Chapter Two of "The Realtor Affair" by Melinda-chan
'Ah Vegetana's place… According to the Vegeta Chronicles, this was always the home of the Guardian of the Earth,' Daikon thought. He turned to his chauffeur. "Brolini, how close are we to Lady Tana's place?"
"We'll there in a minute, Daikon-san," the chauffeur replied. "In fact we should be there very soon." Just as he said it, the floating residence of Vegetana's Place came into view. "Now if you brace for the landing, we should land at once." As Brolini said that, he put the hovercar down onto the smooth surface. Daikon prepared for the bump. All of a sudden the hovercar made a thud as it hit the ground.
"We're here, I assume?" Daikon asked.
"Yes" Brolini said, looking out the window. "She does not seem to be home. Perhaps she is at her laboratory or farm?"
"Perhaps" Daikon replied gloomily. He dreads going to either place. "In any case, I better go look for her. Wait here in the hovercar until I come back."
"As you wish," Brolini said. He opened the glass cover. Daikon got out and walked through the grove of trees leading to her place. He then saw the peculiar-looking house that towered above the rest of the place. A brown globlike creature was at the entrance.
"Koku! Koku! Koku!" the creature said, moving up and down. Daikon was used to such creatures here.
"Koku, tell Vegetana-sama that Daikon, servant of Princess Gotena, is here to see her," the lavender-haired royal assistant commanded.
"Koku! Koku! Koku!" the brown bloblike creature nodded.
"That wouldn't be necessary, Koku" a woman's voice called out. Daikon looked at the door. There was a woman standing there, dressed in a pink kimono with red kanji characters like "peace" and "harmony" on it. Her obi (sash) was red as well. She held a white fan with red circles on it. Daikon bowed to her.
"Vegetana-sama, I have come under the request of Princess Gotena to-" Daikon started to say when he was suddenly interrupted.
"You want me to go with you so I can talk to Gena, right?" the black-haired lady said. Daikon looked surprised.
"Why yes, I assume that you probably had guessed when I arrived," Daikon said. The woman smiled and turned halfway back to the door.
"Follow me," the woman said. Daikon obeyed her. "Watch your step. My creatures are pretty active today."
As Daikon put on slippers- Vegetana was like a cat when it came to cleanliness- he saw the few of her creatures come out. One was a small blue blob who moved on the floor toward his boots. Daikon watched with fascinated horror as it licked the dust from his boots. It then churned as if it was mashing it inside. It then panted like a happy dog.
"That's a recent new find from the planet Frythar," the Guardian explained. "It seem to like dust so I call it 'the dust-eater.' The name is very descriptive."
"Lovely" Daikon said, wondering what cleaner could get rid of 'dust-eater' drool from his boots. "You mean you get creatures from other planets?"
"Plants too," Vegetana answered. "Not all the forms of life here were left over when the Acelians left this planets two hundred years ago. I always get offers from other worlds. Some are interested in the life-forms I have, while others would like me to sell me theirs. Obviously, I choose very carefully."
"I see" Daikon said. She then gestured him toward the door. "I got to show you something. I got it from a merchant of the second moon of Tabar. It is such a pretty little thing. It would take only a few minutes." Daikon sighed. He knew from past experiences that it was better to shut up and let her show him her newest acquired life-forms. Some were interesting, but he could see why nobody else would want them.
"Vegetana-sama, how many do you have?" Daikon asked.
"I do not usually count them unless I am missing one," she answered. "But my best estimate is six thousand plants and four thousand other life-forms. Mind you, much of them were left behind when the Acelians was defeated and left the planet for good. Prince Torin was going to destroy these innocent things but I decided to keep them in my laboratory. I need to have a hobby and I did work in a private laboratory when the Acelians were here." Daikon did not bother to ask what she was doing in that private laboratory. He did not want to know.
"Ah, here it is," Vegetana continued as she went to the plant. Daikon saw a small yellow flower on a green flower pot. "I call it 'the yellow blow-flower.'"
"Oh?" Daikon said. He peered closer to the flower, putting his right hand in front of it. "It looks like a yellow gum- ahhhh!"
Almost with blinding speed, the flower went from being a small flower to a big flower that then tried to swallow Daikon's right hand.
"My hand!" Daikon yelled as he tried to get his hand from the yellow flower.
"Don't pull away your hand from the blow-flower or it will bite harder!" Vegetana warned him.
