Chapter twenty-four - Abduction and Nightmares
Frieza was less than twenty feet from the exit of his ship when a quivering soldier approached him. "L-lord Frieza s-sir." he stammered. The Changeling paused and glanced toward him causing him to shake more. "W-we g-got a mess-message from our s-spy on P-planet Vegeta." He held out a small device which Frieza took and activated.
"Lord Frieza, this is Gorn reporting. King Vegeta just got the most bizarre report I've ever heard. I'll cut things short to save your time. First of all, Zarbon and his team are all dead." Frieza growled slightly. Zarbon had been a powerful and useful warrior. "Secondly, the Planet Namek possess objects called Dragonballs. The person who possess all seven of these objects can have any wish granted them. There's a group from Planet Vegeta bound for Namek and these Dragonballs tomorrow. Second Class Gorn, out."
Frieza stood for a long moment looking at the device in his hands. "There's no telling how long this meeting with father will take. Blast, those Sai-jins will beat me to the Dragonballs. Unless..." Frieza reached up and activated his scouter. With a few button pushes his top soldier's voice came over the line. "Ah, Captain Ginyu. I've got an assignment for your team. You are to go to Planet Namek and collect seven items called Dragonballs by any means necessary. Hold them until I arrive. Understood?"
"Yes, Lord Frieza."
******
Prince Vegeta paced about his room contemplating his next move, and the possibilities the Dragonballs represented. Once he had them all, and there was no doubt in his mind he would, then he could have anything he wanted. Anything! But what should he wish for? Immortality? To become a Super Sai-jin? The possibilities seemed endless. The only question was, how? It seemed these Earthlings knew of a way to locate the Dragonballs but how could he do it?
He grinned suddenly. There was always a way if you were willing to try. He'd have to do it tonight while the rest of the palace slept. He'd take the girl, the one with the blue hair. She seemed to be fairly intelligent. His grin broadened as the plan began to unfold in his mind. Yes, the blue haired woman would be his key to the Dragonballs.
******
"Oh, come on Yajirobe!" Goku pleaded. "Please?"
"Why am I always the one to go for the Senzu Beans?" the short and pudgy warrior demanded.
"Well, you do live with Korin."
"That's true. Alright, fine. I'll go get the new batch of beans off Korin. Be back in a couple hours."
"Alright!" Goku cheered as Yajirobe left the hospital room.
After he was gone Bardock pressed the signal button to get a nurse so he could call Dr. Briefs. Only a moment later the aging genius was on the screen. "Bardock, Goku! What a pleasant surprise. What can I do for you?"
"How are the modifications to my space pod coming along?"
"Oh, they're going just fine, just fine. I'm waiting for a couple parts to come in right now."
"About how long until it's done?"
"About a month or so."
Goku pouted. "A whole month?"
"Afraid so. But don't worry, it'll be ready and fully stocked. I've even installed an experiment of mine, a gravity machine."
"Gravity machine?" Goku asked.
"It should help with your training. You see, you'll be able to increase the gravity to up to one thousand times that of Earth's. Though I'd suggest you take it slow or you'll end up flat as a pancake."
******
"Come on you worthless ingrates! Move it!" Ginyu shouted to the techs that were preparing his and his men's space pods for travel. After receiving his orders from Frieza he'd requested details on the assignment and saw the report Gorn had given. He intended to be on Namek before the Sai-jins if possible. He wasn't worried about any kind of challenge from the Nameks or the Sai-jins. After all, he was the strongest being working under Frieza. The only Sai-jin stronger than him was King Vegeta, not even the Sai-jin prince matched his extraordinary power.
The tech's continued to scurry about in a hurry to prepare the pods. They feared Ginyu almost as much as Frieza. After all, Frieza had been forced to transform into his second form to defeat Ginyu when first they clashed. That was before Frieza began to fear the Sai-jins and transformed into his final form. There were those who believed Ginyu could eventually surpass Frieza, but they didn't know what Ginyu knew.
