Thanks for the reviews on the previous chapter!
Previously on A Halfbreed's Life:
Vegeta sat down on a branch and yawned again. He frowned as he looked around. What was taking the brat so long? He noticed a small rodent and he pointed his finger at it. A purple beam shot right through the rodent, killing it instantly. Vegeta smirked as he got up to fetch it. That would make a nice waiting snack.
The man lazily ate the flesh of the rodent as he waited. He left a small bit for the half-saiyan. The young warrior would appreciate that. However, when Vegeta finished eating Gohan still wasn't there. The saiyan prince frowned as he got up and looked around. "Half-breed! What is taking you so long?" He snarled. The man reached up to scan for Gohan's power level.
Vegeta widened his eyes when the scouter could not find Gohan's particular energy level. The man opened the line of communication to the half-saiyan. "Half-breed. Come in…. Are you there...? If you don't answer now I'll have your balls for dinner, brat!"
Vegeta waited for a few second as he realized what was happening. The Saiyan prince opened the communication line to the other two Saiyans. "Raditz. Nappa. Half-breed is gone."
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
"Dear Vegeta, I seem to miss one of yours. Has he been beaten up so much that he needed to consult the rejuvenation tank?" Frieza asked curiously.
Vegeta considered lying but he knew Frieza would find out eventually. The man asked for Gohan to meet him often enough. Same went for the Ginyu Force and Zarbon. Vegeta would only get in trouble if he lied to Frieza now. "No sir. We lost the boy."
"He died?"
"No. He… He left the planet without our permission." Vegeta decided to just throw it out there. The whole situation was a huge blow to his pride and if he ever saw that runt again, the boy would pay for it dearly.
"He left the planet without your permission." Frieza repeated slowly. "So, he ran away?"
"Affirmative, sir."
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
Gohan sat up when another tremor vibrated through his body and he realized that it was coming from the ground beneath him. The half-saiyan quickly got up and levitated in the air when the ground actually began to shake heavily. Gohan watched in terror when he noticed the cracks that appeared in the ground. What the hell was happening?
Gohan flew up higher when the water in the stream started to splash over its edges. Just then he became aware of the sounds. Screaming. Crying. Buildings breaking down. Gohan looked around in shock for a moment. Was this planet being purged? Was that going on?
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
Even though the shaking stopped after a couple of tremors, the aftermath was so horrifying that it kept Gohan busy till the end of the day. Even after saving people from the dangers of the fallen stones and vehicles, other natives were still buried under the rubble and Gohan spent a lot of time sensing out the tiny life-forces and digging out the victims. It wasn't long before people started to notice that Gohan could pinpoint the exact location of the trapped people and they came up to him with questioning glances, asking him things in their language. At this time, Gohan's only job was to sense where the victims were, point out their location to a group of people and the natives would start to dig there. Meanwhile Gohan was already moving on to the next life-force with yet another group of volunteers following him closely.
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
After putting in several more hours of searching for the remaining bodies, a small group of inhabitants ushered Gohan to one of the large tents. There beds were standing in neat rows, many occupied. And Gohan realized they wanted him to sleep. The half-saiyan once again smiled his thanks and nodded before crawling into a bed.
As he allowed his body to rest, Gohan thought about the smiles he'd seen today. He thought about the hugs he received from the aliens and the joy everyone experienced when they saw their loved ones were still alive. Not for the first time, Gohan realized that this was the type of person he wanted to be. He never wanted to kill a soul again. No, from now on, he would travel the universe, saving everyone he could.
A smile was on Gohan's face as he finally fell asleep, feeling safe and happy for the first time in a long while.
Chapter 25. An Unexpected Prison
Gohan spend the following days doing the exact same as he did the day before. On this day the civilians made sure to feed him properly before they called in his help. If it was left up to Gohan, he would have started working right away but common sense made him realize that he would be of more use to everyone here if he had enough energy. Therefore, food was important. So he helped these people. Day after day he spent helping them dig out survivors, repair broken buildings and tend to people's injuries. This continued for several days until Gohan realized something horrifying.
