"Since the day of my birth, my death began its walk. It is walking toward
me, without
hurrying." - Jean Cocteau
Frigid
I have no particular argument with the people of this planet, no purpose or need for them or anything that is theirs, so I saw to it that my ship was taken down at a place that seems least troublesome for all parties involved. Aiken could almost doubtlessly have coped with any type of force the humans could muster, but who needs the hassle that say, destroying their greatest city might bring about? Of course, if it's necessary to draw the Super Saiyajin out... But I think he'll come to me without prompting.
Vast dry wilderness, nothing but dead, sand covered plains and crags topped with withered grasses surround the ship. Ugly planet, really. So drab.
Lizards crawl among the broken stone and crumbling earth. Distant cousins, perhaps. "Aiken," I said, watching life, such as it is for these creatures, go on outside my ship on the view screen. "Bring me one of those." And I point to the lizard I want carefully, a pale skinned one, large but not unwieldy, knowing she'll retrieve just that one.
Aiken's wound up -- expecting a fight. She fairly sprung toward the hatch with a glad shout of "Yes, Lady Frigid!" and was outside within the second.
One wonders if the silly fool has an idea of what's to happen and what it will mean to her. It's unheard of for an Inujin to live on after her master's death, and I'm dead, regardless of what happens with the Saiyajin. It's true I told her we come only to fight the Super Saiyajin, but still, she shouldn't be so cheerful.
I watch Aiken through the cameras as she moves toward the lizard, stalking with skill and instinct superior to any animal's. Grinning, the tip of her tongue hanging over her lips, ears bent forward, and tail wagging fiercely as she climbs over the rock toward her quarry. She darts forward, her alloy tipped claws gleaming, but I didn't see the pounce.
I was nearly doubled over, back to the screen, my hand clutching the side of my throne, trying very hard to breath and suddenly completely unable to do so. After nearly a minute, whatever was holding my air back gave over, and I let out a ripping string of coughs. Taste of blood in my mouth. So undignified.
I've seen this before; it's as common as anything among the Icejin can be. It killed Frost and it's killed others. A few days, a month at the most, and my lungs will seize up and never let go, and that'll be the end of it. Incurable, for all the Empire's resources.
It takes us far too long to die. Cut off any other poor creature's air and he's dead in minutes. We can go on for hours and days and days, sometimes. But how it hurts.
I wish to have composed myself before Aiken returns, but glancing at the view screen, which operates on a slight delay, I see her stand, the lizard clutched in her hand, her claws buried in its flesh, and looks toward the ship, her ears perked. Fear crosses her face and she bolts toward the hatch.
I straightened and spat into the waste can. Blood. She heard me before and now she'll scent this.
I turn to face Aiken as the hatch hisses open. She holds the lizard in her furry hand, forgotten, its tail dragging on the ground. "Give it over," I say to her, before she can question me. She hands it to me eagerly, hoping for praise, and more importantly, conformation that I am all right.
I took it, oblivious to the lizard's blood, hoping it will cover the scent of my own, though I know it won't. It's my fault for frightening Aiken the way I did, but I had hoped for a live one. Dead things are so dull.
I turn the lizard over, studying the deep tears in its flesh as well as the animal itself. "Could have gone a bit easier on it, don't you think?" I asked, without looking up at her.
"Sorry sorry!" Aiken said miserably, seeming to grow smaller, her tail dropping to the ground.
I didn't respond. The lizard's body is cold and heavy, its skin dry and scaly, not smooth like mine. Worthless, primitive creature, and it had looked so graceful on the rock. There's a few apparent similarities between myself and it, but nothing remarkable. Really, I'd gotten nothing more than a faint inkling of kinship, which now seems to have been totally faulted.
