Chapter Fifty-Four: Time Is Almost Up
The next day in the back fields behind the castle.
Shalila and Dirkan watched Tayla and Riccan spar; Riccan had wanted so badly to fight, but his parents, particularly Gracina, were against it because he was so young. Tayla begged Shalila and Dirkan to at least allow Riccan to demonstrate his fighting abilities, and the two old warriors reluctantly conceded, as Riccan was showing them what he could do.
Riccan was almost as strong and as fast as Tayla, but not quite. However, he was the strongest nine-year-old at the moment, and even some of the older fighters, both Astorian and Calmagian, paled in comparison to him. His feet and fists were swift, and his sword fighting skills were sharp. Shalila and Dirkan quietly observed him, and so far they were impressed.
As they were watching Riccan and Tayla, Lektron, Gracina and Cletos approached them, and they were frantic and worried. "Nama, Dirkan!" Gracina cried. "Have you seen Caline or Petalia?"
Cletos moaned worriedly, "I can't find my daughter anywhere! Not even Rojal or Dedron know where she is! She seems to have dropped off of the face of the planet! No one has seen her since last afternoon!"
Gracina added, "King Kitchator has everyone in the palace searching for them now! No one has seen or heard from them since Petalia and Caline went to Caline's room, and Caline's room was searched! Nothing! Everything was in place!"
(What Gracina and the others didn't know was that Alberm had quickly returned after abducting Caline and Petalia to straighten the room and put it back exactly the way it had been.)
Gracina continued worriedly, "I am worried about those poor girls! Where could they be?"
Dirkan shouted at Tayla and Riccan to halt their sparring match, and they did. "Tayla, Riccan! Have you two seen Petalia or Caline today?"
"No, we haven't," Tayla told him. "I looked for Caline today to talk to her, but I couldn't find her anywhere. Neither could Riccan. Finally, we both figured that Caline was probably with Gracina or Lektron."
"We didn't speak to Petalia since the day before yesterday," Riccan added.
"She wasn't with Lektron, or me" Gracina told her. "I haven't seen her since yesterday morning, and Petalia seems to have vanished too. Did either one of them mention going anywhere in the last few days to you two?"
Riccan and Tayla both told her no, and now they were worried as well.
"No one has sensed Caline's ki or Petalia's ki?" Dirkan asked.
"No," Lektron told him worriedly, "and we know that Caline does not know how to conceal hers. Gracina and I just taught her two days ago on how to sense ki, but she doesn't know how to hide it yet."
Marya joined them at that moment, landing gracefully out of the air. "I just had a vision!" she told them frantically, "and it concerns Caline and Petalia!"
"What did you see, Marya?" Shalila asked the High Priestess of Chloe.
Marya took a deep breath and said, "I had a vision of Petalia and Caline in Caline and Alberm's room. I even went into that room to touch any objects that Caline may have handled, and I saw them in there, in my mind. I saw Alberm entering his and Caline's room, and Reccor too. They were grabbing the girls and pulling them under the bed-"
"Under the bed?" Lektron exclaimed. "How can that be?"
"Quiet, let her finish!" Dirkan ordered.
"They pulled the girls under the bed, and they dragged them down into the labyrinths beneath Calmag's surface…. I saw them leaving Magan, and now I no longer feel Alberm at all. One of my last visions was seeing the lizard-warrior called Jaden slaughter Alberm with a single ki blast. Alberm is gone, I can feel it, but the others still live."
Good riddance to bad rubbish, as Nama would say, Lektron thought silently.
"Alberm is definitely gone," Shalila said quietly, "for Marya has never been wrong when she senses that someone has died." She turned to her granddaughter. "Marya, do you see anything now?"
Marya nodded, and she sat down, meditated, and closed her eyes. "I can see something, but it's very blurry," she said in a low tone of voice. "I see Caline and Petalia on a cruiser heading towards here…and the ones called Zarbon and Jaden are holding them captive, but they have not harmed them. Jaden does not seem to want to harm the girls, and her friend doesn't want them harmed either. She is a strange humanoid woman with a cat's face and red and green hair. She is very pretty, a hard, fierce warrior, but with a soft spot for children. Oh, my stars!" Her voice rose to a shriek.
"What is it?" everyone asked.
Marya gasped for air and cried, "There is a Meatian with them! He has blue hair and eyes! Jaden has just addressed him as Pork!" She opened her blue eyes and turned her head to Shalila. "Didn't Steak lose a son, a son named Pork?"
Shalila exclaimed aloud, "Yes! Steak's lost son is alive!"
Dirkan was grim. "But now he works for Frieza."
"That poor boy!" Gracina cried.
Marya continued, forgetting Pork for now, "They are close, so close to here, less than thirty miles away! And the Saiyans are not too far behind them! Why they could come here as soon as tomorrow!"
The Astorians grew disturbed and panicked. Shalila tried to remain calm. She turned to Gracina and Lektron. "Gracina, Lektron, summon all of our people to here immediately. Our time is up."
