Trunks waited with bated breath for Cole to respond to his insult with violence. He was already regretting the headlines of him brawling on the street with a woman that he knew were sure to make the paper the next day. He knew it would go something like 'Trunks, Hero or Horror?' and it would have a blown up picture of the most incriminating image of him raising a hand to Cole if he tried to stop her at all. He was almost too busy cursing his big mouth to be surprised when she smirked at him and held something forward.
"Quite a mouth you've got." she cooed in a way that Trunks would almost consider... flirting. "Why don't you put it to better use..."
Trunks almost gawked open mouthed at the innuendo she was implying until he realized she wasn't implying anything but gesturing to the item in her outstretched hand, which he quickly identified as a sandwich. She wasn't being sexual. She was being a smartass, and he very suddenly and deeply felt like a pervert. But there was just something about the way she said it that made him think otherwise. Quirking a brow at her, he found himself wondering if she did it on purpose, just to throw him off. Deciding that if that was the case, then he wouldn't give her the satisfaction.
"Where'd you get that?" He asked, noticing the half eaten apple in her other hand.
Cole disregarded his strange, questioning gaze as she tossed the sandwich at his chest, knowing he'd catch it. He did. She began to walk as she answered him, knowing he'd follow her. He did. "The woman whose baby I saved earlier. Her name is Claire. She made us lunch after Armas and I helped her carry her groceries home. She said it was the least she could do to repay us." Cole said as she continued to walk. "I figured you'd be hungry, so I saved that for you." She said, referring to the sandwich. "Claire said it was a... PB and J. I don't know what that means, but I figured you would."
The more Trunks listened to her talk, the more he felt like an ass. First he'd been angry at her for going off and leaving him thinking she'd done it just to spite him when she'd actually been helping someone. And when he'd been looking for her, still thinking ill of her, she'd been concerned about his well being. When he found her the first thing he did was insult her with the nastiest name he knew. She didn't even get mad at him. In fact, she offered him half of her own lunch. He found himself wishing she'd turn around and sock him right in the face, but she didn't seem phased in the slightest by his poor behavior towards her. By Kami, guilt sucked. And then Cole put the final nail in the coffin.
"By the way, I feel I should apologize for leaving you the way I did. You just looked busy, and I had the feeling that whatever you were doing was none of my business. I didn't want to interrupt anything important."
And just when Trunks couldn't feel like any more of an ass and found he felt like beating himself, he couldn't help but think back to the memory of the moment she was talking about, and something stood out more than anything else. Just before she left, that sneer she gave him... Something didn't add up. And as he stared into her back, trying to question what she was really about, he couldn't see the smirk on her face that said it all. Maybe a little guilt would do well to teach him not to call people nasty names. She would kill him with kindness, and maybe if she was lucky, she'd even make him cry. The thought of the lavender haired boy shedding tears of guilt seemed suddenly amusing and strangely, a bit erotic. This was certainly going to be an interesting evening for her. Poor Trunks.
They'd walked about the city for some time after that. Trunks had forgotten about the sneer and its possible subtle meaning some time ago and had since been explaining Earth to Cole, now walking beside her and talking companionably rather than walking aloof behind her. Though she didn't say much in response, the mood between them seemed pleasant enough. Armas had slowly come out of his shell and began to thoroughly enjoy the Earth experience. Trunks had bought him his first ice cream cone, and Armas had discovered his first ice cream headache. He'd offered to buy Cole an ice cream as well, but she'd just scoffed and said he was enough headache for her already. She hadn't said it as an insult, but just playful banter, and Trunks found himself chuckling. He'd then taken Armas to an amusement park and bought him all sorts of junk food; fried dough, hotdogs, cotton candy, candy apples, pizza. Anything Armas so much as looked at, Trunks got for him, and though Trunks offered numerous times, Cole always refused everything. He felt sort of bad when he left Cole to board the roller coaster with Armas, but that had been her decision. As the coaster began to roll off, he found himself wondering, not for the first time, what she was thinking just beneath the unreadable expression she'd worn all day.
