--- Mix Tape ---
-- Behind the Scenes of 'The Phoenix Chronicles' --
Side Story 03 - Suffocate (Cold)
a.k.a. Frost's Plight
This chapter slots in during chapters 08 and 09
Disclaimer: I don't own the song used in this chapter.
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-I could take every fucking word she said / throw it in her face-
"Hurry up Bastard-child!"
Those words stung. He knew that, by now, they should be harmless to him; after all, he'd been called that all his life. However, no matter how many times he told himself it was normal, no matter how much he wanted to shrug it off, he couldn't. Perhaps it hurt so much because the words came from his mother, the woman who had carried him until birth. The woman that, no matter what she did, or how hard he tried, he couldn't bring himself to hate.
"Come on Rape-child, we don't have all day!"
Okay, he was wrong, those words stung. This time, however, the voice was of one he hated with every fibre of his being, one of two. He knew, no matter how much they tried to cover it up, that he was not the child of rape. How could he be, when his mother was stronger than his father? How could he have possibly done anything to her against her will, when she could snap him in half like a twig using only one hand?
He knew his mother loved his father, no matter how many times she said otherwise; he could see it in her eyes. But when you're in a position of power, married to a powerful man, you can't afford infidelities, so she said what she had to, to survive. His father had been executed, of course, and as far as the planet was concerned, the affair never happened. After all, it wouldn't do to have the people know that the queen of the Aisu had given birth to a bastard child.
"A thousand apologies, my King. I will try harder to work with haste," he replied, head bowed, and voice as humble as he could make it.
"Maybe if you'd stop apologising and start working faster you'd be done by now Rape-child!"
And there it was again, this time from the second. Only they would ever call him as such; his mother, for all the show she put on, would never call him as such, and no one else bar those three knew his parentage. They had made sure of that.
"Yes Lord Frieza, of course you are right. I apologise for my stupidity," he said, still bowing and scraping. He had long since learned that, despite what they said, apologising was a must; the punishment for not finishing work, usually due to excess apologies, was much better than the punishment for not apologising. He still had the marks from last time he'd dare not, even though it was several years ago.
King Cold just frowned disapprovingly at him, before saying, "Hmph, as much as you should be punished for your behaviour, there are more important matters at hand. The work better be done when we get back, or else..."
In a voice most meek, he replied, "Yes my King. I swear on my life the work shall be done before you return."
Satisfied, the three turned and walked out, and as they left he dared raise his head a little to watch them go. While the two men may have missed it, the queen did not, and she shook her head slightly, but rather than report him, she just donned a sad look as she mouthed, "Oh Frost... be strong..."
-But would she even care-
For sixteen years now he'd been their personal plaything. He had worked like a slave, and been treated worse, but still he persevered, never complaining. He knew, if we served them loyally, they would start to trust him, and he'd been right. Three years ago his leash had been lengthened, so to speak, and he'd been allowed free reign over the castle, as long as no mention of his parentage got out. He had kept quiet for all this time, and it had finally payed off.
He had met an interesting character today, a man named Avery; a Torian if he was to guess. Avery had apparently been a slave himself once, but now he stood amongst the ranks of the Cold Army. He was an expert marksman, a top class scout, and a skilled assassin, but that wasn't what interested Frost most.
Somehow, he had gained the trust of the reserved averian, and he had quickly learned how much they had in common. Including a deep seated loathing for the Aisu royals. The normally stoic birdman spoke with a great deal of venom in his voice as he recalled the tale as to what happened to wind him up here, and despite his own feelings, Frost felt his hatred of King Cold growing with every word.
He had confronted his mother with the new information, sure in his heart it would invoke some kind of reaction, but she just said blandly, "I know. I've always known."
He had been mortified to hear her say that, and it showed as he exclaimed, "How can it be okay for him to repeatedly engage in infidelity after how he reacted to yours?"
She had merely shrugged, replying, "He is the King. He can do whatever he likes."
In that moment, Frost realised something. His mother, the woman who had loved another man so much she would risk the wrath of her husband, her owner, as to go behind his back, was dead. In her place, only Queen Shiva, wife and property of King Cold, remained. If Cold and Frieza were to be brought to any justice, he would have to do it himself. And he knew exactly how.
-I still remember when she looked at me / that frown upon her face-
-Trying to be sincere-
"You want to be in my army? What makes you think you're worthy Bastard-child?" Frieza roared.
