A Boy and His Dog
Saijin's Best Friend
Vegeta was awakened from a sound sleep by Syx. The guard was peering down at the boy with a concerned expression. After the prince's eyes focused, and he could see the said expression, he grumbled, "What?" He got up from the bottom bunk and moved zombie-like towards the toilet. Yawning, he proceeded to use the restroom while tossing a glance over his shoulder, again asking, "What?" Syx was now holding a contemplative look with his lips pressed into a fine line.
"Vegeta..do you know where Jonei is?" the guard hated to ask. There was a minor sound alteration in the urination. No matter what the prince said, Syx knew that he knew now.
Yet, Vegeta's response was an honest one, "Haven't seen him since last night." He "washed" his hands on a moist towlette and tossed it into the trash bin. Folding his arms, he turned to face the guard, "What do you want to know?"
"What happened to Jonei?" Syx was blunt; he knew the prince appreciated it. The boy wasn't one who was big on subtlety. The first thing Vegeta did, however, was sigh. He went back to the bed and sat down.
He finally spoke, "Would you believe me even if the truth sounded ridiculous?"
Syx nodded affirmative, and he meant it. The guard would've trusted Vegeta with his life, if it ever came to that. A boy as he may be, he was still an amazing singular sensation. Syx had met a few Saijins before in his lifetime, but none were as defining as the Prince. Most members of the species embraced what they believed themselves to be: a brutal, war-mongering, prideful, insensitive race who were highly narcissistic and power hungry. They were warriors, as simple as that.
As it is with any case, there is an exception to the rule, and Vegeta was that exception. Syx wasn't dense; he knew of the boy's book hobby. He'd been watching over him for four years. He'd learned how well Vegeta fit into the Saijin mold, which was like a glove.. at the O.J. Simpson trial.
Perhaps his difference was due to his mostly-solitary confinement, or maybe it had to do with his tremendous loss, but he was becoming a creature completely unique, despite what his DNA had precoded. He was intelligent and capable - hardworking, persistent, and dedicated - a military strategist as well as a cunning, tactical leader. He was also very funny, and in turn, charismatic. It wasn't just that he was a prince, or even the Prince of Saijins for that matter, it was that he was an extraordinary "one of the guys". He was the guy every one of the other guys wanted to be, but liked him too much to hate him.
No one talked down to him because either he'd make them regret their words, or he'd somehow manage to get them to apologize. Syx was almost scared to see what he'd be able to do as an adult. No wonder Frieza had him locked up. The space lizard could probably sense what kind of spirit the boy had and wanted to crush it. Unfortunately for the tyrant, it seemed that isolation only helped solidify the bold attitude Vegeta had adopted. This was the brunette's nature. This was who he truly was.
And Vegeta was honest with those that he trusted. "Something killed him last night," the prince informed.
"Go on," Syx gently pressured.
"It's what Jonei was always crying about. He was worried it would get him."
"So he talked to you about it a lot?"
"Not really. Not unless I brought it up."
"What was it that killed him?"
"Apparently, it has a lot of names. Jonei usually called it the yzaek."
"Wait," Syx shook his head a bit, as if to clear out any unnecessary thoughts, "The yzaek? The rumored monster so evil that even Hell wouldn't allow it to be one of its demons?*"
Vegeta's answer was simple, "Yes."
The guard realized he had entirely new problem on his hands. Sighing, he sat down next to the prince and didn't speak for a long time. "Listen," he finally spoke, turning to the boy, "This isn't going to go over quietly. Jonei is dead one way or the other, you know what I'm saying? So here's what we're going to have to do. We're going to say you killed Jonei."
"So you believe me.."
"Yes," Syx immediately replied, then continued, "We're going to say it was out of self-defense. He went ape-shit for whatever reason and you ki-blasted him into oblivion, so that gets rid of the body. I came to see what the problem was and helped clean up."
"Wouldn't you have recorded this earlier then?"
"So I'll have to lie a little. No big deal. Even the tapes can be easily adjusted. I'll tell Frieza that I didn't want to interrupt his slumber for something as trivial as that flaky Jonei."
"And you think he'll believe you?"
"He liked Jonei about as much as the rest of us. He'll eat up my story like candy.. assuming it's candy he likes... If he even eats candy..."
