Honorbound
Chapter 5
Zed emerged from the back room with a wooden recorder-type instrument. Then he stood
back. Neither noticed that the ship had stopped moving.
"This is a song that I learned as a child. It's not a masterpiece, but it reminds me of
home." Seven smiled, faintly. Zed put the flute to his lips. He took a breath and began to play. It
was a very simple melody and repeated after a few bars. As she listened, Seven could almost
imagine the rolling hills and expansive oceans it seemed to describe. Closing her eyes as the
tune repeated again, Seven didn't see Zed inching forward. As he played on, he got closer and
closer to her. He slowly bent his knees, balanced by his large tail, and knelt silently before her.
Then he began to play more and more quietly through another repeat, holding the final note until
the music faded into silence. He lowered the flute. Seven, still seeing the visions the song
evoked, let her eyes drift lazily open.
Zed was nose to nose with her, breathing heavily. She sucked in a breath, but as her chest
inflated, it seemed to only encourage Zed. He promptly leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.
Eyes flung open, Seven tried to push away from him. However, he was too strong and she
merely succeeded in making herself fall backward off the side of the chair onto the floor. Zed
lunged for her, pinning her arms down with his hands, and pushed the chair away with his shin.
Another bruising kiss kept her from yelling. Soon, he shifted his grip, tightly grabbing her neck.
With that free hand, he began to undo the clasp to her lower armor. Seven's fingers found his
around her neck, but as she scratched and tore at him, he only squeezed tighter. Tears began
to form at the corner of her eyes as she feared what would happen if she let this continue any
further. She couldn't have screamed now if she wanted to. I'll have to think of something else,
she thought, before he kills me, or worse!
Zed sensed her new inability to vocalize and pulled the front of her fighting suit down,
revealing the top curve of a pale milky breast. Seven choked as he bent to lick her collarbone,
his tongue horribly warm. With his unoccupied fingers, he pulled at the shirt until her bosom
popped free. Then he bent further and brought one of the orbs to his lips. He licked at the tip,
standing at attention. Seven hated her body for reacting to him, but he gripped her neck harder.
Her vision started to blur and her strength to fight back was dwindling. Suddenly, he had to
replace his grasp on her airway. For a split second, she could breathe. Air wheezed violently into
her lungs, but her scream was cut short by Zed's mouth on hers again.
Face beet red, Seven was embarrassed and horrified. Fuming, she wreaked her ultimate. Her
knee, now underneath Zed's massive body, reared up with renewed saiyan's strength and caught
him where it hurt most.
"Gahh! Damn you!!" Zed sat back hard, holding himself. Seven scooted backwards until
she encountered the wall and leapt to her feet, putting her clothing back in order.
"How. DARE. You?!" she screamed at him, fists now tight and shaking.
Zed struggled to his feet, still cradling his pain with one hand. The other was being pulled
behind him with a white crackling ball of ki forming within.
"Go Ahead, You Sick Bastard!", she taunted hoarsely.
Zed needed no other prompt. He hurled the ki attack at her, but she dodged to the side. The
blast did no real damage, but the shock wave threw her towards a surprised Zed. Seven grasped
his shoulders, flipped behind him and used the great inertia to hurl him backwards into the door.
He slid to the floor landing with a thunk. Finally, falling to his hands and knees, Zed collapsed.
Coming out of his stupor, Jared slowly opened his eyes, but his vision wasn't entirely
clear. He'd had the strangest drea- no. It was definitely a nightmare. A dark winged form was
strangling him. Was it Seven? No. This person was male. He was sure of it. Jared shook his
head to dispel the haze, but his mind suddenly spun. He put a bandaged hand to his temples,
vowing not to do that again. Reacting to his movement, a young saiyan man near him looked up
from his seat.
"Welcome back, Sire." he said with a friendly smirk.
"Where am I?" Jared grunted as he sat up. The guard stood and saluted.
"Aboard the Honorbound, highness. General Kale will be pleased you've recovered.
Just in time to lead us to war, lord Vegeta!" the young man sped out of the room, eager to deliver
his report and get back to his station.
Jared swung his legs over the side of the bed, thinking. The dream with the winged man
... A winged man ... somewhere in his still spinning memory he remembered.
