Chapter 9- The Nekker Song
"I'm… WHAT???"
"Promoted," said Vegeta. He sounded half ecstatic, half dejected. Dusk was settling over the horizon of Vegeta-sei, and all the nekkers had come out of the water to sing their nightly song and dance. They were muted against the thick glass of the room where the little Saiyalings changed for bed.
"How is that possible?" Collifla gasped, unclasping her hair bead and stripping out of her armor. Vegeta threw his own in a corner.
"Well, you've proven yourself. You've got a lot of fighting power. Saiyan royalty have it naturally with the Queen's Necklace supplying that extra boost, but it is very rare that even a first class Saiyan even comes close, much less equals, that of the royal family. Even my father thinks so." Vegeta pulled off his unitard.
"So… What happens now?" Collifla asked. There had to be a reason this news distressed him. Vegeta saw her silent question and reluctantly answered when he pulled his nightshirt over his head.
"You're to become the Royal Guard of the highest degree. No Saiyan can go higher than that without becoming royalty. Not even elites. You're going to become a sort of… King's Champion. I'm just not King yet." As her nightgown dropped over her head, Collifla still wondered what was troubling him. She was going to say so, but before she could open her mouth, he finished his thought.
"To become the King's Champion, you must go to a planet, no matter what the conditions, and train for five years. If you come back, you are the King's Champion. If you don't, well… you're not. You're dead." Ah. I see the problem… Collifla thought, running the metal brush through her hair.
"Well… Don't you think I can do it?" She asked hesitantly. Vegeta sighed.
"I do, Lili, it's just…" Collifla smiled when she realized what exactly was going on in her prince's brain. She put a hand on his shoulder.
"I know," she said softly. She wasn't going to make him say it. It didn't matter anyway, she already knew.
"How am I supposed to be here without you, Lili?" He demanded almost angrily. Collifla sighed and shrugged. She thought he was being a bit selfish. She was the one who would be away on Kami-knows-what planet. However, Collifla was too tired with too much going on in her mind to say so. She walked over to the prince's bed, levitated about a foot, and plopped down onto the squishy mattress enveloped beneath the satin thick quilt. Vegeta followed suit. They both sat for a time, heads in their hands, until Vegeta began to shake. Collifla peered into his face and saw no tears, just an expressionless face attached to a small quaking body. She pulled his head onto her lap and stroked his wild upsweep.
"Don't you ever brush this, Veggie?" She asked maternally. Vegeta blinked, then began to laugh. He rolled over onto his back and stared straight up at Collifla in absolute hysterics. When the little Saiyaness looked down on his face, it was the funniest damned thing she had ever seen. It was all twisty and scrunched. Vegeta always looked so weird when he gave a genuine laugh… She broke into hysterics, echoing the Saiyan prince's laughter in one messed up harmony. She fell back onto the bed, and they laughed until they couldn't move.
"Haven't done that for awhile!" Collifla said, sitting back up. Vegeta lifted his head from her small lap and fell the other way onto the bed.
"We better start packing," he said softly.
Collifla walked through the gardens with the prince, taking everything in. It was so beautiful on Vegeta-sei. She couldn't possibly imagine life without it. Not paying attention to where she was going, she bumped into something hard, and still significantly taller than her. She looked and found herself, once again, staring straight into her brother's Saiyan armor, with the exception of the fact that her gaze now reached slightly above the amber inlay.
"I really hate it when you do that," she muttered. She tilted her face upwards and stared into her brother's face. This time, however, there was no familiar grin. His face was passive and unreadable.
"So," he said huskily, "You're leaving, huh?" Collifla blinked.
"Yeah, so?" She asked, furrowing her brow.
"Meet me at the fountain tonight at midnight," he glanced at Vegeta, "Leave the prince behind. No offence, highness. It's of some… family matters." Without another word, he walked swiftly away.
"Well… um…" said Collifla, raising her eyebrows. Vegeta rolled his eyes.
"Just go. Don't worry, I have to meet with my father tonight anyway."