Frieza looked furious; no furious wasn't a strong enough word. He looked outraged that Frost would even dare suggest himself becoming a soldier. Daring to raise his eyes to look behind, the King and Queen didn't look much happier, although he knew their reasons for being unhappy were different. However, he already knew just what to say to diffuse this volatile situation.
Eyes still downcast, voice as humble and modest as any being could make it, he replied, "I am not your Lordship, nor do I feel I ever will be. I am not even worthy to be in your magnificent presence. Never the less, I ask for a chance to prove myself. A chance to spread the word of your greatness throughout the galaxy. A chance to increase your realm, and forever cement you as supreme ruler of all that exists."
Frost smirked mentally as he watched Frieza's face change in consideration. He knew the man had an ego larger than the largest of red giants, and he had just ruthlessly plucked and pulled it. Silently, he thanked Avery for the tips. He just hoped it paid off...
After several minutes of silence, Frieza finally spoke again, "Alright then, you will be given your chance. You will start at the very bottom, of course, and there will be no second chances."
"Thank you your excellency, your greatness knows no bounds. I swear to you I will not fail to make others realise the same," Frost answered humbly, trying very hard to resist breaking out into laughter. Part one of his plan had worked; he was part of the Cold Army. Now the second part would begin. Soon enough he would have his revenge, but for now he would wait until the time was right; after all, revenge is a dish best served cold.
-I gathered all those little things she said / kept them close to me-
-Trying to make this real-
"What do you think you're doing?" his mother hissed.
He had gone back to his room; now that he was a soldier, he was treated a little better, given a place to live by himself instead of the slave quarters he had before. His mother had followed him under the guise of making sure he got there, and she was obviously very unhappy about what he'd done.
"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm going to go fight, to make something of myself. I'm not going to be your slave all my life," he shot back. Of all people, he hoped she could support him in his decision; he'd been wrong.
"You're no soldier. You're father wasn't, so you've got no chance. Have you thought this through at all?" she asked angrily.
He grew angry himself, snarling, "Don't you talk about my father! You obviously never cared about him!" She looked hurt, and for a moment he thought he saw a spark of her former self, before it disappeared again. He continued, "I am doing this in his memory, so that his death was not in vain."
Her look softened as his words sunk in, and she said in a quiet voice, almost a whisper, "If you go through with this, I won't be able to protect you any more..."
He snorted, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "You've done a good job so far..."
"You're still alive aren't you?" She shot back sharply, "If you do this there's a good chance you will die!"
He laughed, a dry, bitter laugh, as he said, "How is that different to staying here? Every day I'm stuck slaving away here I die a little more. At least this way, if I die, I'll die doing something to be remembered by."
She nodded, a solemn, understanding nod, before walking out without another word. As he watched her leave, he found the urge to smirk too hard to resist, as he thought to himself, 'Plus, every mission will bring me that much closer to unseating Frieza, and making sure both he and Cold burn in hell for eternity...'
-This cloud will always hover over me / I'm leaving you today-
-'Cause now I see-
"I must say, I'm impressed Bastard-child," Frieza remarked, "From what I heard you not only managed to conquer that planet, but you found some new recruits too."
Head bowed in mock respect, Frost replied, "It was nothing any other loyal subject wouldn't do my Lord."
Frieza smirked, seemingly satisfied with his totting, and said, "If you keep this up, you might just be able to make something of your worthless existence."
"As long as I am able to serve you, my life has all the worth it needs Lord Frieza," he answered. The words made him want to retch; hell, even being in Frieza's company made him want to retch. But he'd put up with so much in his life already, a little more wouldn't hurt, not when it meant he could have his revenge for all those years of torment.
Luckily for him, Frieza had an ego to beat even the best of Saiyans - being the unquestioned ruler of an empire will do that - and was too self-absorbed to realise that, after everything that had happened to him, Frost should, and did, hate his very existence. Instead, he chose to believe everyone feared him enough to never even consider rebelling, and so long as he did that, Frost's plan would continue to succeed.
-Suffocate, you suffocate-
-That you lie (I don't lie)-
-That your fake (I'm not a fake)-
The years passed in much the same way. Frost would go off to purge planets, and always come back with a few new recruits for Frieza's army. He worked three times as hard as any one else, and he never complained. He never slacked off, never got someone else to do his work, never questioned Frieza's decisions in any way. This, of course, pleased Frieza no end. Enough that he never noticed anything amiss.
