Hey guys!
Here's chapter 8!
Previously on A Half-breed's Life:
His father's screams rang through his head. Raditz's laugh as he tortured his father. Vegeta's last words before he left…
"If he can't survive, he's not worth our time."
Fine. They wanted him to toughen up? He would toughen up. Those specialists wanted him to work and train? Fine. He would do just that and he would become the strongest warrior in this camp and once those three saiyans returned…
Gohan narrowed his eyes at the wall in front of him as he leaned on the sink.
"I'm going to kill them."
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"Does anyone know who is getting picked up today?" Gohan asked, glancing at his friends. "Is it someone from our group?"
"Nobody really knows." Oriko replied, frowning a little. "It's a secret."
Gohan sported a mischievous expression. "We could sneak into headmaster's office and see if we can find out who is leaving." He suggested.
"I don't think that's necessary." Oriko was looking at something in front of them. Gohan was looking at Judin when Oriko spoke and the boy glanced at his older friend, who was still staring ahead. Everyone suddenly fell silent and looked ahead.
"Why not?" Gohan asked before finally looking ahead to see what made everyone look so surprised.
The boy's mouth fell open as his eyes landed on the people in front of him. The color drained from his face and the boy stepped back.
"Good day, half-saiyan. Long time no see."
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"No! I don't want to come with you!" Gohan clenched his fists. "Why did you even come here today? Why couldn't you just wait for a few more days so I could escape from this place?"
Vegeta stopped. "Escape?" He repeated.
"Yes." Gohan sounded miserable now. "I had it all figured out. I had a plan. We were going to try it out tomorrow. But thanks to you I've done all that work for nothing!" Gohan realized what he was saying and he placed a hand in front of his mouth. He was not supposed to tell all this to an outsider.
Vegeta thought about this for a moment and then headed for the door. "Fine. You're staying here." He stated briefly.
Gohan looked up. "What?"
"I don't want a comrade who runs away from his problems. I can't count on you if you're gone when I need you. You're worth nothing to me like that. Stay here. I have no business with you." Vegeta stated before he left the room.
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Hitora, Headmaster and Crimon watched as the guards walked away with the half-saiyan. "Something is going on today." Headmaster stated. "Why did Gohan's friends rat him out?"
"Judin and Oriko hardly defended him either." Crimon added, frowning a little. His lilac hands tightened around the bar of the balustrade. "That's not like them. They would rather get beaten up themselves than watch their friend go down and they certainly don't mind getting thrown in the dungeon as long as they're together."
"They're planning something." Hitora grabbed the balustrade with his hands. "What do you say we put some pressure on the two musketeers?" He suggested.
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Gohan was the first to run around the corner. He looked ahead and skidded to a stop, his eyes wide. His mouth fell open.
Specialists. All seven of them. A special welcoming committee for the group of cadets who all stopped right behind him. Gohan slowly shook his head as he stepped back. This couldn't be happening. Not now.
"Look who decided to grace us with their presence. The three musketeers and their little entourage." Aiku taunted.
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"Brat." Vegeta's voice made Gohan look sideways. The half-saiyan stepped back to create distance between them. This room was way too small for his taste. "Did you enjoy your time in the hole?" Vegeta smirked at him. "Had a nice nap?"
The half-saiyan crossed his arms over each other as his eyes ran over the windows. Maybe he could jump through one of them. "What do you want?" He asked as he looked back at Vegeta.
"You." Vegeta said without missing a beat. "Why don't you sit down?" He nodded to the chair that was standing on Gohan's side of the desk.
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The ten-year-old looked down. "I don't want to go with them." He whispered. "Don't make me go with them." These were the voices he heard in his nightmares. The men who visited him in his sleep and tortured him almost every night. Now his nightmares were becoming real.
Crimon and Hitora exchanged glances. Crimon knelt down so he could look at the young warrior. "What are you?" He asked as he cupped Gohan's chin and pushed his face up.
"Crimon." Gohan muttered tiredly. "Not now..."
"Answer my question."
"A saiyan."
"And Saiyans are?"
"The strongest warriors in the universe." Gohan sighed out.
"So?"
"So I'm strong and I cannot let anyone put me down." Gohan said automatically.
"Now remember that." Crimon placed his hand on the side of Gohan's neck. "Whenever you're sad or when you're having a hard time, remember this and we'll be with you in spirit. You're not alone, saiyan."
Gohan stared at Crimon for a moment and he nodded. "Thank you." He said softly. Crimon showed a hint of a smile that looked terrifying but it comforted Gohan in some way.