That evening, Collifla walked down the familiar path in her simple cloth training uniform. Her bother sat on the lip of the stone fountain, also in only his training wardrobe. It was very rare she saw him out of his armor, and she was amazed how he still looked so powerful without it. He looked up when she approached and stood silently. Without a word, he gestured for her to follow him and walked down a rarely taken path.
It came out into a small forest, which he swiftly entered. Collifla looked into the hazy darkness and hesitated.
"What's the matter, scared of the dark?" Tomet called and charged his ki. It created a soft glow on the rocky path leading into the depths of the woods. Collifla scowled and charged her ki as well. She marched into the forest with such determination, her brother laughed out loud as he walked beside her. He led her to a clearing where the Nekker pool shone like glass in the center. The ground around it was slightly rutted from their traditional dance every evening and their strange smell lingered in the air. Collifla's sharp nose had never smelled anything like it. It was like… fish, rain, native flowers and… was that roses? But roses don't grow on Vegeta-sei… the only time she had ever smelled one was when a warrior had brought them back from his investigation of Chikyuu. Earth, as only she and Vegeta called it, was dismissed as invaluable and thankfully left alone. It was the roses, however, that sparked Collifla's interest in the planet when she was only four years old. But where is that smell coming from now? She thought. Her thoughts were interrupted when Tomet tapped her shoulder. He gestured for her to join him on a rock.
"This is where the Queen goes to meditate before the wedding," Tomet whispered when his sister sat down beside him.
"The wedding only takes place the day after a full moon. This spot is sacred and protected from the lunar influence. It's the only time a Saiyan can ever look upon the moon and remember it without transforming." Collifla didn't know why he was telling her this. Was he trying to act smart? Or play a trick on her? Or was he just being… nice? Tomet looked at her with that same unreadable expression in his eyes.
"I… I just wanted to say…" Tomet began, "Well, if your going to be gone… I'm sure a lot is going to happen…" He rubbed the back of his neck and pulled an envelope out of his side pouch.
"This is from Okaassan. She asked for me to give it to you. She's off on an ambassador tour, you know, and she can't see you off or anything…" He trailed off and handed her the letter. Collifla looked at her name written in her mother's curvy handwriting. Her eyes flickered toward the pool's now rippling surface. The head of a nekker pierced the surface. His fish like face gasped at the air, revealing his piranha-like teeth, as his gills closed off and his lungs began working. He crawled out of the pool, his medieval clothing clinging to his scaly body. He sat in the damp grass and stared at them, grasping his harp tightly.
"What do we do?" Collifla asked softly.
"We could kill it," Tomet replied in an equally low tone.
"NO!" She whispered savagely.
"Well, if we don't kill it, it'll attack us! It's very rare they come out in front of people when it's not close to a full moon. When they do, they always call to their brothers and attack. Not even a Saiyan can stop them when there are so many. It calls three times, getting angrier with each one. There's nothing we can do unless we kill it now, which is what I'm going to do!" Tomet said. Before Collifla could stop him, he stood and charged his ki. The nekker straightened and struck a note on its harp. It hit one note with its eerie voice and held. It lingered in the air before fading with the wind.
"We're too late!" Tomet said, sitting slowly and actually looking quite terrified. The nekker looked at them expectantly, then tried again. The same note.
"This is all my fault. I want you to run, Collifla. Just run. I'm going to try and kill as many as I can," he whispered.
"Wait! Look at him! It looks like he wants us to imitate him…" she said thoughtfully. Tomet furrowed his dark eyebrows and stared at her.
"Imitate him?! I don't know how the hell to do whatever he's doing! Let's just try and shoot it and run!" Tomet cried. The nekker hit the last note with a look of insult on his face. Collifla didn't really want to share her secret with anyone except Vegeta, but this was a desperate time! She made up her mind in an instant and matched his pitch perfectly. The nekker blinked at her, surprised. She looked and almost laughed out loud when she saw her brother doing the exact same thing. The nekker hit two more notes. Collifla imitated. The fish creature smiled (as much as something of the sort could smile) and began to play on his harp. Collifla sang a random arrangement of notes, while the nekker kept up. After nearly five minutes of singing, the creature stopped, bowed, and dove back into the pool. Collifla cleared her throat. Tomet stared.