As Trunks and Armas slowly pulled away on some sort of amusement ride she mulled over her thoughts about Trunks. He'd been treating Armas as if he was his own all day and it both pleased and disturbed her. Kindness wasn't something she was used to, especially in abundance, and though she was especially glad that such benevolence was being directed towards Armas she was bothered by its excess. She's never known anyone to show such willing and easy kindness, and it made her suspicious. She also fell somewhere deep down that should Trunks continue to show Armas such kindness, then perhaps... just maybe if Armas was for some reason made to choose between the two, he wouldn't choose her. Though it was true she always looked after Armas, she could never give him a great many things. Sure, she was self sufficient, but just barely. It especially became evident to her throughout the latest passing months that she could care less and less for Armas' growing needs. As her increasingly emaciated state proved, she'd even begun to skip and skimp on meals in order to feed Armas' increasing hunger. More than once she considered the possibility that perhaps she should send him to planet Vegeta. She hated to resort to that, though. Since she'd been cast from planet Vegeta, Armas had been her only companion. She also didn't want to think about Armas' reaction should she ask him to leave her. She had no intention of causing Armas any further emotional damage than he'd already suffered.
Cole's eyes shifted swiftly as she heard Armas scream. Blue eyes so deep they seemed black darted along to watch as Trunks and Armas flew past on the ride, arms in the air and smiles on their faces as they screamed like girls. A rare smile crossed her features as she thought how ridiculous they were both being, most likely on purpose, since they'd both experiencedunbridled flight. It was that point that she began to toss around another idea in her head, something other than sending Armas to planet Vegeta. Perhaps, if everything and everyone on Earth turned out to be as they appeared, she would see if Armas would like to stay. If everyone continued to treat him with such kindness, she wouldn't think twice about asking Vegeta to look over him. She honestly couldn't see any other option. Schooling her features as the coaster came around one, last time, she greeted the boys with her typical expression.
Bounding out from the ride the instant the ride operator could open the safety restraint, Armas tromped down to Cole with a Cheshire cat grin. "That was great!" He exclaimed, pouncing around Cole's mid-section to knock her a few steps back.
She offered a faint smile in response as she ran her hand over his short, spiky hair. "I know. You made it look too fun to be legal. Though, I can't tell who screamed more like a little girl; you or Trunks." Cole commented, casting her eyes in a meaningful glance at Trunks as he approached, daring him to disagree.
Trunks just smiled and offered her a charming grin, all the while trying to look as put off as possible with a smile on his face. "Hey, my mother says it's a very manly scream." He joked, the comely smile never faltering.
For a moment, Trunks thought Cole might roll her eyes, but she never did. Her expression remained as unreadable as always. He was beginning to wonder if she hadn't suffered some abnormal seizure that paralyzed just her face. An amused chuckle bubbled in his throat at the though of playing a prank on her, just to see if he could get a reaction other than the indifferent stare she was giving him at that moment. Then her brow quirked and he realized she'd heard him chuckle. He felt foolish as he realized she probably thought he was insane for laughing at nothing in particular. Her brow lowered back into its normal place as she gave him a straight stare.
"You're your father's son, alright." She spoke, turning to walk down the path and leave him to follow or not.
Trunks merely stood baffled. He'd expected her to ask what he was laughing about, but he hadn't expected to be compared to his father. He didn't even know how he was being compared, but he had a feeling that it most likely wasn't a compliment. Feeling curious and a bit miffed, he ambled to catch up to her.
"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked from just behind her, his tone a bit stiff.
Cole stopped for a moment and allowed him to catch up, giving him an expression he could only identify as smug. "If you have to ask me how you're like your father, then I can't tell you."
She continued to give him that smug little gaze, chin tilted up and eyes slightly lidded in an abundance of confident calm. Trunks was meanwhile looking down on her with a stiff lip and slightly narrowed eyes, irritated that she was playing with him. She was trying to throw him off kilter somehow, just like she'd been doing since the day she arrived, and he was steadily losing his patience with her. He no longer felt bad about earlier. Something about her actions and words didn't mesh, and he wouldn't feel guilty about something he wasn't entirely sure of. One thing he was increasingly sure of, however, was that Cole was purposely screwing around with his head, and he didn't like it one bit. Stepping closer towards her in a silent challenge that he would not be screwed with, they were toe to toe as he glared down at her and she just gazed back at him unfazed, as though completely oblivious to his increasingly sour mood. A low tension began to rise between them the longer their silent battle continued. Thankfully, Armas would see to it that it wouldn't get too far.