Frost's plan was already well into full swing. The 'new recruits' he brought back, the ones Frieza was always so glad to see, were all people he himself had recruited. However, they weren't recruited on behalf of Frieza, just required to act that way. Instead, they were a part of an underground revolution. He was determined to bring Frieza down, and to do that, he needed to start from the inside. He needed Frieza's trust, and thanks to all these 'new recruits,' all loyal to Frost, he got it.
-Suffocate, you suffocate-
-You always take (I don't take)-
-What you can (what I can)-
He rose in the ranks faster than anyone before. Before long, he was Frieza's Lieutenant, one of his right hand men. He knew he'd never be a higher rank than he was now, but it was all he needed. He had kissed Frieza's ass enough to have the taste permanently branded in his mind, but it was all worth it.
Now, he was privy to a great deal of confidential information. The sort the general population of the army never heard. The sort the enemy would kill for. The sort that could be the undoing of the Cold empire. And he was loving every second. What's more, he now had a loyal following bordering on one hundred and forty people, including his first friend, the sniper Avery. Things were looking up. All he needed was a sign, a sign it was time to reveal his true loyalties.
The sign came soon enough.
-I could take every fucking game you play / blow it all away-
"Lord Frieza, a report just came in. It's bad news I'm afraid. Another planet has been destroyed."
"Dammit!" Frieza snarled, his fingers itching to blast the messenger, "That's twenty-seven in the last three years! Do we know who dared defy my rule?"
Suddenly looking very much afraid for his life, the messenger stuttered, "Um... n-no Lord Frieza... nothing more than last time... a-apparently i-it was the same man... the Phoenix, as people call him..."
With a roar of anger, Frieza sent a blast through the man's heart, killing him instantly.
Frost tried to hide his satisfaction by smirking at the man's demise. For three years now they'd been receiving reports of a lone man fighting and killing anyone affiliated with the Cold Empire. The first had come in after the failed attempt at capturing Neko-Sei, when he had killed half of the infiltration team, and sent the others running, a fact that annoyed Frieza no end.
Thus far, he had reduced seventeen planets to molten slag, totally useless to the Cold Empire, and had driven them out of the other ten, which still remained unclaimed, just in case he returned to make sure. And after all that, no-one knew his name. Hell, barely anyone knew who he looked like; most who'd seen him clearly enough to identify him were those he killed. All they really knew was he used fire, lots of fire.
There had been rumours he was a Saiyan; some people claimed he had a tail. However, King Vegeta had assured them all Saiyans were present and accounted for. Well, besides those reported dead anyway, and as far as he knew there was no reason to doubt those reports; Saiyans died honourable deaths in battle, and there was never any burial as there was usually no corpse recovered. Frieza was so enraged by this lone 'terrorist' he failed to notice Vegeta wiping his brow in relief that his report had been accepted. But Frost noticed.
-But would you even care-
Frost had to admire the man. For years he had been living Frost's dream. This man, this 'Phoenix' as people called him - he had no idea how the name came about; the reports never said - had been spending years getting up Frieza's nose, and Frost loved every minute of it. However, the Phoenix didn't get to see the look on Frieza's face. But Frost did. And it almost made up for all those years of torment. Almost.
There was some good news on the Frieza front however. The top secret ship that had been under construction almost as long as the Phoenix had been out there was almost complete. The top engineering minds from across the Cold Empire had gathered to work on it. It was a masterpiece; state-of-the-art didn't begin to describe it. It was due to be launched tomorrow. And Frost knew if Frieza had it, he would be unstoppable.
So he acted.
-I could take all those lies you said to me / never go away-
It was a grand display, one with all the pomp and ceremony one would expect from the supreme ruler of the largest empire the galaxy had ever seen. There had been speeches from all involved, performances to wow the crowd, but finally the defining moment was set to take place. Frieza was up on stage, the hangar doors behind him as was planned, and the master of ceremonies was right next to him at the mic.
An awed hush fell over those assembled. The rulers of every planet aligned to Frieza were assembled to witness this monumental event, as were the engineers who had toiled to construct this masterpiece. An inspiring speech later, and the doors of the hangar were opened, the crowd letting out a gasp as one. But theirs was a gasp of shock, and Frieza stared into the hangar, a look of horror on his face.
