Age 763

Planet Earth

Articho stared at Gomana without a single blink. One after another, every single possible emotion ran through his mind. Anger, disgust, shock, confusion, fear.

Fear.

Obviously, he had felt it before, but it was always wrapped up and shoved away, excused with one circumstance or another. But, deeper and deeper in desperation, witnessing someone he believed to have been a loyal ally having just taken his last advantage away from him, one fear after another settled in. Fear that he was on the precipice of defeat, fear that the master plan for his entire life was collapsing before his eyes. Fear of death.

Articho had experienced fear, but he had never experienced being overwhelmed with fear.

And so, he did not know how to react. Only after several seconds did he manage to mutter out his first words:

"Go-Gomana?"

It was hardly any easier for her. When Gomana arrived to the battlefield, she witnessed Earth's defenders struggling and failing against a transformed, unbelievably powerful Articho. Her doubts, her uncertainty, it all burst back forth, especially as she knew that whichever side she ultimately decided to help would see the scales tipped in their favour.

Then, she found Caesa. She found Margar. And, to her surprise, they weren't dead. Beaten, battered, knocked out, sure. But they were still alive - at a time when it actually mattered, Gohan had actually held his bargain.

And so, she now stood here. In response to Articho's baffled words, Gomana swiftly raised her hand and activated her Psycho Threads – they instantly wrapped around the Saiyan's upper body and restrained his arms. Immediately, he began to struggle, though to no avail, and the shock in his mind faded in favour of fury. With a weaker voice, after a heavy breath, he yelled:

"Traitor!"

Though briefly frightened by the venom in Articho's voice, Gomana shot back at him:

"Articho, listen! I'm-I'm doing this for you! And all of us!"

In the distance, Gohan was watching the confrontation – right before the slash, he saw Gomana advancing towards the giant ape, and now, still exhausted and weak, he could only watch the conflict between the two former team members unfold.

"You bastard, I was just about to finish them off! Now you took away our last chance and they're going to kill both of us!"

"They're not going to kill any of us!"

"What? Are you nuts? What are you talking about?!"

"I've-" Gomana paused in the middle of her yell, considering what to say. The situation was very delicate, and Articho's anger was overflowing – yet, she hoped that she could convince him to stand down, somehow. "I've talked to one of them. The child, Gohan. They're... more than meets the eye. They're the one who stopped Frieza, put an end to his rule from the good of their heart! That's... that's the people who should be our allies! Together, we could actually achieve a better Galaxy, a more peaceful Galaxy! And that..."

Briefly, she pulled the Psycho Threads with more vigour than before, forcing them to tighten around Articho.

"...and that's what we both agreed we want, right? A Galaxy... that can move past Frieza, that can be better, even if just a little... They fought for that. They're now among the strongest in the Universe, too – and..."

It was getting difficult for her to continue – she was increasingly at a loss for words, justifying her actions as much to herself as she did to the Saiyan. Taking deep breaths, slower and slower, Articho stared at her, and for a few seconds, he remained silent. Any hope Gomana might have had that he got actually convinced was then shattered:

"Gomana... we trusted you. And you broke our trust, for good."

As if struck by a dagger to her heart, the Heran princess briefly shook, but with a stomp on the ground with her foot, she replied:

"I-I know... and that's why I thought that I must do this! That... that you might listen to me!"

Slowly, the other Earthlings pulled themselves off the ground once more – although the last pummelling left them weakened and resting, only Gohan was still standing on his feet. Watching the verbal confrontation between Articho and Gomana, he could tell that it was not going well for his friend – and, seeing the Saiyan transform back to his normal state alleviate some of the fear he felt. So, cutting both of the soldiers off, he suddenly yelled:

"Hey!"

Right as they turned their attention to him, Gohan continued. "You're a Saiyan, aren't you? I don't get it, why are you still waging conquests as if you were under Frieza's orders? He destroyed your entire species!"

Briefly taken aback by the blunt demand, Articho yelled back almost instantly. "I told you, child, I don't care for what happened to my-"

"And does it not matter to you that..." suddenly, he was cut off. It was Piccolo – with the entire upper half of his gi torn apart and revealing barren green skin, he slowly pulled himself out of the rubble that the giant ape had left him in, and spoke slowly. "...that the one who defeated Frieza was one of your kind? A Super Saiyan?"