Using his energy, Gohan tried really hard to feel something. Anything… But there was nothing anymore. There were still civilians missing but Gohan couldn't feel any amount of energy anymore. The young warrior looked up when a female started talking to him. She saw Gohan's expression and she gasped, putting her hands in front of her mouth before the tears started running down her cheeks. Gohan's expression told them all they needed to know.
The half-saiyan let out a deep sigh. How was he supposed to tell these people that they were not going to find any more survivors? Explaining something like this was already hard enough when knowing the language. Gohan powered up and put all his energy into finding something, anything, but he could feel his power failing him. There was nothing. Tears pricked in his eyes as he punched down into the ground. This wasn't fair. He was supposed to save people this time. Why was he not allowed to save all of them? He growled when he realized the presence of the tears and briskly wiped them away. This was no time to cry. And it wouldn't help anyone either.
Gohan looked up when he heard screams. Miles and miles away he could see that a building was crumbling down and a particularly large bit of debris was about to crush a group of volunteers that was digging there. Gohan didn't think as he powered up and flew towards the scene. He caught the danger easily as he put his hands upwards and caught the debris before throwing it away to a safe area. Gohan smiled in relieve. He made it. They were saved.
However, this smile froze on his face when he heard clapping coming from someone above him. The half-saiyan looked up and a cold sensation ran down his spine.
"Well well, that was quite a show." A man was floating in front of a group of warriors. They were all dressed in uniforms that appeared very familiar to the half-saiyan but they were also somewhat different. Gohan couldn't really put his finger on it but something was different.
The foreign warrior was obviously not from this planet. The entire squad was made up of different races. The man who appeared to be the leader was tall and bulky – typical – and he had a light-blue skin tone. Small grey spikes erupted from his skull and the same spikes were seen on the man's light-blue tail.
"I'll admit I never thought I would see a saiyan so small." The same warrior exclaimed cheerfully. "Most of you are all grown up by now and since the planet was destroyed even before I was born, I never expected to see child saiyans."
Gohan swallowed but his throat felt too dry to do that. What just happened? How did he not notice these people sneaking up on him? Were they the reason that building collapsed? Did they just do that to see if he could use energy at will? How could he have been so stupid?
"Look at you." A voice whispered in his ear and Gohan quickly whirled around and stepped back, away from the female soldier who was standing right next to him. She grinned at his reaction, showing off her black teeth. "You're adorable. Oooh, I do love children." She let out a snake-like tongue and licked her lips.
Gohan didn't get time to wonder whether she loved children in a loving manner or just loved to have them for dinner because the squad leader landed right behind him. Gohan was forced to turn sideways in order to keep them both in his direct eye-sight.
The squad leader tilted his head as he studied the young half-saiyan. "The name is Furani. What's yours?"
Gohan didn't respond. He knew he couldn't just tell them his name. His thoughts went back to his space pod. He considered flying away and making a run for it. However, he would need a few minutes to launch his space pod and he wasn't sure how fast these people were. If they were faster than him he would never have enough time to leave. He would only lead them to his space pod.
"Maybe he can't speak our language." The female offered as her bright green eyes moved to her leader.
"Or maybe he doesn't want to." Furani responded, his eyes still on the half-saiyan. "I advise you to work with us, kiddo. We have our ways of making people speak."
Gohan felt another icy sensation run down his spine. The half-saiyan decided that it wouldn't hurt if they thought he couldn't speak their language so he opened his mouth and let out a string of sounds that made no sense whatsoever.
"Did any of you get that?" Furani asked as he looked at the others. The other soldiers landed near them and they all shook their heads. "Maybe he really doesn't speak our language."
"Should we take him to our master?" The female asked as she looked at Furani.
"Of course." Furani responded. "Just imagine the bonus we will receive for bringing in a new soldier and a good one at that. The speed and strength he displayed earlier was not nothing."
"We might even get to keep him!" She said cheerfully. "Our own little teddy." She spread her arms to Gohan but the half-saiyan stepped back, away from her.
