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Dragonball Super
A Lighter Slice of Broccoli
Chapter 1 – Misinterpretation
"Cheelai!"
The petite woman flinched from Lemo's voice. "Slow down! You'll get us killed!" he yelled.
Cheelai clutched the throttle tightly while Lemo's hands gripped the head of the pilot's seat. Her troublesome trek through the cosmos after they escaped Freeza Planet 341 made Lemo a bothersome backseat driver when he wasn't piloting the ship.
Cheelai weaved around space debris, narrowly avoiding one striking their hull. Lemo's quick and sudden yelps each time a small meteorite flew close by was enough to set her off, and she glared back at him.
"Cut that out! I can't concentrate while you're flapping your gums!" she yelled, narrowly avoiding another stray asteroid from the momentary distraction. She checked the sensor grid, muttering, "That damn space cop's still on my ass."
Their route back to Planet Vampa was a bumpy one. The addition of a Galactic Patrolman identifying their ship and its occupants didn't help make the trip any easier. "Go and keep an eye on the cargo!" Cheelai barked, elbowing Lemo.
They needed to return as soon as possible and unload what they stole from Freeza Planet 341, a supply depot planet used for manufacturing. The military-based race of Arcosians purchased several planets from the Emperor to build weapons, armor, and medical warehouses, doubling as supply depots. Planet 341 was so lax in its security that any fringe group could pilfer its goods and get away with it.
The sudden beeping of the long-range sensor caught Lemo's attention to something up ahead. "Asteroid field!" he yelled, pointing it out to her. She slapped his hand away. "I know! It's perfect!"
"Perfect?! What do you mean, perfect?!" Lemo shouted, then his face went pale. "Don't tell me."
"We'll lose him in the asteroid field. Think he'll be brave enough to keep up?" she asked. If Lemo's face were any paler, he'd be a ghost.
"This isn't about bravery, Cheelai! How do you know for sure you can navigate that safely without getting us killed?" His face was so close to hers that she shoved him to the co-pilot seat.
"Strap in and shut up! I've done this plenty of times," Cheelai took a deep breath. "LET'S DO THIS!" she exclaimed and flew the ship into the field, swerving and rolling from side to side to avoid each incoming asteroid.
Patrolman Jaco had his sights on the craft dead ahead and grinned as he fired up his thrusters to get in close enough to engage his tractor beam to seize the ship. "I have you now, you thief!" he declared.
His hands gripped the throttle of his ship's engine, easing it forward to draw himself closer. His eyes had the determined look of a seasoned veteran in the Galactic Patrol, eager to finally get his hands on the woman who was piloting that craft ahead.
He failed to notice the incoming asteroid field and screamed, reversing the thrusters to force his ship to a screeching halt. His hands gripped the throttle so tightly his knuckles were as white as his gloves. A stray asteroid floated in his line of sight, drifting across the front of his ship.
Bzzt! Bzzt! Bzzt!
Jaco belted another screech and flailed his arms away from the throttle at the sound of the intercom buzzing. A red light flashed across his face, making him wonder if an asteroid was bouncing around in his stomach. It certainly seemed to be once he knew who was trying to contact him.
"T-This is Patrolman Jaco," he said, pressing the intercom button. "Come in…?"
"What in blazes are you doing, Jaco?!" yelled an irate voice from the other end. Jaco shielded his face from the intercom.
"W-well, you see, Chief Krill, the thief, she um, entered an asteroid field," Jaco began, but his voice continued to decay until he was mumbling.
"Can you repeat that? You trailed off," the voice rumbled again.
Jaco uttered a groan. After being recently assigned to work for a nose-to-the-grindstone Chief of the Galactic Patrol by the name of Krill, Jaco was less thrilled about reporting to him than he would the Galactic King.
"She went into an asteroid field, sir!" Jaco yelled, collecting himself.
"So?" Krill yelled, perplexed. "Go after her!"
"I…I can't, sir!" Krill's exasperated grunt made Jaco feel as if he was in his office getting a lecture. The rise in the Chief's anger didn't help either.