The ship, the brand new prototype ship, codenamed the 'Icebreaker,' was gone. The hangar was completely empty, and looked like it had been that way for a while. In the stunned silence that followed, laughter could be heard, as well as the sounds of people trying to hush said laughter. On closer inspection, one could see the laughter coming from three young Saiyan children, two, the children of the head engineer, and the other, the only child of the planet's ruler. Their respective parent's were trying to quieten them, but if one were to look very closely, they could see the hint of a smile on their faces too.
Luckily, Frieza was too horrified by what had happened to notice. He grabbed the nearest lackey by the collar, demanding to know what happened, and he received his response, all spoken in hushed whispers. A cry of, "How can a ship that big be stolen without anyone noticing?" could be heard, the voice Frieza, and the laughter, which had managed to be stifled, erupted again.
-Never disappear-
Suddenly, one of the lackeys ran on board the stage, telling Frieza, "There's a signal incoming."
Grabbing him by the throat, Frieza hissed, "Well trace the signal," before throwing the man off stage again.
Suddenly, a new voice could be heard, blaring over the loud speakers, "I wouldn't bother Frieza. This signal cannot be traced, even by you."
With enough venom in his voice to kill, Frieza shouted, "Who are you to say that?"
One could almost see the smirk on his face as the voice declared, "This is Lieutenant Frost, ex-soldier in the Cold Army, commander of the Anti-Cold Rebellion, and captain of the Icebreaker."
-This cloud will always hover over me / I'm leaving you today-
Another gasp erupted from the crowd, drowning out the continuing laughter for a while, as Frieza quickly grabbed his scouter, hissing, "Take the transmission off speaker and re-route it here."
It was just in time too, as the second the signal was re-routed Frost spoke again, his voice dripping sarcasm and superiority, "What's the matter, dear brother, don't want the faceless masses of your empire knowing your prize ship was stolen by your illegitimate brother?"
Frieza's voice was low, but no less angry, as he replied, "You have some nerve you Rape-child bastard! If you bring that ship back RIGHT NOW maybe I'll be lenient enough not to skin you alive!"
He laughed heartily, unafraid of Frieza in the least, and further infuriating the albino dictator, before responding, "Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll hang onto it. I don't trust you enough to let you have it."
With planet-destroying anger flowing strongly, Frieza almost screamed back, "You insolent bastard! I gave you a chance, I trusted you when no one else would, and this is how you repay me?"
-'Cause now I see-
"If you were stupid enough to trust me after all the shit you put me through it's your own damn fault!" Frost shot back, "You know, I've been looking forward to this day ever since you let me join the army. I just wish I could be there in person to see your face, but it wasn't meant to be. I guess I'll just have to settle for seeing it on the camera I set up..."
Frieza's head shot around, searching for the camera, while Frost taunted "Colder" or "Warmer" all the while. Eventually, with a declaration of "Boiling" from Frost, Frieza stared straight ahead, noticing the device on the wall behind him, the wall the window to the hangar was situated, the wall where all the members of the crowd were looking.
"Smile for the camera you arrogant little shit!" Frost taunted again, right before Frieza blasted the camera into ashes, and if one were on the stolen Icebreaker, they would hear the sounds of satisfied laughter ringing throughout the entire ship.
-Suffocate, you suffocate-
-That you lie (I don't lie)-
-That your fake (I'm not a fake)-
Frost allowed a smile to grace his face. Life was good. Not only had he managed to get out from under the Aisu royals' collective thumb, both annoying and angering Frieza to no end in the process, he had also struck a massive blow to the Cold Empire's war effort by 'relieving' it of Frieza's prize ship. He'd been free for a month now, and was still yet to come down from the high it caused.
But all good things must come to an end, and the end came soon enough.
-Suffocate, you suffocate-
-You always take (I don't take)-
-What you can (what I can)-
He frowned to himself. It was disgusting the way Frieza treated those under his rule, his empire. Everyone was terrified of him, of what he might do to them, and most of them had never even seen him, never knew more than a basic description of what he looked like. 'I suppose,' Frost mused to himself, 'that this works in my favour. All I had to do was show my face on that last planet and they were willing to give me anything I wanted. I do kinda feel bad about not paying them for the supplies though...'
It was the same everywhere he went. People almost automatically mistook him for his brother, and were willing to give him whatever he wanted if he would just leave them unharmed. However, he had managed to convince the people on a couple of planets that he wasn't Frieza, and had recruited them into his revolution, acting as eyes and ears on the inside. Sure, they had to pay lip service to Frieza, but they'd had to do that before. Now they could have a hand in bringing Frieza to his knees.
