Hn, do you think this story's going a little quick? I sorta think it is. ^^" Ah well, seeing as this is chapter 8 something had to have happened.




Title: Mystery Solved, part VIII of A Saiya-jin Odessey
Author: trunksgf513 n trunksgrl06




Hestia wandered through the halls quickly, looking in each room she passed for her missing mate. She had since cooled off, concern replacing the anger she once had. By the time she had covered a majority of the palace grounds a considerable amount of anxiety had built up in her. For a brief moment she wondered if what the chef had said was true. What if he had found another woman?

Her throat tightened to the point where she couldn't swallow, and tears started to form in her eyes. Looking up at the ceiling she started to breathe deeply, forcing herself to calm down. Surely Trunks wouldn't leave her; not after everything they had been through. Taking one last deep breath she looked ahead of her, teeth clenched tightly in determination. She would find him. Reassured that he was in the castle she continued her search.

When she had reached the last room and hadn't seen hide or hair of Trunks, her heart sank to her stomach. She stood in the middle of the hallway and stared at the ground blankly. Where had he gone? Was it possible he did have a mistress? She swallowed thickly and righted herself, turning around and walking towards her bedchamber.



Sutea whistled absent-mindedly, walking through the hallways of the palace. Every once and a while she caught a common soldier glare at her. She snorted at them and continued down the corridor.

"I swear, everyone's so friggin prejudiced on this planet." she growled to herself.

As she turned the corner she found herself among a few advisors who were loitering in the hall, talking amongst themselves. She scanned the crowd for Goten but didn't see him. Just as she was about to move on her eyes caught sight of Lechuga, who was standing next to her mentor, studying some charts. Sutea smirked and slowly walked towards the two. On her way past the pair she smacked Reio's ass and walked past Lechuga. Reio turned towards Lechuga, eyes wide with surprise.

"Stupid girl! What is your problem?!" he yelled. Lechuga jumped.

"What?" she whispered, caught off guard from the sudden, accusing comment. Reio growled and turned back towards the graphs.

"You try that again and I'll have you thrown off the council, do you understand?!"

Lechuga swallowed and nodded, unsure of what Reio meant but unwilling to lose her position. Hearing a snicker to her left she turned her head, seeing a smirking Sutea. The two 18-year-olds glared at each other angrily, an intense hatred burning in each of them. Sutea moved her neck to the side slightly and tapped her bond-mark. When Lechuga tensed and growled Sutea smirked and turned around, beginning to walk away.

"Fach'rn!!" Lechuga screamed at Sutea, tail lashing about behind her dangerously. Reio turned to his underling, confused. Sutea rolled her eyes and flipped Lechuga the bird. The young girl stared at Sutea, confused. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?!"

"Figure it out." Sutea snapped before turning around and continuing her trek down the hallway. She rolled her eyes. "You think she would come up with something other then 'bitch' to say to me."

She sighed heavily, taking a right turn. For some time Lechuga had hated Sutea for the simple fact she was mated to Goten. Sutea had later learned that the two had at one time been lovers, but Goten had ended it when he found her to be too posessive for his taste. She sighed again and ascended some stairs, walking down a corridor. A smug smirk planted itself on her face, thinking of how she would forever have Goten.

The sound of someone crying caught her attention and she turned to find herself in front of the king and queen's bedchamber. Her eyebrows furrowed and she moved closer to the door, listening. Concern and curiosity filled her being and she knocked gently on the door. Instantly the sounds of weeping ended, rustling being heard. Sutea set her features in grim determination.

"Hestia, are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." came Hestia's muffled reply. More shuffling was heard and Sutea frowned, trying to pull the door open. It was locked and didn't give.

"Bullshit. Let me in." Sutea ordered, rattling the door some more.

"Fine, just hold on a second!!" Hestia yelled, somewhat annoyed. A soft click was heard and Sutea pulled open the door, entering. Hestia stood before her, back to her. She stood up straight, looking out a window. Sutea moved closer, looking at her curiously.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Sutea asked softly.

"I'm perfectly fine." Hestia replied, voice shaking slightly.

"Hestia, don't try to cover it up. You can tell me." Sutea assured. Hestia swallowed and turned around to face her best friend. Sutea took in her features: puffy eyes, flushed face, and wet cheeks. She had been crying. Sutea's features solemned a bit and she tried to look the queen in the eyes unsuccessfully.

"The chef was right." Hestia mumbled, leaning against the windowframe and looking down at the gardens. Sutea's brows wrinkled with confusion.

"About what?"