"What am I suppose to do then?" Daikon asked in fear.
"Pull out your glove!" Vegetana ordered. He did as she said and the blow-flower swallowed his glove, letting the hand go. Daikon watched in horror as he saw the plant churned its inside and then let out a belch. He looked at Vegetana.
"I hope you're happy now. That was part of my uniform" Daikon said. "May we go somewhere else and talk," he requested in a softer tone.
"Your glove must be made of plant fibre. It does not eat anything made from animals," Vegetana noted.
"I feel so happy," Daikon said in full sarcasm. Vegetana gave him a dirty look. "But please may we go somewhere and talk, preferably far away from here?"
"If you wish. You are a servant of the princess," Vegetana said. They then left and went to a white room that had red cushions on the floor. "Sit down now."
"Vegetana-sama, this is a very important request," Daikon said as he did as he was told. "I-"
"You want me to go to Princess Gotena to talk with her on the Realtors" Vegetana said. Daikon looked stunned.
"How did you know?" the lavender-haired man asked. 'Can she really read a person's mind?' he thought in wonder.
"I did not need to read your thoughts. I knew that you'll be here once I saw the Realtors' ship appear in the sky," Vegetana said. "I remember the day that the Realtors first arrived here. It was on March 6, 940 A.V. that Prince Kalle was the first person to meet them. The Realtors wanted the highest bidder to purchase this planet so Prince Kalle gave them two thousand Vegetan warriors. I knew he was making a mistake."
"I suppose he felt he could use the warriors to expand the Vegetan space empire," Daikon said.
"I am sure he had an ulterior motive" Vegetana nodded. "But I knew someone was going to pay the full price in the future. According to the deal, the Realtors could annul it and re-sell the planet once the contract expires. I was afraid this would happen."
"They want four thousand warriors now" the lavender-haired assistant informed her. "Of course we cannot fulfill their request."
"Why am I not surprised?" the black-haired woman said. "I suppose Princess Gena would not consider using the barbarians."
"Of course not!" Daikon answered. "She would think it's absurd!"
"I have taught her the New Way" Vegetana said. "I knew there would eventually be a time of peace. I also knew it would have its tests. Perhaps the first test has finally come."
"Vegetana-sama, you did taught her about your beliefs. The originator of the New Way is not her, but you. What do you think should happen?" Daikon asked.
"I do not feel I should speak on such matters to a mere servant" the Guardian of Veta said. Daikon nodded.
"This lowly one understands," the lavender-haired man said meekly. "But may I ask what would you think if we can find one of Great Mother Bulma's time machines? Would you approve of sending a person back in time to get our ancestors to fight for us?"
"That should be our last resort" Vegetana said. "Not only would that bend the rules of the New Way but there is a good chance that one of our ancestors could die. You know that we do not have any magic balls to revive them if we want to."
"I know but we have to take the risk. This might sound pointless because we do not know how to make a time machine, let alone know where one of Great Mother Bulma's own is, but I heard that Prince Torin was able to go back in time to learn the technique of the Super Saiyan. He was able to defeat the Acelians with it. Is it true, then that he did not use a time machine to go back in time to do this?" Daikon asked her.
Vegetana did not respond right away. She put her right gloved hand on her lips while she thought how to reply. Daikon waited nervously. He knew that Princess Gena was waiting for their arrival. The Guardian of Veta finally put down her hand.
"When Torin was fifteen, I rescued him from certain death when he attempted to escape from the death camp he was in. I revealed to him that he was the heir of the Direct Line of the Royal House of Vegeta and that he had an older sister named Radita" Vegetana explained. "He desired very much to get rid of the Acelians so I offered him the use of the Room of Spirit and Time so he could go back in the past and learn the Super Saiyan technique and defeat them."
"What does the Room of Spirit and Time exactly do?" Daikon asked her.
"It can take one through space and time anywhere in the universe and the timeline. You can also train in it for an entire year and a day would only pass in real time," Vegetana told him. "Don't ask me about how it works in terms of physics. I am not a physicist."
"If only we can get someone to go back in time so that person can learn from our ancestors and be able to beat the Realtors" Daikon said.
"I do not think so," Vegetana told him quite sternly.
"Why not?" Daikon sounded surprised.
