So first of all I would like to apologise for my absence. Getting my laptop to me was incredibly difficult and I appreciate the efforts of everyone involved. I would not have it without them. Love my family. Anyway, I decided to lengthen this one a bit more but I didn't really know how you guys would respond to longer chapters so I decided to keep this at the usual length. I did however try to make it interesting as a kind of apology for being away so long. So here you go... chapter 6.


Chapter 6

A few miles away

"Did you hear that?"

Jergenn and Nath were standing near a massive waterfall that led down into a river big enough to be an ocean. The two were dressed in the standard issue Frieza Force outfit consisting of black body suits, white boots, gloves and white body armour. Both were lower class soldiers with power levels of 3000 and 2500 respectively, not much higher than the average power level of 2000 within the Frieza Force. Jergenn was a reptilian looking alien with green scales and sharp teeth while Nath was a purple smooth skinned humanoid with wavy hair.

"That was an explosion just now," Nath said, his face twisted up in worry. He glanced at Jergenn who didn't seem particularly bothered. Jergenn had always held a strong dislike for Naya and Rikku and when Frieza had called them up and told them they were to go see if those Saiyans were dead Jergenn had been the happiest Nath had seen him. Nath wasn't quite so driven after the thrashing Rikku had given him the one time he was "unkind" to Naya but Jergenn had it out for all the Saiyans even the Prince Vegeta who was on an entirely different level from them.

Both looked toward the little glow they could see quite some distance away and noted the small wisps of smoke trailing up from said speck of light.

"It's really far away too," Jergenn added, seemingly peeved by this. Then he smiled in the most satisfied way a reptile could with a snout like a croc.

Nath tried not to let his discomfort show but he knew he wouldn't be backing Jergenn up. One thrashing was quite enough thank you… well that was if those two were alive anyway. He knew Jergenn was looking forward to seeing Rikku die, whether by his own hands or not.

Nath eyed the spot where the light had appeared noting that now there was only smoke. Being able to see it from this distance… I pity whoever got hit by that.

"You aren't planning to interfere are you?"

Nath whipped around to see a figure dressed in a cloak standing behind him and Jergenn who had also turned around.

"Who are you?" the reptilian soldier demanded.

Nath took the chance to scan the enemy and frowned when the scouter gave him zero as a reading. Even bugs gave a number on this thing, even if the number was in .001's…. This guy on the other hand gave zero… That was not normal.

"Jergenn be careful," Nath warned, taking up a rather flowery looking stance.

Jergenn snorted saying, "This guy isn't worth worrying about. We'll take him out quick and go deal with those two monkeys."

The figure did not move, its face hidden by its hood. "It seems Frieza doesn't know how to give someone their due respect."

Jergenn immediately snapped. "Address Lord Frieza with respect, trash!" he growled, preparing to attack. "I'll make sure this is the last time you slight his name!"

"I see no reason to," came the response. "He did a good job of slighting it by himself."

"Shut up! Before I shut you up!" Jergenn roared.

Nath detected a hint of amusement from the figure and was immediately very worried. What if this guy and Frieza were equals or perhaps this one was even superior…? If that was the case this would be Jergenn's last mistake.

"Wait Jergenn, let's think about this," Nath said.

Jergenn was in no mood to listen. "I don't care Nath, he needs to be silenced."

The figure lifted a hand covered by the cloak. "Well, I can probably get away with just a smidge."

Angered by the apparent disregard the stranger held for both Frieza and himself Jergenn charged with a roar….

Straight into a bright white light.

Hiyori

Hiyori's eyes widened in fear as the sphere of fierce golden energy drew closer. Her knees shook, making any sort of movement impossible for her. She was going to die… was this how she was going to die? Oh god she was going to die! She closed her eyes as the energy descended…

"Wow, I'm impressed. I didn't know you could do something like this you know? Well I suppose I didn't give you much of a chance to try anything now did I?"

That was Rikku's voice! Hiyori's eyes snapped open to see the curly haired Saiyan soldier floating above the golden energy, one hand gripping it tightly and preventing it from moving any further. He glanced at her with what seemed like mild disappointment and said, "Why didn't you just dodge?"

Hiyori was so stunned it took her a while to register what he just said, but when she did she noticed all the Veridians surrounding her quaking in fear. Then she remembered that she had been surrounded anyway.

"I was surrounded," she answered, realizing afterward how strange it seemed. Like she was offering excuses to her teacher for being late to class.

Rikku didn't seem to notice or care and simply said, "You might want to move."

Immediately, the Veridians moved to intercept no doubt in an effort use her as hostage of some sort but in close combat they were already inferior to the short Saiyan girl. Scared as they were, it was no contest. Hiyori blurred into motion, palm thrusts and sweeping kicks knocking her assailants flying and then zoomed upwards, joining Rikku up in the air.

"Waste of energy," Rikku snorted watching the Veridians scramble. "You could have just used one blow for all of them."

Hiyori found herself blushing in embarrassment. What amazed her was that she didn't dislike it… she would have to ask Naya about this later if they made it through alive. She glanced at Rikku out of the corner of her eye. Somehow that didn't feel like a problem anymore.

Rikku heaved the ball of golden energy up and then hurled it down at the ground. The resulting explosion blew aside all the trees and vegetation, chewing up the rock hidden beneath meters upon meters of dirt. The blowback tore through Hiyori, the wind produced ripping at her hair and tearing at her skin. When it finally died down there was a massive crater leaking unbelievable amounts of smoke and dust. All the Veridians caught in explosion were probably ash in the wind now. Hiyori noticed a few who had tried to run unconscious all around the massive hole in the ground. The ones who got really far away were the dead ones though.