***
By the end of the day, everyone knew that Jonei had gone completely bonkers (finally) and died in the middle of the night (finally). Vegeta got a standing ovation whenever he entered a room, but he merely "ignored" it. (Later he would pass the praise to Neraknarog, he thought.) In the minds of the rustic warriors though, this only seemed to be a more heroic act. "Look at him acting so cool," he once heard a soldier whisper to another, "It's like he doesn't have a care in the universe. I wish I could be him."
His friend responded with, "Who wouldn't give to have killed Jonei, even if it was an 'accident'? That's one amazing man." It was an odd habit for people to refer to Vegeta as an adult, but it went unquestioned. He was admired for this strength and cunning, which earned enough respect that him being a child did not matter. Besides, he acted more mature than most of the adults around there.
Dinner that evening was something akin to giant stuffed okra. It could also be compared to as a pot pie gone terribly wrong, but tasted, at the very least, ten times better than it looked. Today, Vegeta ate leisurely and chewed before he swallowed. The "gang" was terribly excited about the recent death and would not shut up about it. Whenever Vegeta was asked a question he'd nod, or shake his head, or make a weird gesture that could be interpreted any which way.
"The poor kid," Kincaid said airily (he had a knack for it, in fact), pointedly noticing the incredulous looks he was receiving. He grinned a bit and concluded, "He was the only person we could pick on and the only source of entertainment. With him gone, now who will we make fun of? Alas, such a dilemma to be placed into." He laughed at his own joke, whatever that specifically may of been. Syx suddenly approached the table, hands behind his back. Cell Block Number Nine looked at him curiously, especially since he was wearing a wide, toothy grin.
"What's up?" Niqu asked him, nodding his head once in an upward motion, "We still have a few minutes left.."
"Exactly," the guard replied, his smile smug. He revealed his hands and produced four small boxes. He set them on the table and stood back. Baffled, the four prisoners stared at the plain objects, then blinked up at their "superior". Sighing, Syx's eyes fluttered the way people's do when they're thinking "puh-leeze". After another moment of silence, he raised his voice, "Well? Aren't you going to open them?"
With hesitance that Syx didn't exactly appreciate, the quartet flipped open the lids of their boxes. Four pairs of eyes simultaneously widened. "N-No way.." Bob released the two words as more of a breathy sigh than anything else. Kincaid could tell that he was drooling, but he didn't care one bit. Niquolaus kept murmuring curse words over and over again to show his awe and appreciation. Vegeta seemed too stunned to move, but he finally looked up at Syx.
"How?" he managed to squeeze out as excitement was already churning through his veins. At once, he felt so very indebted towards the guard, and a swelling of gratitude made him want to hug the man.
"Doesn't matter," Syx smiled, then abruptly turned around, "Enjoy." He walked off. The group of companions looked at one another before they grabbed their forks and dug in.
Vegeta couldn't remember the last time he'd had dessert it'd been that long. Frieza viewed them as exactly what they were called: treats. And prisoners did not deserve any type of reward. Of course Vegeta enjoyed a nice steak as much as the next male, but very fine, well done desserts were a rare occurrence. That evening, for the first time in years, he ate a perfect sugar concoction called cheesecake.
Moans of taste bud ecstasy rang out across the table. The accompanying sounds were of the forks scraping the boxes and Vegeta's tail going thump, thump, thump against his chair. They ate slowly, savoring the flavor, the texture, the knowledge that they were eating forbidden food.
The prince sighed in utter bliss. "I've died and gone to Heaven," he declared.
"No," Kincaid disagreed, "Jonei died and went to..to..."
"Hell?" Bob tried to help him out.
The drag queen shook his head, took a bite, and spoke while chewing, "No way. Jonei wasn't evil, he was just a putz. He wouldn't go to Hell. He'd go to someplace like..uh..HFIL - a Home For Infinite Losers." They all shared a laugh.
"Yeah, if there was only such a place.." Niqu finally joined the so-called conversation. It was at that time though, that they decided to go silent and simply enjoy the cheesecake. They all felt like it was over too soon. Sitting in companionable silence, they stared at nothing with a look of divine satisfaction. Time passed quickly, and Syx came up to them again. His tone was rather gentle and informal, as if he was trying not to disturb them.