This declaration left Articho pausing for longer – he stared at the Namekian with a puzzled expression on his face. It was around this time that the toll of the Psycho Threads finally began to build up, too – it was turning more and more difficult to stay standing and prevent himself from dropping to the ground from exhaustion. Every second he could not break the magical hold drained him of more and more of his energy, all while adding all of it as new power to Gomana's body.

"You're... you're joking..." the Saiyan muttered out, giving a few more pushes to the threads restraining his body, again, to no avail. "The Super Saiyan... is just a fairy tale..."

Yet, somehow, it made a lick of sense. From the very beginning, he could imagine that whoever managed to match and surpass Frieza in his full strength must something... legendary. No ordinary person could have possibly reached hundreds of millions of units of battle power...

Having anticipated this answer, Gohan replied almost immediately:

"Frieza thought so too, and he saw my dad achieve that transformation right before his eyes."

"Gohan told me everything," Gomana joined after him. "His father became the Super Saiyan. That's the person that we've always anticipated, and feared, the one who defeated Frieza... but if only you reconsider, we could become allies with this Super Saiyan's allies! We could... finally clear the Galaxy from these villains, and bandits, and warlords, and... build something better..."

A... Saiyan on Earth... Does she mean that... Kakarot...?

Articho did not answer. His eyes turned towards the Heran princess. Gomana still could not tell whether she was getting through into his teammate's head. Though she could always cooperate with the defenders of Earth herself, after all those years fighting alongside someone she couldn't help but admire, she could hardly imagine becoming his enemy along the way. So, after briefly gritting her teeth, she suddenly yelled out:

"Please, Articho! Please..."

"I..." weakly, struggling with his words from the exhaustion, the Saiyan muttered.

"I... I won't... listen to... to a traitor..."

His body could no longer go on. Unconscious, it collapsed to the ground, letting the Psycho Thread restraints harmlessly drop to the ground around him like loose strings.

For the Earthlings, it was a chance to breathe a sigh of relief. Gomana, meanwhile, looked down at her Captain's body, one emotion after another flooding through her as her eyes took in the sight. Hatred, at herself of course, for having been unable to join the fight soon enough, or convince Articho what must be done. Worry for what will happen next. Yet... a tinge, just a tinge of freedom. And hope.

"I've put all three of my teammates back in the ship, they'll be in stasis for the entire journey. I'm sorry, but while you might have your grievances towards them, I can't imagine myself letting any of them die."

Peace had finally settled across the wastelands. The soldiers staffing the ship were not difficult to intimidate into listening to the Heran soldier's orders – they quickly picked up the defeated fighters and put them into pods to keep them there for the upcoming journey. The Earthlings, on the other hand, used other means to get their friends back on their feet – soon after the battle, a fat dark-haired man arrived to the battleground, driving a flying car, and dropped off a bag of beans to Gohan's hands. Giving a single beam to one of the downed fighters was enough to recover all of their wounds and stamina instantly.

It must be something similar to Caesa's injections, just a plant, rather than a synthetic agent... If these beans are common on this planet, I might have to collect a few of them myself.

Tien, Yamcha, Chiaotzu and Krillin all rose up from the ground, and alongside Piccolo and Gohan, gathered before Gomana before her departure. In brief terms, she had already explained her story – why she was here, and why did she join their side in spite of having served under Articho's wing.

"I still don't quite understand why," the Namekian responded to her declaration first, crossing his arms. "Your "comrades" are anything but good people." Gomana countered him by suddenly asking:

"You believe in redemption, right?"

That got Piccolo to stop for a second, briefly recalling his own sacrifice over a year ago. "So, you think..."

"I think that there's still a chance, that they might change. Even if I'm not there to see it, I'd... do a lot more good if I implant them with the suggestion, at least," Gomana finished his sentence.