Furani laughed. "Keep your mother-feelings at bay please. I'm not sure if I want to have to teach the brat how to speak properly."
"All in due time." The female soldier smiled at Gohan. "I'll have to teach him who is his favourite big sister though."
Gohan could feel a sensation he felt before. He'd been through this way too often. People who he just met were speaking about him as if they were going to stay together forever. They expected to own him from now on. And they didn't even bother asking him his opinion. He could feel anger rising in his body. These people were just like the Saiyans, just like Frieza.
"Hey Furani!" One of the other soldiers called as he looked around. "Can we start here?"
"Oh yes. Go ahead. These people are weak. I'll take the boy to our ship." Furani stated as he looked at the other soldiers.
Gohan frowned, momentarily confused, but the situation became painfully clear when the soldiers powered up and started sending beams to the helpless people. Screams were heard when the civilians realized what was happening. Gohan clenched his fists as he powered up. He raced forwards to punch the first soldier down but ropes wrapped around his arms and legs and pulled him back.
"Where are you going, sweetheart?" The female soldier smiled as she pulled the young warrior closer. Gohan now realized that the ropes were actually strange tentacles coming from the sides of the female soldier.
Gohan powered up and tensed his muscles in order to break free from her grip but the tentacles only tightened around his body.
"Oooohhh." She licked her lips once again. "He's strong."
The half-saiyan groaned involuntarily when the tentacles tightened a little too much around his body. His bones winced painfully and Gohan let out a soft whimper as he lowered his gaze.
A scream distracted the half-saiyan and he noticed that a soldier was holding one of the civilians he knew. The civilian made angry sounds and pointed at Gohan before pointing at the soldiers, as if to tell them to release the half-saiyan. The soldier easily lifted the man off the ground by holding his throat, slowly choking the civilian.
A jolt of anger ran through the half-saiyan at the sight of the suffering man. "LET HIM GO!" He screamed angrily.
A gasp was heard from beside him. "He speaks our language." The female soldier said excitedly.
"Interesting." Furani appeared next to the half-saiyan and he grabbed Gohan's chin, forcing the half-saiyan to look in his direction. "So you were pretending that you didn't understand us. You'll have to learn right now, kiddo, I don't like it when my subordinates lie to me."
"I'm not your subordinate." Gohan growled in response. "Now let me go or you'll be sorry."
Furani laughed in response. "Well kiddo. I'm afraid you are the one who is going to be sorry." He said as he looked back to the young warrior. "Now, let's start by answering a couple of questions. Are you here alone?" Gohan's eyes wandered off when civilians screamed and Furani tightened his grip painfully on Gohan's chin. "Focus here, saiyan." Gohan looked back to the man. "Answer my question."
"Let me go."
"Iona." Furani stated briefly and almost immediately a powerful shock went right through the half-saiyan's body. Gohan let out a shocked scream in response. What the hell was going on here? "Now tell me what I want to know."
"No." Gohan lied in response.
"So there are more saiyans with you?"
"No."
"Iona." Furani stated again and once more the electricity went through the young warrior. The half-saiyan endured the pain in silence, gritting his teeth together. "Honestly, this would all be so much easier if you would just give me my answers." Furani said slowly.
Gohan refused to speak after that. No matter how many times Iona shocked him, he remained silent until… Iona raised her eyebrows when the half-saiyan's body went limp in her tentacles. "He lost consciousness?" She asked as she looked up at her boss.
Furani made a face. "Great. Bring him to our ship and make sure he doesn't go anywhere. We'll take him back to the mothership. Our master knows how to get answers from even the most stubborn people."
**** Several Hours Later ***
"Are you sure it's a saiyan though?"
Gohan didn't recognize the voice. He woke up a while ago in a dark world. At first he worried whether he died but after a while he realized he heard other voices. Other prisoners? He tried to move his hands but they were stuck together behind his back. He blinked with his eyes and opened them widely to find out whether he was blindfolded or actually blind but he couldn't discern whether it was the first or the later. Just when he was about to try to power up he heard voices coming closer.