"What do you mean you can't? You're a seasoned Patrolman; asteroid navigation was one of the first lessons you learned during the academy!" Krill rumbled, his low voice shaking the comm panel.
"I know that, sir! But I was, um, sick that day, so I didn't do the simulation."
Jaco lied, of course. He made up every single excuse he could think of to avoid the asteroid field simulation test. Picturing his beloved ship crashing into a space rock the size of a moon, floating forever into space, all without a delicious glass of milk? Jaco hoped this was all a bad dream, begging to be awake back at Headquarters.
There was a long pause at the other end, and Jaco gulped. He reached for the communicator. "Maybe spatial interference jammed the frequency? Guess I'll shut it off then."
"We're sending Squad B," Krill said. Jaco's hand snapped back. "They're on the other side of the asteroid field. Meanwhile,"
Jaco jumped with a squeak in his throat.
"Return to HQ," Krill ordered.
"B-b-but, sir!" Jaco said. His heart was beating so fast he thought it was going to enter hyperspace. "I know this woman! She's been a terrible person who stole my ship! I can navigate the long way around the asteroid field and scan for her ship's signature!"
"Let Squad B handle your thief, Jaco," Krill said, ignoring Jaco's protest. "As for you, you're taking the asteroid simulation training first thing tomorrow. No excuses! Over and out."
"Nooo!" Jaco howled, hands to his head when the communication cut off.
Cheelai laughed after she cleared the field. Lemo surveyed the area outside the ship, relieved that they survived. When his eye caught three more ships entering the sensor grid, he pointed them out to her. "Cheelai, look! More Galactic Patrol ships!" he shouted.
"Not on my watch."
Cheelai pulled the steering mechanism back to give them a boost. She baited two of the ships by flying along the edge of the asteroid field before entering, luring them in to follow. A third ship opened fire with laser cannons, cutting through the asteroids ahead to obscure her sight.
"I know, Lemo! I saw it!" Cheelai shouted before Lemo could say anything. "I'll be fine!".
She maneuvered the ship past the debris, too small to cause any damage to the hull. The ships behind her began opening fire as well, making this even more difficult.
"Dammit, I can't lose them!" she hissed. Turning the ship into a barrel roll, she exited the asteroid field, flying directly towards the third ship in an attack position.
"Let's see if I can get in some friendly fire going," she muttered. She could see the look of panic on the patrolman's face as he tried to swerve to avoid her. The two other vessels cleared the asteroid field to resume their laser fire.
With one last quick movement of the steering mechanism, Cheelai turned the nose of the ship straight up, flying out of the way of the laser fire as they inadvertently destroyed one of their own instead. "Gotcha!" Cheelai yelled, eyeing the explosion. The ships started to turn around to continue their pursuit.
Re-entering the asteroid field, she discovered a large one, possibly the largest of all of them. Approaching it, she decelerated enough to latch onto its surface. After parking the ship, she hurriedly shut everything off, leaving them sitting in the dark as they watched the patrol ships sweep the area to locate them. She breathed a sigh and lounged back on the pilot's seat with her hands behind her head, feet resting on the control panel.
"Are you insane?!" Lemo shouted, chastising her. She gave him a flat look, not saying anything. "We should be making the jump into hyperspace back to Vampa, pronto! I don't like making Broly wait this long!"
"Relax! Once we lose the space cops, we'll be in the clear," she said calmly and tapped him on the chest with the back of her gloved hand. "Make yourself useful and check on the cargo, will you?" she asked.
Lemo scoffed as he examined the large container that they stored in the back of their ship. Clearing up enough space to make room left fewer seats than they had a few days ago. "At least once we get this safely to Vampa, Broly will be back at a hundred percent again," he said.