"Gentlemen - Cell Block Number Nine - at attention, please," he said, smiling genially. Name calling commenced as per usual, and they walked leisurely back to their cells. Saying goodnight, each went into their respective room, but Vegeta had a visitor.
Neraknarog was sitting in front of his book case. The prince stopped short, feeling chilly despite his warm clothes, and locked eyes with the creature. The longer he gazed upon it, the more of a semi-definite shape formed out of it. It breathed deeply, making an odd sound of wooden and metal gears working together in a sort of rhythmic chink-chank-chunk-chank-chink-etc., etc. rumble. The prince was certain that this was a piss-poor analogy, but it was the best his head could decode the sound for now. It stared at him evenly from two caverns within its head-shaped mist. Last night he'd looked intangible, but right now he appeared to be very touchable and very solid.
"Hello," said the boy.
"Hello," said the dog.
Vegeta was simultaneously shocked and confused, which almost caused the mixture to churn into fear. He got very distinct impressions around the "super-demon", such as what its intentions were. "I'm going to eat you" was the easiest of the ones to figure out, and they gradually got more complex. Imagine trying to decipher "the algorithm is, in fact, invalid, and the variables presented are the root of the problem" from reading the eyes of an entity that you weren't even sure had eyes. (Neraknarog had never said such a phrase concerning math, but it was something similar in the level of difficulty.) From the experiences of the previous night, Vegeta had come to the conclusion that the monster had no need, want, or any sort of ability for words.
This was one of the many things he'd be wrong about. For example, his first impression was that it was some sort of concentrated evil. After Neraknarog had licked his palm, however, he believed the thing to be rather unmalevonant. This was true to the extent of the brunette (everyone else was up for grabs). In short, Neraknarog could talk. How exactly he did this, Vegeta had no clue. The voice of Neraknarog was something he just couldn't grasp. Eventually he stopped trying to figure it out in fear of his brain attempting to flee his cranium to save itself.
The brunette tried several times to say something else, but he kept fumbling at the last second. Eventually, he managed to say again, "Hello."
The dog replied with its silent voice, "Hello, Vegeta."
That was it. It wasn't that the creature was speaking, it was that the way it communicated was on a completely different pitch. A pitch that, probably, for all intents and purposes, didn't even exist. Carrying a conversation with the yzaek was like having a chit-chat with a silent movie. You watch the mouth move, then the words come to you and you interpret them. Of course, Neraknarog didn't move his mouth to speak, and the words uttered by the thing gave the direct impression that there was no way to misinterpret them. Also, he wasn't too certain, but he assumed that it might have been telepathic speech. The reason why he didn't know was simple - he'd never had another voice in his head but his own, but then the concept got into the complexity of how Vegeta thought.
For the sake of explanation, here's a simplified version: The Prince of Saijins could not hear a voice in his head. His brain was not built for it. His mind, itself, did not contain ears. Since he was not deaf, his thoughts took reference around vocalization. This meant he had an "inner voice", but since his mind had no vocal cords, it sounded nothing like a real voice. If Neraknarog had any ability to "distort" a person's mind, it'd be easier than easy to speak without speaking to a Saijin. (To further kill any confusion, all this means is that tinkering with a brain of a person who has psychic abilities makes them more apt to understand mental communication. Also, you can fucking kick me if this still doesn't make sense BECAUSE I OBVIOUSLY DESERVE IT.)
Vegeta suddenly spat, "Everyone's happy that you killed Jonei."
The dog did not reply for some time, "Except Jonei."
The prince laughed, which didn't seem to be the response Neraknarog was expecting. Then the child suddenly gasped, holding his hand up to his mouth. His eyes widened in amazement, as if surprised that he'd rattled off a bunch of "ha"s in succession and meant them. In truth, he was. No one had made him laugh quite like that in as long as he could remember. Sure his "gang" was amusing and he did laugh, but not like that. Kincaid would have shed a tear for the monumental success in humor's history.
Vegeta smiled and let it broaden. Neraknarog wasn't evil; he was positive of that now. Misunderstood, and perhaps not quite acquainted with the traditions of the living, the dog was just wandering the universe aimlessly. The diminutive figure grinned nicely at the creature of rumor and thought maybe it just needed a friend.