"Trunks." Hestia answered quickly. "He's gone. The chef said he might have found another woman." She trailed off, feeling tears come to her eyes again. She mentally slapped herself for allowing her emotions to show. Sutea stood and walked over to Hestia.

"I'm sure he didn't." she whispered, placing a comforting hand on Hestia's shoulders. Hestia shook her head.

"You don't understand. Yesterday we got in a huge fight." she said, looking down at the windowsill. She swallowed. "He didn't address me by my name, he kept yelling at me to cook for him, and he said I was nothing but a slave to him." Her jaw clenched and she slammed it down on the windowsill. "He's like Vegeta, I swear to God!!" Sutea stood still for a few moments before sighing softly.

"I'm sure he didn't mean it. We all say things we don't mean when we're angry." she consoled.

"But to say that...and then leave?" Hestia whispered. She looked at Sutea, giving up on trying not to cry. "I searched everywhere and I can't find him. No one's seen him either." Sutea stiffened, reminded about the pod that had left. She opened her mouth to speak but instantly shut it. She could tell that Hestia didn't need to be shaken any more then she already was.

"I'll go look for him right now." Sutea announced, withdrawing her hand from her friend's shoulder.

"It's no use. I already looked." Hestia mumbled.

"Maybe he moved from room to room without you noticing. It's happened before, you know." Sutea said. Hestia sighed and nodded her approval. Sutea smiled a little. "Just stay here and relax, okay?" Again Hestia nodded.

"Good luck." she whispered before Sutea closed the door.

Turning left Sutea began to run towards the laboratory, almost knocking people over on her way down. Seeing two sleeping guards at the entrance, she bit her lip and snuck in, praying that they wouldn't awaken. They didn't and she was soon walking around the lab, asking around for Gohan. When she finally reached him she noticed Goten was standing next to him, looking at a screen, his mouth moving at times. As quick as she could she walked over to the other side of Gohan and leaned against the table.

"It was Trunks." she said softly. Gohan and Goten turned to look at her, surprised.

"What are you doing here?" Goten whispered, looking around. "How did you get in?"

"Let's just say you have to get better guards." Sutea mumbled, pointing behind her. Gohan exhaled heavily and turned to the screens.

"Now what was it you said about King Trunks?" he queried.

"It was him. He took Goten's ship." she informed. Goten looked at her skeptically.

"How do you know this?"

"Hestia just told me she looked everywhere for him, but she couldn't find him. No one has seen him, either. She thinks he ran off with another woman because of what her stupid chef said, but I believe he took Goten's ship." Sutea replied. She looked at the screen and at the buttons below her. All the words were written in Saiyajin. "Now if only I could understand this I could prove my theory to you." Gohan sighed.

"We already know he took the ship." he said, looking back at the screens. "There's another problem."

"What's that?" Sutea queried, confused. Goten looked at Sutea and frowned.

"It's no longer on the radar. It's like he's vanished." he whispered. Her eyes widened.

"Do you think he's dead?"

"It's possible," Gohan confirmed, pressing some keys on his keyboard. "But we're trying to think positive. Maybe the signal on his pod is blocked by something. It's happened before."

"But what if that isn't it?" Sutea quipped. Gohan narrowed his eyes and looked at her sideways.

"You like to bring up all angles, don't you?"

"Gotta be prepared." Sutea said, smiling. Gohan exhaled heavily and tapped some buttons, looking at the screen.

"There really is nothing we can do if he actually is dead but find out who or what killed him and destroy it." he revealed.

"Great." Sutea mumbled, leaning against the table. Her eyes scanned the room full of busy scientists and she sighed.

"We'll do our best, don't worry." Gohan assured, tapping a few more buttons.

"Okay." Sutea said, looking over at Goten. His eyes shifted from the screens to her eyes, and he allowed a small smile to touch his lips.

"Well, it's nice to know all the secrets that have been kept from me." a voice said behind them. All three turned around to see Hestia standing with her arms crossed. Annoyance dominated her features and you couldn't tell that she had been crying. Sutea swallowed.

"We were going to tell you, I just had an idea and came here." she informed.

"I know you and your 'ideas', Sutea. Don't play me for a fool." Hestia's eyes narrowed. "I want to know what is going on, and I want to know now."

"How long have you been here?" Gohan questioned. "And how did you get in here?"

"I've been here ever since you asked Sutea about her bringing up all the angles. And I can get in here if I want, I am the queen, you know." Hestia replied. "Now tell me what the hell is going on with my mate." Sutea opened her mouth to begin but was interrupted by a wave of Hestia's hand. "You've done enough hiding things from me. Leave. Now." Gohan and Goten watched as Sutea stomped out angrily, muttering under breath.