Ginyu knew that the power detected emanating from Frieza was only a third of his true power. His 'resting power' if you will. Just like Ginyu's power seemed to be only 500,000. Just beyond that of Burter. Of course, his true power was almost twice of that.
The purple alien smiled to himself as he watched Jiece blast some poor tech into oblivion for scratching his pod. Next the Sai-jin king and the Cold family he was certain there was no force in the universe that could stand up to him. If it weren't for those two groups then he'd be ruler of the galaxy. Not that ruling really appealed to him, no, he was a warrior, not a paper pusher.
******
King Vegeta continued to stare at the floor of his throne room. He had this feeling in the pit of his stomach that he couldn't shake. A feeling of impending disaster of some sort. He didn't know why but for some reason his mind kept drifting to the warriors from Earth, and to Bardock. Finally, he decided to make one last governmental decision for the day and then head to bed.
He activated his personal communicator and patched it through to Bardock's scouter hoping he'd have it with him and be able to answer where he was recovering at. Sure enough, a moment later Bardock's voice sounded. "Bardock Here."
"Bardock, King Vegeta here."
"Lord Vegeta, sir, it's nice to hear your voice. The others must have made it safely."
"Indeed. They're resting up before continuing on to Namek. It should only take them another three weeks, I'm giving them one of our ships."
"Thank-you sir." Bardock paused for a moment. "Did you have something on your mind?"
Vegeta debated on telling Bardock about his unsettled feelings, the churning of his stomach. He decided he may as well. "Just a bad feeling Bardock. Something isn't sitting right with..." he stopped as a tech ran into the room. There was a muffled conversation and then Vegeta returned. "I think I've just learned the reason for my unease. We intercepted a communication from Frieza back to his planet, he's visiting his father right now. It seems he's sending the Ginyu force to Namek to retrieve the Dragonballs. I don't know how he learned about them but this puts your friends in great danger. They're no match for the Ginyu Force. I'd advise against going."
There was silence before Bardock's voice sounded again. "I'm not worried." he said calmly. "Goku and I can handle the Ginyu Force, we just need to finish recovering. It'll take another month before we can leave the planet, and we'll train on the way there."
King Vegeta thought about that statement. He'd never known Bardock to be so sure of himself before. He'd never known him to be wrong in his estimation of his skills either. "I'll let the others know before they leave then." He sighed as he motioned for a near-by soldier to approach. "Bardock, what do you think about having a diplomatic ship sent to Earth and announcing our presence and offering to accept them into the Empire? After recent events a set guard on the planet may be a good idea."
"Agreed sir, but who are you going to send?"
Vegeta thought a moment. "How about Toma? He's gone with you on enough missions he should know the ropes fairly well."
"He does indeed. And he's been hoping for an assignment of his own."
"Then it's settled. The ship will arrive in couple weeks time then. I don't know what time it is there but here it's well past my bed time." Vegeta joked. "I'll speak with you later, and good luck my friend."
"Until later then, Lord Vegeta."
******
Prince Vegeta's eyes snapped open at the shrill sound of his alarm. Glancing over he saw it was three a.m. and he clicked it off a bit annoyed. At first he didn't remember why he'd set it for so damn early but then it all came back to him. He smiled again as he threw off the covers and quickly pulled on a blue body suit followed by his battle armor. Finally he slipped on his scouter and pulled up the setting options. He quickly adjusted it to a range of 1 to 15 so he could locate the female he sought.
Only one power, 6, appeared. /That must be her. Only one way to be certain./ He opened his door slowly and glanced up and down the hall. Seeing no one he proceed through one hall after another until he reached the guest chambers. He stopped outside the door the reading was coming from and adjusted his scouter again to read all the powers inside the room. He smiled again, she was the only power inside. He punched in his access code on the panel beside the door and it slid open silently.
It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the near pitch blackness of the room from the dull lighting in the halls. He was just about to enter when the sounds of voices chatting reached his ears. A quick glance told him that the owners of those voices were nearing. Quickly he pushed his power as low as it would go and stepped inside shutting the door behind him.
