A Guardian's Role


The reporter couldn't believe how bad things had gotten over the past several months. Ever since the invasion of West City, the Red Ribbon Army had grown exponentially, crushing everything in their path. There was no sign of the silver-tailed girl or her companions and at the moment he was taking a breather near a burning mountain. It was rumored that a rare treasure was trapped inside. He could hear the approach of more Soldiers and he wanted to close his eyes. How many broadcasts had he given? How often had he tried to get the humans to fight back? Hiding and doing nothing won't save them.

"Sir, are you okay?" a young woman asked, her black hair cascading down her back. "It's not safe for you here."

"I'm just tired," he whispered. "Being a reporter in these times can do that to a man. What about you? If it's so dangerous, you should probably go before those Soldiers get here."

The woman gave him a look, as if she knew something that he didn't. "I can't... Daddy never taught me to tuck tail and run. I have to stay. The fire around this mountain... Grandma helped daddy to put it here... to protect her, and to protect the thing that she won't let go of."

"You're protecting someone? You almost sound like someone... She wouldn't leave either. I really thought this Army would disappear, but I haven't see her or those fighters since."

She studied him, as if seeing him for the same time. Her dark eyes widened... "You're him... You're the reason our resistance started. There's not a lot of us... and many have died, but we refuse to give up. Even though my daddy died, a couple of weeks ago our hope had a small spark. If we can help her... Even though she's broken and sad... she's still fighting even while unconscious. There's a shield around this place, surrounding the mountain, and until it falls, we won't give up."

The reporter wondered... Who was this young woman so determined to protect? Why would they stay when the Army would crush them?

"Who are you?" he asked.

"I'm Chi-chi, Princess of Fire Mountain. This is my home and as the daughter of the Great Ox-King, I will not cower, nor will I abandon that girl. She's a symbol to us, and if we want our own freedom and lives, then we're obligated to fight just as hard as she has for us."

"I can't believe I'm going to do this... again."

"Sir?" the camera man asked.

"I told a girl once... That while I was human, it took more than physical strength to fight. If there's a story here, then I guess like you, I have no choice but to tell it to the world."

"You sound like you've lost hope," Chi-chi spoke, helping him and his camera man to stand. "I might have a way to help give it back, even if it's only a little bit. After what you did in West City; consider this a continuation of the first battle." The Camera Man and reporter glanced at each other. Was it possible? They hadn't seen the girl in almost two years now, not since the first battle that started this meaningless war.


Chi-chi guided them through a series of long and dark tunnels, the sound of her foot steps the only way to know where she was or what direction they were headed. She used no light, every step memorized, and then they were shielding their eyes, a large door opening. Gasping, they saw a giant flame dancing over their heads, and they were being guided around a giant center of lava. It fed the fire above them, and it was so hot that it was almost too much for them as she took them to the other side and into another room.

There was a curtain, concealing something that was lying on a bunch of old blankets. Chi-chi stood against the door frame... "You're the first person that I've allowed to come near her since I escaped the prison we were in. Go on... but I won't lie... seeing her like this isn't easy. Do you know how to destroy a strong fighter?"

Most would say torture or losing too many battles, but as a reporter for three World Martial Arts Tournaments, he knew better. "You rip their soul to shreds... take away the reason that they started fighting in the first place."

"I'm going to let you continue the story of West City, but I want you to tell the world about a girl who stood, fighting our battles while the rest of humanity cowered and trembled. She fought those damn robots for a week... alone... My daddy said she was so strong... and we watched the lonely sadness in her expression as she crushed one robot after another. I told him that I didn't want to be like the other frightened cowards, unable to fight, and even when I was locked away, I fought my way out, crawled through the trash, and I'm glad I did. She was thrown away... lying there... and when I saw the results of what everyone's done... I can feel her soul crying... She didn't want to fight alone, but she does it because she's far too kind to ask for help. She wants people to choose to fight, even if it's hard, even if it means making a sacrifice that's too high sometimes."

"Did she tell you this?"

"No, but a fighter's soul connects in a way that normal souls will never understand. I think you would understand; isn't that why you always try to tell the our stories, to show the world a war when you knew it might take your life. I saw that battle... she asked you to go run away times, but you refused, and it was because of that stubborn insanity that other fighters came. I want to repeat that... and it needs to happen over and over, until everyone gets it in their stupid heads that freedom isn't fought alone. A war isn't fought behind a little girl while they hope for the best. If that's how everyone is going to act, then accepting her help is nothing short of cruel cowardice!"

Moving forward, handing his mic to Chi-chi, he took a deep breath and pushed aside the curtain. Jumping back, he fell on his rear. Maybe it was foolish arrogance... He had thought that she was invincible. "Has she ever woken up?" he choked.

