Bardock paced the length of his house, he didn't like it not one bit. He picked up the paper he had thrown to the floor only five minutes ago, scanned the contents and threw it to the floor again. _Impossible, he can't be dead. He was too good, strong and proud, hell…he was going to become an elite after the battle._ A range of emotion played across his face as he remembered his son's trial for the elite guard. He had done better than any other man or woman there. Faster than Bardock had when he was his age, he had been proud but refused to show it in the arena, Radditz was cocky enough.
The letter had come not twenty minutes ago, telling of Radditz' death that no one man had come out alive. Bardock had beaten the carrier near to death feeling a bloodlust one can only feel after losing a loved one. After the medics removed the unfortunate carriers body, he had sent two-trusted men to gather his son's body from the field. He would have gone himself but was denied by the guard after seeing the punishment a fellow man had taken; they didn't trust him to let the opposing families leave the field alive.
"What and the fuck is taking them so long?! They should have been back by now." A sharp knock on the door took him from his reverie and he threw the massive door open, breaking the top hinge as it flew. The two men he'd sent for his son, Turles and a fellow guard, stood on the stoop, heads bowed in respect but neither spoke. "Well?! Where is he?!" Bardock could feel his blood begin to burn in his stomach.
"His body was not on in the field…" Bardock grasped the guard by the collar of his shirt and drug him into the house, holding him steadily two feet off of the floor.
"And how does a dead man walk away?!" Bardock hissed, his eyes filling with hot tears of pain as he realized he had finally called his son a dead man.
Turles entered, placing a hand on Bardock's shoulder, "Set him down, Bardock. There has been enough death." After Bardock set the man on his feet he turned back to his brother and waited for him to continue. "He wasn't in the field. It could be possible that someone else could have taken his body," As Bardock began to tremble in rage Turles quickly finished his sentence. "Possibly D.S. Your son is well known as a new coming elite, they could have taken him directly away from the field." Bardock nodded his head a sea of spikes nodding with him. He scratched his neck before ramming through the two men.
"Let's go to D.S." The two nodded and followed. There was no sense in telling Bardock that D.S. was closed for the night, he wouldn't have listened anyway.
*~*~*~*
Morning found Radditz sitting at the kitchen table of the small house, his shirt was removed and he was slowly unwrapping his broken ribs. The swelling had gone down lightly after being wrapped overnight, but the ugly bruises still pulsed with pain after each little movement.
A small clay jar sat in front of him; from it wafted a stench that would wilt a bush in less than three minutes. He dug two fingers into the jar, pulling out a mound of a thick black substance that looked like warm tar. He rubbed the ball of muck between his palms, warming it and smoothing it out before gingerly applying it to his ribs in as well an even coating as he could manage.
Nappa thumped into the kitchen, stretching and yawning and gagged as the stench reached his nostrils. Clasping a large hand over his face he looked oddly at Radditz and spoke with small gasps, "What the 'ell is that?"
Radditz grinned and pulled another blob from the jar and smeared it across his midsection. "Something my father taught me. It doesn't have a name really, made of plants, herbs and other little things from the forest. You seem to have them in abundance in the thin forest around your house." He rubbed the paste over the last section of ribs and closed the jar, rubbing his hands together and began picking off the little balls of paste that remained in his palms.
Nappa sat in a chair across the table and held his nose while picking up the jar in his free hand. He cautiously put a finger in and pulled it out, rubbing the paste between his finger and thumb. He looked at his fingers in amazement as the paste began to harden and numb the skin of his fingertips. He looked at Radditz in shock then back to his fingers.
"Neat little thing isn't it? It reeks to the Gods but works better than anything I've ever seen."
Nappa nodded and removed his hand from his nose and began picking at the hardened paste with a thick thumbnail. "It won't come off!" Looking alarmed, Nappa began to dig at the paste with violent thrusts of his arms and proceeded to dig out a knife from a nearby drawer.
"Whoa, wait a minute. It'll come off easy enough. You don't have to do cut off your thumb." Radditz laughed, got up from the table and walked into his room. He came out with a small corked bottle and walked over to Nappa. "Here, try this." Radditz pulled the cork out with his teeth and let a drop spill into Nappa's open palm. "Now work that into that paste and it'll come off faster than a woman's panties on her wedding night." He winked at Nappa as he began to wipe away the paste like it was mud.
"Now…tha's something." Nappa looked at his fingers in awe. "What does that stuff do 'zactly?"
"When it hardens it's like wearing a thin plate of armor, makes it hard to move but that's the point. You put it on broken bones or sprains that are hard to splint, those ingredients in combination make a natural pain reliever, it'll keep whatever it's on numb for at least a day even after it's dried."
Nappa nodded and looked at his fingertips again. The silence broken as Lunna came into the kitchen and grasped her face, "Good 'eavens…wha' the 'ell is that?!" Nappa laughed as his wife made for the door and slammed it behind her.
"Best open some windows and let this place air out 'afore she kicks us out." Nappa stood from his chair and heaved open the large window over the table and motioned for Radditz to open the door.
*~*~*~*
The prince woke shivering and covered in a light film of morning dew. The sun was peaking over the tops of the trees and cast early morning shadows across the gully where he lay. He sat up and scratched his head cursing and wondering how he'd gotten to this place then remembered the scene from last night and his fight with sanity. Vegeta thought for a moment, chin resting in his palm. _It's probably best if I stay away at least one more day, then father will have a chance to calm himself._ He smirked as he envisioned his father pacing the halls and throwing guards into the walls. His stomach growled and he stood, bound for some place with food and a warm bath.