"How did…? What…?" He stammered.
"It's called singing. It's a earth--I mean, Chikyuu thing." She mentally scolded herself for slipping on the title for the planet. Tomet nodded.
"I see. Well… It certainly is… very nice," he muttered. NICE? Did he just say nice??? And is that a blush? She thought to herself, utterly amazed.
"I am going to miss your company, Collifla. Here." He handed her a flower. A blood red flower with velvety soft petals enveloping each other in layers. The Saiyaness put it to her nose and breathed in the rich scent of the rose.
"How did-?" She began. Tomet donned his familiar grin.
"It pays to have a foreign ambassador for a mother, sis. Call it a going away present," he said, smiling still. Collifla stared at her brother for a moment. Without stopping to think or put a stem on her emotions, she flung herself onto him and wrapped her small arms around his neck. He did not move for a moment. Then, slowly but surely, he put only his hands on her tiny waist. They sat in silence. Just like that, until Collifla pulled away.
"We won't ever mention that again."
"Of course we won't. I wouldn't be able to stand the embarrassment!" He said, grinning impishly. Collifla smacked him on the side of the head.
"Chikushome!" She cried.
"Why you little…baka onna!" He began, but she flew off into the forest. She came out the way they had entered, and sped back up the path to the fountain. She sat on the lip, gasping for breath and thinking she had lost him. She placed the flower and the pack with the letter beside her and took in a deep breath.
"SURPRISE!" Tomet cried from behind her. Collifla jumped a foot in the air before her brother picked her up by the ankle and held her upside down in front of his smiling face.
"I really will miss you, Collifla."
"Likewise." Her brother hesitated.
"No matter what?" He asked. Collifla thought for a moment, a little confused, then dismissed any misgivings.
"Sure. You?"
"Yup," his grin suddenly turned evil, "now on that note…" He then dumped her into the fountain. Her mass of hair broke the surface first, followed by a scowling face. Tomet howled with laughter as his sister's thick black hair dripped so much, it might as well have been a waterfall.
"Remember, you promised no matter what," he said in between laughs, "I have to go. I'm leaving for a new planet in about an hour. I meant what I said. Goodbye, little sister," he said, and flew off.
Collifla stood in the middle of the fountain, a curtain of water flowing from her hair in front of her face. She grabbed her hair bead from the still thankfully dry pouch and snapped it around her hair. That was not exactly a good plan. Unfortunately, the weight of her hair was too much, and sent her toppling back into the water. This went on for about a full minute. She would stand, then fall backwards. Stand, and fall backwards. Until a familiar hand grabbed hers and pulled her out.
"Call me a baka onna will you?" She muttered.
"You woke me up with all that racket!" Cried Vegeta. He put her on the ground and wrung out her hair. It created a puddle as big as her bed at their feet. Vegeta snorted and broke into laughter.
"I hate you," she muttered, and stalked back to the palace, Vegeta close behind with her things in tow. Tomorrow was the day. Let her hate him tonight. She'll change her mind when he pulls out their favorite book. At least he hoped so. She was the only one who could read the damn thing. Baka onna. I like the sound of that… He thought, then trotted to keep up.
"AW!!!! You were so cute at that age. And so nice! What the hell happened???" "Freiza. Any questions, onna?" "Nope. I'm the one telling the story, remember?" "Right." "Firstly, I'm adding flowers to my list of 'motifs'" Vegeta rolls his eyes, but Q ignores it and continues, "Secondly, I think the next chapter's gonna be a song fic…" "Oh, Kami…" "What's wrong with that???" "Your mocking me… People shouldn't know I can sing." "First of all, you won't be doing the singing. Second: I think it's cute!" "I bet you do! Same with all those freaky fans out there!" "There are gates!" "Yeah, as long as I'm nice to you, and how long can I possibly keep this up?" "As long as you want to, Veggie. In fact, the fans would probably love it if you DIDN'T keep it up. The sooner you crack, the sooner they get in…" "Have I told you I hated you today?" "Many times. I still interpret it as 'I love you'." "Rrrrrr…" "You're funny when you're mad."