"But what about Caline and Petalia?" Gracina cried worriedly.
Shalila's face was grim. "We will find a way to save them, no matter what. Do not worry about them yet, for if Jaden and Zarbon had wanted them dead, they would have killed them by now. For now, summon all of our fighters, and Dirkan, I will need you to warn the King."
"We're going to war now, aren't we?" Tayla asked her quietly.
Shalila put her hand on Tayla's shoulder. "Yes, Tayla, it is time to fight. Our time to prepare is now up."
"Will I get to fight?" Riccan wanted to know immediately.
"No!" Gracina told him sharply.
Dirkan spoke up, "Gracina, I know that you will throttle me for this, but I believe that he is ready."
Gracina let out a small shriek, and Shalila gasped. "Dirkan, are you sure about that?" Shalila asked him concernedly.
Dirkan, with his arms crossed, gave one firm nod, and Gracina shook her head wildly. "He is only nine years old, far too young! He is still a child."
"I am not much older, Gracina," Tayla protested calmly, "and Nama is allowing me to fight."
Gracina's sudden grim expression told Tayla that she had not been happy about that decision either. She privately thought that for Tayla's safety, Tayla should be kept out of the coming war. She turned to her grandmother. "Nama, please don't let him fight!"
Shalila rested her free hand on Gracina's arm. "Gracina, I know that you are scared for him, and he is so young, but in this case, I have to agree with Dirkan."
"Yay! I get to fight!" Riccan exclaimed happily, completely unaware of what he was getting into.
"What?" Gracina protested in fear. "Nama, you surely don't mean that! You are sending two children out to fight! Tayla should be kept out of the war as well; it is her they are after. Nama, I can't agree with this decision. I am worried about what could happen to Riccan; aren't you worried about what could happen to Tayla?"
"Very much so," Shalila told her as steadily as possible. "Dirkan and I had been discussing for days whether to let Tayla fight, or to hide her. At first, I was leaning towards not letting her fight at all because, as you said, it is her that Frieza's minions are after. But then, I realized how much we need her out there; after all we wouldn't have been able to defeat the Saiyans years ago without her help." She turned to Tayla and drew her to her body.
"Tayla," she told her calmly, "you know there is a risk in you fighting with us, right? You are aware that it is you that Frieza's subordinates are after, right?"
Tayla nodded solemnly. "Yes, Nama."
"Tayla," Shalila continued quietly, "This is serious. There is a good possibility that you could be captured, and that we could lose this battle and all of our lives. These soldiers are very strong, especially the Saiyans. I know that the ones called Jaden and Zarbon are strong, fierce fighters, for we fought against them many years before you were born. I am certain that a Sistrai warrior named Balair will be joining them-"
"What's a Sistrai warrior?" Riccan asked, interrupting.
"A Sistrai warrior comes from planet Sistra," Shalila told him, "Sistrai warriors resemble tall lizards who can turn themselves into gas and liquid, but that is off the subject. Riccan, I want you to pay attention to what I am about to say as well, for although no one is coming to capture you, you are in as much danger as Tayla."
"Yes, Great-Nama," Riccan told her.
"Tayla," Shalila addressed her, although she meant her words for Riccan as well. "Balair, Jaden, and Zarbon are extremely dangerous fighters, much more powerful than even the Saiyan boys. I am certain that they are among the ones coming to take you to Frieza. There is also a fat, pink warrior named Dodoria, and a strange warrior named Ginyu, and I am certain that they are still alive as well. They are among Frieza's Elite forces, and when Frieza starts sending his best out of his Elite, it means that he is almost out of options, other than facing us himself."
"I want you to understand that we may die, and Calmag might still yet fall to Frieza's forces. King Kitchator has sent out his best men at the moment to surround Magan to defend the city, but the Calmagians seem to be little help against Frieza's minions. Some of Frieza's fighters coming here have enough power to blow up this planet by themselves. I want you also to understand, Tayla, and these next words will be the hardest for me to say, but…we may not be able to protect you, if Frieza's Elite fighters overtake us. They don't want you dead, Tayla, but there are some fates that are worst than death, and being forced to work for Frieza is one of them. If Frieza's Elite minions manage to triumph over us and destroy us, you may be left on your own."
Shalila took a deep breath, as she gravely tousled Tayla's hair. She continued, "Tayla, if you wish to back out of the fighting, we will understand, and we will do our best to hide you and protect you as long as we can. The choice will be yours; I understand that it is you they are after, and that you are still very young to be fighting all out."
Tayla was quiet for a few moments, and then she spoke into her Nama's fighting uniform, saying as bravely as possible, "I know the risks, Nama, and I accept them. They won't give up until they find me, and they will kill everyone to get to me, I know. Frieza's fighters won't show any mercy, so I don't really have a choice, Nama. I can't back out; I don't want to. I must fight, for I would rather die fighting for my freedom and everyone's lives than wait until Frieza's fighters destroy everyone in order to get to me. If I die, at least I will die free. Anything is better than working for Frieza."