Still, it's an interesting mystery, that a creature from such a distant corner of the universe could bare even a passing resemblance to myself, or that we could even breath the same air. But more than that, look at the Saiyajin! One could place them anywhere, provided them with anything that even remotely resembled food, and they thrived. Nasty beast -- no sense of grace at all -- but they had their value. The reports on this little backwoods are sketchy, but it's said that humans are identical to Saiyajin in all ways save they are tailess and have rather pathetic combat levels.
What are the odds of such a terrific coincidence? One almost suspects laziness on the part of the Gods...
Aiken's ears perk up, her head jerking toward the wall, focusing on something outside it. I looked to the view screen, but saw nothing of interest. "I hear them coming," she whispered, her fur beginning to stand on end and eyes widening, the pupils dilated. "So fast. Far too, too fast. Too too fast, so fast," and so on until she was babbling.
"Be quiet!" I snapped, because I can't let her get out of control, and her words broke down into faint whimpering. She's terrified, which is enough to frighten me. Inujin ought to fear their master and nothing else, and Aiken has always been a very good Inujin.
Them, I think. A band of humans? An army? But such a thing would never scare Aiken. The Super Saiyajin then -- but more than one... not possible.
It's not that dying part so much -- that was predetermined, one way or the other, and my intention, and Inujin never survive the death of their master. But I don't want a group of Saiyajin to get a hold of her or me. One Saiyajin by itself isn't so bad -- an hour or so with his victim and he losses interest; Vastly preferable to the way I'm going now. But a group of Saiyajin don't fight, and they don't kill; they play, and they endeavor to one up each other, and often stretch the game out to the point that it might be days before they're finally done, if there's nothing better for them to do. Even Aiken is never so vicious. I've heard of Saiyajin to which Furiza's cruelty paled in comparison.
I don't even know where Uragiru is.
But I must stay calm, and keep my face blank so Aiken can't see any fear. This is better than dying in bed, whatever happens it's better. And it's better than Aiken pining away until she starves or takes her own life.
No matter what, I'll keep everything in battle cold and organized and distant, as it ought to be, and I'll reveal no motive. Just stay calm and don't go soft, and Aiken will be bold to the last, and it will be a good enough way to die.
I intend to die well.
Frigid
I have no particular argument with the people of this planet, no purpose or need for them or anything that is theirs, so I saw to it that my ship was taken down at a place that seems least troublesome for all parties involved. Aiken could almost doubtlessly have coped with any type of force the humans could muster, but who needs the hassle that say, destroying their greatest city might bring about? Of course, if it's necessary to draw the Super Saiyajin out... But I think he'll come to me without prompting.
Vast dry wilderness, nothing but dead, sand covered plains and crags topped with withered grasses surround the ship. Ugly planet, really. So drab.
Lizards crawl among the broken stone and crumbling earth. Distant cousins, perhaps. "Aiken," I said, watching life, such as it is for these creatures, go on outside my ship on the view screen. "Bring me one of those." And I point to the lizard I want carefully, a pale skinned one, large but not unwieldy, knowing she'll retrieve just that one.
Aiken's wound up -- expecting a fight. She fairly sprung toward the hatch with a glad shout of "Yes, Lady Frigid!" and was outside within the second.
One wonders if the silly fool has an idea of what's to happen and what it will mean to her. It's unheard of for an Inujin to live on after her master's death, and I'm dead, regardless of what happens with the Saiyajin. It's true I told her we come only to fight the Super Saiyajin, but still, she shouldn't be so cheerful.
I watch Aiken through the cameras as she moves toward the lizard, stalking with skill and instinct superior to any animal's. Grinning, the tip of her tongue hanging over her lips, ears bent forward, and tail wagging fiercely as she climbs over the rock toward her quarry. She darts forward, her alloy tipped claws gleaming, but I didn't see the pounce.
I was nearly doubled over, back to the screen, my hand clutching the side of my throne, trying very hard to breath and suddenly completely unable to do so. After nearly a minute, whatever was holding my air back gave over, and I let out a ripping string of coughs. Taste of blood in my mouth. So undignified.