Rikku surveyed the damage and said, "Seems the closest ones to the blast got thrown."

Hiyori blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

"Never mind," Rikku said. "What's important is they're all dead one way or another. We can forget about the unconscious ones for now, just make sure you keep in mind the fact that they're still alive."

Hiyori nodded. "Yes, I will."

Was he this commanding before? He's totally scary. I don't even think I can talk to him right now.

An explosion rang out and Hiyori turned toward the sound. From upriver she could see a wide column of white light flying up into the heavens.

"What is that?" she said, getting worried. Another thought occurred to her. "Is Kin over there?!"

"No and stop yelling," Rikku responded.

"Where is he?"

"Taking care of a few party crashers is all."

Hiyori was immediately worried and slightly furious. She suspected betrayal. Rikku being very observant did not fail to notice this and he sighed.

Rikku glanced at her then folded his arms and sighed again. "Seriously, the both of you need to dial it down a few notches. And here I thought you were the level headed one."

"We should keep an eye out for any threats from that direction," Rikku said. "Being able to see it from this distance… I pity whoever got hit by that."

"As for your brother," he continued. "Don't worry about him. He's perfectly fine…"

Kin

Kin's first thought once he hit the ground was, I'm an idiot.

He lay there with his eyes still closed as warmth flooded his body, filling him with strength. I should have paid more attention. I can't believe I didn't see any of this…

Two furry men, were standing over him while several had formed a circle around him and them. They were clearly supposed to be examining him and had stopped when they realized his eyes were open. It was now that Kin could see Rikku's plan more clearly. He had realized that any whisper or tell might give them away cause they weren't close and knew nothing about each other that could help give clues… well useful ones anyway. So Rikku decided to force him to stay behind and deal with the enemy by attacking him and then handing him a good doze of energy to fight with. That guy was pretty crazy, wouldn't it have been better to tell him something somehow or attack them together, or maybe he was watching and he figured this would show Kin's strength or perhaps he saw reason to rush ahead? Kin frowned at the thought. In that case he would have to make this quick.

Kin threw himself to his feet, and shook himself flexing some of his muscles to shake off the beating from earlier. The two furry men moved back and stared at him in suspicion.

"Are you enemies with the brown skinned one from just now?" one asked him.

Kin shrugged. "You know, I'm not entirely sure myself at this point."

The two appeared to give this some thought, the smaller one exchanging heated whispers with the bigger one who was clearly in charge. Kin's mind was elsewhere though. Judging from how Rikku placed him here and his overall demeanour so far the younger Saiyan had come to realize that his senior was a lot smarter and thoughtful than he seemed to be when he made a decision. In that case, he would go with it for now since he didn't have much of a choice. After this though, if Rikku was indeed betraying him he would defeat him without hestitation.

"Then I suppose an alliance is in order," the other, bigger one said. "What say you to that?"

"I refuse," Kin said flatly. "Sorry, I have somewhere to be can we make this fast? Everybody come at me at once."

All the furry men, made various movements of surprise clearly not expecting to be turned down. The two leaders seemed mildly surprised at first but their expressions quickly hardened.

"Are you sure this is what you want boy?" the bigger one said. "We out number you."

"Just come! I have a sister to protect!" Kin glared at them. "Now!"

And with that the furry men charged. It was disorderly. Their leaders hadn't given the order either, it was a mad rush spurred on for no identifiable reason. Perhaps, it was because all of a sudden Kin's black eyes looked a lot darker. Perhaps… it could have been one of the giant leaves of the planets great trees that cast such a dark shadow over that particular spot. It could have been anything… but it was the thought that maybe, just maybe… they were up against more than they could handle.

The initial charge had 15 warriors. After taking a single step, all were reduced to ash…

Naya

Sanza rushed forward with a series of jabs and crosses trying to pin Naya down but she wasn't giving him any ground so fast was her footwork she was dancing all around him landing shots in his openings with every blow he missed. And her shots were heavy, she knew that much. She was holding back nothing and she could feel his ribs creak with every body blow.

Sanza faked a hook, spun with it and struck with a reverse elbow but Naya had simply slammed her foot into his exposed body when he faked the hook. Sanza went flying and his son immediately popped up in his place trying to land a hit. He rose up with a powerful uppercut to which Naya retaliated by moving back and shooting a front kick into the centre of his chest. Shadah doubled over and Naya immediately followed up with a round house to his temple that sent him drilling another trough in the ground.

Sanza rushed her once again having snuck up so he could get into her guard, but Naya had heard him. At this point she was thinking nothing, planning nothing, her body was guided by sheer instinct and ability. This was her at her strongest! Sanza let loose quick and powerful punches and elbows, determined not to give her space to strike. Naya dodged every strike, and caught the follow up fist he'd been waiting to release. A shockwave flew out from the point of impact, ruffling her clothes and her hair. Undisturbed by the strength of the blow, Naya roared and retaliated with a heavy front kick between his ribs and while Sanza was doubled over she drove a spinning back kick right into his jaw. With a cry of pain Sanza flew back and crashed into the ground hard enough to kick up rock.

Sanza tried to rise and only to crumple to his knees with a groan. "Father!" Shadah cried. The younger Veridian glared at Naya and rushed at her but she was already on the offensive. Before Shadah could take a step Naya was smashing her foot into his jaw with a flying kick. The younger Veridian got blown into the forest hard enough to leave a shockwave. Naya turned on landing and went after Sanza, with a snarl. Sanza stood up in time to block her punch, but Naya threw his hand aside and fired off an uppercut. Sanza caught it with his other hand only for Naya to plant her knee firmly between his ribs. The Veridian, spat up blood and immediately got blasted through a tree from the force of the blow.

