Chapter Six: Dashed Hopes And Ruined Plans
"Eclipse, darling, would you do me a favor?"
"I would like to, Diamonique, but I'm on my way to see Nappa."
"I know you are, my dear, but I would like to know, if you'd be willing to drop off a gift to Reccoom, from me, on your way to Nappa's room."
"Sure!" Eclipse happily told her, as Diamonique handed her the jar of facial cream. Eclipse looked at it skeptically. "Diamonique, what would Reccoom want with facial cream?"
"To help improve his skin and increase his chances of winning, of course!" Diamonique laughed merrily. "After all, even I can be generous to my competitors every now and then. Tell him it's a goodwill gift from an admirer."
"O…kay," Eclipse said uncertainly, surprised that her normally self-centered cousin could be so generous.
"Just deliver it to him, would you please? And don't say it was from me, okay?"
"No…problem, I think," Eclipse said hesitantly.
Diamonique gaily kissed her cousin on her cheek. "You're a sweetheart, Eclipse, and don't worry…I promise that Reccoom won't ever forget this present."
"Whatever you say, Diamonique."
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Frieza was happily strolling along the smooth, cold metal corridors of his ship, swishing his ribbed tail back and forth. He was anticipating his birthday, which was to be due within the coming week. Jaden, Zarbon and Dodoria were walking behind him, for Frieza had invited the three Top Elite Officers to dine with him in his dining room. But first Frieza wanted to pick up a bottle of one of his favorite rare wines from Tipsy, the bartender of the Elite Lounge And Bar. Tipsy was supposed to be keeping the special drink in a small metal, ice-filled tub behind his bar.
But as the trio entered the Bar, four jaws dropped at a shocking sight. A gaggle of attractive young women of various races were clustered together, and two of them were waitresses eagerly hurrying to bring huge crystal mugs of frothy, golden beer.
"What is going here?"
Jaden sighed, "Probably the girls trying to woo Nappa and Raditz again. They've been chasing those two all week."
"Those monkeys are lucky," Dodoria said enviously. "What I wouldn't give to be in their places!"
"You and ninety-nine percent of the heterosexual males in the army," Zarbon quipped.
Frieza chuckled. "Perhaps I should have allowed more judges, eh?"
"I'd be more than happy to volunteer at this point, sire," Dodoria piped up. "Especially, if you were to-" He abruptly stopped when Zarbon shook his head to warn him not to suggest that Frieza enter his own beauty contest. Fortunately for the normally dense Dodoria, he got the message and said nothing further.
"No, thank you, Dodoria. Raditz and Nappa will do just nicely on their own," Frieza replied. "Ah, finally something useful for those two to do other than clear planets! It should be interesting whom they pick for winners. I can't wait to see-"
He was interrupted when a young feminine voice squeaked, "Oh, Hectar, you are so incredibly handsome!"
"Thanks, babe," came Hectar's gruff, sly reply.
Another female asked, "Hectar, what do you think of my chances of winning the Miss Frieza Beauty Contest?"
Hectar said wickedly, "Tell you what, beautiful. Come to my room tonight, and I'll happily let you know after you and I get better acquainted."
"Love to!" Hectar's new conquest replied.
Rectaurus added, "And any ladies who wish to increase their chances of winning the beauty contest are welcome to come to my room after midnight…and I'll let you babes know what my brother and I look for in a beauty pageant contestant." A chorus of happily consenting replies followed his offer.
Jaden's sensitive Rybanese hearing picked up every word. "What the hell?" she muttered. "Those two idiots are talking like they are the contest judges, instead of Nappa and Raditz."
"What are those pulling now?" Zarbon wanted to know.
Frieza sighed, "I don't know, but I'm about to find out." He shouted, "Hectar! Rectaurus, come here immediately!"
Hectar and Rectaurus hastily dashed forward to their sire. The orange-skinned Hectar grinned nervously and asked, "Yes, sire?"
"What's going on here?" Frieza demanded to know.
The yellow-skinned Rectaurus didn't answer at first, as four young ladies of assorted species suddenly cuddled up against him. A woman who resembled a green lizard with long, red hair offered to give him a massage in her room later, something that Rectaurus gladly agreed to. Several other women wrapped their arms around Hectar's waist, nuzzling him and cooing to him how wonderful he was.
With their jaws dangling, Frieza, Zarbon, Dodoria, and Jaden looked at the women and at the Sistrai brothers suspiciously. Most of the time, women ran or flew the other way whenever the perverted, lust-crazed Hectar or Rectaurus or both approached any of them. And only a minority of women would actually touch those two Sistrai men voluntarily; the majority of the women stayed as far away from them as possible.
Jaden was the first to recover from the shock. "Why are you ladies all of a sudden interested in Hectar and Rectaurus? Normally, those two have to pay or force a woman to come near them. What's going on?"
Neither Hectar nor Rectaurus liked Jaden any more than she liked them, because she was Rybanese and the former archenemy of their deceased brother, Balair. They glared at her hatefully, and then Hectar replied nastily, "These women like us; they think we're the greatest things since Frieza's dental plan for his soldiers. You have a problem with it, Jadie, you can go to hell!"
"Yeah!" Rectaurus chimed.
"I'll be glad to go to hell," Jaden quipped. "As long as I can take you two morons with me, so that I can have someone to torture for all of eternity."
"Bring it on then, wench!" Hectar ordered.
"Gladly, Sistrai!"
"ENOUGH!" Frieza hissed. He whirled onto Hectar and Rectaurus. "Just what do you two think you're doing?"
"Carryin' out our new duties," Rectaurus replied proudly. "And these beautiful ladies are helping us."
"And just what new duties were you two assigned?" Frieza demanded to know.
Hectar chuckled. "Why being your beauty contest judges, of course!"
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Eclipse ran into Reccoom, who was prancing merrily down the hallway, on his way to the Elite Lounge And Bar. "Oh, there you are!" she said breathlessly. "Good, you saved me a trip! This is a present for you…from an admirer!"
"Really?" Reccoom asked excitedly. "Who is it?"
"She told me not to tell you," Eclipse told him. "But she said that it was a goodwill gift. Enjoy! And make sure you read the directions before you use it! Bye now! Nappa's waiting for me! It's good cream; I have a jar of it myself!" And with that, Eclipse pushed the jar into Reccoom's large hands and hurried away.
Reccoom tried to look at the directions, but they were written in the Gemstarian language, instead of Standard. "Eclipse, wait! I can't read Gemstarian! Come back!" But Eclipse was already gone.
Reccoom looked at the jar concernedly, trying to figure out just what to do with this strange product when he saw a picture of a happy Gemstarian pink-haired young lady spreading a buttery substance onto a bagel. The picture was meant to show how radiant the lass looked because of the cream's effects, but Reccoom derived an entirely different meaning from it.