"Let me show you, master."
A door was opened, footsteps approached and a moment later hands grabbed Gohan's arms and roughly hauled him up. While he was forced forwards he realized there were two pairs of hands coming from either side of him. Two guards? Maybe the people he fought before he ended up here. He couldn't remember much of what happened before he lost consciousness.
Before he could focus on the sounds around him the young warrior was forced down on his knees. The half-saiyan managed not to make a sound when his knees painfully crashed down on the ground. A hand pushed against the area between Gohan's shoulder blades, forcing the young warrior to bow down to the ground, before grabbing hold of the half-saiyan's furry tail and holding it up.
"I'd say this is a frank giveaway, lord." Furani stated as he showed the tail to the unknown person.
Gohan wanted to tell the bastard to get his fucking hands off his body but something was keeping his lips sealed tightly together. There was nothing he could say or do.
"Interesting." Spoke the voice Gohan realized belonged to the "Master" and "Lord".
A moment later the blindfold was taken away from his eyes. The young warrior closed his eyes immediately to protect his pupils from the sudden light that attacked them. After a moment he opened his eyes again to look at the person in front of him and he widened them in an instant as a sound escaped from his throat.
Frieza!
The young warrior powered up but nothing happened. The half-saiyan looked over his shoulder and gave a confused look at the glowing bonds around his wrists. What were these things?
A cold hand grabbed Gohan's chin and forced him to look straight ahead again. The large man was crouching in front of the half-saiyan as he studied the young warrior. Gohan could feel a trickle of fear running down his spine when he noticed the expression in the man's eyes. He'd seen that gleam before… In the eyes of his former master, Frieza.
"What is a saiyan doing in my jurisdiction? And such a tiny one at that. I know that Saiyans keep their youthful appearance for a long time but I doubt they can actually grow younger over time. You must be a cub." He released the young warrior and got up fully. "Untie him."
Half a second later Gohan's hands were free and the young warrior quickly got up before removing the gag himself. "Who are you?" He stated, frowning at the man.
Before he knew it he was grabbed from behind. A fist curled into his hair and pulled him back roughly before a knee landed in his stomach. The young warrior let out a pained gasp as the air was forced out of his body. Furani forced Gohan to kneel down again, pushing the young warrior's head down while still holding him by his black hair. "You will address Lord Cooler by his title, filthy monkey."
"Now now, such violence isn't necessary with a baby, Furani." Lord Cooler sounded both amused and bemused by the situation.
"Better start young to make sure the message sinks in, sire." Furani replied sweetly.
"You got a point there but I think he got it, didn't you little saiyan?"
Gohan looked up once he was released and he nodded to the lord. "Yes Lord Cooler." He stated meekly. He knew these types of people were used to people giving them what they wanted. If Gohan continued to be nice and obedient, he might be able to play this guy.
The young warrior stood up, aware of the gazes on him. He was happy he thought of getting rid of his armor. It would have been a clear giveaway as to his previous profession. Lord Cooler tilted his head sideways as he considered the young half-saiyan. "What's your name, little saiyan?"
"Icarus." Gohan responded. It was a name that he'd written in his notebook a very long time ago.
"Not a typical saiyan name." Cooler responded. "Who is your father?"
The young warrior shrugged. "Dead. He died when my planet was purged several years ago. We were both stranded on that planet. When the planet was purged my father fought to defend it and he told me to get the heck out of there. That's what I did."
"What was the planet's name?"
"Qea." Gohan used the name of a planet he read in the files of his saiyan squad. It was a planet purged several years ago, right before Vegeta and the others picked Gohan up from the camp. He shouldn't be visible in the files.
"The planet was purged about four years ago by the saiyan team." Furani stated. He looked at Cooler. "That would explain why they killed their fellow saiyan and why this one was told to get away. They have prejudices against half-breeds. Those monkeys would have skinned the kid alive."