Shalila was impressed and awestruck, and so was everyone else. Tayla was not even thirteen yet, and she was already entering her second battle. In a few minutes, she had fully grasped the concept of her entire situation. And she was right.
"Then you will fight then," Shalila said as a statement, not a question.
Tayla nodded; she was scared, and Shalila knew it, but Tayla was willing to take the chance.
Riccan had been paying full attention to his great-grandmother's words. Shalila turned to her great-grandson, and she asked him, "Riccan, do you still wish to fight, knowing that you might die?"
Riccan nodded solemnly, digesting her words. Up until now, fighting and sparring had been a game, a fun game in preparation for the real thing someday.
"Riccan," Shalila told him, "what is coming up is not a mere sparring match. This is real war, Riccan, the real thing. The enemies that we are about to face will not show any mercy towards you just because you are a child. They will fight to kill, and you must be prepared to do the same. In warring, you will wind up taking lives, making them die. Are you prepared to do that? Are you prepared to cause others to die and possibly to do so yourself?"
Riccan was hesitant now, with the full impact of what was about to happen occurring to him. He was not as mature or as experienced as Tayla was, but he now understood what could happen.
He said slowly, "Yes, Nama."
Shalila nodded, and Gracina paled. "Nama," she began worriedly. She then turned to Riccan and drew him to her bosom, looking at Lektron anxiously. "Lektron, shouldn't we say something? Shouldn't we protest?"
Lektron was grim. He wasn't too enthusiastic about letting his nine-year-old son going into battle either, but he could understand how Riccan felt. But Lektron had some hand in Riccan's training, and he knew that the boy now was almost as strong as him, or would be in a few more years.
"Gracina," he told her calmly, "in a way, we will all have to fight for our lives. No one can really run or hide anymore. I'm sure that Riccan would want a chance to fight for his life and freedom than just stand around, possibly waiting to perish, right, son?" Riccan nodded.
Gracina's expression was full of pain and worry, not only for her son, but also for everyone else. She looked at her oldest child and whispered, "Riccan, you be careful. You be strong and do what you are told. You take care of yourself. I won't be too far away from you."
"We'll be nearby son," Lektron told him.
Riccan hugged his mother tightly. "Don't worry, Mamma, Pappa," he told her with his father's confidence. "I'm going to fight good and hard and kill lots of bad guys!"
The adults didn't know whether to cheer at Riccan's self-assurance, or groan because he was acting just like Lektron just before he went into battle.
The CRP officers and soldiers in the Calmagian Army surrounded the city of Magan, prepared with cannons, tanks, laser guns, missiles, and other deadly weapons. These men were among the best of the Calmagian fighters, and King Kitchator and Prince Amitar were confident that they could easily eradicate Frieza's fighters coming into Magan.
General Norbrook was standing inside in his private luxury army tank with Prince Amitar. Amitar was watching the skies from the tank's periscope, watching for signs of the intruders from Frieza. Filcor Sedemeyer, Norbrook's favorite lieutenant general, was with them, fuming because Alberm had kidnapped Caline, whom Amitar had promised to Filcor, after Amitar had finalized Alberm and Caline's divorce.
Amitar was an experienced warrior, and he was worried about his sons (he had two younger ones besides Ridikar, who were fourteen and thirteen), but especially Ridikar. This was the first real battle for all three of Amitar's sons, even Ridikar, who despite his earlier boasts to Tayla, had never seen a real Saiyan or Hycanese in his life. Amitar had worked for Intergalacticpol before he settled down and married his wife, whom Caline had been the spitting image of. Amitar had five children all together, with two married daughters older than Ridikar. Caline had been the youngest out of all his children.
The general spoke up, "Prince, I am sorry about your daughter's disappearance."
Before Amitar could speak, Filcor spoke, "Well, so I am I! Curse that Alberm, running off with the girl that I was supposed to marry! I suppose he and his little wife made up!" Filcor was just as fat as Alberm, but more powerful, with large muscles, black hair and black eyes, and about five-feet, seven inches tall.
"I will get my daughter back, Filcor," Amitar said as calmly as possible, "and you two will be married. I haven't forgotten all that you have done for me."
"Prince, with all due respect, you should have married Caline to me instead of Alberm Dunlop. Alberm turned out to be a traitor to our planet, and because of him, we may perish-"
"Silence, Sedemeyer!" Norbrook commanded. "I will execute that traitor myself when my men and I find him. The Prince has given us his blessing to do so, and it will be my personal pleasure to eliminate any traitors to Calmag."
"Norbrook," Amitar said, forgetting about Caline for now. He had taken the news of Caline's disappearance far too calmly, much to the Astorians' chagrin. Amitar had never been deeply attached to any of his female children; he saw them as pawns, to be used to cement alliances with powerful men that could help Calmag's safety and prosperity. "Norbrook, I want you to ensure that my son, Ridikar will be looked after during this battle. He is my eldest son, and the heir to the throne, and I don't want anything to happen to him."