"That's it! I'm supposed to eat this stuff!" he declared, as he opened up the jar. He dipped his finger inside and licked the peach-colored cream off of it.
"Delicious! Yummy! Tastes like butter and cheese!" Reccoom crowed. "I know what I'm going to do! I'm going to go find me some bagels and spread this stuff on! Yeah, what a great snack idea! I'm going to thank who ever gave Eclipse this to give to me!"
And with that, Reccoom trotted off to find someone who had bagels available for him to use his new product on.
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"SINCE WHEN ARE YOU TWO THE BEAUTY CONTEST JUDGES?" Frieza shouted at his Sistrai soldiers.
"That's what I'd like to know!" Jaden added.
"Who gave you two the authority to become the new judges?" Zarbon asked sternly.
"Actually, no one really," Hectar admitted, casually stroking the plump buttocks of a cute humanoid waitress who would normally not even want him to look in her direction, let alone allow him to touch her. "Nappa and Raditz decided to give up their positions as beauty contest judges, saying that Rectaurus and I were the ones who truly deserved the honors of judging all the beauties!"
"Yeah, who ever thought monkeys could be so smart?" Rectaurus said breezily, licking his lips with his long, lizard-like tongue.
"Or so dumb," Hectar asked with a chuckle. "Those two monkeys were fools to give up being judges, but their losses are our gains! We've been chased by gorgeous ladies all day, and it's great!"
"Yeah, every babe's agreed to go to bed with us!" Rectaurus cried excitedly.
Frieza crossed his thin, corrugated arms, as he narrowed his eyes at his two Sistrai Top Elite officers. "And why didn't anyone bother asking me about this?" His freezing glare wiped the grins off of their faces.
"We-We didn't think you'd mind," Hectar replied worriedly.
"What's the big deal anyway?" Rectaurus added.
"Because Nappa and Raditz dared to shirk their honored duties! And because I didn't give them permission to drop out as judges!" Frieza fumed.
"Well, don't worry about it, sire. We'll gladly remain in their places," Hectar declared.
"Yeah, I'm lookin' forward to beddin'-er, I mean, judgin' all those women!" Rectaurus crowed.
"Well, we'd like to talk more, sire, we really would, but…we gotta get back to our…duties as judges," Hectar told Frieza casually. He turned on his tail, but Frieza seized his arm. Frieza glared at the women clinging to Hectar and Rectaurus.
"I want all of you ladies to leave us immediately," he ordered. None of the desperate females opposed them, and they all meekly left, but not before a few of them blew kisses to the two Sistrai warriors. Frieza cast his evil eye upon them once more.
"Did I say that you and Rectaurus could remain judges?" Frieza asked harshly to Hectar.
"Um, well, no, sire, but-"
"But nothing! Did Nappa and Raditz actually say why they wanted to quit being judges?"
"Not exactly, sire, just said that me and Rec were more worthy."
"I know one thing," Rectaurus added. "We sure ain't pickin' Reccoom! We's gonna pick a woman to be our winner"
"May the best woman win!" Dodoria hooted, raising his fist.
Ignoring Dodoria, Jaden said sardonically to the two Sistrai judges, "No offense, boys, but the contest is supposed to be based on how beautiful and talented a woman is, not on how willingly she is to let the judges screw her before the competition."
"For your information, Jadie," Rectaurus retorted smartly, "We do have higher standards than that!"
"Really?" Jaden asked skeptically. "So you two are actually judging those women fairly, according to the contest guidelines?"
"'Course we are, Rybanese," Rectaurus declared. "We're followin' the guidelines, but we're not judging them on just how good they look in their clothes. Our standards are much higher than that."
"Interesting," Zarbon noted with a small smile, as he crossed his handsome arms. "I'm almost impressed. I guess we misunderstood you two."
"That you did, Zarbon, that you did," Rectaurus said proudly. "We're not only judgin' them on how good they look with their clothes ON, but we're also judgin' them on how good they look with their clothes OFF."
"That's right!" Hectar cheered, patting his brother's back. "And part of the talent portion won't be seen by the audience 'cause that's private."
Jaden asked suspiciously, "And why is that?"
"For your info, Jadie," Rectaurus told her arrogantly. "Even we're not allowin' an audience when the ladies show off how good they are in bed!"
"'Course we can always make tapes to show to the audience…yeah, that would work!" Hectar said boldly.
Jaden and Zarbon fell over backwards, and the entire Bar shook when the heavy body of Jaden crashed into the marble floor. Frieza drew a small hand over his face, debating on whether to kill Hectar and Rectaurus on the spot. Dodoria carefully hid his laughter-and his approval of his friends' ideas.
Frieza hissed angrily at the two Sistrai, "I'm having a beauty contest, not a porno show, you fools! You two are not judging and making MY contest a circus to display your fantasies! I am reinstating Nappa and Raditz; consider yourselves fired."
"But-but, sire, this has been our lifelong dream-to judge a beauty contest!" Hectar protested.
Pushing herself off of the floor, Jaden remarked, "No, Hectar, your and Rectaurus's lifelong dream was to produce a documentary of the Ginyu Girls undressing and showering-and you two clowns did that six months ago. Of course, Nappa and the Ginyu Force actually teamed up together and sent you guys to the regen tanks for two weeks, especially when Nappa and Ginyu found out that Eclipse was in the film, but you two at least got to view your finished product before Frieza ordered your distributor and marketing friends executed for daring to mass-produce your work. As far as I know, he also had all the copies destroyed. Costly dream, eh, boys?" And with a quick yank of Zarbon's arm, she had Zarbon on his feet in no time.
Hectar and Rectaurus cut their eyes at her. Of course, she would have to bring that up!
"You two are not judging," Frieza told the two Sistrai men icily. He turned to Jaden, who was brushing herself off. "Jaden, I want you to find Nappa and Raditz and inform them they are the judges once more. And that nothing short of death will keep them from not being judges! And tell them that my decision is binding until the contest is over!"
"Yes, sire," Jaden told him.
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Vegeta and Nappa's room…
"Ah, yeah, I declare Eclipse this year's winner of the Miss Nappa Beauty Contest! Good job, babe, good job!"
"Why thank you, judge!" Eclipse giggled prettily, as she seductively danced up to him and nestled herself into his lap. Nappa chuckled, as she rested herself against his bare chest.
Nappa was dressed only in his trousers, and Eclipse was wearing a delicate, sheer, turquoise teddy with spaghetti straps and fine lace. The garment barely covered her breasts, and Nappa openly and delightfully peered down into the enticingly, dark valley of her generous cleavage.