"That Saiyan seemed anything but enthused with your "guidance", though," Tien added, with a sceptical tone. Krillin added:

"Yeah, do you, uh, have any plan about that? To make sure he doesn't just kill you when he wakes up?"

The soldier looked back at him, staying silent for a few seconds. Finally, after a sigh, she glanced away and answered:

"...I'll give it some thought as I leave."

"Well, I'm not going to lie, this isn't quite what I expected this confrontation to end like," Yamcha spoke up, trying to liven up the mood with something more light-hearted. "All the other times that visitors from space touched down on our planet, every single one of them were total bastards."

"Yeah, and I have to thank all of you, too – Gohan, especially," Gomana answered back, putting on a faint smile. "I think... I have a clearer idea of what I want to achieve in this Galaxy now. I'm not sure if we will get a chance to meet again, at least anytime soon, but..."

"Wait!" Gohan called out, getting the Heran soldier to stop before she turned around and departed towards their ship.

"What is it, Gohan?"

"I... can I ask you something?" After Gomana answered with a nod and a smile, Gohan continued. "You... you're going to be travelling through space now, right? If you... find any trace of my father, can you find him and tell him to return home?"

"Your..." the soldier repeated his words, letting the end of the sentence hang. "Wait, but you told me that your father was caught by Namek's explosion..."

"That's what we thought, and perhaps he was, but later, we... well, we were informed that he is still alive, and is merely training somewhere deep in outer space," Piccolo explained, pausing once to hide their usage of the Dragon Balls. "Gohan has the right idea. If you want to set things right in the Galaxy, perhaps finding Goku would improve your chances. I'm sure he'd be interested in helping you."

"He's been gone for over a year now..." Gohan mumbled, in a much more sombre tone than before. Looking down at the young half-Saiyan, Gomana stared at him, then her face brightened up and she answered:

"Of course, Gohan. I'll tell your father to return to Earth if I ever find him."

"-ah!"

As soon as he woke up, Articho jumped from the mattress, his adrenaline spiking up – yet, once his blurry vision finally cleared, the Saiyan was left baffled. Where... am I? The last thing he remembered was passing out in the middle of the battle against the Earthlings, after Gomana's betrayal, that still made his blood boil – yet, he was in the middle of a squeaky clean and sanitary soldier barracks, surrounded by several empty beds designed for Frieza's troops. Dim lighting shone overhead, and a complete silence surrounded him.

When he looked down at his hands, he witnessed that he was only wearing his black jumpsuit, and all of his wounds were healed. Normally, waking up in an army base after losing in battle would, at least, provide a clear chain of events – he was rescued and brought back to base while still unconscious. Yet, there was no one to do so down on Earth, was there? He was surrounded, by Earthlings who were more powerful than him and a Gomana who appeared intent to finish him off. Caesa and Margar were either knocked out or away from the battle, and Articho could not imagine them being able to defeat all of the Earthlings by themselves.

Did... did it even happen?

Instinctively, Articho reached for his back. No, sadly, it was not a nightmare – there was a short stump where his tail used to be, with a smooth top that was left by Gomana's clean chop.

So, he had to come to terms with his own confusion. And defeat. Humiliating defeat.

Groaning, the Saiyan pulled himself off the barrack bed, setting his boots down on the metallic floor below. The doors on the other side of the room slid open with a familiar beep, letting through Caesa and Margar - both with a contemplative expression on their faces.

"Captain," the short Brenchian scientist stated first, stopping besides Articho's bed. The Saiyan turned his eyes towards him and answered:

"You're… both still alive…"

"Surprisingly, yes," Margar replied, then flashed a disappointed sneer. At least Articho managed to stay standing until the end of the fight - for the blue giant, who always saw himself as the muscle of the group, getting taken down by a child with a single attack was nothing short of a slap on the face.

The Saiyan placed his hand on his head, and muttered:

"What happened…? Where are we, even?"

"Well, the "where we are" is Planet Frieza 4169," Caesa answered, stepping away from the bed for a second and pressing a button on the nearby wall to slide open a bulb-like window. It displayed an arid desert landscape on the other side, illuminated by three stars, one blue and two yellow. "One of the most desolate bases of Frieza's former empire, hardly ever staffed by more than twenty or thirty soldiers - the closest of our bases to Earth."