"He will surely want his chance to prove himself in battle, Prince," Filcor pointed out.
"He will, Filcor," Norbrook told him calmly, "but this time it won't be necessary. My men and I have come up with three new missiles guaranteed to wipe out the pests invading our beloved planet. Yes, my CRP officers may have been losing, but our army is much stronger than Frieza's fighters. We greatly outnumber them, and I guarantee that we will win this battle in one day, you watch. We'll blow those curds of Frieza's out of the sky, faster than you can say 'King Kitchator'."
"Are you sure that these weapons will be enough, Norbrook?" Amitar asked, watching anxiously through the periscope.
"Sure as I am of you recovering your daughter and getting her married to Sedemeyer here, Prince. Sure as I am of your son, Prince Ridikar, marrying his little Astorian princess. Like you, sire, I don't understand why she would back out of an honorable engagement agreement. Astorian women must be a stubborn lot, I'm thankful that I already have a good, sensible Calmagian wife. You needn't worry, sire, why I will just contact Balboun of the CRP officers now." Norbrook picked up a device similar to a remote control, and he began pushing buttons. He spoke through the speaker, "Balboun, this is Norbrook. Balboun, are you there?"
Balboun's voice echoed through the communication device, shaky and uncertain, "Yes, General, I am here."
"Good! Balboun, how are your officers doing fighting Frieza's invaders? We should have less to worry about now that those prisoners that you had with you are dead, right?"
No response.
"Right?" Norbrook repeated.
The CRP cruiser
Balboun couldn't answer right away; he had to find a way to warn his general that Jaden and her teammates were still alive. Balboun, and his sergeant, Daukin, were still alive, and now there were two children as captives. Balboun pitied the young girls, especially Princess Caline, who had just lost her husband. He felt sorry for the child bride princess, who was now a child widow.
At least the cat-woman with the strange green and red hair...what was her name...Chestra?...was kind to the children, although she barely acknowledged him and Daukin. Chestra had fed the children some snacks that she had been carrying in her satchel. Zarbon was in the cockpit with him and Daukin, who was flying the plane. Pork and Crystalis were asleep, with Pork's head on Crystalis's shoulder. Jaden was pacing throughout the entire cruiser anxiously, and Reccor was sitting in a corner, afraid to move, afraid of saying the wrong thing.
"Balboun, are you there?" Norbrook's voice barked through the speaker.
Zarbon yawned, very bored at the moment. "Don't Calmagian soldiers ever shut up?"
Balboun said shakily, "Yes, General, I am still here."
"Balboun, those prisoners have been executed, right?"
Balboun choked out a reply, "They have been taken care of, General." He knew that if he revealed the truth, Zarbon would kill him on the spot. Daukin kept his ginger head lowered, and he continued to fly the small plane. Finally, to Balboun and Daukin's relief, Zarbon left the cockpit to talk to Jaden and Chestra. When he was safely out the door, Balboun swiftly locked the door electronically by pressing a button. He whispered quickly through the communicator in a low voice, "General, forgive me, for I have lied. My men were unable to execute them. They still live, and they hold us hostage-"
"Hostage? You are their hostages now?" Norbrook nearly shrieked. "Did I hear you, right, Balboun?"
"Shhh, General, they will hear us. Yes, we are now their captives. They are still coming, and we are being forced to take them into Magan. There are also two girls that are captive with us; they are the Princess Caline, and an Astorian princess named Petalia. Princess Caline's husband, Alberm of Dunlop has been killed. And also-"
A powerful ki blast opened the door before Balboun could finish, and he was suddenly face to face with a very angry Jaden, whose excellent Rybanese hearing had picked up the entire conversation.
"Big mistake, Baboon!" Jaden hissed angrily. "Alerting your people that we were coming wasn't a very nice thing to do. Any last words before you die?" She seized Balboun's shirt in her giant fist.
"Please," Balboun begged, "you don't have to do this to any of us. I can see personally that any of you won't be arrested, Miss Jaden-"
"That's Commander Jaden to you!" Jaden snarled. "We will spare your pilot, seeing that we need someone to get us into Magan, but your days are through-"
"Commander Jaden, please!" Daukin cried out, "The Astorians already know that you are coming anyway, so what my commander did made no difference. Please spare him, Commander Jaden! You are going to need both of us! Lieutenant Balboun and I can get you into Magan much quicker and with less hassle, than you all can do on your own. Give my commanding officer another chance, please!"
Jaden snorted, "Fine, but one more screw-up like that, and both of you will perish! I'm not in a good mood as it is, and I've killed people before for ticking me off, such as fat Alberm-such a useless, pathetic creature." She flung Balboun to the floor, and Balboun hit the floor hard, as Jaden marched out of the cockpit.