He paused and waited for them to pass. If he were caught his father would instantly understand what he was doing and the result wouldn't be very pleasant. As the voices faded into the distance he inched over to where the woman slept and gazed down at her. Her steady breathing clearly visible as her chest rose and fell. For a moment, as the starlight played across her face, he thought she looked rather beautiful. Those thoughts soon passed as the Dragonballs returned to the forefront of his mind.
/Now, I just need to make sure she doesn't wake up until we've gone. Better make sure not to kill her... then I'd be back to square one./ He reached down with a small breathing device filled with a powerful sleeping gas. He wasn't sure how much to use so he held it over her mouth for only a moment before removing it. Tossing it aside he bent down and picked her up, slung her over his shoulder, and turned to leave the room.
Once again he punched in his access code to open the door. Stepping out into the dim hallway once more he turned toward the ship bay of the Palace and activated his scouter. Quickly it read off fourteen powers in that general direction. Keeping his eye on the locations of those powers he began to make his way toward the bay, and his ship.
******
It had taken King Vegeta almost three hours to set up the diplomatic mission to Earth, have a ship prepared, and track down Toma. As he entered the training area reserved for lower level soldiers he wondered just how many people trained at three a.m. But then again, Toma did work for Bardock, maybe some of him wore off on the other. Either way Toma stood in front of a flexoid punching bag hacking away at it working on his form.
"Third Class Soldier Toma?" King Vegeta asked as he approached.
Toma froze in mid jab. He'd never had any visitors during his late night/early morning training sessions. As he turned he wondered who'd be up at this ungodly hour and how they knew him. When he saw King Vegeta he dropped quickly to one knee. "Lord Vegeta, sir, it's an honor."
"Bardock informs me you've been anxious for an assignment of your own and that you are quite ready to handle one."
"Then, you've spoken with him? He's still alive?"
Vegeta heard the hope and respect in the others question. Bardock had done many things that others said he'd fail at and for it he'd earned much respect. When word reached the rest of the planet that Bardock and his 'lost' son had defeated Zarbon... Vegeta had the feeling the other may have his people's respect more than even himself then. Not that he minded. Bardock deserved every bit of it. "Yes, he's alive. He remained on Earth to recover because his injuries were to great to return right away. He's already taken on another mission for once he recovers. As such I have no one to head up the diplomatic mission to Earth. I was wondering if you'd like the assignment?"
"Y-yes sir!"
"Very well. The ship is already prepared. You need only to select a small landing party to take with you. Report to the ship bay and be launched within the hour. It will take about two weeks to reach the planet which will get you there before Bardock leaves it." Vegeta paused for a moment. "Dismissed."
Toma nodded and stood. Quickly he made his way to his quarters. He'd shower on the ship, he only had enough time to change, get his landing party, and pack a few changes of clothes before the launch. He couldn't help but smile as he walked through the halls. Bardock, his life long friend and ally, had survived the impossible! And now he was in command of a mission! As he moved down the hall he wondered if perhaps Raditz would like the chance to leave the planet for a couple months.
******
Prince Vegeta slipped into a side hall and pressed against the wall as best he could with Bulma slung over his shoulder. He watched as a grinning Toma walked passed him. As soon as the other was gone he moved into the hall again and froze. The one power his scouter couldn't track on the entire planet stood before him, back turned. His father. His mind yelled at him to duck back around the corner before King Vegeta looked back at him but his feet wouldn't comply with the order.
In his sudden shock and panic he lost his grip on his power and it spiked quickly. He pushed it back down almost instantly but it was to little to late. His father's Scouter had already detected him. King Vegeta turned to find his son sitting on the floor leaning against the wall. "Vegeta, what are you doing up at this hour?"
"Couldn't sleep." he lied. "I was walking for a bit but..." he closed his eyes as if in thought. It was then, for the first time since he got up twenty-minutes ago, that he let his mind clear enough to feel the tugging on his stomach. Something felt wrong, something felt very wrong. "Something's wrong." he said looking at nothing in particular.