Eclipse ran a slim finger along Nappa's mustache, as her lips melded with his. She rubbed against him gently, as she performed a sensual lap dance for him.
"I must thank you for picking me as the winner," she cooed.
"You're welcome, baby, you're welcome. Now it's time for the judge to give this year's winner her prize!" Nappa told his mate wickedly with a devilish grin. He scooped Eclipse in his arms and laid her down on the bed. He then nestled himself on top of her and wrapped his large, muscled arms and his long, plush tail around her trim, lithe body.
Eclipse embraced him around his thick neck, as she enfolded her long, shapely legs around his waist, pulling him further down upon her. She always enjoyed the pleasantness of his heavy weight upon her soft, supple body. She planted loving, affectionate kisses all along his face.
Before Nappa returned her kisses, he sang croakily off-key, "Here she is, Miss Nappa! The finest, most gorgeous woman that I've ever seen! She is beautiful…talented…wonderful…and all mine!"
Eclipse giggled again before joining her lips with her mate. As their kiss deepened, Nappa casually traced the bite mark on her neck that he had inflicted as part of their bond. She was his, and only his!
"This is the only beauty contest that I'd rather be judging!" Nappa declared after allowing himself to come up for air. "And you're the only contestant that I'd ever pick!"
Eclipse smiled, tracing his lips with her fingertip. "Are you sure that you don't regret turning your judgeship over to Hectar and Rectaurus?"
"Nah! Not a bit, babe, not a bit. Raditz and I just decided that judging beauty contests was not for us. Let those Sistrai fools deal with the bunch of women begging them to pick them for Miss Frieza! Not me! And I am ever glad that's over with! Now I can have some peace, and more time with you, beautiful."
"That I have no objection to," Eclipse purred sweetly, kissing his lips again, as she caressed his smooth, bald head with her expert fingers. She then began nibbling on his right ear lobe.
"I love you, Nappa," she whispered in his ear.
"I know, babe, I know. Trust me when I say that you're the only woman that I want for the rest of my life, the only female for me," Nappa murmured into her neck. He began kissing her neck, as he held her closer. He knew that Eclipse wished that he could say that he loved her, but those words were harder to say for him and most other Saiyan men than "I'm not hungry" or "I surrender". Love was not often a word that any pureblooded Saiyan used, let alone he. The closest that Nappa had ever come to declaring his caring for his mate was saying that he would be willing to be faithful to her and to die for her.
It had taken the huge Saiyan a while to get used to someone telling him that she loved him on a regular basis. No one had ever said "I love you" to him before Eclipse, and it was something that he was still getting used to hearing. The first few times she had told him, it had made him uncomfortable, but he was adjusted to her open declarations of affection by now. Perhaps someday, he might actually be able to return her words. But even so, words were just words, and it was actions that counted. And Nappa was definitely more a man of action than a man of words. He just hoped that Eclipse realized how much he did truly care for her, even though he couldn't quite express it in the way that she may have preferred, except through their mating.
Eclipse longingly embraced his neck tighter, while her free hand gently petted the base of his tail. She lovingly stroked the furry appendage, as Nappa released a deep, contented purr. With unusual tenderness on his part, Nappa lifted himself from his mate and slowly pushed up her teddy, intending to undress her. He allowed Eclipse to sit up, so that she could allow him better access.
But before Nappa could remove his mate's delicate garment, a loud bang interrupted their lovemaking. "Nappa, unlock this door immediately!" Vegeta's voice roared.
A disgruntled Nappa muttered a few Saiyan curses under his breath, as he gently released Eclipse's clothing. His disappointed mate smoothed down her negligee, and Nappa reluctantly let her arise.
"Just a minute!" he shouted, allowing time for his mate to slip into her lacy, aqua robe that matched her teddy. When she had sufficiently covered herself, Nappa arose to go to the door to press the button that would unlock the sliding metal door.
"Took you long enough," Vegeta said curtly, as he walked into the room. "You and I need to talk immediately. Raditz and I will also have this discussion when I track him and my sister down; couldn't find them in Journa's room."
"Umm…can't we talk later?" Nappa asked in a tone that belied both hope and annoyance. "Eclipse and I haven't had much time alone lately."
"Eclipse will have to wait. In fact, she is to leave-now."
Nappa sighed, looking at his mate. Eclipse nodded with understanding, knowing how Prince Vegeta was. "I'll see you later, Nappa," she told him softly, slipping past Vegeta to leave. But she did blow him a kiss behind the Saiyan Prince's back before disappearing down the corridor. Nappa gave a rare, wistful smile, after she left.
"Sorry to interrupt your fun," Vegeta told him stiffly, not meaning it much. "But I have heard a rumor about you and Raditz that has greatly displeased me."
Nappa laughed nervously, holding up his huge hands. "Look, Prince, if it's about that food fight that Raditz and I were involved in last week in the Elite Lounge And Bar, I told you before that Dodoria started it!"
Vegeta glowered at his partner. "That's not what I'm talking about! I heard that you and Raditz are no longer beauty contest judges!"
"That's right!" Nappa declared, crossing his arms. "Raditz and I decided that beauty contests are not for us! Let Hectar and Rectaurus be the ones to deal with our dilemmas! Raditz and I are through!"
"Do you realize what this means for me?" Vegeta snapped. "It means that Reccoom is going to lose, and that I'm going to have wait on Zarbon hand and foot, dressed in my sister's nightwear! I was counting on you two to declare Reccoom the winner, and you two betray me by dropping out as judges!"
"Prince, you don't understand-"
"Oh, I understand! I understand your fear of Coola and King Cold, but I told you two not to worry about that! I told you to pick Reccoom as the winner! Now, we have to fix this mess that you and Raditz helped create! You two will help me ensure that Reccoom wins, because if I have to be Zarbon's flunky, you two will be joining me, both of you dressed in drag, just like me! And I don't think, Nappa, that you can fit into Eclipse's clothing!"
Nappa chuckled. "Nope, Vegeta, that would be a stretch! But how are we going to pull it off?"
"I have to think, but Reccoom will win, no matter what! I will not be humiliated! And furthermore, I-"
A knock on the bedroom door interrupted him.
"Who is it?" Vegeta demanded to know.
"It's me, Raditz. Got to talk to Nappa!"
"What's up, Raditz?" Nappa asked before Vegeta could speak again.
"Bad news, Nappa, Jaden just paid me a visit. Special message from Frieza: our plan didn't work. We still have to judge the contest."
Crossing his arms, Vegeta smiled triumphantly, as Nappa and Raditz, on opposite sides of the door, began to mentally make out their wills. Both Saiyan judges were determined to couple with their mates for one last time before their deaths.