Nearly a week passed since Cheelai's wish to the Earth's Dragonballs saved their new friend, Broly, from certain death. Broly and his father, Paragus, were two Saiyans they had met on Vampa while on a scouting mission for the Freeza Force. They were all escorted to Earth with the tyrant so he could summon the dragon to get his wish granted. No sooner had they arrived on Earth than Broly began fighting these other two Saiyans who were waiting for Freeza's ship to land.
Broly held his own with a power she could not even begin to describe. Yet when this other fighter arrived, dressed in weird white pants, a black vest with gold trimmings, and a cocky-looking grin, the battle shifted to his favor. Cheelai used the opportunity while Freeza involved himself with the ongoing melee to make a wish of her own, sending Broly back to Vampa so she could save his life before he could get blasted to oblivion by a powerful energy beam.
It was all Cheelai could think about as she trekked across the galaxy with Lemo in search of a Healing Capsule for Broly. At least once Broly's healed to full, they can start the next phase of their plan.
She waited for the Galactic Patrol ships to make another sensor sweep before they eventually gave up and entered hyperspace.
"Do you think they're gone?" Lemo whispered, looking out the cockpit window. Cheelai put in the calculations for their hyperspace jump.
"Yeah, the coast is clear," Cheelai said. She reignited the thrusters, detaching the ship from the asteroid. Once they were out of immediate danger, the ship made the jump.
Broly was in the middle of hauling the carcass of a giant Vampa beetle while waiting for Cheelai and Lemo to return. Vampa was littered with these beetles, crawling and scavenging for food. Some latched their tongues onto one of the giant beasts that nested in craters to siphon their blood.
At rest, they camouflaged themselves in craters, pretending to be pools of water. Once the beetles began feeding off its blood, the beast emerged, using its sinister red eyes to isolate one and its razor-sharp teeth to chew it down.
The pelt tied around Broly's waist was once the ear of a Vampa beast he named Ba. Despite his father's harsh treatment of him and his disapproval of befriending others, Broly cherished what little time he had spent with Ba. He had been fiercely overprotective of the ear, even snapping at Cheelai for even suggesting he remove it. He regretted his outburst, knowing now how much they understood his bond with Ba's ear.
Cheelai waved at him from behind the cockpit window once the ship cleared Vampa's atmosphere to land. When the ship docked itself beside the Capsule house, Lemo immediately opened the side door, throwing himself onto the soil.
"I don't care if this is a wasteland! I'm so glad to see you! Oh, you sweet, sweet, safe ground," he muttered. Cheelai casually exited the ship, stretching her arms out.
"Hey there! We're back!" she shouted as she flashed her signature "OK" sign at him. Broly remembered her signature gesture and replicated it awkwardly with his hand, making her giggle.
She pointed to the ship like a model displaying an object. "Mission successful!" she boasted.
"Are you okay, Lemo?" Broly inquired. Lemo waved him off, leaning forward with his hands on his knees.
"Oh yeah, just swell." He felt a pop in his back as he straightened his back. "As Cheelai was saying: Mission successful. We got a healing capsule."
Broly peeked inside, eyeing the large object. "It's a large white box," he noted, curious.
Cheelai smirked. "It's what's inside the box that's important," she said. "Once we have that built, we'll get you healed up in no time."
She turned to signal Lemo, but Broly was already in the middle of pulling the container out of the ship. Cheelai couldn't stop marveling at his display of strength, gulping.
"Uh, sure!" she shouted. "We were going to use the levitator tool, but I guess brute strength also works…?"
Cheelai gawked as Broly hauled the container on his shoulder. Despite the number of injuries he sustained from his battle with those Earth Saiyans, he still had the strength to carry such a heavy object.
Lemo wanted to point out how red Cheelai's face looked, but instead, he cleared his throat. "Maybe rather than stare at him, you can help me assemble the healing capsule?" Lemo said, glaring at her.
Cheelai blinked, realizing she had been lost in thought, or from Lemo's perspective, lost in Broly's physique. "R-right, of course!" she muttered.
