Disclaimer: I don't own Dragonball Z

Just some note's on power levels:

Radditz: His power level is the same as when Goku and Piccolo fought him, although it may perhaps be just a little bit higher. I'm sure he's done some fighting with the other Saiyans in Hell that might have bumped up his power level a bit.

Maes: Maes may be a doctor, but he's going to be a powerful fighter in his own right. Lahan's gravity is slightly higher than planet Vegeta's, so that of course will have some impact on the good doctor. I'm not exactly sure how powerful he'd be right now, but he's definitely weaker than Radditz. It's my intention that both he and Radditz will grow stronger through out the story, although Mae's Ki may end up focusing more on the healing aspects of it, like Dende. Mae's wife won't be a major character in the story, although his daughter may end up having more of a role as the story progresses.

Other characters: Other characters will be revealed in time, if not in this saga, then in another one. Lord Ramen, who was mentioned in the last chapter, will be revealed in this chapter. I'll list his approximate power level at the bottom of the page.

Other Info: Xethos is the name of the country that Mae's village, Xenotyne, is in. Hypcros is the capital city of Xethos.

A Second Chance
The Ramen Saga

Chpt 4: Lord Ramen

"Do you get the sense that we're being followed?" Maes asked. Radditz looked back through the forest suspiciously. It had been two weeks since he and Maes had met in the forest. The Saiyan had begun to grow restless so Maes had offered to take him with him into the forest again. This wasn't the first time that they had thought they were being followed.

"I thought I saw something white, but I'm not sure," Radditz admitted. He watched curiously as the doctor searched through the foliage until he found the plants he was looking for.

"What's so great about a plant?" he asked. Maes gave a snort of indignation as he held up some small, pale pink flowers.

"Haven't you learned anything? These are special herbs and can be used in a variety of treatments," the doctor explained. Radditz gave him a blank look.

"It's a plant," he said flatly. Maes smirked at him as he tucked the flowers into his leather pouch.

"So's the poison ivy that you're sitting in," he said mildly. Radditz jumped up in dismay and noticed for the first time that his skin was turning red and itchy.

"MAES!"

"Heh heh, just a plant huh?" Maes laughed, then a moment later...

"Sanyu, you idiot! Don't scratch it you proverbial hairball!"

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The small creature sat quietly under his cover in the forest. He checked his surroundings to make sure that he wasn't sitting in this poison ivy. His phone vibrated a few minutes later and he picked it up.

"Yes?" he asked quietly.

"This is King Yamma. How is the Saiyan doing?"

"He seems to be doing well," the spy answered. "He hasn't killed anyone yet."

"Has he come into contact with this Ramen fellow yet?"

"No Sir." There was a pause.

"Very well Vadra. Keep me updated," King Yamma said. He clicked off his phone and went back to work. The spy sighed and hopped off through the forest to follow his quarry.

………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Oh do stop complaining, it was your own fault," Maes said. Radditz glared at him as he rubbed some sort of pale green cream over his skin.

"You could have warned me," he growled.

"What? And miss the look on your face?"

Maes's wife sighed as she watched the two men quarrel. Riza Maturin shook her head to hide her amusement as Radditz complained about the cream's foul smell. It had taken her some time, but she had begun to grow fond of the wild haired stranger. She had even spent the last week forcing the Saiyan to learn table manners. Riza could be very persuasive when she wanted.

"San San looks funny!" A small voice exclaimed. The three adults looked down at the beaming three year old girl peering into the room. Fae Maturin had her father's red hair instead of her mother's silver hair. She did however have Riza's pink eyes.

"San San had a run in with some evil plants," Maes explained dryly. Radditz glared at him.

"You could have warned me," he repeated. Maes shrugged his shoulders as he threw some supplies into his leather bag.

"Perhaps," he smirked. "But maybe that will teach you to respect certain elements of the natural world."

"Maes..."

"Anyway," Maes continued. "I have some patients down in the village that I need to check on. You can stay here or come with me, it doesn't matter." Radditz sighed as his mysterious restlessness grew. He wanted to go, just to have something to do, but he didn't want to go into Xenotyne looking like this.

"I'll stay here," he said. He fidgeted noticeably and Riza smiled. She picked up her daughter and handed her towards Radditz.

"I have some errands to do as well," Riza Maturin said cheerfully. "Why don't you watch Fae for me until I get back?" Radditz's eyes widened with some horror. He had no idea what to do with a child! At another look at Riza, however, he knew he didn't have a choice. The woman could be down right evil when she wanted to.

"Alright," he said tiredly. The young girl grinned wildly as she climbed up on the chair next to the large Saiyan. The tall man had become a source of fascination for the young child.

"It'll be fun San San!" she promised. Radditz's lips quirked slightly up in a smile as he mentally prayed for divine help.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The man's eyes stared out of the large window. Such a desolate wasteland. He had picked the desert city as his main base of operations immediately after landing on the planet. Call it nostalgia perhaps, but it had reminded him of his home planet. He turned around as the footfalls of several soldiers entered the massive room and paused before his throne. A short, massively built pink skinned man stepped through the opening between the soldiers. His white cape brushed the floor as he kneeled before the tall man on the raised dais.

"Lord Ramen," he said respectively. "We have taken the city-states of Citan and Adara."

"I don't want city-states General," Ramen said with quiet anger, "I want the planet." His blue skin flushed violet in anger as he glared down at General Haggis. The soldiers averted their eyes from their fearsome leader. Ramen was a tall man, whose head had been shaved so that he appeared to be bald, except for the high black ponytail on his head. His eyes, normally gray, flashed bright silver at his second in command.

"I'm sorry My Lord," General Haggis apologized. "But these Lahanians are putting up more of a resistance than we had anticipated. If you also include the dragon clans that are living in the Untamed Lands, then occupation is even more difficult. If this were five years ago, Frieza would most likely have sent one of the Saiyans or one of his men to conquer this planet."

"I may not be as powerful as Frieza," Ramen reminded him coldly. "But now that he and his father, his advisors, and the Ginyu force are dead, I am one of the most powerful of those left in what remains of his empire." Frieza and his father had been killed three years ago on some planet called Earth. The empire had fractured after their deaths, leaving men like Ramen to scramble for control over fractured sections of it. Ramen had been rising through the ranks, until he had finally become a likely candidate to enter Frieza's inner circle that had included Zarbon and Dodoria.

"Haggis," Ramen said. "I want you to take the country of Xethos. If that old lady interferes again, I want you to kill her."

"But, my Lord, she has already defeated the last attachment that we sent into that country," Haggis protested. Ramen glared dangerously at him. Unlike most of the Lahanians, there appeared to be an old woman living near the ocean that was quite skilled in Ki attacks. She had been a thorn in his side since she had appeared.

"You are to kill her," Ramen ordered. "I want no mistakes General. It has taken far too long to gain control of this planet."

sssssssssssss

Ramen: His power level is slightly lower than Zarbon's. Ramen, however, is more cunning than Zarbon when it comes to a battle.

General Haggis: His power level is about the same as Vegeta's when he first went to planet Namek.