I thought resentfully, I wouldn't have done it, I know, but that was a terrible thing to do.
Much as I'd learned to hate and deceive over the years, I was still a good person – as far as I knew – and I still held respect for the elderly. Once again, my anger had gotten the best of my, and once again I did something I regretted as a result.
"I'll summon Parunga," the Namekian panted, "But I can't guarantee he will grant your requests."
"Do what you have to to get him to comply," I said flatly, tired of arguing, "It's very important."
X
Once the dragonballs had been moved outside – where the dragon would have room to be released – and the weather had cleared, I went back for the Namekian.
I expected him to try to escape once he was out of the cave, but he didn't; and that said a lot about his honor.
He spoke some gibberish that I assumed was Namekian language, and the seven orbs glowed brightly. In contrast, the sky darkened and a roaring wind filled the air.
With a whoosh, a beam of yellow light poured from the seven balls. The beam twisted and coiled and transformed into the serpentine form of the enormous Namekian dragon, Parunga.
"Why have you summoned me?" the beast roared. I never did understand why, if the dragon itself spoke in common-tongue, it only responded to Namekian.
The elder turned to me expectantly, though his gaze was still wary and retained some hostility.
"Tell him to restore the planet Earth with the first wish, and to bring back its inhabitants with the second."
The elder spoke another string of gibberish, and the dragon growled.
"Those are not easy wishes,"he bellowed, "But they shall be done."
Parunga's huge red eyes glowed, and he announced, "It has been set in motion. What is your third request?"
"Tell him to send me back to a time when Prince Vegeta hadn't committed the sin that caused the Earth to be destroyed." Of course, I couldn't specify what that sin was, but I hoped Parunga would understand. He was an all-seeing dragon after all.
The Namekian elder translated the wish.
"It shall be done," Parunga roared, "The mortal shall be transported to a dimension where the one called Vegeta is free of sin."
"No, no wait!" I panicked, "Not another dimension, just another time!"
I was too late. The dragon's eyes glowed and I felt an enormous gravity pulling on my body and soul, and I was powerless to stop it.
X
I rematerialized and inhaled as if I'd been underwater for an hour. I blinked in confusion. I was right in front of Capsule Corp. I couldn't help but feel relieved; at least the Earth was back... but I didn't have the time or the means to truly grasp what I'd done yet.
TBC