"As for the "what happened", we were hoping you would explain that to us," Margar added. For a second, Articho stared at his teammates, his breathing turning slightly more tense as he recalled the end of the battle on Earth, then he turned away and said:

"Gomana, she… she betrayed us."

"Betrayed us?" Caesa repeated his words, with a baffled tone. Margar did not share his shock. With a frown on his face, he sighed and muttered to himself:

"Of course…"

"Right as I was about to finish off the Earthlings, she… joined their side. She cut my tail, forcing me out of my form, and drained my energy until I passed out," the Saiyan explained, then jumped to his feet. "Is she here?"

Caesa slowly shook his head. "The soldiers on the ship told us that she had saved our bodies and brought us to the ship, then, when they arrived to the nearest friendly base available, she took one of the Attack Balls and left. Nobody knows where she went."

She… rescued us? He didn't expect that finding out how he was still alive would give more questions than answers, and yet, here he was. Why would she… heal us, and let us go? That didn't make sense, factually. Why would you leave a possible threat to yourself alive and free?

While Articho got lost in his thoughts yet again, Caesa suddenly recalled something else. "Oh, and… there's one more thing. She left a message in the hands of the spaceship's staff - they were told that the message was written for you, specifically, so I kept it safe until you woke up. Perhaps it will give us a clue for what happened."

From underneath his belt, the Brenchian pulled out a folded piece of synthetic parchment, which he handed to his Saiyan commander. As soon as he unfolded the message, Articho began reading it out loud.

"To Articho, and if Caesa or Margar are reading this, then to you, too.

Having contemplated this for a long time now, I finally came to a decision. For the time being, I cannot stay a member of our team any longer, so consider this my letter of resignation.

It's a shame that this is how our times working together had to end, because, at the bottom of your heart, I am sure that you all have the capacity to be just a little bit better. Sadly, that is not how you act, and having languished under Frieza's rule for years, I cannot cope with people I deem friends ultimately seeking the same route. If we meet again, then I hope it will be as allies fighting together for a better Galaxy, and not as enemies.

I have left to search for the Super Saiyan, Son Goku. I have been told that he is a noble warrior who will help me make my dream come about, and as the hero who finally slew Frieza, he has the strength to do so, as well.

So long,

Gomana

Princess of Hera"

Right as Articho read the last words and stopped at her signature, he closed his eyes and folded the parchment in his hands, holding it between his palms as a ball, slowly squeezing it as one thought after another crossed his mind.

It was Margar who finally broke the silence after the letter reading, declaring:

"This was your mistake, Captain."

Both Articho and Caesa immediately turned to the reptilian alien, the Saiyan immediately shouting:

"Wait, what?"

"I warned you this whole time about Gomana, Articho. Even right before the mission, I told you that she is very dangerous. She never had the character necessary for our team - and so, we all now suffer the price of you being lenient towards her."

"Are you kidding?! That's besides the point, we-"

"Lord Frieza would have executed someone like her long before she became a problem."

Slammed in the face by that statement, Articho stood in the middle of the room, baffled, shocked and frustrated - not just as Margar, but just as much at himself. The blue giant, on the other hand, sighed and turned towards the exit.

"I'm going to leave this planet, for some time. I need to think about my future."

"Wait, Margar, you can't just leave, you have duties in our-"

"You can hand them over to the other soldiers. I won't be returning to our base for a while."

Left silent once again, Articho watched Margar leave through the sliding door. No doubt, he was about to take a pod and vanish somewhere to the endless vastness of space just like Gomana had. For a few seconds, the Saiyan stared at the door, struggling to believe what happened - until, finally, he sighed in defeat and glanced over to Caesa.

"If you're planning to leave the team as well, say it now."

It was Caesa's turn to remain in silence - but, after a few seconds, he answered:

"I'm not going anywhere, Captain. However, this isn't the only world-shattering news I have for you today…"

AN: The first two arcs of the story are finally over, we're starting to get into the meat of things, I would greatly appreciate any thoughts, reviews or comments - and thanks to you all for staying with this story!