"You too?" asked the King with a sigh. "It could be we're nervous about what the Cold Family is discussing at their meeting. They fear us, I could defeat them after transforming, assuming they didn't cut off my tail. I could even come close to defeating Frieza without transforming, and wouldn't have any trouble against Cooler. Part of me worries they'll finally realize we're a threat to them and destroy us all..."
The Prince sat in silence for a moment, the blue haired woman around the corner temporarily forgotten. "I don't think that's it." he said at last, solemnly. "It's something to do with the dreams I've been having..."
"Dreams?"
"Bizarre dreams of other places. I keep seeing this figure, a person. I can't tell who it is, they're engulfed in flames. It seems the entire planet is shaking, being torn apart by the sheer strength of this person. I see bodies, dead bodies, laying everywhere. Some of them are Sai-jins, the rest are of different races. Some seemed to have been fleeing while others look like they'd tried to attack this figure. Then, suddenly, someone comes down from the sky at incredible speed and charges into the flames. There's a flash of light and crack and the flames are scattered everywhere. That's when I wake up in a cold sweat for some reason. I see who these people are but... I can never remember. Who ever they are, it scares me awake every time."
What he didn't tell his father was that these dreams had started over a year ago, after Nappa had attacked him. That day he'd spent in the tank he'd done nothing but dream this same dream over and over again. He was beginning to wonder if whatever had made Nappa so much stronger had given him the ability see the future, even if only in a symbolic sense. Could one of these figures be the person behind the traitors within, presumably, all four empires? If so, then who was the other? And did the dead bodies represent the deaths of their entire races?
His father broke him from his thoughts as he placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry about it to much. If you dwell on the what-ifs then you'll lose yourself completely. It may just be your subconscious urging you into battle. I'm going to my room to get some sleep. You should do the same."
"I will, shortly."
King Vegeta nodded and walked down the hall and out of sight. Prince Vegeta remained where he sat for a moment wondering if his father may be right. He didn't see how though, if he was then why the bad feeling? He shook his head as he stood. It didn't matter right now, he had other, more important things to do. He quickly picked up Bulma and continued on his trip to the ship bay.
Frieza was less than twenty feet from the exit of his ship when a quivering soldier approached him. "L-lord Frieza s-sir." he stammered. The Changeling paused and glanced toward him causing him to shake more. "W-we g-got a mess-message from our s-spy on P-planet Vegeta." He held out a small device which Frieza took and activated.
"Lord Frieza, this is Gorn reporting. King Vegeta just got the most bizarre report I've ever heard. I'll cut things short to save your time. First of all, Zarbon and his team are all dead." Frieza growled slightly. Zarbon had been a powerful and useful warrior. "Secondly, the Planet Namek possess objects called Dragonballs. The person who possess all seven of these objects can have any wish granted them. There's a group from Planet Vegeta bound for Namek and these Dragonballs tomorrow. Second Class Gorn, out."
Frieza stood for a long moment looking at the device in his hands. "There's no telling how long this meeting with father will take. Blast, those Sai-jins will beat me to the Dragonballs. Unless..." Frieza reached up and activated his scouter. With a few button pushes his top soldier's voice came over the line. "Ah, Captain Ginyu. I've got an assignment for your team. You are to go to Planet Namek and collect seven items called Dragonballs by any means necessary. Hold them until I arrive. Understood?"
"Yes, Lord Frieza."
******
Prince Vegeta paced about his room contemplating his next move, and the possibilities the Dragonballs represented. Once he had them all, and there was no doubt in his mind he would, then he could have anything he wanted. Anything! But what should he wish for? Immortality? To become a Super Sai-jin? The possibilities seemed endless. The only question was, how? It seemed these Earthlings knew of a way to locate the Dragonballs but how could he do it?
He grinned suddenly. There was always a way if you were willing to try. He'd have to do it tonight while the rest of the palace slept. He'd take the girl, the one with the blue hair. She seemed to be fairly intelligent. His grin broadened as the plan began to unfold in his mind. Yes, the blue haired woman would be his key to the Dragonballs.
******
"Oh, come on Yajirobe!" Goku pleaded. "Please?"