"First of all, I doubt that anyone at our present time can be powerful enough like Vegeta or Kakarrot. Also, we have to remember that the Realtors are businessmen, not warriors. True, they have threatened to use force to achieve their goals but so far they have not taken any action. To destroy them now would be cruel and would send a bad image to the rest of the universe, which I am sure that Princess Gena does not want to happen" the black-haired woman told him. Daikon was not ready to give up that easily on the plan he had.
"But in case they do-" Daikon started to say.
"In case they do, we have to trust on what we do have" Vegetana said. "Now I know that the barbarians may already know what is happening and are planning something. It would be important to know what they are going to do. Perhaps one member of your group can find out."
'She can read my mind! I haven't told anyone what I plan to do with my group!' Daikon thought as he looked at her nervously. He then closed his eyes.
"I am in love with a woman that happens to be a complete pacifist and the ruler of Veta! I believe that the New Way should be flexible" Daikon then opened his eyes. "But I shall never be a traitor to my love! I do believe in a balance of both of the Old and the New Way. I call it the Middle Way."
"Even the dissident's voice is important in society" Vegetana nodded. She then stood up. "I'll not tell Princess Gena about your plans. But you must realize that you might have to sacrifice one for the other. Choose wisely."
"If you mean choosing between the love of my life and my beliefs, I'll choose my love. A person is far more important than a belief," Daikon told her.
'So you say, Daikon, but are you willing it in real life?' Vegetana thought. She then spoke out aloud. "Princess Gena is waiting for us, I assume?"
"Yes" Daikon said. He then stood up. "I shall take you to the hovercar right now." He took her right gloved hand. "You have a beautiful hand, Vegetana-sama."
"You have only seen my gloves, Daikon" Vegetana said. She then smiled. "And that's the only thing you'll see from my hands."
"It was just a compliment," Daikon said, though he was smiling too.
"Habits die hard, Daikon. Remember that when you get married, Gena may not chew your head off but she might still take it off," Vegetana said.
"I think we should go now," Daikon said, sounding uncomfortable. The black-haired woman smiled again as he led her out of the room.
"Daikon, of all the seven hells, why did you take so long to retrieve the Guardian?" Princess Gena demanded as Daikon entered the room, with Vegetana behind him. He immediately bowed down.
"I am so sorry, my lady! You see, this horrible woman that you told me to retrieve made me see a plant that ate my right glove! It was so traumatic I had to calm down first! And a blue blob slopped on my boots! And she had this annoying brown blob-" All of a sudden he got hit by Vegetana's fan. He faced her. "Ow! That hurts!"
"The correct term for Koku's species is a 'squishy', not a brown blob," Vegetana told him.
"Well it was still annoying" Daikon said. He then turned to Gena. "And did I mentioned one of her flowers ate my right glove?"
"Yes you did" the ruler of Veta replied, looking at his bare hand. "You have done what I have commanded you to do. You are dismissed for now." He bowed.
"Yes Princess Gena" Daikon said. "I have personal affairs to take care of, anyway. Do you wish for me to return soon?"
"I will need you for the meeting of the Trade Board as well as the Science and Technology Board and the press conference tonight. Come back an hour later," Princess Gena told him.
"As you wish," Daikon said. He then took her right hand, kissed it and then left. The princess turned to Latia, who was quietly standing there.
"Latia, you too should go. This is between me and Lady Tana only," Princess Gena said. The girl nodded.
"I shall be at my room if you need me," she said. She also left. Princess Gena then went to Vegetana.
"As amusing as it is to hear Daikon's horrifying account, I do need to tell you that any plant or other form of life that poses as a threat to people is for-" the ruler of Veta started to say.
"I ensure you that all my plants and other life-forms would not be dangerous if one does not put one's fingers near their mouths," the Guardian of Veta said. She decided to change the subject. "So why did you summon me for?"
"You did see the Realtors' ship land, didn't you?" Princess Gena asked her.
"I did indeed" Vegetana nodded. "The hundred years must be up."
"Must be up?" the ruler of Veta said. "You mean our claim was only to last a hundred years?"
"I was there when your grandfather, Prince Kalle, signed the deal with the Realtors. One of them, a blue-skinned alien, said, 'We should meet again after a hundred years or so.' It was more of a quip than a serious comment so I'm not too sure that your grandfather really took it seriously. But I was not too surprised when I saw the ship come back after a hundred years" Vegetana explained.
"Remind me to spit at Grandfather Kalle's picture when I go to bed tonight," Gena told her.
