Chapter 6 – Fever Dreams

Time seemed non-existent for Cheelai as she sat beside Broly. Nurses came in and out of the room to either change his bandages, keep his temperature down, or change his I.V. They were like a blur to her since all that held meaning was Broly's hand, sandwiched between both of hers.

Fight this, Broly. I know you can. Cheelai tightened her grip. His brow furrowed in response.

"Fight it, Broly," she whispered, kissing the back of his hand.

The Saiyan shifted in his sleep, grunting in a low voice. "Broly…?" Cheelai said. He began mumbling something inaudible, but at least she could hear his voice again. "Fa…ther…," was about all she could make out.

"Father," Broly repeated. His grunts and breaths were increasing as he shook his head.

"Broly, it's okay. I'm right here," Cheelai told him. She sought a nurse, only to realize she was alone with him in the room. There were fresh bags of ice to keep his fever down, yet his face was still hot to the touch. Wrapping several cubes within a cold washcloth, she dabbed at Broly's face. "Come on, Broly. You're a Saiyan. That has to mean something," she whispered. "Fight back."

She hated herself for forcing those words out, but she knew it was inevitable that this was a fight Broly needed to win. "This is nothing to you. You got that?" she said more sternly.

"Fa…ther…," Broly mumbled again. "Father, don't…!"

She could only imagine so many things going through his mind right now, not any of them good. "If I could be there in those dreams of yours, I'd fight with you," she whispered to him, brushing his hair back to make more room for the cold washcloth.

Another grunt, louder this time, shook the washcloth out of her hand. She quickly re-applied it to his face.

"Father…! Ba…!" Broly said, adding more to what she believed could mean either a dream or a memory of his friend.

"Ba…."

"Ba…!"

"Ba…!"

It was Vampa, clear as day. Broly ran and jumped across the terrain, avoiding beetles and beasts to meet the one he befriended.

"Ba…" the beast purred as he saw Broly approach him. The Saiyan laughed, jumping to fly in the air. Ba moved his body around, attempting to grab Broly with his teeth. The Saiyan avoided them, flying around to dodge as Ba twisted to keep up.

"Ba! Over here!" Broly shouted, firing a few small energy blasts. Ba caught them in his mouth like pellets before Broly used his head to propel himself via a handstand. Broly continued laughing and flying until a stray blaster bolt flew dangerously close to him, cutting their playtime short.

"That's enough, Broly! Get down here at once!" someone shouted from below. "What did I say about wasting time with those things?"

Broly landed but was reluctant to move any closer. He didn't like the words this man kept saying to him and Ba. He claimed to be his father, but how could he know? His name was Paragus, and that both he and Broly were Saiyans. Their matching tails were an indicator that there was some truth behind it.

He barely remembered anything from before he woke up inside a strange pod full of cold air. The first message he heard was "cryo-sleep cycle terminated. Wake up, Broly."

"You fight and kill them, son! Playtime is for the weak!" Paragus barked. Playtime with Ba helped take his mind off the strange behavior of those beetles feeding off the large beasts with their long tongues. All this interruption was annoying him.

"Now, fight me, son. Show me the power we will use to avenge ourselves against King Vegeta!" he ordered. Paragus's idea of "playtime" involved hitting with his hands and feet. Broly wasn't as thrilled about it, but if it kept Paragus occupied, he might as well get it over with.

Broly opened the assault by flying straight at him. An incredible power surged whenever he engaged with Paragus, a power he could not understand. Only he could feel it erupting within his body whenever things started to happen that he didn't like. He moved to strike, but his inexperience at fighting clearly showed. The older Saiyan caught his punches and countered them, sending Broly back to the ground. "You have more power than this! Again!" Paragus shouted.

Their fighting continued until Broly could sense a haze fogging his mind. Things blurred in his field of vision, diminishing themselves to nothing more than silhouettes. They were strange, frightening objects. In his fear, he could no longer fight the urge to make those objects go away. His ears amplified all sounds around him, including the growl in his throat. Everything escalated until it went dark.

The first clear image he saw was his father's back, standing like a sentry overlooking a distant valley below. Broly gained a feel for his surroundings, a tall plateau with many holes in the column. The sight of broken-off legs from those giant beetles made Broly's stomach rumble. He voraciously dug into the golden gel-like substance, stuffing handfuls into his mouth.

"You're up again. Good," Paragus said, turning around. He grabbed a leg for himself, watching Broly as he ate.

Broly didn't say much, opting instead to eat quietly. "Your power is unstable when you're past the threshold of your anger," Paragus explained. "You waste all your stamina at once. That's why you pass out too quickly."

"Pass…out…?" Broly asked. "Yes," Paragus replied. "You're no good to me unconscious. We must fix that as soon as possible if you're going to be an effective warrior. Tomorrow, we will hunt and kill one of the giant beasts."

Paragus tossed the hollowed-out shell aside. He wiped his mouth, expecting an answer from Broly. "Did you not hear what I said?"

Broly glared for a while longer until he looked away. Hunting wasn't fun. It wasn't playtime. He'd rather spend time with Ba than with this man who angered him with his words and aggressive gestures.

The first chance he would get, he'd sneak off to find Ba and rest beside him. At least Ba's soft green fur was better to sleep on than this jagged rocky surface.

"In any case, get some sleep, my son. You'll need your strength," Paragus said.

After thwarting an ambush from a herd of beetles that woke them in the middle of the night, they stowed away the broken legs to be consumed later once they were awake again, ready to tackle another dangerous day on Vampa until Paragus's distress call was answered.