"There was no reason for that." Goten snapped, defending his mate. Hestia narrowed her eyes.

"There was a reason for that, and that reason is the fact that you have been keeping information from me that I should know about!" she snapped. In her anger and frustration she thrust out her hand and grabbed Gohan's shirt and pulled her to him roughly. Fury glowed in her eyes, her breath quick. "Where is my mate?!!!!" Gohan, taken aback by her sudden actions, gently pried her hand loose of his shirt.

"We were going to inform you of his whereabouts as soon as we were positive." he said calmly. Hestia growled softly.

"Don't bullshit me!! You knew about this! Why else would you be discussing it?!" She paused her yelling to take some deep breaths, trying to bridle her rage. Once again she lifted her head and looked up at Gohan and Goten. "Please, I just want to know if he's alright. Just tell me the truth. It's better knowing that than imagining the worst."

"Right now we don't really know where he is." Goten reported, looking back at a screen. "The tracker's lost him." Hestia brushed past Gohan and joined Goten at the screen.

"What do you mean? I thought the trackers were deeply imbedded in the vessels or something." she said. Gohan shook his head slightly.

"If something scratched the place where it was located, it could have been damaged or broken. We don't know for sure where he is, but I'm pretty sure he's alright. He's a strong man. He can take whatever is thrown his way." he assured. Hestia sighed.

"I hope so." she whispered. Her voice lowered to an almost inaudible volume. "I don't know what I would do if I lost him." Throwing one last glance at the screen she turned around, walking calmly out of the lab and heading towards her room.



"Stupid bitch. What does she know?" Sutea growled, pulling a large cloak out of her closet and throwing it over her shoulders. She snorted as she fasted the hook which would keep it on her body. "I try to get information for her and she goes and throws a bitch-fit on me...fuck her."

Walking angrily over to the door she flung it open, allowing it to close itself as she walked down the hallway, a force in her step never seen before in the halls of the royal palace. Soldiers stepped aside, wondering if she was just angry, or if it was that time of the month. Either way, they didn't want to risk having their ears blown out, so they stayed off to the side. Once near the exit door she adjusted the hood so it covered her face and continued through the door, the guards dismissing her as a commoner.

"I'll be damned if I stay here forever. I need to work off some steam..." Sutea grumbled to herself, passing through the main gate and into the city.

Almost instantly she was greeted with the hustle and bustle of city life, a scene she had missed from her old way of life. But this time it was much different. Now she wandered the streets with people who were a) strangers and b) stronger then her. Keeping a low profile, she moved through the crowds, eventually purchasing a small canteen of water.

Just as she turned around she smacked into something hard, knocking her off balance. While she attempted to remain standing she swung the bottle, sending water all over her and whatever she had knocked into. Without thinking her temper took control of her, and before she knew it the words 'watch where you're going, you bastard!' had passed her lips. A growl was heard before a fist pulled the junction of her coat, lifting her off the ground.

"What did you call me?" a deep voice snarled threateningly.

Sutea swallowed and looked up at a face hard as stone. Her features softened for about a second when she saw a flicker of recognition in his eyes. Slowly his eyes narrowed and he picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder despite her loud protests. Once they reached an alley he set her down and pushed her against the wall, forearm against her collarbone.

"What are you doing here, Sutea? Don't you realize what danger you're in?!" he hissed. Sutea's eyes widened a bit before she tensed, a bit afraid of the position she was in.

"Who are you and how do you know my name?" she asked shakily. The corners of the stranger's lips lifted into a small smile.

"Darro, of course." he answered. She gasped quickly, memories flowing back to her. Slowly her hand raised to his cheek, stroking it gently.

"You have to be kidding me." she whispered in disbelief.

"No, I'm really Darro." he said, smiling. Within two seconds the two embraced eachother tightly.



Trunks groaned softly, waking to a throbbing pain in his head. He raised his hand to hold his head only to find he could move it about a foot. Opening his eyes slowly he found himself in a dark room, the only light coming from the hallway. He squinted, his vision doubling momentarily. Was that?...Yes, those were bars. He was in a prison cell. Groaning softly he lay his head back on the cold stone wall, too tired to do much else. His limbs, his head, his whole body felt numb. He heard a creak then felt a pinch in his arm before another wave of fatigue overwhelmed him, pulling him into a fitful night's rest.




A/N: oooooh, so much goin on. who's the man sutea met? where's trunks? wut's hestia gonna do? XP so much to do, so little time. Sorry I haven't written much lately. Been busy. later peeps ^^



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