"Oh no! Eww, how unhygienic!" Vegetana exclaimed, putting a hand on her right side of the face in emphasis. "You seriously would do that?"
"Vegetana-chan, what am I suppose to do? I have plans for the rest of my life on this world. I do not want to go to exile," Princess Gena said. "But I believe that the New Way must prevail. I just need advice on how I'm going to avoid being in exile without compromising my beliefs."
"You can let the barbarians deal with them," Vegetana told her. "They are not part of the New Way and if the Realtors do use violence against us, the barbarians would be better prepared to deal with them."
"Vegetana-chan, I cannot believe you would recommend that! I built Veta on the concept of the New Way. The arts and trades are our main industries and while I do have city guards, they are not trained to kill! To let the barbarians deal with this problem is practically telling everyone that the New Way cannot work under all circumstances! I will be exposed as a pacifist fool!" Gena exclaimed. "I know that there is a limit to every philosophy, but I cannot let the barbarians believe their way is superior to ours! I thought that at first we'd just leave their planet and let the barbarians handle the Realtors! But I then realized that it would be the worse thing I could have done! By the time it would be over, the planet might not be fit to live! There might not be a planet at all!" Gena told her. "Vegetana-chan, do you know if we had any dealings with the Realtors before my grandfather's time? You're the only one that can answer that."
"We have had alien races come to this planet even before the coming of our ancestors" Vegetana said. "A race called the Namekians came centuries before the arrival of Kakarrot. They were the ones that made the Dragon Balls. The balls proved to be very useful in the next few hundred years."
"I have heard of them" Princess Gena nodded. "I studied the Vegeta Chronicles when I was young. It always made me realize how much we needed the New Way."
"There were times when self-defense calls for action," the black-haired Guardian of Veta said. "However, most of the time I felt the New Way would be ideal. Kakarrot was the most powerful person this we have ever known; yet he was so kind and merciful. I believe without those qualities, he would not have been so powerful to protect his home, family and friends."
"It's too bad I could not meet him and ask him a few things," Gena told her.
"Perhaps, but it's not impossible," Vegetana said. "The time chamber can still function-"
"Oh, you know I cannot use it to satisfy my curiosity!" the princess exclaimed.
"It would be interesting to see what he and others would think of the present," Vegetana said.
"I don't think Great Father Vegeta would be impressed" Princess Gena then smiled. "But it would be interesting to see what our ancestors were really like. History can obscure things. But I doubt that even they could come up with a reasonable solution without something bad happening."
"It would be nice to have the Dragon Balls back," Vegetana said. "And the Kakuans too. I don't think your rule would be complete as long as the two Saiyan races are still apart."
"I wish the Looters and my subjects on the other worlds will be united as well" Gena told her. "It is a nice hope."
"'One that feeds on hope will die fasting.' That is a saying that has persisted in this planet for a long time. You do what you want. I trust that you have learned from your past experiences so far as a ruler to know how to deal with this as peacefully as it can go," Vegetana said. She then narrowed her eyes. "But I must warn you that I do not think that those that kept the old way will not sit idle. You will have to deal with them sooner or later. You probably should have me with you."
"Thank you, Vegetana-chan. I am glad to hear that you will still be at my side" Gena said. Vegetana smiled.
"I do take my role as the Guardian of Veta very seriously, and with great pride" Vegetana said. "And I do love this planet. There are very few planets like this, believe me."
"Yes. I am happy to be the ruler of this planet as well," Gena said. "It must have mean more for you since you have lived for so many centuries and met so many people here."
"And so many men," Vegetana then sighed.
"Er, yeah" Gena said. "Speaking of men, did Daikon say anything about the marriage proposal he gave me?"
"No, but I am so happy for you both!" Vegetana answered. "I knew you're too good a woman not to be without a man all her life. I know that it would not be your first time you both did it, but I could tell you the many ways a man and a woman can become one-"
"That's enough!" the black-haired ruler of Veta said in outrage. Vegetana had to cover her face with her fan. Princess Gena went a little closer. "There is more than one way to do it?" Her voice became very low.
"I could see that you two only did it once," Vegetana said. She brought her fan away from her face, revealing a smile. "Well, there will be time for an education later. Just remember that you will have to work with everyone else to deal with the Realtors. If you play your cards right, the Saiyans that oppose the New Way still wouldn't be your friends." She then touched her right shoulder with her left hand. "But they wouldn't be your enemies either."
"I shall see you later," Princess Gena spoke.