Broly pretended to sleep, keeping one eye open and hidden until he was certain Paragus was in a deep slumber. He crawled away, keeping his body low to avoid making noise until he reached a far enough distance. Confident enough to stand, he leaped to fly away, searching for Ba's energy.

Mastering energy-sensing came naturally once he began exploring the planet. He couldn't explain it, yet he gained a different sense of strength from the beetles as he killed one of them. They had the energy and scent of hunter-killers, creatures with the sole purpose of preying upon smaller creatures for food.

As he singled out some of the larger Vampa beasts, the one he named Ba had a different scent to him than the others. Ba was still an aggressive creature but didn't seem to mind playing around whenever Broly would visit. The bond they shared was unique, but it also helped Broly learn how to familiarize himself with his power as far as the basics were concerned. Techniques such as flying and high-speed movements became second nature, yet he couldn't wrap his head around this well of power that only surfaces when he sees or hears something he doesn't like.

"Ba," Broly said, keeping his voice low. The creature's energy matched its scent, allowing the boy to distinguish him from the other beasts on the planet. Ba's ears perked up at the sound of Broly's voice and opened his red eyes, grinning a set of teeth at him.

"Follow," Broly said, signaling the beast to move. It did as Broly expected, but Ba moved only as far as his body would allow. Broly kept running away, expecting the beast to stay close behind, but all he could hear was what sounded like a low guttural whimper. "Ba…?"

He could see that Ba was still within his nesting crater. He flew back, confused. "You can't follow?" he asked.

The beast uttered another guttural whine before shifting back to the middle. Broly searched the beast's massive coat of fur for appendages, lifting to search underneath.

There were no arms or legs from what he could discern of the creature. Instead, a single central appendage was ingrained within the soil, merged with Ba. Broly didn't like seeing Ba stuck like this. He crawled to the center and growled as he tried pulling at the appendage to free Ba.

He hoped it would budge, but all it did was make Ba cry low growls of pain. Those howls of discomfort escalated until Broly was forced to stop. He crawled back out from under the fur coat.

Ba's face looked different. His eyes were closed, and his smile was gone. It whimpered some more, shaking its head. "You can't move…?" Broly asked. Ba kept shaking his head as if agreeing. "I will stop."

Pain was a word he heard Paragus use before. Pain must be the right word to match Ba's face. Broly realized he was causing pain to Ba, trying to free him from his crater.

"Ba…," the creature purred, only it still sounded full of discomfort. Broly approached the beast and ran his hand through its fur, soothing it. "Pain is bad for us, Ba," he said. Ba's low growl agreed with him. Curling up by the base of the beast, Broly let out a yawn, which was matched by Ba's until both slept comfortably next to each other…

Cheelai continued dabbing Broly's face with the cold washcloth, watching his pained expressions. A pair of nurses entered the room with a tray full of medical accessories. All this strange Earthly technology was still foreign to her.

"Still no break in his fever," said one of them after she took his temperature. Cheelai winced at the sight of the open wound after the old bandages came off, peeled away from the sickly blackened blood that made her want to rush to the bathroom and vomit. She covered her mouth, closing her eyes.

"Do you need anything? Something to help soothe your stomach?" said the other nurse as she cleaned the wound and applied fresh bandages around his shoulder and torso. Cheelai shook her head. "I think I'll be fine," she told her.

Broly's growls as the nurse cleaned his wound alarmed Cheelai, causing her to leave her seat. "Stop, you're hurting him!" she shouted. The outburst surprised the nurses.

"Your friend will be fine, Miss," said the one with the bandage. "But we need to keep this clean so that we can administer the viral blocker agent."

"I still don't know what the hell all of this is," Cheelai said, sighing. "These things hooked to Broly's body, viral blocking whatever-they-are. Tell me he's going to survive."

The nurse with the bandage had a stern expression, but it had the confidence of a professional at work. She stared Cheelai straight in the eye, not blinking once. "He is going to survive."

Cheelai gulped. Sometimes these women looked scary when they were serious. She quickly sat down again and took Broly's hand in hers, stroking it. "You hear that, Broly? You're going to survive."

After they changed his bandages, they injected a couple of things through the I.V. line before leaving. "Call us if anything changes," the bandage nurse said in passing.

"Ba…," Broly mumbled.

"Broly?"

"Ba…! Father…don't…!" Broly's voice growled. Cheelai jerked her hand away before the Saiyan could grip it tightly, worried he would crush it under his strength. The last thing she needed on top of watching over Broly was nursing a broken hand. She touched his face, ignoring the heat. "Broly, it's going to be okay. You're having a bad dream," she told him.

Broly's voice was a mixture of anguish and rage, ready to burst at a moment's notice. "Ba…Ba…!"

A stray blaster bolt was loud enough to wake Broly from his sleep, still curled next to Ba. He opened his eyes to see Paragus stalk towards him on Ba's body. The footsteps woke the beast, but the older Saiyan didn't care enough to notice. He pulled Broly away. "Idiot boy! How many times do I need to repeat myself?!" Paragus shouted.

Ba's growls rumbled in his throat, glaring at him. Paragus responded by aiming his blaster at the beast, narrowing his eyes. "This doesn't concern you."

Broly struggled to free himself, fighting back with punches and kicks that Paragus blocked, deflecting his limbs away with his blaster. "That's enough! A Saiyan warrior doesn't flail his arms and legs like a weakling! Your power must come forth through every punch and kick!"

One of Broly's kicks did have more power behind it as it connected against Paragus's jaw. He released his grip on Broly's arm, but rather than look upset, he smirked.

"That's it, son. Just like that," Paragus said. "Again!"

