He was pulled out into the night, following after King Cold as the man began to speak.
"Have you found everything here to your liking, young saiyan?" The man asked, but he knew better than to answer honestly.
"Yes, your majesty." He answered. He wouldn't bring up his problems with Dianta. She always chastised him because his magic wasn't the same as hers. He wouldn't say how much he disliked the chrome. He wouldn't even bring up how stupid he thought his lessons to be. He would only put on a happy face. As much as he disliked his home planet, he didn't want to see any harm come to it.
"Good. It seems like your lessons are paying off." The man said, walking over through what had to be a garden of some kind.
Only he couldn't really call it a garden. There would have to be plants for that, but all of the "plants", seemed to be made of metal, just like everything else around here. "You think so?" He really learned more from those books than his teacher, so maybe he was learning. It was just a little frustrating. He knew that his magic had to be stronger than hers and he couldn't just teach himself.
"I know so, unlike my father, I can see real magic for what it is. Not just the parlor tricks that Dianta uses." The man sneered.
He froze, hoping that the tyrant king was only joking. "What do you mean?"
The King only laughed. "In her youth, she could actually use magic, but she has gone old and senile. My father, believed her to be real deal till the day he laid on his death bed." The King seemed unperturbed as he talked about his father's demise. "I've been kind of waiting for her to drop like a fly, but she just won't go away, but once she is gone, are you willing to take her place?"
He stared at the King's back. How could he answer that? He couldn't just say yes and be done with it, could he?
"Of course, if you wish to leave after all that I have given you, I can always persuade you to stay." The King looked back at him darkly and he gulped.
He knew what the man in front of him was capable of. "I have nowhere else to go." He stated. It was both the truth and a lie. He could always go back to Planet Vegeta, but would he be welcome? He didn't think so after how he left.
"Good answer." The man walked past him, smirking evilly. "Now get back to your room. Dianta will want to speak with you, no doubt."
He nodded as he backed away from the King and towards the door. He gave one last bow before he left the man and walked back into the wall.
Part of him wanted to cry, he could never get out from under King Cold's gaze. Maybe, he should have walked back to Vegeta. Then he wouldn't have to look forward to a future where he was a slave.
Three years later…
He smiled to himself. Today was his birthday. Not that it mattered, but today he would finally be able to take his magic test.
Dianta had become unbearable. She wouldn't stop pacing for some reason. She never explained what he would have to do, so now he was nervous. It didn't help that over the last 3 years, he had never left the palace back on Planet Cold.
This was only the second time that he was in space and he was already nauseous. Hopefully, he wouldn't have to come out here that often. He was already going to be stationed to King Cold, whether he liked it or not. Over the past three years, the man had been kind to him, if you want to call holding your planet at gun point so that he could get Tarble to do his bidding kind. His former naivety was shattered not long after he left his home planet and he was becoming more cynical with time.
His bright demeanor was gone and he was nothing like his former self. Right now, he was glaring at his mentor as she ran around the room they were in. The ship was getting ready to land and she was worried about appearances. He found himself chuckling at her stupidity, not matter what she did, she would always be the same old, crazy hag.
"Stand up straight!" She ordered, not even looking at him.
He rolled his eyes. "You're one to talk."
She turned to smack him, but he dodged out of the way of her grummy hand. Like he really wanted her to touch him. Her eyes narrowed at him. "You need to be on your best behavior! A saiyan has never walked into this building to my knowledge and you're going to get a lot of stares."
He rolled his eyes again, she had just finished saying this 5 minutes before hand. It was almost like she was a bird that spent all of its time repeating everything it said. "Did you take your meds?" He asked, almost laughing to himself as she looked like she was about to smack him. Either her reflexes weren't as fast as they used to be or he was getting faster, because it had been a year since she had been able to touch him.
She grumbled something under her breath as the ship began to dock. He rushed past her, wanting to see what the planet looked like. To his pleasure, the metal of the Cold Empire was nowhere to be seen.
Miresa had a purple sky and some strange tropical plant springing from the ground. The buildings had more of a temple feel to them, at least he felt that's what they were from what he had read.
Dianta come up behind him, giving him a small whack on the head for his insolence from before, but he didn't care. He was still taking everything in. She grumbled something under her breath again, this time walking past him.
He made to follow her, only to find the people around them staring at him. Many of them were whispering among themselves. Dianta did say that he was the first saiyan to ever some here, so that meant that he would be gossiped about.
He sighed to himself as he crossed his arms over his chest and followed her. As much as he wanted to ignore the random aliens' whispers, he just couldn't. All of a sudden, he felt small again. Their judgement was creating doubt in his mind. Maybe he couldn't do this.
