DBZ Story #4: "Berter Beginnings: A Ginyu Force Outlook"

Part 23


It's not fair, being beaten back by bugs… I, Ginyu Blazenbul, should not have been subjected to such pointlessness. …Did Freeza send us out there to die? Maybe he thought we weren't pulling our weight around here, that we weren't efficient enough? He had to have known the Zebubs' strength; it was in the reports…Or maybe, he... we were just overconfident. …Just what the hell were we doing on Beelzebub, anyway..?

With an electronic beep, the healing liquids drained from the tank and the Plexiglas door whooshed open. A nude and dripping Ginyu squinted as he stepped out of the rejuvenator and into the bright lights of the med ward.

"Here, take this. You'll catch a cold if you don't dry off quickly."

The Minotaurus looked down to see a brown, bird-like specimen in a medic garb. He had a bird of prey's claws for hands and feet, looked as it he had been plucked, save a few orange feathers on the top of his head. Jeckle-jin… Ginyu thought to himself, mildly surprised. He hadn't known that there were such creatures in Freeza's service. Then again, he hadn't a reason to be in med ward in nearly 40 of his years. Wrapping the towel around the necessaries, the Captain looked about a bit.

"Changing rooms are that way," the doctor pointed and smiled. "I trust that is what you were looking for?"

Ginyu harrumphed and turned his nose up at the creature. He needed answers, not the kindness of strangers. Rudely, the Minotaurus pushed by the Jecklejin and made his way to change.

He couldn't remember what had transpired after he blacked out on Beelzebub. Had the fairies saved him? The Captain snorted as he slipped on his wrist guards. That was just a tale on Rabenda; it wouldn't apply to other planets. He cast his red eyes to his armor, dirtied and cracked, and sighed. It would be another few days before he could get another battle jacket with his force's insignia would be ready, and wearing the normal grunt armor just wasn't an option. Going without armor was out of the question, as well. Leaders shouldn't go prancing about in just their underwear…

"I'll wear my high bound gear. I look better in that, anyway."

He reappeared wearing a white, low-cut sleeveless shirt and tight, black shorts, with cut-off point above the knee. Imagine his surprise to see Recoom, Berter, Jeice, and Guldo waiting outside the med ward's entrance. "Cap'n…" The behemoth approached him, looking as if he wanted to hug. Recoom did seem to be the one who cared for him the most, but Ginyu didn't have time for that kind of nonsense.

"Don't 'Cap'n' me," said he, coldly. "I want answers. How in Freeza's name did we get off of Beelzebub alive..?"

The rest of the team exchanged glances. They thought he would be pleased knowing they were all alive and well. Against his better judgement, Guldo raised his hand, but couldn't muster the words for the explanation. Recoom threw the lifeline before his captain became impatient. "Um… Guldo, he used his telekinesis to freeze those maggots in place. That's how we were able to make it back. …You were knocked out before all that, so Berter there carried you to your pod."

He clenched his fists. The leader of the most notorious force in the universe, having to be dragged out of a battle—with maggots, no less? Easily, this had to been one of the most humiliating experiences of his career. "I think you should all go away now…"

"But, Cap'n—"

"If you don't want me to kill you—all of you—go away. Now."

It came as a shock to the others, but that was all he needed to say. Now alone, Ginyu kicked at the tiled floor and sighed. It was enough to run away from a battle, but now he had to report the loss to Freeza, and who knew how he'd react..?

"Master Freeza..?"

The Minotaurus started a bit at the autoport's whoosh, scolding himself afterwards for being so jumpy. But, then again, he had reason to be. Failure just wasn't an option when it came to serious missions. "Ah, Captain Ginyu," came it from the pink tyrant, pulling his face into an insincere smile. "Back a little late, I see. And in casual attire, too? Are we becoming lax?"

"N-No… M-My apologies, sir…" He scolded himself once again. Stuttering was very unstylish and let on just how scared he was. "I… have the report on the Beelzebub mission…"

"Well, alright. I'm listening."

A bead of sweat played about the pulsing veins of Ginyu's head. He felt a lump forming in his throat, and swallowed hard and dry. May as well come right out and say it. There's a 50/50 chance I won't die afterwards.

"…The mission was a failure, sir. We failed to exterminate the inhabitants of Beelzebub, and were forced to retreat."

Freeza turned his back to the Captain and remained silent for sometime after that. As if Ginyu wasn't nervous enough… He just sat there in his hoverchair, brooding, and all the Minotaurus could do was hope his punishment wouldn't be anything too… permanent.

"Ginyu…"

He jumped. "Yes, sir..?"

"The whole point of you being sent there was to scout about for potential soldiers. Now I see it was a waste of time. On Beelzebub, they fight like animals. Therefore, they must be animals, the kind not intelligent enough to follow commands. Forget about it. Take a day or two for you and your men to recuperate. Hm. Better yet, take a vacation—fourteen days—to compensate for the time lost travelling to Beelzebub."

It was the greatest best-case scenario ever. The Dance of Joy would have been most appropriate, but Ginyu decided it best to just bow in thanks and leave it at that. Meanwhile, the other members of the Force were mulling about, wondering what the deal with their captain was.

"I don't get it," The Kaijin huffed. "Why would the Captain be angry with us? I mean, he's still alive; we're still alive; so, what's the problem?"

"Matter of pride, I'll bet," Recoom replied. "I don't think the Cap'n's ever needed savin' a day in his life. And what's more, he's gotta report our failure to Freeza."