Vegeta, he... needed a friend. Sure there was Niqu, Kincaid, Bob, Syx, and possibly Radditz and Nappa...but he wasn't close to them on any sort of personal level. Three of them were his "buddies" (sort of like those war-buddies), one was a guard, and two of them he hardly ever saw. (When he did see the Saijins he was always nostalgic with the one, and unimpressed towards the other.) He was still very uncomfortable with revealing his small math treasury to anyone. With the yzaek, this was not a problem.
"So.." said the prince as he walked towards his bed. He could feel the heavy gaze of the dog on him like a ratio of 2:1. He turned slowly and sat stiffly on the bottom bunk. Lacing his fingers, the prince bent over, leaning his forearms on his knees. He looked at the dog who looked back in a way that seemed to reek of finer experience in regards to the art of intimidation. "Why didn't you kill me?" Vegeta asked meekly, nervously twiddling his thumbs.
"Why do you think?" was the response he received.
"Because..I..laughed?"
"There are different types of laughter," the dog agreed, "I'll leave you with that."
Vegeta decided to inquire upon another topic that was bugging him, "Why are you here?"
"It has been my understanding that friends stay within each other's company at times."
Friends. The prince was only thinking about a possibility of having the dog as a companion, and already he had his friendship. The boy didn't know it was possible, but he got a warm, fuzzy feeling somewhere within his innards.
Friends.. Vegeta, the guy everyone liked superficially, but would look the other way if he was in trouble (or even worse, watch and do nothing). Vegeta, the guy with hoards of fair-weathered compatriots, but no one he could respect.
Friends... Neraknarog, a demon, a creature, a monster, an embodiment of evil that people feared. Neraknarog, a thing of myth, legend, and rumor, who hunted people, committed homicide, and often ate his victims.
Friends.
Best friends.
*You may note that Syx slightly contradicts what Jonei said about Neraknarog's history. Regardless, both are incorrect.
P.S. Thanks Biscuit for a lovely analogy! w00t!
Saijin's Best Friend
Vegeta was awakened from a sound sleep by Syx. The guard was peering down at the boy with a concerned expression. After the prince's eyes focused, and he could see the said expression, he grumbled, "What?" He got up from the bottom bunk and moved zombie-like towards the toilet. Yawning, he proceeded to use the restroom while tossing a glance over his shoulder, again asking, "What?" Syx was now holding a contemplative look with his lips pressed into a fine line.
"Vegeta..do you know where Jonei is?" the guard hated to ask. There was a minor sound alteration in the urination. No matter what the prince said, Syx knew that he knew now.
Yet, Vegeta's response was an honest one, "Haven't seen him since last night." He "washed" his hands on a moist towlette and tossed it into the trash bin. Folding his arms, he turned to face the guard, "What do you want to know?"
"What happened to Jonei?" Syx was blunt; he knew the prince appreciated it. The boy wasn't one who was big on subtlety. The first thing Vegeta did, however, was sigh. He went back to the bed and sat down.
He finally spoke, "Would you believe me even if the truth sounded ridiculous?"
Syx nodded affirmative, and he meant it. The guard would've trusted Vegeta with his life, if it ever came to that. A boy as he may be, he was still an amazing singular sensation. Syx had met a few Saijins before in his lifetime, but none were as defining as the Prince. Most members of the species embraced what they believed themselves to be: a brutal, war-mongering, prideful, insensitive race who were highly narcissistic and power hungry. They were warriors, as simple as that.
As it is with any case, there is an exception to the rule, and Vegeta was that exception. Syx wasn't dense; he knew of the boy's book hobby. He'd been watching over him for four years. He'd learned how well Vegeta fit into the Saijin mold, which was like a glove.. at the O.J. Simpson trial.
Perhaps his difference was due to his mostly-solitary confinement, or maybe it had to do with his tremendous loss, but he was becoming a creature completely unique, despite what his DNA had precoded. He was intelligent and capable - hardworking, persistent, and dedicated - a military strategist as well as a cunning, tactical leader. He was also very funny, and in turn, charismatic. It wasn't just that he was a prince, or even the Prince of Saijins for that matter, it was that he was an extraordinary "one of the guys". He was the guy every one of the other guys wanted to be, but liked him too much to hate him.