He got so hung up on his thoughts that he ran right into someone, which in turn knocked him back onto his back. The person in front of him also fell back. He made to apologize, as the young girl slid up from the ground. He was taken aback by her long black hair. She was definitely pretty and his heart skipped a beat when his eyes locked with hers. He was startled by the fact that she had a tail, she had to be saiyan.
"Parle, watch where you are going!" The girl looked panicked as she darted back.
He looked up at her attendant, wishing that they had not chastised the young girl. "Tarble, what are you doing?!" Dianta yelled after him. She must have kept walking after he ran into the girl
He made to glare at his mentor, when the girl was pulled up to her feet. "Dianta, why have you brought one of them here?" The attendant said, glaring at him. She wasn't the same race as the girl, but instead looked to be the same race of his mentor, only younger.
Dianta's hands landed on his shoulders. "He's my student, Disilla." The woman said proudly.
Disilla looked down at him, glaring. "You really thing that you can teach a boy magic? Please, your student couldn't do anything magical to mine." The girl shivered under her feet.
Dianta's lip twitched. "He isn't here to learn. He is here to for his test."
The younger woman frowned. "So we will be there to watch his failure. No book will go to him. Then maybe you can find yourself a student that's worth spending time on again." Disilla walked away from them, dragging the girl behind her. He almost wanted to rip girl from her attendant and run off with her.
"Come Tarble, we don't want to be late." Dianta said angrily, pulling on his arm.
He almost growled. He wanted to go back to the pretty girl. He wanted to know if she had been to Planet Vegeta recently and how she got here. It looked like she was new to this and she seemed to be in just as much awe as he was. Maybe she didn't have a power level as well.
Dianta continued to drag him as he thought of the girl. She was becoming a permanent fixture in his thoughts as they entered as room full of woman, all sitting in a circle. "Dianta, what have you brought here?" One of the sterner looking ones said glaring at him.
His teacher didn't flinch. "This is Tarble, he is my student and today is his magic test."
The stern one made to comment, but was stopped by a much younger looking woman with black skin and some kind of appendage coming from her head. Looking her over, he knew that she had to be older than she looked, mainly because they were all looking at her with respect. "We haven't had a male or a saiyan in a long time. It is strange that we have two students of their descent joining our ranks. But this must mean that the saiyan race must be calming themselves for this to have happened." The woman clicked her crane across the floor. "It's Tarble, isn't it?"
He made sure to bow, this woman was being kind to him and he would rather show her respect than her wrath. "Yes, ma'am." He didn't know her name or title, so ma'am would have to do.
The woman smiled. "No need to be so formal child. Just call me, Sika." The council around him turned to face what looked like a doorway. "Now you will walk through there. Your book will choose you and you will embrace your destiny."
"My destiny?" The way she made it sound was so final.
Sika laughed. "Well yes, every mage has a destiny child. Our fate is to come here and the book gives you your name."
"But I like my name." He said confused.
The whole room laughed. "Now child, your title will follow you everywhere. I am known as Sika, the divine sun, as is your teacher, Dianta, the flowering whisper. Whatever book calls to you, will seal your fate."
Again, he felt nervous. Could he ever find a way to control his life? It was almost as if something or someone was out there laughing at his life.
"Now go, child, discover your destiny." He stared at the doorway and began walking towards it slowly.
His nervousness had not faded. The room in front of him looked dark, but he continued, until the door shut behind him.
All he could do was look up. Around him there were plenty of filled seats, other mages were watching him. As he looked around, his eyes fell on the saiyan girl again. His mind began to relax under her gaze.
Looking around the room he was in, he noticed an altar of some kind. He had read about them, more than once. They must have expected him to go to it. The room was filled with nothing but bookshelves.
He remained cautious though. Something about this room, was a little unnerving. Like he had been here before, only long ago. But that was just silly. He was far too old for such ideas.
He made his way to the altar and froze in shock as it began to glow. A strange gold light surrounded him as all of the books began to open and flip through their pages. All he could do was stare at the strange actions as they played out in front of him.
He had no time to react as one book darted past the others and floated in front of him. He looked it over, the cover was completely black and covered with red lettering. A small monkey seemed to be in the corner. He read the title, Luna Umbra: An Oath of Power. He reached out and took the book in his hands and the other books returned to their place on the shelves.
He looked back up to find the young girl smiling at him and felt himself smile back. She must have been scared of this like he was.
"I present, Tarble, the keeper of shadows." He heard a voice say from above him. He whispered the name to himself as he looked over the book again and again. This was his fate. Sika was right. Now that this book was in his hands, he could only watch as his destiny unfolded.
To Be Continue…
Sorry about how late this is. I got side tracked with studying. Next week's update is the Middle Child and both of these series will be going through a massive time skip.
For those that don't know Luna Umbra means the moon's shadow in Latin.