"Only once. I was in the process of making my way out of the garbage disposal area when she fell on top of me, and she touched the object that's still clutched in her hand."

"Object..."

"I don't know what it is, but I know they have a lot of them already. It was strange, while I was carrying her away from there, I came under fire several times, but not a single bullet hit me. There was some magical barrier protecting me... I think, despite how emotionally broken she is, she's fighting, searching for a way back to us."

"How cruel..." the camera man whispered, gathering the courage to look at the hero of West City. "I wonder how she got like this."


Turles was getting close... It was a feeling he had, and when he landed at the base of the burning mountain, he paused. Standing in front of him was Vegeta, Kakarot, Yamcha, and Bardock, their gazes focused on the approaching force. "Bulma said this place had a dragon ball," Vegeta said. "The Army is after it, and it was one of the few things we know that Pepper wanted to keep from them. Once we crush this invasion, we're going after the remaining four."

"Is that the only reason you're doing this?"

"No. This is what she does and if she can't protect this place, we'll do it in her place."

All of them felt it... a spark. Just as it had flickered inside of them, it retreated. "Was that..." Kakarot asked.

"She's alive," Yamcha said. The relief on Bardock's face was enough to strengthen all of their resolves that the decision they had made was the right path to take. He had felt agonizing pain at the thought of killing his oldest son, now he wouldn't have to. He would feel and come after her.

"Sir! It's the fighters from two years ago! What does it mean?" They turned to see the reporter that had televised the battle of West City. Turles noticed how the others nodded to him, an acknowledgement of respect despite his lack of power. What an interesting race? Was this what had softened the Saiya-jins... no... something was about to happen at this battle, a transformation that had to happen if they had a chance of going after and stopping Frieza.

"It means we have a story to tell; that's what!"

"The Army is almost here!" They heard a woman shout. "Get to your battle positions! Make sure to use the rock facing as cover from their missiles and mortar attacks! I don't care if we die; we will defend this place until not a single one of us are left! Remember the Ox-King! Remember the Hero of West City and use her as the symbol to remain strong in our resolve! If we want our freedom then we must take it and prove that she isn't alone!"

"What is she doing?" Turles asked, shocked as men and women spread out from inside the mountain; each one carrying weapons and ammunition.

"She's choosing to fight, sir," The reporter answered, coming up to them with a fierce expression. "Every person here was trapped inside one of their prisons, and each one that woman freed she brought here. I thought I had seen the impossible two years ago, but this is an even greater display of courage." Looking around, he didn't see Raditz. "Aren't you missing one?"

"We're missing two," Vegeta corrected. "Losing sight of why we were sent here, and our lack of action caused us to loose something precious to us all and as a result, we injured one of our strongest fighters. It's too complicated for you to understand, but if we don't stand and help you fight, to remind ourselves of what we are, we'll never save either one of them or ourselves. This Red Ribbon Army is just like the Empire that enslaved us, and if we can't destroy this one, how can we ever say that we're free."

All of the Saiya-jins hissed in pain... The spark was there again, stronger this time, flickering back and forth between total darkness and blazing to life. "What is happening to us," Yamcha gasped, clutching at his chest. "It hurts..."

"It seems that old human was right," Turles said, watching them. The pain wasn't as bad with him... He had never stopped believing in the girl... He had never lost focus of what they were fighting against, but the link needed all of them, not just one or two. "Each of you," Turles ordered, always the commander of the Saiya-jin Empire, the Pirate space force, and now it seemed this fragile planet that Pepper wanted to protect just as much as her own kind; "Take a sector of this mountain and help them."

"Why-?"

"We're not slaves of the Ice-jin empire anymore! If we're ever going to distinguish ourselves and regain our pride and honor, then anything that resembles Frieza, is our enemy and shall be eliminated. If these humans are insane enough to fight for their freedom, then I have no problem offering us up as a shield for them."


Deep inside the mountain, she thought she heard something. It felt familiar to her. Who am I? Why am I here? She didn't want to go back... It was lonely... They didn't want to fight anymore, and it hurt... If they didn't want to fight or protect, then she no longer had a purpose.

She felt it again... tiny threads were reaching out to her, trying to pull her away from the darkness that had become a permanent part of her mind. There was no escaping this place... It was just as lonely as the battles she had fought over and over again. No... I can't... Raditz, I don't want to do this on my own anymore. Her broken cry stretched across the darkness, and the cold feeling that kept her frozen started to melt. Lying on the pile of tattered blankets, a single tear slid down her cheek, and her eyes slid open, empty of the vitality that had once made her so strong.


