The Tragic Tyrant
Chapter 2
The Mute Speaks
"So you're saying he simply sat up, just like that?" King Kold was saying as he paced around the medical bay. Frieza was sitting up on the bed nearby, nibbling on something resembling a drumstick with red meat on it, and his head swept from side to side as he watched his father pace around without having a clue what the whole uproar was about. He was too content with filling his growling belly with juicy food to really care, and he swished his tail idly while the more serious people in the room carried on a conversation.
"Yeah! I was eliminating some bio-waste when I saw a flash of light and came running in here thinking he was dead, and he was sitting up. Of course…no, she couldn't have anything to do with it…" Cooler replied. He reached over to steal something off his little brother's plate, and got his hand smacked with a meaty drumstick for his efforts.
Kold's cape rustled in protest when he halted his pacing and peered down at his eldest son with a wary eye. His nostrils flared a little as he spoke, "She? Who?"
"Well…that little mute girl who came here about a month ago. Wynter. I saw her run out into the hall after the flash in the medical bay." He replied honestly. "She looked pretty spooked."
"Mph neh mehmah nyfeneh." Frieza mumbled with his mouth full.
"Swallow before you speak, boy." Kold remarked.
Frieza promptly gulped his mouthful down and spoke, "I don't remember anything." Then he emitted a loud belch that threw Cooler into a round of laughter. Frieza started to giggle about it too, and Kold sighed in disgust at their behavior.
"Enough! This is SERIOUS!" The King bellowed, instantly silencing the two children the way dirt snuffs out a fire.
He glared at them both and sighed mentally. This goofing around was all fine and dandy while they were toddlers, but it was time for them to start growing up. Cooler especially, since he was supposed to be a role model for his little brother. Kold could remember his own parents telling him it was time to grow up when he reached his tenth year. Without any siblings, he had to look to his father as a role model, and his father had been anything but gentle as a parent.
Frieza sure reminded him of himself as a child, both in appearance and personality. Kold regarded the youngest boy for a moment, remembering the times his father would beat him to a pulp over the same nose-picking habit Frieza had now. He had promised himself never to harm the boy over it…he would grow out of it eventually, even if it was rather embarrassing.
Biting back those bad, abusive memories, the large Icejin king turned his aging face towards his two sons once again. "I will find this girl and speak to her then. She may just happen to be one of the rarest types of Icejin there are."
Pausing with the dripping drumstick halfway in his mouth, Frieza grunted in annoyance. He hated it when people talked about something without clueing him in, "What are you talking about?"
Kold turned his large head to look over at the boy, "Nothing you need to worry about. You just eat your dinner." With those words, he motioned for Cooler to follow him outside the door and started to speak again when he emerged, "If you saw what you say you saw, then that means Wynter might actually be a healer."
Cooler coughed against the palm of his hand as if he were choking on his own spit and stared at his father questioningly, "You're kidding, right? Only one in every million births will produce a healer! And they're weaklings too! They only have like…what?...two transformations…"
"It doesn't matter. I want her found so I can…thank her…personally."
"Very well, father."
Blue-green glittered in the artificial sunlight, appearing more blue because of the false atmosphere of the greenhouse. A white hand clutched the end of a metal watering pale that was currently pouring water over various plants in all colors and shapes.
Wynter loved working out in the gardens, because she loved flowers. She loved to bury her nose in them when they were in bloom, and she loved to find new buds. The plants were like her babies, depending on her for everything.
The young girl went about watering the six foot tall blue flower stalk in the corner and grinned up at the large drooping tear-drop shaped blossom that scintillated with iridescent petals. So lovely, the Keeper's Heart flower…her favorite. She reached up and stroked the two-foot-long petals as if the plant itself could feel her gentle caress, and it shimmered with each pass of her palm.
King Kold watched Wynter from the shadows while trying to formulate questions he could ask in a yes-or-no manner. He knew the girl would spot him sooner or later, and he rather enjoyed it when people showed their surprise at his sudden presence.
Almost as soon as the large Icejin let that thought pass through his mind, Wynter's eyes opened, fear rose up in their emerald depths and she quickly dropped her watering pail so she could bow to the king.