Naya stomped the ground and took off at a run so powerful it kicked up a large chunk of rock. In an instant she was above the still flying Sanza, then she spun and slammed him into the ground with an axe kick. Rock blasted up from the point of impact, and dust shrouded Sanza from sight. Naya felt pressure resisting her leg and leaped up to drop another axe kick when a blur on the left rushed in. She was punched incredibly hard, the displaced air from the blow wearing away the bark of Veridia's massive trees and clearing the dirt covering Sanza, revealing that the chief had indeed blocked the first kick.

Shadah grinned in satisfaction in his second form, his eyes glowing green and his darker fur rippling over his now massive body. Then he frowned when he realized that Naya was holding his fist in her smoking hand. She glared at him more than a little pissed off now. Shadah was hanging in her grip at this point, since he was unable to fly. Naya looked down at him.

"What? How could you take a dead on charge from me when your friend couldn't?' Shadah demanded, satisfaction turned to fear. "Are you a monster? What are you?"

Her stare turned to a glare. "You're starting to annoy me."

Sanza leaped up and tried to free his son with a chop. Naya slapped the attack aside and slammed her wrist into his jaw with the same hand. Sanza floated backwards, clutching his jaw. He was panting, and blood was leaking from both sides of his mouth.

"Take another one of those and it's my win," Naya said flatly.

"How… can this… be?" Sanza managed. "I sense… no rise… in your energy…"

"How am I overpowering you?" Naya said. "That's the question you want to ask? I told you, I'm serious right now."

Naya let Shadah drop to the ground and the powered up Veridian made no move to attack. The thing was that, just as Rikku had speed boosting techniques Naya had boosting techniques of her own. Her technique was Hado, where she would harden the energy she used for massive destructive power. It had taken ages of practice and she'd only really thought of it once she saw Vegeta get hit with a sword only for the sword to snap. That had made her think that maybe energy had hardening properties as well and she'd worked as hard as she could until she could harden her energy. Thankfully, she was not wrong so many times she'd felt like giving up… With this technique she was capable of a lot more destructive power, which she was already notorious in the Saiyan army for having. Just now she hadn't caught Shadah's fist rather she had used a full power palm strike with Hado to equal the power of the blow to nullify it and then catch his hand by closing her grip.

But I can't do that too often, she thought with a glance at her hand. There was a massive bruise spread across her entire palm from when Shadah struck her. Shadah was a pain. Whenever she could finish things with the chief he got in the way and now, she'd probably have to give up an arm for a full power Hado strike to take him out with such a large power gap between them. Then she'd be handicapped against the chief who was a far better warrior and she wasn't sure she could take him one handed. Chances were he had a power up just like his son, no way he would be chief otherwise.

This looks bad. I should have killed Shadah first.

At this point, Sanza chuckled. Naya looked up back at him expression serious. Something was going in this guy's favour and she'd clearly missed what it was. He didn't seem like the type to rush her in the hopes of winning and it seemed that assumption was correct. He was nothing like his son as he said before.

"Well done, Shadah," Sanza said. "Now you should be strong enough to buy me time."

"I see, you want to transform," Naya said. "Why didn't you do that before you came here? Are you guys idiots or something?"

Shadah shot up from below. Naya stepped off to the side as the Veridian zoomed past and crashed back down to the ground.

"Stop looking down on us!" Shadah roared, the air from his outburst blowing violently through the trees.

Undisturbed by the noise and wind, Naya smirked. "And why the hell not? I'm enjoying the view."

Shadah growled. "I'll kill you for that."

Naya gave him a twisted smile. "Bring it on."

Before Shadah could do anything, Sanza broke in. "Shadah, do not forget what we aim for!"

Naya turned to look at him, wondering what he was planning. Surely transforming was the plan?

Sanza said, "In all honesty I didn't expect you to be this much of a threat so I thought not to stress myself."

Naya blinked. "So you've been holding back then."

Sanza smiled. "Oh you have no idea woman. Once I'm ready, I'm going to destroy you and your partner."

Naya frowned. It was indeed a transformation. Things did not look very good right now… A transformation was not going to be good for her. She would have to get past Shadah somehow and stop Sanza.

Naya noticed Shadah tensing and took up her fighting stance, hands fisted and raised, legs wide. Alright, here we go!

Shadah leaped up at her with an uppercut. Naya leaned back and let him fly up before spinning and shooting a kick straight up into the small of his back when he came back down. Shadah, rolled off her leg in a fit of rage and lashed out with a punch so powerful Naya could see the air displacing around it as it came. She managed to lift one arm to block it and got blown backwards. Naya cried out as she was smashed through three trees in a row, slamming into a fourth hard enough to stick to it.

Naya, struggled and finally jerked herself free, panting for a bit and then wincing when her left arm gave a twinge. Every second counts, I can't afford to let the chief transform!

She ignored how disturbingly light her arm felt all of a sudden and took her stance, all senses on alert. Then Shadah came blasting out of the surrounding trees, and leaped at her once more. Naya flew higher to dodge the blow, and Shadah flew off into the tree smashing a crater in it. He rebounded after her and tried to knock her down with a flip kick. Naya immediately flipped back and dove to the ground so fast she cracked it and the transformed Veridian flew overhead to land some distance away. Naya jumped up and ran toward him and lashed out with a flying kick just as Shadah himself landed. He immediately responded by punching her kick. Naya encased her leg in energy and hardened it in an effort to overpower him. Little by little Shadah's hand moved back, but then he roared and pushed forward with all his might shoving her back but before she could be thrown Naya immediately flipped up and dropped an axe kick. By then, Shadah was suddenly much too close.