"No!" Broly shouted back.

"What?"

"No!"

Broly's defiance mocked Paragus. The smirk disappeared, leaving on a cold pair of eyes that glared at his son. "Pathetic," the Saiyan grunted.

He walked off Ba's fur, climbing out of the crater. He then aimed his blaster directly at Broly. "You've gone soft on me, boy! There's no excuse for that on this wasteland! A Saiyan's one and only rule must be enforced, no matter what!"

Broly crouched, growling at the face of his father. He was on his hands and knees, ready to pounce like an animal.

"If only the full moon were here sooner," Paragus said, glancing up at the sky. "I wouldn't need to resort to my power ball to set this boy straight."

Before Paragus could take his next action, Broly was on the move. He flew in to fight his father, moving aggressively. "Hmph," Paragus grunted. "Still acting stubborn, boy?"

Broly knocked the blaster out of Paragus's hand with a kick. It was like before. His power was welling up inside, ready to burst once again. The images before him became hazy and hard to decipher. His father was angering him.

"Good! Use your anger, my son!" Paragus shouted. Those words troubled Broly, yet he was too enthralled in this power to feel anything else.

Varying sounds were still clear in his mind. His father's voice saying those words that made him feel this power, the creatures growing restless in response to the scuffle, but when he could hear Ba's menacing growl, it sounded wrong. He didn't like what his father was doing in front of his friend.

Broly shook off another hit from his father, only to see him avoid Ba's mouth. He growled and burst from the ground to fly towards his father.

"Broly! What are you doing?!" Paragus shouted as he blocked and countered with a heavy hit to Broly's face, knocking him back to the ground. "Your enemy is before you! Attack it! Kill it!"

"Ba is not my enemy!" Broly shouted, wiping a trickle of blood from his mouth. "Ba is my friend!"

Paragus's stern expression morphed into a sadistic grin as he turned to face Ba. "Saiyans don't make friends. Saiyans survive by one rule." He aimed his blaster at Ba. "It's kill or be killed. Us, or them."

He fired. The blaster bolt sliced Ba's ear completely off his head. Broly's eyes widened at the sight of the ear flying off, floating to the ground via a gust of wind.

Ba's agony resonated with cries of pain and rage. Broly watched the beast thrash his head around, howling at the air.

Broly reached out with his hand, but the creature that was once his friend lost all sense of reason, dwindled to nothing more than another snarling beast like the others. Ba continued to thrash around its crater.

It seemed to seep through to Broly's adult self on the bed as his hands gripped into fists. "Broly…?" Cheelai said, anxiously leaving her chair to hover over him. "Broly, stop! It's only a bad dream! You need to calm down!"

His growls escalated into howls into screams. The room jolted in response to the bubbling aura that emanated from his body.

"Broly!" she yelled, pushing him against the bed. "Broly, you need to listen to my voice! I'm asking you to stop!"

Her breathing began to shake. Her voice wasn't reaching him again. "Why can't you hear me?!" she screamed. She tapped Broly on the chest and his face. "Broly! Stop this! You're in no position to get angry! You're going to kill yourself doing this!"

A burst of his aura knocked Cheelai back. Her body was thrown across the room, sliding along the wall until she crashed head-first into a table. Slumped on the floor, she crawled slowly back towards the bed, holding her head. "Broly…!" she said groggily.

Two men appeared before her in the middle of the room. Her vision cleared enough to recognize Goku and Vegeta, who rushed to suppress Broly's movement.

"What happened?!" Goku shouted as Cheelai hobbled along the wall, using it for support. She ignored the lump on her head, pointing weakly at Broly. "Broly…he's having a bad dream…," she whispered.

"Dammit, how is he still this strong despite his wound?!" Vegeta bellowed, holding Broly's torso down from the non-injured side. Goku applied his arm strength to pin Broly's legs. "Are you alright?" he asked Cheelai.

Another wave of dizziness nearly caused her to faint. The sensation of vertigo was going to trip her forward into Broly's bed if she hadn't caught the metal bar at the last moment. "I…I'll be fine…," she mumbled.

She could see the call button for the nurse and was willing to press it. But what could they do to help soothe an enraged Saiyan in his current condition? Instead, she reached for Ba's ear and began untying it. There were many times she needed to pause, worrying she might lose consciousness. She fought against it to free Ba's ear from Broly's waistline.

"I," she began to say but was met with another wave of dizziness. If only the room would stop spinning so much! "I think I know what he's dreaming about."

She breathed heavily, drooping forward. Vegeta caught her arm before she slumped forward, holding her steady. "Thanks," she whispered.

Releasing Ba's ear, she pulled it from under the Saiyan's thrashing body, pinned to the mattress with all the strength Goku and Vegeta could muster in their base form. She tried grabbing Broly's hand to take hold of the ear, but it was moving around too wildly to get a good hold of it. She was also worried he might accidentally hit her again.

"Help me get this in his hand," she said to Vegeta, offering the pelt to him. Vegeta released his hold on Broly's shoulder and snagged his flailing arm to hold his hand down. "Got it!" he shouted.

"Broly, please listen to me," Cheelai said, her voice still low. "Remember him, Broly. Remember Ba and how good he must've been to you."

She bunched the ear into Broly's hand and clamped his fingers around it. Broly's grip tightened on the ear, which Cheelai took as a hopeful sign it reached his subconscious. "Please work," she whispered before she slumped against the wall.

Cheelai couldn't remember how long she was out for, only waking up to see both Lemo and Bulma staring at her. Bulma eased a bag of ice off her head.

"Whuh…?"