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
The boy suddenly reached up and showed his wrist. 'Freedom!' He mouthed to them. He showed the official Freedom Group sign by locking his thumbs together and spreading his fingers. The wings that represented their way out of this place. For now, Gohan was the only one who received the wings, but he knew the others would get them soon as well.
The half-saiyan looked over his shoulder when Raditz called out to hurry up. He gave his old friends one more glance and realized that Oriko and Judin created the Freedom Sign together, awkwardly locking each other's thumbs together since they only had one free hand. Gohan grinned as he studied the four familiar faces one more time before he gave one last wave and turned to the gates. He ran to catch up with the others.
Gohan was going to enjoy walking out of the camp he'd been trying to leave for so long.
Chapter 8. Meeting The Boss
Gohan did not get to enjoy the amazing outdoor world for long since Vegeta steered the group into a building pretty much right away. The half-saiyan followed them into an elevator. The first thing Gohan realized was that there was a large mirror on one side of the elevator. The half-saiyan looked at his reflection for a moment. There were no mirrors in the camp. Nowhere. Gohan hadn't looked at his own reflection for a long time.
Now, he also realized something else, and that was how much he actually looked like the other three warriors. His dark brown hair, muscled build and brown furry tail were incredibly similar to the others. He fit right in. Nobody would know that he was only a half-saiyan. Nobody would know that he did not belong.
"I don't think vanity is a typical saiyan trade." Raditz stated as he looked at Gohan's reflection.
Gohan looked back at Raditz's reflection. "Sorry. It's just… There aren't any mirrors in camp. Aside from the reflection in the window I haven't seen my own appearance in a very long time."
Raditz nodded as he turned to the half-saiyan fully. "I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised when I saw how you looked. Appearances aren't everything but it's good that you look so much like a saiyan. There was a possibility that you would look like a human by now." Raditz watched as Gohan turned to his uncle. "It doesn't matter all that much since everyone will know what you are when they see your tail." Gohan looked down at his waist where his tail was curled around his body. "Now they will know that you are a true saiyan, and we saiyans are intimidating to most warriors."
"Yep." Gohan flinched when Nappa's hand landed on his head. "Especially your hair turned out to be very saiyan like. You look more like Raditz than you did back then." The man smirked a little when Gohan looked up at him. "Though the way you're shaking and shivering might make you a little less intimidating." He said in a teasing tone.
Gohan jerked his head out of Nappa's grip. "I'm not shaking and shivering." He snarled back. "You can't blame me for being tensed." The boy took a deep breath. How long was this elevator ride going to take?
"Very smart." Vegeta muttered. The man had his eyes closed and was listening to their conversation in silence until that moment.
"Nah, you have nothing to fear. You're our ally now and who would hurt their own ally?" Nappa asked, shrugging.
"We won't do anything unless you break our rules." Vegeta opened his eyes now and glanced at the half-saiyan, who was looking back at him. "The fact that you look so much like us will make it easier for us to recognize you from afar. Aside from that others will also recognize you as a saiyan, which will make it easier for us to find you when you decide to take an unauthorized trip."
"An unauthorized trip?" Gohan repeated.
A smirk appeared on Vegeta's face. "If you think you can continue your escape attempts while you're under our custody you are sadly mistaken." The man replied, noticing the cold look on Gohan's face. "If you put even one toe out of line I will step on it so hard that you won't be able to move it for months."
"You're putting such a damper on the mood, Vegeta." Nappa said cheerfully. "Half-breed's not going to do anything because he knows who's in charge," Nappa's hand landed on Gohan's shoulder and gave him an unnecessarily tight squeeze, "Right?"
Gohan winced at the pain in his shoulder and he nodded. " ." He replied uncertainly. Nappa patted Gohan's still throbbing shoulder and pulled away. The half-saiyan shifted sideways to create a little more distance between himself and Nappa. He was so confused. What did these guys want from him? One moment Nappa was cheerful and almost nice, and the next he was practically crushing Gohan's collarbone. The half-saiyan decided that he would have to be careful around them. He couldn't trust them.
The half-saiyan looked up at Raditz. "Where are we going?"
"We're leaving this planet right away so we're going to the SPC." Raditz responded before the doors of the elevator opened. The man noticed Gohan's blank stare and added: "The Space Pod Center."
Gohan followed them. "We're leaving the planet? So soon?"
Raditz sent the half-saiyan a smirk. "Haven't you been trying to get off this planet many times? How come you sound so hesitant to leave now?"
The half-saiyan realized the same thing. Everything was suddenly going so fast. This morning he woke up in his room in camp and now he was on his way to the space pod center, leaving the planet… And his friends…
Gohan shook his head to get those thoughts out of his head. Being sad was not going to help right now. A tail curled around Gohan's wrist and pulled him sideways. The half-saiyan nearly tripped over his feet.