"Why am I always the one to go for the Senzu Beans?" the short and pudgy warrior demanded.
"Well, you do live with Korin."
"That's true. Alright, fine. I'll go get the new batch of beans off Korin. Be back in a couple hours."
"Alright!" Goku cheered as Yajirobe left the hospital room.
After he was gone Bardock pressed the signal button to get a nurse so he could call Dr. Briefs. Only a moment later the aging genius was on the screen. "Bardock, Goku! What a pleasant surprise. What can I do for you?"
"How are the modifications to my space pod coming along?"
"Oh, they're going just fine, just fine. I'm waiting for a couple parts to come in right now."
"About how long until it's done?"
"About a month or so."
Goku pouted. "A whole month?"
"Afraid so. But don't worry, it'll be ready and fully stocked. I've even installed an experiment of mine, a gravity machine."
"Gravity machine?" Goku asked.
"It should help with your training. You see, you'll be able to increase the gravity to up to one thousand times that of Earth's. Though I'd suggest you take it slow or you'll end up flat as a pancake."
******
"Come on you worthless ingrates! Move it!" Ginyu shouted to the techs that were preparing his and his men's space pods for travel. After receiving his orders from Frieza he'd requested details on the assignment and saw the report Gorn had given. He intended to be on Namek before the Sai-jins if possible. He wasn't worried about any kind of challenge from the Nameks or the Sai-jins. After all, he was the strongest being working under Frieza. The only Sai-jin stronger than him was King Vegeta, not even the Sai-jin prince matched his extraordinary power.
The tech's continued to scurry about in a hurry to prepare the pods. They feared Ginyu almost as much as Frieza. After all, Frieza had been forced to transform into his second form to defeat Ginyu when first they clashed. That was before Frieza began to fear the Sai-jins and transformed into his final form. There were those who believed Ginyu could eventually surpass Frieza, but they didn't know what Ginyu knew.
Ginyu knew that the power detected emanating from Frieza was only a third of his true power. His 'resting power' if you will. Just like Ginyu's power seemed to be only 500,000. Just beyond that of Burter. Of course, his true power was almost twice of that.
The purple alien smiled to himself as he watched Jiece blast some poor tech into oblivion for scratching his pod. Next the Sai-jin king and the Cold family he was certain there was no force in the universe that could stand up to him. If it weren't for those two groups then he'd be ruler of the galaxy. Not that ruling really appealed to him, no, he was a warrior, not a paper pusher.
******
King Vegeta continued to stare at the floor of his throne room. He had this feeling in the pit of his stomach that he couldn't shake. A feeling of impending disaster of some sort. He didn't know why but for some reason his mind kept drifting to the warriors from Earth, and to Bardock. Finally, he decided to make one last governmental decision for the day and then head to bed.
He activated his personal communicator and patched it through to Bardock's scouter hoping he'd have it with him and be able to answer where he was recovering at. Sure enough, a moment later Bardock's voice sounded. "Bardock Here."
"Bardock, King Vegeta here."
"Lord Vegeta, sir, it's nice to hear your voice. The others must have made it safely."
"Indeed. They're resting up before continuing on to Namek. It should only take them another three weeks, I'm giving them one of our ships."
"Thank-you sir." Bardock paused for a moment. "Did you have something on your mind?"
Vegeta debated on telling Bardock about his unsettled feelings, the churning of his stomach. He decided he may as well. "Just a bad feeling Bardock. Something isn't sitting right with..." he stopped as a tech ran into the room. There was a muffled conversation and then Vegeta returned. "I think I've just learned the reason for my unease. We intercepted a communication from Frieza back to his planet, he's visiting his father right now. It seems he's sending the Ginyu force to Namek to retrieve the Dragonballs. I don't know how he learned about them but this puts your friends in great danger. They're no match for the Ginyu Force. I'd advise against going."
There was silence before Bardock's voice sounded again. "I'm not worried." he said calmly. "Goku and I can handle the Ginyu Force, we just need to finish recovering. It'll take another month before we can leave the planet, and we'll train on the way there."