"Sir, it seems we have an intruder in the cargo hold. A stowaway most likely." One of the bridge crew spoke up.
Frost sighed to himself before replying, "Send a team to bring he, she, or it, to the control room at once."
-Suffocate, you suffocate-
-That you lie (I don't lie)-
-That your fake (I'm not a fake)-
He felt his blood boiling, felt the rage building, all of it directed at the girl before him. First, she stowed away on his ship - his mind failed to realise the fact that, as he stole this ship, it didn't really belong to him. Second, she attacked him for no reason; no, that's right, she attacked him thinking he was Frieza, which only made everything worse - once again, his mind failed to realise that only moments before he'd made a point that everyone thought he was Frieza, and thus it shouldn't be a surprise.
As if that wasn't bad enough, she had the nerve to question him, to question where his loyalties lay. He knew that she had every reason to do so; after all, how many Aisu where there that weren't loyal to Frieza, but none-the-less he felt anger at being doubted by this... this insolent little girl! As he began venting his anger, he saw fear flash through her eyes, and he felt the anger fade in a rush as his face softened.
As he made his apologies, something he'd long since become used to doing, the thought 'Man, she's kinda cute...' ran through his head. In hindsight, he would reflect that hitting on the girl he'd yelled at mere moments ago was a bad idea, but it was a mistake he'd make over and over again. He had next to no experience with anything resembling females - he'd been a slave all his life after all - and thus, it seemed he was destined to make the same mistakes over and over again.
He noticed her blush as she considered his offer, and, like before, the thought 'Score one for Frost' ran through his mind under it's own power. A lecherous grin forced it's way onto his face without him realising as he said, "Now that that's out of the way, would you like me to show you to my room..." He realised his mistake instantly, stammering, "I mean a room!" but it was too late, the damage was already done.
With a cry of "Pervert!" she kicked him fair and square between the legs, and he fell to the ground, holding his crotch with both hands. He already regretted making his offer.
-Now I'm far away from you (You're always far away)-
-I'll never bring back yesterday (bring back yesterday)-
He read over the latest reports again, the latest reports to reach Frieza, passed on to him through his spies still on the inside, before letting out a laugh. "That's thirty even now. You gotta hand it to the man, he's got stamina." Thirty planets the Phoenix had attacked now, eighteen reduced to slag, and twelve liberated, the last of which was a forest planet Frieza had only recently acquired an interest in named Mori-Sei.
What's more, if the reports were accurate, it seemed that he was no longer working alone. Plus, there seemed to be a definite purpose to his attacks now. While the reports from Hajime-Sei were spotty at best - the planet was reduced to slag, after all, so the only reports were those sent before it's destruction - what was known was that he, and whoever was with him, attacked an artefact depositary.
That, on it's own, didn't tell him much, as there was no way of knowing what he took; the reports from Mori-Sei proved more useful. One of the surviving Nuros sent to the planet - of the six sent, only three returned, and all of them only just survived - one of the only beings to ever survive an encounter with the Phoenix, assuming it was the Phoenix, reported that the man, who was indeed Saiyan, was travelling in the company of another Saiyan, and two green beings, believed to be Namekian.
What's more, one of the Nameks, apparently the one in charge - he may have been the Phoenix's current employer, it was reported that he was working as a mercenary on the side - had wanted an 'orange rock' they'd found on the planet, which he'd had another of, and he made them sound extremely important. That meant the Phoenix was hunting these relics, obviously at the behest of the Namek, but that didn't really help him much.
-You're such a fake it's true-
-I can't believe the words you say-
Ever since he'd stolen the Icebreaker, Frost had been trying to find this man, this Phoenix, but to no avail. He still had no idea who he could be. Knowing that he was Saiyan was hardly new; he'd known ever since Vegeta was called to report. His spies had made sure to edit the reports before Frieza got them, to hide all mention of Saiyans - they were Frieza's biggest threats after all, and it wouldn't do to have him knowing just how right that idea was.
He had read through the list of Saiyans many times, those reported MIA, KIA, and those still alive. He practically could recite the list, and their status, from memory alone. Yet he was still no closer to identifying just who the Phoenix was; the given description could be used for no less than a fifth of all Saiyan males. The fact he was now travelling in a group was slightly more useful - groups were easier to find than a single man - but still not useful enough to locate him.