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Jaden had just returned from Journa's room, where Journa and Raditz had been spending some time alone together, and she saw Reccoom coming her way, delightedly scooping out facial cream with a plastic spoon that he had procured from a snack bar. He was gobbling the substance away, spoonful after spoonful.
"Hey, Jade!" Reccoom yelled. "Want to taste this great new spread that Eclipse gave me that someone gave her! I tried to find bagels to put it on, but the snack bar was closed, so I just grabbed a spoon off of their counter to eat it out of the jar. I'm sure it tastes great either way!"
"What the hell is that stuff?" Jaden wanted to know.
"Some spread, but it tastes great, just like butter and cheese!" Reccoom declared. "When Eclipse gave it to me, I didn't know what it was for, but when I saw the picture of the pretty Gemstarian lady eating it, I knew then that it was for putting it on bagels. But no one around here has any bagels, so I just decided to eat it out of the jar. Tastes great! Try some!"
Jaden hesitantly dipped a finger into the jar of cream and cautiously licked it off the tip of her finger. "Mmm…this is pretty good. Let me see that jar."
"Sure."
Jaden studied the jar-and her yellow eyes widened in horror, for she recognized the product. She couldn't read the Gemstarian language on it any more than Reccoom could, but she had seen Chestra with a similar jar a month ago, using it generously. She gagged and spat out the cream she had just eaten.
"Reccoom, you dumbbutt! You're supposed to put this stuff on your face, not in your mouth! You made me eat facial cream! Chestra told me this stuff's supposed to exfoliate your skin, whatever the hell that means. Anyway, the stuff's not edible."
"It tasted like it to me," Reccoom protested. "It's the best spread I've ever had."
"Yeah, I know. I got tricked too, but I don't think either one of us better eat any more. I'll take it from you before you forget. You better get to the infirmary to make sure no permanent damage is done. I'll dispose of this immediately."
"Uh, thanks, Jade, I 'preciate it. I sure would have looked dumb, eating face cream," Reccoom said brightly, as he handed Jaden the jar.
"Trust me, Reccoom, when I say you don't need to eat face cream to make yourself look dumb."
Her remark went totally over Reccoom's head. The not overly bright red-haired giant thought that his Rybanese colleague was paying him a compliment. He grinned. "Thanks, Jade!"
Jaden sighed, deciding not to try to explain her "compliment". "Just make sure you haven't poisoned yourself, alright?"
"Whatever ya say!"
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Jaden sniffed the contents of the facial cream, as she headed towards Frieza's dining room. Too bad it wasn't edible; the stuff had tasted good. Perhaps she could send a message to the manufacturers suggesting they make an eatable version. Yum!
Before she could leave the Top Elite rooms, she passed by Diamonique's room. The door to Diamonique's bedroom opened and Diamonique stumbled out into the hall, bumping right into Jaden! Normally the Gemstarian wouldn't have been that clumsy, but she was wearing a mud mask on her face and fruit slices on her eyes. She dropped her jar of Gemstarian facial cream-at the same time, Jaden dropped hers!
"Jaden, is that you?" Diamonique wanted to know. "I can't see a thing!"
"Yeah, it is," Jaden replied curtly, brushing herself off. "And what the hell are you doing walking out in the hall with gunk and fruit on your face?"
"It's a new beauty treatment, if you must know," Diamonique told her irritably. "And I was coming out to wait for the maid to bring me a towel, especially since she forgot to stock my room last night. Being beautiful is such hard work!"
"I wouldn't know," Jaden said honestly without sarcasm or regret.
"Of course you wouldn't, but what would you need it for anyway? You don't even date! But then men don't exactly flock to you, do they?"
Jaden growled menacingly, "You want to die young, don't you?" She didn't care much for men and cared even less for dating or mating, but she didn't need someone to rub in her face the fact that she had no current prospects.
Diamonique laughed nervously, thankful for the fruit slices covering her eyes that prevented her from seeing Jaden's fury. She bent down slowly to feel around for the jar of cream that she had dropped. To her relief, her lovely hand touched a jar, and she picked it up. Jaden picked up the other jar off of the floor.
"This is great stuff," Diamonique cooed. "Too bad you're not humanoid, Jaden. This would be great to try on your face."
"I'm sure it would," Jaden told her. "Do they make an edible version of this?"
"Of course not!" Diamonique cried. "That stuff's for your face only!"
"Well, tell your people the next time you go home to make a version that's edible," Jaden ordered, screwing the lid tighter on her jar. "This stuff does taste good. See ya!" And Jaden walked away briskly before Diamonique could say a word.
The Gemstarian warrior huffed, "Is she stupid? She actually ate this cream? She must have hit her head too hard on her last mission, poor woman. Well, her tastes are not my concern, just as long as she doesn't eat my beauty products."
And with that, Diamonique disappeared into her bedroom.
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Two hours later…
"AHHH! MY FACE! MY BEAUTIFUL FACE! NO! SOMEBODY HELP ME!"
All of the Top Elites rushed out of the bedrooms at the feminine screams. A terrified Diamonique stumbled into the hallway, covering her face and crying openly.
"What's wrong with her?" Reccoom asked.
"Let me guess: she found a wrinkle," Jaden joked.
"Or a pimple," Chestra added.
"Or a wart," Ginyu said with a grin.
"I'm glad that you fools can find this funny!" Diamonique hissed.
"A wrinkle's not the end of the universe, Diamonique," Jaden remarked.
"Right now, believe it or not, I'd rather have one of those!" the Gemstarian sobbed.
"What's wrong, Diamonique?" Zarbon inquired with boredom.
Slowly, ashamedly, Diamonique uncovered her face, which had once been so lovely, but was now red and splotchy with dozens upon dozens of blisters. Zarbon cried out with horror, and he looked away from her. He and Diamonique knew then and there that their plan had backfired.
The horrified gasps of the other Top Elites greeted the sight of Diamonique's face. "Skin allergy?" Chestra asked with rare sympathy for her archenemy.
Diamonique broke down into tears, crying into her hands. Zarbon flinched inwardly, but he could offer her no comfort. Somehow, Diamonique must have ended up with the skin cream intended for Reccoom. He gulped, especially when he saw how clear Reccoom's face was.
"You-you better go to the infirmary," Zarbon suggested guiltily.
"Was it that stuff you put on your face earlier?" Jaden asked.
"You could…say that," Diamonique choked out before breaking down into tears again. In her anguish was hidden fury. She would get someone for this! Jaden, Eclipse…whoever had done this to her…they would pay!
Bitterly, she knew that she would have to drop out of the beauty contest. What else could she do? Her blisters and rash would not clear up in time for her to win.
She broke into further sobs and ran back into her room, instead of the infirmary.
If she had half of Jaden's wit, she would have said that she had made a "rash" decision.
"Eclipse, darling, would you do me a favor?"