Broly sat and ate the gel-like substance that oozed out of the beetle's legs when he broke them off while the other two worked on assembling the Healing Capsule. He offered to share, but Lemo immediately refused, insisting that he'd never want to taste something like that ever again. Cheelai could stomach a little before she felt a bit queasy and refused, waving her hand in front of her. Before Broly could dig into the last one, she stopped him to dip her finger in the substance.
"You ever thought of cooking this through instead of eating it raw all the time?" she asked, glancing up at him, shaking it off her gloved finger. Broly shook his head.
"Father and I ate what we could. We didn't do any of this cooking you speak of. The gel from their legs provides enough nutrients."
Cheelai gave him a sour look and shook her head. "C'mon, there had to be one time where your dad cooked these things. Maybe they're like giant crabs, and the meat solidifies when they're fully cooked?"
"How would you know they're crustacean, Cheelai?" Lemo asked as he tightened a few more screws into the hull of the capsule, taking his toque off his head to wipe his forehead before putting it back. "Can we get back to building this, now?"
"Well, it couldn't hurt to try cooking them, Lemo. Let's take a break and see if we can make some magic!" Cheelai said, dipping her finger into the gel to flick it at Lemo.
Lemo paused and glared at her, wiping the gel that struck him on the nose. He sighed, setting his tools down, and groaned as he rose.
"I swear I'm gonna need a turn in the capsule after Broly," he muttered to himself. He took a moment to study the gel-like substance. The stench it gave off was so revolting it made him retch, almost throwing up. It had the rank sweaty odor of unwashed soldier uniforms left in the laundry at the change rooms on one of Freeza's ships, only ten times worse.
Stomaching it, he continued studying the substance, dipping his finger to test the texture. "Well, from what I can gather, I believe it's possible I can cook this. Gonna need a few things to mask the odor and enhance the flavor, at least."
He rolled his eyes and sighed, entering the capsule house. They hadn't unpacked everything yet, for they knew this was only a temporary stay on Vampa until they found a new planet. The capsule house provided to them by that one Saiyan Broly fought named Goku had a spacious enough kitchen for Lemo to store his cooking supplies. One thing that he prided himself above anything else was his culinary skills. He wondered if there might be some way to make that bug goo edible enough for even him to eat. He chopped up some herbs and bundled them together in a sheet of tinfoil, taking the roll with him.
Returning with his bundle and a bag of fresh spices and a pair of lemons, he began to stuff everything, mixing it with the gel. He squeezed the juice from the lemons afterward and covered the end with a sheet of tinfoil.
Finding materials to build a fire hot enough to cook was tedious, but Broly knew where to find combustible items, returning with an armful. Lemo instructed Broly on how to build a spit above the fire using rocks the Saiyan carved into spikes to use as a base. Tying the leg to a pole and securing it on the spikes, Lemo then connected a small crank to rotate it above the flame as it burned underneath. He instructed Broly to turn it slowly while keeping the fire hot and waited until he was confident it looked ready before taking it off the flame. When the foil was cooled off enough to touch it safely, Lemo removed it to allow a cloud of steam to escape. Cheelai and Broly stared down at it, making a sour face when the scent touched her nostrils.
"I guess it doesn't smell as bad as when it was raw. At least it's lemon-flavored sweaty soldier uniforms," Cheelai said with a chuckle. Lemo used a pair of tongs to pull out the meat. Before them was a perfectly preserved portion cooked through. The meat had a slight hint of orange to its gold-colored texture. Broly reached out to touch it.
"Go ahead, big guy, give it a try," Lemo encouraged him. Broly tore off a piece as big as his hand and put it in his mouth. His face lit up once the taste hit his tongue. "I like this," he said, stuffing the rest in his mouth.
Cheelai gave him a warm smile, trying to grab a chunk for herself, but a lot of it was still hot to the touch. Lemo fetched a couple of plates for the two with some chopsticks. He used the tongs to break off individual portions of the meat and plated them for Cheelai, handing it over to her. He plated pieces for himself and Broly, handing a pair of chopsticks for Broly to hold in his hand. Broly viewed the small sticks the same way he's viewed many new things since they met him. Abject curiosity with complete obliviousness.