Naya's eyes widened in surprise. How?!

Shadah grinned and slammed his fist into the side of her face hard enough to knock her flying into yet another tree. Her head swimming, Naya couldn't even see it when Shadah jumped after her and slammed his knee into her gut. She heaved, choking as her insides threatened to come out her mouth. She fell to the ground and lay there, her entire body aching and her left arm starting to become stiff. She coughed, her eyes watering and her vision starting to blend into one giant swaying mess.

She was barely able to raise her head, only able to rest her chin in the dirt but that was enough for her… Enough for her to see the dark splotch that was Shadah coming ever closer…

Rikku

Walking through the forest I had to be careful not to step over anything that could trip me. There was so much destruction like a wild animal had finally lost all sense and gone berserk. The gigantic trees of this planet had scrapes, craters and massive holes in them and the hard ground looked like it had been turned to mash. Walking over the rocks was practically an art, I had to pick where I stepped. But flying was out of the question, I didn't want him to run away.

I paused when Hiyori grabbed my shoulder and said , "what?"

I was in no mood for pointless observations, and I was extremely sure she was about to make one.

"I think we should head toward the explosions," she said. "Cause last I saw Naya was fighting two guys and I'm not sure how much she can take-"

"Tell me Hiyori, would you say that number of explosions accounts for three people?"

Hiyori blinked.

I sighed. Clearly an explanation was in order.

"Listen, before there was a lot of destruction often over multiple areas sometimes at the same time meaning at least two people were getting thrown around by someone," I said looking at her to make sure she was following. She was nodding so I took that as a good sign and continued talking. "It doesn't matter which is which because that accounts for our three fighters."

I turned around and kept walking, continuing to add. "Now on the other hand, there are no more simultaneous acts of destruction, rather we have one at a time. Multiple ones tend to be in the form of a straight line or some other predictable pattern and what does that tell you?"

Hiyori seemed to struggle with my way of thinking as she walked behind me so I just handed it to her. "It means it's down to 2 fighters now."

"That means the third was beaten right?" Hiyori asked. "It means Naya's winning."

"Not necessarily," I answered, stepping over a really nasty looking piece of rock. "It could mean that yes, but it could also mean the third fighter ran away or is doing something we shouldn't be letting him do."

"I see," Hiyori said. "But what if Naya's the one losing?"

"If she could handle both of them she can handle one of them," I said. "So long as she stays focused."

"What if she was losing by an even larger margin than that?" Hiyori asked, "Aren't you worried?"

"If she was losing she has one less fighter to fight," I said. "Plus I fought one of those guys, if I could beat him she definitely can."

Hiyori seemed stuck on this for a bit, and this really sickening expression came across her face. Ugh, now she's going to be all sentimental on me about how I'm actually nicer than I seem or something.

We walked for a few more minutes, until we came across a red furred Veridian sitting on a branch nursing his wounds. He was resting quite comfortably, eyes closed his breathing even… but he wasn't asleep. Even as I flew up the massive branch, he cracked one eye open and calmly watched me land opposite him. Hiyori landed next to me her expression one of curiosity, curiosity aimed at me more than anything else.

I ignored it and instead glared at the red furred Veridian.

He was undisturbed and didn't even bother to move. Instead he said, "I didn't think you would get here so fast."

"You didn't honestly think your little squad could take me out did you?" I said. "I may not be as strong as Naya, but don't look down on me."

I smiled politely. "It pisses me off."

He stood up finally taking his time to do so. Looking at him I could see it…

"You're trying to buy time aren't you," I pointed out. "You're tired."

He smiled. "A good observation. Yes indeed I'm tired, I was tired long before I came out here to kill you."

"Is that why you ran away from my partner?" I taunted, deliberately trying to piss him off.

He seemed amused by that and laughed. "On the contrary, I was no longer needed. Shadah was handling it well enough without me."

I blinked in surprise. That dumbass…?

"You seem surprised," the Veridian said. "Well you did fight him so I suppose you have a more accurate judgement on who should win. However…"

He seemed to savour the last part, knowing the information was important to me which served to piss me off further.

I gave another polite smile. "You know, if you don't speak up I could always settle for your life instead."

Hiyori seemed stunned by my words but I barely noticed it. This guy needed to be put in his place.

He smiled at me, red eyes shining. "What do you say would be the weakness of someone who relies on instinct to fight effectively?"

No way… this guy….

Hiyori noticed the look on my face and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Thinking," I said. "Someone's who's not used to thinking in a fight usually can't think fast enough to keep up when they have to think especially with all the action going on. Usually, sheer ability and reflex would cover that for them. Natural instinct would guide their strikes to the right spot while training and muscle memory would cover technique. Naya fights like that and she's good at it. Take that away…"

He smiled. "You're no slouch yourself, are you-?"

"How?" I demanded.

He stopped smiling. "You're going to have to beat me to find out."

I snarled. "Fine by me!"

"Wait-"

I didn't hear the rest of Hiyori's sentence because my foot was already planted firmly against the enemy's raised arm. Had he been a second slower that would have been his face. I flew back and he rushed forward to take advantage but I spun low to the ground and slammed my foot into his chin from below. He flipped backward with the blow, minimizing damage and landed on his feet in a stance.

I took mine as well and scanned him over for openings. His eyes roved all over as he did the same. We both stood there for a second and then I lunged forward. He tried to meet me with a knee to the head but I stopped short and let off a spinning hook, he blocked it by bringing up his other leg and landed on me with his fist raised. Before he could bring it down I shot my palm straight at his chin with a shout and blew him off me.