"Hey guys!" He shouted, running up to them and tugging on both their arms in excitement, trying to pull them towards the direction he'd just come from. When Cole and Trunks had started their little spat, Armas had wandered off to satisfy his curiosity about a large building off in the distance. "Let's go over there to that building. The guy standing outside said it's a haunted house with monsters and ghosts and stuff. I want to go see it!" He exclaimed, tugging them both they way he wanted them.
Both Cole and Trunks allowed themselves to be dragged off by the exuberant boy and to forget their silent debate for the moment. As they headed towards the dark building Armas had pointed out, Cole couldn't help but notice the occasional looks Trunks cast her way. She almost wanted to laugh. She knew he was beginning to grow tired of her game, but she really couldn't help herself. He was so young but so prideful. That was one of the ways he reminded her of Vegeta. He was one of those people who'd always been at the top of his game. That was just one more reasons it was irresistible to knock him down. No one that young who experienced so little life deserved to be so self confident. Not to mention the idea of stripping away his pride brought her some sick sense of gratification. She was a Saiyan, and therefore a sadist through and through. She wasn't sure if it was because he was a half breed that he was so... non-confrontational. By now, a full Saiyan would have already tried to blow her head from her shoulders. She could tell he was holding back, but she planned to change that. She wanted to see how marvelous he was when the full force of his Saiyan blood came forth.
As they all stopped in front of the amusement park's haunted house, Trunks couldn't help but notice how deeply Cole had withdrawn into herself after their strange encounter. She hadn't said a word or looked at much of anything. As it was, she was staring off into nothingness as Armas was trying to convince them both to come with him. His nagging conscience made him wonder if he'd done something to upset her, and he cursed internally. His mother and even his father had raised him to believe that women were to be respected and treated with care since they were more sensitive than men. Sure, his father spent half his day irking Bulma and purposefully getting under her skin, but he knew the second Bulma needed him, he would be there for her. Behind closed doors, Vegeta was one of the most loving husbands a woman could ask for. Whenever Bulma was sick Vegeta was there with a cold cloth for her fever and an extra blanket to tuck around her when she got the chills. Whenever Bulma was upset about something she was working on, Vegeta would either tell her to forget it or quit whining and work it out. As harsh as that might sound, it was what Bulma needed. He knew she had the intelligence to work out almost any problem, and he refused to let her give up on something just because she hit a few dead ends. And whenever Bulma was upset with someone for something that was done or said, Vegeta was already half way out the door, ready to pummel them for upsetting his wife.
"Come on, Cole! Please come in with me." Armas continued to beg. Trunks noticed she'd focused her attention on the boy, now, but refused to answer him. Trying a different approach, Armas changed his tone of voice from pleading to something closer to worry. "The man said there were monsters inside. It would be dangerous, and I don't want to-"
"I'll go." Cole stated cooly. Sharp eyes focusing on the seemingly ramshackle building before shifting to look at Trunks. Armas turned his attention to Trunks as well and was about to beg him when Trunks spoke.
"Ok, then. Let's all go."
Armas let out an excited yip and darted up the metal stairs to wait next to the man who stood by the door. Walking up side by side, Trunks and Cole reached him at about the same time. As Cole went to stand beside Armas, Trunks fished into his pocket and pulled out several tickets. The man took them and opened the door, ushering them inside before closing it behind them. They were left in the dark with the smell of wet metal and musty cloth. Sharp Saiyan eyes dilated to take in any possible light, but there was none. For a long moment there was just the sound of bodies shifting in the dark. Reaching out, Trunks touched on Cole's upper back, giving her a light push. "Move forward."
Cole obeyed until she bumped into Armas. "Ow." Armas complained as Cole's foot kicked the back of his heel.