"Might as well make the best of this. Dig in!" Lemo said, and Cheelai put her hands together to give her thanks for the meal. Broly observed Cheelai holding the utensils without difficulty and tried to replicate her technique. He sighed when the sticks broke in his hand.
Fetching a new pair, Cheelai eased them into Broly's hands. "Hold them like this," she instructed. She could see him watching her patiently but remarked with her eyes at how rough his hands were to the touch, even through her gloves. It was hard for her to match such a gentle face to a pair of hands that had known nothing but violence and destruction. She helped him pinch a portion of the meat in between the sticks, and after a couple of failed attempts, Broly was able to hold one of them successfully. As she guided his hands to his mouth, Cheelai's eyes met his for a moment. Those purple-colored eyes brought a smile to Broly's face when he stared at them.
"Here goes nothing," Cheelai said once she was sure Broly had a handle on "handling" the chopsticks. Blowing on her portion, she brought it to her mouth. A few bites later, she swallowed, blinking. It was remarkable how different it tasted solid than when it was gel-like. Even better was the second bite! She stared at Lemo, astonished. "Wow! It's surprisingly edible! We were right to cook this all along! C'mon Lemo, don't be a stranger!" she told him.
Lemo took a deep breath and bit into his portion. He spat it back out. "Blech! It's still terrible!" he shouted. He dusted the taste off his tongue and shoved his plate over to Cheelai. "Here, since you seem to enjoy it so much."
"Don't mind if I do! Piloting an asteroid field builds up a huge appetite!" she said as she transferred Lemo's portions to her plate. Both she and Broly ate the rest of it.
She wiped her mouth and tapped her stomach. "That hit the spot," she said. She noticed Lemo back to work on the healing capsule.
"I'm glad you like it at least," Lemo scoffed. "But, I'd rather cook something less disgusting. Whatever Earth food that Goku fella gave us has to taste a thousand times better. I aim to see what I come up with starting tomorrow."
"Sure, whatever," Cheelai said, turning to Broly. "Hey, you thirsty?"
Broly wiped around his mouth any bits that he missed and sucked on his finger to get it all in. He noticed Cheelai looking up at him. "Thirsty. Like when you gave me water?"
"Yeah," Cheelai said. She pointed back to the Capsule house. "There's a fridge bound to have something good in it. I noticed they had bottles of juice, water, some sort of sports drink. They also have beer if you're interested," she said, emphasizing the word with a smug grin.
"Really, Cheelai?" Lemo said. "You want to get Broly drunk?"
"What is this beer?" Broly asked. Even at her full height, Cheelai was still at eye-level with Broly as he sat cross-legged. At least this way doesn't force her to crane her neck up to talk to him.
"The nectar of the gods!" she said excitedly. She ran inside as Lemo made a disgusted sound in his throat. He put the finishing touches on the capsule, wiping his hands together. "All done here! Let's get this thing ready to roll as soon as possible!" he shouted.
Cheelai came back with an armful of cans, almost dropping a couple. She sat on her knees, laying them out before her. Grabbing two cans of beer, she pulled back the tab to open one, sipping off the foam that spilled out before passing it to Broly. After opening her can, she tapped it against the one she gave Broly. "Cheers!" she sang.
Chugging the entire contents of the can, she unloaded a loud belch, earning a grimace from Lemo. "You don't know how long that's been!" she sighed happily. She could see that Broly was still holding the can in his hand, tapping it with his finger a couple of times. "Go ahead, give it a try!" she nudged the beer can in Broly's hand up to his mouth.
Broly flinched after taking in the strong scent of barley. He sniffed it again. He then grimaced after taking a sip, passing it back. Cheelai chuckled as she took it off his hand. "I don't like it," he told her.
Cheelai shrugged as she chugged the other can whole. "More for me, then!" she said.
"Slow down, would ya? I ain't carrying you if you pass out on me!" Lemo complained, but Cheelai waved him off.