When he was very little, there was a criminal brought before the current King Vegeta.
He stood before Jared's father proudly even though his hands and arms were bound. Peeking
into the throne room from a closed-over door, Jared thought the winged man looked quite like a
dragon. He wasn't close enough to overhear, but what they said to each other had to have been
bad because the dragon-man suddenly got very angry. Even bound as he was, he held his own
against the many guards that rushed at him. He used his wings like a second pair of hands,
punching and striking out. His large tail lashed back and forth knocking other guards away like
nothing. Finally, throwing his head back in rage, the dragon-man sent out a huge wave of yellow
energy, breaking his bonds as saiyans flew in all directions. Then he ran out of the throne room,
many warriors close behind him.
As Jared pulled his armor on, he wondered. Was that draco-jin Seven's father? Is that who
we're against now? If so, then will she come back when we find her or will she stay with her
father? He didn't know any of these answers, but he was going to find out. A lighted map was on
the wall next to the door. After a minute of study, Jared knew the way to the Helm where Kale
undoubtably was.
The door opened smoothly as he approached and turning, he began to make his way to the
forward of the ship. Suddenly, the overhead screeched on.
"Encountering Enemy Forces. All Hands To Battle Mode. Repeat. Encountering Enemy
Forces. All Hands To Battle Mode." The halls flooded with saiyans moving both directions and
Jared struggled to keep from getting swept away. Soon he found the elav that would take him to
the Helm. Luckily, another warrior was headed that way too, and held the door as Jared boarded
although the warrior didn't seem to recognize him.
"Helm." the warrior announced. "Oh! I didn't see you there, highness! Forgive me!" He bowed
and saluted. Jared nodded. Soon the elav stopped and the doors slid open.
"My Lord!" Kale said as the Helm Crew stood as one and saluted him. Sometimes that gets
really irritating, Jared thought to no one.
"General." Jared acknowledged and took Kale's place at the window as the General slid down
to take the next seat.
"Sire, we are moments away from visual distance."
"Let's see them then."
"Window!" Kale commanded. Immediately, seven large black ships darkened the view,
casting their massive shadows on the planet below.
"Open communications"
"Yes sir. Lieutenant?" The image changed to that of an older draco-jin, and he did not seem
pleased. Seems I have one of my answers, Jared mused. This was definitely the criminal from
my past. But what does he want?
"Finally, Vegeta. I was beginning to wonder if you were going to contact me after that little ...
er ... display." For cleared his throat. "Be it known, saiyan, that we have made no hostile action
that warrants your attack."
Jared stood snarling. "You call abducting one of my people not a hostile act? And that was
but a small demonstration. I demand you release your prisoner, or you WILL be attacked."
An evil smirk darkened For's face. "Demand? Come now. You have no authority, saiyan. My
prisoner, as you say, is my daughter, Seven. I have a father's right to claim my own."
Jared frowned deeply. "Obviously you did not listen to me. So, I will tell you again. Release
her or we will open fire."
For's smirk deepened into a dark scowl. "You must think I don't see behind your bluff. Your
little ship against my seven? I have more than enou-"
"Shut it down. I can't stand his voice any longer." The image returned to the view of the ships
but now they were moving. Silently, Jared watched the draco-jin's fleet change formation. From
their v-shape, the ships moved to the six smaller ships acting as a shield for the larger, primary
vessel. Then from the six ships' underbellies, massive energy built up.
"DEFENSIVE!!" Jared called out and ducked. The gigantic energy beams collected in the
center of the formation and shot out towards the Honorbound. Jared and his people had been
thrown to the floor as the beam ripped at the ship. A console exploded, sending sparks, and
starting little fires. Jared grabbed an arm of the general's chair and hauling himself up, he
screamed at his crew,
"Fire! Fire on them!" But nothing happened. Jared crawled to the back of the Helm where
weapon command was. Amid the smoking equipment, a saiyan was lying dead on it. The shock
of the blast had hurled his head into the console. Jared pulled the body off as the dim emergency
lights kicked in and began to power up the Cannon. The flat buttons underneath his fingers
blinked in some insane harmony, but the Cannon would not charge.