Cheelai shielded her eyes from the brightness. Bulma took her hand and guided it to the bag of ice to rest it on her head again. "How many fingers am I holding up?" Bulma asked as she held her hand in front of her.

"T-two," Cheelai said. Bulma shined a small flashlight in each eye before clicking it off. "Good, you don't have a concussion," Bulma concluded.

"Is Broly…?" Cheelai asked. "Woah there, don't get up," Lemo replied quickly, holding her down on the chair. He guided her hand to a glass of water. "Small sips."

"Broly's calmed down and heavily sedated, thank goodness," Bulma said, glancing behind her. Cheelai's vision cleared enough to see that Goku and Vegeta were still in the room with them. "Broly…I need to be there for him…," she whispered, but Lemo held her down.

"Sorry, kiddo, you're in no condition to do anything right now," he told her, but that only made Cheelai angrier. "But he needs me by his s-ow!" The yelling sent a wave of pain and dizziness through her head. Leaning forward, she breathed a heavy sigh. The bag of ice fell from Cheelai's hand, only for Lemo to catch it. "I know, Cheelai," he said calmly, easing the bag back on the lump.

"Here, let's lie you down on this other bed," Bulma said as she helped Cheelai to her feet. Guiding her to the bed beside Broly's, Cheelai climbed onto the mattress. She couldn't keep her eyes off Broly, which only forced Bulma to turn her head the other way. "Get some rest."

"But-"

"I mean it," Bulma said gently but sternly. "Keep that on your head and stay on this bed. We'll look after Broly."

Bulma and Lemo adjusted the pillow under Cheelai's head. The comfort of the mattress and pillow, coupled with fatigue from stress, gradually eased her back to sleep.

"Thank goodness I was out of the kitchen at the right time when this happened," Lemo said but wanted to scold himself for focusing too much on his cooking rather than check on the two of them. It was not that difficult to prioritize what was important for the rest of the day. Of course, Cheelai would need to rest her head and keep the swelling down, but it was clear to him now that leaving her alone with Broly was proving more of a headache than the one she'll wake up with.

"Did you want to go back to the kitchen, Lemo? I can stay here and look after Cheelai. Vegeta? Have you finished gathering all the ingredients?" Bulma asked, looking behind her.

"I will once I obtain the last two," he told her. "We'll need someone else to stay here to look after Broly."

He gave an obvious look to Goku, who pointed to himself. "Me?"

"Who else? We're the only ones here strong enough to pin him down should he ever get angry again," Vegeta said. Goku pulled up a chair at the foot of Broly's bed and spun it around, sitting so he could rest his arms on the head of the chair while looking at him. Both Saiyans noticed how tightly Broly was clutching the green pelt in his hand.

"In any case," Bulma told them. "If you plan on doing some training, you'll need to hold off on that until Broly's cured of that virus. Once Vegeta comes back, I'll have the anti-virus ready by morning. I'll go order the nurses to prepare some restraints, just in case."

"We'll switch once I'm back," Vegeta told Goku before he exited the room. Lemo made a small adjustment to the bag of ice so it could stay on Cheelai's head without slipping off.

For the most part, Lemo ignored Goku. He examined the bump on her head periodically and noticed that the swelling had gone down until it was barely noticeable. That was a relief for now.

The other relief was that Broly hadn't shown signs of agitation again, which allowed him to shift his chair to watch for any change while scoffing at Goku for falling asleep, resting his head on his arms.

Cheelai's eyes opened slowly, sometime later. "Lemo…?"

"Yeah, still here, kiddo," he told her. "Feelin' better?"

"I think so," she said, keeping her voice low. "Has Broly…?"

"Freaked out? Nah," Lemo said, shaking his head. "Big guy's been sleeping like a boulder since you zonked out."

"Thank goodness," she whispered. She glanced over to see Goku napping on his chair and frowned. "Why is he here?"

"To make sure Broly doesn't tear the room apart," Lemo said, getting a look from her. "You know, just in case."

"Uh-huh," Cheelai said. She didn't know what was worse, the headache from crashing into a table head-first or the headache of sharing a room with Goku. "Sure, let's leave the safety of our dear friend to the Sleeping Saiyan over here," she added sarcastically. She grabbed the bag of ice that was still on her head and tossed it to the foot of the bed in a huff.

"That's enough," Lemo said sternly. "You're laying all the blame, when there shouldn't be, on the foot of the one who saved Broly from certain death. Holding a grudge is not going to make things better any time soon."

"None of this would've happened if he hadn't shown up in the first place," Cheelai said, her voice rising. It only aggravated the pain that throbbed in her head.

"None of this," Lemo said, pointing to Broly and the room, "would've happened if you hadn't tagged along and put your life on the line."

Cheelai glared at Lemo. "Are you saying this is my f-ow?!" she yelled, fighting off another stab of pain. The way Lemo shook his head showed both disappointment and alluding to a truth she had been avoiding yet knew it had a lot to do with the pain of losing Durien when she told Bulma her story. "I wanted to help him control his anger!"

"And in doing so made the situation worse!" Lemo replied. He nodded to Goku. "I was ready to let the big guy have a chance to understand his roots as a Saiyan by training with one of his own kind. But how can he do that if you put your needs before his?"

Cheelai scoffed loudly. She couldn't understand why Lemo didn't want to take her side after all they've been through. Why should he care what these Earth Saiyans want? The more she saw their nature, the more it disgusted her. She slid off the bed and glared at Goku, who was quite the heavy sleeper since their argument hadn't woken him up.