Raditz made an annoyed sound with his mouth. "You almost ran into that group, brat. Pay attention." He said, his tail released Gohan's wrist and Raditz brushed over the area that touched Gohan's skin as if he was trying to brush the dirt off of it. Gohan looked over his shoulder and saw a group of warriors that was walking in the opposite direction. If Raditz hadn't pulled him aside he would have walked right into them.
Gohan followed them to a large room. The half-saiyan looked around with wide eyes. He could remember the space pod center a little bit. It was so much smaller than he remembered though, but it was still big. Gohan followed the three warriors to one of the elevators. The elevator was surrounded by glass entirely and Gohan studied the landing area of the center.
A space pod arrived while he was watching and it landed on one of the large pink cushions. Gohan watched with interest while the space pod opened and a warrior stepped out. Gohan gasped when the cushion swallowed the space pod.
"Did you see that?" Gohan asked as he pointed to the now empty cushion. "The space travelling machine disappeared."
"Space pod." Raditz corrected. "It didn't disappear. They're just setting aside so it can launch again later."
"That's amazing." Gohan muttered. He wondered if another space pod would land while they were there. He would like to see it.
The doors opened and Gohan followed them onto a gallery. The half-saiyan glanced into every doorway they passed and he noticed that every door led to a small dark room. A space pod was sitting next to a high table every time.
Vegeta stopped at number 23. "Number 23, 24, 25 and, 26 are ours. Half-breed, you can take 23. Raditz, explain the details to your nephew and take the remote so you can control the pod."
"Okay." Raditz nodded and he led Gohan to the room. Gohan gave the space pod a hesitant glance. It looked so small. Gohan noticed that the space pod was sitting in front of a narrow hallway that was exactly the same size as the pod. "Sit down." Raditz ordered. Gohan bent down and crawled into the space pod. He sat down on the chair, noticing it was rather uncomfortable, and he gave a hesitant look at all the buttons and screens around him.
Raditz leaned into the pod and pointed to a button. "In case of emergency, you press this red button. The pod will send out a signal and it will automatically make an emergency landing on the closest planet." He explained. "Don't touch anything else. We'll only be travelling for about an hour and I will keep an open conversation line with your pod while we travel. We need to get you a scouter once we arrive on Frieza's ship."
Raditz knelt down outside the ship and he reached out to grab the remote from the table. "I'm going to close the space pod now. Just wait until I am ready to launch. We're all leaving at the same time so that we can arrive together. I'll see you there." The man got up and pointed the remote at the space pod, pushing a button.
Gohan watched the door close and he immediately felt claustrophobic. He watched as Raditz walked out of the room and turned the corner, disappearing from Gohan's sight. The half-saiyan leaned his head back and clenched his fists. His breathing quickened and he could feel his heart beating. He did not want to travel in this small pod. It felt too dangerous. Why were they travelling in this?
"Half-breed?"
"Yes. I'm here." Gohan almost felt relieved. He realized that he was out of breath and he took a deep breath to calm himself.
"We're launching." Raditz said and Gohan felt that his space pod started to shiver. The half-saiyan tensed entirely as the space pod shot backwards. For a moment he could only see darkness and suddenly he could see the building, the outside area, the planet, and the planet was now getting smaller and smaller.
Gohan closed his eyes. He did not want to see the world outside the space pod. He did not want to know that he was travelling in a small machine. The walls of the pod were the only thing between him and space. He was floated in an endless vacuum in which he could not breathe or survive.
The half-saiyan was slightly annoyed by Raditz's lack of conversation. The man promised him he would talk to the half-saiyan throughout the trip but the man hadn't said anything since they departed. It wasn't like Gohan wanted to talk to the man but it was better than nothing.
The landing was rough. Gohan closed his eyes and tensed his body. This was just as horrible as he remembered. The young saiyan was still straining against the chair when the door of his space pod opened.
"Get out before you get swallowed along with the pod." Raditz called out. Gohan quickly crawled out of the space pod. He realized that they were standing in a smaller space pod center. There were only two landing cushions here so Raditz took Gohan aside where they could wait for the other two to land. Gohan watched as his space pod disappeared.
"Amazing." He muttered to himself.
Once Vegeta and Nappa joined them they started walking again. Gohan followed them in silence. He figured that they were going to a room of some sort where they could stay. Maybe the saiyans were planning on sparring already. He was eager to spar with them. He wanted to find out how he would do against them. Were they really as strong as Crimon always told him?
A hand curled around his upper arm and Gohan stopped. He glanced sideways, frowning when he noticed that someone was holding his arm.