I've seen this before; it's as common as anything among the Icejin can be. It killed Frost and it's killed others. A few days, a month at the most, and my lungs will seize up and never let go, and that'll be the end of it. Incurable, for all the Empire's resources.
It takes us far too long to die. Cut off any other poor creature's air and he's dead in minutes. We can go on for hours and days and days, sometimes. But how it hurts.
I wish to have composed myself before Aiken returns, but glancing at the view screen, which operates on a slight delay, I see her stand, the lizard clutched in her hand, her claws buried in its flesh, and looks toward the ship, her ears perked. Fear crosses her face and she bolts toward the hatch.
I straightened and spat into the waste can. Blood. She heard me before and now she'll scent this.
I turn to face Aiken as the hatch hisses open. She holds the lizard in her furry hand, forgotten, its tail dragging on the ground. "Give it over," I say to her, before she can question me. She hands it to me eagerly, hoping for praise, and more importantly, conformation that I am all right.
I took it, oblivious to the lizard's blood, hoping it will cover the scent of my own, though I know it won't. It's my fault for frightening Aiken the way I did, but I had hoped for a live one. Dead things are so dull.
I turn the lizard over, studying the deep tears in its flesh as well as the animal itself. "Could have gone a bit easier on it, don't you think?" I asked, without looking up at her.
"Sorry sorry!" Aiken said miserably, seeming to grow smaller, her tail dropping to the ground.
I didn't respond. The lizard's body is cold and heavy, its skin dry and scaly, not smooth like mine. Worthless, primitive creature, and it had looked so graceful on the rock. There's a few apparent similarities between myself and it, but nothing remarkable. Really, I'd gotten nothing more than a faint inkling of kinship, which now seems to have been totally faulted.
Still, it's an interesting mystery, that a creature from such a distant corner of the universe could bare even a passing resemblance to myself, or that we could even breath the same air. But more than that, look at the Saiyajin! One could place them anywhere, provided them with anything that even remotely resembled food, and they thrived. Nasty beast -- no sense of grace at all -- but they had their value. The reports on this little backwoods are sketchy, but it's said that humans are identical to Saiyajin in all ways save they are tailess and have rather pathetic combat levels.
What are the odds of such a terrific coincidence? One almost suspects laziness on the part of the Gods...
Aiken's ears perk up, her head jerking toward the wall, focusing on something outside it. I looked to the view screen, but saw nothing of interest. "I hear them coming," she whispered, her fur beginning to stand on end and eyes widening, the pupils dilated. "So fast. Far too, too fast. Too too fast, so fast," and so on until she was babbling.
"Be quiet!" I snapped, because I can't let her get out of control, and her words broke down into faint whimpering. She's terrified, which is enough to frighten me. Inujin ought to fear their master and nothing else, and Aiken has always been a very good Inujin.
Them, I think. A band of humans? An army? But such a thing would never scare Aiken. The Super Saiyajin then -- but more than one... not possible.
It's not that dying part so much -- that was predetermined, one way or the other, and my intention, and Inujin never survive the death of their master. But I don't want a group of Saiyajin to get a hold of her or me. One Saiyajin by itself isn't so bad -- an hour or so with his victim and he losses interest; Vastly preferable to the way I'm going now. But a group of Saiyajin don't fight, and they don't kill; they play, and they endeavor to one up each other, and often stretch the game out to the point that it might be days before they're finally done, if there's nothing better for them to do. Even Aiken is never so vicious. I've heard of Saiyajin to which Furiza's cruelty paled in comparison.
I don't even know where Uragiru is.
But I must stay calm, and keep my face blank so Aiken can't see any fear. This is better than dying in bed, whatever happens it's better. And it's better than Aiken pining away until she starves or takes her own life.
No matter what, I'll keep everything in battle cold and organized and distant, as it ought to be, and I'll reveal no motive. Just stay calm and don't go soft, and Aiken will be bold to the last, and it will be a good enough way to die.
I intend to die well.