"I would like to, Diamonique, but I'm on my way to see Nappa."
"I know you are, my dear, but I would like to know, if you'd be willing to drop off a gift to Reccoom, from me, on your way to Nappa's room."
"Sure!" Eclipse happily told her, as Diamonique handed her the jar of facial cream. Eclipse looked at it skeptically. "Diamonique, what would Reccoom want with facial cream?"
"To help improve his skin and increase his chances of winning, of course!" Diamonique laughed merrily. "After all, even I can be generous to my competitors every now and then. Tell him it's a goodwill gift from an admirer."
"O…kay," Eclipse said uncertainly, surprised that her normally self-centered cousin could be so generous.
"Just deliver it to him, would you please? And don't say it was from me, okay?"
"No…problem, I think," Eclipse said hesitantly.
Diamonique gaily kissed her cousin on her cheek. "You're a sweetheart, Eclipse, and don't worry…I promise that Reccoom won't ever forget this present."
"Whatever you say, Diamonique."
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Frieza was happily strolling along the smooth, cold metal corridors of his ship, swishing his ribbed tail back and forth. He was anticipating his birthday, which was to be due within the coming week. Jaden, Zarbon and Dodoria were walking behind him, for Frieza had invited the three Top Elite Officers to dine with him in his dining room. But first Frieza wanted to pick up a bottle of one of his favorite rare wines from Tipsy, the bartender of the Elite Lounge And Bar. Tipsy was supposed to be keeping the special drink in a small metal, ice-filled tub behind his bar.
But as the trio entered the Bar, four jaws dropped at a shocking sight. A gaggle of attractive young women of various races were clustered together, and two of them were waitresses eagerly hurrying to bring huge crystal mugs of frothy, golden beer.
"What is going here?"
Jaden sighed, "Probably the girls trying to woo Nappa and Raditz again. They've been chasing those two all week."
"Those monkeys are lucky," Dodoria said enviously. "What I wouldn't give to be in their places!"
"You and ninety-nine percent of the heterosexual males in the army," Zarbon quipped.
Frieza chuckled. "Perhaps I should have allowed more judges, eh?"
"I'd be more than happy to volunteer at this point, sire," Dodoria piped up. "Especially, if you were to-" He abruptly stopped when Zarbon shook his head to warn him not to suggest that Frieza enter his own beauty contest. Fortunately for the normally dense Dodoria, he got the message and said nothing further.
"No, thank you, Dodoria. Raditz and Nappa will do just nicely on their own," Frieza replied. "Ah, finally something useful for those two to do other than clear planets! It should be interesting whom they pick for winners. I can't wait to see-"
He was interrupted when a young feminine voice squeaked, "Oh, Hectar, you are so incredibly handsome!"
"Thanks, babe," came Hectar's gruff, sly reply.
Another female asked, "Hectar, what do you think of my chances of winning the Miss Frieza Beauty Contest?"
Hectar said wickedly, "Tell you what, beautiful. Come to my room tonight, and I'll happily let you know after you and I get better acquainted."
"Love to!" Hectar's new conquest replied.
Rectaurus added, "And any ladies who wish to increase their chances of winning the beauty contest are welcome to come to my room after midnight…and I'll let you babes know what my brother and I look for in a beauty pageant contestant." A chorus of happily consenting replies followed his offer.
Jaden's sensitive Rybanese hearing picked up every word. "What the hell?" she muttered. "Those two idiots are talking like they are the contest judges, instead of Nappa and Raditz."
"What are those pulling now?" Zarbon wanted to know.
Frieza sighed, "I don't know, but I'm about to find out." He shouted, "Hectar! Rectaurus, come here immediately!"
Hectar and Rectaurus hastily dashed forward to their sire. The orange-skinned Hectar grinned nervously and asked, "Yes, sire?"
"What's going on here?" Frieza demanded to know.
The yellow-skinned Rectaurus didn't answer at first, as four young ladies of assorted species suddenly cuddled up against him. A woman who resembled a green lizard with long, red hair offered to give him a massage in her room later, something that Rectaurus gladly agreed to. Several other women wrapped their arms around Hectar's waist, nuzzling him and cooing to him how wonderful he was.
With their jaws dangling, Frieza, Zarbon, Dodoria, and Jaden looked at the women and at the Sistrai brothers suspiciously. Most of the time, women ran or flew the other way whenever the perverted, lust-crazed Hectar or Rectaurus or both approached any of them. And only a minority of women would actually touch those two Sistrai men voluntarily; the majority of the women stayed as far away from them as possible.
Jaden was the first to recover from the shock. "Why are you ladies all of a sudden interested in Hectar and Rectaurus? Normally, those two have to pay or force a woman to come near them. What's going on?"
Neither Hectar nor Rectaurus liked Jaden any more than she liked them, because she was Rybanese and the former archenemy of their deceased brother, Balair. They glared at her hatefully, and then Hectar replied nastily, "These women like us; they think we're the greatest things since Frieza's dental plan for his soldiers. You have a problem with it, Jadie, you can go to hell!"
"Yeah!" Rectaurus chimed.
"I'll be glad to go to hell," Jaden quipped. "As long as I can take you two morons with me, so that I can have someone to torture for all of eternity."
"Bring it on then, wench!" Hectar ordered.
"Gladly, Sistrai!"
"ENOUGH!" Frieza hissed. He whirled onto Hectar and Rectaurus. "Just what do you two think you're doing?"
"Carryin' out our new duties," Rectaurus replied proudly. "And these beautiful ladies are helping us."
"And just what new duties were you two assigned?" Frieza demanded to know.
Hectar chuckled. "Why being your beauty contest judges, of course!"
*************************************************************************************************
Eclipse ran into Reccoom, who was prancing merrily down the hallway, on his way to the Elite Lounge And Bar. "Oh, there you are!" she said breathlessly. "Good, you saved me a trip! This is a present for you…from an admirer!"
"Really?" Reccoom asked excitedly. "Who is it?"
"She told me not to tell you," Eclipse told him. "But she said that it was a goodwill gift. Enjoy! And make sure you read the directions before you use it! Bye now! Nappa's waiting for me! It's good cream; I have a jar of it myself!" And with that, Eclipse pushed the jar into Reccoom's large hands and hurried away.
Reccoom tried to look at the directions, but they were written in the Gemstarian language, instead of Standard. "Eclipse, wait! I can't read Gemstarian! Come back!" But Eclipse was already gone.
Reccoom looked at the jar concernedly, trying to figure out just what to do with this strange product when he saw a picture of a happy Gemstarian pink-haired young lady spreading a buttery substance onto a bagel. The picture was meant to show how radiant the lass looked because of the cream's effects, but Reccoom derived an entirely different meaning from it.