"I'm… WHAT???"
"Promoted," said Vegeta. He sounded half ecstatic, half dejected. Dusk was settling over the horizon of Vegeta-sei, and all the nekkers had come out of the water to sing their nightly song and dance. They were muted against the thick glass of the room where the little Saiyalings changed for bed.
"How is that possible?" Collifla gasped, unclasping her hair bead and stripping out of her armor. Vegeta threw his own in a corner.
"Well, you've proven yourself. You've got a lot of fighting power. Saiyan royalty have it naturally with the Queen's Necklace supplying that extra boost, but it is very rare that even a first class Saiyan even comes close, much less equals, that of the royal family. Even my father thinks so." Vegeta pulled off his unitard.
"So… What happens now?" Collifla asked. There had to be a reason this news distressed him. Vegeta saw her silent question and reluctantly answered when he pulled his nightshirt over his head.
"You're to become the Royal Guard of the highest degree. No Saiyan can go higher than that without becoming royalty. Not even elites. You're going to become a sort of… King's Champion. I'm just not King yet." As her nightgown dropped over her head, Collifla still wondered what was troubling him. She was going to say so, but before she could open her mouth, he finished his thought.
"To become the King's Champion, you must go to a planet, no matter what the conditions, and train for five years. If you come back, you are the King's Champion. If you don't, well… you're not. You're dead." Ah. I see the problem… Collifla thought, running the metal brush through her hair.
"Well… Don't you think I can do it?" She asked hesitantly. Vegeta sighed.
"I do, Lili, it's just…" Collifla smiled when she realized what exactly was going on in her prince's brain. She put a hand on his shoulder.
"I know," she said softly. She wasn't going to make him say it. It didn't matter anyway, she already knew.
"How am I supposed to be here without you, Lili?" He demanded almost angrily. Collifla sighed and shrugged. She thought he was being a bit selfish. She was the one who would be away on Kami-knows-what planet. However, Collifla was too tired with too much going on in her mind to say so. She walked over to the prince's bed, levitated about a foot, and plopped down onto the squishy mattress enveloped beneath the satin thick quilt. Vegeta followed suit. They both sat for a time, heads in their hands, until Vegeta began to shake. Collifla peered into his face and saw no tears, just an expressionless face attached to a small quaking body. She pulled his head onto her lap and stroked his wild upsweep.
"Don't you ever brush this, Veggie?" She asked maternally. Vegeta blinked, then began to laugh. He rolled over onto his back and stared straight up at Collifla in absolute hysterics. When the little Saiyaness looked down on his face, it was the funniest damned thing she had ever seen. It was all twisty and scrunched. Vegeta always looked so weird when he gave a genuine laugh… She broke into hysterics, echoing the Saiyan prince's laughter in one messed up harmony. She fell back onto the bed, and they laughed until they couldn't move.
"Haven't done that for awhile!" Collifla said, sitting back up. Vegeta lifted his head from her small lap and fell the other way onto the bed.
"We better start packing," he said softly.
Collifla walked through the gardens with the prince, taking everything in. It was so beautiful on Vegeta-sei. She couldn't possibly imagine life without it. Not paying attention to where she was going, she bumped into something hard, and still significantly taller than her. She looked and found herself, once again, staring straight into her brother's Saiyan armor, with the exception of the fact that her gaze now reached slightly above the amber inlay.
"I really hate it when you do that," she muttered. She tilted her face upwards and stared into her brother's face. This time, however, there was no familiar grin. His face was passive and unreadable.
"So," he said huskily, "You're leaving, huh?" Collifla blinked.
"Yeah, so?" She asked, furrowing her brow.
"Meet me at the fountain tonight at midnight," he glanced at Vegeta, "Leave the prince behind. No offence, highness. It's of some… family matters." Without another word, he walked swiftly away.
"Well… um…" said Collifla, raising her eyebrows. Vegeta rolled his eyes.
"Just go. Don't worry, I have to meet with my father tonight anyway."