The next day in the back fields behind the castle.
Shalila and Dirkan watched Tayla and Riccan spar; Riccan had wanted so badly to fight, but his parents, particularly Gracina, were against it because he was so young. Tayla begged Shalila and Dirkan to at least allow Riccan to demonstrate his fighting abilities, and the two old warriors reluctantly conceded, as Riccan was showing them what he could do.
Riccan was almost as strong and as fast as Tayla, but not quite. However, he was the strongest nine-year-old at the moment, and even some of the older fighters, both Astorian and Calmagian, paled in comparison to him. His feet and fists were swift, and his sword fighting skills were sharp. Shalila and Dirkan quietly observed him, and so far they were impressed.
As they were watching Riccan and Tayla, Lektron, Gracina and Cletos approached them, and they were frantic and worried. "Nama, Dirkan!" Gracina cried. "Have you seen Caline or Petalia?"
Cletos moaned worriedly, "I can't find my daughter anywhere! Not even Rojal or Dedron know where she is! She seems to have dropped off of the face of the planet! No one has seen her since last afternoon!"
Gracina added, "King Kitchator has everyone in the palace searching for them now! No one has seen or heard from them since Petalia and Caline went to Caline's room, and Caline's room was searched! Nothing! Everything was in place!"
(What Gracina and the others didn't know was that Alberm had quickly returned after abducting Caline and Petalia to straighten the room and put it back exactly the way it had been.)
Gracina continued worriedly, "I am worried about those poor girls! Where could they be?"
Dirkan shouted at Tayla and Riccan to halt their sparring match, and they did. "Tayla, Riccan! Have you two seen Petalia or Caline today?"
"No, we haven't," Tayla told him. "I looked for Caline today to talk to her, but I couldn't find her anywhere. Neither could Riccan. Finally, we both figured that Caline was probably with Gracina or Lektron."
"We didn't speak to Petalia since the day before yesterday," Riccan added.
"She wasn't with Lektron, or me" Gracina told her. "I haven't seen her since yesterday morning, and Petalia seems to have vanished too. Did either one of them mention going anywhere in the last few days to you two?"
Riccan and Tayla both told her no, and now they were worried as well.
"No one has sensed Caline's ki or Petalia's ki?" Dirkan asked.
"No," Lektron told him worriedly, "and we know that Caline does not know how to conceal hers. Gracina and I just taught her two days ago on how to sense ki, but she doesn't know how to hide it yet."
Marya joined them at that moment, landing gracefully out of the air. "I just had a vision!" she told them frantically, "and it concerns Caline and Petalia!"
"What did you see, Marya?" Shalila asked the High Priestess of Chloe.
Marya took a deep breath and said, "I had a vision of Petalia and Caline in Caline and Alberm's room. I even went into that room to touch any objects that Caline may have handled, and I saw them in there, in my mind. I saw Alberm entering his and Caline's room, and Reccor too. They were grabbing the girls and pulling them under the bed-"
"Under the bed?" Lektron exclaimed. "How can that be?"
"Quiet, let her finish!" Dirkan ordered.
"They pulled the girls under the bed, and they dragged them down into the labyrinths beneath Calmag's surface…. I saw them leaving Magan, and now I no longer feel Alberm at all. One of my last visions was seeing the lizard-warrior called Jaden slaughter Alberm with a single ki blast. Alberm is gone, I can feel it, but the others still live."
Good riddance to bad rubbish, as Nama would say, Lektron thought silently.
"Alberm is definitely gone," Shalila said quietly, "for Marya has never been wrong when she senses that someone has died." She turned to her granddaughter. "Marya, do you see anything now?"
Marya nodded, and she sat down, meditated, and closed her eyes. "I can see something, but it's very blurry," she said in a low tone of voice. "I see Caline and Petalia on a cruiser heading towards here…and the ones called Zarbon and Jaden are holding them captive, but they have not harmed them. Jaden does not seem to want to harm the girls, and her friend doesn't want them harmed either. She is a strange humanoid woman with a cat's face and red and green hair. She is very pretty, a hard, fierce warrior, but with a soft spot for children. Oh, my stars!" Her voice rose to a shriek.
"What is it?" everyone asked.
Marya gasped for air and cried, "There is a Meatian with them! He has blue hair and eyes! Jaden has just addressed him as Pork!" She opened her blue eyes and turned her head to Shalila. "Didn't Steak lose a son, a son named Pork?"
Shalila exclaimed aloud, "Yes! Steak's lost son is alive!"
Dirkan was grim. "But now he works for Frieza."
"That poor boy!" Gracina cried.
Marya continued, forgetting Pork for now, "They are close, so close to here, less than thirty miles away! And the Saiyans are not too far behind them! Why they could come here as soon as tomorrow!"
The Astorians grew disturbed and panicked. Shalila tried to remain calm. She turned to Gracina and Lektron. "Gracina, Lektron, summon all of our people to here immediately. Our time is up."