Gohan managed to maintain a sober expression when Cooler looked back to him. "Well then. You see, I share the Planet Trade Organization with my foolish brother. Frieza, you might have heard of him."
"I might have." Gohan responded briefly.
"Anyway, we both have our own jurisdiction to take care of. Frieza always boasts about his strong little monkey squad and how he managed to dominate the remainder of the saiyan race by blowing up their planet."
So Vegeta was right about that. The planet wasn't struck by a meteor, Gohan thought as he studied the man in front of him.
"Do you have any experience in fighting?" Cooler asked. Gohan only shook his head. "Furani." Cooler only had to say the word and Furani grabbed hold of Gohan's shirt and ripped it off. Gohan's lips tightened on each other as he realized what Cooler was getting at. "So you grew all these muscles just by staying on a good diet, right?"
"I just want to go home." Gohan tried as he crossed his arms over each other.
"I don't like it when my subordinates are dishonest to me." Cooler snarled in response.
"I don't work for you." Gohan stated calmly. "Please. Allow me to leave the ship."
"It's a little too late for that. You're young but you're obviously a trained fighter. You could be very valuable for my army. I want you to join us." Cooler stated, smirking as if he just gave Gohan his dearest deepest wish.
"Can I decline your offer?" Gohan said slowly. The young warrior noticed the change of expression on Cooler's face to a dark one. "I'm really not that experienced in fighting. I just lift a lot of weights." The young warrior tried. "Please. Let me go back home."
"Your planet was destroyed and your father was killed. You were travelling the universe on your own." Cooler responded. "I think it's safe to say you don't have a home so why bother trying to return to it?"
Gohan couldn't very quickly think of something to say in response to that but that was fine since Cooler had enough to say on his own: "No I think you just don't want to join my army. That's okay though. Not everyone sees the merits of my way of life right away. Some people need to experience some encouragement at first."
Gohan's body went cold when he saw the dark expression on Cooler's face. The tall man turned to Furani. "It's been a long day. Why don't you show Icarus to his room so he can get some rest? Room 456 sounds good enough."
"I'd rather leave right away." Gohan stated as he stepped away from Furani, who was already approaching him.
"It's rude to decline hospitality, little saiyan. Let me treat you to a warm bed and a nice breakfast in the morning. We'll talk again when the time comes." Cooler said sweetly.
"Can you at least take these off?" Gohan put his arms forwards and showed the still blinking bonds around his wrists.
A smirk appeared on Cooler's face. "Goodnight now."
Furani placed a hand on Gohan's shoulder and not too gently forced him to start walking. "Let's go, Saiyan."
Gohan considered fighting him off but he realized Cooler was a lot stronger than he was. Furani might not be as strong as Cooler but it was too dangerous to try to attack him. The young warrior was lead to a door through which Furani led him. The man gave the young warrior a smirk. "Good night, kiddo."
"Goodnight." Gohan stated, somewhat put off by this treatment. The door closed and Gohan waited for a bit to make sure the man was gone. He placed a hand on the door opener but nothing happened. The young warrior growled. They locked him in.
**** Several Hours Later ****
After the confrontation with Cooler, Gohan decided to get some sleep. It would calm him down. He needed a nap and afterwards he would gather his thoughts and find out what it would take to get out of here.
"Good morning."
Gohan blinked and looked right into Iona's bright eyes. The young warrior gasped and moved backwards but her tentacles already took hold of him. She dragged him out of the bed and right into her arms. Gohan shivered at the feeling of her tentacles on his arms and torso. He pushed away from her, trying to get out of her grip but he realized how futile it was when he felt her strong arms close around him. In that instance he could feel her power. So much power. She was easily stronger than Vegeta… Stronger than Captain Ginyu?
"Oooohh, you're so cute and cuddly." She stated sweetly as she hugged him.
Furani chuckled. "Let him go, Iona. He looks properly terrified." He stated as he dropped a bundle of clothes on the bed.
Iona released her grip on him and Gohan stepped backwards, away from her. "Oh come on, he's just not used to receiving love from a woman."