King Vegeta thought about that statement. He'd never known Bardock to be so sure of himself before. He'd never known him to be wrong in his estimation of his skills either. "I'll let the others know before they leave then." He sighed as he motioned for a near-by soldier to approach. "Bardock, what do you think about having a diplomatic ship sent to Earth and announcing our presence and offering to accept them into the Empire? After recent events a set guard on the planet may be a good idea."
"Agreed sir, but who are you going to send?"
Vegeta thought a moment. "How about Toma? He's gone with you on enough missions he should know the ropes fairly well."
"He does indeed. And he's been hoping for an assignment of his own."
"Then it's settled. The ship will arrive in couple weeks time then. I don't know what time it is there but here it's well past my bed time." Vegeta joked. "I'll speak with you later, and good luck my friend."
"Until later then, Lord Vegeta."
******
Prince Vegeta's eyes snapped open at the shrill sound of his alarm. Glancing over he saw it was three a.m. and he clicked it off a bit annoyed. At first he didn't remember why he'd set it for so damn early but then it all came back to him. He smiled again as he threw off the covers and quickly pulled on a blue body suit followed by his battle armor. Finally he slipped on his scouter and pulled up the setting options. He quickly adjusted it to a range of 1 to 15 so he could locate the female he sought.
Only one power, 6, appeared. /That must be her. Only one way to be certain./ He opened his door slowly and glanced up and down the hall. Seeing no one he proceed through one hall after another until he reached the guest chambers. He stopped outside the door the reading was coming from and adjusted his scouter again to read all the powers inside the room. He smiled again, she was the only power inside. He punched in his access code on the panel beside the door and it slid open silently.
It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the near pitch blackness of the room from the dull lighting in the halls. He was just about to enter when the sounds of voices chatting reached his ears. A quick glance told him that the owners of those voices were nearing. Quickly he pushed his power as low as it would go and stepped inside shutting the door behind him.
He paused and waited for them to pass. If he were caught his father would instantly understand what he was doing and the result wouldn't be very pleasant. As the voices faded into the distance he inched over to where the woman slept and gazed down at her. Her steady breathing clearly visible as her chest rose and fell. For a moment, as the starlight played across her face, he thought she looked rather beautiful. Those thoughts soon passed as the Dragonballs returned to the forefront of his mind.
/Now, I just need to make sure she doesn't wake up until we've gone. Better make sure not to kill her... then I'd be back to square one./ He reached down with a small breathing device filled with a powerful sleeping gas. He wasn't sure how much to use so he held it over her mouth for only a moment before removing it. Tossing it aside he bent down and picked her up, slung her over his shoulder, and turned to leave the room.
Once again he punched in his access code to open the door. Stepping out into the dim hallway once more he turned toward the ship bay of the Palace and activated his scouter. Quickly it read off fourteen powers in that general direction. Keeping his eye on the locations of those powers he began to make his way toward the bay, and his ship.
******
It had taken King Vegeta almost three hours to set up the diplomatic mission to Earth, have a ship prepared, and track down Toma. As he entered the training area reserved for lower level soldiers he wondered just how many people trained at three a.m. But then again, Toma did work for Bardock, maybe some of him wore off on the other. Either way Toma stood in front of a flexoid punching bag hacking away at it working on his form.
"Third Class Soldier Toma?" King Vegeta asked as he approached.
Toma froze in mid jab. He'd never had any visitors during his late night/early morning training sessions. As he turned he wondered who'd be up at this ungodly hour and how they knew him. When he saw King Vegeta he dropped quickly to one knee. "Lord Vegeta, sir, it's an honor."
"Bardock informs me you've been anxious for an assignment of your own and that you are quite ready to handle one."
"Then, you've spoken with him? He's still alive?"