"What do we have here?" The man who was holding onto him was tall. The man had a light-green skin and dark green hair, weaved into a long braid. The man looked rather feminine and Gohan figured girls would call him handsome. Gohan had to try not to shiver when he met the man's dark green orbs. The man's eyes travelled down to Gohan's waist and they widened somewhat in recognition. "You're a saiyan."
"Half-saiyan." Gohan corrected. He did not want to be a full-blooded one. He hated the saiyan race too much for that.
"Half, whole. Who cares? You all look the same." The man made a disgusted face. He pulled Gohan closer, forcing him to step forward, and bowed over him. "As a saiyan you should know your place. You see, saiyans are a little lower on the food chain than normal warriors. It's good if you learn how the status-quo works right now." The man eyed the half-saiyan with disdain. "Kneel before me, monkey."
Gohan ripped his arm free. "I'm not going to kneel for someone like you." He snarled back.
"You obviously need to learn some manners." The feminine man cracked his knuckles. "It's good that I love beating up saiyans." He said before he pulled back a fist. Gohan moved up his hands to protect his body but a fist curled into his long hair and pulled him backwards.
"Auch!" Gohan exclaimed. He noticed Vegeta was standing in front of him, and looked back to find that Raditz was still holding his hair.
"My apologies, Zarbon." Vegeta said, frowning. "The boy just recently joined us. He doesn't know his place yet." The man turned to Gohan. "Apologize." He ordered.
Gohan sent the saiyan a defiant glare. "Why should I? I didn't do anything…" Vegeta smacked him across the face. The half-saiyan's face snapped sideways and he had to take a step back.
"I said APOLOGIZE!" Vegeta barked at the half-saiyan.
Gohan turned to Zarbon. "I…I'm so..." He was interrupted by Vegeta's hand, which pressed down on his head and forced him to kneel down.
"Try again." Vegeta ordered.
"I apologize for my behavior, sir. It won't happen again." Gohan said quickly, hoping that Vegeta would release him, which the man did. Gohan glanced up at the saiyan. He knew that Vegeta was strict and that he was eager to hurt people but he didn't expect the man to hit him so quickly, and so hard. His cheek was still burning.
"I see you're still taming him." Zarbon reached down and placed his hand under Gohan's chin. He brought his hand up, taking Gohan to a standing position. The man tilted Gohan's face upwards and studied the boy. "And if he turns out to be a failure as a soldier you can always sell him on the slave market. Brats like this sell well." He taunted before he released the half-saiyan. "I'll be seeing you again, little monkey." He drawled before he walked off.
Vegeta turned to Gohan. "Hold him." He ordered. Gohan stepped back when Raditz and Nappa grabbed his arms and held him tight. The ten-year-old sent Vegeta a confused glance. He didn't do anything wrong, did he? Vegeta stepped closer and pulled back a fist. Gohan was punched so hard that his head snapped sideways until he neck creaked.
The next punch landed in his stomach, making Gohan gasp painfully for air. Vegeta added one more punch to his stomach before telling the others to release him. Gohan tried hard not to fall on his knees but he did have to lean on his knees with his hands. Vegeta reached out and made Gohan look up by placing his fingers under Gohan's chin.
"You will listen to us from now on, do you understand? If I say jump, you don't even ask me how high, you just jump to the best of your abilities, got it?" Vegeta barked into his face. Gohan nodded in response.
"I don't hear sign language."
"Yes sir." Gohan answered.
"Not sir. Vegeta." Vegeta responded before turning away from the half-saiyan. "Titles aren't necessary here."
Gohan was still recovering from the power he felt in Vegeta's punches. Raditz pushed against his back to make him start walking. The half-saiyan looked up when Nappa appeared next to him and squeezed his shoulder gently. "I can't believe you're already on Zarbon's hit list." He teased.
"I can't believe you angered him." Vegeta snarled over his shoulder. "He's going to whisper bad things in Frieza's ear now and that jerk will be even harder on you. He's already harder on us because of what we are."
"Saiyans." Gohan responded. "Why do they not like us?"
"There are many people who don't like saiyans." Raditz explained. "We're strong warriors. People don't like that."
"But that's not fair. I'm not a real saiyan." Gohan complained. A tail smacked against Gohan's hand and the half-saiyan yelped. He pulled his hand closer to his body and sent Nappa a disgruntled glance.
"That's what you get for denying your saiyan heritage." Nappa said, shrugging.
"Others will take one glance at your tail and figure you're a saiyan." Raditz said. "That's all they know. Now walk faster." He pushed against Gohan's back. "You're already being such a pain in the ass."