"That's it! I'm supposed to eat this stuff!" he declared, as he opened up the jar. He dipped his finger inside and licked the peach-colored cream off of it.
"Delicious! Yummy! Tastes like butter and cheese!" Reccoom crowed. "I know what I'm going to do! I'm going to go find me some bagels and spread this stuff on! Yeah, what a great snack idea! I'm going to thank who ever gave Eclipse this to give to me!"
And with that, Reccoom trotted off to find someone who had bagels available for him to use his new product on.
*************************************************************************************************
"SINCE WHEN ARE YOU TWO THE BEAUTY CONTEST JUDGES?" Frieza shouted at his Sistrai soldiers.
"That's what I'd like to know!" Jaden added.
"Who gave you two the authority to become the new judges?" Zarbon asked sternly.
"Actually, no one really," Hectar admitted, casually stroking the plump buttocks of a cute humanoid waitress who would normally not even want him to look in her direction, let alone allow him to touch her. "Nappa and Raditz decided to give up their positions as beauty contest judges, saying that Rectaurus and I were the ones who truly deserved the honors of judging all the beauties!"
"Yeah, who ever thought monkeys could be so smart?" Rectaurus said breezily, licking his lips with his long, lizard-like tongue.
"Or so dumb," Hectar asked with a chuckle. "Those two monkeys were fools to give up being judges, but their losses are our gains! We've been chased by gorgeous ladies all day, and it's great!"
"Yeah, every babe's agreed to go to bed with us!" Rectaurus cried excitedly.
Frieza crossed his thin, corrugated arms, as he narrowed his eyes at his two Sistrai Top Elite officers. "And why didn't anyone bother asking me about this?" His freezing glare wiped the grins off of their faces.
"We-We didn't think you'd mind," Hectar replied worriedly.
"What's the big deal anyway?" Rectaurus added.
"Because Nappa and Raditz dared to shirk their honored duties! And because I didn't give them permission to drop out as judges!" Frieza fumed.
"Well, don't worry about it, sire. We'll gladly remain in their places," Hectar declared.
"Yeah, I'm lookin' forward to beddin'-er, I mean, judgin' all those women!" Rectaurus crowed.
"Well, we'd like to talk more, sire, we really would, but…we gotta get back to our…duties as judges," Hectar told Frieza casually. He turned on his tail, but Frieza seized his arm. Frieza glared at the women clinging to Hectar and Rectaurus.
"I want all of you ladies to leave us immediately," he ordered. None of the desperate females opposed them, and they all meekly left, but not before a few of them blew kisses to the two Sistrai warriors. Frieza cast his evil eye upon them once more.
"Did I say that you and Rectaurus could remain judges?" Frieza asked harshly to Hectar.
"Um, well, no, sire, but-"
"But nothing! Did Nappa and Raditz actually say why they wanted to quit being judges?"
"Not exactly, sire, just said that me and Rec were more worthy."
"I know one thing," Rectaurus added. "We sure ain't pickin' Reccoom! We's gonna pick a woman to be our winner"
"May the best woman win!" Dodoria hooted, raising his fist.
Ignoring Dodoria, Jaden said sardonically to the two Sistrai judges, "No offense, boys, but the contest is supposed to be based on how beautiful and talented a woman is, not on how willingly she is to let the judges screw her before the competition."
"For your information, Jadie," Rectaurus retorted smartly, "We do have higher standards than that!"
"Really?" Jaden asked skeptically. "So you two are actually judging those women fairly, according to the contest guidelines?"
"'Course we are, Rybanese," Rectaurus declared. "We're followin' the guidelines, but we're not judging them on just how good they look in their clothes. Our standards are much higher than that."
"Interesting," Zarbon noted with a small smile, as he crossed his handsome arms. "I'm almost impressed. I guess we misunderstood you two."
"That you did, Zarbon, that you did," Rectaurus said proudly. "We're not only judgin' them on how good they look with their clothes ON, but we're also judgin' them on how good they look with their clothes OFF."
"That's right!" Hectar cheered, patting his brother's back. "And part of the talent portion won't be seen by the audience 'cause that's private."
Jaden asked suspiciously, "And why is that?"
"For your info, Jadie," Rectaurus told her arrogantly. "Even we're not allowin' an audience when the ladies show off how good they are in bed!"
"'Course we can always make tapes to show to the audience…yeah, that would work!" Hectar said boldly.
Jaden and Zarbon fell over backwards, and the entire Bar shook when the heavy body of Jaden crashed into the marble floor. Frieza drew a small hand over his face, debating on whether to kill Hectar and Rectaurus on the spot. Dodoria carefully hid his laughter-and his approval of his friends' ideas.
Frieza hissed angrily at the two Sistrai, "I'm having a beauty contest, not a porno show, you fools! You two are not judging and making MY contest a circus to display your fantasies! I am reinstating Nappa and Raditz; consider yourselves fired."
"But-but, sire, this has been our lifelong dream-to judge a beauty contest!" Hectar protested.
Pushing herself off of the floor, Jaden remarked, "No, Hectar, your and Rectaurus's lifelong dream was to produce a documentary of the Ginyu Girls undressing and showering-and you two clowns did that six months ago. Of course, Nappa and the Ginyu Force actually teamed up together and sent you guys to the regen tanks for two weeks, especially when Nappa and Ginyu found out that Eclipse was in the film, but you two at least got to view your finished product before Frieza ordered your distributor and marketing friends executed for daring to mass-produce your work. As far as I know, he also had all the copies destroyed. Costly dream, eh, boys?" And with a quick yank of Zarbon's arm, she had Zarbon on his feet in no time.
Hectar and Rectaurus cut their eyes at her. Of course, she would have to bring that up!
"You two are not judging," Frieza told the two Sistrai men icily. He turned to Jaden, who was brushing herself off. "Jaden, I want you to find Nappa and Raditz and inform them they are the judges once more. And that nothing short of death will keep them from not being judges! And tell them that my decision is binding until the contest is over!"
"Yes, sire," Jaden told him.
*************************************************************************************************
Vegeta and Nappa's room…
"Ah, yeah, I declare Eclipse this year's winner of the Miss Nappa Beauty Contest! Good job, babe, good job!"
"Why thank you, judge!" Eclipse giggled prettily, as she seductively danced up to him and nestled herself into his lap. Nappa chuckled, as she rested herself against his bare chest.
Nappa was dressed only in his trousers, and Eclipse was wearing a delicate, sheer, turquoise teddy with spaghetti straps and fine lace. The garment barely covered her breasts, and Nappa openly and delightfully peered down into the enticingly, dark valley of her generous cleavage.
Eclipse ran a slim finger along Nappa's mustache, as her lips melded with his. She rubbed against him gently, as she performed a sensual lap dance for him.