"Once Broly is healthy, I'm taking him with me off this rock to search for a new planet. I couldn't care less if you join us or not," she said coldly before storming out of the room.

"Cheelai!" Lemo called out to her, but it fell on deaf ears. Sighing, he caressed the bag of ice from the foot of the bed. He tossed it aside, grumbling under his breath. He brought his chair to Broly's bed, grimacing at the sight of the Saiyan's shoulder. It hadn't changed since he was brought in, which Lemo believed to be the viral blockers doing their job slowing down the virus that coursed through his body. He hoped it would slow it down enough for Bulma to administer the anti-viral agent before it reached his lungs and brain. Having that hole in his shoulder only made the sight worse for Lemo to stomach.

He patted Broly's arm. "You're made of tougher stuff than a lot of us, big guy," he told him. "I only hope Cheelai gets her bearings together before you're healthy again."

"Chee…lai…," Broly whispered.

Lemo raised an eyebrow. "Another dream…?" he mumbled.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Goku's brow furrow. He opened his eyes. "His energy just fluctuated there," Goku said.

"Is that bad?" Lemo asked.

"So far, all I could gauge of his energy is that it spikes when he's in a moment of emotional duress. It shoots way up when he's angry," Goku explained, which caused Lemo to back out of his chair.

"So it's bad, is what you're trying to tell me?" Lemo said. Goku didn't have any of that optimistic enthusiasm he had been accustomed to seeing when the Saiyan first showed his face on Vampa. He looked incredibly serious yet concerned.

"I can restrain him," Goku said. Lemo wasn't entirely certain how good Goku can restrain someone like Broly on his own, but he was left with few options. He nodded. "Alright, Goku. I'll take your word for it."

He stood with his arms crossed, watching for any signs of sudden movement on Broly's part. He hoped Cheelai didn't stray too far from the area if he needed her to join him to help calm him down. She insisted that her voice worked before, but how deep do Broly's emotional scars go from all the abuse he took from his father?

"She's…danger…."

"Danger…."

"Danger…!"

It was pitch dark where they were for the time being.

The light of a flame was all that illuminated the cave where Broly and Cheelai set up camp to escape the frigid cold wasteland. From outside, he could hear heavy blaster fire, too varied to pinpoint where it originated.

While the cold didn't bother him, all he could do was keep Ba's ear around Cheelai, whose ankle was bandaged after she had sprained it from running.

"The fire's almost out," she whispered, shivering. Broly inched himself closer, pulling her into his lap. He wrapped his large arms around her petite frame, holding her close to him. "I must keep you warm," Broly said, keeping his voice just as low.

"…enough to hold them off for another hour," said a gruff voice as an aged man entered the cave. "Broly, it's time. Let's get a move on."

"Father," Broly said. "She is injured."

"Then she's become excess baggage," his father, Paragus, said. "She'll only slow us down."

"She knows how to fight," Broly protested. "She can still fire her weapon."

"You let these inferior creatures domesticate you, son," Paragus scoffed. "Allow them to infect your pride, and you lose the will to fight."

Broly gave her another gentle hug, soothing her. Her hair felt smooth against his hand as he stroked it. She gave off a pleasant scent, a sweet, flowery scent that calmed him down. But what he liked the most about her were her purple eyes. He did not feel threatened by them but rather admiration. The camaraderie they established since Cheelai began serving the Saiyan's squadron did not sit well with Paragus. She wasn't a Saiyan like they were, yet she had the same determination, enough to convince their commanders.

Paragus often objected to Commander Vegeta and Commander Kakarrot, nagging that they prevented Broly from taking the front line in the assault.

"Still, she has been useful against Freeza's army," Paragus said of Cheelai, giving the shivering woman a look. He fed the flame with an energy blast to provide more warmth for her. "That will hold until we have a clear path ahead."

"I'm sorry. It was clumsy of me to sprain my ankle," Cheelai said with a chuckle. "But your father's right. I'll only hold you down."

"I will carry you," Broly said. "I will hold you on my back while you use your weapon to fight."

Cheelai blinked but shook her head. "Don't waste your energy on me in this state, Broly. I don't want to see you hurt at my expense."

Broly eased her towards the fire for her to get some warmth back. She stopped shivering, which was a relief, but something about what she said didn't sit well. "I will not be hurt," he told her. She glanced back at him, surprised. "I-I didn't mean to offend, Broly. I-."

"You underestimate Broly's strength," Paragus said sternly, glaring at her. "Do you not trust the power of a Saiyan warrior?"

"It's not that! I just," Cheelai said, but Paragus was right in her face. "Then you better get your head adjusted! No second guesses in our squadron, soldier! You either acknowledge the might of the Saiyan race, or you'll be cast away as a left-behind!"

Broly's brow furrowed. He felt a twitch in his muscles, feeling them grow under his skin. The words his father spoke vexed him. "I do not like these things you say to her, Father," he was able to make himself say, but by the looks of the blurring room, he was close to losing himself.

"Calm down, Broly!" Paragus said, retrieving a remote control from his belt pouch. He kept staring at Broly with his thumb hovering over a single large button.

Broly's eyes widened as his hands instinctively grasped the metallic collar around his neck. He gritted his teeth, expecting Paragus to press the button to send a powerful electric current through his body to subdue him. But the anticipation was enough to settle him down as his vision cleared. The wintry landscape from outside blew snow in the cavern against Paragus's back.

"Good," the older Saiyan said as he placed the remote back in his pouch. "I cannot afford to see you lose control during this war, not at this time. If we want to defeat Freeza and his army, we need your power under control. Cheelai and I will provide cover for you."