"We're here." Vegeta stopped in front of large black doors. "Now, boy, listen to me." Vegeta said as he turned to Gohan. "Only speak when he speaks to you and give short answers to his questions. Do everything he says, got it?"
Gohan nodded. "Yes, Vegeta." He replied. Vegeta nodded before he turned to the doorway. The doors suddenly opened and Gohan could only gasp at the large room they entered. The room was lit up by a row of metal wall lamps. A long walkway led to a throne on which Frieza was sitting.
Gohan studied the man with fear and curiosity. He felt a shiver run down his back when he first made eye-contact with the warrior. Frieza was small in posture. His pinkish skin was covered by a black armor. Gohan followed the others and knelt down when they did. The half-saiyan noticed that Zarbon was standing on one side of Frieza, smirking at the half-saiyan. Another man was standing on Frieza's other side. The man was bigger than the standard soldier and had many painful-looking spikes sticking out of his pink head.
"Lord Frieza." Vegeta started, looking down. "We came here to suggest a new addition to our team to you."
"Yes. I see." Frieza drawled as he studied the half-saiyan. "Come closer, boy." He ordered as his slender hand reached out and motioned for Gohan to approach him. The half-saiyan got up and walked closer to the man, stopping at a point he thought was close enough. "You spent a couple of years in the Iron Snake Camp, am I right?" Frieza got up himself. Apparently, the man only wanted Gohan to be separated from the rest so he could circle the half-saiyan.
"Yes, lord Frieza." Gohan replied, thinking the man would want him to answer verbally.
"Who was the father again? Raditz?" Frieza's eyes moved to the other Saiyans but his gaze returned to Gohan when the half-saiyan uttered a rather disgusted:
"No!"
Raditz allowed himself a small smirk when he heard the disgusted tone in Gohan's voice, but he didn't dare make any noise. He would have laughed out loud at Gohan's reaction in any other situation.
"Well then." Frieza heard Gohan's implied message as well and his tone was now rather amused. "Whoever your father was, I assume that he's not here because he is dead?"
"He is, sir." Gohan replied as a light blush appeared on his cheeks when he noticed what exactly he just said about Raditz. "Dead, that is."
"And you came from planet Earth, right?" Frieza nodded when Gohan gave a verbal confirmation of this. "And the planet has been destroyed or purged?"
Gohan looked over his shoulder, where Frieza now was. "I don't know, sir."
"He doesn't know. Do you know, Vegeta?" Frieza turned his back on Gohan to look at Vegeta. Gohan now turned sideways to watch Vegeta's reaction.
"The planet has been destroyed. We did so when we left." Vegeta responded.
"Good." Frieza turned back to Gohan and opened his mouth to ask another question but stopped when he noticed Gohan's expression. The half-saiyan was looking like his puppy just died. "Oh right. You didn't know. Well now you do." Frieza gave the half-saiyan an icy smile as he continued his circle around the boy and stopped in front of the Saiyan. "Don't tell me you're sad. Zarbon, do you happen to have any tissues? This kid looks like he's about to cry."
Zarbon snickered and opened his mouth to reply but Gohan was there first. "I'm sorry, sir. I didn't know but I don't have any feelings towards the planet or its inhabitants. I haven't been there for years. There's nothing there for me." Gohan's tone was calm and monotone. He looked completely fine now.
Frieza studied Gohan for a moment. "Right. Well you seem just like the regular saiyan. I don't understand why I wasn't notified about your existence earlier." The man's tone was suddenly a lot colder, but Gohan realized that the man wasn't looking at him, but over his shoulder at Vegeta.
The saiyan prince bowed his head. "He was too young to fight so he had to be trained. We didn't want to bother you with insignificant problems."
Insignificant problems. Gohan pursed his lips. That was a nice way to be described.
Frieza nodded. "Well then why are you reporting your own pathetic achievements all the time?" The man ignored the glares he got from the three adults after that. Frieza turned his back on Gohan and the half-saiyan looked back at the others, wondering what to do.
A moment later Zarbon was standing in front of him. The man pulled back a fist and punched Gohan right off his feet. The half-saiyan moved his hands behind him to catch his fall. He crawled backwards when Zarbon tried to kick him. The other soldier Gohan later found out was called Dodoria made his move, appearing behind Gohan and pulling the half-saiyan up by his uniform.
Gohan kicked back, hitting Dodoria's stomach, and jumped up in the air. He landed on the other side of Dodoria and sent a questioning glance to Vegeta, but the man just glared back at him. He was on his own. The half-saiyan looked back to catch a punch from Zarbon. The man was eager to hit the boy, it was easy to see, but Gohan wasn't ready to lose just yet.
