He barely slept that night, getting up every so often to look over Kakarot. The boy still didn't look too good.
Once in a while Kakarot would twist in his sleep, sweat dripping down his face as he cried out in pain. If only he knew how to do that blood transfusion thing that Raditz had done. Then maybe he could alleviate some of the pain the boy was in.
Chichi seemed to do a good job of calming him in his sleep, while he was left there helpless. He hated this feeling, when he came across King Piccolo, the demon would pay for making him fell this dread. For making him feel anything towards anyone.
He refused breakfast, wanting to start his journey with the sun that morning. It didn't matter anyway. The only one that was up was the younger Piccolo. He had taken over for Chichi, who was spent from the night before. As much as he didn't care for the harpy, she could be very loyal to those she cared about.
He walked toward the hatch, opening it and making sure it was closed before looking around him. The sun wasn't quite up yet, only the stars blanketed the sky. Roshi did say that he destroyed the moon.
The darkness was something that he expected, but never had he really gotten a good look at such a thing. Was this really what Tarble and Raditz got to see? And what did the sky look like with the moon in sight? Was it even more glorious than this?
He shook his head. This was the last thing he need to focus on right now. He had come out here for a reason. He had to track the sun after all.
To his right, he started to see the shift. The smallest line of light was starting to come from the ground. The sun was starting its ascent upward.
Looking around, he closed his eyes for a second, taking in all of the scents and sounds around him. King Piccolo had to smell like the younger one. The demon's scent would give him a clue if he was close to the man.
So far he found nothing, but he would keep his wits about him. Kakarot was caught off guard, he had no time to be foolish.
The sun was now peeking over the horizon. It was time for him to follow.
Tossing and turning was normal at this point. He didn't even remember much from the day before. After the darkness came and went, he could only put some of the pieces together.
The blood on the floor, the dead Tech-Tech, the words of betrayal that had escaped his lips, it all felt like a nightmare. One that was ever lasting in his mind.
In the past, he would have never listened to his father's words. He was better than that now. So why did he do it? Did some part of him want his father's approval? He shook his head. No, he was far beyond wanting the man's praise.
He looked down at his hands. Power. He had never really known such a thing. Was that what Vegeta felt when he had an entire planet at his mercy? It was so overwhelming and he had loved it. Now he wasn't so sure. He was the smart one, Vegeta was the fighter. They were happy that way.
'Are you sure you're happy, knowing that you are under him?' His mind asked him. He wasn't even sure it was his own thoughts anymore. It was as if someone else was asking him these questions. Someone bent one turning him against his brother.
He tried to banish the thoughts. He tried focusing on happier memories. The ones he knew that could shut whatever it was up. It stayed silent for only a couple of minutes as he thought over that day over and over again. They had just returned from Zera's Planet and the Commission.
He remembered his father trying his hardest to get him back into the awful room. He cringed at the thought, but Vegeta had stood between them before taking his hand and telling one of the housekeepers to move an extra bed into his room.
A smile came to his face as Vegeta showed him the castle for the first time. The world that was once small, was growing around him so rapidly. At the end of the tour, they arrived at his brother's room. After opening it, he found that then extra bed was for him. The closet had been split, along with a new wardrobe for himself.
All he could ask was why. His brother smirked as he looked over everything. After meeting Raditz earlier, he expected that his father would shut everything down. His excitement came at a price, as he didn't believe that his father would allow such a thing.
But Vegeta had over stepped his boundaries. It was the reason their father wanted him dead. Vegeta was a threat. His brother was always a threat, from the moment he was born. His brother was a beacon for change. Something he himself wanted and needed.
The Vegeta from the dream came forward, materializing in front of him. "But you are a failure. You disobeyed me. You are nothing but a pawn."
He blinked at it a couple of times. "No."
It cocked its head to the side. "What?"
He felt himself chuckle, how stupid had he become? This room, its power. It was nothing. He had allowed this to go on far enough. He could be tortured by his father, he could go out of his mind to the point of delusions, he could even kill an innocent man for no reason whatsoever, but the very idea of Vegeta thinking of him as a pawn was not only insulting, but it went against everything he knew about this brother. Vegeta didn't think of him as a pawn. The fact that he had even believed such a delusion made him ill.
"You can drop the act, Cuw. Only you would try something like this." He said sneering at the vision in front of him.
The vison fell, the fake Vegeta disappearing and a holo version of the other boy coming into view in its place. "I thoughtit would take longer for you to figure it out, but no matter. When I get the location of your base from my source, this war will be over, and me and my future mate will be sitting pretty. An upgrade to the elite status will also be in order." Cuw said chuckling slightly to himself.
He raised an eyebrow. "Now that you have me here, who is your source?"
"Like you don't know. I believe that a genius like you would have already figured it out." The boy said with an evil sneer. A cocky smirk formed on his face before he could stop it. "What's so funny?"