Gohan wasn't sure what to do. He was usually nice to women but that was because they tended to be nice to him. However, this woman was not nice. She was a fighter. She was just like Vegeta, Zarbon and even Frieza. She was one of them.
"Get dressed, kiddo." Furani stated as he looked at the half-saiyan. "We're going out."
Gohan looked at the clothes and realized it was a uniform, armor, boots and gloves. The young warrior could feel a sinking sensation of familiarity. He hoped he would never have to wear one of these again. He looked up. "Can I wear something else?"
Furani only raised an eyebrow at him and Gohan already got his answer from just that movement. "It's not really your place to make requests, kiddo. You wear this or you're going out looking like that." Furani gave a pointed look at the half-naked warrior. Gohan's shirt was destroyed yesterday when Furani ripped it off in order to see how muscled Gohan was under his clothing.
"I wouldn't mind." Iona stated cheerfully as she tilted her head sideways.
Gohan sent her an annoyed glance, only earning a laugh from her in response, before grabbing the clothing. He moved to a small screen in the corner and stepped behind it so he was hidden from their sight as he changed.
"You're drooling, Iona." Furani joked from somewhere in the room.
Iona laughed again. "Oh come on. He's so cute. Honestly, though, if he keeps training like this, just imagine how hot he will be when he's an adult." She let out a sigh. "And I am the woman of the team so I got dibs!"
Gohan frowned as he listened to the conversation. Iona reminded him an awful lot of Biku. His friend was nicer though. Whenever he looked in Biku's eyes, he felt a warm sensation, almost like friendship. However, when he looked into Iona's eyes he felt nothing but iciness. The half-saiyan lowered his gaze for a moment as he thought about Biku. He would probably never see her again. The young warrior let out a sigh. Why was life always so difficult for him? He finally managed to escape from Frieza's empire and now he was stuck in the empire of Frieza's brother? And there were even stronger warriors under Cooler's control... They were stronger than the Ginyu Force. He hated that he never knew that. If he did, he would have never stayed in this part of the universe for so long. He would have left right away.
"Are you coming out any time soon?" Furani called from behind the screens.
Gohan didn't really want to go back to them but he figured he didn't really have a choice. The young warrior walked around the screen and back into their sight. Furani nodded approvingly as he eyed the young warrior up and down. "This looks a lot better than that outfit you were wearing before."
Gohan didn't respond as he walked closer to them. It wasn't the first time he heard a soldier say Gohan looked good in a uniform and armor. He was definitely not happy that he was wearing this outfit. He hated it. But he also knew that complaining or resisting would not help him right now. He would have to be patient again. Bide his time. Find a new moment to escape. And this time he would run far away. He would travel to the furthest corner of the universe and hide there from all these horrible people.
"Alrighty." Furani stated as he placed his hands on his hips. "Lord Cooler wants to see you so we'll bring you to him."
Gohan nodded and they started their stroll to Lord Cooler's common room. As they were walking Gohan was wondering how open these two would be to questions. Some soldiers hated it when he asked questions, others didn't mind… Well… Most soldiers tended to bite his head off when he started asking questions.
"Sir?" Gohan stated, deciding to take the chance.
"Me?" Furani asked as he glanced sideways. "Call me Furani, kid."
"Furani." Gohan was already expecting Furani to say something like that but he was playing it safe. Staying polite. "What's going to happen to me?"
Furani shrugged as he looked straight ahead again. "Lord Cooler wants you to join the army." He stated casually. "He is going to test your strength and then put you in a team that is on your level. I expect that Lord wants you to join our squad. Saiyan warriors tend to get real strong when trained well. You might not be much right now but once you've spend a couple of years with us, training vigorously, you'll be thrice as strong as you are now."
That did sound interesting. Sadly, Gohan knew exactly what it meant to be a soldier in an army like this one. "So, what do you do as a soldier? What's the work you do?"