Gohan leaned back to avoid a punch when he realized that there was another fighter in the match. Dodoria appeared next to the half-saiyan and landed a punch. Gohan was thrown off his feet and he landed on the ground right in front of Frieza. Zarbon landed next to him, placing his foot on top of Gohan's head to keep him down.
"Ah, it's always good to see a saiyan in his rightful place." Frieza said coldly. The half-saiyan was still breathing hard as he lied on the ground. He was ready to get up but Zarbon was still pushing down on his head. "Very well. You can stay for now. Don't make me regret this decision, boy."
"Thank you, sir." Gohan managed to say. He did not know why he was thanking the man, but he figured this was what he was expected to do.
"Dear Zarbon. Isn't it about time you got off of him?" Frieza's gaze turned to the man. "Or are you already attached to the boy?"
Gohan groaned when Zarbon pressed down on his head. "Crushing a saiyan under my foot takes me back, lord Frieza. I have to admit that I had the pleasure of running into this one before. It's easy to see that he hasn't been tamed right yet."
"It's difficult for saiyans to behave like civilized warriors, you know that Zarbon." Frieza responded, smiling sweetly. "Don't be hard on the boy. He will learn his place in time."
Gohan let out a breath when Zarbon stepped away from him. The boy quickly got up. What the hell was going on here? These people were supposed to be the leaders of the Planet Trade Organization? This was supposed to be the great Frieza the specialists always spoke about? He was nothing more than a bully and he seemed to dislike Gohan just for what he was. Did he treat all his soldiers like this?
"You're dismissed." Frieza said, waving them away.
Gohan stared at the man for a moment but a hand locked around his shoulder and forced him to turn around. Gohan followed his comrades to a long hallway with many doorways. Vegeta placed his hand on a scanner to open the room and Gohan looked around curiously.
The room they entered was small. There were four beds, two on either side of the door and they had to walk through the narrow area between them to reach a small open area. Gohan looked at the two benches that were connected to the wall. A small table was standing in front of the benches.
"Where are we?" Gohan asked, looking up at Raditz.
"Our private room." Raditz responded briefly.
Gohan did not really know what to do. The others did not seem to be paying attention to him so Gohan took a moment to study the room. Four beds… Four? But… It was their private room. Why were there four beds in their private room if there were only three saiyans? Did they already add a bed for him? How long had they been preparing for his arrival?
"Why are there four beds here?" Gohan asked, interrupting the conversation of the adults.
"Why are you bothering us with stupid questions?" Raditz snarled back. Turning back, the adults continued their conversation as if nothing happened.
Gohan blew out a sigh and continued his observation. There was a window. The boy looked outside, finding the idea that they were floating in space so strange. All he could see was darkness outside. Gohan nearly bumped his leg against the bench that was sealed to the wall. On the other wall he saw several small closets. Gohan opened one of the cabinets and realized the area was cold. A refrigerator? There was nothing in there. He closed the door and tried to open another one but this one would not open. Every closet had a lock but only a few of them worked. There were four closed lockers, one refrigerator and one open cabinet.
The half-saiyan decided to sit down on the bench. What was he supposed to do in a situation like this? What kind of situation was he in in the first place? He wasn't really kidnapped. He followed the others to this room. Even though he did not want to be here, they were not holding him here against his will… Well… They were actually, but he was not tied up or limited in any way. He could just walk out that door…. Could he?
Gohan got off the bench and walked to the door. He was about to place his hand on the keypad when a low voice earned his attention.
"Don't even think about it." Nappa called over. Gohan turned to his comrades. "You're not leaving this room."
"Why not?"
"You're already weak. Please don't tell me you're stupid too." Nappa mocked before he sat down on the bench.
Gohan made a helpless gesture. "What am I supposed to do then?" They did not give him any tips or orders.
"Sit. Meditate. Whatever, as long as you're quiet and in this room." Nappa replied briefly before turning back to Vegeta. The two sat down on the bench and waited for Raditz to get something from one of the locked cabinets. Gohan watched with curiosity as Raditz typed in a password and opened the locker before pulling out some papers and closing it again.
The man approached his comrades, sat down on the second bench and handed the papers to Vegeta, who immediately started to point at certain areas and they continued their hushed conversation.
"Meditate?" Gohan repeated. "That's the most boring thing a person could do." He complained. "I don't want to meditate. Just tell me what to do and I'll do it." Anything was better than doing nothing.
Vegeta looked up now. Raditz and Nappa had both been brushed aside by the half-saiyan so now the leader would take care of the problem. "Go to bed, half-breed." He ordered.