"I live to serve," Cheelai said with a bow of her head, saluting with her hand to her heart. "Though injured, I resolve to fight until I die."

Paragus smirked, stifling a small chuckle. "Perhaps I was wrong about this one," he said. He scanned the outside with his scouter. "Battle ratings continue to fluctuate, but it looks like the conflict is moving away from our location."

"Paragus, come in," said a voice from his scouter. "Go ahead, Commander Kakarrot," Paragus replied after pressing the communication button next to the reader.

"Status report," Kakarrot ordered. Paragus glanced over at Broly and Cheelai before he pressed the button on his scouter. "We're isolated in a cave for now. But, unfortunately, we have an injured soldier who insists she continues fighting with us."

"If she is strong of will, then she can still fight. Tend to her injury before moving out. We will rendezvous at point 7797," Kakarrot ordered before the communicator cut to static. Paragus regarded Cheelai's ankle and tested it. She grunted from the sudden intake of pressure but nodded back at him.

"It doesn't feel as bad as I thought," she said. She rose, testing her weight on her right foot. There was a noticeable limp, but she walked around the fire with relative ease. "See? I can keep up with you two." She passed Ba's ear back to Broly. "Thanks for letting me use that," she told him.

Tying the ear around his waist, Broly pushed a button on his scouter. "Our troops are moving northeast."

"Then that's where we'll go," Paragus said as he exited the cave first.

The blizzard added layers of snow along the ground, cushioning Cheelai's footsteps as she walked behind them. All they had to rely on to locate the others were the readings on their scouters. The blizzard was so fierce it blanketed the view with a sheet of white.

"Damn that Freeza!" Paragus yelled, but it was barely audible due to the fierce howling of the wind. They could still manage to pinpoint an exchange of blaster fire in the distance, yet it was difficult to decipher friend from foe without knowing where the battle was coming from. "He has the advantage of survivability in this frigid climate!"

"Isn't there a way to clear the path ahead with your energy attacks?!" Cheelai shouted. She grunted, shielding her face. Each step was slower than the next as her small frame took on more snow, burying her up to her knees.

The struggle to tread through such a thick layer of snow made her trip forward, falling through. She coughed and spluttered snow from her mouth and face, forcing Broly to stop.

"Cheelai!" he shouted, stomping through the snow to retrieve her. "Damn it all," she grunted. "This is more difficult without our vehicles to move around."

"A loss we'll have to compensate for!" Paragus shouted. He brushed snow aside as he got closer, staring at her. After a moment, he glanced at Broly. "Carry her."

"Yes, Father," Broly said and allowed Cheelai to climb up his back. "This is so embarrassing," she muttered to herself.

While the snow impeded Cheelai's movement, it only reached the Saiyan's ankles as they sprinted across the frigid landscape. Both of their scouters monitored battle readings while closing the distance.

"We're approaching their location!" Broly said after checking his scouter. "Good! We're making up for lost time!" Paragus shouted back.

They were also catching up to the blaster exchange, narrowly avoiding a few stray bolts. Cheelai aimed her blaster and fired back. The blowing winds muffled other noises outside of the blaster fire, so there was no way of knowing whether she hit her target or not. It was all she could do to fire, joined in by Broly firing energy blasts from his hand.

"Forget about the conflict!" Paragus shouted at the two. "We'll have the advantage once we've rejoined Vegeta and Kakarrot!"

Broly glanced back at Cheelai, who wasn't too thrilled to avoid the conflict. Since she joined the Saiyan fighting force, she boasted about her duty as a soldier, fighting to the end without anything stopping her. She released her grip on Broly and fell to the snow, using her good foot to land without causing herself additional pain. Both she and Broly exchanged nods.

"Go on, Father! We'll buy you some time!" he shouted.

"Don't be stupid, either of you!" Paragus bellowed. "Stand down! That's an order!"

"Standing down won't do us any good if we're hit by random blaster fire, Paragus!" Cheelai shouted back. "We'll make our stand here until the way is clear to return to our squadron!"

Paragus was still stern in his regard for this spry young woman but understood what she alluded to. He pushed the scanning button on his scouter. He waited until three blips were locked on.

"Adjust your aim, forty degrees northeast!" he instructed. Broly and Cheelai nodded. She adjusted her blaster slightly upward and opened fire. Broly did the same.

Once the three blips on the scouter had negative battle ratings, Paragus continued his scan. "Two more! Forty-five degrees south-by-southwest!"

"On it!" Cheelai shouted and opened fire at the new targets

"Paragus! Come in!" Vegeta's voice shouted from the scouter this time.

"We're on our way!" Paragus shouted back. "We're taking out a few of Freeza's soldiers!"

"Cease firing, you idiot! Those are our soldiers you're attacking!" Vegeta's voice boomed from the other end.

"What?!" Cheelai shouted. Both hers and Broly's faces looked as white as the blizzard.

"How can that be possible?!" Paragus said. "I identified Freeza soldier battle ratings!"

"They're using our soldiers as shields against our blaster fire!" Vegeta shouted back. "Captured soldiers are used to cover them while they're attacking us!"

Cheelai gasped. "That's horrible…!"

Broly closed his hands into fists, growling under his breath. Paragus shook his head. "No, son! We need to regroup before we can make use of your anger!"

"We…killed our own…!" Broly said, but the struggle to contain his rage was itself a battle.

"Broly, don't force my hand!" Paragus said, taking the remote out of his pouch. Cheelai glared at him. Without him reacting in time, she snatched it out of his hand.

"Stop treating him like a pet, Paragus!" she yelled.