"But what about Caline and Petalia?" Gracina cried worriedly.
Shalila's face was grim. "We will find a way to save them, no matter what. Do not worry about them yet, for if Jaden and Zarbon had wanted them dead, they would have killed them by now. For now, summon all of our fighters, and Dirkan, I will need you to warn the King."
"We're going to war now, aren't we?" Tayla asked her quietly.
Shalila put her hand on Tayla's shoulder. "Yes, Tayla, it is time to fight. Our time to prepare is now up."
"Will I get to fight?" Riccan wanted to know immediately.
"No!" Gracina told him sharply.
Dirkan spoke up, "Gracina, I know that you will throttle me for this, but I believe that he is ready."
Gracina let out a small shriek, and Shalila gasped. "Dirkan, are you sure about that?" Shalila asked him concernedly.
Dirkan, with his arms crossed, gave one firm nod, and Gracina shook her head wildly. "He is only nine years old, far too young! He is still a child."
"I am not much older, Gracina," Tayla protested calmly, "and Nama is allowing me to fight."
Gracina's sudden grim expression told Tayla that she had not been happy about that decision either. She privately thought that for Tayla's safety, Tayla should be kept out of the coming war. She turned to her grandmother. "Nama, please don't let him fight!"
Shalila rested her free hand on Gracina's arm. "Gracina, I know that you are scared for him, and he is so young, but in this case, I have to agree with Dirkan."
"Yay! I get to fight!" Riccan exclaimed happily, completely unaware of what he was getting into.
"What?" Gracina protested in fear. "Nama, you surely don't mean that! You are sending two children out to fight! Tayla should be kept out of the war as well; it is her they are after. Nama, I can't agree with this decision. I am worried about what could happen to Riccan; aren't you worried about what could happen to Tayla?"
"Very much so," Shalila told her as steadily as possible. "Dirkan and I had been discussing for days whether to let Tayla fight, or to hide her. At first, I was leaning towards not letting her fight at all because, as you said, it is her that Frieza's minions are after. But then, I realized how much we need her out there; after all we wouldn't have been able to defeat the Saiyans years ago without her help." She turned to Tayla and drew her to her body.
"Tayla," she told her calmly, "you know there is a risk in you fighting with us, right? You are aware that it is you that Frieza's subordinates are after, right?"
Tayla nodded solemnly. "Yes, Nama."
"Tayla," Shalila continued quietly, "This is serious. There is a good possibility that you could be captured, and that we could lose this battle and all of our lives. These soldiers are very strong, especially the Saiyans. I know that the ones called Jaden and Zarbon are strong, fierce fighters, for we fought against them many years before you were born. I am certain that a Sistrai warrior named Balair will be joining them-"
"What's a Sistrai warrior?" Riccan asked, interrupting.
"A Sistrai warrior comes from planet Sistra," Shalila told him, "Sistrai warriors resemble tall lizards who can turn themselves into gas and liquid, but that is off the subject. Riccan, I want you to pay attention to what I am about to say as well, for although no one is coming to capture you, you are in as much danger as Tayla."
"Yes, Great-Nama," Riccan told her.
"Tayla," Shalila addressed her, although she meant her words for Riccan as well. "Balair, Jaden, and Zarbon are extremely dangerous fighters, much more powerful than even the Saiyan boys. I am certain that they are among the ones coming to take you to Frieza. There is also a fat, pink warrior named Dodoria, and a strange warrior named Ginyu, and I am certain that they are still alive as well. They are among Frieza's Elite forces, and when Frieza starts sending his best out of his Elite, it means that he is almost out of options, other than facing us himself."
"I want you to understand that we may die, and Calmag might still yet fall to Frieza's forces. King Kitchator has sent out his best men at the moment to surround Magan to defend the city, but the Calmagians seem to be little help against Frieza's minions. Some of Frieza's fighters coming here have enough power to blow up this planet by themselves. I want you also to understand, Tayla, and these next words will be the hardest for me to say, but…we may not be able to protect you, if Frieza's Elite fighters overtake us. They don't want you dead, Tayla, but there are some fates that are worst than death, and being forced to work for Frieza is one of them. If Frieza's Elite minions manage to triumph over us and destroy us, you may be left on your own."
Shalila took a deep breath, as she gravely tousled Tayla's hair. She continued, "Tayla, if you wish to back out of the fighting, we will understand, and we will do our best to hide you and protect you as long as we can. The choice will be yours; I understand that it is you they are after, and that you are still very young to be fighting all out."
Tayla was quiet for a few moments, and then she spoke into her Nama's fighting uniform, saying as bravely as possible, "I know the risks, Nama, and I accept them. They won't give up until they find me, and they will kill everyone to get to me, I know. Frieza's fighters won't show any mercy, so I don't really have a choice, Nama. I can't back out; I don't want to. I must fight, for I would rather die fighting for my freedom and everyone's lives than wait until Frieza's fighters destroy everyone in order to get to me. If I die, at least I will die free. Anything is better than working for Frieza."
