One of the Protected
By
Rashaka
I've been
thinking about this for days now, and I've finally pinpointed the exact reason
for my hate of Kakarrot.
It was
actually started when Bulma, my— hm….. not exactly my wife… more than my
girlfriend…and 'mate' makes me sound like some kind of primitive animal…..well,
the mother of that brat of mine I guess—
anyway, when she asked me to tell her honestly why I disliked "Goku" so
much. I told her Kakarrot was stronger
than me, and she sighed like I was some kind of lost cause of hers or
something. Bitch. I'm a prince, not anyone's lost cause. Anyway, I refuse to call him by that stupid
Earth name. He's a Saiyan, and he should
be proud of it. On top of that, he is
also a Supersaiyan. Legendary among our
kind. He ought to be a good
example for that stupid kid of his and wear his true name with pleasure.
But I
digress. I don't hate him because he
uses a human name. Nor is what I hate
exactly him, in himself. Even though he
is the most annoying, not to mention stupid person on the planet (luckily for
him brat Gohan has twice the brains of his father, or they'd both be doubly
pathetic.) And it is not for my honor,
either; honor is only one reason I have to want to show my superiority.
I have been
beaten many times now in battle by that third-class imbecile, and my honor
demands that I best him. Not my honor
as a warrior--- even on Vegeta-sai there is not dishonor in being beaten by one
who is recognized to be superior to you; it can even be an mark of distinction,
if you fight a good battle against one of the greatest of opponents, and draw
blood from him.
It is my honor
as a prince, as the sole example of our royal line, for which in name I strive
against him, my rival. My family has
been the strongest of our people for over three and a half thousand years,
since the first Vegeta—ironically, a female—decimated her challengers and took
the throne amidst a bloody civil war.
From that time on my ancestors, including the only Saiyan before
Kakarrot and I to reach an evolved state, have proven themselves in combat and
in intelligence to be the strongest, the smartest, and the greatest warriors on
Vegeta. If there was ever another who
was stronger, they were either defeated, made to teach all their secrets to the
King, or married to a member in the line of succession. As time passed these actions made our
bloodline stronger, faster, greater. I
cannot allow Kakarrot to remain stronger than I. I must defeat him, to vindicate all my ancestors. I cannot rest while there is another Saiyan
alive that is stronger than I, the last surviving representative of the royal
blood. If I remain the weaker, then my
claim to my birthright, even if it's only in name, is out of my reach. There can be no weaklings in the ruling
House.
Nevertheless,
I probably could let that sleeping dragon lie; after all, realism forces me to
admit there is not a whole lot of point to fighting over a throne that no
longer exists, and never will again. 'A
people who lose their king can still call themselves a people, but a king who
loses his people can no longer call himself a king.' If that was the only thing I had to hold him to, I would have
forgiven it a long time ago. Now it has
only become my cover, the excuse I give those around me for my single-minded
determination. The most powerful reason,
though, the true cause is the one that makes me push myself harder and harder,
makes me bleed, makes me test my body beyond the bounds of what anything living
should endure. It is the one thing that
makes my blood boil every time I see that damn goofy smile on his moronic face,
and every time I watch him throw himself into battle with brainless
abandon.
What I hate,
what I truly resent to the deepest depths of what can arguably be called my
soul, is that I have become one of the protected.
That embarrassment of a Saiyan looks at
everything from a two-point world view: that which he must contest and that
which he must protect. The moment I
ceased being his direct foe he stopped considering me one he had to
battle. And the moment I tried and
failed to defeat him, I became one he had to defend.
He even
managed to pass down his infuriating philosophy to his son. Gohan perceives *me* as one of those who need protection. In the last battle with Cell, it was *I* who
was weak, *I* who needed to be saved.
Gohan decided he should protect me, because I was not strong enough. I
was a Supersaiyan, but it was not enough.
It was because I needed to be protected that we all came close to
death. It was because I needed to be
protected that Cell almost shattered the planet. It was because I needed to be protected that I cost Gohan the use
of his left arm. The prince of the most
destructive race in the galaxy had to be protected by a child, and in doing so
nearly ruined any chance the boy had of winning.
It was this
shame, this deep, horrible shame that I can never rid myself of. To be treated as weakling, a weakling! And
the horrible truth that at that moment, it was true. That is my hate. Kakarrot is the flesh and blood mark of my weakness,
my pain. I will never, ever be able to
forgive him that.
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*******
To fanfic readers/writers all: I have recently been accused of writing a
flame for someone. I was accused by
another critic, not the author. People
should realize that there is a significant difference between a scathing
commentary that points out weaknesses in writing and a mindless, pointless rant
of dislike. I have only ever written
two of the former, and none of the latter.
Allowing the review/commentary process to be part of your internet
posting on a website means that as a writer you should be prepared for a possible
negative response.
And please people—don't complain to someone about a review
that they wrote if it wasn't even something of yours that they reviewed. It's none of your business.
