Chapter 7 - On the job

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Potatoes...splat...potatoes...splat...potatoes...splat...

Trunks was starting to wonder if potatoes had taken over the earth instead of Reavers. A brief pause in the food line gave him enough time to wipe the dried potato paste off his ice cream scoop. Trunks looked up the line and shuddered - here they come again; poor hungry wretches...

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Trunks sighed and sat down on his cot. It had been a really long day, and he was famished. Too bad it was his week to go without rations. Trunks was just glad it was him and not some of the other people in his cabin; they were the type of people the rationing program was designed for. They would starve to death in a day or two, and then Commander Goten would have them dumped in the community grave.

The first day of roll call had left Trunks in complete shock. His best friend Goten, now the property of a vile Reaver, had beaten two sick men to death. It was all Trunks could do to avoid going Super Saiyan right then and there. Pan had missed that, thank Dende. Spilling the soup in the kitchen the night before had very nearly cost Pan her life, but if she had gone Super Saiyan that day like Trunks had wanted to, she most certainly would have died - or worse.

Trunks growled - it was sickening to see Pan being beaten within a proverbial inch of her life. His only miniscule consolation for the whole mess was how long it had taken them to find a weapon that would actually hurt Pan. It took nothing short of an energy whip to even bruise her tough little body, and she was extremely proud of that fact. Trunks no longer had a shirt after he had wrapped up all of her wounds, and they would never give him another one. That was life in a slave camp.

"Trunks, do you KNOW what they put in the meat here?" Pan's tired voice jolted him from his thoughts. He had certainly become much more of a thinker since his world fell apart.

"Oh please, Pan, don't tell me." Trunks begged. "I want to be able to keep my food down when I get my rations back." Pan giggled.

"But, it's really interesting, I promise! You see, they ran out of pigs last week, and the Commander wanted us to make ham, so they made us take this cow stomach and sma-"

"OK, OK, that's enough!" Trunks interrupted. He rolled his eyes - somehow Pan managed to take everything in stride. He knew if it wasn't for her, he would be a complete loon by now.

"Pannie," he said, trying to get her off the topic of tripe, "Do you think maybe tonight, you could TRY not to knock me out of my bunk?"

Pan blushed. She couldn't help it if she fought in her dreams - Trunks should have picked a bunk that was not right above hers.

"Well," she said, "If the stupid bunks weren't so close together, I wouldn't even be able to reach yours!"

Trunks laughed. "I was just teasing you, kiddo," he said. Trunks opened his mouth to speak again, but was cut off as an agonized shriek pierced the cabin. Trunks closed his eyes - he could sense Commander Goten near. Someone must have broken the rules tonight.

"Pan, do you still have that energy sword you stole from the guard?"

"Yeah.." Pan pulled the small weapon handle from her pants, "Why?"

"Because, I'm sick of scooping potatoes day in and day out. It's time I did something productive."

"Trunks, the penalty for sneaking around at night is torture."

His eyes narrowed at this - those bastards would have a hell of a time getting him to scream.

"I'll just take out the night guard. Then I'll act like I'm him for a little while and- "

"That won't work! I know you can beat him, but you'll never pass off as him! You're just as scrawny as ever!"

"No, I'm not! I've gained tons of weight since we got here!"
Trunks knew Pan did not believe him - he had actually begun losing weight again. The cook seemed to take pleasure in reducing his rations whenever possible. Trunks sighed and continued.

"Fine, if I knock him out, there won't be anyone to notice me. They only have one guard in the camp because of the night bots, and I know I can avoid those things. Hell, when mom had them all over at home, I used to hide from them to spite her."

Trunks noticed a small crease in Pan's brow. He figured it had to do with the reference to his mother. It made them both nervous that the Reavers were using Bulma's inventive mind for their own damnablepurposes. They still were not sure if the slave collars were her design, but Trunks suspected as much.

"Ok Pan," he said. "It's time for me to get going. I'll be careful, I promise." Trunks leaned over and kissed Pan on the forehead. Then, while she was still blinking in surprise over his tenderness, Trunks disappeared into the gloom.

'I'm not gonna be able to sleep tonight...' Pan thought.

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