Their best bet to find him would be to locate one of these 'orange rocks' he was apparently now searching for, but finding one of those could be harder than finding the man himself. Putting it mildly, Frost felt he had a snowflakes chance in hell of meeting the man he'd admired for so long. And yet, as it often does, fate has a way of making the impossible happen, usually in the weirdest of ways.
-I'm far away from you-
-I'll never bring back yesterday-
He headed down towards the docking bay, curious as to who, or what, the ship's capture protocol had caught; until now he didn't even know there was a capture protocol. Through his scouter, he heard one of the robots, the one sent to check over their catch and ensure it was safe, report, "Identification: Two Saiyans. Kapskaen, warrior first class. Pi, warrior first class. Warning: unknown sentients. Namek biology suggested."
He smirked to himself as he thought this over. 'Well, well, well. Two Saiyans, and two Nameks, and if memory serves Kapskaen was reported KIA, and Pi MIA. Someone must really like me, because it seems my search is over.' He heard a second robot announce, "All bow before the son of King Cold!" and the thought 'I really must get around to having those things reprogrammed...' ran through his head moments before he heard an explosion, and a metallic cry of pain, echoing from the hangar.
He walked in, his head held high, and an air of confidence around him as he said, "I hope you intend to clean up that mess." The reaction he got was not quite what he expected.
-Suffocate, you suffocate-
-That you lie (I don't lie)-
-That your fake (I'm not a fake)-
Frost struggled to remain calm. This Saiyan, Kapskaen, had just attacked him for no other reason than that he was Aisu. Inwardly, he was mildly pleased he didn't think he was Frieza, especially with what that robot said, but he felt annoyed none-the-less at being attacked at all. However, Kapskaen did fit the descriptions of the Phoenix exactly, right down to the choice of clothing, and he knew that if it really came down to it he'd never win a fight between them, so he tried to keep the conversation going; a verbal spar was always easier to win than a physical one.
He fought back the urge to smirk as the conversation continued; all the pieces were starting to fall into place. The reports were right; the Phoenix was working for this Namek, helping him recover some artefacts of his people - obviously those orange balls. What's more, he yielded to the green man, making the Namek the leader of the group; he filed that useful bit of information away for later.
However, as he noticed the two females properly, all cognitive functions shut down. Once again in hindsight, he realised how bad an idea it was to hit on them, let alone asking the Saiyan girl to spend the night with him - a Saiyan female and a Saiyan male travelling together were usually either a couple, or brother and sister, and in both cases the males were highly protective - but once again this logic escaped him at the time.
Regardless, he had succeeded in his mission. He had enlisted the services of the Phoenix, possibly the strongest Saiyan of his time, and the only one thus far willing to stand against Frieza and his empire. Sure, he had to help the Nameks on their little search first, but that wasn't that important. As long as this ship kept its facilities, those Saiyans weren't going anywhere.
-Suffocate, you suffocate-
-You always take (I don't take)-
-What you can (what I can)-
As he watched the female, Pi, fighting with Kat, he realised that female Saiyans were just as protective of their partners as the males were. Jealousy aside, at the fact he could get that sort of reaction from Kat, he was rather curious as to why she acted like that; she'd never been more than indifferent to any other male they'd met so far. Making a mental note to ask her about it later, he headed back to the control room, feeling very self-satisfied.
The satisfaction didn't last.
-I always take-
-What I can -
Frost grumbled to himself as he picked himself up from he pile the other female - Viola, if memory served - had left him in. Until today, he had been the captain of this ship. He gave the orders, he set the courses, he had the information. It was almost funny how much could change in a single day. Now, he was subject to the whims of a couple of green skinned beings who seemed content with keeping him in the dark. Even his own people, namely Kat and Avery, seemed to have lost what little respect they'd shown him in the past.
As the Namek's left, he thought to himself, 'I guess it's not all bad. They're softer taskmasters than Cold and Frieza ever were. Besides, the sooner they finish, the sooner those Saiyans can help me with my mission.'
-That you lie (I don't lie)-
-That your fake (I'm not a fake)-
He looked on in shock as he watched the events taking place on the planet below. When they were leaving, he'd noticed Kaen's apparent mood; he'd never seen anyone so against going into combat in his life, let alone one of the battle-thriving Saiyans. But now, as he observed the battle from the safety of the control room on the Icebreaker, with the help of the planetscape cameras, he could tell why.