He stumbled upon landing, and shook his head fiercely. I frowned as I got back up, it seemed he had already taken damage to his chin and jawline most likely Naya's work. She was the type to maximize damage after all. Hiyori was still some distance behind me, watching the fight with some interest and what looked vaguely like worry. Which reminded me, there were unused resources right there.

"Hiyori," I said. "Go check on Naya for me."

She nodded once and zoomed off.

"I won't let you!" the Veridian jumped after her but I zipped in front of him and elbowed him across the face as I blazed past.

His neck twisted unnaturally and he was blown off the branch entirely falling straight down to the ground below. I caught myself in the air and just floated there, alert. I didn't follow him, unlike Naya I couldn't keep up constant exertion for long periods of time. The longest I could fight offensively without getting tired was slightly over three minutes if I paced myself right. I didn't have the energy to waste chasing this guy around.

There was a loud whizzing sound from behind and I turned in time to dodge the red Veridian's elbow, I immediately followed up with a knee to bend him over but he stopped that with his other hand and then shot his fist at my face. I leaned to the side and threw my arm around the punch making sure to clock him with my elbow. He wobbled backwards for a few feet, clearly shaken. While he was disoriented and I blasted him into the tree trunk with a side kick and then calmly lowered my foot.

That's it Rikku… don't rush… don't lose your cool…pace yourself…

I landed back on the branch as the Veridian jerked himself free of the trunk and dropped onto the same branch. He sat there for a bit, shaking his head. The damage from Naya was taking a toll it seemed… most humanoid beings with their brains in their heads had that weakness, that a good blow to the chin will shut down the brain or a hard one to the side of the jaw as well. Even a weak blow to the chin could paralyze whether one remained conscious or not and this guy had clearly taken a good number of those.

I snorted. If all went well, this fight was mine…

Frieza's Spaceship, Command centre

Zarbon knelt before Frieza, his green haired head bowed as he delivered his report. The tyrant was facing the floor to ceiling window of his ship with his back to his subordinate.

Frieza frowned. "So what you're saying, Zarbon, is that the two soldiers I sent to annihilate those filthy monkeys have been killed is that correct?"

"Indeed, Lord Frieza, the report came in a few minutes ago," Zarbon confirmed. "The sensors were utterly destroyed along with their bodies so no more information can be gathered. In addition, the Saiyans have long since lost contact with base command, as of over a month ago or so."

A month… that was about when that Vegeta had gone missing all of a sudden. Frieza was well aware of the Saiyan Prince's pride and knew he was planning to kill him even though clearly he was nowhere near powerful enough to do so. The thought brought a smirk to the space tyrant's face. The Prince was acting cute it seemed… or was there more to it? His scouter communication and monitoring system was turned off so it was unclear what had happened or what he was doing. Could he have perhaps found a way?

"Actually, Lord Frieza I have another report," Zarbon offered.

Frieza raised his head distracted from his thoughts. "Speak, Zarbon. Out with it."

"There was a lead as to the whereabouts of the Dragon Balls we previously heard of through Raditz scouter," the blue skinned man said. "We thought they were just a legend but we found out through the scouter of General Nappa they are indeed real. They are tied to the Namekians, although that part took a little bit of digging… They were calling them demons over there so it was a bit of work to figure out."

Frieza grinned. "So those things are real… how beneficial. This could be the answer to my problems . Good work Zarbon. Ignore the monkeys and give the order to move to Namek, we're going to find some Dragon Balls.

With the dragon balls no one would get in his way, not Majin Buu, not Beerus and not him. It was time to be rid of those insufferable people once and for all. As for Vegeta and his Circus Monkeys, they could die for all he cared. They were no longer worth keeping tabs on. He had to get to Namek as soon as he possibly could.

Zarbon bowed. "At once, Lord Frieza."

Frieza Outpost 244, Training Room

Seph stared at his new record and felt greatly pleased by it despite it being only an increase of .2 seconds. He knew if Rikku were here he would snort and say it wasn't good enough. The thought made him frown, that guy was never satisfied. He was such an asshole.

Why do I even talk to him anyway? He wondered.

Then he remembered, Oh yeah cause he's the only one who actually talks to me about things that matter.

Seph let the smile return. Rikku was his friend, asshole though he was, and that was a lot more than most were willing to give someone who couldn't actively use his energy, especially since this was the Frieza Force. No one entertained weakness in any form and inability to use energy was a severe one according to Rikku. Personally, Seph didn't see the point. (He could already hear Rikku asking "The point of what?)

Seph was an alien, but no one knew exactly what he was supposed to be. He was of moderate height, and a fairly muscular build most of which was in his arms and upperbody. His legs weren't as muscular but still quite fine. His face was like the Saiyans, a nose, a mouth, eye brows the works. The main difference was that his skin tone was very nearly black all through for which Rikku never gave any slack…

Seph smiled. Guy is such an asshole.

Seph's hair was black and short and didn't curl at all. It was just there on his head and he liked it that way. (AN: If you're having trouble picturing him, just imagine a human with almost black skin and short, coarse black hair.)

His eyes were a very dark brown, nearly black. The dominance of black in his features made him fancy himself a shadow at times but then Rikku would callously point out that he was too bulky to be a very good shadow and the idea would die only to rise again later to be put down again.