That evening, Collifla walked down the familiar path in her simple cloth training uniform. Her bother sat on the lip of the stone fountain, also in only his training wardrobe. It was very rare she saw him out of his armor, and she was amazed how he still looked so powerful without it. He looked up when she approached and stood silently. Without a word, he gestured for her to follow him and walked down a rarely taken path.
It came out into a small forest, which he swiftly entered. Collifla looked into the hazy darkness and hesitated.
"What's the matter, scared of the dark?" Tomet called and charged his ki. It created a soft glow on the rocky path leading into the depths of the woods. Collifla scowled and charged her ki as well. She marched into the forest with such determination, her brother laughed out loud as he walked beside her. He led her to a clearing where the Nekker pool shone like glass in the center. The ground around it was slightly rutted from their traditional dance every evening and their strange smell lingered in the air. Collifla's sharp nose had never smelled anything like it. It was like… fish, rain, native flowers and… was that roses? But roses don't grow on Vegeta-sei… the only time she had ever smelled one was when a warrior had brought them back from his investigation of Chikyuu. Earth, as only she and Vegeta called it, was dismissed as invaluable and thankfully left alone. It was the roses, however, that sparked Collifla's interest in the planet when she was only four years old. But where is that smell coming from now? She thought. Her thoughts were interrupted when Tomet tapped her shoulder. He gestured for her to join him on a rock.
"This is where the Queen goes to meditate before the wedding," Tomet whispered when his sister sat down beside him.
"The wedding only takes place the day after a full moon. This spot is sacred and protected from the lunar influence. It's the only time a Saiyan can ever look upon the moon and remember it without transforming." Collifla didn't know why he was telling her this. Was he trying to act smart? Or play a trick on her? Or was he just being… nice? Tomet looked at her with that same unreadable expression in his eyes.
"I… I just wanted to say…" Tomet began, "Well, if your going to be gone… I'm sure a lot is going to happen…" He rubbed the back of his neck and pulled an envelope out of his side pouch.
"This is from Okaassan. She asked for me to give it to you. She's off on an ambassador tour, you know, and she can't see you off or anything…" He trailed off and handed her the letter. Collifla looked at her name written in her mother's curvy handwriting. Her eyes flickered toward the pool's now rippling surface. The head of a nekker pierced the surface. His fish like face gasped at the air, revealing his piranha-like teeth, as his gills closed off and his lungs began working. He crawled out of the pool, his medieval clothing clinging to his scaly body. He sat in the damp grass and stared at them, grasping his harp tightly.
"What do we do?" Collifla asked softly.
"We could kill it," Tomet replied in an equally low tone.
"NO!" She whispered savagely.
"Well, if we don't kill it, it'll attack us! It's very rare they come out in front of people when it's not close to a full moon. When they do, they always call to their brothers and attack. Not even a Saiyan can stop them when there are so many. It calls three times, getting angrier with each one. There's nothing we can do unless we kill it now, which is what I'm going to do!" Tomet said. Before Collifla could stop him, he stood and charged his ki. The nekker straightened and struck a note on its harp. It hit one note with its eerie voice and held. It lingered in the air before fading with the wind.
"We're too late!" Tomet said, sitting slowly and actually looking quite terrified. The nekker looked at them expectantly, then tried again. The same note.
"This is all my fault. I want you to run, Collifla. Just run. I'm going to try and kill as many as I can," he whispered.
"Wait! Look at him! It looks like he wants us to imitate him…" she said thoughtfully. Tomet furrowed his dark eyebrows and stared at her.
"Imitate him?! I don't know how the hell to do whatever he's doing! Let's just try and shoot it and run!" Tomet cried. The nekker hit the last note with a look of insult on his face. Collifla didn't really want to share her secret with anyone except Vegeta, but this was a desperate time! She made up her mind in an instant and matched his pitch perfectly. The nekker blinked at her, surprised. She looked and almost laughed out loud when she saw her brother doing the exact same thing. The nekker hit two more notes. Collifla imitated. The fish creature smiled (as much as something of the sort could smile) and began to play on his harp. Collifla sang a random arrangement of notes, while the nekker kept up. After nearly five minutes of singing, the creature stopped, bowed, and dove back into the pool. Collifla cleared her throat. Tomet stared.