"You don't know my tolerance, lightweight!" she yelled, leering at him with a grin. She wanted to showcase some of her strength by crushing the can against her forehead, but decided to compose herself to avoid drawing Lemo's annoying stare. "So, Broly, given any thought as to what you want to do when we find a new planet?" she asked the Saiyan.
"I don't know," he said. Cheelai could see that the decision to leave Vampa still weighed heavily on his shoulders, even more so by the look in his eyes.
"You're reluctant to leave because of the memories you have of your dad and your friend?" she remarked, and Broly's brow furrowed a moment. "Sorry, I guess it's still too soon to talk about it, huh?"
"No," Broly shook his head. "Father told me not to mourn or grieve if something were to ever happen to him. A Saiyan prides himself on fighting, and death is only a natural part of that. We must be proud of our power."
Cheelai could understand where he was coming from, even though she disagreed with the whole notion of trying to control one's grief. "Broly, you don't need to be afraid to express how you feel," she said. "I know you loved your father, despite what he put you through."
He closed his eyes. It was clear her suggestion to go through the process of grief should come naturally. Yet the single tear gliding down his cheek indicated she'd need to change the subject before things escalated. She gently tapped him on the shoulder, pointing to the Capsule house.
"My room has a television with a movie player attached. Care to join me in watching a few movies?"
Broly wiped the tear away. "What are movies?" he asked.
Cheelai wanted to chastise him for not knowing such a simple thing but then remembered that his entire life had been spent on this planet doing nothing but eat, sleep, and train with his father. She thought of the best way to explain this and nodded with a grin on her face.
"It's like a story shown through moving pictures. It can either be funny, dramatic, packed with lots of action and fighting, or scary! I love scary movies because they get funnier the more times I watch them!"
"Count me out," Lemo piped in. "Never been a fan of those." Lemo crossed his arms, leaning against the healing capsule, and Cheelai approached him.
"Oh, really? I bet you're the kind of guy who can't keep his eyes open for more than five minutes at the goriest parts," she said, poking him in the chest, and Lemo went red in the face, scowling at her.
"Go watch your stupid movies already!" Lemo shouted, shoving a giggling Cheelai back to the Capsule house. "Broly, I'll have this set up and ready to go as quickly as I can."
"If you're still thirsty, there's a bottle of water over there!" Cheelai called behind her as she strolled back into the house.
"Okay," Broly said. He took the leftover parts of the dead beetle and threw them over the precipice into a ravine below where other bugs were there to devour them whole. He caught sight of one of the beasts poking its head out from its nesting ground and wondered if that was Ba, except the beast still had both ears.
Beyond the beast nests and bug herds was a giant mound that moved from under the ground. Broly knew what was crawling around under that mound and hoped his new friends would never have to encounter such a thing.
After removing her body armor, gloves, and boots, Cheelai lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling. The beige color reminded her of her orphanage's dull, drab ceilings where she grew up before escaping to become a street urchin. Living that lifestyle opened up opportunities for her to sneak into the local theater without paying for a ticket. She soon discovered how amazing movies were, especially the scary ones.
Films brought her comfort. If she hadn't dedicated her life to thieving and survival, she would've pursued an acting career, eventually settling down with a handsome gentleman to start a family. She leaned forward and rifled through a selection of tapes that had movies pre-selected for them when given the capsule house. Several of these movies looked a lot like something she had seen countless times before selecting a slasher flick from the pile. "Here we go," she said, reading the title. "Wrath of The Mad Butcher, Part 4. Not quite part one, but eh, who's complaining?"
She slid the tape in the movie player, pushing play to make it appear on the television screen. Retrieving an opened bag of chips from the floor amidst a pile of dirty clothes, she ate from it while watching the movie, laughing at certain parts.
Broly helped unload more items that were stashed with the container in the back of their ship. Canisters full of healing solution were off-loaded while Lemo turned a few knobs and adjusting dials so that everything would function flawlessly. He hooked the healing capsule to the power generator and double-checked to make sure everything worked. He opened the door and nodded to Broly.