Chapter 5
Zed emerged from the back room with a wooden recorder-type instrument. Then he stood
back. Neither noticed that the ship had stopped moving.
"This is a song that I learned as a child. It's not a masterpiece, but it reminds me of
home." Seven smiled, faintly. Zed put the flute to his lips. He took a breath and began to play. It
was a very simple melody and repeated after a few bars. As she listened, Seven could almost
imagine the rolling hills and expansive oceans it seemed to describe. Closing her eyes as the
tune repeated again, Seven didn't see Zed inching forward. As he played on, he got closer and
closer to her. He slowly bent his knees, balanced by his large tail, and knelt silently before her.
Then he began to play more and more quietly through another repeat, holding the final note until
the music faded into silence. He lowered the flute. Seven, still seeing the visions the song
evoked, let her eyes drift lazily open.
Zed was nose to nose with her, breathing heavily. She sucked in a breath, but as her chest
inflated, it seemed to only encourage Zed. He promptly leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.
Eyes flung open, Seven tried to push away from him. However, he was too strong and she
merely succeeded in making herself fall backward off the side of the chair onto the floor. Zed
lunged for her, pinning her arms down with his hands, and pushed the chair away with his shin.
Another bruising kiss kept her from yelling. Soon, he shifted his grip, tightly grabbing her neck.
With that free hand, he began to undo the clasp to her lower armor. Seven's fingers found his
around her neck, but as she scratched and tore at him, he only squeezed tighter. Tears began
to form at the corner of her eyes as she feared what would happen if she let this continue any
further. She couldn't have screamed now if she wanted to. I'll have to think of something else,
she thought, before he kills me, or worse!
Zed sensed her new inability to vocalize and pulled the front of her fighting suit down,
revealing the top curve of a pale milky breast. Seven choked as he bent to lick her collarbone,
his tongue horribly warm. With his unoccupied fingers, he pulled at the shirt until her bosom
popped free. Then he bent further and brought one of the orbs to his lips. He licked at the tip,
standing at attention. Seven hated her body for reacting to him, but he gripped her neck harder.
Her vision started to blur and her strength to fight back was dwindling. Suddenly, he had to
replace his grasp on her airway. For a split second, she could breathe. Air wheezed violently into
her lungs, but her scream was cut short by Zed's mouth on hers again.
Face beet red, Seven was embarrassed and horrified. Fuming, she wreaked her ultimate. Her
knee, now underneath Zed's massive body, reared up with renewed saiyan's strength and caught
him where it hurt most.
"Gahh! Damn you!!" Zed sat back hard, holding himself. Seven scooted backwards until
she encountered the wall and leapt to her feet, putting her clothing back in order.
"How. DARE. You?!" she screamed at him, fists now tight and shaking.
Zed struggled to his feet, still cradling his pain with one hand. The other was being pulled
behind him with a white crackling ball of ki forming within.
"Go Ahead, You Sick Bastard!", she taunted hoarsely.
Zed needed no other prompt. He hurled the ki attack at her, but she dodged to the side. The
blast did no real damage, but the shock wave threw her towards a surprised Zed. Seven grasped
his shoulders, flipped behind him and used the great inertia to hurl him backwards into the door.
He slid to the floor landing with a thunk. Finally, falling to his hands and knees, Zed collapsed.
Coming out of his stupor, Jared slowly opened his eyes, but his vision wasn't entirely
clear. He'd had the strangest drea- no. It was definitely a nightmare. A dark winged form was
strangling him. Was it Seven? No. This person was male. He was sure of it. Jared shook his
head to dispel the haze, but his mind suddenly spun. He put a bandaged hand to his temples,
vowing not to do that again. Reacting to his movement, a young saiyan man near him looked up
from his seat.
"Welcome back, Sire." he said with a friendly smirk.
"Where am I?" Jared grunted as he sat up. The guard stood and saluted.
"Aboard the Honorbound, highness. General Kale will be pleased you've recovered.
Just in time to lead us to war, lord Vegeta!" the young man sped out of the room, eager to deliver
his report and get back to his station.
Jared swung his legs over the side of the bed, thinking. The dream with the winged man
... A winged man ... somewhere in his still spinning memory he remembered.