"Sorry." Cole apologized, which kind of surprised Trunks. For some reason, he hadn't thought her capable of apologizing. Perhaps it was because even when she'd torn Piccolo limb from limb, she refused to show any remorse. "Feel around for a door." He heard her say, he assumed to both he and Armas. He could hear them both begin to shift about in the dark as he also searched for a door that would lead them out of the darkness. Fumbling as he kicked something fairly solid, he crouched down to find out what it was. Touching his hand against it, he pulled back in disgust as something cold and slimy with an uneven texture coated his hands.
"Uh, gross..." He commented, shaking off his hands.
"What is it?" Cole asked. He heard her shift swiftly in the dark and an instant later she was by his side. Before he could answer, a dim glow illuminated the darkness. Cole let off a low glow as she used her ki to see just what Trunks was talking about. All eyes focused on the dead body laying near the wall, eviscerated with entrails hanging out. The light Cole produced flared brightly as Armas let out a scream. Taking a cautious step toward him, she began looking around the room swiftly for any sign of danger sharp, feral eyes ready for anything. Trunks almost laughed at the look on her face. He realized already that the dead body was nothing but a dummy, and that its entrails were nothing more than strips of plastic tubing and cherry jell-o. She'd been so alarmed, instantly looking around for whatever had killed the 'man' that she hadn't had the time to notice it was fake.
Cole regarded the three doors in the room , all now easy to see in the warm light of her ki. One was scratched as if some large, deranged animal had been trying to get through it. The other seemed to be chained shut, and the last one by the dead body was covered in blood. She could feel Armas was frightened from the tight grip he had around her wrist. That's when something struck her as odd. Something about the dead man's innards didn't seem right. She'd seen enough disemboweled bodies in her life to know what carnage looked like. Shaking off Armas's hand and stepping forward to kneel next to the body, the brow above one of her scrutinizing eyes quirked. Perhaps it was the noise or the way she did it, or the fact that she stuck her hand into the 'dead body' without much apparent forethought, but it made Trunks cringe. He suddenly found himself recalling Piccolo's mangled body and felt a faint cold chill shoot down his spine. Bringing the guts from the dead body close to her face as she fingered through them, Cole announced what she'd realized the instant she got a good look at the corpse.
"Fake." She marked with something akin to disgust as she whipped her hand to the side, flinging the fake guts against the wall with a sickening splat.
Perking remarkably, Armas trotted over to stare down at the dead dummy. "You mean he's not really dead?" He asked, still somewhat skiddish around it.
"Yeah." Cole said, standing and opening the door near the dummy corpse. Instantly, smoke curled about as lights flashed and a mad man wearing a mask and brandishing a knife burst forward. Again, Armas cried out in alarm, but Cole was not impressed. "This whole place is fake." She commented as the smoke cleared and the madman was pulled back into the room he'd come from. It was nothing more than a dummy robot on a track. Trunks couldn't help but notice she seemed irritated.
"Would you rather it be real dead bodies and maniacs?" Trunks asked, quirking a brow at her in the warm glow of Cole's ki.
Cole shook her head. "No, but the only reason I came was because I was under the false impression that they might be."
Trunks just sighed and rolled his eyes. "Look, this is just an amusement ride. Either enjoy it or get off. You're ruining it for the rest of us."
Cole glared at him for only a minute before an unexpected smirk crossed her face. "As you wish." She spoke. With that, the light from her ki disappeared, and they were again left in darkness. The room was quiet and still for less than half of a minute until Armas spoke up.
"Hey Cole...Cole?" He called when he received no response. "Cole." He tried again.
The room illuminated once more, though this time by Trunks' ki. The place where she'd been standing only a short few seconds before now stood empty. Turning around to get a panoramic view of the room, he found her leaning against the wall by the doors, arms cross with a look on her face that was only identifiable as indifferent boredom.
"I'm waiting." She commented, fixing Trunks with a level glare.
Rolling his eyes, he thought of how much Cole reminded him of his father at that moment.