The letter had come not twenty minutes ago, telling of Radditz' death that no one man had come out alive. Bardock had beaten the carrier near to death feeling a bloodlust one can only feel after losing a loved one. After the medics removed the unfortunate carriers body, he had sent two-trusted men to gather his son's body from the field. He would have gone himself but was denied by the guard after seeing the punishment a fellow man had taken; they didn't trust him to let the opposing families leave the field alive.
"What and the fuck is taking them so long?! They should have been back by now." A sharp knock on the door took him from his reverie and he threw the massive door open, breaking the top hinge as it flew. The two men he'd sent for his son, Turles and a fellow guard, stood on the stoop, heads bowed in respect but neither spoke. "Well?! Where is he?!" Bardock could feel his blood begin to burn in his stomach.
"His body was not on in the field…" Bardock grasped the guard by the collar of his shirt and drug him into the house, holding him steadily two feet off of the floor.
"And how does a dead man walk away?!" Bardock hissed, his eyes filling with hot tears of pain as he realized he had finally called his son a dead man.
Turles entered, placing a hand on Bardock's shoulder, "Set him down, Bardock. There has been enough death." After Bardock set the man on his feet he turned back to his brother and waited for him to continue. "He wasn't in the field. It could be possible that someone else could have taken his body," As Bardock began to tremble in rage Turles quickly finished his sentence. "Possibly D.S. Your son is well known as a new coming elite, they could have taken him directly away from the field." Bardock nodded his head a sea of spikes nodding with him. He scratched his neck before ramming through the two men.
"Let's go to D.S." The two nodded and followed. There was no sense in telling Bardock that D.S. was closed for the night, he wouldn't have listened anyway.
*~*~*~*
Morning found Radditz sitting at the kitchen table of the small house, his shirt was removed and he was slowly unwrapping his broken ribs. The swelling had gone down lightly after being wrapped overnight, but the ugly bruises still pulsed with pain after each little movement.
A small clay jar sat in front of him; from it wafted a stench that would wilt a bush in less than three minutes. He dug two fingers into the jar, pulling out a mound of a thick black substance that looked like warm tar. He rubbed the ball of muck between his palms, warming it and smoothing it out before gingerly applying it to his ribs in as well an even coating as he could manage.
Nappa thumped into the kitchen, stretching and yawning and gagged as the stench reached his nostrils. Clasping a large hand over his face he looked oddly at Radditz and spoke with small gasps, "What the 'ell is that?"
Radditz grinned and pulled another blob from the jar and smeared it across his midsection. "Something my father taught me. It doesn't have a name really, made of plants, herbs and other little things from the forest. You seem to have them in abundance in the thin forest around your house." He rubbed the paste over the last section of ribs and closed the jar, rubbing his hands together and began picking off the little balls of paste that remained in his palms.
Nappa sat in a chair across the table and held his nose while picking up the jar in his free hand. He cautiously put a finger in and pulled it out, rubbing the paste between his finger and thumb. He looked at his fingers in amazement as the paste began to harden and numb the skin of his fingertips. He looked at Radditz in shock then back to his fingers.
"Neat little thing isn't it? It reeks to the Gods but works better than anything I've ever seen."
Nappa nodded and removed his hand from his nose and began picking at the hardened paste with a thick thumbnail. "It won't come off!" Looking alarmed, Nappa began to dig at the paste with violent thrusts of his arms and proceeded to dig out a knife from a nearby drawer.
"Whoa, wait a minute. It'll come off easy enough. You don't have to do cut off your thumb." Radditz laughed, got up from the table and walked into his room. He came out with a small corked bottle and walked over to Nappa. "Here, try this." Radditz pulled the cork out with his teeth and let a drop spill into Nappa's open palm. "Now work that into that paste and it'll come off faster than a woman's panties on her wedding night." He winked at Nappa as he began to wipe away the paste like it was mud.
"Now…tha's something." Nappa looked at his fingers in awe. "What does that stuff do 'zactly?"
"When it hardens it's like wearing a thin plate of armor, makes it hard to move but that's the point. You put it on broken bones or sprains that are hard to splint, those ingredients in combination make a natural pain reliever, it'll keep whatever it's on numb for at least a day even after it's dried."
Nappa nodded and looked at his fingertips again. The silence broken as Lunna came into the kitchen and grasped her face, "Good 'eavens…wha' the 'ell is that?!" Nappa laughed as his wife made for the door and slammed it behind her.
"Best open some windows and let this place air out 'afore she kicks us out." Nappa stood from his chair and heaved open the large window over the table and motioned for Radditz to open the door.
*~*~*~*
The prince woke shivering and covered in a light film of morning dew. The sun was peaking over the tops of the trees and cast early morning shadows across the gully where he lay. He sat up and scratched his head cursing and wondering how he'd gotten to this place then remembered the scene from last night and his fight with sanity. Vegeta thought for a moment, chin resting in his palm. _It's probably best if I stay away at least one more day, then father will have a chance to calm himself._ He smirked as he envisioned his father pacing the halls and throwing guards into the walls. His stomach growled and he stood, bound for some place with food and a warm bath.