Iona sent the young warrior a smile. "It really depends on your team. Regular soldiers go on missions. We, however, are the special team. We spend most of our time training here and when the enemies make real trouble, we show them just how strong Cooler's army is."
They don't go on regular missions? Gohan lowered his gaze as he let this sink into his mind. "So… Do you murder people?" He tried to ask this as childishly as possible. Maybe if they thought he was a spineless young child, they would let him go… Or kill him. He would have to take that risk.
"Not that often." Furani responded. "Depends on the mission."
"Would I have to do that?" Gohan asked, again innocent as he could pretend to be.
"Not necessarily." Iona shrugged as well. "We don't mind doing the dirty work so if you really join our team, as long as you help us beat our enemy up, we could finish it properly."
"If we feel like it." Furani added, sending Iona a warning glance.
"Is that something you're afraid of?" Iona asked curiously.
Gohan glanced to her and noticed the manner in which she was studying him. He was getting sick and tired of that kind of glances. People would look at him and size him up, calculating how much he would be worth, how much they could earn from enslaving him. Would he be strong enough to fight their battles for them? How could they use him in the most profitable way?
A thought popped into the young warrior's head. "What happened to the people on the planet where you found me?" He asked as he looked up at Furani. The man did not return his glance or answer his question. Gohan clenched his fists. "Tell me!" He snarled. The half-saiyan grabbed Furani's arm harshly. "I swear if you hurt my friends I'll ki…"
Gohan's sentence was interrupted by a punch from Furani. The young warrior was pushed back by the strength of it, tripping over his own feet and falling on his back. A hand curled around the collar of his uniform and pulled him up. Furani's face appeared close to Gohan's vision as the man pulled the young warrior up so high that Gohan's feet lost contact with the floor. "You will not use force on me, do you hear me, you monkey?" Furani snarled into Gohan's face. "I am the leader of this squad and therefore your superordinate. You will treat me with proper respect. Do you understand me?" He tightened his grip on Gohan's collar, tightening the fabric around the half-saiyan's throat.
"Yes sir." Gohan stated in response. He was used to this kind of treatment. Nothing could really throw him off anymore. That didn't mean that he liked hanging in the air by his neck so he decided to cooperate this time.
"Good." Furani dropped the half-saiyan and the young warrior landed neatly on his feet. "The planet was purged. We killed every living being on the surface. There's your answer. Now be quiet as we lead you to Lord Cooler."
Gohan's body felt cold as he meekly followed the other two warriors. Dead? They were all dead? What happened? Why couldn't he protect them? And why did he care so much? He was only with them for a day. They weren't family or friends… He didn't even know their names. Still, darkness settled in his torso. A heavy feeling inside his colon, his stomach, his lungs, everywhere, it wouldn't disappear. Gohan could feel his lower lip starting to tremble, his face wanting to contort to a cry but he couldn't let it happen. He had to be strong. There was no time for mourning. He was still alive and he had to survive.
Furani and Iona brought him to a large common room. A slave opened the door and let them through. Gohan caught sight of Cooler right before Furani hissed "Kneel."
Gohan decided to cooperate once more and he knelt down together with Furani and Iona. Lord Cooler showed a cold smile when he noticed the young warrior. "At ease." Cooler stated as he motioned for them to get up. "So, little Saiyan, have you considered my offer?"
The young warrior swallowed heavily, his throat feeling dry. "Yes, I have, sir." He stated loudly and clearly.
"And what is your answer?"
Gohan looked up and met the monster's gaze. Lord Cooler, the brother of Lord Frieza, and co-owner of the Planet Trade Organization. The man would not take no for an answer, just like his brother Frieza. Gohan knew this. Accepting the man's offer would be the one and only option. Then again, Gohan was never good at meekly following the rules created by those more powerful than him.
No. Gohan knew exactly what he was going to answer. The only thing left to do now was just say it and accept the consequences. The young warrior took a breath to prepare his body for what he was about to say and he opened his mouth to say it.
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
Most of you knew that Gohan's luck couldn't last too long ^^
Please review and let me know what you think!