He laughed. "You really think that they would have gotten past Raditz?"
The other boy froze. "That third class prick was with you?"
"Did you really think that Raditz would have left my side? He is forever loyal to me and Vegeta. Knowing him, he would have your spy located in record time." He grinned as the boy began to sweat. "All he would have to do is expose her deception to the others and it would be game over for her. How unfortunate for you and Parle."
"How did you know it was…?" The other boy started.
"It was all too easy, she was the only one that could have done it. She just happened to make new scouters for us the night before and from what I can gather, it seems that they were running on the same tech that you are using right now." The boy looked beyond shocked. "Don't be so shocked. I was the head of engineering. I taught your precious Parle everything she knows, well what she knew. Knowing how Raditz is attached to me and all, it would be rather disastrous for her to be found out by him of all Saiyans."
With that the hologram looked around frantically, before pulling a scouter out of his pocket and speaking quickly. "Parle, I need you to come here as soon as possible. It's not safe, my love."
The connection stayed quiet for a short time before it clicked and a familiar voice cut through the feed. "I'm sorry, but she is kind of blacked out for the moment."
His smirk grew as the insanity in his mind finally fell. That voice would definitely have that effect. Just like the real Vegeta could, Raditz would be the only one that could fully reach him.
"What did you do to her?" Cuw almost screamed into the scouter before him. He was kind of surprised that the hologram was holding up. He would have to study that technology later.
Raditz remained calm. "Only what she deserved. She took Tarble's trust and used it. I just took her information and left the rest to rot."
"No…you're lying! She wouldn't have betrayed me!" Cuw yelled frantically into the scouter.
Raditz chuckled. "Your right, she didn't tell me anything willingly. I just took it from her, just like I took everything else from her." The laugh sent a chill down his spine. This meant that Parle had to be dead. Raditz had seen to her end.
He chuckled as Cuw fell to his knees. "Do you see it now? That your alliances were faulty. If only you had chosen to be loyal to Vegeta over my father, maybe things would have been different." He felt he change happen quickly this time. The last thing his father needed was someone smart. He reached into his mind and the darkness came forward.
Cuw was about to object when he started to claw at his throat. This would be fast. At least the boy's suffering would be short.
"Don't fight it Cuw. Just let go, this way you can be with you beloved." He said with a sneer. The boy just continued making that horrible garbling sound. "Raditz, are you still on the line?" He asked, hoping that Cuw hadn't disconnected it.
"Good to see that you're still sane. What are you doing to him?" Raditz asked. It was full of static but that was fine. At least he could make contact with the outside world.
He grinned to himself as Cuw finally went unconscious. "Nothing much. If I only knew the code I could get out of here."
"I think I can help you with that." Raditz said happily.
He could only smirk. "Then please, enlighten me."
He had flown after the sun almost all day. There had been no sign of a tower yet, nor had King Piccolo made his appearance known. The coward was probably out looking for his precious dragon balls. Too bad he wouldn't be able to find two of them. Nothing could get past Bulma's shielded bunker.
He hated to admit, but he was growing tired. With nothing to eat that morning and with him flying off for hours on end, chasing after a tower that may or may not exist was not only time consuming, but did nothing for his mind.
He hated feeling weak and that's what this situation made him feel. Watching Kakarot as he lied there motionless was just too hard to take. The same went with this thoughts concerning Tarble's imprisonment. He was too far away to help him. He had left his younger brother amongst an angry pack of wolves, most of which were out for blood. Tarble had to be scared. Now that he thought back on it, he remembered the boy's fear of him leaving. The terror in his eyes at the very thought of being left there without him to protect him. He should have known better. Tarble was smart, but book smarts only got you so far in this world. He knew nothing of politics and battle strategies. Sure, he could make the most of just about any situation and come out on top, but that could just be luck. Nothing more, nothing less, and from what Raditz had said, it seemed that Tarble's luck may have run out. He just hoped that by the time he returned, he could still reach him. That his father hadn't been able to turn him against him.
He blinked a couple of times, slightly confused as to what was running down his cheek. He touched his face, finding that it was only water. His eyes were wet. Again he blinked, there was no way that he was….crying. How far would his emotions push him now that he was having trouble locking them away? But he couldn't get mad about it. He was still focusing on what he could do to save both Tarble and Kakarot.
He squinted his eyes, trying to hold back the tears, as the tower came into view. As he got closer, he wondered how he had not seen it before. Looking up it seemed to go straight into the heavens.
He breathed a sigh of relief. At least now he could help Kakarot.
To Be Continued….
Author's Note
So Tarble is going to try and break out, good to see that he isn't under his father's control…at least for now. Awe Vegeta, you do care, even if you will never admit it, lol.
Updates are going to be a little slower, as I will be moving in two weeks' time and I'm still packing up my things. Please bear with me. Hopefully we will be back to a full update schedule after I finish up moving and start school.