"Bed? Why?"
The saiyan prince gave the papers to Raditz and got up. "You're still a brat. You need your sleep. We are going to finish this up and then we're going to sleep for about five hours before we leave for your first mission." Vegeta tapped against the empty locker. "This is your locker. It's programmed to accept the first combination it encounters. You just need to make up a password, enter it and close the locker. Choose wisely because that will be your password for the rest of your life."
"I have my own locker?" Gohan questioned as Vegeta walked to the four beds.
The man pointed up at one of the beds. "That's your cot. Take a good rest. You'll need it. We'll only be travelling for about a week so we probably won't use the sleeping gas for the trip." An amused glint appeared in Vegeta's eyes. "Prepare yourself, boy. The first few days of the murderer college are the hardest." The man patted Gohan's shoulder as if he just congratulated Gohan on something important before he moved back to his comrades.
Gohan sighed but he decided to take Vegeta's advice. The boy walked to the locker, entered the same password he used on the camp and closed it. He did not own anything but at least he had a locker. Now he just needed to find things to put in it.
The half-saiyan looked up at the bed and he floated up to it. Gohan sat down, sent a hesitant glance to the other warriors, who were working again, and lay down. He closed his eyes, hoping he would fall asleep soon.
It wasn't long before the others were done and ready to go to bed. Vegeta did not waste time and crawled into his bed. The one opposite Gohan.
Raditz rubbed over his stomach. "I'm hungry. I'm going to get something to eat." He announced.
"I'm coming with you." Nappa said as he followed the other saiyan. They both sent Vegeta a questioning glance.
"Someone has to keep an eye on the brat." Vegeta said as he nodded to the bed opposite him.
"He's asleep." Raditz answered as his eyes moved to his nephew.
"He can wake up." Vegeta countered. Raditz shrugged and opened the door. Nappa followed him after Vegeta ordered him to bring something back for him. The door closed behind them and a silence fell in the room. Vegeta eyed the silent figure in the small bed on the other side on the room.
The man got up and floated closer to Gohan's bed. He leaned over the young boy to look at his face. Vegeta reached out and caressed Gohan's cheek. "I know you're awake." He said. "You can fool the others but I'm not that stupid. I can read someone's face and body without any trouble. I'll find your weaknesses and break you down. You can fight me but you'll give in eventually. Nobody wins from me."
Vegeta gently brushed through Gohan's hair and leaned in to sniff Gohan's scent. "I can smell fear, half-breed. It smells delicious. I can't wait to smell your mixture of fear." Vegeta eyed Gohan's still sleeping face. "Have a good night's rest. You'll need it. I'll see you tomorrow." Vegeta smirked as he pulled back and floated back to his own bed. While the man sat down on his bed Gohan opened his eyes. The boy suppressed a shiver as he stared at the wall.
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Gohan swallowed as he put his hands together above Vegeta's chest. Gohan had been lying awake for the past hour, wondering how to do this and gathering courage, but he was ready now. He would do it. He was going to kill Vegeta in his sleep.
He prepared an energy blast. One quick blast to the heart and Vegeta would be dead in a second. He knew it was cowardly but Vegeta was rather strong and Gohan could not afford Nappa and Raditz waking up. The boy could feel his hands were trembling a little. It would be the first kill. His first time. Why was this so difficult? Vegeta was a bastard. He just wanted to use Gohan for his own benefit. He didn't care about the half-saiyan at all.
So why was this so difficult?
Gohan hesitated and the blast in his hands diminished a bit. Should he do this? He'd kill Vegeta and then… take out Nappa and Raditz? Could he do that? And what about Frieza and his henchmen? Would they just let him go?
The boy lowered his hands. Maybe he should wait. Get them to trust him and then kill them when they least expected it. Gohan shook his head and raised his hands to Vegeta's chest again. No. He had to do it now.
A hand curled around Gohan's wrist and Vegeta opened his eyes. The half-saiyan gasped as Vegeta pulled Gohan down and pushed himself up, curling Gohan's arm on his back and pressing the half-saiyan down on the thin mattress.
"Well well, the little puppy finally shows its claws." Vegeta hissed into Gohan's ear. The boy growled in response as he tried to pull his arm free but Vegeta only tightened his grip.
"Why didn't you do it?" Vegeta asked as he put more pressure on Gohan's arm. The half-saiyan felt like it was going to pop out of his shoulder blade soon.
"I wasn't planning on doing anything." Gohan snarled back. "Let me go!" His feet kicked awkwardly in the air.
Vegeta laughed at his response. "I'm not a fool, boy. You wanted to kill me during my sleep but something stopped you." Gohan managed to push his body up on his free arm but Vegeta's tail knocked Gohan's arm away, forcing the boy to fall back onto the mattress.
