Chapter 7
Goten was absently nibbling his pencil while staring through the window at the breathtaking view over the sea. A slight rain had been pouring for an hour and an angry wind was blowing, whipping up wild waves that looked like tiny fringes of foam in the distance.
He had stopped focusing on his notebook for a good while already.
"Goten?" a kind voice called.
He turned numbly to Marron sitting at the desk next to his.
"You'll never be done when the master comes back," she stated, pointing at the empty page of his notebook.
He sighed and his eyes wandered to the clock. He couldn't believe Eighteen had sent him to class today. The only thing on his mind was Videl. He kept thinking that if he had stayed by her side, the Saiyan would never have caught her.
Krillin had awakened him at dawn and they had left their hideout with the baby. Save for Krillin, people had acted distant and busy around Goten. He had then been handed over to his tutor as soon as they had arrived at the headquarter of the rebellion and he had been put to work as if today was an ordinary day to do ordinary things.
This pointless occupation bore down on the little boy's feisty nature as he couldn't keep Videl off of his mind, thinking that she might be tortured by Saiyans.
No one had cared to tell him anything and he had no way to know about the events going on outside the headquarter. He was in fact rarely allowed to venture out of the deserted area surrounding the safe fortress. He spent his days either training with Master Piccolo or having classes with Marron and he never had the possibility to see the world for himself.
Videl's plan had been an unexpected way out of his routine and he had accepted at once to help her rescue the half-Saiyan baby. He had been all the more excited as she had mentioned Saiyajinn City. He was well aware that Saiyajinn City was a forbidden place to him, yet he hadn't given it the slightest thought. Videl knew what she was doing anyway. Videl always knew everything about everything and she was unrivaled when it came to plot courses of action. He had been waiting for so long to be old enough to go with her and fight alongside her that he couldn't miss the opportunity she had offered him.
However, now that he had tasted adrenaline and that Videl might be in danger, he couldn't sit idly at his desk, needlessly scribbling the pages of his notebook.
He suddenly stood up.
"Goten! what are you doing now? Where are you going?" Marron questioned in puzzlement.
"I'll be back," he just explained as he left the classroom.
"The master will be mad," Marron warned him, her voice sounding somewhat alarmed.
He ignored the remark though. Everyone was mad at him anyway and they had all reasons to be. He was sure that he could have fought the Saiyan who had chased them down the night before. His master Piccolo had taught him many things that Videl didn't know. She had underestimated him in thinking he still needed to be protected.
He walked up the corridors to the transmission room where he knew he would find Eighteen and Krillin. As he reached the right door, a man was just coming out of the room. He stepped around Goten without paying him any mind and left the door ajar behind him. The boy went hesitantly closer and peered through the gap.
Krillin and Eighteen were alone, discussing in low voices. Goten held his breath and listened to them.
"There's something amiss in that announcement. My brother said that Videl is no longer in Saiyajinn City," Eighteen mumbled. She was staring at a piece of paper, but even by hoisting himself on tip-toe, Goten couldn't read the document.
"But she hasn't come back yet, so I guess she's still their prisoner somehow," Krillin pointed out, scratching his head.
"I don't know, I don't understand," Eighteen sighed. "Seventeen also said that he located her somewhere on Mount Paozu and the weird thing is she's apparently alone with Gohan there. Meanwhile, the Saiyans clearly want us to contact them. They'll certainly offer us a deal. The baby against Videl."
"This sounds like the wisest solution in my mind."
"Honestly, I doubt it. Exchange is always a risky business. Do you really trust Vegeta? I don't. I prefer to get Videl back on my own if it's possible. As for the baby, we'll see later."
Goten stepped back and leaned his back against the wall. The mention of Mount Paozu had kindled a light in the back of his mind. He knew little about his origins but he had once been told that his family came from this place. As he had checked the location on a map, he had figured out that Mount Paozu happened to be a remote and wild area with hardly any towns and just a handful of inhabitants. It had to be his mother's homeland since his father was Saiyan. He sometimes dreamt of traveling up to that piece of land and try to find people who had known her. It was very far, very dangerous, and definitely forbidden though. Why, and by what twisted coincidence, had the Saiyans taken Videl to that backwater?
Instead of entering the room to speak to Eighteen as he had initially intended, Goten walked away.
The words he had just heard kept spinning in his mind.
There was no way he would let anyone give the baby back to the Saiyans. He had been himself lucky enough to escape their grip and he couldn't stand the idea that this little girl should endure the misery he had been saved from.
Videl had told him countless times about the ruthless Saiyan way to raise children. They snatched them away from their parents to shape them into bloodthirsty, relentless soldiers meant to be their Prince's puppets and they got rid of the weakest in the process. Goten couldn't accept to leave a small, innocent baby to such a grim fate, especially when they'd gone through so much trouble to rescue her.
And yet, Eighteen and Krilin had hinted that they might agree to give back the little girl in exchange for Videl.
All by brooding over the subject, the boy had headed for the area housing the private bedrooms. He went straight to a large, bright room where several cradles were lined up. Except for a mobile playing jingle bell music, the place was deserted and still. Goten scanned the little beds one by one. As usual, most of them were empty. The nursery was only used to host the babies of the rebels out for missions or orphans they sometimes picked up on their way and it was rarely full.
Goten wasn't long to recognize Bulla. She was awake and her eyes widened when he poked his head into her field of vision. She blurted a happy yelp and shifted at the sight.
Goten stared at her hesitantly. "I can't leave you here, can I? I know you don't want to go back," he whispered.
He grabbed her carefully. At first, he was caught off guard by the limpness of her muscles but he soon found out how to grip her properly and he clumsily wrapped her in a blanket. Her incredibly light weight reminded him of how vulnerable she was and the prospect of handing her over to the Saiyans felt even more shocking. He couldn't let that happen.
He slid the window open and flew away, hugging tightly his little passenger to shield her from the wind.
While he was rushing through the air, a sensation of freedom overwhelmed him along with the firm belief that he was doing the right thing. He would save this little girl and he would save Videl too.
After half an hour, he reached the area where Master Piccolo usually lived.
Goten's closeness had been a soothing warmth to the baby and she had kept quiet during the whole trip despite the wind stinging her eyes. The boy was relieved to eventually put her down nevertheless.
He wedged her carefully between the roots of an old stump and arranged the blanket to make her comfortable. He had the intuition that she wouldn't be long to start crying or sleeping again since it seemed to be a baby's cycle.
He rose back into the air and scanned the countryside around him, calling for Piccolo. The Namekian soon showed up in the distance and Goten rushed to him.
"What are you doing here, boy?" the Master growled in suspicion.
"I brought you some company. You have to be nice to her though," Goten told.
Piccolo raised a concerned eyebrow. "Company?"
"Yeah, and the main thing is no one must know about her. You have to keep it a secret both from the rebellion and from the Saiyans. It's very important, do you understand? But don't worry, I'll come back and get her," Goten claimed sternly.
"You know I don't speak to any of them anyway, but who are you talking about in the first place?" the Namekian replied with a slight wariness.
"She's over there at the foot of the stump," the boy added, pointing at the place where he had left Bulla.
Then, without waiting for further questions, he rocketed to the sky doing his best to disappear as quickly as he could while Piccolo's roar calling his name echoed along with the distant whining of the baby. Goten was aware that his Master would be mad at him. He wouldn't appreciate his gift, that was for sure, but Goten hadn't found any other way to keep the baby safe for now.
The boy headed straight to the East in the direction of Mount Paozu. It would be a long trip but he needed to find Videl.