Though the journey to Canova was only a matter of days, it felt like an eternity. Bardock was incredibly restless. He couldn't sleep, and really had no one to talk to. While they were in their pods, they tried to keep to themselves, especially since there was really no way to have a private conversation with just one other person. He was sure that the others were having an equally unpleasant time.
When they finally landed in the outskirts of a Canovan forest, Bardock had never felt happier. Finally, his thirst would be quenched. His companions were out of their pods just as quickly as ever. Bardock could feel the excitement radiating from them. It mixed with his own, as though this emotion of euphoria would not be able to be contained by his body. This was what he lived for.
He led them through the forest, and they found lodging in a cave. They set up camp for the night, all too eager to fight, but the time wasn't quite right. Bardock looked up at the sky, staring at the moon. He studied its shape, intently. His elation slightly deflated when he realized what phase it was in. They would have to wait at least a day more.
"There should only be a day or two until the full moon," Bardock informed them. "Until then, we'll just lie low. You know the drill." Borgos went back to chewing on… whatever it was he had. Shugesh lay on his back, and heaved a deep sigh. Fasha just looked bored. She kept her back to the fire, leaned back on her arms, and closed her eyes. It took Bardock several seconds until he realized he didn't see Sona. He stood and walked to the mouth of the cave. Sona was sitting a little distance off, staring up at the waxing crescent. He slowly approached.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" She asked, hearing him approach, but not taking her eyes off the luminescent orb. He looked up. He never really gave the moon much thought, unless it was a full moon. Even then, he didn't spend too much time staring at it. But now that Sona brought it to his attention, he realized it did have a calming effect. Still staring at the moon, he sat beside her. "Sometimes I forget it's up there," she said. "But, when I need to clear my head, it's always there." They sat in silence for several seconds. Bardock couldn't help but realize how unusual Sona was. She seemed to be way more… tame than the others.
Sona pulled her knees up to her chest, and flicked her tail back and forth. She wasn't really used to the company of others. Back on her old team, she was generally avoided. She was the only girl, and one of the only third classers. No one really liked her; they just knew she could get the job done. But Bardock was giving her more attention than she was used to. She didn't hate it, but at the same time, she wasn't sure how to react to it. He was still like most Saiyans in many ways; heartless, bloodthirsty, and arrogant, but there was an odd sort of compassion hidden behind that mask. She noticed he seemed to genuinely care not only about her, but about all the others on his crew. It was a different feeling for her.
"Sometimes, I find myself wishing we didn't need the moon," Bardock said, breaking the silence. Sona pulled her eyes away from the sky and looked at him. "Waiting around isn't really my idea of being productive. Or having fun," he said, laughing a little. Sona stood, still looking at him. She had a half grin on her face, and her hands on her hips.
"Fun, huh?" she said. She knew exactly what he meant. Just sitting here waiting for a chance to attack was hardly what she wanted to be doing. "Maybe we can kill some time by making fun of our own. Without waiting for the moon." She coiled her body, preparing to strike. She had seen Bardock fight before, and was anxious for the chance to see how she matched up. Besides, she hadn't really had a sparring partner since slaughtering Anker. Almost instinctively, Bardock got to his feet, his body tensing up as well.
They both lunged for each other, moving swiftly. Sona delivered several kicks, but Bardock managed to block them. There was intense power behind them, and they managed to sting his arms a little. In return, Sona successfully blocked the attacks he threw at her. They were quite evenly matched. Bardock began to increase the speed with which he attacked, but Sona was still able to keep up. Their battle began to become more like a dance. Their limbs wound in and out of each other and their bodies moved together in perfect time. Sona moved gracefully and fluidly, never breaking the tempo she had set for herself. Her face was furrowed in concentration. Bardock had, once again, allowed himself to be distracted by her, and she quickly overpowered him. Before he had time to realize what had happened, he was on his back. His arms were pinned by Sona's strong hands. She was crouching over him, breathing heavily but smiling victoriously. It was hard for her to believe that she had just bested one of the strongest third classers she had ever encountered. She would have considered it luck, because somehow she believed Bardock was distracted by her. Her Saiyan pride pushed this idea aside and insisted that she won simply because she was better than he. Her eyes fell into his for only a moment. In that split second, her elation at winning was swallowed up by another desire. A desire that she had never really experienced this intensely before: lust.
"Yield," she said, and she playfully kissed his jaw line. She released his arms and stood. Bardock followed suit. His defeat stung, he wouldn't deny that. It seemed that Sona had discovered his weak point, whether she was aware of it or not. He didn't even want to admit to himself that he had a weak spot, but its presence was becoming clearer.