When he was very little, there was a criminal brought before the current King Vegeta.
He stood before Jared's father proudly even though his hands and arms were bound. Peeking
into the throne room from a closed-over door, Jared thought the winged man looked quite like a
dragon. He wasn't close enough to overhear, but what they said to each other had to have been
bad because the dragon-man suddenly got very angry. Even bound as he was, he held his own
against the many guards that rushed at him. He used his wings like a second pair of hands,
punching and striking out. His large tail lashed back and forth knocking other guards away like
nothing. Finally, throwing his head back in rage, the dragon-man sent out a huge wave of yellow
energy, breaking his bonds as saiyans flew in all directions. Then he ran out of the throne room,
many warriors close behind him.
As Jared pulled his armor on, he wondered. Was that draco-jin Seven's father? Is that who
we're against now? If so, then will she come back when we find her or will she stay with her
father? He didn't know any of these answers, but he was going to find out. A lighted map was on
the wall next to the door. After a minute of study, Jared knew the way to the Helm where Kale
undoubtably was.
The door opened smoothly as he approached and turning, he began to make his way to the
forward of the ship. Suddenly, the overhead screeched on.
"Encountering Enemy Forces. All Hands To Battle Mode. Repeat. Encountering Enemy
Forces. All Hands To Battle Mode." The halls flooded with saiyans moving both directions and
Jared struggled to keep from getting swept away. Soon he found the elav that would take him to
the Helm. Luckily, another warrior was headed that way too, and held the door as Jared boarded
although the warrior didn't seem to recognize him.
"Helm." the warrior announced. "Oh! I didn't see you there, highness! Forgive me!" He bowed
and saluted. Jared nodded. Soon the elav stopped and the doors slid open.
"My Lord!" Kale said as the Helm Crew stood as one and saluted him. Sometimes that gets
really irritating, Jared thought to no one.
"General." Jared acknowledged and took Kale's place at the window as the General slid down
to take the next seat.
"Sire, we are moments away from visual distance."
"Let's see them then."
"Window!" Kale commanded. Immediately, seven large black ships darkened the view,
casting their massive shadows on the planet below.
"Open communications"
"Yes sir. Lieutenant?" The image changed to that of an older draco-jin, and he did not seem
pleased. Seems I have one of my answers, Jared mused. This was definitely the criminal from
my past. But what does he want?
"Finally, Vegeta. I was beginning to wonder if you were going to contact me after that little ...
er ... display." For cleared his throat. "Be it known, saiyan, that we have made no hostile action
that warrants your attack."
Jared stood snarling. "You call abducting one of my people not a hostile act? And that was
but a small demonstration. I demand you release your prisoner, or you WILL be attacked."
An evil smirk darkened For's face. "Demand? Come now. You have no authority, saiyan. My
prisoner, as you say, is my daughter, Seven. I have a father's right to claim my own."
Jared frowned deeply. "Obviously you did not listen to me. So, I will tell you again. Release
her or we will open fire."
For's smirk deepened into a dark scowl. "You must think I don't see behind your bluff. Your
little ship against my seven? I have more than enou-"
"Shut it down. I can't stand his voice any longer." The image returned to the view of the ships
but now they were moving. Silently, Jared watched the draco-jin's fleet change formation. From
their v-shape, the ships moved to the six smaller ships acting as a shield for the larger, primary
vessel. Then from the six ships' underbellies, massive energy built up.
"DEFENSIVE!!" Jared called out and ducked. The gigantic energy beams collected in the
center of the formation and shot out towards the Honorbound. Jared and his people had been
thrown to the floor as the beam ripped at the ship. A console exploded, sending sparks, and
starting little fires. Jared grabbed an arm of the general's chair and hauling himself up, he
screamed at his crew,
"Fire! Fire on them!" But nothing happened. Jared crawled to the back of the Helm where
weapon command was. Amid the smoking equipment, a saiyan was lying dead on it. The shock
of the blast had hurled his head into the console. Jared pulled the body off as the dim emergency
lights kicked in and began to power up the Cannon. The flat buttons underneath his fingers
blinked in some insane harmony, but the Cannon would not charge.