"I must thank you for picking me as the winner," she cooed.
"You're welcome, baby, you're welcome. Now it's time for the judge to give this year's winner her prize!" Nappa told his mate wickedly with a devilish grin. He scooped Eclipse in his arms and laid her down on the bed. He then nestled himself on top of her and wrapped his large, muscled arms and his long, plush tail around her trim, lithe body.
Eclipse embraced him around his thick neck, as she enfolded her long, shapely legs around his waist, pulling him further down upon her. She always enjoyed the pleasantness of his heavy weight upon her soft, supple body. She planted loving, affectionate kisses all along his face.
Before Nappa returned her kisses, he sang croakily off-key, "Here she is, Miss Nappa! The finest, most gorgeous woman that I've ever seen! She is beautiful…talented…wonderful…and all mine!"
Eclipse giggled again before joining her lips with her mate. As their kiss deepened, Nappa casually traced the bite mark on her neck that he had inflicted as part of their bond. She was his, and only his!
"This is the only beauty contest that I'd rather be judging!" Nappa declared after allowing himself to come up for air. "And you're the only contestant that I'd ever pick!"
Eclipse smiled, tracing his lips with her fingertip. "Are you sure that you don't regret turning your judgeship over to Hectar and Rectaurus?"
"Nah! Not a bit, babe, not a bit. Raditz and I just decided that judging beauty contests was not for us. Let those Sistrai fools deal with the bunch of women begging them to pick them for Miss Frieza! Not me! And I am ever glad that's over with! Now I can have some peace, and more time with you, beautiful."
"That I have no objection to," Eclipse purred sweetly, kissing his lips again, as she caressed his smooth, bald head with her expert fingers. She then began nibbling on his right ear lobe.
"I love you, Nappa," she whispered in his ear.
"I know, babe, I know. Trust me when I say that you're the only woman that I want for the rest of my life, the only female for me," Nappa murmured into her neck. He began kissing her neck, as he held her closer. He knew that Eclipse wished that he could say that he loved her, but those words were harder to say for him and most other Saiyan men than "I'm not hungry" or "I surrender". Love was not often a word that any pureblooded Saiyan used, let alone he. The closest that Nappa had ever come to declaring his caring for his mate was saying that he would be willing to be faithful to her and to die for her.
It had taken the huge Saiyan a while to get used to someone telling him that she loved him on a regular basis. No one had ever said "I love you" to him before Eclipse, and it was something that he was still getting used to hearing. The first few times she had told him, it had made him uncomfortable, but he was adjusted to her open declarations of affection by now. Perhaps someday, he might actually be able to return her words. But even so, words were just words, and it was actions that counted. And Nappa was definitely more a man of action than a man of words. He just hoped that Eclipse realized how much he did truly care for her, even though he couldn't quite express it in the way that she may have preferred, except through their mating.
Eclipse longingly embraced his neck tighter, while her free hand gently petted the base of his tail. She lovingly stroked the furry appendage, as Nappa released a deep, contented purr. With unusual tenderness on his part, Nappa lifted himself from his mate and slowly pushed up her teddy, intending to undress her. He allowed Eclipse to sit up, so that she could allow him better access.
But before Nappa could remove his mate's delicate garment, a loud bang interrupted their lovemaking. "Nappa, unlock this door immediately!" Vegeta's voice roared.
A disgruntled Nappa muttered a few Saiyan curses under his breath, as he gently released Eclipse's clothing. His disappointed mate smoothed down her negligee, and Nappa reluctantly let her arise.
"Just a minute!" he shouted, allowing time for his mate to slip into her lacy, aqua robe that matched her teddy. When she had sufficiently covered herself, Nappa arose to go to the door to press the button that would unlock the sliding metal door.
"Took you long enough," Vegeta said curtly, as he walked into the room. "You and I need to talk immediately. Raditz and I will also have this discussion when I track him and my sister down; couldn't find them in Journa's room."
"Umm…can't we talk later?" Nappa asked in a tone that belied both hope and annoyance. "Eclipse and I haven't had much time alone lately."
"Eclipse will have to wait. In fact, she is to leave-now."
Nappa sighed, looking at his mate. Eclipse nodded with understanding, knowing how Prince Vegeta was. "I'll see you later, Nappa," she told him softly, slipping past Vegeta to leave. But she did blow him a kiss behind the Saiyan Prince's back before disappearing down the corridor. Nappa gave a rare, wistful smile, after she left.
"Sorry to interrupt your fun," Vegeta told him stiffly, not meaning it much. "But I have heard a rumor about you and Raditz that has greatly displeased me."
Nappa laughed nervously, holding up his huge hands. "Look, Prince, if it's about that food fight that Raditz and I were involved in last week in the Elite Lounge And Bar, I told you before that Dodoria started it!"
Vegeta glowered at his partner. "That's not what I'm talking about! I heard that you and Raditz are no longer beauty contest judges!"
"That's right!" Nappa declared, crossing his arms. "Raditz and I decided that beauty contests are not for us! Let Hectar and Rectaurus be the ones to deal with our dilemmas! Raditz and I are through!"
"Do you realize what this means for me?" Vegeta snapped. "It means that Reccoom is going to lose, and that I'm going to have wait on Zarbon hand and foot, dressed in my sister's nightwear! I was counting on you two to declare Reccoom the winner, and you two betray me by dropping out as judges!"
"Prince, you don't understand-"
"Oh, I understand! I understand your fear of Coola and King Cold, but I told you two not to worry about that! I told you to pick Reccoom as the winner! Now, we have to fix this mess that you and Raditz helped create! You two will help me ensure that Reccoom wins, because if I have to be Zarbon's flunky, you two will be joining me, both of you dressed in drag, just like me! And I don't think, Nappa, that you can fit into Eclipse's clothing!"
Nappa chuckled. "Nope, Vegeta, that would be a stretch! But how are we going to pull it off?"
"I have to think, but Reccoom will win, no matter what! I will not be humiliated! And furthermore, I-"
A knock on the bedroom door interrupted him.
"Who is it?" Vegeta demanded to know.
"It's me, Raditz. Got to talk to Nappa!"
"What's up, Raditz?" Nappa asked before Vegeta could speak again.
"Bad news, Nappa, Jaden just paid me a visit. Special message from Frieza: our plan didn't work. We still have to judge the contest."
Crossing his arms, Vegeta smiled triumphantly, as Nappa and Raditz, on opposite sides of the door, began to mentally make out their wills. Both Saiyan judges were determined to couple with their mates for one last time before their deaths.