Vegeta heard the hope and respect in the others question. Bardock had done many things that others said he'd fail at and for it he'd earned much respect. When word reached the rest of the planet that Bardock and his 'lost' son had defeated Zarbon... Vegeta had the feeling the other may have his people's respect more than even himself then. Not that he minded. Bardock deserved every bit of it. "Yes, he's alive. He remained on Earth to recover because his injuries were to great to return right away. He's already taken on another mission for once he recovers. As such I have no one to head up the diplomatic mission to Earth. I was wondering if you'd like the assignment?"
"Y-yes sir!"
"Very well. The ship is already prepared. You need only to select a small landing party to take with you. Report to the ship bay and be launched within the hour. It will take about two weeks to reach the planet which will get you there before Bardock leaves it." Vegeta paused for a moment. "Dismissed."
Toma nodded and stood. Quickly he made his way to his quarters. He'd shower on the ship, he only had enough time to change, get his landing party, and pack a few changes of clothes before the launch. He couldn't help but smile as he walked through the halls. Bardock, his life long friend and ally, had survived the impossible! And now he was in command of a mission! As he moved down the hall he wondered if perhaps Raditz would like the chance to leave the planet for a couple months.
******
Prince Vegeta slipped into a side hall and pressed against the wall as best he could with Bulma slung over his shoulder. He watched as a grinning Toma walked passed him. As soon as the other was gone he moved into the hall again and froze. The one power his scouter couldn't track on the entire planet stood before him, back turned. His father. His mind yelled at him to duck back around the corner before King Vegeta looked back at him but his feet wouldn't comply with the order.
In his sudden shock and panic he lost his grip on his power and it spiked quickly. He pushed it back down almost instantly but it was to little to late. His father's Scouter had already detected him. King Vegeta turned to find his son sitting on the floor leaning against the wall. "Vegeta, what are you doing up at this hour?"
"Couldn't sleep." he lied. "I was walking for a bit but..." he closed his eyes as if in thought. It was then, for the first time since he got up twenty-minutes ago, that he let his mind clear enough to feel the tugging on his stomach. Something felt wrong, something felt very wrong. "Something's wrong." he said looking at nothing in particular.
"You too?" asked the King with a sigh. "It could be we're nervous about what the Cold Family is discussing at their meeting. They fear us, I could defeat them after transforming, assuming they didn't cut off my tail. I could even come close to defeating Frieza without transforming, and wouldn't have any trouble against Cooler. Part of me worries they'll finally realize we're a threat to them and destroy us all..."
The Prince sat in silence for a moment, the blue haired woman around the corner temporarily forgotten. "I don't think that's it." he said at last, solemnly. "It's something to do with the dreams I've been having..."
"Dreams?"
"Bizarre dreams of other places. I keep seeing this figure, a person. I can't tell who it is, they're engulfed in flames. It seems the entire planet is shaking, being torn apart by the sheer strength of this person. I see bodies, dead bodies, laying everywhere. Some of them are Sai-jins, the rest are of different races. Some seemed to have been fleeing while others look like they'd tried to attack this figure. Then, suddenly, someone comes down from the sky at incredible speed and charges into the flames. There's a flash of light and crack and the flames are scattered everywhere. That's when I wake up in a cold sweat for some reason. I see who these people are but... I can never remember. Who ever they are, it scares me awake every time."
What he didn't tell his father was that these dreams had started over a year ago, after Nappa had attacked him. That day he'd spent in the tank he'd done nothing but dream this same dream over and over again. He was beginning to wonder if whatever had made Nappa so much stronger had given him the ability see the future, even if only in a symbolic sense. Could one of these figures be the person behind the traitors within, presumably, all four empires? If so, then who was the other? And did the dead bodies represent the deaths of their entire races?
His father broke him from his thoughts as he placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry about it to much. If you dwell on the what-ifs then you'll lose yourself completely. It may just be your subconscious urging you into battle. I'm going to my room to get some sleep. You should do the same."
"I will, shortly."
King Vegeta nodded and walked down the hall and out of sight. Prince Vegeta remained where he sat for a moment wondering if his father may be right. He didn't see how though, if he was then why the bad feeling? He shook his head as he stood. It didn't matter right now, he had other, more important things to do. He quickly picked up Bulma and continued on his trip to the ship bay.