ʚ❈ɞ
Returning back to Capsule Corp from the trio's excursion to Satan City, the walk was full of idol banter about the day's events. Most of the conversation came from a very excited Armas, having had more fun in that day than he had in a very long time... longer that a boy should go without play or laughter. Trunks responded to Armas's choice in conversation while Cole was entirely silent. She was wrapped up in her thoughts as she watched Armas trot backwards while flailing his arms in order to narrate the experience of his first roller coaster ride. Watching him express himself without reservations was something she's never see him do unless alone with her. Perhaps something about this planet or the people on it could bring out the best of him. Looking to Trunks, she couldn't help remark at how quickly he'd gotten Armas to open up. Perhaps it was because while she'd been incapacitated, he'd taken up the role of mentor and friend, the role in which she'd been the only one to fill in the boy's life. Cole couldn't help but come to the conclusion that perhaps her earlier conceived idea to leave Armas on this planet in Vegeta's charge wasn't a bad idea at all. Until this point, Cole had acted as a sister, mother, and a friend. Perhaps at this stage, when Armas was heading into manhood, what he needed most was a positive male role model. To this point, Trunks had proven himself almost entirely ideal for the task.
"What are you staring at?" Asked a familiar tenor.
Blinking her eyes as she pulled out of her reverie, Cole realized that since she'd looked at Trunks she hadn't stopped. She'd been staring at him the whole time without realizing it and he'd noticed. Without the slightest hint of chagrin, she responded with a smirk. "You, apparently. Try not to be so embarrassed, though. It's very unbecoming."
A thick lavender brow rose over blue eyes. "I'm not embarrassed."
Cole's smirk just broadened. "Your blush says otherwise."
Trunks opened his mouth slightly to speak before closing it again. Opening his mouth a second time, he responded. "I'm not blushing." He insisted, but just as the words came out, a slight color rose to his face.
Cole looked like the cat that ate the canary at that point. "Then you are lying, and poorly if I might say so."
Truth was that Trunks' cheeks were stained with a rosy tint, but not from embarrassment, but from rising irritation. This time it was way too obvious she was pushing and irking him to ignore, and it seemed the culmination of all his irritation with her was coming to a boiling point. Brows creasing he turned on her, barring her path as he spoke exactly what he'd been thinking all along.
"What's your problem, anyway? You've been throwing snide and subliminal remarks at me since the day you showed up. You've barely been nice to me at all, and the few times you were, were just to put me at ease so you could insult me again. You've been toying with me, and I don't like it. I don't deserve it. I've been nothing but nice to you and Armas, and I think I would deserve the same kind of respect in return. That's all I ask."
Though Cole had been somewhat surprised with his reaction since this time she was just joking around a bit, she was not thrown off by it. Few things could surprise her anymore. Crossing her arms laxly over her chest, she watched with a disinterested gaze as Trunks glared down at her. "Well it's about time. I was beginning to think you didn't notice."
"What? You think I couldn't tell you were trying to play games with my head? Even the retarded know when someone is making fun of them. You obviously don't know me that well to think so little of me."
"You have yet to prove that I should think otherwise. For example, if you know so certainly that I'm abusing you in some way, then stop whining about it and do something to stop it. Honestly, your tears do nothing for me."
"Guys, please don't fight." Armas pleaded quietly, afraid to interrupt should they turn their anger on him. His quiet pleas went unheard and unheeded.
"I'm not going to fight with you. I was raised to respect women, and I have more self control than that. Unlike you, I have social grace. Honestly, I pity you." He commented scathingly.
Cole smirked at him in amusement. "And why would you pity me?"
"Because you wander around with no friends, no family, and only a kid for company. Soon you won't even have that, because he'll grow up and leave you. When you're alone in the depths of space with no one to love you, that's when you'll no longer have my pity, because you brought it on yourself." He knew the words were harsh, and that he'd probably regret saying them some point down the line, but at the moment Trunks really didn't give a damn. He was glad he finally returned fire on her. Of course, he wasn't sure whether he should be proud or ashamed as he watched Cole's smug smirk be replaced by a sad smile. Her gaze was distant as she looked upon his face.