Seph was wearing a black body suit, white gloves and boots and the standard white armor vest. Unlike Rikku and Naya who were all about style and technique and all that fancy stuff and needed the right gear and crap, Seph was a simple guy who used his standard issue armour for everything. He simply threw himself at the enemy and prayed his skills could carry him through, something Rikku kept telling him was very retarded. Guy was probably right seeing as Seph had never actually beat him even though Rikku deliberately ignored his honestly very obvious weakness because he wanted to make things fair or some crap like that. Sometimes he didn't even use his hands and Seph was stronger than him. Well physically anyway. It was honestly quite frustrating.

And those kicks! Geez! That bastard was just way too fast. And for all their speed you'd think they'd hit you like a love tap and then they hit you and you realized too late that they hurt! Whenever Seph saw Rikku raise a leg he shied away pretty much on instinct now, especially that tornado kick the bronze skinned Saiyan liked to finish with. You could see the guy chamber the kick, but you never saw the actual kick. Yeesh.

Annoying though he was Seph was bored without him here. He'd heard he'd gone out on a mission as soon as he came back from one of his own and no one knew where exactly he went or what he was supposed to do. Direct from Frieza like all orders the Saiyan army leftovers received, so no one but Frieza and his generals would know. That meant Seph couldn't do squat about it.

He gazed at the timer next to him on the floor, staring at his record one last time before picking up the stop watch and standing up. His body ached in response after all the training he put it through, he'd been working on his core lately and honestly it was hard. Nothing had ever stressed him out like this. He could already hear the grief he would be getting from a certain Saiyan about being a wuss.

"All soldiers, report to the docking bay at once."

Seph was surprised by this. He'd never heard an announcement calling for all soldiers in years. This was the Frieza Force, large forces only ever consisted of cannon fodder. The ones who were actual soldiers were usually more than enough in teams of three to five, sometimes one in the case of the Generals Zarbon and Dodoria. He wondered what exactly was happening.

He hustled to the docking bay passing by several soldiers on his way. All were moving towards the docking bay at varying speeds, betraying the difference in diligence, power and discipline among the soldiers with those who had the most dominant of these attributes at the front. All this was completely missed by Seph who was a slouch no matter how much of each he possessed and thus was somewhere in the middle. Not that he was observant to begin with.

Once in the docking bay, Seph found himself surrounded by other mid class soldiers, all swarming into position while making room for the high class soldiers to form up ahead and of course completely ignoring the lower class soldiers who were treated pretty much like scum. As people, got into positions Seph grabbed one of the lower class soldiers getting jostled around. The purple faced alien immediately turned blue once he saw exactly whose grasp he was in which pleased Seph. (Even though it was because he was middle class and not because the soldier had actually heard of him.)

"Oi," Seph said pointedly. "Have you seen any of the Saiyans around?"

The poor soldier shook his head no and Seph let him go. The alien immediately scrambled to join his low class colleagues who had now formed up into some form of order. Seph, due to his little delay, was at the back of the middle class soldiers. High class soldiers were ahead with the elite who were ahead of them. Cannon fodder class was way at the back.

Now that everyone was orderly, Zithis the captain of Frieza Outpost 244 floated into the air above them all. He was a fearsome elite said to be easily more powerful than even Captain Ginyu of the Ginyu Force. He looked like a Saiyan in that he had a normal chin, nose mouth and body shape. He was muscular but not in an excessive way and you could sense power in his movements. He had five fingers to each hand, and by his own words five toes to each foot but that was where similarities ended. The captain was tall and his skin was a devilish red shade. Additionally, he had flaming red hair that ran down to the back of his knees in a spiky mess.

His body armor despite offers from the armourers was very simple. A black body suit, and a white vest , and white gloves. Infact the only difference between his and Seph's armour was the captain symbol on his armoured vest. Zithis was a simple captain who wanted results, if he wasn't so dangerous and well known in the force it would be easy to miss the fact that he was one of the Force's most dangerous soldiers.

Zithis simply floated in the air and stared at his soldiers. There was absolute silence, so overwhelming was his presence. Seph could literally feel a faint pressure weighing him down whenever the captain's gaze passed over him.

"I summoned you to the bay for one reason," Zithis began, his red pupils burning with some unidentifiable look, whether due to emotion or determination or plain force of presence Seph wasn't sure.

All the soldiers shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, Seph included. The guy was just so intense at times.

"Frieza wants us to move to Planet Namek immediately," Zithis continued. "Reasons were not specified, however this is the Frieza Force and we do what we're told. For this reason, we are all here."

Zithis gaze sharpened. "There will be no collecting of belongings or weapons or armours. We leave now. No interruptions, no delays, no going back to retrieve items. We move right from this docking bay."

Seph raised a hand, completely oblivious to the glares he was getting for his insolence.

Zithis nodded, easily picking out his white gloved hand. "Speak."

"What about the Saiyan Army?" Seph asked. "They're all among our most powerful soldiers here."

Zithis frowned. "That is not your concern, middle class. If you are looking for strong backs to hide behind you are in the wrong place."

Seph frowned but put his hand back down. He did not need another tongue lashing subtle though it was.

"I will take no questions. Begin boarding!" Zithis ordered.

A line of lab techs formed up next to the attack pods and began seeing to the soldiers, one by one, pod by pod starting from the elites. As they worked, Zithis floated above it all with his intense gaze unwavering. While Seph waited his turn with the rest of the middle class he stewed in silent anger at Zithis' response.

Implying he was a coward like that! Everyone knew he hung out with Rikku a lot. Everyone! Now he'd made him look like a fool in front of the entire Outpost for asking a perfectly valid question. Seph folded his arms and glared at the ground so Zithis' wouldn't catch his irritation and reprimand him-or worse. It was odd though that if all soldiers were needed immediately they didn't include the Saiyan army. Seph knew if Rikku were here he'd punch about a billion holes in his idea in about 2 seconds of considering it. The smartest thing was to just go with the plan and hope he met up with Rikku later.

