Life on that planet was hard. They had thought they'd spend their days training together, fighting against each other to push themselves to their limits. Or, to push Vegeta to his limits, though neither said so. But, their training was often interrupted by very real threats.
This planet provided its own training, in a way.
It wasn't just fakes of Frieza and Gohan, though both appeared from time to time, and both felt as real as they ever had. Others appeared as well, King Vegeta, Bardock, Raditz, the alien that Kakarot killed, Vegeta's mother, a little cub Vegeta refused to explain to Kakarot about… they all appeared, they all dug into their very spirits, and in the end, Vegeta and Kakarot found the need to keep each other from going insane.
And then, there were the needle worms.
The first time they'd encountered them, Kakarot had thought he found a strange-looking flower. Then, the flower exploded open, and long, skinny needles flew out all around them. Vegeta had laughed at Kakarot, who had screamed like a girl, desperately trying to pull the sharp needles from his skin.
Then the needles moved.
The hard, yet flexible, worms tried boring into their skin, into their flesh, and soon enough Vegeta was screaming as well. It seemed the Saiyan Prince had as much a problem with worms as Kakarot had with needles. In the end, they were both terrified, and never came near the flowers again.
But that didn't stop the needle worms.
They came at 'night', when Kakarot and Vegeta slept, or tried to sleep. The first few nights, neither of them really slept, anyway, and their nights were spent trying to sleep through nightmares, or blasting whatever needle worms started crawling towards them. Kakarot took his job as Royal Guard very seriously, but even he needed to sleep at some point, and one night he had nodded off, and Vegeta woke with four needle worms boring into his back. Since that night, the two began to sleep sitting up, with their backs against each other, Vegeta facing the fire (which the needle worms avoided), and Kakarot facing away from the fire. Kakarot became a very light sleeper, over time.
Kakarot hadn't slept next to someone since he had been imprisoned with Uncle Turles, and the physical contact calmed him to the point where, one night, his tail had wrapped around Prince Vegeta's arm.
The sleeping prince had grabbed it tightly.
Kakarot had tensed in pain, but relaxed a little when Vegeta's grip had lessened after a few moments. Kakarot kept his tail wrapped there, around the prince's forearm, taking comfort where he could get it, and Vegeta did nothing to remove it. If the prince was aware he had done it, he never spoke of it when they were awake, and so it became their habit.
And one night, during a particularly intense nightmare, Vegeta's tail had come to coil around Kakarot's arm. Kakarot never spoke of that, either. It was the first time that Vegeta ever seemed to rely on him, even for something so small. The Saiyan prince was so proud, so hard-hearted, that Kakarot often wondered where he got his strength from. But… he was weak, too, fragile, even, in ways that concerned Kakarot, but that he was hesitant to ever point out. His nightmares were testament of that.
A few days later, Frieza had come back.
"Let me face him alone, Kakarot," Vegeta reminded him, and Kakarot gave a single nod, standing to the side, arms crossed, glaring at the monster responsible for the destruction of his race.
Vegeta fought with everything he had.
It was a long battle, but Kakarot could tell right away that Frieza was just toying with him. When the prince was exhausted, Frieza grabbed him by the hair, planting his face into the ground. Then, he placed his foot on the back of Vegeta's head, smirking, his arms crossed. "Now, then…" he sneered, casting Kakarot a glance, "shall we show your little Guard what the penalty is for disobedience, my little monkey?"
Kakarot growled dangerously. Vegeta glared at him, from beneath Frieza's foot. "Go… away… Kakarot…" he gasped, and the look in his eyes was one Kakarot would never forget.
He was ashamed. Ashamed, and afraid, not of what was going to happen, but because he didn't want Kakarot to see it.
He was afraid for his pride.
Kakarot's growl deepened. "Never," he said, glaring back.
"Tsk, tsk, another monkey who doesn't know his place. What a surprise," Frieza said, his cool gaze landing on Kakarot. "Tell me, monkey, how much respect will you have for your prince, when you see what I do to him?" he said, his voice smooth. "When you see him beg me to stop? When you see him apologize to me, for bleeding all over my nice, clean floor?" he asked, and Kakarot could see Vegeta shudder.
Kakarot fought to control his transformation. "Sire… it's the jungle, it ain't Frieza," he said, his fists clenched. "It's fightin' your spirit, just like it did with me and Grandpa. You gotta fight it back," he said, scowling.
Frieza pressed his foot down on Vegeta's skull, causing the Saiyan prince to cry out. Kakarot grit his teeth. "Fight it, Prince Vegeta!" he yelled.
Vegeta glared. "How… can… I?!" he gasped, fighting to maintain consciousness.
Kakarot frowned. "You have to take control," he said, glaring at Frieza. "Use everything you have. Everything," he said, death in his eyes.
Vegeta was at a loss. What did he have, that…. oh.
'Kakarot is the Legendary Super Saiyan. And… he's yours…'
'We depend on you…'
'Prince Vegeta's strong in ways I ain't…'
'The strong are given strength for the weak…'
His father had taught him that the strong would survive that the weaklings would perish. And yet, his father, who had been the strongest of the Saiyans, had died just this way. Kakarot was strong, strong enough to defeat Frieza, yet he stood there, waiting on Vegeta's orders. Because…
Because he was his. His to control, his to command. Royal Saiyans had guards when no one else did, not because they were weak, but because so many depended on them to survive.
He was being foolish, squandering what little resources he had, just to satisfy his pride. And in the end, what good would he do? Where would it get his people?
"Kakarot…" Vegeta gasped, meeting his Guard's eyes. "Kill him."
Kakarot didn't have to be told twice.
Frieza's body was in pieces all around them before it finally disappeared. Vegeta had been surprised at the fury with which Kakarot had dispatched his opponent. It hadn't been mere obedience, or even pride in his work, as it would have been for Nappa. Kakarot wasn't raised on Vegeta, he had his family, he wasn't directly affected by Frieza's actions, other than to be sent to that planet. Yet, his anger was palpable, to the point where he felt the need to crush Frieza's decapitated head with his own foot, his green eyes glowing with fury.
Later, when they sat near the fire, Vegeta propped carefully against Kakarot's back, he asked him about it. Kakarot had been silent for a long moment, and Vegeta had wondered if his Guard had fallen asleep, before he finally spoke.
"Prince Vegeta… you're our leader," he told him. "Mama tells us stories about you, that one day, you're gonna rise up against Frieza, and make us a people again. I love my family, and I want that for us, for them. I guess what I'm tryin' to say is, whatever happens to you, happens to all of us. You're our hope. I think that's why Frieza kept you alive, 'cause he knew if he killed ya, we wouldn't really be gone… he'd have to break you first, to really destroy us. And anyone who tries to destroy that, to destroy our prince, our pride… they deserve to be ripped to shreds."
Vegeta thought about that all throughout the night, as Kakarot slept lightly at his back. No more could he make decisions purely for his own benefit; there was an entire family out there, waiting for him. Not to mention Turles and Nappa. And…
And the one he had sworn not to think about. He was out there, too…
Who knew if there were more? There could be… the universe was a big place, far too big for even the likes of Frieza to scour every inch of. There had to be other Saiyans out there. And…
And he would reunite them.
From now on, Vegeta swore to himself, he would be a true prince of his people. He would be a leader, and would act like one, too. They told stories about him? He gave them hope?
For once, Vegeta was going to be worthy of their faith in him.