"My lady, don't burst a vein tonight," Vegetana said, once again smiling. She turned toward the door.
"Brolini will take you back to your place" Princess Gena told her. "I am grateful that you'll still be at my side." Vegetana nodded.
'Daikon, I leave the rest to you' she thought as she walked out. She put her fan over her face as she was escorted outside to the hovercar. She knew that Daikon's plan might be the only way out of this. She believed that the New Way as the best way to live, but she is curious about what the Middle Way would do. Yes, she will see what Daikon's plan might do. And then she will decide whose side she really will be on.
"Is everyone here?" Daikon questioned as he opened the door. The room was small, and had a wooden table in the middle. It was after all, a board room.
"Kurin-san, will you please tell me the names of everyone that is here?" Daikon asked. A long black-haired man stood up.
"The names are as follows: Buruta my wife, Venita my daughter, Kuri my son, Auberna, Patota her husband, Onyon, Aspar, Fukita, and Lima, Kusuta and Courgetta, her children" the man said.
"I see, Kurin-san" Daikon said. He then looked at the young teenage girl next to Kurin. "Is this girl your daughter, Kurin-san?"
"Yes" Kurin replied. "She just turned thirteen so I decided she could join our group." Daikon took a closer look at her. She seemed to be well developed for a thirteen-year old girl. He could see that she was a little tall as well, or perhaps it was her bunched-up hairstyle, like a giant bun on her head, that was tied with a golden ribbon. Daikon tried not to create a fantasy of a sixteen-year old Gotena dressed like that into his mind. He had other things to attend to.
"Very well, Kurin-san. Since we have a new member, it is our tradition that we introduce one another" Daikon sat down as he spoke. "This may sound stupid, Kurin-san, but you know the rule. Please start."
"I am Kurin of the Trunks Line of the House of Vegeta," the long, black-haired man told the group. "I am a guard of the city of Veta. As a guard, I am allowed a house just outside the city for my own use. I decided to keep all the armour and weapons my father refused to give up when Princess Gena ordered everyone to do so and put them in a hidden room. A few people have seen it and I have made a small profit from the admission fee. I also teach martial arts to people, which of course is also illegal. The woman next to me is Buruta my wife, the boy at my left is Kuri my son, and the girl is Venita, my daughter."
"I am Auberna of the Bra bloodline," the woman with the long black dreadlocks said. The ends of her braided hairs had white beads in them. "I am the wife of Patota. I am the daughter of Commander Chard, who was forced to retire when Princess Gena dissolved the army. I have been friends with Kurin's family since my husband became a guard."
"I am Patota," the man with spiky black hair said. "My wife is Auberna. I am the son of a warrior named Gobo who was supposed to become a captain when he reached the required thirty years of age. But when he was just twenty-nine years old, Princess Gena came into power. My father was reduced to being a mere civil servant. I would have joined the Old Way but I did not want to be viewed as a traitor to the Direct Line. I therefore joined the Middle Way."
"I am Onyon," the man with the long black hair said. He wore a white sleeveless shirt, allowing everyone to see his "Loyalty" tattoo that he had on his left bicep. It was in kanji. "My reason for being here has to do with my principles than personal reasons. My family has always been guards since Torin's time. We did not have any ambitions military-wise. It is just that I believe that we cannot be totally pacifist in a galaxy that has so many aggressive planets. We need to be prepared at all times for a possible invasion. Now that the Realtors are here, I am afraid that we and the Middle Way are the only hope for this city. Sadly, my wife disagrees but I am content to live with her for now."
"I am Aspar of the Trunks line," the older man said. "I was retired by the time Princess Gena came into power but I had high hopes for my son Lek to become a warrior. Of course that hope was dashed when she abolished the warrior profession. My son was reduced to being a government clerk!" He shook his right fist. "And to make matters worse, we had our armour and weapons confiscated. My son is left with nothing from our glorious past!" He seized up his fist again but then released it. "Still I cannot think of rebelling against her. She is after all, the rightful ruler of Veta. She is the most direct descendant of the Royal House of Vegeta now. When her father and brother disappeared from a trip to another planet, we should have known what was going to come. She was not a vocal supporter of her father's policies, at all. But enough about me and her." He then put down his fist.