The Frieza Force was a lonely place for all of their numbers and with Rikku gone, Seph had no one. He'd rather not lose a friend when he had literally no one else. Even the other members of the Saiyan army who were pretty much segregated wouldn't talk to him. Not Raditz when he was alive, not Naya, not Nappa and definitely not Vegeta. All the other soldiers did was make fun of him for his dark skin, short coarse hair, inability to actively use ki and overall weird demeanour. The Saiyans didn't do any of those- well, except for Rikku but that was different; he was an asshole- but that was mostly cause they wouldn't even give him the time of day. To them he existed, like air, but was not paid much attention to also like air. He happened and life went on.

Reflecting on all this, Seph nearly didn't realize someone was flagging him down. It was one of the lab techs, next to an attack pod. It was at this point that Seph realized that most of the army had been sent off and it was his turn. Looking up he saw Zithis' impatient stare on him and hurried forward. The tech tapped the pod and had it open up, then had him take off his glove on his favoured hand which was his left. She used some kind of transparent palm sized wipe on him and placed it against the pod and then let him put his glove back on.

She gestured for him to sit in it, saying the coordinates were already set in a voice that sounded canned. It was at this point that Seph realized this alien looked a lot like the Saiyans. In fact, if her skin wasn't so oddly coloured in swirly multi couloured patterns he'd take her for a Saiyan. As it was he was tempted to scout her but decided against it, letting the hand he was going to raise to his blue scouter hang limply at his side. She was really pretty too and her glasses just made her look cute.

Seph sat admiring the view as she bustled about the pod, setting preparations and all sorts of stuff lab techs did that he never paid attention to. She eventually finished and came around to close the door so he could start the ignition sequence.

"When you get to Veridia find Rikku."

Seph blinked. "What?"

Did she just speak? He wasn't sure. And already she was bustling around, there was no way she said something. The door was closed, the tech stood back and tapped the pod indicating it was ready to go. Seph stared unsure whether she had spoken or he had heard something else and mistook it for words. Through the pod window he noticed Zithis' glare and decided just to punch it.

He hit the ignition button and the pod shot from its dock out into the deep black of space.

Kin

He came to a stop, chest heaving from the exertion he'd maintained for so long. Behind him, his enemies lay strewn haphazardly about the forest floor. His blue gi was torn in places but that was about the only sign Kin had been in a fight at all. The silver haired Saiyan took a last breath and stood up straight. He had places to be right now. As he had been fighting the locals he'd noticed two explosions, one further north where he'd seen a massive waterfall as he had flown toward the ship with RIkku, and the other down near the place where he'd landed the ship. He now realized that perhaps, Rikku's decision was justified and no retribution was in order. Both explosions were massive and had Kin worried as to what was going on.

"I've finally got one of you rats alone."

Kin tensed and sank into his fighting stance one palm raised face down, and his other fist next to his chest. His legs were spread slightly wider than shoulder width and he made sure to keep his eye on his opponent.

And then he saw who exactly his opponent was…

The cloaked figure let out an amused snort. "That's cute really. You're full of holes boy."

Kin staggered back eyes wide. "No…"

"It seems you remember running into me," the cloaked one said nonchalantly. Kin couldn't see its face but he got the distinct impression it was mildly amused but also displeased.

"You and your sister… you both are in my way," it said. "I would ask you to leave this planet but you would take the Saiyan army members with you. That I cannot allow."

Kin gulped, his senses still trying to capture the magnitude of the figure's power. They were failing… miserably.

"You understand don't you?" it continued. "You're going to die here."

Despite his fear, Kin took his stance once again. His knees shook violently, his hands wouldn't stay in place and breathing was difficult. His form was at its absolute worst and he could barely see the enemy ahead of him but he stood- and he knew that was all he would be able to do.

Naya

Vision blurry, body aching in pain Naya still rolled away just as Shadahs fist came crashing down where her head used to be. Without sight or even a sense of direction Naya simply let her body do the talking and whirled her legs, as she swirled into a beautifully smooth windmill and knocked Shadah away in two strikes. She followed through and rose to her feet, panting not even daring to open her eyes lest they betray her.

Shadah roared in anger and charged forward undeterred and Naya tensed when she heard a loud bang, followed by a machine gun fire series of thuds and one final heavy boom.

"Naya? Are you alright?"

That voice…

"Hiyori…?"

"Rikku sent me," the voice of the younger Saiyan explained.

Naya gave a pained smile. "Rikku… I see…"

She opened her eyes to see Hiyori covered in bruises and dirt but otherwise fine. She was in a different stance this time with her arms raised and her palms facing inward. Her black eyes looked especially dark now as she gazed into a mess of fallen bark and branches some distance away where Shadah presumably lay.

Naya's left arm hung uselessly by her side almost completely numb except when she tried to move it. Then it became excruciatingly painful. But her mind kept returning to Shadah and Sanza's plan.

"Hiyori… can you buy me some time to think?"

Hiyori nodded. "I can't keep him off you but I can probably annoy him into focusing on me for a short while. Especially as I am now…"

Naya understood. Hiyori was also wounded after all and was still recovering. "A few seconds is all I need Hiyori, I just need to get my thoughts together."