Shalila was impressed and awestruck, and so was everyone else. Tayla was not even thirteen yet, and she was already entering her second battle. In a few minutes, she had fully grasped the concept of her entire situation. And she was right.
"Then you will fight then," Shalila said as a statement, not a question.
Tayla nodded; she was scared, and Shalila knew it, but Tayla was willing to take the chance.
Riccan had been paying full attention to his great-grandmother's words. Shalila turned to her great-grandson, and she asked him, "Riccan, do you still wish to fight, knowing that you might die?"
Riccan nodded solemnly, digesting her words. Up until now, fighting and sparring had been a game, a fun game in preparation for the real thing someday.
"Riccan," Shalila told him, "what is coming up is not a mere sparring match. This is real war, Riccan, the real thing. The enemies that we are about to face will not show any mercy towards you just because you are a child. They will fight to kill, and you must be prepared to do the same. In warring, you will wind up taking lives, making them die. Are you prepared to do that? Are you prepared to cause others to die and possibly to do so yourself?"
Riccan was hesitant now, with the full impact of what was about to happen occurring to him. He was not as mature or as experienced as Tayla was, but he now understood what could happen.
He said slowly, "Yes, Nama."
Shalila nodded, and Gracina paled. "Nama," she began worriedly. She then turned to Riccan and drew him to her bosom, looking at Lektron anxiously. "Lektron, shouldn't we say something? Shouldn't we protest?"
Lektron was grim. He wasn't too enthusiastic about letting his nine-year-old son going into battle either, but he could understand how Riccan felt. But Lektron had some hand in Riccan's training, and he knew that the boy now was almost as strong as him, or would be in a few more years.
"Gracina," he told her calmly, "in a way, we will all have to fight for our lives. No one can really run or hide anymore. I'm sure that Riccan would want a chance to fight for his life and freedom than just stand around, possibly waiting to perish, right, son?" Riccan nodded.
Gracina's expression was full of pain and worry, not only for her son, but also for everyone else. She looked at her oldest child and whispered, "Riccan, you be careful. You be strong and do what you are told. You take care of yourself. I won't be too far away from you."
"We'll be nearby son," Lektron told him.
Riccan hugged his mother tightly. "Don't worry, Mamma, Pappa," he told her with his father's confidence. "I'm going to fight good and hard and kill lots of bad guys!"
The adults didn't know whether to cheer at Riccan's self-assurance, or groan because he was acting just like Lektron just before he went into battle.
The CRP officers and soldiers in the Calmagian Army surrounded the city of Magan, prepared with cannons, tanks, laser guns, missiles, and other deadly weapons. These men were among the best of the Calmagian fighters, and King Kitchator and Prince Amitar were confident that they could easily eradicate Frieza's fighters coming into Magan.
General Norbrook was standing inside in his private luxury army tank with Prince Amitar. Amitar was watching the skies from the tank's periscope, watching for signs of the intruders from Frieza. Filcor Sedemeyer, Norbrook's favorite lieutenant general, was with them, fuming because Alberm had kidnapped Caline, whom Amitar had promised to Filcor, after Amitar had finalized Alberm and Caline's divorce.
Amitar was an experienced warrior, and he was worried about his sons (he had two younger ones besides Ridikar, who were fourteen and thirteen), but especially Ridikar. This was the first real battle for all three of Amitar's sons, even Ridikar, who despite his earlier boasts to Tayla, had never seen a real Saiyan or Hycanese in his life. Amitar had worked for Intergalacticpol before he settled down and married his wife, whom Caline had been the spitting image of. Amitar had five children all together, with two married daughters older than Ridikar. Caline had been the youngest out of all his children.
The general spoke up, "Prince, I am sorry about your daughter's disappearance."
Before Amitar could speak, Filcor spoke, "Well, so I am I! Curse that Alberm, running off with the girl that I was supposed to marry! I suppose he and his little wife made up!" Filcor was just as fat as Alberm, but more powerful, with large muscles, black hair and black eyes, and about five-feet, seven inches tall.
"I will get my daughter back, Filcor," Amitar said as calmly as possible, "and you two will be married. I haven't forgotten all that you have done for me."
"Prince, with all due respect, you should have married Caline to me instead of Alberm Dunlop. Alberm turned out to be a traitor to our planet, and because of him, we may perish-"
"Silence, Sedemeyer!" Norbrook commanded. "I will execute that traitor myself when my men and I find him. The Prince has given us his blessing to do so, and it will be my personal pleasure to eliminate any traitors to Calmag."
"Norbrook," Amitar said, forgetting about Caline for now. He had taken the news of Caline's disappearance far too calmly, much to the Astorians' chagrin. Amitar had never been deeply attached to any of his female children; he saw them as pawns, to be used to cement alliances with powerful men that could help Calmag's safety and prosperity. "Norbrook, I want you to ensure that my son, Ridikar will be looked after during this battle. He is my eldest son, and the heir to the throne, and I don't want anything to happen to him."