No one talked down to him because either he'd make them regret their words, or he'd somehow manage to get them to apologize. Syx was almost scared to see what he'd be able to do as an adult. No wonder Frieza had him locked up. The space lizard could probably sense what kind of spirit the boy had and wanted to crush it. Unfortunately for the tyrant, it seemed that isolation only helped solidify the bold attitude Vegeta had adopted. This was the brunette's nature. This was who he truly was.
And Vegeta was honest with those that he trusted. "Something killed him last night," the prince informed.
"Go on," Syx gently pressured.
"It's what Jonei was always crying about. He was worried it would get him."
"So he talked to you about it a lot?"
"Not really. Not unless I brought it up."
"What was it that killed him?"
"Apparently, it has a lot of names. Jonei usually called it the yzaek."
"Wait," Syx shook his head a bit, as if to clear out any unnecessary thoughts, "The yzaek? The rumored monster so evil that even Hell wouldn't allow it to be one of its demons?*"
Vegeta's answer was simple, "Yes."
The guard realized he had entirely new problem on his hands. Sighing, he sat down next to the prince and didn't speak for a long time. "Listen," he finally spoke, turning to the boy, "This isn't going to go over quietly. Jonei is dead one way or the other, you know what I'm saying? So here's what we're going to have to do. We're going to say you killed Jonei."
"So you believe me.."
"Yes," Syx immediately replied, then continued, "We're going to say it was out of self-defense. He went ape-shit for whatever reason and you ki-blasted him into oblivion, so that gets rid of the body. I came to see what the problem was and helped clean up."
"Wouldn't you have recorded this earlier then?"
"So I'll have to lie a little. No big deal. Even the tapes can be easily adjusted. I'll tell Frieza that I didn't want to interrupt his slumber for something as trivial as that flaky Jonei."
"And you think he'll believe you?"
"He liked Jonei about as much as the rest of us. He'll eat up my story like candy.. assuming it's candy he likes... If he even eats candy..."
***
By the end of the day, everyone knew that Jonei had gone completely bonkers (finally) and died in the middle of the night (finally). Vegeta got a standing ovation whenever he entered a room, but he merely "ignored" it. (Later he would pass the praise to Neraknarog, he thought.) In the minds of the rustic warriors though, this only seemed to be a more heroic act. "Look at him acting so cool," he once heard a soldier whisper to another, "It's like he doesn't have a care in the universe. I wish I could be him."
His friend responded with, "Who wouldn't give to have killed Jonei, even if it was an 'accident'? That's one amazing man." It was an odd habit for people to refer to Vegeta as an adult, but it went unquestioned. He was admired for this strength and cunning, which earned enough respect that him being a child did not matter. Besides, he acted more mature than most of the adults around there.
Dinner that evening was something akin to giant stuffed okra. It could also be compared to as a pot pie gone terribly wrong, but tasted, at the very least, ten times better than it looked. Today, Vegeta ate leisurely and chewed before he swallowed. The "gang" was terribly excited about the recent death and would not shut up about it. Whenever Vegeta was asked a question he'd nod, or shake his head, or make a weird gesture that could be interpreted any which way.
"The poor kid," Kincaid said airily (he had a knack for it, in fact), pointedly noticing the incredulous looks he was receiving. He grinned a bit and concluded, "He was the only person we could pick on and the only source of entertainment. With him gone, now who will we make fun of? Alas, such a dilemma to be placed into." He laughed at his own joke, whatever that specifically may of been. Syx suddenly approached the table, hands behind his back. Cell Block Number Nine looked at him curiously, especially since he was wearing a wide, toothy grin.
"What's up?" Niqu asked him, nodding his head once in an upward motion, "We still have a few minutes left.."
"Exactly," the guard replied, his smile smug. He revealed his hands and produced four small boxes. He set them on the table and stood back. Baffled, the four prisoners stared at the plain objects, then blinked up at their "superior". Sighing, Syx's eyes fluttered the way people's do when they're thinking "puh-leeze". After another moment of silence, he raised his voice, "Well? Aren't you going to open them?"
