The Soul and The Flesh Part XV The palace was gigantic, possibly built for people even bigger than the average Saiyan, who all seemed to be at least 6'10" (1.85m) tall, with the exception of herself, and a little guy she saw lurking in the shadows. He was quickly lost behind them as Togai led her to what had to be the throne room. He told her to wait, and disappeared, leaving her seemingly alone in the huge room. Raimi looked around, wondering if any of the Saiyans appreciated the beauty of this room. The walls were incredibly tall, and had huge windows running around the length of the room. Each window was paned with a stained glass marvel, none of them the same. There was the throne at the end of the room on a dais, and behind it, the portrait of a handsome man, possibly the first King of the current line, judging by his upward pointing hair. She noted that the man in the portrait had reddish hair.

After a while, she began to worry; what if this wasn't the same King she had encountered, or he didn't remember her? Raimi fidgeted nervously, until she sensed a powerful presence in the room with her. She stiffened and sniffed the air instinctively. She recognized the scent of the King; now did he recognize her?

"Well, look at this! I'll always remember that hair, and such a short girl is easy to notice. What brings you here, Little Girl?" His deep voice rumbled behind her. Raimi stood still, and didn't turn around, waiting for him to show him self instead. He chuckled, and stepped into her sight.

"You come on a good day, the court is out and I'm alone here. Our previous encounter is rather hard to understand, would you be so kind as to explain it?" Despite what he said, she could still feel others in here.

"Your Majesty, I must speak to you in confidence, if that is possible. But first, I've come here to present myself for training, the training that makes we Saiyans the finest warriors in the Universe."

He sneered down at her, and laughed. "Training, eh? Yes, you need lots of training, don't you? You weren't able to help yourself against me at all, were you?" She clenched her teeth, keeping silent as he prodded her temper. He finally relented. "Yes, girl, I'll have Togai arrange for you to get trained. Very few have the courage to demand this of the King, you could have asked any warrior to foster you in the ranks. Why risk your life on my pleasure?"

Raimi had no idea what he was talking about, what did he mean by 'fostering"? But she decided to play it off as best she could. "Well, it seemed like the best way to insure the finest training possible. Surely, if the King orders that I receive training, then the best Sensei is going to be arranged, hai?" He shrugged.

"It's also the best way to end up dead, dealing with me. But I feel generous today. Togai, come here."
"Yes, Vegeta O-sama?" Togai bowed deeply at the waist.

"Go arrange for my Seito to be trained by the best...I know! Get old Kakarrot to do it. He is the best." Raimi almost broke in to demand to know who was named Kakarrot here, but bit her tongue before she could speak. Kakarrot, it couldn't be some version of Goku, could it? She was burning with curiosity about this.

"Hai, O-sama, he taught me, and of course, yourself. He might disagree with a female Seito, though." Togai said. Vegeta shrugged, not concerned. He was the King, and his word was absolute. Togai left, and Vegeta turned back to her.

"You have something to tell me?" His eyes crinkled at the corners, giving him a falsely kind look. She nodded, and looked directly to the guards stationed in the corners of the room. He followed her gaze, and waved them out. The doors closed behind them loudly.

"Yes...I don't really remember what has happened to me, Your Majesty..." Raimi started.
"Vegeta. You may call me Vegeta, unless we are in mixed company." He said. She nodded, surprised at this friendliness, and continued.

"Any way, I don't know anything about who or what I am. I know that I'm a Saiyan, named Raimi, which is not a Saiyan name, and that I can fight a little, but not enough to be any good to..."

"Ah, to who?" His eyes gleamed in the multi-colored light from the huge windows.
"Well, I..." What should she say? Then, it came to her. "I was hired to help fend off some privateers, by a little backwater planet. The people don't really have any warriors, they are weak and the invaders are too strong for them. So they hired me, thinking that a Saiyan, even one Saiyan was a better fighter than a whole army of weaklings." She crossed her fingers. Vegeta looked at her and smiled.

"They are correct. And you have potential to be very good. With Kakarrot as your Sensei, you can be one of the best warriors on Vegeta-sei. But, I doubt you will be ready to help this pathetic little planet. It will take at least a year before you will even be ready to fight a second-class soldier. So, I guess they loose, eh?" he smiled wickedly, and after a moment, Raimi nodded agreement.

"I guess so. Too bad..." She felt relieved that he believed her, and waited as he just looked at her. His stare was as heavy as lead on her face. Why was he staring like this?
"Hmmm, I think we should have you checked out first. Come along." She was puzzled again; checked out?

Checked out meant a physical, much to her dismay. Raimi balked, not wanting to find out if her body could fool the Physician; who wasn't a Saiyan, but was a slender being, with soft pink fluffy fur all over its body and big violet eyes. Raimi knew that her body wasn't completely there, some of her was still on Chikyu-sei of some years in the future, and wondered if there was any way to avoid this. She looked around the room as the King and the doctor spoke in low voices. Finally the creature turned to her.