"You know, I believe that keen observance and common sense are the greatest aspects of intelligence a person can possess, followed closely by experience. You are intelligent, I'll give you that, but don't pity me. Pity is only for those who deserve or need it, and I am neither deserving or in need. This life of mine may be pathetic to you, but it is all that I have. I've let be what will be, and have no regrets. If you are sad for me, then you're only wasting your time. If anyone deserves pity, it is you." She spoke, offering no expression as she turned and held her hand out for Armas.
Trunks scoffed. "And why would you pity me? I'm perfectly happy with my life."
Cole looked back as Armas skittishly slipped his hand into hers, a condescending look planted firmly on her features. "Because you're a bird in a gilded cage singing beautiful songs with no real meaning. Because you're so young and so prideful with no scars to show for it. And because my eyes have seen too much to remain blind to the fact that yours have seen too little." She said, floating up into the air as Armas followed suit, looking with uncertainty between Cole and Trunks. "When your eyes can see beyond yourself, that's when I will stop pitying and begin to respect you."
Taking to the air and darting forward, Trunks brought himself face to face with Cole, an angry spark flickering in his eyes. "Are you calling me self absorbed?" He ground out, highly insulted that she would suggest that when it was the very farthest from the truth anyone could get. He was also annoyed with her sudden urge to get philosophical on him by playing around riddles instead of just coming out and saying what she thought of him. He could take someone thinking lowly of him. Not everyone had to like him, and he really didn't give a damn either way. What he hated was the damn games she played.
"Why would you ask me that unless you thought it was true? If you think I see you as self absorbed, then perhaps you should stop portraying that image." She commented dryly.
By this point, his blood was boiling. Now she was suggesting he thought of himself as selfish and vain, but also that he presented himself that way consciously. Grinding his teeth he steeled himself against the urge to reach out and strangle her. It wasn't just what she said but the way she said it and how she presented herself when she spoke. Everything about her irked him, made his blood boil, and percolate a strong desire to fight within his veins. She looked no older than he, yet she saw fit to speak down to him and treat him like a child. In a lot of ways, she was like Vegeta, except that he loved his father. His father could be a pompous ass, but he was still his father and had proven time and time again that he deserved the respect he commanded. However, Cole had never proven anything to him except the fact that she liked to hurt people like the incident with Piccolo and to manipulate and toy with people like she did to him. She was a cold, nasty bitch and he'd give her no respect from that moment on. Fixing her with a look of utter disgust, he spoke in shuttering anger.
"You're lucky I was raised better than you, otherwise I would have already split your lip."
Cole snorted with a curt laugh that made Trunks' boiling blood peak. "That's lovely. Perhaps one day you'll crawl out from your mommy's skirt, become a man, and learn to think for yourself."
The whole time Trunks' blood had been boiling, his ki had been rising, and at the moment he snapped, his golden ki flared around him. Before anyone could really register what was happening, it was done. Trunks stared at his throbbing knuckles before fixing his eyes on Cole. Her head was snapped back and to the side at a painful looking angle, her body stiff and motionless in the air. Cold words were spoken darkly from lips unseen to him.
"Armas, go."
Armas looked at her with horror, hesitating only for a moment before he obeyed. Uncurling his fingers from about her stiffly open palm he shrunk away from her and Trunks, looked between the two for a moment, then flew off into the waning light of dusk. Slowly, Cole turned her head towards Trunks, chin tilted down and eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. The moment Trunks saw her face, his mouth began to move with silent words until his voice kicked in and a string of apologies spilled out. The entire left side of her face was mangled. Her nose was bleeding, her lower lip was fat, the upper split, her cheek was already discoloring from her cheekbone to her eye, and the white of her eye was colored red from a broken blood vessel. He'd shifted to Super Saiyan form without even meaning to, and he'd hit her hard and head on. She hadn't even been powered up. If she wasn't Saiyan, she'd be dead. Blood steadily dripped from her face as she spoke with an eerie calm.
"Never apologize for your decisions. It only shows a lack of proper judgement or weakness, both of which are very unbecoming in a prince of Saiyans. Stand by your actions or do not act." She spoke, flaring suddenly with bright white ki that sparkled with random bursts of energy. She made a motion with her hand, gesturing him to come at her again. Trunks shook his head vehemently.