With hesitance that Syx didn't exactly appreciate, the quartet flipped open the lids of their boxes. Four pairs of eyes simultaneously widened. "N-No way.." Bob released the two words as more of a breathy sigh than anything else. Kincaid could tell that he was drooling, but he didn't care one bit. Niquolaus kept murmuring curse words over and over again to show his awe and appreciation. Vegeta seemed too stunned to move, but he finally looked up at Syx.
"How?" he managed to squeeze out as excitement was already churning through his veins. At once, he felt so very indebted towards the guard, and a swelling of gratitude made him want to hug the man.
"Doesn't matter," Syx smiled, then abruptly turned around, "Enjoy." He walked off. The group of companions looked at one another before they grabbed their forks and dug in.
Vegeta couldn't remember the last time he'd had dessert it'd been that long. Frieza viewed them as exactly what they were called: treats. And prisoners did not deserve any type of reward. Of course Vegeta enjoyed a nice steak as much as the next male, but very fine, well done desserts were a rare occurrence. That evening, for the first time in years, he ate a perfect sugar concoction called cheesecake.
Moans of taste bud ecstasy rang out across the table. The accompanying sounds were of the forks scraping the boxes and Vegeta's tail going thump, thump, thump against his chair. They ate slowly, savoring the flavor, the texture, the knowledge that they were eating forbidden food.
The prince sighed in utter bliss. "I've died and gone to Heaven," he declared.
"No," Kincaid disagreed, "Jonei died and went to..to..."
"Hell?" Bob tried to help him out.
The drag queen shook his head, took a bite, and spoke while chewing, "No way. Jonei wasn't evil, he was just a putz. He wouldn't go to Hell. He'd go to someplace like..uh..HFIL - a Home For Infinite Losers." They all shared a laugh.
"Yeah, if there was only such a place.." Niqu finally joined the so-called conversation. It was at that time though, that they decided to go silent and simply enjoy the cheesecake. They all felt like it was over too soon. Sitting in companionable silence, they stared at nothing with a look of divine satisfaction. Time passed quickly, and Syx came up to them again. His tone was rather gentle and informal, as if he was trying not to disturb them.
"Gentlemen - Cell Block Number Nine - at attention, please," he said, smiling genially. Name calling commenced as per usual, and they walked leisurely back to their cells. Saying goodnight, each went into their respective room, but Vegeta had a visitor.
Neraknarog was sitting in front of his book case. The prince stopped short, feeling chilly despite his warm clothes, and locked eyes with the creature. The longer he gazed upon it, the more of a semi-definite shape formed out of it. It breathed deeply, making an odd sound of wooden and metal gears working together in a sort of rhythmic chink-chank-chunk-chank-chink-etc., etc. rumble. The prince was certain that this was a piss-poor analogy, but it was the best his head could decode the sound for now. It stared at him evenly from two caverns within its head-shaped mist. Last night he'd looked intangible, but right now he appeared to be very touchable and very solid.
"Hello," said the boy.
"Hello," said the dog.
Vegeta was simultaneously shocked and confused, which almost caused the mixture to churn into fear. He got very distinct impressions around the "super-demon", such as what its intentions were. "I'm going to eat you" was the easiest of the ones to figure out, and they gradually got more complex. Imagine trying to decipher "the algorithm is, in fact, invalid, and the variables presented are the root of the problem" from reading the eyes of an entity that you weren't even sure had eyes. (Neraknarog had never said such a phrase concerning math, but it was something similar in the level of difficulty.) From the experiences of the previous night, Vegeta had come to the conclusion that the monster had no need, want, or any sort of ability for words.
This was one of the many things he'd be wrong about. For example, his first impression was that it was some sort of concentrated evil. After Neraknarog had licked his palm, however, he believed the thing to be rather unmalevonant. This was true to the extent of the brunette (everyone else was up for grabs). In short, Neraknarog could talk. How exactly he did this, Vegeta had no clue. The voice of Neraknarog was something he just couldn't grasp. Eventually he stopped trying to figure it out in fear of his brain attempting to flee his cranium to save itself.
The brunette tried several times to say something else, but he kept fumbling at the last second. Eventually, he managed to say again, "Hello."