"He will surely want his chance to prove himself in battle, Prince," Filcor pointed out.
"He will, Filcor," Norbrook told him calmly, "but this time it won't be necessary. My men and I have come up with three new missiles guaranteed to wipe out the pests invading our beloved planet. Yes, my CRP officers may have been losing, but our army is much stronger than Frieza's fighters. We greatly outnumber them, and I guarantee that we will win this battle in one day, you watch. We'll blow those curds of Frieza's out of the sky, faster than you can say 'King Kitchator'."
"Are you sure that these weapons will be enough, Norbrook?" Amitar asked, watching anxiously through the periscope.
"Sure as I am of you recovering your daughter and getting her married to Sedemeyer here, Prince. Sure as I am of your son, Prince Ridikar, marrying his little Astorian princess. Like you, sire, I don't understand why she would back out of an honorable engagement agreement. Astorian women must be a stubborn lot, I'm thankful that I already have a good, sensible Calmagian wife. You needn't worry, sire, why I will just contact Balboun of the CRP officers now." Norbrook picked up a device similar to a remote control, and he began pushing buttons. He spoke through the speaker, "Balboun, this is Norbrook. Balboun, are you there?"
Balboun's voice echoed through the communication device, shaky and uncertain, "Yes, General, I am here."
"Good! Balboun, how are your officers doing fighting Frieza's invaders? We should have less to worry about now that those prisoners that you had with you are dead, right?"
No response.
"Right?" Norbrook repeated.
The CRP cruiser
Balboun couldn't answer right away; he had to find a way to warn his general that Jaden and her teammates were still alive. Balboun, and his sergeant, Daukin, were still alive, and now there were two children as captives. Balboun pitied the young girls, especially Princess Caline, who had just lost her husband. He felt sorry for the child bride princess, who was now a child widow.
At least the cat-woman with the strange green and red hair...what was her name...Chestra?...was kind to the children, although she barely acknowledged him and Daukin. Chestra had fed the children some snacks that she had been carrying in her satchel. Zarbon was in the cockpit with him and Daukin, who was flying the plane. Pork and Crystalis were asleep, with Pork's head on Crystalis's shoulder. Jaden was pacing throughout the entire cruiser anxiously, and Reccor was sitting in a corner, afraid to move, afraid of saying the wrong thing.
"Balboun, are you there?" Norbrook's voice barked through the speaker.
Zarbon yawned, very bored at the moment. "Don't Calmagian soldiers ever shut up?"
Balboun said shakily, "Yes, General, I am still here."
"Balboun, those prisoners have been executed, right?"
Balboun choked out a reply, "They have been taken care of, General." He knew that if he revealed the truth, Zarbon would kill him on the spot. Daukin kept his ginger head lowered, and he continued to fly the small plane. Finally, to Balboun and Daukin's relief, Zarbon left the cockpit to talk to Jaden and Chestra. When he was safely out the door, Balboun swiftly locked the door electronically by pressing a button. He whispered quickly through the communicator in a low voice, "General, forgive me, for I have lied. My men were unable to execute them. They still live, and they hold us hostage-"
"Hostage? You are their hostages now?" Norbrook nearly shrieked. "Did I hear you, right, Balboun?"
"Shhh, General, they will hear us. Yes, we are now their captives. They are still coming, and we are being forced to take them into Magan. There are also two girls that are captive with us; they are the Princess Caline, and an Astorian princess named Petalia. Princess Caline's husband, Alberm of Dunlop has been killed. And also-"
A powerful ki blast opened the door before Balboun could finish, and he was suddenly face to face with a very angry Jaden, whose excellent Rybanese hearing had picked up the entire conversation.
"Big mistake, Baboon!" Jaden hissed angrily. "Alerting your people that we were coming wasn't a very nice thing to do. Any last words before you die?" She seized Balboun's shirt in her giant fist.
"Please," Balboun begged, "you don't have to do this to any of us. I can see personally that any of you won't be arrested, Miss Jaden-"
"That's Commander Jaden to you!" Jaden snarled. "We will spare your pilot, seeing that we need someone to get us into Magan, but your days are through-"
"Commander Jaden, please!" Daukin cried out, "The Astorians already know that you are coming anyway, so what my commander did made no difference. Please spare him, Commander Jaden! You are going to need both of us! Lieutenant Balboun and I can get you into Magan much quicker and with less hassle, than you all can do on your own. Give my commanding officer another chance, please!"
Jaden snorted, "Fine, but one more screw-up like that, and both of you will perish! I'm not in a good mood as it is, and I've killed people before for ticking me off, such as fat Alberm-such a useless, pathetic creature." She flung Balboun to the floor, and Balboun hit the floor hard, as Jaden marched out of the cockpit.