"I'm not going to fight you. I shouldn't have hit you in the first place." He said raising his hands and waving them in a dismissing manner.
Cole's dark brows furrowed. "Always finish what you start, even when you don't want to. Persistence and determination alone will bring you victory and success." She spoke, darting forward and swinging deliberately wide at Trunks' head, knowing he'd instinctively block. He did and held her wrist as their eyes locked. Glaring intensely into him, she spoke. "When you struck at me, it was the same as declaring war. You cannot pretend that what was done was not done. Stand by your decisions and follow them to whatever end. Taking responsibility for your choices will help you to make better decisions. For example, when I tear your head from your shoulders and firmly plant it in your ass, you'll think twice before striking me again." She spoke, using Trunks' indecision about fighting her to her advantage.
Curling her fingers about the wrist of his hand that held hers she clamped her other hand on his shoulder. In an instant Cole's crackling ki enveloped him and Trunks let loose a blood curdling scream. It was a bellow of pure agony as Cole's ki erupted within every nerve of his body, stimulating them so every sensation was one of unbearable pain. To him, it would feel as though every cell in his body was exploding again and again, like every part of him was being ripped apart bit by bit. With every breath he took and with every beat of his heart it was agony. Even the tears that began to stream down his face would feel like daggers gouging him to the bone. It was pain so intense that Cole was surprised he hadn't blacked out yet. What she was doing to him was actually a manipulation of ki, somewhat like manipulating it to heal, but with a very different result.
The technique was actually something she'd learned from an alien race during her travels. They'd been an odd looking people with indigo hued skin, four arms, and horns. Their guardsmen, jailors, and interrogators were the ones that used the technique to keep criminals under control and coerce them to cooperate. The technique was a closely guarded secret, however Cole had convinced one of the guardsmen to teach her after some badgering, bribery, and a slue of promises to neither teach the technique to anyone else, nor mention his name should it be discovered she knew. She'd given her word and a blood oath to honor that promise. He then taught her on one more condition. In order to understand just what a serious and painful technique it was that she would be learning to inflict on others, she first had to endure it herself. It was undoubtably the worst pain she'd ever experienced. She'd blacked out after only a minute or so, but it felt like an eternity. She knew it was a bit harsh to use on Trunks, but she was still quite weak from her previous energy drain. There was no way she was ready for an all out fight against someone as strong as she thought Trunks to be. It was also the easiest way to teach him that she was not to be underestimated or disrespected in any regard. By doing this, she knew the next time he stepped up to her it would be a more thought out decision. Perhaps the next time he struck out at her, he would be absolutely sure he meant it.
Her thoughts quickly returned to the present, however, when the grip she held on Trunks suddenly became heavier. The pain had become too much for him, and he'd blacked out in her arms. She immediately stopped forcing pain into him, which in turn made her feel her own fatigue. It took less energy than a full on fight, but it still required quite a bit of ki. Steeling herself against the weakness as she faltered in midair she pulling him to herself so he wouldn't slip through her grasp. She contemplated what to do with him now that he was out cold. She weighed the idea of leaving him in the middle of nowhere, but that idea was soon discarded. She had no idea what sort of animals ventured the night on this planet, and would not be responsible for him being mauled in his defenseless state. Turning in the direction where Armas had taken off, she followed suit and headed back to Capsule Corp.
ʚ ʚ❈ɞ ɞ
I believe that to rile my temper, for the most part, takes a great bit of effort. In this case, it's a lack of effort. I am absolutely insulted that after an entire week, I've received not one review for this story. I ask for no payment. As a fanfic writer, reviews are my currency. The fact that I work on the fanfics with nothing to show for it after a week is like working for free. I am a victim of literary slavery. I could very well be doing more with my time if my efforts here are so unappreciated. For that reason, I will write this story no more unless I see otherwise. It's nothing but disappointment and insult to hope for at least one review each day, and see not one day after day after frustrating day. I have spoken. The CS