Bulma hit the switch to his confinement... Red eyes watched her, his tail bristled with rage. "You're not fighting to free yourself because she's dead; are you?" His teeth pulled back... She knew how dangerous he was, but it didn't stop her from approaching. "I figured it out," she whispered, reaching for the energy bands on his ankles and releasing them. "Moon Guardians were very special... and while they protected the Saiya-jins, there were rare moments when the Saiya-jins lost sight of what she represented and why she existed in the first place. Saiya-jins started to destroy lives instead of protecting them, influenced by Empires like the Ice-jins. Only a handful remained loyal to her, the black-tails, and the red-tails. The Ice-jins, wanting to gain full control of the Saiya-jin's terrifying power, waited until the link had weakened, destroying her, her moon, and severed the link that protected them. For a thousand years, they murdered and destroyed. She wasn't the first silver tail that appeared. She was just the first one that managed to escape the cycle of death."

"For a thousand years, they destroyed every one that appeared, and it's amazing any descendants with the guardian's bloodline managed to make it until Eighteen Years ago. Pepper is that guardian, but as broken as everyone was, she knew it was next to impossible to ask that they continue to fight a monster like the Ice-jin Empire. They had no sense of the traditions that had made them so strong."

She reached trembling fingers to the energy bands on his wrists, terrified that he could lash out and crush her. Taking a deep breath, she unlocked the first one, hearing it fall to the floor. When he stayed where he was, watching her with the same intensity, she decided to go for broke. He couldn't stay like this, and if he didn't go after and find Pepper, the Army would become another Ice-jin Empire that would expand further than the Universe. "When Saiya-jins became the enemies of the Universe, the link shattered, and that is when the Ice-jins swept in and enslaved everyone."

There was still red fury in his eyes, but he had stopped snarling, listening as Bulma talked. "Bardock said that the link had weakened just before it snapped; her visions went silent, and she started to find herself being wrapped in silence and darkness. Without a link to the other Saiya-jins, she loses the purpose for why she exists. Kakarot didn't want to fight anymore. Vegeta never supported her decision to protect the humans. Bardock's decision to stand back and watch further isolated her. And you... I think you were the most painful for her."

Raditz snarled, a growl of pain vibrating from his chest as he looked away. Bulma released the final bands on his other wrist and neck, and she reached for him, lifting his face to look at her. "There is only one Saiya-jin protector for the guardian. It is impossible for her to choose or accept anyone else. The protector forms a separate link with her, one that isn't tied to the others. It's created because the emotional toll it takes on her is too much for her alone, and when a protector dies it enables the further destruction of the link in all forms."

"Raditz, you need to calm down and focus... I know it seems hopeless without her connected to all of you; I can't even imagine how I'd feel if something were to happen to Kakarot. Pepper is alive... She's hurting and alone... Don't let her die like that. I've seen enough from my link with Kakarot to know how she always fought her battles with no expectations from anyone. There's a full moon tonight. Kakarot said that you've never wavered from your convictions... You never harmed a woman or child. You've protected the survivors. Are you surprised that you're the only one that can become the protector for the first silver tailed female to appear and survive in a thousand years?"

"Who... are you?" Raditz whispered, a brief moment of sanity coming back to him.

"An idiot that doesn't know how to stop jumping in front of danger. Kakarot... I love him. I don't think I've told him yet and I'm determined to do anything I can to ensure that he survives and finds the happiness that he's wanting."

Sitting up, he looked around, clutching at his head as he struggled back and forth with the rage still swirling inside of him. Like Turles, he reached for and tilted her head to the side, identifying the mark Kakarot had left there. "Has he hurt you?" It was a simple question, and he wanted an honest answer. She felt it was important to give it to him.

"I might make him crazy with a lot of the stupid stunts I've pulled recently... He'll train until he breaks every bone in his body as a way to vent, but never has he once caused pain that was intentional. I can't say I've ever felt safe with other humans, but with him... What more can a girl ask for in a guy?" She smiled and he had to admit, he was speechless. "You're as bad as Pepper," he snapped. "Is there a way to get the link back?"

"That depends on you. If you are her protector, you have to make up your mind that she's what you want to protect. I do know this... It's why the Ice-jins were so desperate to prevent Saiya-jins from forming their mating bonds... The kind of power you will gain from a full bond with the guardian... It hasn't been seen in over a thousand years... longer. The guardian before Pepper didn't have a protector."

"I made up my mind before the link severed..."

"Then go after her," Bulma encouraged.

Standing up, he felt a spark. It left and came back... It was so soft against his mind, he would have missed it if he hadn't been trying to find her for so long. Raditz, I don't want to do this on my own anymore. Blasting through the bunker and into the night sky, he latched onto to the link her voice had connected him to, refusing to let it go... to let her go. He didn't know why, but a deep part of him had always wanted her to ask him for help. While she might have accepted his offer to protect her, she had never once asked for it.