"I am Fukita" the big woman with long braided blue hair got up and said. "These are my children: My firstborn daughter Lima, my son Kusuta and my second daughter Courgetta." She gestured toward her teenage children. Lima had on a gold headband with a flower engraved on it and Courgetta also had a gold headband but there was no flower on it. Kusuta just had his lavender hair cut short.
"My husband was a master of the Super Saiyan martial arts. He was so famous that he even taught Gena's father and brother. But when Princess Gena came into power, he decided to leave the city. The only reason why we're still here is that my husband decided that we would be better off staying here than facing an uncertain life in self-exile. My two daughters are senior and junior members of The Flower Society, a group of girls training to be entertainers for the royal courtyard, and my son is a junior member of The Harmony Society, which is basically the same as The Flower Society, but for the boys." Fukita then lowered her head. "I do not wish to go against the will of Princess Gena, but I do miss my husband and it has been ten years since my children last saw their father. I wish that he would return from his self-exile. But he refused to go back here until Princess Gena no longer rule. That is why I support the Middle Way. Thank you for listening" At that Fukita sat down.
"Your welcome Fukita-san" Daikon said. "Do you three have anything to say beside what your mother already told us?" He then saw Lima stand up. "Yes, Lima-chan?"
"I just want to say that I am the only one of my siblings that remember our father" Lima said. "He was a good father so I hope that I can see him before I get married!"
"In that case, you might be very interested in my plan" Daikon said. "Now let us begin the second part of our meeting. Kurin-san, will you please tell us about how the keepers of the Old Way is responding to the arrival of the Realtors?"
"I have only talked to a messenger from Tubar's clan," Kurin said. "He told me that Tubar is going to assemble all the chiefs to discuss what to do. That is all."
"Thank you Kurin-san" Daikon said. "Let me tell you what Princess Gena planned to do." He sat down and put his hands under his chin. "As you already know, Princess Gena spoke with the head of the Realtor team. Needless to say, she was not happy about what he said. She did get a reprieve for a week but I don't believe that will be enough."
"Of course it wouldn't!" Aspar said out loud. "I don't trust those demons for a million warriors!"
"I suspect she did this to buy time," Daikon told him. "She obviously does not trust them. I have not seen her that angry in my life."
"So what is her exact plan?" Kurin asked him.
"To be honest, I don't know" Daikon admitted. Everyone now looked surprised. "I do know that she has made an appointment with the Science and Technology Board. For what reason I cannot say."
"We certainly know it cannot be to commission a weapon," Kurin said.
"Perhaps a shield to prevent the Realtors' ship from leaving the surface?" Buruta suggested.
"Perhaps, but we should not worry too much about it" Daikon said. "All will be revealed in due time. And I am sure that she will tell me everything when the time's right."
"So what is this plan of yours?" Lima asked in curiosity.
"I decided to have a group leave this place and go to the hills. We have always kept in contact with the people of the Old Way" Daikon said. "I plan that instead of waiting for a messenger, we should be sending a little group to them." A commotion resulted.
"Who do you suggest to be part of our group?" Kurin inquired.
"I shall be one of them," Aspar said. "I am the oldest of this group. Let me go. I know how to speak their way."
"I suggest we use one of the youngest members here," Daikon said. He then looked at the newest member. "How about you, Venita? This could be a good way to find out what you are capable of."
"Wait a minute!" Kurin said. "I believe that my daughter will be willing to do as you said. But she is not yet an adult. I also do not wish for any of the children to be in those hills, especially with the bandits also in the area."
"I assure you that I'll never consider letting the children out of the city by themselves" Daikon told him. "If you wish, you can go with them."
"What about me? I want to go with my children!" Fukita said out loud.
"You can go too if you wish" Daikon answered. "But are you prepared in case the group gets attacked?" Fukita did not say anything in response.
"In that case I should go too," Onyon said. "You would need two guards for this. I am specifically trained for self-defense as well. However, since I will be outside the city, I'll not hesitate to kill any opponent that is going to stop us."
"Oh please Onyon, try to avoid any conflict," Daikon told him. "We do not want any unnecessary attention until we achieved the first part of our goal. As such, in order to keep this a complete secret, you all would choose new names. I do not want to hear them now. I also want you to get a person of the Old Way that is young and strong. I have an important assignment for that one. Let the clan decide who to send to us."
"Speaking of that, which clan are we supposed to go to, and what assignment do you expect the chosen person to do?" Kurin asked him.
"Tubar's clan is near Mount Paozu, east of the city," Daikon replied. "It should take a few hours to reach there by hovercar pr a couple of days by carriage. Is there any more questions?"