Shadah burst out of the debris with a roar and Hiyori immediately rushed forward to meet him. Shadah swung at her and she ducked whirling around the blow with two strikes with the tips of her fingers, then six more in the following instant and as Shadah whirled around yelling, "Light blows like that will never hurt me!" Hiyori spun around his retaliatory knee and slammed the back of her wrist into his ribs with all her speed, momentum and power. Shadah howled in pain from the heavy blow and stumbled, and Hiyori immediately capitalized by jumping onto his chest and slamming a palm thrust into his forehead. Shadah fell with a grunt and she jumped off him before he could try anything.

Seeing this Naya was satisfied Hiyori could distract him, though she knew she would never win with that kind of strength and it was only a matter of time. And so she relaxed, let her mind roam and those instincts she relied on so much take a back seat. And as she thought about what Sanza had said to Shadah she realized she couldn't make any sense of it. Was it a transformation? Was it something else? Some kind of grand plan? She didn't know!

Shadah roared some more as he chased after Hiyori in the treetops trying to crush her and voicing his frustration. Trees shook, the ground quaked, pieces of branches and bark fell. Naya knew she was running out of time. She was half tempted to be angry at how Rikku could assess these types of situations so easily but knew that would be a waste of time, and she tried and tried and tried but no possible thoughts came to mind. Not to mention she was distracted by all the noise. There was a loud cry and Hiyori suddenly came flying into view and crashed into the ground in front of Naya hard enough to cave it in. Hiyori curled as she screamed silently her wounds clearly making their voices heard at the extra damage taken.

Damn it. She'd come up with nothing and there was no way Hiyori could continue.

And up ahead Naya saw Shadah rushing at them and leaping up, clearly ready to finish things… and that was when she remembered…

And at the memory she smirked… I can't believe I forgot that the answer was so simple…

She crashed into the ground for the tenth time in a row that day, covered in dirt and bruises.

"Get up and try again."

Naya sat up rubbing her jaw with a pained look. "It's no good I can't do it. I can't think as fast as you."

The seven year old boy opposite her with the coarse, curly hair and the bronze skin glared at her, his wild look becoming even more threatening.

"You can and you will. Do not question me."

"But I-"

"Quiet!"

And Naya went silent. The boy stood for several minutes his cold gaze resting on her as if he intended to freeze her. But eventually he sighed, his expression not necessarily softening but no longer as cold as before.

"Fine then. Until you can do so, rely on me."

Naya blinked. "Huh?"

His look hardened. "I hate repeating myself girl."

"But that doesn't solve the problem-"

"Unless you work on it until you no longer need me."

Naya stared in surprise, having never expected him to say something like that. He was being…nice…

He frowned. "Close your mouth. It's disgusting."

Naya grinned now. I'm sorry Rikku. Looks like… I still have to leave it all to you.

And as Shadah drew closer, her right fist clenched and tightened and she took her stance one handed, firm and strong once more.

Shadah reared back a fist and threw it forward with all his might.

And as it came Naya's grin widened. When will I ever learn…

Rikku

The red Veridian's blows were practically drifting by this point. I knocked aside two punches and leaped up, spinning in midair and driving a powerful back kick into his ribs before he could launch a third. There was an audible crack and the red furred Veridian was thrown back as blood spurted from his mouth. I landed lightly on my toes just as he slammed into the trunk of the tree we were fighting on. I gazed down the length of the massive branch we'd been fighting on at him and let out a breath, that was only slightly a wheeze. Even injured he'd managed to make me work a bit, but it was clear who the victor was.

"This fight is pointless now…" I said, rubbing at the few bruises he's been able to give me. His attacks were strong even tired as he was.

He lay there halfway in the tree trunk, smoking slightly. He struggled to raise his head and look at me but eventually he managed it, and even though his eyes were half lidded with fatigue they still shone with focus. I frowned at that: he hadn't given up it seemed.

He grinned. "You don't want to find out how I beat your partner?"

"You made her think something that may or may not be true and didn't give her time to determine the truth," I said pointedly. "This served to occupy her thoughts and distract her. Naturally, it had to be something that really bothered her, something you would only know by spying or through confrontation."

He frowned as I said this.

"Best conclusion is that Green overheard her yelling at me for taking so much damage, so you concluded that she dislikes me getting excessively hurt," I continued. "Additionally, you found a way to plant the idea of a possibility that I will sustain such damage again."

I glared at him. "In other words, you messed with her head. There is no real threat other than you and possibly your second form."

"You figured all that out while fighting me…" he said. "You really are no slouch. Were you even really paying attention to our battle?"

I turned away, preparing to fly and go meet Naya. "You're not worth my time," I said simply.

I darted to the side as a bolt of red energy roared past me and turned just as it blew a large chunk out of a tree behind me. Ashes floated on the wind as I glared at the now risen Veridian, his hand outstretched.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," he said. "As Sanza, the Chief of the Veridian's, I cannot and will not let you go."

His eyes took on a hard glint and they narrowed. This time it seemed… he meant it… He truly meant to kill me. No more tricks. No more mind games. No more trying to be a smartass… He was going to put his all into this fight- and kill me.

I smiled at this thought and said, "You don't want to fight me like that Sanza. Really, you don't."

I let my gaze harden reflecting that same cold glint. "Because you'll die trying."


Ok so R&R people. Let me know about any thoughts you may have and how you like it so far and where you think it may go. I'm curious lol. Also it's motivating. Also, it's kind of sad how Kin and Hiyori keep getting into trouble tho. An unfortunate side effect of being in a place they shouldn't have been. So... later people.

P.S. Oops, nearly forgot the power levels.

Rikku:4500

Sanza:3000

Naya(injured):3000

Shadah(2nd): 10000

Kin(After receiving spare energy):2750

Unknown:?

Hiyori(injured):1500