Love and Blood - Part 3

Red blinding explosions, thick clouds of dust, debris, choking, lungs bursting. Pounding, roaring, monsters. Concrete and stone fall, slabs of death caving in, bone-crushing despair. Fur-covered fists crush, smash. Fire and energy spew from their mouths, incinerating all. Unstoppable. Unbeatable.
The city falls.

Blinded by the blood dripping into his eyes, Bardock flattens himself against the wall. He hears their voices — Dodoria, Zarbon, and — who? No, he knows who — the king and his son. King Cold. Frieza. Traitors. But he knows what will happen. Oh, yes, he knows. He will try anyway.

He takes Torah's armband and wipes his eyes, ties it around his head. Torah. Dead. All dead. He allows himself a moment, remembers. One insignificant city sacrificed. A hundred thousand Freezites will never laugh or cry or marry... And Vejita, the planet, the king, the prince. He squeezes his eyes shut, but there's no vision. And where is the prince? He concentrates on Prince Vejita and opens his mind. There's no assault on his senses this time. The prince is safe. That's all that matters.

Now is the time. It will end here.

Time slows. Anguish, anger rips a cry from the Saiyan's throat. He flies toward the voices, they turn and laugh, echoes bouncing from the walls. Oh, look. He's still alive! hahaha ah ah ah... Where's your crew, Bardock? haha ah ah Time for a little R and R, Bardock?

He screams their names.

Oh, we're pigs now, are we? A faintly effeminite voice, like gravel.

He stands breathing hard, body tense, palms open. Energy gathers in his palm. He clenches one fist. It's over! he screams.

Yes, it is, says the voice. For you, your mate and your son, hiding by the sea.

Bardock cries out and launches the ball. LEAVE THEM ALOOONE!

The voice raises one finger, points a thin line of fire-white energy that consumes the ball and punctures Bardock's heart. For one nanosecond, his eyes blaze to green, then shrink to pinpoints, then go to white. The change goes unnoticed. The pigs are laughing too hard.

******

Fasha threw the few pieces of clothing into the sack. The boy sat on the bed glaring at her, arms and legs crossed.

Why are we moving again? he asked, barely able to keep the whine out of his voice.

How many times do I have to tell you? she said quietly. We have no choice. Not if we want to live. Not until order is restored and the prince is back on the throne.

The young man stood up, his back ramrod straight, thick black triangles of hair seemed to stand out even stiffer than usual. His ebony eyes flashed with anger, the heavy eyebrows drawing down, almost meeting over the bridge of his nose.

We're Saiyans, Fasha! Why don't we stay and fight? They just keep finding us, anyway. We can end this now! Vejita belongs to us and our prince, not to that freak! If we take out his henchmen, we have a chance...

Fasha slammed her hand on the dresser and looked up at the fiery young man. At fifteen, Kakarot was head and shoulders taller than she.

Her face softened. You look so much like your father, she whispered, and the tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. She wiped them away angrily. And you have his stubborness. Get your things. This is not open for discussion.

For a moment, Kakarot stood his ground, his anger raising an aura of energy around his body that made Fasha stare at him, startled. Then he spun on his heel and left the room, his ki blazing, tail snapping back and forth.

Fasha hugged herself and shivered. Sometimes you scare me, she whispered.

******

Kakarot set the bottle on a stump and flew back about 100 feet. Pointing his finger at the bottle, he slowly pulled out his ki until a bubble of energy began to pulse from the tip.

Concentrate, baka, he muttered. The chiseled young muscles tensed, the ki pulsed hotter and with a the beam spiraled out, impaling the bottle with a shattering crash, sending shards in every direction. He grinned.

You've learned control. Good. Fasha stepped out of the shade of the tree and
gazed at the young man.

Kakarot turned his hands over and looked at his palms, clenched them into fists, relaxed them again. Fasha gently took his hands in hers, turning them over.

You've become strong in body, Kakarot. She folded his hands in hers. Now you need to become strong in mind.

He extracted his hands from hers. What for? It doesn't take brains to fight.

Fasha raised her eyebrows. Your father said that once.

Don't talk about my father, he said quietly, but his voice was deadly. Fasha sensed the overwhelming anger flare. Then just as suddenly, his face lit up, equilibrium restored.