"How dare you?!" Paragus yelled back. He lunged forward, attempting to take the remote back, but Cheelai tossed it far away into the snow. His eyes lit up in a fury. "You'll pay for that!"

With the back of his hand, he struck Cheelai across the face, knocking her down into the snow. He was ready to follow up with another blow when his arm was caught by Broly's hand. "Stand down!" Paragus yelled.

"Don't hurt her!" Broly growled, forcing his hand down to push his father into the snow.

"I need that remote! I can't afford to see you lose control! You'll kill all of us if you do!" Paragus pleaded, trying to push back against his son's incredible strength that had no end to how far it accelerated.

"Broly! That's enough!" Paragus continued as his scouter activated, with Broly's readings skyrocketing. It reached its apex before the device burst, whipping the Saiyan's head to the side.

Cheelai recovered enough to see that Broly was out of control again. "Broly! Listen to your father! You need to get your anger under control! Please, listen to us!" she shouted at him.

Broly shifted his enraged glare to her. His power continued to overwhelm Paragus as the Saiyan was submerged into the snow. Broly growled and snarled, lost in his rage now. He saw his father and friend before him, but they were no longer shaped like them. They were simply shadowy lumps to him.

What their scuffle was not aware of was the ongoing blaster fire closing in on them. Their lapse of judgment had given away their location. Before Broly could assault anyone, a large energy blast pierced his right shoulder.

Broly's breath caught in his throat as the energy beam struck him from behind. It was enough to snap him out of his rage-induced trance and get his bearings together to see what had happened.

Hovering above was a lone figure, laughing at them. "You should've listened to your superiors, Paragus! Now, look at what it cost you!"

Paragus shook the snow off as he rose to his feet. His jaw dropped. "Freeza…?!"

He quickly assessed the situation, only to notice that Broly staggered forward with a hole in his right shoulder and Cheelai's blaster slipping out of her hands.

Broly reached out to catch her, but she had already died from the impact of Freeza's energy blast, leaving a hole in her chest where her heart used to be.

That's when Broly screamed…

And screamed as his hand grabbed his injured shoulder, flailing on the bed violently. He looked ready to tear into his shoulder to dig out what was causing him so much anguish, yet his eyes were still closed.

The commotion woke Goku with a start. Both he and Lemo immediately rushed to him. Neither wanted to be kicked across the room from one of Broly's legs, so they ignored it to focus on pinning his upper body to the bed.

"Is this normal for Saiyans?" Lemo shouted, narrowly avoiding Broly's arm from striking him in the head. Normal was a poor choice of phrasing for him. Normal would imply that they slept without thrashing violently on their bed. He dared not delve further.

"We'll worry about that later!" Goku shouted. "Go get help! I'll handle this!"

"Right!" Lemo said and dashed out of the room. The moment he turned to run down the hall, he saw Cheelai glued to the wall, her face pale.

"You coming or not?" Lemo asked. He didn't have time to figure out why she was still loafing around by the door or why she suddenly looked like she saw a dead body, but the important thing was that he needed to find the nurses to help their friend.

"I can't," she mumbled.

"It doesn't matter!" Lemo said, grabbing her hand. "Bulma!" he shouted down the hall. "Is Bulma around?!"

"I can't help him," she whispered again, her voice shaking. "I can't help anyone."

"Get someone to find Doctor Bulma!" Lemo shouted at the nurses. A couple ran off while the others hurried to join Lemo and Cheelai. He only half paid attention to what Cheelai was blubbering about as he pulled her into the room with him.

"Please, I don't want to," she said, forcing herself back. Lemo kept a firm grip on her wrist, pulling harder. "I don't care! We're doing this together!"

"I can't reach him!" Cheelai pleaded. "I tried! My voice can't reach him! I don't know what to do!"

"Guys, hurry it up! I don't want to transform if I don't have to!" Goku shouted. The output of Broly's energy was steadily causing the room to shake, with some bursts creating powerful shockwaves that nearly made Lemo and Cheelai fall to the floor. Lemo caught her before she could do so.

"What good can I do if I can't reason with him like this?!" Cheelai said, panic in her eyes.

"Well, you're going to have to put up with it and try again!" Lemo shouted back.

"I can't!"

"Cheelai!" Lemo screamed, grabbing her head. She gasped from the sudden motion. "Look at Broly! Those aren't the movements of someone who is angry!"

He pivoted behind her and shoved her towards Broly and Goku. "He's scared and alone! He needs us to be there for him! If you really care for him, you do not ever give up, no matter what!"

He faced her again. His eyes burned with determination. "If you still insist on leaving, then leave. But don't ever let me see you come back here if you do."

He continued glaring at her before she decided to take a step forward towards Broly. "Okay," she whispered.

Lemo rejoined Goku, holding Broly by locking his arms with theirs. It was quite the ordeal for Lemo, given his small size, hoping that he wouldn't get thrown across the room. Nurses poured into the room seconds later with restraints, securing Broly's legs to the bed. After quite the struggle, they secured his arms and wrists. Cheelai reached for Broly's face, touching his forehead.

"Broly," she said, trying to keep her voice calm. "Please, if you can hear me, l-let us help you. I-I know you're scared. I…I'm scared, too."

More thrashing and yelling. It didn't seem to boost Cheelai's confidence much, hearing her words fade into the aether of Broly's howls.

"Why can't you hear me, Broly?! Let me help you!" she said, her voice shaking again. She leaned forward to wrap her arms around his head, pressing her face close to his ears. "Let my voice reach you."

Even as the nurses administered a fresh batch of anesthetic to force him to sleep, the ongoing screams from the Saiyan made Cheelai shake her head. "It's not working!" she said, turning to Lemo.