He recognized their opponent; while he didn't know his name, he knew exactly who it was. The man had been AWOL for four standard years now. He had returned to base for just long enough to have his right arm, and several other parts of his body, replaced by prototype cybernetic components; apparently the battle on Hunaiya-Sei didn't go entirely as Frieza had planned.
The man, now more machine, had left shortly after giving his report, claiming to have unfinished business that demanded his attention. This had annoyed Frieza no end; he'd not even waited around long enough to receive his reward for a job well done. Frost himself didn't know much about what had happened; it had happened before he'd been in the army. All he knew was what he'd read from the reports. Ten Saiyans were dead, along with forty-nine casualties from the hit team, which had been deemed 'acceptable losses' by Frieza; their target was dead, and the entire team was expendable so long as the mission succeeded.
Frost now understood exactly what the unfinished business was. The target had survived, and, judging from what he overheard, had kept doing so for the past four years. Being a man who prided himself on the quality of his work himself, Frost could understand the man's obsession with wanting to see Kaen dead. That didn't mean he thought any better of the man because of it though; that cyborg had long since let his desire for revenge cloud his logic, his better judgement, and the reason Kaen was wanted dead in the first place.
-I always take-
-What I can-
As the pain-wrenched cry echoed through the loud speakers, the voice the heartbroken Saiyan male on the planet below, Frost felt his own heart crack in sympathy. Looking around the control room, Kat seemed on the verge of tears - she had grown quite close to the pair in the past few days - and even Avery, who'd been through something similar himself, looked borderline sympathetic.
A beeping on Kat's console drew her attention away from the sight on the viewscreen - Kaen standing over the body of his fallen partner - and she took a moment to compose herself before paying it much attention. Shortly after, a gasp from her drew the attention of the others around, and Frost found he had to compose himself as well before saying, "What is it?"
She looked up at him, a look of awe covering, for now at least, the sad look she bore before, as she replied, "His power level, it's sky-rocketing! It just reached 700,000, and it's still climbing!"
Turning back to the viewscreen, he muttered, "How is that possible? When we measured his level just yesterday it was nowhere near that, even with his fire power-up... I know they get stronger after every battle, but this is unreal..."
He heard the normally reserved Avery gasp, his sharp eyes seemingly catching something Frost's own missed, and without needing to be prompted, he said, "His hair, it... changed, for a moment."
The three of them continued watching, and before too long they all noticed the change, his hair seemingly staying gold in colour for longer each time. A final cry, which nearly deafened them, followed by a flash of light, which nearly blinded them, later, and the change became permanent. His throat dry, Frost swallowed a couple of times before asking, "Kat, what's his power level now?"
She looked down at her console for a moment, and the room was devoid of all noise bar the occasional beep, or clack of a key, before she replied, her voice soft, "I... I don't know..."
His head shot in her direction, and his voice was partly angry, and partly shocked, as he said, "What do you mean you don't know? You know how to work the scanners don't you? They're still working aren't they? So what's the problem?"
She looked up at him, the same anger and shock mirrored in her face and voice as she said, "I do know how to work the scanners, and they are working, but I still can't give you an exact reading of his power level because the scanners don't go that high!"
The shock took over completely as he exclaimed, "What do you mean the scanners don't go that high? They can scan as high as Frieza's maximum in his second form!"
She nodded, saying, "I know, but according to these readings, he passed one million a while ago, and by the looks of things it kept going, so there's no telling how strong he is now."
With a look of awe, Frost looked back to the screen, watching as the fight finished almost before it began. His eyes widened in shock as he saw Pi embracing her Saiyan powerhouse mere moments after the fight ended; she was dead, he knew it. Every last one of the scanners had shown that, as if his own eyes weren't a good enough judge. And yet there she was, walking, talking, and breathing again.
He felt a smirk cross his face, and no reason to stop it. With no more than "End planetary view" the screen faded to black, Frost deciding the time to watch was now passed, but the events that did still running through his mind. He had witnessed, with his own eyes, the birth of a legend. A warrior strong enough to destroy Frieza, and one, apparently, with control over life and death. Although the legend had existed for years now, he had just seen the true birth of the Phoenix, and before too long, his revenge would come.
Frieza and Cold would be brought to justice, their deaths were as assured as the course of the planets. It was only a matter of time. And all Frost could do, for now, was smirk.
-That you lie (I don't lie)-
-That your fake (I'm not a fake)-
End Side Story 03