Author's Note

Kakarot was sent to Earth as an infant, but when he returned from his mission, it seemed as if the planet had been blown apart completely. Believing him to be an unstable specimen, Kakarot is sent to a laboratory to be studied, but appears to be nothing more than ordinary - and a bit insane. He seems destined for a life as a lab rat until a certain Prince takes interest in his single-minded obedience...

The Idea: I'm basically rewriting the entire series. I love DBZ. And my writing style is very different from it. So I'm not trying to stick to certain plotlines, or trying to recapture the best moments of DBZ surrounded by my own pathetic attempts to fix plot holes. What I'm doing, and what you should expect, is that this is a completely different universe, running on different rules. My style, my muse, is continuity and believability - hopefully that is what delights you when you read my humble tribute to this series.

Trial Run

Page 1

The Prince arranged for a mission fairly quickly; Planet Arlia wouldn't produce as much of a profit, but it was at a level that he was comfortable with handling on his own in case Kakarot lost his nerve.

As they prepared to leave, he looked over at Kakarot, who was fidgeting with his gear. The Prince paused. He could just send Kakarot back now. If the thought of killing already sickened him, the situation wasn't likely to get much better when the killing actually started. There were plenty of other elite warriors out there who would kill just for the chance to be the second of the Prince.

But Kakarot had the ability to sense energy, as well as suppress his own. And his personality, so completely empty of ambition or implied meanings, had grown rather refreshing to the Prince. Vegeta was starting to get involved in the political intrigue in his father's court, not to mention the power plays that happened between the different warlords of their region of the galaxy. Even at a young age, he had found that he needed to stay on guard at all times, and it was exhausting. Kakarot alone didn't play that game; the insane saiyan had no concept of double meanings and inferences and the power of rhetoric.

And in all honesty, Vegeta didn't want to give that up.

"Kakarot,"

The young saiyan looked up, his expression still unhappy. "Yes, Prince?"

"Let me put it to you this way." Vegeta said as he adjusted his glove. "That planet is on the request list. Someone will eventually come and wipe them all out whatever we do. What you can do is make it quick and painless. Kill them, but do it quickly so they don't have a chance to feel pain or fear or hopelessness. As bad as it is, there are people out there who enjoy toying with their victims. Some will take weeks just so that the few survivors will be crushed long before they actually die."

That didn't really change Kakarot's expression. "Do… do you?" He asked.

Vegeta hesitated, then turned away, rolling his shoulder. "I've learned to get entertainment where I can." He said tersely. It might be a dirty trick, using rhetoric against Kakarot's innocent mind, but if it kept him around, it was better than admitting he loved playing with his food. He glanced back, but didn't quite look at Kakarot, as if this next bit was hard to admit. "I could be persuaded otherwise."

The young saiyan hesitated, and for a moment Vegeta wondered if he would figure it out. But then Kakarot nodded. "Okay."


The section they landed on was remarkably barren, with naught but wasteland stretching in all directions. Kakarot emerged from his capsule and stretched his legs, yawning. The journey had taken three weeks; the longest he'd ever been asleep.

"Prince?" He called, sensing around, then turned to see that Vegeta's capsule had landed a short ways away. He flew over as it opened. "Hey, Prince!" He grinned. "Good morning!"

Vegeta snorted and clambered out of the capsule. "'Good morning'?" He echoed darkly, patting himself down and stretching himself out. "Let's see…" He looked around.

"Vegeta, do we really have to do this? Er, sorry, Prince?" Kakarot asked, losing some of his chipper attitude as he remembered why they were there.

"I've told you already, if we don't, others will. The idea is to make sure they don't suffer." He took off his scouter. "I'd like to practice a little before we get started, though."

"Practice what? Oh, sensing energy?" Kakarot asked.

"Yes. Fly around, try not to make any noise. I'll close my eyes and see if I can figure out where you are." Vegeta set the scanner down and stepped away from it so he wouldn't step on it accidentally.

Kakarot lifted into the air. "Just fly around?"

"Yes. Silently." He closed his eyes and concentrated. Kakarot said it was like an intuition, a gut instinct, guided by controlling his energy. It was something that the young saiyan did without even thinking, but if Vegeta ever wanted to be that good, he had to practice.

"Try letting your tail move around," Kakarot's voice said from somewhere behind him. "I always see better if I do."

"Shut up, Kakarot." Vegeta grumbled, having been about to raise his hand… in the wrong direction. After a moment of concentration, he decided to test Kakarot's theory. His tail flicked loose from around his waist, and he let it slide back and forth through the air.

He pointed.

"Oh, close, good," Kakarot cheered. "Okay, maybe I should move a little more slowly."

Vegeta bit back a retort and went back to focusing. It was a lot easier out here, actually, with no power levels nearby to confuse him. That wasn't exactly the kind of proficiency he wanted to have, but at least it was a start. He pointed again.

"Better! Almost got me!"

He pointed.

"Wow! You were fast that time!"

Vegeta opened his eyes. Kakarot was floating upside down right in front of him. "That one I figured out because you disturbed the air." He replied, bending to pick up his scouter. "That's enough for now."

Kakarot flipped around and landed. "Good, because there are a couple of powers coming up from over there. Four, actually; two sets that are really close to each other." He flicked his tail and started stretching, limbering up. "I guess we start with them, huh?"

Vegeta glanced over at him. "You okay with this then, Kakarot?" He asked as he wrapped his tail back around his waist.

"Not really, but I was thinking about what you said. And I guess if I'm strong enough, I can do it quick." Kakarot straightened and turned.