*************************************************************************************************
Jaden had just returned from Journa's room, where Journa and Raditz had been spending some time alone together, and she saw Reccoom coming her way, delightedly scooping out facial cream with a plastic spoon that he had procured from a snack bar. He was gobbling the substance away, spoonful after spoonful.
"Hey, Jade!" Reccoom yelled. "Want to taste this great new spread that Eclipse gave me that someone gave her! I tried to find bagels to put it on, but the snack bar was closed, so I just grabbed a spoon off of their counter to eat it out of the jar. I'm sure it tastes great either way!"
"What the hell is that stuff?" Jaden wanted to know.
"Some spread, but it tastes great, just like butter and cheese!" Reccoom declared. "When Eclipse gave it to me, I didn't know what it was for, but when I saw the picture of the pretty Gemstarian lady eating it, I knew then that it was for putting it on bagels. But no one around here has any bagels, so I just decided to eat it out of the jar. Tastes great! Try some!"
Jaden hesitantly dipped a finger into the jar of cream and cautiously licked it off the tip of her finger. "Mmm…this is pretty good. Let me see that jar."
"Sure."
Jaden studied the jar-and her yellow eyes widened in horror, for she recognized the product. She couldn't read the Gemstarian language on it any more than Reccoom could, but she had seen Chestra with a similar jar a month ago, using it generously. She gagged and spat out the cream she had just eaten.
"Reccoom, you dumbbutt! You're supposed to put this stuff on your face, not in your mouth! You made me eat facial cream! Chestra told me this stuff's supposed to exfoliate your skin, whatever the hell that means. Anyway, the stuff's not edible."
"It tasted like it to me," Reccoom protested. "It's the best spread I've ever had."
"Yeah, I know. I got tricked too, but I don't think either one of us better eat any more. I'll take it from you before you forget. You better get to the infirmary to make sure no permanent damage is done. I'll dispose of this immediately."
"Uh, thanks, Jade, I 'preciate it. I sure would have looked dumb, eating face cream," Reccoom said brightly, as he handed Jaden the jar.
"Trust me, Reccoom, when I say you don't need to eat face cream to make yourself look dumb."
Her remark went totally over Reccoom's head. The not overly bright red-haired giant thought that his Rybanese colleague was paying him a compliment. He grinned. "Thanks, Jade!"
Jaden sighed, deciding not to try to explain her "compliment". "Just make sure you haven't poisoned yourself, alright?"
"Whatever ya say!"
*************************************************************************************************
Jaden sniffed the contents of the facial cream, as she headed towards Frieza's dining room. Too bad it wasn't edible; the stuff had tasted good. Perhaps she could send a message to the manufacturers suggesting they make an eatable version. Yum!
Before she could leave the Top Elite rooms, she passed by Diamonique's room. The door to Diamonique's bedroom opened and Diamonique stumbled out into the hall, bumping right into Jaden! Normally the Gemstarian wouldn't have been that clumsy, but she was wearing a mud mask on her face and fruit slices on her eyes. She dropped her jar of Gemstarian facial cream-at the same time, Jaden dropped hers!
"Jaden, is that you?" Diamonique wanted to know. "I can't see a thing!"
"Yeah, it is," Jaden replied curtly, brushing herself off. "And what the hell are you doing walking out in the hall with gunk and fruit on your face?"
"It's a new beauty treatment, if you must know," Diamonique told her irritably. "And I was coming out to wait for the maid to bring me a towel, especially since she forgot to stock my room last night. Being beautiful is such hard work!"
"I wouldn't know," Jaden said honestly without sarcasm or regret.
"Of course you wouldn't, but what would you need it for anyway? You don't even date! But then men don't exactly flock to you, do they?"
Jaden growled menacingly, "You want to die young, don't you?" She didn't care much for men and cared even less for dating or mating, but she didn't need someone to rub in her face the fact that she had no current prospects.
Diamonique laughed nervously, thankful for the fruit slices covering her eyes that prevented her from seeing Jaden's fury. She bent down slowly to feel around for the jar of cream that she had dropped. To her relief, her lovely hand touched a jar, and she picked it up. Jaden picked up the other jar off of the floor.
"This is great stuff," Diamonique cooed. "Too bad you're not humanoid, Jaden. This would be great to try on your face."
"I'm sure it would," Jaden told her. "Do they make an edible version of this?"
"Of course not!" Diamonique cried. "That stuff's for your face only!"
"Well, tell your people the next time you go home to make a version that's edible," Jaden ordered, screwing the lid tighter on her jar. "This stuff does taste good. See ya!" And Jaden walked away briskly before Diamonique could say a word.
The Gemstarian warrior huffed, "Is she stupid? She actually ate this cream? She must have hit her head too hard on her last mission, poor woman. Well, her tastes are not my concern, just as long as she doesn't eat my beauty products."
And with that, Diamonique disappeared into her bedroom.
*************************************************************************************************
Two hours later…
"AHHH! MY FACE! MY BEAUTIFUL FACE! NO! SOMEBODY HELP ME!"
All of the Top Elites rushed out of the bedrooms at the feminine screams. A terrified Diamonique stumbled into the hallway, covering her face and crying openly.
"What's wrong with her?" Reccoom asked.
"Let me guess: she found a wrinkle," Jaden joked.
"Or a pimple," Chestra added.
"Or a wart," Ginyu said with a grin.
"I'm glad that you fools can find this funny!" Diamonique hissed.
"A wrinkle's not the end of the universe, Diamonique," Jaden remarked.
"Right now, believe it or not, I'd rather have one of those!" the Gemstarian sobbed.
"What's wrong, Diamonique?" Zarbon inquired with boredom.
Slowly, ashamedly, Diamonique uncovered her face, which had once been so lovely, but was now red and splotchy with dozens upon dozens of blisters. Zarbon cried out with horror, and he looked away from her. He and Diamonique knew then and there that their plan had backfired.
The horrified gasps of the other Top Elites greeted the sight of Diamonique's face. "Skin allergy?" Chestra asked with rare sympathy for her archenemy.
Diamonique broke down into tears, crying into her hands. Zarbon flinched inwardly, but he could offer her no comfort. Somehow, Diamonique must have ended up with the skin cream intended for Reccoom. He gulped, especially when he saw how clear Reccoom's face was.
"You-you better go to the infirmary," Zarbon suggested guiltily.
"Was it that stuff you put on your face earlier?" Jaden asked.
"You could…say that," Diamonique choked out before breaking down into tears again. In her anguish was hidden fury. She would get someone for this! Jaden, Eclipse…whoever had done this to her…they would pay!
Bitterly, she knew that she would have to drop out of the beauty contest. What else could she do? Her blisters and rash would not clear up in time for her to win.
She broke into further sobs and ran back into her room, instead of the infirmary.
If she had half of Jaden's wit, she would have said that she had made a "rash" decision.