The dog replied with its silent voice, "Hello, Vegeta."
That was it. It wasn't that the creature was speaking, it was that the way it communicated was on a completely different pitch. A pitch that, probably, for all intents and purposes, didn't even exist. Carrying a conversation with the yzaek was like having a chit-chat with a silent movie. You watch the mouth move, then the words come to you and you interpret them. Of course, Neraknarog didn't move his mouth to speak, and the words uttered by the thing gave the direct impression that there was no way to misinterpret them. Also, he wasn't too certain, but he assumed that it might have been telepathic speech. The reason why he didn't know was simple - he'd never had another voice in his head but his own, but then the concept got into the complexity of how Vegeta thought.
For the sake of explanation, here's a simplified version: The Prince of Saijins could not hear a voice in his head. His brain was not built for it. His mind, itself, did not contain ears. Since he was not deaf, his thoughts took reference around vocalization. This meant he had an "inner voice", but since his mind had no vocal cords, it sounded nothing like a real voice. If Neraknarog had any ability to "distort" a person's mind, it'd be easier than easy to speak without speaking to a Saijin. (To further kill any confusion, all this means is that tinkering with a brain of a person who has psychic abilities makes them more apt to understand mental communication. Also, you can fucking kick me if this still doesn't make sense BECAUSE I OBVIOUSLY DESERVE IT.)
Vegeta suddenly spat, "Everyone's happy that you killed Jonei."
The dog did not reply for some time, "Except Jonei."
The prince laughed, which didn't seem to be the response Neraknarog was expecting. Then the child suddenly gasped, holding his hand up to his mouth. His eyes widened in amazement, as if surprised that he'd rattled off a bunch of "ha"s in succession and meant them. In truth, he was. No one had made him laugh quite like that in as long as he could remember. Sure his "gang" was amusing and he did laugh, but not like that. Kincaid would have shed a tear for the monumental success in humor's history.
Vegeta smiled and let it broaden. Neraknarog wasn't evil; he was positive of that now. Misunderstood, and perhaps not quite acquainted with the traditions of the living, the dog was just wandering the universe aimlessly. The diminutive figure grinned nicely at the creature of rumor and thought maybe it just needed a friend.
Vegeta, he... needed a friend. Sure there was Niqu, Kincaid, Bob, Syx, and possibly Radditz and Nappa...but he wasn't close to them on any sort of personal level. Three of them were his "buddies" (sort of like those war-buddies), one was a guard, and two of them he hardly ever saw. (When he did see the Saijins he was always nostalgic with the one, and unimpressed towards the other.) He was still very uncomfortable with revealing his small math treasury to anyone. With the yzaek, this was not a problem.
"So.." said the prince as he walked towards his bed. He could feel the heavy gaze of the dog on him like a ratio of 2:1. He turned slowly and sat stiffly on the bottom bunk. Lacing his fingers, the prince bent over, leaning his forearms on his knees. He looked at the dog who looked back in a way that seemed to reek of finer experience in regards to the art of intimidation. "Why didn't you kill me?" Vegeta asked meekly, nervously twiddling his thumbs.
"Why do you think?" was the response he received.
"Because..I..laughed?"
"There are different types of laughter," the dog agreed, "I'll leave you with that."
Vegeta decided to inquire upon another topic that was bugging him, "Why are you here?"
"It has been my understanding that friends stay within each other's company at times."
Friends. The prince was only thinking about a possibility of having the dog as a companion, and already he had his friendship. The boy didn't know it was possible, but he got a warm, fuzzy feeling somewhere within his innards.
Friends.. Vegeta, the guy everyone liked superficially, but would look the other way if he was in trouble (or even worse, watch and do nothing). Vegeta, the guy with hoards of fair-weathered compatriots, but no one he could respect.
Friends... Neraknarog, a demon, a creature, a monster, an embodiment of evil that people feared. Neraknarog, a thing of myth, legend, and rumor, who hunted people, committed homicide, and often ate his victims.
Friends.
Best friends.
*You may note that Syx slightly contradicts what Jonei said about Neraknarog's history. Regardless, both are incorrect.
P.S. Thanks Biscuit for a lovely analogy! w00t!