In the back of her mind, Wynter was wondering what could have brought him there, and she was just hoping he didn't plan to use her as a punching bag. Then again, another part of her was rather irritated that men always had to act so high and mighty. Someday, someone would put them in their place!
"Ah yes, hello Wynter. You may rise." Kold spoke with an air of nonchalance.
Wynter straightened so fast that spots danced across her eyes for a few moments, and she kept her eyes on the floor, for a palace servant was not worthy to look a King in the eyes. Oh no! What does he want from me? She thought nervously, Could he have found out…oh please no!
"You will not be harmed, little girl. I merely come with a couple of questions."
Nodding once, she laced her fingers together behind her back as her heart started to beat even faster than before. Was he going to send her away?
"Did you go into the medical bay at any time earlier?" Kold asked carefully.
Wynter winced visibly upon hearing the question. Someone had seen her, so she had no choice but to be honest. She offered King Kold a slow, barely detectable nod.
"Very well, then." He stepped out of the shadows until his entire intimidating form was in the light, and his eyes never left the girl's scalp-armor, "Did you use any powers of any kind on Frieza while you were there? Any at all?"
Again, she winced in fear and nodded once.
A smile spread across King Kold's black lips, revealing teeth that looked as if they had never chewed anything un-natural, and he spoke very pleasantly, "So you did heal Frieza." He dipped his head slightly to her and continued, "I merely came to thank you. He was near death until you came along, and you saved his life."
Wynter nearly jerked her head up to look in his eyes and see if he was playing some cruel prank. Then she remembered her place and remained motionless for a few seconds. She finally gathered her wits enough to offer a respectful bow, as if to thank him for his thank-you.
"Carry on." The tall Icejin swept his blue cape around his body and turned, sweeping out of the greenhouse with a strange grandeur in his step.
Wynter dared to raise her eyes at his retreating back and sighed in relief. Even if he had come to thank her, that man still scared the life out of her!
Maybe he really was thankful… She thought to herself, After all, Prince Frieza is the youngest of the two children here, and no youngster deserves to die…
Frieza was absolutely bored out of his mind as he sat on the stool next to his desk. The math problems he was trying to work out were way too complicated, in his opinion, and he HATED the teaching program his father had given him. After all, he could be out playing right now, but noooooo! He had to do this stupid arithmetic!
Hissing his boredom, the little Icejin wrote a few figures down with the digital pen and watched the computer check his answer. When it marked it wrong for the billionth time, he slapped the computer screen with his slightly chubby palm and spouted an obscene word that would have him tasting a fist if his father had heard it.
"Stupid thing! According to you, I can't get anything right now, can I!?" Frieza spat as if the machine would answer him. He slammed the crystalline pen down and rested his chin on his palm to stare out the window. His finger absently made its way into his nose, performing the disgusting habit that made King Kold so angry, but it was so automatic that he didn't even realize he was doing it.
Wynter was sitting on a rock outside, looking just as bored as he was. She had done everything that was required of her so far, so she had some free time. For a palace servant, free time can be a blessing. But today, it was just boredom. There was no extra work to catch up on, no good books to read. Just plain nothing.
Frieza stuck his tongue out at his closed quarters door and placed his foot on the windowsill. It was a long drop, but he had enough Bukujitsu skills to keep himself aloft. With a loud grunt, the small Icejin heaved himself out the window and sailed downwards for several seconds, creating a cushion of ki between himself and the ground, thus causing his fall to slow to a stop. He fluttered the rest of the way to the ground like a falling autumn leaf, landing less-than-gracefully behind Wynter.
Wynter jumped about a foot and bristled when she saw the young prince sprawled out after his clumsy landing. Frieza quickly got to his feet as if nothing had happened, but a huge dead leaf was clinging to one of his horns and making him look very comical. The girl placed a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle.
"What's so funny?" Frieza pouted, tipping his head back to show off his importance. The leaf on his horn just made Wynter laugh more, despite her efforts not to. The boy's eyes rolled towards the offending leaf, and he promptly sweatdropped before reaching up to yank it off. Then he swished his cape around his body the way he had often see his father do and spoke in a commanding tone, "Stop that laughing! Don't laugh at me!"
Wynter promptly stopped laughing and stared at him in half-horror, half-confusion. She was just having some fun with him, and he had gone off on her! What was up with that?