The man placed a knee on the bed so he could lean on it and didn't have to put his full weight on the half-saiyan. It was easier this way, and he didn't want to be that close to a filthy hybrid. Gohan continued to struggle, which was rather tiring, so Vegeta grabbed Gohan's chin and forced the boy to look up so high that he let out an involuntary groan.
The man leaned over the boy. "If you don't strop struggling, I'm going to break your neck, got it?"
"You won't kill me because you still need me to become your perfect little soldier, right?" Gohan snarled up at him, finding it somewhat difficult to talk when manhandled in this way.
Vegeta smirked back at him. "Are you willing to bet your life on that?"
Gohan contemplated this for a moment. Did he trust Vegeta with his life? The answer was clear when Gohan relaxed. Vegeta released his chin and allowed Gohan to move his head around so he could ease the hurting muscles in his neck.
"Why didn't you do it?" Vegeta asked again.
Gohan hesitated. "I wasn't doing any…STOP." Gohan snarled at the man when Vegeta pushed against his elbow, putting more strain on his arm.
"Don't lie to me, half-breed. It's such a waste of time." Vegeta stopped pushing against Gohan's elbow but kept it in this very painful position.
"I couldn't do it." Gohan replied, trying hard not to sound like he was in pain.
Vegeta eased the pressure on Gohan's elbow. "You haven't killed before, have you?" The man asked.
Gohan pressed his lips together for a moment before he answered. "It's none of your business AUCH." Again, Vegeta already punished Gohan before he could even answer the question fully by grabbing his cheek and pinching it harshly. The boy had never felt anything like it. Nobody had ever done that to him, not even the specialists.
"Who said I don't know how to handle bad children?" Vegeta teased as he released Gohan's cheek. "I know exactly what to do." The boy squeezed his eyes shut when Vegeta pinched his cheek again. "It got you talking last time, remember?"
"What?"
"I did the exact same thing when a certain four-year-old refused to answer my questions truthfully." Vegeta explained.
"Did you now?" Gohan frowned as he stared ahead. "I can't remember."
"That means I didn't pinch hard enough back then." Vegeta muttered, actually sounding like he was chastising himself.
"Let me go, Vegeta." Gohan snarled over his shoulder. "You win. You've had your fun. It's over."
The boy groaned when Vegeta pinched in his cheek again, harder this time. The half-saiyan could still feel his cheek burning even when Vegeta released it. "Do you really think you'll get away with attempting to kill me?" He asked as he pulled back. "Are you really that stupid?"
"I will succeed one day." Gohan said as he looked up.
"Hmmm." Vegeta pushed against Gohan's elbow again. "But for now you're still too weak to be capable of murder." The man smirked when Gohan let out another pained sound. "And you're too weak to overpower me." The man leaned in closer while he applied even more pressure on Gohan's arm. "If you try something like this again I will personally break both your legs and arms, got it?"
"Yes." Gohan groaned out. "I got it."
"Good." Vegeta released the boy and floated back to give Gohan more room to get up. "Go back to your cot." He ordered, watching as Gohan got up as well and got off the bed. The man gave the boy an encouraging push against his back, forcing Gohan to almost slam into the side of his own bed.
Gohan crawled onto his bed and sat down on it. Vegeta lay back down and closed his eyes. "Oh, and don't think this is over, boy. We will talk about this during our first training." He said, opening one eye to glare at Gohan.
"Are you two done now?" Nappa growled. "Ugh. I enjoyed the morning performance but the show has been going on for too long now."
"You should have said something right from the beginning when the boy got out of his bed." Raditz replied. "Would have saved us a lot of trouble."
"But it wouldn't have been as amusing now would it?" Nappa said as a smirk appeared on his face. "Though next time, half-breed, you could do without the suspense before you actually make the kill."
Gohan hugged his legs to his chest and hid his face behind them. He thought they were all asleep but in reality they'd followed his every move from the moment he got out of his own bed. Why had he been so stupid?
"One hour before we get up, guys. Make it count." Vegeta said before yawning. The man turned away from Gohan.
The earth-born saiyan decided to take Vegeta's advice and he slowly let his body sink sideways onto his pillow. The young warrior willed this world and the three adults away. He closed his eyes tightly and hoped he could fall into a deep sleep, but his body refused. In about an hour, they would all get up again. He would have to face them and now he actually got them angry. Gohan suppressed a sigh. The young warrior drifted off to a slumber and exactly one hour later, Vegeta woke them all up.
It was time for them to leave for Gohan's first mission.
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