Spar with me! Come on, Fasha.

She groaned. The last time we sparred, you nearly killed me! I was sore for a month!

He laughed as he lightly powered up, hair blowing in the force of it. Tree limbs swayed, the tall grass flattened. I promise I'll go easy on you this time.

She grinned. No ki.

He frowned. All right. No ki. He wrapped his tail around his waist.

They squared off, deadly serious. The two Saiyans circled each other, eyes sparkling with the thrill of the battle.

Kakarot launched himself at her.



Fasha stood her ground for a split second then in a flash she was gone. Kakarot came to a screeching halt, dust and stones kicking up as his heels dug in.



Up here, boy!

Kakarot looked up too late to do anything about the elbow that was descending on the back of his neck.

He crashed to the ground, but rolled away as Fasha continued her assault. He came up on one knee then was gone. Fasha sensed his ki behind her, grabbed her fist with the other hand and back elbowed him in the gut. Kakarot doubled over.

Damn, your elbows are sharp, he rasped.

She laughed and flew away to square off again.

Still want to go easy, boy? she said, crooking her index finger at him.

You've been practicing. Damn, woman. You're good.

One corner of her mouth crept up. Let me show you how good.

Before he could fully recover, Fasha launched herself at him, delivering punches and kicks with blinding speed. Kakarot could only block her assault, but finally found an opening to land a punch in her stomach. He was surprised to find that her abs were rock hard, and she pulled back to lessen the blow.

Fasha grunted and back flipped away, touched down with one toe then transmuted right into Kakarot's face to land a finishing blow to his jaw. The blow sent him flying backwards where he landed against a tree and slid down into a heap. Fasha floated down, breathing hard, resting both hands on her knees.

And that's all there is to it, she panted.

Kakarot stood up, not without some difficulty, and began to wipe the blood off his chin with his arm.

Still think it takes all brawn, boy? she said, noting the anger blazing in his eyes. His arm stopped mid-wipe. Slowly he drew his arm the rest of the way across, smiled crookedly and vanished in a flash of ki power.

A long tail seemed to appear out of nowhere, snaked around her middle and pinned her arms to her sides.



Kakarot's arm wrapped around her neck loosely.

Got you, he whispered. Give up.

Fasha struggled for a second, then, relaxing, began to laugh. Okay, you win.

But when he let go, Fasha dug her heels in, kicked back and the two of them sprawled in the grass, rolling and wrestling and laughing until finally Fasha came out on top, straddled his midsection and pinned his arms up over his head.

Y-you... cheated! Kakarot laughed.

And you didn't? You agreed no ki. She loosed her hold on his arms and sat up with her hands on her thighs, still straddling the young Saiyan. She grinned at him.

Anyway, this is war, boy. Everything is fair.

Including reneging on your promises.

She laughed. Including that.

Suddenly, Fasha's face turned ashen.

he cried.

For one moment, she looked down at him. Kakarot... please... you... Then her eyes rolled into her head, and she toppled over. Kakarot scrambled out from under her and knelt by her side, turning her over. A hole had pierced straight through the middle of her forehead.

Fasha! Fasha! he cried, tears streaming down his face.

Their laughter reached his ears before he saw them.

You've given us quite a lot of trouble, boy. Dodoria stepped from behind the tree followed by three other men. Slippery little devil. If it hadn't been for that rush of ki we felt, we probably wouldn't have found you.

Kakarot slowly stood up, teeth bared, fists clenched.

You son of a bitch, he hissed. You SON OF A BIIIITCH!

He launched himself at Dodoria. The three men scrambled into action, each one grabbing a part of the young Saiyan. He was stopped short of Dodoria's face.

What shall we do with you, boy? Dodoria smiled, drew his thick tongue over his blue lips.

Kakarot snarled and strained against his captors. It was all they could do to hold onto him.

Killing you is too simple. Breaking your spirit...now that is something we can work on.

Kakarot spit in his face. He grinned. Try it, you fat pink toad.

Dodoria's pupils went to pinpoints. He nodded at his men. The next thing Kakarot felt was the blow to the back of his neck, and then blackness.