Lemo glared at Broly. "Alright big guy. I didn't want to have to do this, but you've left me no choice."

Cheelai raised her eyebrows. "Lemo?! What're you-?!"

She was cut off when Lemo cleared his throat, holding his neck. He closed his eyes, nodded a couple of times, and then took a deep breath.

"Broly! This is your father! I demand you cease this immediately!" Lemo barked, imitating Paragus's voice to the best of his ability.

Cheelai's jaw dropped but glanced right away at Broly to see that his thrashing slowed down. "Did…did it work?" she wondered.

"A Saiyan warrior does not show fear in the face of adversity! You are my son and the strongest in the universe!" Lemo continued. He couldn't stop his legs from shaking, nor could he slow his heart rate. If this helped de-escalate the situation to prevent another brawl like before involving Goku and Vegeta, then he prayed that his best impression of Broly's father would be enough to get through to him when all other options have been exhausted. "C'mon, big guy…!"

Goku looked impressed by the voice Lemo was using since he, too, could see Broly's body begin to relax from their grip. The restraints were still secured and didn't look like they were about to break off.

"Fa…ther…," Broly whispered hoarsely as he stopped shaking his head around. His breathing quieted down, alleviating Cheelai's concerns. She caressed his head in her arms, soothing his hair with her hand. She wasn't crying or sobbing from what Lemo noticed but was definitely relieved that this last-ditch effort worked.

Once they were assured that Broly was sleeping soundly, they all let go of their collective breath. "I can't believe that worked," Lemo said, leaning forward on the bed railing.

He turned to Cheelai. "One day at a time, Cheelai. We'll find something that'll work. Until then, that's all we can do."

Goku had a content look on his face. "Good thinkin' on your part, Lemo! Imitating Broly's papa like that? I didn't think it was going to work! I was worried I'd have to start fightin' him again!"

Lemo raised an eyebrow. "You were worried you'd have to fight him? I thought you Saiyans love it as much as you love food!"

"Not when they're like this!" Goku protested. "How can we prove ourselves if the other guy isn't fighting at his best?"

Lemo's eye twitched. He wanted to give him a piece of his mind but sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "Whatever," he said. He waved at the nurses. "Thanks for your help again."

The nurses who went to fetch Bulma returned with both her and Vegeta. "Is everything alright?" Bulma asked.

"For now, yeah," Lemo said, removing his toque to give his head a rub. "Had to pretend to be Broly's dad to calm him down. It worked, but for how long? The longer we delay on this anti-virus, the worse these outbursts are going to become until he destroys everything and everyone around him."

"It will be ready," Bulma assured him, glancing at Cheelai, who was still busy soothing Broly's head. "I have everything I need now. Vegeta will stay here with Goku to make sure he won't be a problem."

"We'll all make sure of that," Lemo said, giving each one a determined look. He then felt his hand grabbed by Cheelai's. While Goku, Vegeta, and Bulma consulted each other, he turned to face her.

"Thank you," Cheelai told him. Lemo waved it off. "Forget about it. Let's put this behind us and worry about the next step."

"I owe you and everyone here an apology," Cheelai said. While she wasn't on the verge of tears again, Lemo could still see the remorse on her face. "I've been a terrible friend to you and Broly. I'm sorry I've been acting like this when I've let my emotions get the better of me. There's no excuse for my behavior."

She walked up to Goku hesitantly but managed to crane her neck to look him in the eye. "Goku, I'm sorry for the way I treated you this whole time. Broly would not be still fighting for his life if you hadn't helped us. You at least gave him a chance."

Goku chuckled, rubbing the back of his head nonchalantly. "Don't worry about it! Besides, if the worst should happen, we'll gather the Dragonballs later to wish him back to life!"

Both Cheelai and Lemo gawked at Goku, eyes as wide as they could make them. Vegeta scoffed, shaking his head while Bulma pinched the bridge of her nose. She then punched Goku in the arm, sighing. "Goku, sometimes I wonder how badly you hit your head as a baby."

Lemo wanted to scold Goku as well, but the idiot did have a point. "While I'd rather not have it come to that, those Dragonballs did save Broly before. Can this dragon heal things like diseases?"

"Anything can be granted as long as it doesn't exceed Shenron's power," Goku explained. "But you gotta wait a whole year before the Dragonballs become active again once you've used them. Oh, and Shenron can't grant the same wish twice, but that's okay since Broly hasn't died yet!"

"Uh, sure," Lemo said. He could see distress in Cheelai's eyes, but she seemed to be holding it together. "I think we'll consider that as a last resort."

Bulma grabbed Goku by the ear, dragging him outside. "In any case, it's Vegeta's turn to keep an eye on Broly while I tell this one to go back to his wife," she said, ignoring Goku's cries of pain.

Lemo laid a hand on Cheelai's shoulder. "Good thing you look more reasonable than Goku," he said to Vegeta. The Saiyan didn't say anything, only pulled up a chair to sit by the foot of Broly's bed.

"I'll be fine," Cheelai said when Lemo kept looking at her. The nurses made a few final adjustments to Broly's pillow, replacing the ice packs. His thrashing had tossed several of them off the bed earlier, yet both Lemo and Cheelai were glad there was no damage done to the bed or the room.

Lemo wanted to be certain Broly was administered the anti-virus first before returning to the kitchens. As much as he prided himself on pursuing his dream of cooking for the gods, he couldn't ignore how important this was for both him and Cheelai, not when their new friend's life was on the line. At least for Cheelai, he was glad to see her act more rationally now.