"I have a question," Patota said. "You said that we are going to get some sort of transportation to bring back this person. How are we supposed to do that? I don't think any vehicle going out would be viewed as suspicious- many homes of guards are outside the city- but we cannot return in such a manner. It may be hard to believe, but there are guards that are very loyal to Princess Gotena and would not hesitate to report it to her."
"Not if I can help it," Daikon said. Patota looked surprised. "Don't worry, Patota-san. I can assure you that she has worse problems to deal with now. She is not going to be too concerned with a suspicious vehicle returning with an extra passenger." He then looked at the group. "Is there any other questions for me?" No one replied. "Very well. This meeting is now adjourned. If you have any questions later on, please remember that I'll be very busy today so save it until tomorrow. If things go as planned, we will have another meeting next week at the same time. Thank you and have a nice day." At that most of the others got up and left. Kurin waited until everyone but Daikon was left. He then went up to him.
"Daikon-san, why do you want a person from Tubar's clan to go back with us for?" Kurin asked.
"That is up for Lady Tana to answer" Daikon said. "Not me." At that he walked away.
"Lady Tana?" Kurin said. "What does she have to do with us?" But when he looked up to speak to him, Daikon was gone.
End of Chapter Two
Notes on Names:
Aspar- from "asparagus," the same source of Broly's father, Paragus (from the movie).
Auberna- from "aubergine," another name for eggplant.
Brolini- from "broccolini," a type of broccoli.
Buruta- from Buruma, Bulma's original name, and Vegeta.
Chard- a type of leafy plant, as in Swiss chard.
Courgetta- from "courgette," another name for zucchini. The "g" is hard.
Fukita- from "fuki," a Japanese vegetable, and Vegeta.
Gobo- the Japanese name for burdock, a root vegetable used in Japan. Of course, burdock is the source for Bardock, Goku's father.
Kalle- from "kale," a leafy plant. Also a male name from Finland.
Koku- a sound effect of a nod, which the creature does a lot.
Kuri- from "kyuri," the Japanese name for cucumber.
Kurin- from "Kuririn," the original name of Krillin.
Kusuta- from Torankusu, the original name of Trunks, and Vegeta.
Lek- from "leek."
Lima- the type of bean we usually hate.
Onyon- from "onion."
Patota- from "potato."
Radita- from "radish," and Vegeta.
Venita- a twist on "Vegeta" or "Vegita."
Reckonings
In my story there will be three types of year reckonings. They are: Old Age or A.D. Reckoning, Vegeta Reckoning and Expulsion Reckoning.
Old Age (A.D.) Reckoning- the year reckoning most of us use, and also that of the Earth of Dragon Ball. In our world, it starts from the year Jesus Christ was supposed to be born (which would be 1 B.C. since there is no 0 A.D.). In my story, references to this system may be made to this system as "Old Age." Both the Old Age and the Vegeta Reckoning are known in Veta (Earth).
Vegeta (V.) Reckoning- the official reckoning on Veta, the starting point of this reckoning is the Old Age year when Vegeta (the planet) was destroyed. This is believed to be the year 744 A.D. Except for that, the calendar has not changed.
Expulsion (E.) Reckoning- the Kakarrot/Goku line started this reckoning after their expulsion (hence the name). They refer the year of the Expulsion as Year Zero (or 0 E.). They refer to the time before the Expulsion as Before Expulsion (B.E.) and the time after the year of the Expulsion as After Expulsion (A.E.). However, they still use the Old Age Reckoning when applied to Goku's time and before that. While they know the Vegeta reckoning too (it was known before Torin's time), it is the least used of the three reckonings.
Note: Since the destruction of Vegeta occurred in 744 A.D. and the last episode of DBZ occurred in 784 A.D., according to the Old Age reckoning and Vegeta reckoning, it is now 1784 A.D. and 1040 A.V. or 100 A.E. according to the Expulsion Reckoning. It is most likely that the Looters use the Vegeta Reckoning but it has not been confirmed at this time.
Well, that's it for the second chapter. I hope to get a few responses this time. My chapters are pretty long, but very good. I do promise that Goku and the other DBZ characters will appear soon. I do wish you like my story so far. Dragon Ball Z was created by Akira Toriyama. All original characters are created by Melinda-chan. The next chapter will take place in Tubar's village. Please do not forget to review!