"Too bad I can't make you say you're sorry. Mutes! They are no fun!" Frieza turned his back to the girl and growled. She stuck her tongue out at him while his back was turned, then returned to her previous expression when he whirled around to face her again, unaware of what she had done behind his back. "Wait a minute here! A mute can't talk back, so HA, HA, HA! Mute! Blah, blah! Stupid mute!!"
This rude teasing was starting to wear on Wynter's nerves quickly, and it hurt! Especially since she was quite sensitive about what he was teasing her over. She had the urge to reach over and slap the little brat, but that would get her in fatal trouble that she would rather not experience. So, instead, she pointed a white finger at him and her face did a strange contortion of concentration.
"Sh-sh-sh-shut-t up-p-p!" Wynter cried from beneath a trembling tongue and lips, "Q-q-q-quit c-c-calling m-me a m-mut-t-te!"
Frieza stopped laughing instantly and stared at Wynter like she was growing fluorescent hairs from her armpits. She had just talked! Nobody had EVER heard her speak during the whole time she had been at the palace! Her silence was all because of a very severe speech impediment…but being the spoiled brat that he was, the Icejin boy just snickered in her face again.
"J-j-just what are you g-g-gonna do about it?" He jeered.
Wynter looked around, bit her lip and picked up the bucket of water she was planning to bathe with. She held it over the giggling prince's head, dumped the freezing water all over him and jammed the bucket down over his head. Then she started to cry and disappeared into the shadows.
Frieza screamed angrily and yanked the bucket off his head. No girl would ever get the better of him! Especially not a servant! NEVER EVER!!!
But then again, she had been smart by running away. He couldn't find her, and he let his frustrations come out in tears as the arithmetic assignment he was doing earlier began to look more pleasing than this humiliating play session had. There was always tomorrow, after all.
"I will get my revenge later!" Frieza proclaimed with his fist held high.
When a shadow fell over his small form, the proud expression dropped from his face as his pupils became pinpoints. A large pale purple hand reached down, picked him up by the cape and carried him back inside.
Aw man!
"Frieza, how many times must I tell you that an education is important if you want to become a successful ruler?" King Kold sighed as he dragged his pouting child into the castle, through the corridor and up the escalator-like staircase. He plunked him down on the little desk he was working at before and peered down at his tiny frame.
"But papa!" Frieza protested, "I want to learn how to fight, to be strong like you!"
Kold smirked and crossed his arms as he stood over the boy. It filled him with pride to hear Frieza say such things around him, but first things first. "When you're a little older. Right now, we need to train that brain of yours. What good will fighting do when you can't calculate the number of enemies that are coming, or don't see right away? How are you going to guess at maximum power levels without some arithmetic skills?"
Frieza's little black lower lip stuck out as he crossed his arms even further and huffed. He glared at his father, made a huge show of picking up the little crystalline digital pen and angrily calculated the annoying math problem he couldn't seem to get before, all the while wearing his comical angry puppy-face.
"Try carrying the two." Kold remarked as he turned to leave. As soon as his back was turned, Frieza pulled his lower eyelid down and stuck his tongue out. The large Icejin turned to say something else, and the smaller one pretended to be innocently working away, "Oh, make sure you go to bed early tonight and get plenty of sleep. There's going to be a party tomorrow night and ambassadors from many other planets will be visiting. Some have yet to meet you."
"Blah, blah, blah." Frieza grumbled as he finished the problem and lit up, only to find the next one was even harder. "Those parties are so dumb, papa! There is never anything to do!"
"It won't be when you get older."
Frieza slammed his pen down and flipped his tail indignantly, tempting fate by continuing the discussion further. "Everything will happen when I get older! Older this, older that! When you're older this and when you're older that! Isn't there anything I can do right NOW!?"
"Yes." The Icejin King pleasantly brought his fingertips together in front of him and smiled, dripping sweetness into his voice, "You can do your homework." With that, he turned and stepped out of the room, chuckling to himself.
Frieza stuck his tongue out at the closing door "Bah!"
Then he got to thinking…if Wynter was going to be working at the party, then he would have the perfect means to publicly humiliate her. A devilish grin spread across the youth's face at the idea, and he giggled in delight as he started to form a plan.
To be continued...