"Uh, could you...uh, please...remove, uh, your armor? You may keep...uh, the suit on...it, uh won't...be in the...way...Of the sensors, uh I mean..." After Raimi deciphered this hesitant speech, she pulled her armor off, and waited for more instruction. The King picked up the plates, and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Well, this is weighted to Elite standards. Very interesting..." His eyes were making her nervous, as they looked her over and stared through her. The physician moved her gently to a seat with lots of strange equipment around it, and asked her to sit. Raimi fidgeted nervously, then clasped her hands to try to keep still when they looked at her sternly. There was no help for it; she had to go through with this, after all. There were some strange sounds from behind her, then whirring sounds around her. A small box like a camera rose from the floor in front of her, and then rose into the ceiling. The furry physician came over to her and bowed.

"Uh, could...could you...uh, please stand...now...miss...?" She smiled at his curious face, and stood, arms down at her sides. He turned to the King and they spoke quietly. Raimi strained to hear them.

"Strange reading...not...can't tell...Power? No..." They were whispering, and she couldn't hear over the soft sounds in the lab. She sighed, and almost jumped out of her skin when Vegeta snapped at her.

"Wake up. Little Girl! Power up, now." She blinked and set her feet apart, then felt a small stab of fear. If her power was too high, she could be killed for being stronger than the King. If it was too low, she would be deemed unworthy of the training she had been promised; but how high was too high? The King was glaring at her, thinking she was disobedient. She took a breath and unwound her control of her Chi, letting it rise to its natural level. She then powered up slowly, trying to make a good show of it.

"It's, uh, at 860, sire...and rising..." The doctor said. The King nodded and scowled.
"Come on girl, where's the strength you showed before? Let it out!" He said. Raimi swallowed and pushed harder.

"930...940..."

"Stop! Vegeta, what are you doing? I told you, the Prince is to be my last student. Now you try to foist this girl..." The new voice broke into her concentration. She relaxed, panting from the effort of holding back and powering up at the same time. This new man was as tall as the King, with a bush of long straight black hair that was grizzled with gray at the temples. His build was less muscular than Vegeta's; he was also remarkably ugly. He bent his furious gaze to her and stopped his tirade. He stared at her for a moment, and then turned back to the King.

"What is this? A girl, even such as she, is hardly worth my time. And your brat keeps me more than busy." He sounded distracted for a second. What was that look for, she wondered.

"Now, now, Kakarrot, don't call the heir a brat, please. And as you can see, she is an interesting case. Come look at these readings, we can't understand them. And yes, I will insist that you take her on too. Please get her set up. I have to get back to business. Korudo-sama is coming to inspect the teams in two weeks, and the peasants are complaining about the lesser Princes again. Listen, Raimi? I prefer Little Girl; my only order for you is to not make me look stupid for forcing you on my personal Sensei. If you do poorly, I'll know, and I'll make you pay. Got that? Then, I'll see you at the quarter." Vegeta waited as Raimi bowed, and then nodded to the doctor and Kakarrot. In a moment he was gone; Raimi felt frightened without him there. Dangerous as he was, he was also familiar.

"What is your name again?" Kakarrot snapped.
"Raimi, Sensei." He looked at her blankly.
"That's...uh, interesting...she has....a...uh, non-Saiyan name....and no...uh, ID, uh, either, sir..." The doctor said.

"No ID? That's impossible. Every Saiyan sent on their first mission has an ID. Check the records for DNA match." Kakarrot said. Raimi came over and peered at the undecipherable markings on the screen that they were looking at. She couldn't read the patterns of geometric shapes, but could tell that they were alarmed by what they saw. The doctor looked at her, blinking his huge purple eyes. Kakarrot turned to her and shook his head.

"This says that your family is an ancient one, as old as the Kings family. However, they are extinct, or so we thought. You are basically some kind of genetic aberration, which explains your height and power. Your hair, well, red hair is usually a sign of Royal blood, Elite blood at the least. All the Kings have had red or reddish hair. Some dyed their hair black, or the red was only visible in bright light, but that is one of the signs that we look for in the heir." He told her. Raimi's eyes were wide with disbelief. This was fascinating! Was the woman who used to own this skin the daughter of an Elite Saiyan? How was it that she was on the Earth then? So much to find out...

"Well then Sensei, will you take me as your student? I would be honored if you will..."

"Ninny, I have no choice! That blasted O-sama has ordered me to take you. As if that brat wasn't enough to try the patience of...Come on out, Vegeta. Meet your new classmate." Raimi turned as she heard a soft footfall behind her. She was met with a glowering, angry looking young man who was two inches shorter than her. His eyes and sharp cheekbones were different, but that brown, upswept hair and full mouth were inherited from his father. He bristled with fury at the Universe, and she was not on his good side, that was for sure.

"So, I have to have my Sensei's focus divided between a girl and myself? Is my father mad, or does he want me to receive less than my due as heir?" He growled, his voice husky and dark. Raimi guessed his age to be about fifteen going on two, with that attitude.

"Prince, you will not malign my new student, or myself in this fashion! I have more than enough strength to beat the both of you into shape! Now, for my amusement, Price Vegeta, why don't you RUN to my favorite spring and bring me some of that cool, clear water you know I enjoy so much. I do mean run too...GO!" The Prince hesitated for one second, sneered at Raimi, and left, running full out. She knew better than to wonder out loud if he would cheat and fly.

"And as for you...come along. We need to toughen you up some, before I let the Prince come near you again. This is excellent, he was getting a little bored with his lessons, you will fire him up nicely."