"Alright, big guy, ready to feel like a million credits again?" he asked. Before Broly could ask what that turn of phrase meant, both were alerted to a scream from inside the Capsule house, specifically Cheelai's room. Lemo screamed himself from the sudden shock while Broly's eyes lit up, sensing danger. "Cheelai!"
He bolted to the house, ducking underneath the doorway to enter. Rather than open the door normally, Broly was too worried to act rationally and instead kicked the whole thing off its hinges, sending it flying back.
Moments before Broly broke through, Cheelai was in the middle of an intense moment where the Mad Butcher had his sights set on his latest victim. He was about to come down with his meat cleaver.
Cheelai's scream was louder than that of the victim in the movie. She stared at Broly, mortified. "What the HELL are you doing?!" she screeched, hand pressed to her chest.
Lemo ran in and stopped short of crashing into Broly. "Aw crap," he muttered once he saw the broken door.
Broly scanned the room frantically, worry all over his face. "Are you in danger?!" he shouted.
Cheelai glared at him. "Of course I'm not in danger, you dumbass! You broke my door!"
Realization faded into Broly's face when he saw no one else in the room aside from Cheelai. "I-I heard a scream," Broly said. He looked away, red in the face.
"I TOLD you I was watching a scary movie! Of course, there's going to be screaming!" she yelled. Broly hung his head.
Lemo sighed. "My bad, Cheelai. I'll shoulder the blame on this one. I didn't react in time to stop him."
Cheelai took her alarm clock from the nightstand and threw it full force, almost hitting him in the head if he hadn't ducked at the last second. "There's a clock, Lemo! Maybe it'll help you calculate your reaction time better! NOW GET OUT!"
Lemo quickly scurried off, crawling out of the room before Cheelai could hit him with another flying object. Broly swallowed, looking anxiously at her. She shifted her penetrating stare at him now. He had all the look of a scolded puppy walking slowly away with its tail tucked between its legs.
The whole incident threw her entirely out of her mood. Snatching the remote on the dresser to shut the movie off, she slipped on her boots and stormed out of the house, almost bumping into Broly.
Broly watched her walk away and frowned. "It isn't safe for her to venture out. The beetles will pick up on her scent soon," he said to Lemo.
Lemo sighed. "It's not a good idea to approach a woman when she's pissed, big guy. But if you really insist on testing your luck, be my guest," he said and went in the house to grab Cheelai's coat, tossing it to him. "Here, it'll get chilly soon."
Broly followed Cheelai's trail to the top of the butte. He found her sitting down, arms wrapped around herself, shivering.
She gasped when he draped her coat around her. She spun around in a panic, backing away, but sighed out of frustration when she saw it was Broly. She was back on her feet, slipping into her coat. "Will you stop doing that?!" she yelled.
"I'm sorry," he said, red in the face. He could see that what he was doing was making things worse. Before he turned around, Cheelai sighed heavily, muttering to herself. "Damn it all...," she whispered. "Broly, wait a moment."
She still looked angry, but at least she sounded stable. Zipping up her coat, she took a deep breath to calm herself down.
"God, how are you not cold?" she muttered, rubbing her arms through the fabric. All she could see of Broly were those purple pants, boots, and Ba's ear tied around his waist, along with those nasty scars decorating his body.
"I did not intend to make you angry," Broly said with a great deal of remorse in his voice.
Cheelai paused, sighing. The look of guilt on his face made her feel embarrassed. "No, you didn't do it on purpose. I overreacted," she said. She craned her neck, looking up. "I wasn't in danger. That was the movie I was watching."
"You were not screaming?" Broly asked. Cheelai shook her head.
"No. Scary movies always have people screaming before the killer butchers them with his weapon. If I'm ever in actual danger, I'll call for you," she said.
"I understand," he said.
She brandished her "OK" gesture with a grin. "Glad we got that cleared up," she said, relieved.
"I broke your door," Broly said as he was sheepishly holding his arm with his other hand.