"Not bad," he said, grinning and looking down into her glowing face. He could sense that there was something written deeper in her face, aside from the satisfaction. Her eyes had taken a more intense stare, like she was determined to have something. Bardock recognized the feeling, something similar stirring up within him. Even then, as he faced her, he felt his own desires flare up.
Sona's heart rate was increasing rapidly. Bardock was just staring at her. It wasn't an intimidating stare, but was more of an intense curiosity. It was taking all she had in her to refrain from grabbing him. She flicked her tail back and forth nervously, but didn't dare remove her eyes from Bardock's face. She couldn't screw anything up. He was her captain. Any other sort of relationship was pretty much forbidden, she reasoned with herself. She'd have no crew to join. And the last thing she wanted to do was to get Bardock mad. She stood still as a stone, wishing her body not to move. She'd never wanted anything this badly in her life. She wanted Bardock, not only in the carnal sense, but she wanted to have his constant companionship. It would be nice to have a companion again. It had been such a long time since she had felt any sort of attachment to someone else. But she couldn't. She couldn't get attached. She scolded herself for thinking such weak and foolish thoughts, and tried to regain her senses. The seconds dragged out into what felt like an eternity.
Bardock was sure that only a few seconds had passed, not that he was counting. At this point, he was past his limit. There seemed to be some sort of battle that Sona was waging with herself. He could see the lightning in her eyes and the nervous twitch of her tail. His anger at his defeat had melted away. Now he had one single desire. He knew it was a horrible idea; it was just a matter of convincing himself to walk away. Try as he did to resist, the animal inside him pushed aside any of the sane thoughts he had in his head. Without even thinking, he had grabbed Sona by the arms with a gentle urgency. He pulled her forward and felt the warmth of her lips against his. Immediately, he felt Sona's tense, rigid muscles relax, almost melting into his own. She unfolded her arms and ran her fingers gently through his hair. When they broke apart, Bardock flashed a half grin. She smiled in return, and laced her fingers through his. Though they were strong and supple, they were surprisingly soft.
"Well, I guess we could say we've had a productive evening," she said. She heaved a satisfied sigh and turned her attention back to the moon. "I don't think you should worry too much, Bardock. We'll be able to attack, this time tomorrow."
"Let's hope so," he muttered. He didn't turn to the moon, but kept his eyes on Sona. She was different. She seemed to be more innocent and naive than any other Saiyan he had encountered. Most would have considered this a weakness, but he found it to be one of her strengths. It was curious, really.
"Bardock!" Fasha called from the cave. He could hear her approaching them. He didn't want to untwine his fingers from Sona's, but he knew he had to. If their attraction was to develop, no one could know. Especially not his crew. One day, the time would be right, but it was not now. Besides, Fasha was like a sister to him. He had known her almost his whole life. She was the only female he was close to, and given the way that she reacted to Sona joining the team, he didn't want to upset her further. He gently released Sona's hand, and turned to Fasha.
"It's getting late," she said, stating the obvious. "If we're going to be up any later, we should talk strategies. Otherwise, we should rest. They say the Canovans are peaceful, but you can't always trust the database."
"Good idea," Sona said, starting off toward the cave. She had a light spring in her step. Bardock moved to follow her into the cave, but Fasha stopped him by placing her hand on his chest.
"Bardock," she said gently. She looked at him, her eyes soft. "I didn't mean to snap when you told us about Sona. I've just grown accustomed to being the only strong female in your group of imbeciles," she grinned. Bardock hadn't seen her smile in a while. It was a relief to finally see a relaxed expression on Fasha's face. "I guess I'm just not used to the way things have changed. But, Bardock, just promise me," she said, but she began to hesitate. "Promise me nothing is happening between you and Sona."
"Of course not, Fasha," Bardock lied. She had always been protective of him, even before she realized she was two years his elder. He wasn't sure that she bought his lie. Her deep violet eyes were still searching his face, scrutinizing him. Eventually, she removed her hand and let him pass, following closely behind him.
Fasha had known Bardock since their people had fought the Tuffles. They were both young then. But something about being the only girl that was special to him made her happy. Not that she had ever been carnally attracted to Bardock. It was never that way. They just watched out for each other. It was almost an unspoken agreement. Neither of them had really known their parents, and it was nice to know someone cared. Then, she met Tora. She and he were almost inseparable. He meant something different to her than Bardock did, though Tora didn't really acknowledge her feelings. She knew any sort of attraction between them was forbidden. And even when she had her eye on Tora, she was able to keep the other on Bardock. She didn't forget him. In the back of her mind she had always known that Bardock would find someone he liked eventually. She just didn't want him to forget her. She hadn't forgotten him. She never would.