"How did…? What…?" He stammered.
"It's called singing. It's a earth--I mean, Chikyuu thing." She mentally scolded herself for slipping on the title for the planet. Tomet nodded.
"I see. Well… It certainly is… very nice," he muttered. NICE? Did he just say nice??? And is that a blush? She thought to herself, utterly amazed.
"I am going to miss your company, Collifla. Here." He handed her a flower. A blood red flower with velvety soft petals enveloping each other in layers. The Saiyaness put it to her nose and breathed in the rich scent of the rose.
"How did-?" She began. Tomet donned his familiar grin.
"It pays to have a foreign ambassador for a mother, sis. Call it a going away present," he said, smiling still. Collifla stared at her brother for a moment. Without stopping to think or put a stem on her emotions, she flung herself onto him and wrapped her small arms around his neck. He did not move for a moment. Then, slowly but surely, he put only his hands on her tiny waist. They sat in silence. Just like that, until Collifla pulled away.
"We won't ever mention that again."
"Of course we won't. I wouldn't be able to stand the embarrassment!" He said, grinning impishly. Collifla smacked him on the side of the head.
"Chikushome!" She cried.
"Why you little…baka onna!" He began, but she flew off into the forest. She came out the way they had entered, and sped back up the path to the fountain. She sat on the lip, gasping for breath and thinking she had lost him. She placed the flower and the pack with the letter beside her and took in a deep breath.
"SURPRISE!" Tomet cried from behind her. Collifla jumped a foot in the air before her brother picked her up by the ankle and held her upside down in front of his smiling face.
"I really will miss you, Collifla."
"Likewise." Her brother hesitated.
"No matter what?" He asked. Collifla thought for a moment, a little confused, then dismissed any misgivings.
"Sure. You?"
"Yup," his grin suddenly turned evil, "now on that note…" He then dumped her into the fountain. Her mass of hair broke the surface first, followed by a scowling face. Tomet howled with laughter as his sister's thick black hair dripped so much, it might as well have been a waterfall.
"Remember, you promised no matter what," he said in between laughs, "I have to go. I'm leaving for a new planet in about an hour. I meant what I said. Goodbye, little sister," he said, and flew off.
Collifla stood in the middle of the fountain, a curtain of water flowing from her hair in front of her face. She grabbed her hair bead from the still thankfully dry pouch and snapped it around her hair. That was not exactly a good plan. Unfortunately, the weight of her hair was too much, and sent her toppling back into the water. This went on for about a full minute. She would stand, then fall backwards. Stand, and fall backwards. Until a familiar hand grabbed hers and pulled her out.
"Call me a baka onna will you?" She muttered.
"You woke me up with all that racket!" Cried Vegeta. He put her on the ground and wrung out her hair. It created a puddle as big as her bed at their feet. Vegeta snorted and broke into laughter.
"I hate you," she muttered, and stalked back to the palace, Vegeta close behind with her things in tow. Tomorrow was the day. Let her hate him tonight. She'll change her mind when he pulls out their favorite book. At least he hoped so. She was the only one who could read the damn thing. Baka onna. I like the sound of that… He thought, then trotted to keep up.
"AW!!!! You were so cute at that age. And so nice! What the hell happened???" "Freiza. Any questions, onna?" "Nope. I'm the one telling the story, remember?" "Right." "Firstly, I'm adding flowers to my list of 'motifs'" Vegeta rolls his eyes, but Q ignores it and continues, "Secondly, I think the next chapter's gonna be a song fic…" "Oh, Kami…" "What's wrong with that???" "Your mocking me… People shouldn't know I can sing." "First of all, you won't be doing the singing. Second: I think it's cute!" "I bet you do! Same with all those freaky fans out there!" "There are gates!" "Yeah, as long as I'm nice to you, and how long can I possibly keep this up?" "As long as you want to, Veggie. In fact, the fans would probably love it if you DIDN'T keep it up. The sooner you crack, the sooner they get in…" "Have I told you I hated you today?" "Many times. I still interpret it as 'I love you'." "Rrrrrr…" "You're funny when you're mad."