The amount of regret in both his face and in his words lessened her anger to where she began to feel sorry for the poor guy. "It-It's okay. I've no doubt Lemo can fix it up tomorrow. He's probably one of those jack-of-all-trades kinds of guy. Even better, he can cook delicious bug meat!" she chuckled, pointing at the ground below with a smirk and a wink. "Those beetles better watch out."
"I like the sound that comes out of your mouth. It sounds good to me," Broly said.
Cheelai went red in the cheeks. "You mean my laugh? W-well, I laugh when something's funny! You should laugh too; it's good for your health!" she told him.
"Laughing," Broly repeated, thinking it over. Cheelai had her hand on his arm.
"Tell you what. Tomorrow I'll help you get in a good belly laugh. How about that?" she offered.
Broly's "OK" sign looked more accurate when he showed it to her, even if it still needed some practice. "I will try and laugh from my stomach," he said. Cheelai barked a laugh, immediately covering her mouth out of embarrassment.
"I'm sorry! I shouldn't laugh at that!" she said, stifling a few giggles. "A belly laugh is a loud feel-good laugh that you feel in your stomach, instead of coming out of your stomach. That's why it's called a belly laugh."
"Then I wish to do that," Broly said.
They stared at each other amidst the silence and gusts across the top of the butte. Cheelai realized she couldn't stop smiling as she looked into his eyes. When she could see how red Broly's cheeks looked, she cleared her throat.
"Um, we probably shouldn't keep Lemo waiting. And I don't want to freeze my butt off up here. So care to lead me back?" she said nervously. Broly lifted her with one arm, pushing off from the ground to fly casually around the butte.
As they drifted in the air, Cheelai studied the ground below. "Hey, Broly…?"
Broly glanced down at her. "Would you be able to show me more of Vampa tomorrow? Like, while we're flying this high up in the air?" she asked.
"I can do that," Broly said, landing by the Capsule house.
"Awesome. Maybe Vampa won't look so bad from high up?" she wondered. She at least hoped it wasn't. If they stayed on Vampa for too long, their desperation would become so great that they'd consider living in their ship as they flew across space to find a new planet. The worst-case scenario for them would be to go back to that Earth planet they traveled to with Freeza, but that wasn't in Cheelai's consideration, not when those space cops were roaming around.
Once Cheelai was on the ground, Lemo was waiting for them, pointing to the door laid against the outer wall.
"Doesn't look too damaged. I'll have it fixed up by mid-afternoon tomorrow," he said. He opened the door to the healing capsule. "Well, big guy, as we were?"
Broly ducked his head to enter. The tube was long enough to incorporate the Saiyan's full height, forcing Lemo to reach up to attach everything he needed to monitor Broly's vitals. After affixing a breathing mask to his face, he secured the door shut. Broly closed his eyes as the liquid began filling the whole tube, saturating him with the cool soothing sensation of the healing solution.
Lemo double-checked the display beside the capsule and nodded, turning to Cheelai. "Should take about half an hour, but he'll be up and at it good as new," he said.
Cheelai breathed a sigh. She pulled Lemo into a hug, surprising him. "Thank goodness! You have no idea how much this means to me, Lemo!"
"Uh, sure. Can you let me go, please?" Lemo said. Cheelai released her hold, watching Broly through the glass with a content look. "You hear that, Broly? You'll be good as new," she whispered, touching the glass with her palm.
Cheelai retired to her bedroom once Broly recovered. She changed into a shirt and a pair of boxers, replacing the Mad Butcher with a boring romance movie to help lull her to sleep. Lemo's bed was in the living room by the kitchen while Broly stayed outside like a sentry, monitoring beetle activity below.
The beetles ignored the elevated rock formations to feast off their beast buffet. Broly watched them from the precipice, resting his hand on Ba's ear. It was the first time he had ever felt alone, despite his new friends close by. The void left by his father's death was still fresh in his mind, causing him to shed silent tears as he stared across the dangerous Vampa landscape.