The men groaned. Even Berter, who had only been (officially) on the job for two weeks their time, knew that. Freeza didn't tolerate failure, even from his second favorite. They wondered, momentarily, if they would still have someone to call 'Captain' when this day was over. If he was to be 'disposed of,' seniority dictated Recoom would be leader. The 'Recoom Force'? He would never change the name, even if such a promotion came his way. He wouldn't make a very good leader, anyway. Sure, he had the gusto for posing and was certainly strong enough, but he didn't have that passive-aggressive, overconfident edge that made Ginyu so… Ginyu-like.

All their speculation went right out the window, it seemed. With a whoosh of the autoport, their Captain stepped in, alive, well, and smiling..? "Men, I have great news! Freeza has given us fourteen days paid vacation!"

The Ginyus looked as if they'd seen a ghost. He was alive, and got vacation time for the whole of them? One would expect some questioning. "Captain Ginyu…" Jeice began. "How did you… Why are you… Did you lie to Freeza about Beelzebub or what?"

"Of course I didn't lie!" The Minotaurus blustered. On a normal day, a comment like that would have diminished his good mood, but not today. Today, the fairies had saved him. "Anyway, it doesn't matter why Freeza didn't kill me. What matters is he didn't and now we can relax for a bit."

The men cheered, now having a reason to celebrate (and an excuse to drink). "Excuse me, sir."

Ginyu turned to Berter. "If it's your will, I would like to depart for Hachuurui during this… 'vacation' time."

"Well, why not? It's your time now, not Freeza's. When're you leaving?"

"Immediately."

"Woah! Hey, now..!" The behemoth protested. "What's the rush? Why don't you have a little fun with us first?"

Berter furrowed his brow. "If by 'a little fun' you mean a night of drinking, then—"

"No, no, no! I'm talkin' a game of high bound!"

Jeice shot up excitedly. "Hey, yeah! A fast devil like you oughta love boundin'!"

"Many thanks, but no," the Tokage politely refused. "I would really only take pleasure in seeing my family during this time. Perhaps when I return..?"

"Fine, fine. Get along, then," the Kaijin turned his head and gestured for him to go away. "You an' me, then, 'Coom?"

"May as well. See ya, Bert. Make sure you get back on time."

He nodded. I will. Perhaps we can go to your Kyokutair on our next vacation?"

Recoom blinked. "You mean… you really want to?"

"It sounds… 'fun', is it? We are both hunters, yes? It will be an experience."

Recoom looked at the taller man with those mammalian eyes of his—"Buddy!" –and engulfed him in a vicing embrace. "Ya got no idea what I'm feelin' right now! Yer great! Sportsmanly, even! I'm never gonna forget this, Berter!"

Ginyu, Jeice, and Guldo looked on and laughed while poor Berter was sure he had a fractured rib or two. "Well, looks like 'Coom's finally got himself a huntin' buddy," Jeice chuckled. "But seriously, Recoom. You should probably let him on his way. Family only sticks around for so long, you know."

"Oh, yeah. Sorry." He released his grip on the younger man, who promptly began gasping for air.

It wasn't long before his red eyes took in the matching skies of Hachuurui once again. He stepped out of the spacepod and breathed sharply. The air was sort of heavy and smelled of wet vegetation. "It rained not too long ago," he figured. Berter stretched and cracked his back. He couldn't wait to get out of his needlessly snug battle jacket and into his native fashion, —which he made sure to take with him before he left 79— or maybe he'd keep it on. Surprising Neizu would be a bit of fun. In any case, he wanted to get home as fast as possible. Flying would have been the first choice, but someone might mistake him for a flyer dino and put an arrow through his chest. He'd have to hoof it on the beaten path, then. He sighed, thinking how convenient it would have been to have his Marzipan with him now. Oh, well. His own two feet would have to serve.

It was during that long hike that he realized how much he missed the planet. The crunch of twigs and mammal bones under
his feet was music to his audibles, as opposed to the cold thwap on linoleum. The gentle rustling of leaves brought him peace,
whereas the grinding noise of machinery made him cringe. Not to mention the wonderful scent of… blood? Had Neizu made a kill?
But it was so near the plot… Berter rushed himself down the rest of the dirt road to the clearing that was the start of his home.
The smell was strong, and the grass was stained. From a distance, he could make out a lump lying by a broken hitchpost.
He dashed to it and recoiled in shock, for it was the carcass of his Ridre dino, belly split with organs splattered about and decapitated, but not with a clean cut. Rather, the head looked as if it had been stabbed and then ripped off with incredible force. "…Marzipan…"
He choked weakly. Then, it hit him. Whatever came across his Marzipan may have crossed paths with…

"Neizu! Neizu!!" He shouted fearfully, but was graced with no reply. He looked down at his dead steed and notice that the trail of blood continued around to the back of their dwelling. Berter raced to the back and nearly toppled before stopping to the sight before him.

Bloated, bleeding, riddled with spear wounds, and on its side, lay a tri-horned Razher dino, presumably dead. The Tokage was dumbfounded. How in the world did a Razher dino get all the way to the inner plateau? More importantly, where was Neizu? "Neizu!! Neizu!!" He cried out again. A bit luckier this time, the reply was in the form of a series of struggling grunts from something female coming from in front of the fallen beast. His feet carried him swiftly to the source.

It was Neizu, and in an awfully pitiful heap. Bloodied spear pitched in the ground, she repeatedly attempted to pull herself to her feet but to no avail. "Neizu! By the gods, what happened here?" He ran to her aid, and was taken aback by her horrific injury. Her right shin was totally ripped open –its muscles red, pouring, and shredded, exposing bone—and twisted a complete 180º at the knee.

"Berter..?" She managed. He scooped her up in his arms and raced to the nearest medic. Meanwhile, a familiar figure, who had been watching from the surrounding bush, cursed fate and planned for his next attempt.


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